Like many states, Minnesota has incurred large budget deficits during the past two years. Those deficits have, in turn, led to changes in a number of areas of state government, particularly higher education. Faculty have incurred pay freezes and layoffs, programs have closed, and tuition increased. Campuses within the MnSCU system have been…

As districts face another year of budget gaps, hundreds of thousands of teachers have been warned that, come the end of the school year, their jobs may be gone. In a policy now termed "LIFO" or "last in, first out," most districts make layoff decisions based on seniority and not on job performance or effectiveness. Using…

Midcareer change programs and alternatives for early retirement for college faculty are considered based on the current situation of declining or stable student enrollments, diminished faculty mobility, and increased numbers of tenured faculty. Midcareer change programs fall into two general categories: (1) retraining programs designed to enable…

The involuntary release of about 100 tenured faculty at Michigan State University in 1981 was avoided through implementation of a plan of financial incentives for early faculty retirement. The plan is explained from the viewpoint of its author, with colleague comments included. (MSE)

The rapid expansion of Ontario's educational system in the 1960s serves as a base for this study of the current decline in enrollment and its consequences. This paper examines two results of the concentration of manpower in teaching: the need for reduction in force and the potential burden on the retirement system. The author makes several…

A variety of incentives offered to faculty to leave an institution in difficult financial circumstances are outlined. They include: liberalizing the actuarial pension reduction, lump-sum severance payments, annuity enhancements, phased retirement, retirement perquisites, retraining for outplacement, paid retraining, and earnings supplements during…

A questionnaire and interviews were used to assess personal and professional characteristics of 97 Canadian college faculty reaching age 65 in 2000-2010. It measured career satisfaction, interest in a career alternatives program, and retirement plans. A significant proportion of respondents found little satisfaction in academe and would consider a…

The University of Salford's financial crisis of 1981-84 and the personnel policies and decisions made at that time are discussed, including spending and nonacademic reductions, construction of an academic plan, retirement and severance options, part-time appointments, temporary and self-financing appointments, and temporary promotions. (MSE)