Summer Compensation: Minimum Enrollment and Proration

May 16, 2016

JOINT STATEMENT from Bowling Green State University and Bowling Green State University-Faculty Association Regarding Summer Compensation

Recently, an issue was raised regarding faculty compensation for summer courses that have not reached minimum enrollment. Article 17, Section 8.2 of the collective bargaining agreement between Bowling Green State University and the BGSU Faculty Association provides that faculty are to be paid 1/38 of their base nine-month salary per summer credit hour taught.

The University has the right to cancel the course if minimum enrollment numbers are not reached. The faculty also has the right to refuse to teach a course if it has not reached minimum enrollment. Historically, the University has offered under–enrolled courses to faculty at a reduced compensation rate. The University is not obligated to do so. Effectively, this practice has occurred outside of the contract. The Faculty Association has accepted this process because it is an additional benefit to faculty to have the option to teach under-enrolled courses at a reduced rate - otherwise the course could be withdrawn and faculty would have no ability to teach that course during the summer.

Generally, adjustments to compensation for undersubscribed courses follow the proration schedule. However, some colleges have modified this matrix as a matter of past practice. The University shall continue this past practice and any college-specific proration practice.

Faculty members, at the time they receive their summer teaching contract, may check online (through their Canvas shell or request assistance from academic support staff in their unit to check enrollment through CSS) to determine the enrollment level of their summer courses. Based upon past practice, if enrollment subsequently went down, the faculty member was guaranteed the prorated salary corresponding to the enrollment level when the faculty member signed the contract. Based upon past practice, if enrollment subsequently increased, the faculty member received summer compensation based on the increased enrollment. These past practices will continue to be applied now and in the future. Thus, faculty members are protected against decreased enrollment after signing the contract and will receive the benefit of any increased enrollment after signing the contract.

Faculty members should accept or refuse their summer teaching contract within three (3) business days of receipt. Should a faculty member choose to not teach a prorated course, the University may follow the academic unit's summer teaching policy and offer the prorated teaching opportunity to the next available individual according to academic unit's prioritization of summer teaching opportunities. This practice would provide other faculty with the opportunity to teach a summer course.

If anyone has any questions they may contact Dr. Phil Stinson (Phil.Stinson@bgsu-fa.org) on behalf of the Faculty Association.