Report: University of Iowa sees increase in 2016 faculty resignations when compared to 2015

The University of Iowa last year again saw an increase in faculty resignations, pushing the annual total to its highest in at least a decade and supporting UI President Bruce Harreld's push for improved faculty compensation.

'Iowa's going to have to deal with this,” Harreld told The Gazette earlier this month after speaking at the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance's annual meeting.

Citing dwindling state support for the public universities, including a recent legislative decision to rescind millions of already-allocated dollars in the current budget year, Harreld said his institution is reshuffling and reprioritizing spending to keep faculty happily employed.

'If we're going to be competitive (nationally), we've got to stop the exodus of faculty, and we need to bring new talent in,” he said.

But a new Board of Regents report made public Tuesday shows UI resignations are continuing. In the 2016 budget year, 94 UI faculty members resigned, up from 90 in 2015. That 90 represented a spike from 2014, when 66 people resigned - which was in line with the UI resignation average of 68.4.

Iowa State University, which has more students but fewer faculty members, saw its resignation total drop from 33 in 2015 to 24 last year. University of Northern Iowa, which is much smaller than both UI and ISU, saw its resignations climb but remain fairly low - rising from seven in 2015 to 15 last year.

When faculty members resign from the three universities, the institutions try to collect exit information about their experience on campus and why they left. The primary reason stated for resignation from UI in the 2016 budget year was to accept a job at another university - cited by 52 people, or 55 percent of those who provided exit information, according to the new regent report.

At Iowa State, the main reasons for resignation included 'dissatisfaction with departmental environment (which may include dissatisfaction with departmental leadership), lack of perceived advancement opportunities, and dissatisfaction regarding salary,” according to the report.

Regarding salary, six of the 17 ISU faculty who provided exit information said they were leaving for another job that pays 'much higher.” Five said they were taking a new post that pays 'somewhat higher” than Iowa State.

Across the three campuses in the last budget year, the total 133 resignations included 20 professors, 48 associate professors, 62 assistant professors, and three instructors.

The resignations included 47 tenured faculty members, 35 tenure-track faculty, 49 clinical track employees, and two others, according to the regent report. The percentage of tenured faculty on the campuses has been declining in recent years, while non-tenure-track faculty totals are rising, according to recent regent reports.

The Board of Regents' name - and thus the universities it oversees - took a hit in 2015 and 2016 when the American Association of University Professors sanctioned the University of Iowa for the board's hiring of UI President Harreld. The board chose Harreld over three other candidates despite opposition from faculty, staff, and students - violating AAUP shared governance values.

In addition to the national sanction, faculty and student leadership councils passed votes of 'no confidence” in the governing board.

Almost immediately after UI President Harreld started in fall 2015, he began pushing the need for improved faculty pay - launching what he called a 'faculty vitality” initiative. Last summer, Harreld initiated a new budgeting process, giving deans and program leaders more reign to prioritize their spending - urging faculty retention as a primary aim.

Other UI efforts to retain faculty include responding quickly with counteroffers when 'productive faculty members” are recruited away, supporting faculty activities through fundraising and private gifts, promoting quality benefit packages, and targeting merit pay raises, according to the report.

By way of recruiting, UI has partnered with Iowa State and UNI to develop a regional consortium aimed at advertising open positions and making it easier for candidates to move their families.

The university has landed some big names - including Ted Abel, an internationally renowned neuroscientist from the University of Pennsylvania and its Biological Basis of Behavior Program. Abel on Jan. 1 started as director of the UI-based Iowa Neuroscience Institute.

But, Harreld told The Gazette, 'For every Ted Abel, we have more going out right now. So we've got to stop that.”

All three regent universities are in the process of cutting their current budgets - after lawmakers in January agreed to $117.8 million in de-appropriations in response to a budget shortfall. That amounted to $18 million from the regent universities - or $8 million each from UI and ISU and $2 million from UNI.

With those cuts and future state support in question, Harreld said, upping faculty pay will be challenging.

'We're going to have to take some things down while taking certain things up - and salaries are one of them,” he said.

l Comments: (319) 339-3158; vanessa.miller@thegazette.com