COHE Alert!

February 9, 2010
Greetings!

I want to bring your attention to this urgent matter.   The South Dakota House Appropriations Committee will be considering a bill to increase state employees' salaries by 1.2% (HB 1234) this Friday, February 12.  This legislation is a vehicle to increase our pay for next year. 
 
SDEA's staff and officers are currently lobbying for passage of this bill.  They will also be testifying in strong support of this proposed legislation. 
 
We can assist these efforts by calling or writing legislators.  Please consider contacting your legislators to express your support for this bill.  It is imperative they hear from you this week!

In particular, you should contact members of the committee.   (When you click on their name, their contact information will appear at the very bottom of the page, so please scroll down.)

As always, when you communicate with legislators, you should indicate that you are speaking on your own behalf as an individual citizen and not as a representative of your university.  Also, we advise you to use personal--not state--equipment when you speak with legislators.  (For example, please use a personal not a university email address.)
 
Just tell your story about why faculty should have an increase in salary, including the fact that South Dakota faculty salaries continue to rank dead last among the states in comprehensive public university salaries (51st, including D.C.).  
 
Moreover, we are not all in the same boat; some states are doing better and some doing worse.  Our colleagues in Nebraska, North Dakota, and Minnesota will get at least a 3% COLA this year.
 
Now is the best time for South Dakota to move forward to recruit and retain our terrific faculty.  If we want to produce the best college graduates, we need the best faculty.  To have the best faculty, we need to pay them appropriately.
 
Your brother in defense of faculty rights,
Gary Aguiar