The University of Tennessee at Martin (UTM) implemented a Maymester this year as part of an effort to increase summer school revenue. The time frame was a three week period beginning the Monday immediately after spring semester graduation. Students were allowed to enroll in a maximum of six credit hours at a rate of $221/semester hour. A minimum of ten enrolled students was required for class continuation. That yielded a minimum of $6630 per 3-hour class. The faculty were remunerated at a rate of $4,000 per course taught. (If the class had fewer than ten students the faculty had the option of a prorated salary.) According to the UTM Faculty Handbook summer school pay is to be based upon a percentage of the nine-month contract pay. Remuneration for a 3-hour course is calculated as 12.5% of the nine-month salary.
For many faculty teaching in the Maymester the payment of $4,000 per course resulted in pay above their regular summer pay but for many more it resulted in a decrease in pay. The Faculty Handbook was violated by not referring in anyway to the Maymester as summer school. No administrator from the Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs to the Deans (with the exception of mine) referred to the Mayester as anything but Mayester. Faculty accepted the pay without too much argument because of the shortened time-frame of three weeks.
Originally the projected net income from Mayester was in the neighborhood of $250,000. The actual net income almost doubled the projection to approximately $400,000. By squeezing another term into the academic calendar and cutting the total faculty remuneration UTM was able to realize a significant amount of net income. The venture was so successful that it is being implemented again this year.
References
Personal communications with Dr. Rich Helgeson, Interim Dean, College of Engineering and Natural Science and Dr. Jerald Ogg, Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs, University of Tennessee at Martin.
For many faculty teaching in the Maymester the payment of $4,000 per course resulted in pay above their regular summer pay but for many more it resulted in a decrease in pay. The Faculty Handbook was violated by not referring in anyway to the Maymester as summer school. No administrator from the Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs to the Deans (with the exception of mine) referred to the Mayester as anything but Mayester. Faculty accepted the pay without too much argument because of the shortened time-frame of three weeks.
Originally the projected net income from Mayester was in the neighborhood of $250,000. The actual net income almost doubled the projection to approximately $400,000. By squeezing another term into the academic calendar and cutting the total faculty remuneration UTM was able to realize a significant amount of net income. The venture was so successful that it is being implemented again this year.
References
Personal communications with Dr. Rich Helgeson, Interim Dean, College of Engineering and Natural Science and Dr. Jerald Ogg, Vice Chancellor of Academic Affairs, University of Tennessee at Martin.
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