VIDEO: Faculty and Staff Town Hall
Questions about pay equity, Pearson and, as always, parking are among the many answered by UND administrators at Town Hall
Editor’s note: On Wednesday, May 1, UND held a Town Hall meeting via Zoom for faculty and staff. A video of the Town Hall (with closed captions available) is above, while below is a list of the questions that are asked and answered in the video, with time stamps for readers’ reference accompanying each question.
The following questions are asked and answered in the Faculty & Staff Town Hall. In addition, several questions were asked and answered after the conclusion of the Town Hall. Those questions and their answers can be found after the time-stamped list of Town Hall questions below.
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08:53: So, the first question we have is, is there an updated timeline on the project that has taken away from the west row of parking spaces in the small parking lot between Carnegie and Babcock halls? The initial announcement was that the west row would be taken up until Jan. 16, 2024, but the questioner hasn’t seen an updated timeline.
09:52: Someone heard that the Columbia Road Overpass repairs are coming up; the planners were hoping that two lanes of the bridge could be kept open this summer, but the following year might be a different story. Can you give us an update?
11:24: The next question is regarding our relationship with the (education and publishing services company) Pearson. What is the current relationship status with Pearson? People are hearing that many programs are moving out of the Pearson program and going strictly online through UND. Can you give us an update on that?
16:20: Our next question is regarding the Energy & Environmental Research Center. The staff has said that we’re taking down some buildings, and there will be a new addition to the main EERC building. If that’s true, could we could we hear more about it and when it’ll begin?
18:08: The next question is about the Huron Compensation Study. What factors – such as national vs. regional salaries for similar positions – were considered in the study? And did we consider any gender equity gaps among individuals in similar roles, based on years of experience?
22:52: The next question goes back to the EERC. The question is, what is the Heartland Hydrogen Hub, and what is the UND EERC’s role in the $925 million funding from the Department of Energy? What is the EERC doing, and what is the actual amount of money that’s likely to come to UND and the EERC for this role?
26:25: The next question is about parking. Parking on campus continues to be a huge pain point. Available spaces are already inadequate to meet people’s needs, and construction in or near lots has reduced the number of spaces even further, to the point where you cannot park reasonably close to where you work.
What can we expect to see for some pain relief in the form of real parking solutions?
27:29: It would be helpful if we could provide an update on our Health Professions study. When will we know which departments are being considered part of the new addition?
28:45: One more question regarding the Huron Consulting compensation study. What was the decision-making process, and how did we select Huron to do the study?
31:16: When does UND anticipate the Free Application for Federal Student Aid or FAFSA disbursements, both for incoming new students and returning students, will be going out?
34:33: What is UND’s position on the Palestinian solidarity encampments that are happening at so many other institutions? How is UND working to support students, especially to protect students’ right to protest?
39:10: When looking at pay differentials across groups at UND, are we looking at how service work is incentivized and monetized? Traditionally, women do more of this work, and it’s rarely considered in terms of promotion or pay raises.
How is UND working to make service workloads more equitable across all genders and also more valuable in terms of counting toward promotion and pay?
40:10: President Armacost, there have been numerous reports about the loss of tenured faculty nationwide in higher education in general. What is your opinion regarding the issue of tenure at present and going forward for UND faculty?
45:52: The next question is back to the planned Columbia Bridge closure for maintenance. The statement is, “I’m afraid the closure will still impact UND, as most staff are here all summer long as well as some faculty and some students and the administration. With the horrible delays on 42nd by the train stopping traffic completely for extended periods of time, the only routes to take would be the interstate or Washington Street, which will not only be inconvenient but worrisome, in case of an emergency. How is this being addressed?”
46:57: What are we doing for the retention of our current employees and hiring of new employees on campus right now? This individual’s department is down several positions, and employees, they say, just keep leaving. Moreover, they’re doing the same work or more work for the same salary, even though enrollment is up.
49:34: What is the long range plan for guest parking at the Fritz Pollard Athletic Center and the new athletic facilities across the street to the north of the center? At the Pollard, many school buses and personal vehicles are parked on the street during recent track events.
Also, are there any plans to build new parking lots on campus?
50:32: Do we have an idea about when the findings by the parking consultant will be made available?
51:05: We talked about the process if there were to be protests on campus, but this question is, what about the protection of Jewish students, faculty and staff on our campus?
55:27: What can we expect for the range of merit-pay percentages this year?
56:30: Will the job architecture include a process to retain staff? The questioner states, “It’s getting harder and harder to retain staff when new positions are posted at UND that require less minimum experience requirements, less responsibility and yet pay more than the staff in those current positions with five years or more of experience are getting.”
59:34: Are years of experience outside of UND considered in these hiring processes?
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The following questions also were submitted but weren’t able to be answered in full during the hour-long Town Hall.
Question: Is public data available on incidents targeting either Jewish members of campus or Arab or Muslim members?
Answer from Rodney Clark, associate vice president for public safety and chief of police: There are federal stats put out overall on hate crimes nationwide by the Department of Justice. The link is here.
More importantly, here is the link to UND’s Annual Security and Fire Safety report, which we send to the Department of Education every year.
Over the past 4 years UND has seen one crime classified as a hate crime under Department of Education definitions. This crime was classified a hate crime by sexual orientation of the victim, we have had none classified by religion or any other reason since I have been here.
Question: What is UND’s position on the Palestinian solidarity encampments that are happening at so many other institutions? How is UND working to support students, especially to protect students’ right to protest?
Answer from Art Malloy, vice president for student affairs, and offered as a supplement to the answer provided in the video: UND continues to support the First Amendment rights of all students. The Office of Student Affairs provides open office hours that allow students to walk in with concerns, problem, issues, and so on.
We remain hopeful for a peaceful resolution to the issues in Gaza and Israel and will continue to provide individual and group support for affected students and all other students. Students can find support across campus including support from faculty, the International Center, Student Diversity and Inclusion, Counseling Center and other offices.
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At the Town Hall, Associate Vice President for Finance Odella Fuqua had prepared for a question about MIRA, the Model for Incentive-based Resource Allocation that UND uses, and the model’s approaches to positive operating results. Below is the answer that she prepared.
Thank you for the finance question.
I believe this question is talking about the practice in an incentive-based budget model (MIRA), revenue generating units are allowed to retain any positive operating results as a reserve. These positive operating results can be the result of numerous factors, e.g., growth in undergraduate paid student credit hours, growth in graduate enrollment net of graduate waivers, increase in external grants & contracts awards allowing for expenses to be shifted to grants & contracts funds and off appropriated funding, needing less operating expenses to operate, etc.
The operating results are calculated once a year at the close of the fiscal year. If the operating results are positive, they increase the unit’s reserve balance and subtract if the operating results are negative.
At the end of the last fiscal year (2023), the College of Arts & Sciences had $12.5 million as the reserve fund balance. The State Board of Higher Education requires UND to retain a 5-7% undesignated reserve, so UND administration has recommended that revenue generating units also follow this practice of retaining 5-7% undesignated reserve.
Any balance above that reserve can be used by the unit with the alignment to the UND Strategic Plan and support of UND administration.
I would encourage you to meet with Arts & Sciences Dean Brad Rundquist or Robert Tollefson, chief business officer in the College of Arts & Sciences, to discuss the current college plans for these reserves as the model stops at the college level.
Every year, UND reports the anticipated usage of any reserve balances by categories such as undesignated reserve, accreditation, sustainability, and so on. Central finance reaches out to each of these revenue generating units to provide their plans under each of these categories.
One of the main benefits of this budget model is transparency. It is very clear how resources are flowing throughout the university.
Sarah Abentroth, director of Resource Planning & Allocation, and I would be happy to meet with anyone who wants to be walked through the model and how resources flow. We love to talk about finance with other finance enthusiasts.
