Cornell University has made substantial progress in its multi-year faculty improvement plan, with salaries for continuing faculty increasing 8.1 percent in 2001-02, compared with the university's overall goal of 8 percent, President Hunter Rawlings announced today (April 17, 2002).

Endowed college salaries increased 7 percent in 2001-02, the single largest increase in its selected peer group, Rawlings said. The peer group average was 4.4 percent, according to preliminary data from the American Association of University Professors (AAUP).

Cornell contract college salaries increased by 6.5 percent in 2001-02, the second largest percent increase in the selected peer group, behind Texas A&M. The peer group average increased by 2.6 percent, largely attributable to very modest increases in many of the public institutions, Rawlings said.

"This is good news," Rawlings said. "It means that we are on track with our salary improvement plan. Cornell's reputation for excellence is built on the excellence of its faculty, and we are committed to attracting and retaining a world-class faculty. This program is essential to that objective."

Provost Biddy Martin noted that the goal for the salary improvement program is to reach the average of the peer groups -- selected by the Financial Policies Committee of the Faculty Senate -- by the end of a five-year period for the endowed colleges and a six-year period for the contract colleges.

"The college deans and I have agreed on college specific goals for continuing faculty for 2002-03, which will result in an aggregate university goal of a 7.8 percent increase," Martin said. "This was based on college-specific, discipline-based market data using at least the selected peer groups. Individual increases will be based on college-specific measures of merit."

The new data results in Cornell's endowed colleges moving from ninth to eighth place in its 11-peer group, moving ahead of the University of California at Los Angeles. The contract colleges also moved from ninth to eighth place in its 11-peer group, moving ahead of Ohio State. (See accompanying charts for comparative salaries at peer institutions.)

Cornell's average salary for all faculty ranks in the endowed colleges is now 6.8 percent behind the peer average as compared with 9.1 percent behind the average last year. Full professors still lag the most at 10.5 percent below the full professor peer average, while both associate and assistant professors are now slightly above the peer average by rank.

Cornell's average salary for all faculty ranks in the contract colleges is now 5.7 percent behind the peer average as compared with 9.1 percent behind the average last year. Full professors still lag the most at 8.8 percent below the full professor peer average, while both associate and assistant professors are now slightly above the peer average by rank.

The 2001-02 data also shows that endowed continuing faculty salaries increased 8.4 percent on average, while contract continuing faculty salaries grew 7.7 percent on average.