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New Mexico State University

May 31, 2007 Extension Update

Dear Extension Faculty and Staff:

Many have asked if there is news about this salary exercise. I am happy to report that the Salary Process and Guidelines for 2007-08 were sent out to all Extension Department Heads and District Directors yesterday, Wednesday, May 30th, the process is underway. For the 2007-2008 fiscal year, total dollars allocated for annual salary adjustments are equivalent to a 5% overall salary increase. For non-exempt staff, the 5% salary increase is composed of a 4.5% cost of living adjustment and a .5% increase that creates a pool to be allocated for performance. For Exempt staff and faculty, the 5% salary increase is comprised of a 1.5% cost of living adjustment and a 3.5% increase that creates a pool to be allocated for performance and/or equity adjustments.  All cost of living, performance, promotion and designated equity adjustments are effective July 1, 2007. Below are the salary process guidelines for the different employee classifications.  

The salary process for non-exempt staff will be administered by Extension Department Heads/District Directors according to the guidelines listed below in accordance with the contractual agreement between the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) and New Mexico State University.  

  1. Employees hired before April 1, 2007 are entitled to a 4.5% cost of living adjustment.
  2. Employees hired on or before January 1, 2007 are eligible for performance adjustments as qualified by their performance evaluation.
  3. Exceptions:
    • All eligible employees with a base salary less than $30,000,  prior to July 1, 2007, must receive a 5% increase.
    • Employees hired on or after April 1, 2007 are not eligible for either a cost of living or performance increase.
    • Employees on Long Term Disability (LTD) or Leave Without Pay (LWOP) status for 6 months or more during the review period are not eligible for a performance adjustment.
 

The salary process for exempt staff will be administered by Extension Department Heads/District Directors according to the guidelines listed below. Exceptions to these guidelines require prior approval from the Executive Vice President/Provost's Office.  

  1. Employees hired before April 1, 2007 are entitled to a 1.5% cost of living adjustment.
  2. Performance adjustments for employees hired before January 1, 2007 may range from 0% to 7% as qualified by their performance evaluations.
    • In order to receive a performance adjustment, employees must have an overall rating of satisfactory or above.
    • A performance increase greater than 3.5% must be balanced with a corresponding decrease in performance dollars from other eligible employees in the pool.
  3. Exceptions:
    • All exempt staff with a base salary less than $30,000, prior to July 1, 2007, must receive a minimum of a 5% increase.
    • Employees hired on or after April 1, 2007 are not eligible for either a cost of living or performance increase.
    • Employees on Long Term Disability (LTD) or Leave Without Pay (LWOP) status for 6 months or more during the review period are not eligible for a performance adjustment.
    • Dollars for employees terminating prior to July 1, 2007 and for vacant positions are not included in the salary pool.
  4. Other uses of Exempt Staff performance pool:
    • Non-recurring adjustment, such as lump sum awards or bonuses may be funded from the performance pool utilizing a One-Time Payment request form in compliance with the Employees Recognition Program (NMSU Policy 8.15.10)
    • Equity or market adjustments may be allocated or set aside utilizing performance pool with written justification and approval from the appropriate administrator (i.e. Vice President, Dean, etc.)
    • All dollars from the performance pool must be utilized for items 4.a and 4.b during the 2007/08 fiscal year.
 

The salary process for Extension Faculty will be administered by Extension Department Heads/District Directors according to the guidelines listed below. Exceptions to these guidelines require prior approval from the Executive Vice President/Provost's Office.

  1. Faculty hired before January 1, 2007 are entitled to a 1.5% cost of living adjustment.
  2. Performance adjustments for faculty hired on or before October 1, 2006 may range from 0% to 7% as qualified by their performance evaluations.
    • In order to receive a performance adjustment, employees must have an overall rating of satisfactory or above.
    • A performance increase greater than 3.5% must be balanced with a corresponding decrease in performance dollars from other eligible employees in the pool.
  3. Exceptions:
    • All faculty with a base salary less than $30,000, prior to July 1, 2007, must receive a minimum of a 5% increase.
    • Employees hired on or after January 15, 2007 are not eligible for either a cost of living or performance increase.
      •  
    • Employees on Long Term Disability (LTD) or Leave Without Pay (LWOP) status for 6 months or more during the review period are not eligible for a performance adjustment.
      •  
    • Dollars for employees terminating prior to July 1, 2007 and for vacant positions are not included in the salary pool.
  4. Other uses of faculty performance pool:
    • Non-recurring adjustment, such as lump sum awards or bonuses may be funded from the performance pool utilizing a One-Time Payment request form in compliance with the Employees Recognition Program (NMSU Policy 8.15.10)
    • Equity or market adjustments may be allocated or set aside utilizing performance pool with written justification and approval from the appropriate Dean or Campus Executive Officer.
    • All dollars from the performance pool must be utilized for items 4.a and 4.b during the 2007/08 fiscal year
    • Promotions may NOT be funded utilizing the performance pool.

 

As department heads work through this years salary exercise I want to thank all of you for your hard work and commitment to NMSU Cooperative Extension-and the citizens of New Mexico. I know that our salaries on a whole are not the most competitive-we are trying to address this. I know that several individuals are feeling the salary compression squeeze-we will address this. I also believe that the contribution that you make to the individuals and communities in New Mexico is invaluable. Thank you!  

There has been a lot of good discussion lately around the issue of specialist being moved and/or some how combined with academic departments. These discussions have been fueled by the recent decisions by Dr. Ron Byford, Dr. Mark Wise and Dr. Grant Kinzer to step down as department heads of their respective departments. I would like to thank each of them for their service to the college and citizens of New Mexico. We discussed this issue/opportunity at length in both the recent Director's Advisory Board meeting and the recent Extension Self-directed Administrative Team meeting. The principal concerns that have been expressed surrounding the possibility of specialist being intergraded into academic departments, as I understand are: 1) County faculty will lose support and access to specialist as they become “absorbed” into the teaching/research agenda of the department—over time; 2)   Specialist will not fair well in academic departments as their contributions to scholarship will not be valued equally with their teaching/research colleagues; and 3) New Mexico citizens will lose out as the transfer of knowledge and technology from the university to the community breaks down—and our research becomes less relevant. I would not argue that these concerns are real, we can point to institutions that have combined their extension faculty with academic programs-and it did not serve extension well. I would also note that the decision to combine Extension into academic departments at these institutions was often a “budget/efficiency” decision made by administration. I would like to believe the discussion we are having now at NMSU regarding extension specialist/departments in College of Agriculture and Home Economics is different—very different.  I believe this in part because Dean Catlett has openly expressed his desire to engage college faculty in this discussion—“give me some ideas, some ideas that will enhance our ability to reach more of our publics, increase student credit hours, provide more programming throughout the state, and/or work with new and/or continuing partners.”  I also believe this is a real opportunity for extension faculty to define the strategic role that specialist play now and into the future in fulfilling the mission of the college and the university. Bottom line, NO decision has been made regarding moving specialist into academic departments—or vice versa. Bottom line, we/you have been given the opportunity to help define the strategic role that NMSU Cooperative Extension can play in enhancing the land-grant mission at NMSU. I have tried to give this some thoughtful consideration, and I do not believe this is about trying to justify the best organizational structure for “efficiency” and/or our needs, but rather, about defining clarity of purpose—what is our role in meeting the needs of the citizens of New Mexico—and is their a different “functional form” that will enhance our ability, the colleges and the universities to better serve the needs of the citizens of New Mexico. This is the dialogue that I would encourage all of you to participate in.   If you hear “stuff” that sounds like a rumor, get the facts—email and or call me and I will share with you what I know to be fact.  

Recently 69 agents responded to a Zoomerang survey asking to identify program priorities in preparation for 2008 legislative initiative development (Program Priority Survey Results). There were many thoughtful responses that can provide Extension with future programmatic direction. I have attached a summary of responses for your review and comment. We will be using these responses to develop/articulate both federal and state legislative initiatives over the next several years—with additional input from our constituents.  

Across the state, 125 Indian livestock producers participated in the two day New Mexico Indian Livestock Days held in Farmington May 16 & 17.  Producers heard talks on range management, low-stress cattle management, and animal damage control.  They witnessed live demonstrations on beef quality assurance, cattle condition scoring, animal identification, and horse training.  The most rewarding experience for these producers is always the interaction with other Native Americans from across the state, discussions on how they deal with their problems and the sharing of ideas. 

Paul