Office of Internal Communications
| April 5, 2005 Citing ongoing construction and a new relationship with The Methodist Hospital (TMH), University of Houston President Jay Gogue discussed UH's continued growth during the Faculty Senate Spring Assembly March 30. This fall, yet another aspect of UH could see a boost, Gogue said, as the university will propose a 4 percent pay raise pool for faculty and for staff. This salary increase proposal is included in the university’s FY2006 budget, which will be submitted to the UH System (UHS) Board of Regents in August for approval. If approved, the salary increases will be drawn from two separate fund pools designated for faculty and staff. During an interview following the assembly, Jerald Strickland, UH interim senior vice president for academic affairs and provost, added that distribution of faculty raises would be merit-based. Separate funds will be set aside for tenure raises and faculty promotions and for salary compression. Strickland added that faculty and staff who are compensated by non-state appropriated funds – such as research grants – will also be eligible for increases pending the availability of funds from their respective colleges, departments, centers and institutes. UH itself is enjoying institutional financial growth, thanks to recent gifts made to the university, Gogue said. “UH is on track to experience a $10 million growth,” he said. “This is a 25 percent increase over previous years.” Gogue also touted UH’s recent strategic alliances, including its recent affiliation agreement with TMH, which will partner the institutions in research efforts and technology transfer. Because of this agreement, UH, The Texas Methodist Hospital Research Institute and Texas A&M’s Institute of Biotechnology are planning to submit a biomedical engineering training grant application to the National Institutes of Health, he said. Gogue also updated the assembly about the numerous construction projects that are being undertaken to increase accessibility for both students and external constituents, including the $81 million Science and Engineering Research and Classroom Complex that will open in August; the $16.7 million Cullen Oaks expansion, which will wrap in August; the Wortham Theatre expansion scheduled for a September completion; and the $25.8 million garage that will be ready for use in January. The probability of increased UH tuition was also discussed by Gogue. The issue will be voted on during the next UHS Board of Regents meeting on Thursday, April 6. At the conclusion of Gogue’s presentation, he thanked Strickland for his leadership during the past year and a half. At Gogue’s request, Strickland, the former dean of UH’s College of Optometry, stepped in as UH interim senior vice president for academic affairs and provost and UHS interim senior vice chancellor for academic affairs in 2003. Strickland soon will vacate his interim position to make way for Donald J. Foss, recently selected as the new UH senior vice president for academic affairs and provost and UHS senior vice chancellor for academic affairs. “Sometimes, you make good decisions and occasionally,
you make great decisions,” Gogue said. “I’d like
to tell you about a great decision I made. When I first came here,
I listened to others’ advice and selected (Jerald) Strickland
as interim provost and he’s done a tremendous job.” Mike Emery
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