Page 296 - Crisis in Higher Education

266 • Crisis in Higher Education

There are some who may argue that these ideas “sell short” the abilities of
exceptional instructional faculty. The best option for these high perform-
ers may be to earn a PhD and the advancement, satisfaction, and compen-
sation that it brings. If that is not possible, there is no legal requirement
that prohibits universities from making an exception and letting them do
more. Also, there may be good reasons for professional faculty members to
teach PhD seminars or an instructional faculty member to teach courses
in the major and minor fields of study. As long as these are well-conceived
exceptions and not wholesale deviations for convenience sake, then by all
means move forward. But the idea is still the same: use resources so that
universities take advantage of the skills, knowledge, and characteristics of
the faculty and give students the best education possible—even when they
may prefer to learn less.

12.3 ECONOMICS OF HIGHER EDUCATION
Before describing ways to increase faculty productivity, it is useful to
understand the impact of faculty on revenue and costs. The economics
of higher education are similar to those of many businesses—some prod-
ucts are more profitable than others. At universities, some courses and
programs have large “surpluses,” the differences between their revenues
and costs, while others lose money. Universities often generate “surpluses”
from general education courses because enrollment and therefore revenue
is high and cost measured by faculty compensation is low. The economics
are simple yet powerful.
Table 12.2 shows the magnitude of revenue and faculty costs for courses
offered in general education, disciplinary core, and major and minor fields
of studies when these are taught by tenured, instructional, and part-time
faculty. It is difficult to find good estimates for the salaries of professional
faculty members, so they are not included in the analysis. They tend to be
paid much more than instructional faculty, but less than tenured faculty.
The costs in Table 12.2 include only faculty salaries and fringe benefits, and
do not include costs for items such as facilities, equipment, supplies, and
overhead from departments, colleges, and central administration. The
analysis illustrates the rather small cost impact of faculty compensation,
and it also helps to explain why universities are moving away from ten-
ured faculty toward full- and part-time instructional faculty.