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MCC adjunct faculty to get raises

Adjunct faculty union members at McHenry County College are on track to get raises over the next four years so their salaries can match corresponding averages at other community colleges in the area, MCC officials said.

A new contract was recently negotiated between the college and the Adjunct Faculty Association, Tony Miksa, the college’s vice president of academic and student affairs, said this week.

Adjunct faculty members work part time and are paid by the credit hour.

“The contract we believe is fair and equitable for the college and the adjunct faculty,” Miksa said. It would kick in this fall semester if approved by the board of trustees, he said.

Union vice president Peter Ponzio, an adjunct instructor of humanities at MCC, said the agreement was “overwhelmingly” approved by rank-and-file members of the union, which numbers nearly 130 voting and fair share members, he said. Negotiations began in September.

“This will allow us to retain and attract good adjuncts. It will also make the college more competitive with surrounding colleges,” Ponzio said. Both Miksa and Ponzio declined to give the exact amount of the raises pending discussion at the next board meeting on July 28.

The last three-year contact called for a base salary increase from $1,550 for three credit hours taught in academic year 2008-09, to $1,585 in 2010-11, Ponzio said.

MCC has faced “stiff competition” from other schools, and raising salaries should help retain faculty members who are tempted to work elsewhere, Miksa said. “Our hope is that we can stem that tide” with the new contract, he said.

For comparison purposes, MCC looked at salaries at Rock Valley College, Elgin Community College, College of Lake County and Harper College, Miksa said.

Altogether, there are about 250 to 300 adjunct faculty members at MCC, Miksa said.