May 19, 2005
Council changes name to reflect wider scope
Editor’s note: This is one of a series of articles by the chairs of Faculty Senate councils and committees. Karen Boxx is the chair of the Faculty Council on Benefits and Retirement.
The Faculty Council on Retirement, Insurance & Benefits now has a new name! Pursuant to Class A legislation that went into effect in February, the Council is now known as the Faculty Council on Benefits and Retirement (FCBR).
The council requested the name change to highlight its focus on all employee benefits available to the University community, beyond just issues regarding retirement. The scope of the cuncil’s concern extends beyond current faculty to librarians, retirees and professional staff. Kathleen Dwyer, Director of the Benefits Office, has been an active and central participant in the council’s activities.
The council began the year following through on the tuition benefit proposal that it began developing last year. This proposal would provide a tuition reduction equal to 50 percent of full-time undergraduate tuition for eligible children and spouses/partners of UW staff and faculty. Steve Demorest, associate professor of music, was the primary author of the plan and, with Kathleen Dwyer, continued work throughout last summer to finalize the proposal and its budgetary analysis. The proposal was then presented to the various constituents and administrative committees. Although the proposal was generally met with a positive response, further consideration was put on hold in January because of budgetary uncertainty. Nevertheless, the Council intends to keep the proposal on its agenda for possible reintroduction when the budgetary climate will allow.
One issue that was raised several times in the discussion on the proposal was a question of priority. We were asked how important is the tuition benefit to faculty and staff, and how much priority would faculty and staff give this benefit over other benefits. When we were presented with those questions, however, it was difficult to answer because the council has very little data other than the opinions of its representatives on the faculty and staff’s priorities and concerns regarding benefits. Because of that gap, and because such information would be extremely helpful in the council’s long-range planning, we decided that before we proceeded with any other initiative regarding introduction of a benefit that had any cost attached, we should develop a method to poll the faculty and staff on their benefits preferences.
The council has therefore begun work on its next major initiative, a survey of faculty and staff preferences and concerns on benefits issues. We expect that both an online survey and focus groups will both be used. The council intends to design the survey so that it can be conducted on a fairly regular basis. Because this data will be critical to the future focus of the council’s activities, we hope that each of you will let us know what you think.
The council has also continued to monitor the status of benefits and retirement issues throughout the year. One of the council’s prievious initiatives was partnering with the Benefits Office to establish a Fund Review Committee (FRC) to review and recommend changes in the investment options available in the UW Retirement Plan and Voluntary Investment Program (VIP). The committee has been meeting over the past academic year, and the council has been receiving regular reports and giving input on the FRC’s activities. Recently, the council, among other campus constituents, has been asked for input on the FRC’s overall statement of investment policy. The Benefits Office has developed a Web site containing FRC information and updates, which will be a valuable resource to retirement plan participants. The Web site is available to UW faculty and staff via use of a UW NetID at: http://www.washington.edu/admin/hr/benefits/invest/
Members of FCBR for the 2004-2005 academic year were:
Karen Boxx (Law), chair, Patricia Brandt (Family and Child Nursing), Robert E. Breidenthal (Aeronautics and Astronautics), Steven Demorest (Music), Glen Johnson (Restorative Dentistry), Anna Kartsonis (School of Art), Levis Kochin (Economics), Diane Martin (Health Services), Joseph Stowitschek, (Education), Robert Waaland (Biology), Paul Constantine (ALUW representative), Patricia Dougherty (Director, Retirement Center, Kathleen Dwyer (Director, Benefits Office), Ernest Henley (Retired Faculty Representative), Corey Fredericks (ASUW representative), Ross McKenzie (PSO Representative), Cheryl Cameron (Acting Vice Provost).
