OUR VIEW: We need to pay professors more

The tuition increase has raised a lot of discussion on campus, and rightfully so. With a 36 percent tuition hike proposed by Utah State University administration, and another 7 percent expected to be imposed by the state Legislature, many students are wondering how they’re going to pay for it all.

There are several reasons the tuition increase has been proposed, including paying off a $5.8 million utility and fuel debt and on-going funds for the library project.

But the bulk of the increase will be put toward increasing faculty salaries – a move that is both needed and overdue.

For the past four years faculty salaries have been increased by only about 1 percent – an amount most people in any profession would have reason to protest against.

And yet, our faculty has kept pretty quiet. There have been no strikes or protests. Instead, they are leaving for similar positions at other universities with higher pay.

USU can no longer afford to lose its best and brightest professors. Part of the responsiblities of a school that puts academics first is ensuring those who are teaching are being fairly, and competitively, compensated for their time, knowledge and expertise.

The tuition increase will not and should not be passed until more discussion has taken place among all campus groups, especially students. There are many loose ends and questions that must be resolved before approval is granted, especially concerning the responsibility of students to compensate for what the state should.

However, any measures proposed to increase faculty salary and maintain a higher level of teaching excellence at USU should be approved and taken. In a university community, the professors are almost as crucial as the students.