The number of tenure and tenure-track faculty at NIU declined about 17 percent since 1994, dropping from 893 to 745.

The total number of instructors and other faculty, such as adjunct and visiting professors, increased about 36 percent in the last 10 years, from 329 to 449. Because of this increase, the total number of faculty, including professors, instructors and other faculty members, has remained steady during the last decade.

A faculty member with tenure has permanent employment with the university.

There are three levels of professorship; assistant, associate and full. An assistant professor is tenure-track and needs six years before obtaining tenure. Associate and full professors have tenure. To become a full professor, one has to be very accomplished in one’s discipline, with a great number of publications.

Instructors cost half as much as professors and are four times more cost effective, said John Dickerman, instructor in biological sciences and grievance officer for the instructors’ union.

A full professor makes about $76,912, while an associate professor makes about $58,768 and an assistant professor makes about $51,641. An instructor makes about $32,768 a year, according to NIU’s 2003-2004 Data Book.

This is the reason for the increase in instructors and decrease in professors, Dickerman said.

A full-time instructor teaches eight classes per year, while professors teach about four to five classes per year because they are involved with research and publications, he said.

People assume professors are better teachers, Dickerman said, but instructors are more focused on teaching and spend more time in the classroom.

Dickerman does not see the increase in instructors as necessarily a bad thing for students.

“Instructors are not treated as professionals and colleagues here, there is a prejudice against instructors.” he said. “Instructors are full-time teachers, that’s what we do.”

Paul Stoddard, associate professor of geology and the faculty senate president, said he believes 100 and 200 -level courses are general enough for instructors to teach.

Amani Farraj, a senior business administration major, said the increase in non-tenure faculty cost less, which is why they are increasing.

“So long as they are able to teach, it doesn’t matter,” she said.

Sophomore accountancy major Silvia Delcarpio, said instructors get better with time. Some tenured professors are not doing a good job, but because they have tenure, nothing can be done to change them, she said.

Another growing trend during the last 10 years is an increase in supportive professional staff.

SPS include administrators; such as deans of colleges, the provost, the president and also non-administrators such as academic researchers, project coordinators, directors and assistant directors, said Steven Cunningham, associate vice president of human resources. Due to the variation in SPS positions, an average salary is undeterminable.

In 1994, NIU had 511 SPS. Today there are 869. The late 1990s brought about a demand for computer specialists, which spiked an increase in SPS, Dickerman said.

The year 2000 brought the scare of Y2K, Cunningham said, which caused another sharp increase in the need for computer specialists.

Due to state budget cuts, NIU has suffered a great deal in the last four years, withstanding a $40 million cut from the budget, said Ivan Legg, executive vice president and provost. This created a hiring freeze on tenure and tenure-track faculty.

Cunningham said he does not believe the decrease in state funds and faculty is all negative without.

“NIU has very lean numbers of staff and faculty to cover the scope of the university,” Cunningham said. “That’s a good thing, that’s the model that we seek to achieve- leanness and efficiency.”

However, he cautions this affects faculty and students because of the strain it may put on the faculty teaching too many classes and students who should be getting the best possible education.

The problem of decreasing tenure and tenure-track faculty needs to be dealt with quickly, he said.