Whereas,
Alabama has invested in the future by fully funding the K-12 Foundation
Program;
and
Whereas, one
result of fully funding the K-12 Foundation Program is that the average
salaries
of K-12 teachers is now approximately at the southeastern average (according
to
figures published by the National Education Association (NEA)); and
Whereas, higher
education is an equally important asset for securing the future of Alabama
and
its citizens; and
Whereas, in recent
years Education Trust Fund dollars have been reallocated away from
higher education to remedy ills within the K-12 system; and
Whereas, the
reallocation has caused faculty salaries in higher education to fall far
below the
Southern Region Education Board (SREB) average, in particular faculty salaries
at
The University of Alabama in Huntsville are more than 18% below the SREB
average; and
Whereas, a high
quality faculty is required to maintain the high quality academic programs
demanded by Alabama citizens; and
Whereas, the
current salary deficiency makes it very difficult to recruit and retain
the high
quality faculty Alabama citizens have come to expect from their institutions
of higher
education; and
Whereas, the
faculty, staff, and students of the higher education institutions in the
State of
Alabama have suffered unjustly to right a wrong not of their own making;
and
Whereas, it is
now time for higher education to be treated fairly in the education budget,
Therefore be it resolved that: