3.9.1 General

The Lewis & Clark College salary policy for faculty is designed to recognize and reward meritorious performance. It is predicated on the assumption that most Lewis & Clark faculty perform meritoriously and will be so rewarded. It also recognizes that while faculty may emphasize different aspects of their professional lives at different moments in their careers, a sustained commitment to teaching is at the heart of the College’s mission.

Each faculty member is reviewed in the areas of teaching, scholarship or creative work, and professional service not in a formulaic way but for the strength of that individual’s contributions to the College and to his or her own professional growth. Salary increases are based on meritorious performance. Pretenure reviews, tenure and promotion reviews, and the periodic reviews of tenured faculty are taken into account in assessing performance. Successful tenure and promotion reviews normally result in special merit raises.

During the budgeting process, a pool of funds is normally reserved in each school for faculty salary increases. The precise amount is determined as part of the annual budget process. The size of the pool is conditioned by available resources and the claims of other institutional and school needs, but appropriate faculty compensation is always a priority at Lewis & Clark College. The dean of each school is responsible for determining faculty salaries. In determining faculty salaries, the dean of each school is also responsible for reserving the funds needed to attract and retain superior faculty and for making appropriate equity adjustments based on merit.

Evaluations of performance for purposes of salary increases are conducted according to procedures specific to each school.