The 2.5 percent increase for University of Wisconsin System faculty and academic staff for 2009-11 was approved by the Board of Regents Friday and will now move to the UW Department of Administration for approval.

The recommendation was made by Board of Regent President Kevin Reilly Nov. 28 and is nearly half of what the regents requested for the last pay plan term in 2006.

Reilly’s proposal was made in response to the tumultuous economy, according to UW System spokesperson David Giroux.

“Although the recommendation was approved to go before the department, that likely won’t be decided until June or July of next year,” Giroux said.

Chuck Pruitt, Board of Regents vice president, said Reilly’s proposal was a very “sensible decision.” According to Pruitt, Reilly outlined at the meeting reasons for proposing a 2.5 percent pay plan increase as opposed to something higher.

Pruitt added Reilly’s proposal is a reasonable way to balance the need to respond to the national economic recession with the desire to remain competitive within peer groups in terms of faculty recruitment and retention.

Pruitt said the regents are unsure what the decision will be once the proposal is reviewed at the state level.

“This decision is not going to be reviewed at the state level until well after the first of the year, and the economic condition of the country at that time will influence it,” Pruitt said. “This is really just the beginning of the process and we made what we thought was our best judgment.”

Giroux added if the recommendation were funded by the state Legislature, the “more modest increase” could address the problem of tuition increases and the state budget deficit.

Pruitt said the 2.5 percent increase is an important step in the regents’ commitment to closing the gap between peer-group salaries.

“Obviously, the gap in terms of peer-group salaries is much larger than 2.5 percent — it’s closer to 10 percent. But given the current conditions, we are doing everything we can to both recognize the problem and address it,” Pruitt added.

Textbook Costs

The regents also discussed issues associated with the rising cost of textbooks in light of current economic conditions. They discussed possible solutions to lower the cost of textbooks on campus and make them more accessible to students.

Many questioned why few campuses have adopted book rental programs or other cost-saving strategies. An audit showed students pay up to twice as much for books at UW-Milwaukee and UW-Madison than at some other System campuses.

Pruitt said the board must “convey a sense of urgency” to university leaders to do more to help students and families hurt by the recession.

Regent Jeffrey Bartell said he was disappointed “there doesn’t seem to be any significant progress.”

“These are books. Can’t we do something to make these materials affordable to our kids? Why is this so difficult?” Bartell said. “I just don’t understand it.”

According to UW-Milwaukee Chancellor Carlos Santiago, the textbook rental programs are not feasible yet for the biggest campuses. Faculty also want to maintain the ability to update their course materials as their fields change, he said.

Most rental programs require courses to use the same books for four or six straight semesters.

UW-Madison Chancellor Biddy Martin said faculty members who have tried to reduce costs by copying materials have been accused of copyright violations by publishers, adding universities should instead be trying to raise more money for need-based financial aid and then include the cost of books in the awards.

Approval of other agenda items

Other items that were up for approval Friday included the demolition of Union South, the construction of a TomoTherapy center at the UW Veterinary School, and additional academic programs at UW-Eau Claire, UW-Stout and other system campuses.

According to Pruitt, all items were approved at Friday’s meeting.

Regarding the changes being made to Union South and the Veterinary School, Pruitt said that both developments are good decisions that will be exciting additions to the Madison campus.

—The Associated Press contributed to this report