Study details university, community college salary gap

Monday, May 8, 2000 | 10:06 a.m.

Its figures show that the state's community college faculty earned an average of $46,700 in the current school year, down from $47,350 the previous year.

The salary study conducted by the American Association of University Professors shows that the mean salary for all faculty at the University of Nevada, Reno and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas climbed from $64,100 last school year to $65,600 this year.

Community college officials said swift growth at their institutions, which educate about 60 percent of the 90,000 students in Nevada's public higher-education system, has forced them to hire more instructors at entry-level pay, driving down the overall average.

Last year at Truckee Meadows Community College, administrators hired 25 new full-time instructors to deal with enrollment growth, President John Richardson said.

The junior faculty, most hired at lower salaries than longtime professors, contributed to a 20 percent increase in faculty at the north Reno college.

TMCC's average salary fell from $48,500 in 1998-99 to $46,000 this year, the study shows.

Western Nevada Community College in Carson City had the highest average faculty salaries at $52,300.

Great Basin College in Elko averaged $43,700 and the Community College of Southern Nevada in Las Vegas came in at $45,700.

While average salaries increased at the states two universities the University of Nevada, Reno and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas the wages still trailed national averages.

The national average for full professors at research universities, those with doctoral programs, is $87,022. Assistant professors earn $50,703, the association said.

At UNR, professors averaged $84,300; assistant professors, $49,300. UNLV professors earned $81,500 and assistant professors averaged $47,400.

UNR salaries were the highest of any other state institution included in the study, which excluded the Desert Research Institute.