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Throughout the University, academic and support units are addressing the findings of the 2004 Faculty/Staff Survey. All University units, including the College of Medicine and the Dickinson Law School, participated in the survey, which drew a response rate of 51 percent, or more than 7,800 responses. This is the first of occasional articles, prepared by the Office of Human Resources, describing unit responses to the survey and how the survey results are being used to clarify issues and identify opportunities for improvements.

With results of the 2004 Faculty/Staff Survey in mind, administrators in the College of Agricultural Sciences are intensifying efforts to improve the overall climate in the College by creating better working relationships between faculty and staff.

"While the 'faculty-staff divide' issue is not unique to the College of Agricultural Sciences," Dean Robert D. Steele said, "our College is leading the University in addressing this important climate issue.

"This initiative has the support and interest of our staff and faculty, College and University administrators. We are confident that our efforts will be successful in creating more supportive, positive and welcoming environments in our College."

The issue was first identified in University's Faculty/Staff Surveys, and, at the request of Dean Steele, the College's Office of Human Resource Services initiated a number of efforts to address it. Included were:

• Three focus groups with staff employees based on the following concerns: staff members don't feel part of the team; their expertise often is not valued; there is a lack of respect for what they bring to the team.
• In collaboration with Bill Devlin, director of the Office of Human Resource Services, and Jeanne Price, assistant to the director, Rex Warland, professor emeritus of agricultural economics and rural sociology, designed a survey in 2003 to determine the climate between faculty and staff. The survey's 29 questions related to faculty/staff relationships and were based on responses from the focus groups.
• Development of a brochure, Improving Faculty/Staff Relationships, which outlines findings and recommendations based on the survey.
• A one-day conference, attended by 225 staff members in Spring 2003, featured concurrent sessions on specific issues raised in both the College survey and the University's Faculty/Staff surveys.
• Completion of a video on the relationship between faculty and staff. The video, created by the University's Human Resource Development Center, features an introduction by Rodney Erickson, executive vice president and provost of the University. The video will be used in conjunction with unit level training in the College's academic units later this year and in 2006.

Price said that approximately one-half of those asked to complete the College's follow-up survey responded.

"Results indicated that, while there are many issues the faculty and staff see in a similar and positive way, there is evidence of a 'faculty/staff divide'," she added. "At the same time, various initiatives or practices being done at the unit level were identified in the survey that faculty and staff believe will create better working relationships between the two groups."

Recommendations resulting from the survey included:

• Discuss faculty/staff relationships at college orientations and regular departmental faculty/staff meetings.
• Recruit faculty who are team players and who value staff expertise.
• Make the faculty/staff climate issue a priority.
• Include staff representation in the interviews when hiring new faculty.

It also was suggested that each department appoint a Climate Committee, composed of faculty and staff members, to be charged with addressing current climate issues and those that may occur in the future.

"Our office will be discussing the survey's findings and recommendations in the academic units during the Fall Semester," Price said. "We will conduct training, to include the video and distribute helping materials to faculty and staff members during these presentations."

On a separate issue, in 2000, the College implemented ACTS, a Staff Performance Reward and Recognition Program, which is designed to reward outstanding staff employees and provide them with a career path similar to those for extension educators and faculty members.

The performance based program creates three different ranks. Staff members are able to advance through these ranks by submitting a dossier, which is reviewed by the staff member's supervisor, unit leader, and the College's ACTS Peer Review Committee. The committee makes final recommendations and submits them to the dean for approval.

According to Price, 24 staff members participated in the program this year; a total of 38 staff members have been successful in obtaining an ACTS promotion.

"While ACTS is not directly related to the 'faculty-divide' issue," she noted, "it provides another opportunity for staff members to be recognized and rewarded in much the way our faculty are. In looking at the work environment in the College, we were able to provide a positive response through this program."