I am writing with regard to the story “Proposed stipend cuts raise concerns” that appeared in Tuesday’s Post. The wording of this story may give rise to some misunderstandings about the increase in graduate stipends for which Graduate Student Senate has been advocating.
The prospective “raise” does not presently appear in the university’s budget scenarios because it is still being considered by the Budget Planning Council (BPC). However, this increase, should it be approved by BPC and the Board of Trustees, could potentially offset some of the cuts in graduate funding that appear in the aforementioned reduction plans.
On April 18, GSS passed a resolution unanimously requesting the inclusion of graduate assistants in the 1.66 percent raise pool that BPC is considering for faculty and staff.
Last year, GSS was able to obtain precisely such an increase for graduate assistants and, given the rising cost of living and the relatively low amount of compensation received by the average masters and doctoral students ($8,247 and $11,358 a year, respectively, in 2009), we feel that an increase in graduate funding is thoroughly justified.
Since the passage of the resolution, subsequent discussions of BPC have affirmed that a raise in graduate stipend funding is a serious consideration for the coming academic year.
With this in mind, I have high hopes that, for the second consecutive year, GSS will be able to provide some relief to the graduate community through the continued advancement of graduate stipends as an institutional priority.
We believe that increased funding for graduate students on assistantships is one of the foremost concerns of the graduate community and continued investment in affordability of graduate education is an issue for which GSS has successfully advocated in the past, and for which we will continue to advocate in the future.
Tracy Kelly is the president of the Graduate Student Senate.
