UPDATE: Despite some high salaries ETSU pay is below average

UPDATE: Feb. 21 5:30 p.m.

East Tennessee State University Faculty Senate President Thomas Schacht, PsyD, ABPP is also concerned about faculty salaries at ETSU, outside of the College of Medicine. After our story aired, he provided us with his State of The Faculty address he sent to faculty members in March 2011. His comments are attributed to the American Association of University Professors.

"When compared to the average faculty compensation reported in the AAUP national list of 224 doctoral institutions, ETSU's current average salary for a Full Professor is dead last," Schacht wrote. "In this peer group, ETSU is next-to-last in the nation in average compensation for Associate and Assistant Professors. ETSU's average compensation for these junior faculty manages to surpass Idaho State University by a few hundred dollars."

-----

When you make $288,000 a year and your salary is 10^th highest in the Tennessee Board of Regents system, you’re aware you’re doing pretty well compared to the general population.

"It is a lot of money,” said Dr. Phil Bagnell, East Tennessee State University College of Medicine Dean. “It is a lot of money.”

However, if Dr. Bagnell and his faculty wanted to make money, they could do better somewhere else.

OBGYN Chair Tom Jernigan is the top paid faculty member at the College of Medicine. However, his salary of $375,950 is much lower than the average pay of his counterparts at other medical schools across the nation. According to the 2010-2011 Association of American Medical Colleges National Report on Medical School Faculty Salaries, the average pay for his position nationally is $541,500.

Surgery Chair Isaac William Browder makes $352,620, while the national average for his position is $755,500, according to the National Report on Medical School Faculty Salaries.

Internal Medicine Chair Gene David LeSage earns $320,330. According to the national report, his counterparts make an average of $373,200 annually.

“Income is never unimportant to anybody but that is not the reason you're attracted to a medical school,” Bagnell said. "They're well paid, but relative to their peers in the rest of the nation, they are not overpaid, we're underpaid. Our effort is to try and move ourselves in that direction, but we have a whole ship to move. We can't just move one person at a time and it is a state school and it is taxpayer dollars."

Despite 168 employees who make six figures a year at ETSU, being underpaid is a common theme at the state university.

"We have to do everything we can within our budgets to enhance faculty and staff compensation,” said new ETSU President Dr. Brian Noland in November after he was hired.

ETSU Vice President of Finance and Administration Dr. David Collins says the university has a long way to go to make faculty and employee salaries comparable to other schools. From top to bottom, Collins says ETSU employees are not making enough.

“There's no doubt that we are low and that's why we have a goal of trying to begin addressing that,” Collins said. “It would take $28 million to bring the university’s salaries up to their national peer groups. We know that’s not going to happen.”

A review of just the entities in the Tennessee Board of Regents system shows ETSU is near the bottom when it comes to average salary. We began our in-depth analysis of higher education salaries within the TBR system several months ago.

Out of the 53 bodies that make up the TBR, which does not include the University of Tennessee, the average salary is $47,993 a year at TBR schools. The ETSU College of Pharmacy has the second highest average salary at $76,427, the ETSU College of Medicine comes in at fourth at $64,991, ETSU Family Practice is seventh at $50,969, but ETSU itself is way down the list ranking 37^th with an average salary of $43,065.

While 168 ETSU employees make more than $100,000, more than 1,200 make less than $40,000.

According to Collins, administrative, support, and clerical employees are paid based on a pay-plan. Most of those people start at just under the mid-level of pay based on their qualifications and rank, Collins said.

On the other hand, faculty and executive employees, like Collins himself who makes $182,344, negotiate their pay.

“Over certain limits, you need approval from the (Tennessee) Board of Regents,” Collins said.

The governor’s budget calls for a 2.5% raise across the board. ETSU is hopeful legislators will pass that raise. Collins says he’d also like to see the TBR approve an additional raise.

“ETSU went three years without a salary increase before last year,” Collins said. “We do look for the best. We certainly want the best to teach our students.”

The Tennessee Technology Center in Elizabethton ranks 25 out of 53 when it comes to average salary. The institution has an average salary of $44,478. Northeast State Community College comes in right near the bottom of the list at 51 with an average salary of $38,020.