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Fordham AAUP FAQs on tenure-stream salary negotiation

Updated May 18, 2026

What’s happening with faculty salary and benefit negotiations?

The university administration and tenure stream faculty are negotiating an agreement on faculty salaries for the next academic year. As of May 14, the administration is offering a 3% raise. The faculty have proposed a 4% raise. This would be a 1-year contract. 

Why is the faculty asking for a 4% pay increase?

Any raise below the rate of inflation is effectively a pay cut. Last year’s end-of-year inflation rate was 3.4%, so a 4% raise represents, at best, a .6% raise above cost of living increases. In practice, for many faculty members, a 4% raise will not cover the rising costs of living in the New York City region. Moreover, whatever raise the faculty as a whole receive, merit awards (for up to half of the faculty) and promotion increments (for all faculty promoted this year) need to come out of that pool, so that the actual raise for many faculty will be smaller than the pool percentage. 

How much would a 4% raise cost the university?

The total cost of a 3% raise is about $2.25 million. For comparison, President Tetlow’s compensation for FY 2024 was about $1.7 million. A 4% raise would cost about $3 million. The university’s total operating budget for 2026 is about $790 million.

Can the university afford to give faculty a cost of living raise?

Yes. Faculty compensation represents a small and shrinking piece of the university’s overall budget, and the university continues to increase its spending on salaries and benefits for management. From 2015 to 2024, 52% of the overall increase in salary expenditure went to management-level positions, while 18% went to instructional staff. Of that 18%, only 6% went to tenure stream faculty. 

The university just raised tuition by 4.5%. Will faculty raises lead to further tuition hikes?

Recent decisions on hiring, salaries, and tuition highlight that tuition increases are not driven by faculty salaries, or even by instructional costs more generally. As a percentage of the overall budget, spending on teaching and learning is declining. For example, a recent analysis by the Faculty Senate’s Budget Planning Committee found that between 2020 and 2024, instruction-related expenses grew only 3.5%, while administration costs grew over 20%.

The situation bothers me.  What can I do? 

Talk to other members of the Fordham community. If you’re a tenure-line faculty member, speak to your Faculty Senators and the members of the Salary & Benefits Committee. If you’re an academic worker (regardless of tenure status) consider joining and getting involved with Fordham’s AAUP chapter. Share this information with students, parents, or alumni. These groups can express their concerns to the Office of the President.

How should I talk about this with my students and non-faculty colleagues? 

The university’s declining investment in tenure-stream faculty does not just affect faculty members and their households, it also affects student outcomes. For example, Fordham has increased its reliance on part-time instructors, whose numbers increased by 30% between 2015 and 2024, while numbers of tenured and tenure-track faculty fell by 8%. Research shows that reductions in full-time faculty and increases in part-time faculty are associated with worsening student retention and graduation rates, which affects future enrollment and tuition revenues. 

Media Coverage and Mentions

"Fordham Reaffirms Commitment to Inclusivity," The Fordham Ram, 22 April 2026

"Reports on Personal Websites Raise Questions for Faculty Senate," The Observer, 6 February 2026

"AAUP Protests Against Trump Admin's Higher Ed Compact," The Fordham Ram, 19 November 2025

"Fordham Professors Join Protests Against Threats to Higher Education," The Fordham Ram, 23 April 2025

"Higher Education Updates: Harvard Refuses to Comply with Trump Demands," The Fordham Ram, 23 April 2025

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