After reading the Faculty Council minutes from April 5, 2001, I have two
comments regarding the proposed "incentive approach to summer school."
1. The most important person, the professor teaching the course, receives
NO INCENTIVE to "find" additional students to enroll in a summer-school
course.  The teacher also does not receive a reward for the extra
teaching-work involved!  Contrast this with my second comment.
2. The UTC administration has placed itself in the enviable position of
being able to gain a substantial profit from any increased summer school
enrollment but to incur no loss from stagnant enrollment.  In fact, any
loss due to a decline in enrollment would be partially offset through a
reduction in the budget allocation to the College(s) incurring the decline.
 Why?  The budgeted amount to fund summer-school teaching, approximately
$800,000, is substantially less than the revenue generated by summer
school.  By any reasonable set of cost assumptions summer school generates
a profit that is re-allocated within the UTC budget.  (In fact, the amount
budgeted for summer school is arbitrarily determined during the budget
process.)  A result of the "incentive approach to summer school" is that
for any additional credit hour generated in summer school the UTC
administration would gain additional revenue.  The gain equals the amount
by which the tuition payment plus state supplement (forth-coming for the
next year's summer school) exceeds "the average rate per credit hour
calculated by last summer's credit hour base budget."*  The administration
gains this amount without any additional work or effort on its part.
Should a College generate additional credit hours, the Dean's Office would
receive additional funds based on the above formula - again extra money
without any extra work by the Dean or Dean's Office.  Furthermore, the Dean
determines the allocation of this money.  This aspect of the plan is
symmetrical so that any under-generation of credit hours results in a
reduction of the particular Dean's budget.  This is the source of the
partial offset for the Administration should summer school enrollment decline.
*       According to my rough approximation, $100 per additional student in a
three credit hour class.

Regards,
Bruce Hutchinson