Over the past 70 years, the American university has become the global gold standard of excellence in research and graduate education. The unprecedented surge of federal research support of the post-World War II American university paralleled the steady strengthening of the American academic profession itself, which managed to attract the best and…

During the 1960s, there was extensive hiring of college and university faculty members. This large group of professors are now at or nearing retirement age. Concerns about the economy, the availability of good health insurance, increased life expectancy, and removal of mandatory retirement laws may influence decisions about when to retire.…

Within the UK there are grave concerns about retention and attrition rates within the teaching profession, particularly in challenging schools. These are compounded by worries about the gap that will be left as long-serving teachers reach retirement age. This article is about the working lives of long-serving teachers in three high-poverty urban…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to evaluate both the positive and negative changes in the aims and practices of current schools and, in addition, identify teacher values that have influenced the Turkish educational system from the early years of the Turkish Republic till now. With this in mind, a set of semi structured open-ended…

Considerable research has been conducted into teacher retention and attrition (Huberman, 1989; Dinham, 1995; Ewing & Smith, 2002). Little is known, though, of the circumstances of ex-teachers, in terms of factors such as salary, workload, working conditions and "job prestige". For this paper, telephone interviews were conducted with 22…

Using retired teachers as mentors for beginning teachers in New York City has made real differences in the lives of the new teachers, their mentors, the students, and the supervisors in approximately 100 schools. In these schools more than 100 mentors have worked with 500 teachers over a three-year period. The New York City Mentor/New Teacher…

Recounts the circumstances leading to the author's decision to retire from teaching--an example of "knowing when to quit." (MCG)

Four steps to retirement planning, intended to demystify retirement investment, are offered for college faculty: (1) establish diversification goals; (2) urge their institutions to offer more investment options; (3) coordinate retirement investments with other investments; and (4) take steps to guarantee against inflation. Typical age-related…

Designed for faculty and exempt administrators at Washington's community colleges, this handbook explains available retirement plans, deductions, and options. First, a glossary of terms and an index to sections of the handbook dealing with the concepts are provided. The bulk of the handbook uses a question/answer format to present information on…

College and university employees are exposed to considerable risk in the management of their retirement funds, but there are also extraordinary opportunities for careful investors. Colleges should help employees gain knowledge of investing and ensure that a broad range of adequate investment options are available. (MSE)

Variations on the traditional methods of planning for retirement are offered to college faculty, focusing on use of Teachers Insurance and Annuities Association (TIAA) and College Retirement Equities Fund (CREF) investments, and other pension options. It is concluded that with careful planning, faculty can retire with close to full preretirement…

A variety of ways in which retired college faculty benefit from social services and commercial and professional perquisites, in addition to retirement income, are discussed. It is proposed that these faculty are benefiting at the expense of their younger colleagues and should in turn participate in volunteer public service. (MSE)

The advantages and disadvantages of the Teachers Insurance Annuity Association (TIAA) and College Retirement Equities Fund (CREF) as investment vehicles for college faculty are examined, and guidelines for faculty to use in evaluating their investment options are offered. Some data on TIAA-CREF performance are included. (MSE)

As the age of the population continues to increase, faculty retirement issues are becoming more central to campus-level planning and management. Academic planners and senior administrators recognize that there are positive, negative, and unintended consequences associated with various retirement programs and policies, whether they are early…

A survey of 115 medical schools concerning early retirement benefits and incentives for faculty found that defined-contribution plans were preferred and were available at 37 percent of institutions. Incentive programs were used by 70 percent of schools during 1987-91. However, few early retirements have occurred. Program characteristics,…