New Academic Appointment Dates
To improve the faculty and graduate student employee experience, University leadership has approved a new set of academic appointment dates below.
Term | Historical Academic Appointment Dates | New Academic Appointment Dates |
Nine-Month Appointment | September 1 – May 31 | August 16 – May 15 |
Fall | September 1 – January 15 | August 16 – December 31 |
Spring | January 16 – May 31 | January 1 – May 15 |
Summer I | June 1 – July 15 | May 16 – June 30 |
Summer II | July 16 – August 31 | July 1 – August 15 |
Historically, academic appointments for faculty, teaching assistants, and instructional assistants began at the start of the fiscal year (September 1) even though classes begin in late August. To improve the faculty and graduate student employee experience, University leadership approved a new set of academic appointment dates to align appointments with the academic calendar.
The University will be implementing the new set of academic appointments dates in two phases:
- Effective Fall 2024, Texas State University has mandated an August 16, hire date for all NEW and REHIRED FTE (Full Time Equivalent) faculty assigned as instructor of record, teaching assistants, and instructional assistants.
- Effective Fall 2025, ALL faculty assigned as instructor of record, teaching assistants, and instructional assistants will begin on August 16 rather than September 1.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
-
What is changing for August 2024?
The academic appointments for new and rehired FTE faculty, teaching assistants, and instructional assistants will begin on August 16 rather than September 1. Appointments will end on May 15 instead of May 31. This two week “shift” aligns academic appointments with the academic calendar rather than the fiscal calendar. Continuing employees will remain unchanged.
-
Rehire vs Reappointment
Rehire and reappointment are defined as follows:
- Faculty members are rehired if they have been through the separation process.
- Faculty members are reappointed if they have not been terminated and if they had a faculty appointment the previous semester or summer. Considered continuing employees and will remain unchanged.
-
What are the benefits of this change?
New and rehired faculty and graduate student employees will have active university appointments when they begin work, including:
- Access to university systems before the start of the academic term.
- Insurance coverage and workers compensation upon commencing employment. Please note GIA/GTA are still subject to the 60-day waiting period before medical benefits take effect.
- Receiving first paycheck on September 1, rather than October 1.
-
What are the affected appointments for August 2024?
- New and rehired FTE faculty: Faculty of instruction, faculty of practice, research faculty, tenure line faculty (excludes per course faculty and phased retirement status)
- New and rehired graduate/ doctoral instructional assistants and graduate/ doctoral teaching assistants
Position
Start Dates
FTE faculty assigned as instructor of record
August 16
Per course faculty
September 1
Graduate instructional assistants and doctoral instructional assistants (GIA/DIA)
August 16
Graduate teaching assistants and doctoral teaching assistants (GTA/DTA)
August 16
Graduate research assistants and doctoral research assistants (GRA/DRA)
No defined start or end date
Graduate assistants and doctoral assistants (GA/DA)
No defined start or end date
We acknowledge that there may be specific situations related to visas and work authorization dates that interfere with the ability to start work and be in residence on August 16. These situations will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.
-
Salary Spread Notification
Employees with an 8/16-5/15 nine-month contract will not be able to elect salary spread.
*Continuing employees will remain unchanged.
-
Summer coverage for faculty
During the summer, your insurance coverage will continue as normal with no interruptions. If you are working during the summer, your employee insurance premiums (if applicable) will be deducted from your paycheck as normal. If you do not work during some/all of the summer months, you would need to make arrangements to either prepay for your summer insurance premiums or pay your premiums monthly. HR Benefits sends an email in early May with your payment options. Please note: If you miss a payment deadline, your insurance coverage does not lapse and will continue to be active
-
How will this change in appointment dates affect paychecks?
If you are a new or rehired faculty member with a nine-month appointment, effective August 16, your nine months of compensation will be distributed differently. You will receive your first two weeks of compensation on September 1. This paycheck will be compensation for the two weeks worked from August 16-31. Your final paycheck on June 1 will be compensation for the two weeks worked from May 1-15.
-
How will this change my Retirement Service Credit?
Retirement service credit is used to determine eligibility for TRS retirement and retiree insurance. To earn a year of retirement service credit, Teacher Retirement System (TRS) of Texas and Optional Retirement Program (ORP) participants must have a minimum of 90 paid days during each September 1 – August 31 plan year, except for the final year before retirement. Employees paid for the full fall semester who retire December 31 will earn a year of retirement service credit. Review the TRS Service Credit Brochure for more information.
It is possible for an eligible employee to contribute to TRS or ORP without earning a year of retirement service credit. This occurs when:
- Employees separate prior to earning 90 paid days for the plan year and don’t retire at the end of the fall semester.
- Unpaid time-off or leave results in fewer than 90 paid days for the plan year.
- Faculty are only assigned for the fall semester and either don’t return for the subsequent fall semester or don’t retire at the end of the fall semester. Review table below for details.
Benefits Eligible Employment
Assignment Dates
Eligible Employment for September 1, 2024 – August 31, 2025
Plan YearStart Dates
Fall Semester Only
August 16 – December 31, 2024
September 1 – December 31, 2024
No credit due to fewer than 90 paid days, unless retiring December 31, 2024
Subsequent Fall Semester
August 16 – December 31, 2025
August 16 – 31, 2025
One year of credit, when combined with previous fall semester to earn 90 paid days.
-
University Holiday Pay
The holidays below will shift to different semesters beginning in 2024 and might impact the number of holidays you are paid for each year.
Holiday
Current Semester
New Semester
New Year’s Day
Fall
Spring
Memorial Day
Spring
Summer
Independence Day
First Summer Session
Second Summer Session
-
Why is salary spread not available for new and rehired faculty with an 8/16-5/15 nine-month contract?
TXST has mandated an August 16, hire date for all new and rehired FTE (Full Time Equivalent) faculty assigned as instructor of record. The effective date for these faculty contracts is 08/16/2024. This date overlaps salary spread payouts in process for the FY2024. We cannot change salary spread payroll processing rules mid-year.
-
Hourly to salary position changes
Within SAP, an employee cannot cross payroll areas within the same calendar month (Hourly and NSNR employees are paid on the S-1 semi-monthly payroll; regular status salaried employees are paid on the monthly M-1 payroll). All hourly and NSNR employees must complete their temporary hours within the previous month of the new hire date of the regular faculty position. For example, an hourly employee must end work on July 31, to start in a new faculty position on August 16, 2024.
All hours worked in the hourly position must be entered and approved in time management within the month earned and prior to the processing of the new appointment. If you have an employee moving from one payroll area to another - hourly to salary or salary to hourly, please contact Human Resources for guidance
-
How do I handle a Student Worker moving to a GIA/DIA or GTA/DTA title in fall 2024?
If a Student Worker will be moving to a GIA/DIA or GTA/DTA in Fall 2024, their graduate appointment hire date should be 8/16/24 to align with the new contract start dates for all IA and TA titles. Employees may not be in the hourly/Student Worker and salaried/Graduate appointment payroll systems within the same calendar month. To accomplish this, their hourly Student Worker assignment must be separated no later than 7/31/24 so that they may move to the monthly/salaried payroll system in August 2024. See PCR guidance below.
PCR Guidance:
The Student Worker department PCR initiator should initiate a Separation PCR (not an End Additional Appointment since there will be a break in service before being rehired as a graduate employee) with a 7/31/24 separation date at the latest; please use their last day worked in July as the separation date and note their last day worked within the PCR comments. Additional notes:
- All hourly Student Worker time entry should be entered into SAP and approved by 5pm on 7/31/24, and their separation PCR should be initiated as soon as possible to facilitate this.
- It is fine to initiate their separation PCR prior to their last day worked if you note their expected last day worked within the Separation PCR comments.
- The HRIS Team will confirm the last day worked within CATS_DA and confirm that all time entry has been approved before separating their Student Worker assignment. It is very important that the separation PCR is initiated and processed timely to facilitate this transition smoothly.
To rehire the employee into their GIA/DIA or GTA/DTA appointment, an Additional Appointment PCR with reason code "Rehire - existing position" or "Rehire - new position" should be initiated with an 8/16/24 effective date. Additional notes:
- TA graduate appointment titles should have their contracting forms attached to the PCRs using the 8/16/24 - 12/31/24 or 8/16/24 – 5/15/24 contract dates.
- The Additional Appointment PCR should use reason code "Rehire - existing position" if the position # you're using on the PCR has been used by a previous graduate student before in the past. The Additional Appointment PCR should use reason code "Rehire - new position" if the position # you're using on the PCR is brand new and has never been used before in the past. To find if a position # has ever had a holder, please follow the instructions below:
- Go into SAP transaction PO13D and enter the Position # in the blank Position field, hit enter
- Select “All” in the Time Period area
- Highlight the Relationships tab and hit the Mountain/Overview button at the top to view all relationships
- If any previous holders are seen – “existing position” reason code used, if no holders are seen – “new position” reason code used. Please see the visual below:
The position above has had previous holders, so the reason code “existing position” would be used, in this scenario.
-
I’m trying to initiate a new hire/rehire FTE faculty or IA/TA graduate student PCR with an 8/16/24 effective date using my FY25 fund and I am receiving an error/hard stop when I try to submit the PCR. Why is that?
All PCRs with effective dates in August 2024 are still technically within FY24, therefore FY24 funds should be used on the August 2024 PCRs. The HRIS and back-office teams will flip funds to FY25 funds behind the scenes effective 9/1/24.
Was your question not addressed in the FAQ?
CHART OF MOVEMENTS
Please find a chart below of common scenarios you may encounter this fall semester for existing university employees. The first column outlines the status of an employee during summer II 2024 dates, and the second column outlines what they will be transitioning to in the fall 2024 semester. The third column outlines the guidance for each of these scenarios.
Summer II Employment Status | Fall 2024 Employment Status | Guidance |
Active or Inactive (on LWOP) GA/DA/GRA/DRA | GIA/DIA/GTA/DTA | If staying the same FTE, process a Change in Position effective 8/16 to align with the new contract dates. If changing FTEs, will need to end the old additional appointment and process an Additional Appointment effective 8/16 to make this change. |
Hourly Student Worker/NSNR | GIA/DIA/GTA/DTA | Must end all hourly employment no later than 7/31/24 and have all time entry entered and approved by 5pm on 7/31/24 to transition to the new assignment effective 8/16/24. See more detailed instructions in the FAQs. |
TXST faculty or graduate employment contracted through 8/31/24 | Continuing employment into Fall 2024 | If a change in position needs to occur for Fall 2024, but someone is currently contracted and working through summer II date 8/31/24, the earliest they may change positions is 9/1/24 so the contract dates do not overlap. |
Benefits Eligible Program Faculty | Benefits eligible FTE faculty | If staying the same FTE, process a Change in Position effective 8/16 to align with the new contract dates. If changing FTEs, will need to end the old additional appointment and process an Additional Appointment effective 8/16 to make this change. |
Per course faculty | Benefits eligible FTE faculty | If the per course faculty is not working during summer II dates, their positions may be changed with the new contract dates effective 8/16/24. Due to changing FTEs mid-month, you will need to separate their per course assignments the last day they worked/were paid in their per course assignments and initiate an Additional Appointment PCR to rehire them into their benefits-eligible assignment. If the per course faculty is working summer II dates, they will need to transition to benefits eligible FTE faculty effective 9/1/24 this fall so the contract dates do not overlap. |
CONTACT THE SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTS
Please look at the teams below and the common reasons you may need to seek guidance. Reach out with your questions as soon as possible for assistance, detailing all pertinent employee information in your emails and communications. We are happy to help!
Name/Email | Phone | Common reasons to contact... |
5-2786 | Academic Affairs budget/funding inquiries, stipend requests, FTE and pay calculation help and/or questions about the Faculty Salary Calculator spreadsheet, help with position management within Academic Affairs | |
5-2786 | Questions about contracts, new teaching hiring packet completion, questions about FTE and pay calculation help back-up | |
5-2557 | FTE and pay calculation help for faculty and graduate employees outside of Academic Affairs, stipend requests outside of Academic Affairs | |
5-2557 | Questions about faculty, staff, NSNR, and temporary hiring, job postings and recommendations for hire in PeopleAdmin, reference checks, background checks and pre-employment screening, and I-9s and E-Verify. | |
5-2557 | What type of PCR to use, what PCR effective date to use, removal of future dated LWOP actions to initiate a separation PCR, temporary SSN requests, help with position management for divisions other than Academic Affairs | |
5-2557 | Questions related to international employment of faculty or staff, including H1-B sponsorships and PERM process, with the exception of J-1 scholars. Email: inationalemploy@txstate.edu | |
5-7966 | Questions about the: | |
5-2543 | Payroll Calendar |
Our office is working closely with Human Resources and Information Technology to implement these changes.