By
Hillary Davis
Arizona Daily Wildcat
The state senate bill that could direct millions of dollars to the hiring of more UA graduate teaching assistants is an investment in Arizona's future, graduate students agreed.
Overworked TAs may soon get relief if the legislature grants $3 million to the university to hire more TAs. As many as 144 new TAs would be hired with the funds.
Jani Radebaugh, a planetary sciences graduate student and the College of Science representative for the Graduate and Professional Student Council, said the council is encouraged by the support from the legislature and optimistic that the bill will pass.
"We have been emphasizing with legislators that while only 20 percent of all graduate students at the U of A come from Arizona, 60 percent decide to stay in Arizona once they are done with school," said Radebaugh, who lobbied the legislature to consider the bill. "Thus, an investment in recruiting graduate students is an investment in Arizona's future economy."
The University of Arizona's $3 million request - which would allot $1.5 million in each of the next two years - would allow the university to hire the new TAs, and alleviate the average workload.
Gary Pivo, dean of the Graduate College, told the Senate Education Committee last week that TAs work an average of 20 percent more than their counterparts at UA's peer institutions, and that it is not unusual for TAs to work up to 50 percent more hours than they are paid for.
With extra TAs in place, the workload would be brought down to 20 hours a week, the amount originally set for half-time graduate teaching assistants.
Jonathan Hartman, a retailing and consumer sciences graduate student, said promises from UA President Peter Likins to help graduate students are so far being followed up on.
Hartman - who is doing research and administrative work for Sally Jackson, the vice provost for faculty development and educational technology - has also taught and understands the stresses of graduate students.
"I can tell you that Pres. Likins has told us that his top priority is to improve the teaching loads for TAs, and I personally know that he's told that to the legislature," said Hartman, who is also administrative vice president for the GPSC. "If we were to get what he's requesting, the workload of the most burdened TAs would be lessened considerably."
Hartman said that in addition to long hours, some TAs must make do on as little as $2,500 per semester.
"I don't know the last time you checked, but it's difficult to live on $5,000 a year," he said.
The education committee approved the bill, Senate Bill 1415, by a 5-3 vote Thursday. The bill now faces a hearing in the Appropriations Committee.
The bill is the most recent in a string of advances made by teaching assistants to improve their work and financial situation.
Last winter, a group of teaching assistants presented Likins with requests for extended child and health care packages, a pay raise and other benefits. In December, Provost George Davis approved an initiative that would allow graduate students to have their tuition and registration fees deducted from their salary.
