Investing in our people
Dear Lumberjacks,
As we begin a new year, we remain steadfast in our commitment to recognizing and supporting our faculty and staff who contribute so much to NAU’s mission. Today, I am pleased to share updates about our investments in employee compensation for 2025.
Base salary increases
Thanks to careful assessment of revenue and expenditure trends, enrollments, and this year’s record-breaking retention rates—and informed by our people-first investment philosophy—NAU will implement a 2.5% increase to base salaries for benefit-eligible 12-month employees on July 1, 2025, or at the beginning of the contract/work period for all other eligible faculty and staff. This adjustment represents the final phase of our three-year effort that began in April 2022 to increase faculty and staff base salaries by 10%.
This broad-based merit increase underscores our commitment to our faculty and staff, representing an annual investment of $8.3 million in university compensation. This builds on a holistic program of enhancements to compensation and workplace initiatives we have undertaken in recent years, including:
- Base salary increases in 2023 and 2024, and a one-time payment in 2022
- Raising the minimum salary for regular career and tenure-track faculty
- Progressive increases to student hourly wage rates and tiers
- New NAU Workplace initiatives, including hybrid/flexible schedules, winter closure, True Blue Summer Fridays, volunteer hours, and more
- Substantial university investment in benefits to support employee coverage and minimize the impact of increases to premiums
- Comprehensive adjustments to our salary rate structure and pay scales
All told, when this increase goes into effect NAU will have invested more than $36 million into compensation programs since 2022 to support, retain, develop, and advance our talented, mission-driven faculty and staff.
Our people-first approach
At NAU, we prioritize our people, recognizing the collective efforts of our faculty and staff are fundamental to the success of our students and our ability to achieve our vision. In addition to direct investments in salary and benefits, over the past three years the university has adjusted policies, evolved workplace practices, and increased engagement with faculty and staff leadership to transform the NAU workplace. This latest investment in compensation is a further reflection of our deep commitment to fostering a supportive and equitable environment for our faculty and staff.
To maintain this trajectory, we must sharpen our focus on all dimensions of strategic finance—and revenue generation in particular—to sustain and expand these efforts.
As you know, state investments have not kept pace with the needs of higher education, making it essential for the university to rely on revenue from student tuition and fees—our largest source of funding. We are focused on advocating for renewed public investments, and private support cultivated by the NAU Foundation is at record levels. Ultimately, however, it is our ability to raise revenues within our control—through student enrollment, persistence, and success, which are all intrinsically linked to our mission—that hold the greatest potential for securing and sustaining our future.
The good news is that our progress in this area has been remarkable and has allowed us to implement the increases referenced today:
- Record Arizona resident enrollment and strong first-year enrollments
- Reversing declines in overall enrollment that occurred during the pandemic
- Achieving record retention rates as part of our commitment to academic momentum
- Launching numerous impactful initiatives that advance our mission, enable student success, and strengthen our value proposition to the state
Thanks to these achievements, we have been able to invest and reinvest in our people. Looking ahead, it is imperative we maintain this momentum by taking a strategic finance approach to our allocation of resources, time, and effort.
Looking ahead
As we plan for the future, we will continue to evaluate and adapt our approach to compensation investments, striving to sustain competitive and equitable pay, driven primarily by growth in our revenue generating endeavors.
More details on the July 1, 2025, salary increase program will be available soon on the NAU Human Resources website. In addition, I expect to share more about revenue generation strategies in the coming weeks with our university community and look forward to your partnership in sharpening and joining in this collective effort.
Thank you for your ongoing dedication to our students, our community, and our mission. Wishing you all a most successful semester ahead!
In partnership,
José Luis Cruz Rivera
President