Instructors at Mt. Hood Community College can breathe a collective sigh of relief now that the MHCCD Board has approved the faculty contract.

In a special session Wednesday, the board approved the faculty contract 6-0, with member Frank Shields not in attendance. Following approval of the contract, non-alcoholic beverages were poured and those present toasted the college, students, faculty and the board.

Board members and faculty members alike commented on the cooperation of both sides through the negotiations.

Before the vote was held, board member Bob Morris said, “It gives us a good place to start the next few years. In light of our history, it’s a remarkable accomplishment.”

President Robert Silverman called the situation a “win-win” and said, “This is a strong endorsement of the value we have for one another (the board and the faculty) and for the college.”

A major change to the contract is that faculty may lose five paid workdays, called in-service days, if the funding from the state is inadequate. The faculty’s current contract does not expire until Aug. 31, 2006, but as the news from Salem is “abysmal,” according to Faculty Association President Pam Shields, she calls this move on the faculty’s part a “good-faith effort to participate in adding stability to the college.”

Another major change to the faculty contract regards the cost of living increase, or COLA. Based on the consumer price index, the new contract sets it at a range of 2 to 3 percent. The original language had the COLA capped at 2 percent.