On Dec. 4, the MTSU Board of Trustees took formal action on my salary enhancement recommendations, which went into effect Jan. 1. Upon my recommendation, the Board authorized us to use a total of $1.5 million to continue to address the gap between actual employee salaries and market salaries as reported by the College and University Professional Association (CUPA) for 2020–21, along with covering any benefits associated with these salary increases. These adjustments applied to employees on the payroll as of Dec. 31 and were effective Jan. 1 (and reflected in the Jan. 31 payroll). This funding allowed the University to provide an increase to all full-time employees with an actual salary below the 2020–21 CUPA reported salary as outlined in the University’s approved compensation plan. This adjustment was designed to provide an increase of 65% of an employee’s calculated difference. The methodology used for the market adjustment calculations has been posted to the MTSU website. This action was another major step to addressing this long-standing priority for the University. Please know how much I value each of you and appreciate your good work. I am pleased that our board was in agreement and that we were able to give these salary increases to our employees.