I'll have my 67th birthday in November, so I will become emeritus on Oct 31. Does this mean retirement? Not really - just time to cut a new deal.
The main reason I mention this is not to whip up a wave of nostalgia you wouldn’t fall for anyway, but to let you know that if you’re approaching or already in your 60s, you may have some choices to make. If you’re younger, just pass this on to your spouse, financial adviser, or pass it on to an older colleague. Just ake sure to keep the info away from your most predatory adult kids.
I’m following a trend of older workers who keep on going. But unlike many people I see in those investment firm commercials on TV, I’m not leaving to start a new career. I’m not going anywhere. I have already been “recalled to active service” by our department and will show up for work on Nov. 1 as usual under a one-year renewable contract.
Here’s the background:
When Stanford, prompted by federal law, ended its mandatory age-70 retirement policy in 1993, some wags feared that the faculty would soon consist mostly of gray-haired geezers. (Okay, I have gray hair, but don’t go there.) Instead, the average age of faculty went from 47.6 in 1993 to 49.3 a decade later. That’s an especially insignificant increase, considering that before 1993 the number of faculty members older than 70 was officially zero. By 2003, there were still only 48 septuagenarians and above - a mere 2.8 percent of 1,713 faculty members.
The fact that faculty members are retiring on the job can be attributed at least in part to Stanford’s Faculty Retirement Incentive Program (FRIP), which offers a great incentive to become emeritus with (what else!!!) money.
To qualify for FRIP, faculty members:
• Must have at least 15 years of service to Stanford University at 50 percent time or more.
• Must be age 60 to 69.
• Must be in an eligible faculty line (Academic Council, Medical Center Line [MCL], and Hoover Institution Senior Fellows). Warning: the Clinician-Educator line is not eligible for this benefit at this time, and of course you nonfaculty staff members have a whole different range of options.
Then…
If your age at retirement is 60-66, you are given a check for 2 times your annual salary.
If your age is 67-69, you are given a check for 1 times your annual salary.
Over 69, you get a gold watch, maybe, if they have any left over.
Even I could see why it makes sense to become emeritus one month before my 67th birthday. (Warning: this program isn’t for everyone. If a prospective emeriti comes from a department which won’t re-hire emeriti, it might be a better plan to keep working until you drop.)
Otherwise, pay attention to your options, especially if you are a gee-, er, faculty member of a certain age.
Oh, and one more thing - All emeriti are given a free “A” parking sticker for life. Pretty cool. That beats a gold watch.
For more detailed information on FRIP, go to:
http://news-service.stanford.edu/news/2003/april9/retire-49.html
http://www.stanford.edu/dept/provost/faculty/policies/FRIP/
