ThePennsylvania State System of Higher Education and Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties (APSCUF) have reached a tentative agreement on a one-year contract extension with the faculty at the state-owned universities and a new collective bargaining agreement with non-faculty coaches.

Both agreements must be ratified first by the APSCUF membership, then by the State System’s Board of Governors. Details of the tentative agreements will be released upon their ratification.

The tentative agreement with the faculty would extend the current collective bargaining agreement to June 30, 2003. The contract is scheduled to expire next month.

The tentative agreement with the non-faculty coaches would be for two years and would run through June 30, 2004.

APSCUF represents the approximately 5,500 professors at the 14 state-owned universities, as well as the approximately 350 non-faculty coaches at the institutions. The faculty and coaches belong to separate bargaining units.

With more than 98,600 students, the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education is the largest provider of higher education in the Commonwealth. Its 14 universities offer more than 250 degree and certificate programs in more than 120 areas of study. More than 360,000 System alumni live and work in Pennsylvania.

The state-owned universities are Bloomsburg, California, Cheyney, Clarion, East Stroudsburg, Edinboro, Indiana, Kutztown, Lock Haven, Mansfield, Millersville, Shippensburg, Slippery Rock and West Chester Universities of Pennsylvania. The System also operates branch campuses in Clearfield, Kittanning, Oil City and Punxsutawney and several regional centers, including the Dixon University Center in Harrisburg and the University Center for Southwest Pennsylvania in Pittsburgh. The regional centers are part of the Educational Resources Group, which is responsible for coordinating statewide programming.