Christopher Reeve to speak at spring commencement

By AMY MURRAY, Media Relations

Actor, director and activist Christopher Reeve will be the speaker for Ohio State's spring commencement set for June 13 in Ohio Stadium. Approximately 5,500 students will receive degrees during the ceremony, which begins at 9:30 a.m.

Since he was paralyzed in an equestrian competition in 1995, Reeve has put a human face on spinal cord injuries and has become a strong advocate for spinal-cord research.

Christopher Reeve

"Christopher Reeve represents every ideal that Ohio State students value, and I'm sure graduates will be inspired by his message," said J. Briggs Cormier, president of the Council of Graduate Students and student chair of the commencement speaker selection committee. "In choosing the commencement speaker, our students expressed a strong interest in hearing from someone whose principles are the ones that we value -- giving back to the community and going out to do good in the world.

"Reeve's personal story is compelling and he has been a tireless advocate for many important causes. I expect that his address will challenge our graduates to strive for those same ideals," Cormier said.

In 1999, Reeve became chairman of the board of the Christopher Reeve Paralysis Foundation, a national, nonprofit organization that supports research to develop effective treatments and a cure for paralysis caused by spinal cord injury and other central nervous system disorders. The foundation awards grants that attempt to improve the quality of life for people with disabilities.

Reeve has also campaigned to pursue research on embryonic stem cells and its potential to cure a wide variety of diseases and conditions, including spinal-cord injuries.

As vice chairman of the National Organization on Disability, he works on quality of life issues for the disabled. In partnership with Sen. Jim Jeffords (I-Vt.), he helped pass the 1999 Work Incentives Improvement Act, which allows people with disabilities to return to work and still receive disability benefits. Reeve is on the board of directors of World T.E.A.M. Sports, a group that organizes and sponsors challenging sporting events for athletes with disabilities.

After graduating from Cornell University in 1974, Reeve pursued his dream of acting. He made his Broadway debut opposite Katharine Hepburn in "A Matter of Gravity" in 1976. Film credits include "Superman" in 1978 and subsequent sequels, as well as the Oscar-nominated "The Remains of the Day." Reeve made his directorial debut with "In the Gloaming" on HBO in 1997. The film was nominated for five Emmy awards and won six Cable Ace Awards.

Reeve's autobiography, Still Me, was published by Random House in 1998 and spent 11 weeks on the New York Times Bestseller List. His second book, Nothing is Impossible: Reflections on a New Life, was published in September.

Reeve's community and political involvement pre-dates his spinal cord injury. Over the years, he has served as a national spokesman on behalf of the arts, campaign finance reform and the environment.

Last year, President George W. Bush delivered Ohio State's spring commencement address. Previous speakers have included actor Bill Cosby (2001); Rep. J.C. Watts, R-Oklahoma (2000); Dumisa Ntsebeza, a member of the South African Truth and Reconciliation Commission (1999); columnist Bob Greene (1998); and author John Jakes (1996).

Graduates and guests can find complete information about the ceremony on the Web at www.osu.edu/commence/.

Compensation decisions delayed by state budget

By SUSAN WITTSTOCK, onCAMPUS staff

Because of the uncertainty regarding the outcome of the current state budget process, Ohio State is delaying the decision regarding compensation increases for 2003-04.

"The state budget is expected to be determined by mid- to late-June, at which point the university will be able to make a decision regarding compensation," said Ed Ray, executive vice president and provost. "Both the uncertainty of the current budget process in Ohio and the difficulty in obtaining information about compensation increases at peer institutions have led us to conclude that decisions regarding compensation increases at Ohio State should be delayed for another month or two.

"We remain committed to making progress toward competitive compensation at Ohio State, and compensation continues to be one of President Holbrook's highest priorities."

Because of the compensation delay, increases in health care premiums also will not go into effect on July 1, as previously scheduled, said Larry Lewellen, associate vice president for human resources. "We felt it was necessary to delay rate increases to minimize the burden on faculty and staff. Parking fee increases will be delayed also, if necessary," he said.

Administrators are unable to comment yet on what percentage of increase for compensation will be offered for 2003-04.

"Complicating Ohio State's decision-making process is the fact that many of our benchmark institutions have not yet made decisions regarding their increases," Lewellen said.

Despite the delay in the compensation decision affecting faculty and staff, promotional increases for faculty will be implemented as scheduled.

STRS approves changes to retiree health care benefits

By SUSAN WITTSTOCK, onCAMPUS staff

Health care benefits for retired members of the State Teachers Retirement System will be changing in a number of substantial ways for 2004. The changes, effective Jan. 1, 2004, include increasing the years of service needed for retirees to be eligible for subsidized health care coverage from five years to 15 and eliminating the health care subsidy provided to dependents and spouses.

The health care committee of the State Teachers Retirement System board approved the changes at a May 15 meeting, after a six month research and review process.

Herb Dyer, executive director of STRS Ohio, told board members that it would not have been possible to maintain the current health plan without the approved changes. "We cannot control the cost of health care, but we can do our best to help the retirees who depend on us," Dyer said.

In late 2002, Ohio State helped form an alliance of public universities, school system administrators, community colleges, retiree associations, teachers' unions and the AAUP to independently review proposed benefits changes and make recommendations. The Healthcare Advocates for STRS (HCA) worked closely with STRS in determining which changes were necessary in the short and long term.

"We felt our input was taken seriously and had an impact on the choices made to determine the 2004 plan changes," said Larry Lewellen, associate vice president for human resources and co-chair of HCA. "We realize that changes in the areas of eligibility and member premiums had to be made and we're pleased to see STRS including a stable outlet for feedback when dealing with these difficult issues."

At the May 15 STRS meeting, several board members credited the advocacy group with helping STRS make positive progress in addressing health care issues.

"These changes will create serious financial strain for many of our faculty, but we feel that the STRS board has done its best to work out a reasonable plan, given the need to resolve the pension liabilities of the system and the rapid inflation of health care costs," Lewellen said, noting that, consistent with HCA proposals to control health care costs, STRS opted to raise deductibles and provide coinsurance for medical and prescription benefits.

"Some of these changes remain open issues to try to restore in future years -- in particular, the subsidy of premium costs for spouses and dependents. There may not be sufficient funding resources to address subsidy for shorter-service faculty, but I am also very concerned about faculty with less than 15 years of service. In any event, the dialogue with STRS will continue," Lewellen said.

Eugene Norris, chair of STRS' health care committee, said there was a need to continue the conversation. "We have long term issues to discuss," he said. "I recommend to the board that included in the annual plan is a structure for ongoing conversations with the health care advocacy group."

Although subsidies for spouses and dependents were eliminated (see sidebar for details), the advocacy group was successful in convincing STRS not to shrink the subsidy percentage for retirees to 2 percent, Lewellen said. For 2004, it will be 2.5 percent times years of service, with a maximum subsidy of 75 percent. Currently, the subsidy level for service and disability retirees is 2.9 percent times years of service with a maximum of 87 percent.

HCA also was successful in its recommendation that STRS allow career educators to receive subsidized health care regardless of their age at retirement, Lewellen said.

Another major change for 2004 is offering two plans -- the Plus Plan and the Catastrophic Plan -- rather than just one. Previously, the STRS subsidy was based on the cost of the "base" plan, which was defined as the most cost-effective plan available to the majority of non-Medicare enrollees, typically the Medical Mutual PPO plan. Those who chose to enroll in a more expensive plan paid the difference.

In 2004, because the Plus and Catastrophic plans differ greatly, the base plan for the Plus Plan will be Medical Mutual's Plus Plan and the base plan for the Catastrophic Plan will be Medical Mutual's Catastrophic Plan.

"HCA was pleased to see that STRS set a cap on member out-of-pocket expenses for prescription drugs for members enrolled in the Plus Plan," Lewellen said

Also of note is the decision to freeze reimbursements for Medicare Part B premiums at 2003 levels.

Changes made for 2004 are expected to keep the Health Care Stabilization Fund solvent until 2011. If no changes were made, the fund was expected to stay solvent only through 2008. "We know that the STRS board is in agreement with HCA that a dedicated, predictable and stable revenue stream needs to be created to maintain affordable care," Lewellen said.

Approximately 3,600 Ohio State faculty are enrolled in STRS. Statewide, there are 206,331 active STRS members and 101,619 inactive members. Currently, there are 105,300 individuals receiving either retirement or disability benefits.