THE BAY COLLEGE Iron Mountain campus on U.S. 2 on the city’s north side. (Daily News file photo)

ESCANABA/IRON MOUNTAIN — A new three-year contract has been reached between Bay College and its faculty association.

Details of the new contract, as released by Bay College on Wednesday, include:

— The use of booking software to ease the process of students connecting with instructors;

— Creating positions to better support part-time instructors;

— Shifting professional development days to a teaching and learning conference and improving overall professional development;

— Increasing and broadening professional development funds;

— Clearer communication guidelines from instructors for students;

— Additional support for instructors participating in the tenure process; and

— Wage and step increases.

The contract, which will extend through the 2027-28 academic year, was finalized after eight months of negotiations led by Amber Kinonen, president of the faculty association, and Dr. Amy Reddinger, Bay’s vice president of academic affairs.

In a news release, Bay noted the negotiations took place without the benefit of a mediator, who took a federal retirement early in the process.

“Dr. Reddinger and I agreed early on to set aside focusing strictly on contract language and take a more collaborative, classroom-style approach — using mixed small groups of faculty and administrators to brainstorm solutions,” Kinonen said in the news release. “This led to more meaningful changes and a positive, compromise-driven experience.”

Bay College President Dr. Nerita Hughes said in the release, “We are very proud of what we were able to accomplish in this process and in the resulting contract. We believe this is a win for our institution and for our students.”

The current three-year agreement was to expire with the 2024-2025 academic year.

No information was immediately available on current faculty numbers at Bay, which has campuses in Escanaba and Iron Mountain. But a post on the Bay College website from November 2022 indicated 38 full-time and 69 part-time faculty members.