State Teachers Retirement System (STRS)
Membership in the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio (STRS) is required for all faculty members, including adjunct faculty members, who are appointed to work less than 75% Full-time Equivalency. Faculty members who are appointed to work at least 75% Full-time Equivalency can elect to be members of STRS or to participate in the Alternative Retirement Plan (ARP).
Faculty members are given the option of participating in one of three plans within STRS. The three plans are the:
- Defined Benefit Plan: Retirement, disability, and survivor benefits are determined by formulas using the employee's age, years of service, and final average salary
- Defined Contribution Plan: Retirement, disability, and survivor benefits are determined by the value of the account, including investment earnings, which the employee accumulates
- Combined Plan: Retirement, disability, and survivor benefits are combined with some elements of the other two plans
To learn more about the plans, STRS has provided the following resources to help employees make an informed decision:
- Video: Retirement Plan Options: An overview of the ARP and the three STRS plans
- Retirement Plan Comparison Chart (PDF): A comparison of the benefits provided by the ARP and the three STRS plans
- Plan Summary Brochure: An overview of the benefits provided by the three STRS plans.
If selecting STRS, employees are given 180 days to indicate their plan selection to STRS.
Regardless of the plan selected within STRS, an employee contribution of 14% is deducted on a pre-tax basis from the employee's earnings and is deposited into the employee's personal STRS account. The university makes an employer contribution in an amount equal to 14.00% of a faculty member’s pay. The percentage of the employer contribution to be deposited into the employee's STRS account depends on which plan is selected.
Additional information about the State Teachers Retirement System of Ohio (STRS) is available online at www.strsoh.org or via phone, 888-227-7877.
STRS Update: Changes to Mitigating Rate Effective July 1, 2015 (PDF)
