DANVILLE — Danville Area Community College's full-time faculty members soon will be working under a new four-year contract.

DACC board members on Thursday voted 7-0 to ratify the contract with the Danville Area Community College Education Association.

The association, which has 49 members, ratified the pact on Wednesday morning.

Association President Alan Thompson declined to release the vote. But "based on the vote we had, I would say the majority of the members are content with this contract," said Thompson, a math and physics instructor.

DACC officials also are pleased with the agreement and that the college could give increases to its "award-winning" faculty, said President Alice Jacobs. "We have just come off of record enrollments," she said, adding that all staff, including faculty, have been asked to do more. "Our faculty has always come forward and done whatever has needed to be done to serve the students."

The association's current five-year contract expires on June 30. Its new one starts on July 1 and runs through June 30, 2015.

It calls for a 3 percent raise in the first and second years and a 3.75 percent raise in the third and fourth years.

The starting salary for a new full-time faculty member with a master's degree is $43,000, and will increase to $44,000 the second year, $45,000 the third year and $46,000 the fourth year under the contract. The starting salary for a new full-time faculty member with a doctorate is $45,000. That will increase to $46,500 the second year, $47,500 the third year and $48,500 the fourth year.

In addition, the contract gives each member a one-time $500 signing bonus. It also increases the overload pay rate from $530 per credit hour to $545 per credit hour.

Jacobs said there was no change in benefits or any other major language changes.

Negotiations between the college and association began on May 2. The two groups met seven times before coming to a tentative agreement on June 17.

Thompson said he was pleased with how negotiations went. "I would say the negotiation process went as smoothly and was as friendly as any process could be expected to go," he said. "We have a wonderful group of administrators. You couldn't ask for a better bunch."