The primary purpose of this study was to ascertain institutional and individual responses to legislated changes in faculty retirement policies. This study focused on the impact and influence of early retirement incentive programs on faculty retirement behavior in selected Commonwealth of Virginia Universities. Fundamental changes in federal and state statutes directly affected the staffing and retirement patterns of tenured faculty in higher education. Some changes in the retirement process purported to save institutional dollars while other changes broached broader philosophical issues regarding the role of older workers and retirees in an aging society; the issue of productivity of younger and older workers; the compatibility of the tenure system with the elimination of mandatory retirement; and related issues pertaining to the faculty supply/demand equilibrium. This study described the legal and organizational domains of the faculty retirement process in the Commonwealth of Virginia and identified pertinent federal and state statutes applicable to the early retirement process. Selected state and university officials provided insight into their processes for adapting retirement legislation to institutional goals, needs, agenda, and expectations. Faculty staffing patterns and retirement trends were analyzed in detail for one of the participating institutions and analyses of institutional and personal variables relative to the faculty retirement process were provided. The results of the research confirmed that the State-authorized faculty Early Retirement Incentive Program served its purpose in selected instances. Similarly, the Governor’s one-time early retirement window successfully encouraged attrition from the faculty ranks. Consistent with other findings, the federal legislation raising the mandatory retirement age had little affect on faculty retirement behavior; however, the need for state legislative action applicable to the retirement process to be consistent and compatible was evident. / Ed. D.