Teaching Assignments and Workload Procedures

All faculty members are expected to work full-time for the University.  This does not mean that each contributes in the same way.  For all Faculty of the Tuscarawas Campus the normal teaching load is the equivalent of twenty-four (24) credit hours per academic year and includes formal teaching and appropriate workload equivalencies for special assignments as determined by the Campus Dean.  For non-tenure-track faculty of the Tuscarawas Campus the normal teaching load is the equivalent of thirty credit (30) hours per year. Some Faculty members may serve the public professionally and without remuneration in ways that lie outside the classroom, laboratory, or studio.  When this service contributes toward fulfilling the goals of the University, it may be part of the Faculty member’s workload.  University service, such as committee work, is expected from all Faculty members as part of their normal service.  Because the nature of work differs among disciplines, load equivalencies are not applied uniformly.  Therefore, the Campus Dean in consultation with the Campus Faculty Council determines which assignments are eligible for workload equivalents of twenty-four (24) credits of formal teaching per academic year.

Special assignments that may merit load equivalencies, when budget resources to support them are available, are:

1.   Faculty Governance Positions

a.   Faculty Council Chair – minimum of six (6) credit hours per year

b.   Other Campus Faculty Council Officer Positions – maximum of three (3) combined credit hours per year, shared when possible.

2.   Academic Program Coordinators – one (1) to six (6) credit hours per year dependent upon program enrollment and level of administrative responsibilities

3.   Special Assignments – The following special assignments are awarded for a three-year term with a possible three-year renewal. However, a faculty member, or the Dean, may decide not to continue the appointment at the end of an academic year.  Upon expiration of a first term and upon mutual agreement, the faculty member and the Dean can negotiate a second term.       After two consecutive three-year terms, the Campus Dean’s office will announce the position and solicit applications from interested faculty. All special assignments must go through a competitive process before further re-appointment.  Faculty members, including the current coordinator, interested in the position will submit an application letter detailing his/her strengths for the position.  The Campus Dean in consultation with the Faculty Council will form a committee to review applications.   After reviewing applications the committee will submit a recommendation to the Campus Dean.   Other special assignments, as identified by the Campus Dean in consultation with the Faculty Council, may be awarded from one (1) to six (6) credit hours per year.

a.   Writing Center Coordinator – one (1) to six (6) credit hours per year

b.   Community Engagement Coordinator – one (1) to six (6) credit hours per year

c.   Honors Coordinator – one (1) to six (6) credit hours per year

d.   FYE Coordinator – one (1) to six (6) credit hours per year

e.   Discipline Coordinators -- The Campus Dean or any Faculty Council member can propose to the Faculty Council the establishment of a discipline coordinator.   Discipline coordinators receive one (1) to six (6) credit hours per academic year if the discipline satisfies at least one of the following criteria:

1. The discipline has a significant number of credit hours towards the Kent Core or a degree program.
2. The discipline has a reasonable number of faculty (both full-time and part-time).
3. The discipline serves a significant number of students.

The terms “significant” and “reasonable” will be determined by the Campus Dean in consultation with the Faculty Council. The level of administrative responsibilities of the coordinator will be determined by the Campus Dean.

f.   TT and FTNTT Faculty Mentors – one (1) to six (6) credit hours per year. One senior TT faculty mentor and one promoted FTNTT faculty mentor are appointed after an application process.   These mentors should be familiar with the University system used for submitting reappointment and tenure/promotion files.   These individuals would be responsible for the following activities:

• Orient new faculty to the campus and operation of the regional campus system.
• Meet with first year faculty as a group to discuss any issues (problems with teaching, difficulty finding time for research, problems with student conduct, etc.)
• Offer workshops on reappointment materials and provide junior faculty with good examples of reappointment documents.
• Meet at least twice a semester with each junior faculty member to discuss upcoming personnel actions.
• Serve as possible peer reviewers for classroom observations.
• Meet periodically with the Campus Dean to discuss progress.
• Other duties as determined by the Campus Dean in consultation with the mentors. 

These positions will not replace individual faculty mentors. 

4.   Faculty Professional Development Time – one (1) to three (3) credit hours per academic year when eligible. See Section III.G.4 for more details.

5.   New Course Development – Credit hours equivalent up to the semester hours of the class (i.e., developing a three-hour class may carry a workload equivalency of up to three (3) hours). These workload equivalencies would apply only to those courses specifically requested and assigned for development by the Dean and which have not previously appeared in the Kent State University catalog.

6.   Distance Learning Course Development – Workload hours equivalent to the semester hours of the class (i.e. developing a three-hour class has a workload equivalency of three hours).  Alternatively, a faculty member who initially develops a course for DL instruction may elect to receive a one-time cash payment, payment to be made upon completion of the development of the course.  The amount of the cash payment shall be agreed to by the faculty member and the Campus Dean prior to the undertaking of the development of the course. These equivalencies would apply only to those courses specifically requested and assigned by the Dean for development.

7.   Extensive Revision of a Distance Learning Course – One-half of the workload hours equivalent to the semester hours of the class (i.e., revising a three-hour class has a workload equivalency of 1.5 hours).  These equivalencies would apply only to those course revisions requested and assigned by the Dean and agreed to by the individual faculty member.

8.   Individual Investigation – One-tenth (1/10) of workload equivalency per student credit hour for each hour of direct supervision of credit individual investigation.  Such student investigation shall be approved by the Campus Dean only when the individual instruction is a program requirement or is being taken by the student as a substitute for a program requirement, and when the credit hours satisfy a specific and immediate graduation requirement that cannot be satisfied in any other way.

Since needs, budgets, and faculty change over time, these appointments will be modified as well. When adjustments need to be made, the Dean will consult with the Faculty Council in the spring of each year to discuss the reasons for adding to or subtracting from these assignments for the subsequent academic year.

Evening assignments vary by academic unit.  However, all faculty members could expect a portion of their contract load to be assigned during the evening hours.  Faculty may also expect to be assigned to teach at other Regional Campuses if enrollments do not justify a full teaching load at the Tuscarawas Campus.  At the discretion and assignment of the Dean, special assignments of a non-teaching nature may be part of a faculty member's workload.

For each term of the regular academic year, each member of the faculty shall receive a statement of his/her workload.  This statement shall include the number of workload hours to be devoted to instructional assignments and the number of hours within the Campus’ workload equivalency policy to be devoted to the discharge of responsibilities in the areas of research, special service and advising activities significantly above the level expected of all faculty, services of an administrative nature, and other applicable workload equivalents, as assigned by the Dean.  Faculty areas of expertise and programmatic need are among the factors taken into consideration in the assignment of instructional workload.  Normally, this individual workload statement should be provided to the faculty member in accordance with the current CBA. If a faculty member’s instructional assignments and/or workload equivalencies change after the initial statement has been issued, an updated version will be given to the affected faculty member. Questions regarding the assignment should be addressed to the Campus Assistant Dean.  In case of dispute or request for special consideration, the faculty member may request a review by the Faculty Council, which, following such review, will make a non-binding recommendation to the Campus Dean.

Campus faculty members should consult the handbook for their academic units and academic colleges for applicable curricular policies and procedures. Additional information about curricular matters and program requirements is available from the Office of Quality Initiatives and Curriculum and is included in the University’s current Undergraduate and Graduate Catalogues.

The Campus Faculty Council considers all curricular matters related to programs uniquely offered by Kent State University at Tuscarawas. Curricular changes may be proposed by any faculty member for consideration by the FC. All such changes must first be reviewed by the Academic Affairs Committee of the campus and then presented to the FC for approval. If the recommendation from the Academic Affairs Committee is not unanimous, a minority report may be submitted with the recommendation. Any proposal for curricular revision must be submitted to the faculty at least five (5) working days prior to a vote by the FC. If recommended by a majority of the FC, the proposal is forwarded to the Campus Dean whose recommendation is sent to the relevant academic unit.

Assignment to instructional overloads for faculty (for additional compensation) is neither a regular expectation nor an obligation of employment of a faculty member.  An overload occurs when a person exceeds the expected number of hours for the faculty member’s position.  Overload payment for tenure-track Faculty is made on the basis of the appropriate percentage of the Faculty member's base annual contract salary (1/24 of base annual contract salary for each workload credit hour.)  Non-tenure-track faculty are paid in accordance with the current Overload and Summer Schedule then in effect.

In instances in which an overload assignment is made by the Campus Dean, the assignment normally may not exceed one (1) additional course for a semester, nor may overload compensation for an academic year exceed twenty-five percent (25%) of a Faculty member's base academic year salary.  Exceptions to this rule are rare and will occur at the discretion of the Campus Dean.

Probationary Faculty members are generally not assigned to teach overload during any academic year prior to being awarded tenure in the Regional Campus System.

Students, both undergraduate and graduate, are of primary concern to all faculty members, and students' academic needs are of primary importance to the Campus.  Students participate in various Campus committees including the Student Academic Complaint Committee, and those ad hoc committees where students' viewpoints are useful and appropriate.  Student appointments to committees are made by the Dean in consultation with the FC Chair and the faculty members involved in and affected by a specific committee's work.

Workload assignments for summer terms will be made according to the approved time lines and will observe any priorities as outlined in the TT CBA. 

Faculty must have approval from the Kent Campus department/school/independent college, as applicable, to teach a given course.  The Assistant Dean will endeavor to distribute course assignments in an equitable manner that provides for fair distribution of the available workload/overload and allows for all faculty members within the discipline to have the opportunity to teach advanced course work offered by the Campus.  In case of dispute or request for special consideration, the faculty member may request a review by the Faculty Council, which, following such review will make an advisory recommendation to the Campus Dean.  Once course assignments are made, changes due to course cancellations will be determined in a manner that is least disruptive and are at the discretion of the Campus Dean.

A faculty member seeking assignment to courses at more than a single campus has an obligation to inform the offices of the Campus Deans of the respective campuses of the courses to which he/she has been assigned or is seeking assignment.

Faculty members are assigned to teach specific courses by the Campus Dean.  The primary considerations for course assignments are department/school/independent college approval, prior teaching experience, subject expertise, and shared responsibility among the faculty for service and introductory courses.  Questions regarding teaching assignments should be addressed to the Campus Dean.  In the case of a dispute or request for reassignment the faculty member may request review by the Faculty Council which will make a recommendation to the Campus Dean.  Scheduling of classes is the responsibility of the Assistant Dean with approval of the Campus Dean.  The primary consideration for scheduling classes is student need with regard to meeting program or major requirements within a reasonable time frame.  In addition, the scheduling of some classes may be determined by the need to serve nontraditional students.

The Campus Dean welcomes requests for summer teaching assignments from all faculty members.  Summer teaching cannot be guaranteed to any faculty member. The size, content, and staffing of summer courses are dictated by budgetary constraints, curricular and student needs. The Assistant Dean will endeavor to distribute course assignments in an equitable manner. Faculty members may elect not to accept a summer assignment.

Distance learning (DL) instruction is defined as courses (or course sections) in which instruction occurs remotely and various forms of technology are utilized to provide students/faculty with differentiated modes of interaction and communication, including but not limited to synchronous distribution (e.g., face-to-face interaction provided through room based video, desktop-based video, or other modes of interactive audio and video conferencing) and asynchronous distribution (e.g., web-based or internet-based online courses/sections). DL instruction may be offered through such technologies as identified, provided, and supported by the University.

As with traditional courses, the instructor’s academic unit may exercise the right to approve course content, requirements, and time frames for instruction.

When the Campus Dean or an academic unit assigns the development of, or conversion to, a distance learning course, that assignment will be offered first to Tuscarawas Campus Faculty who are willing to undertake the project, who are approved to teach the course, and who have the necessary technical expertise.  Faculty do, however, have the right to receive reasonable initial technical training as well as ongoing technical support from the University’s Division of Information Services and the Center for Teaching and Learning, any applicable academic computing units, and the network staff at any campuses involved in delivering or receiving the course.  To assist in the day-to-day delivery of distance learning instruction, faculty also have the right to expect that all receiving sites will, with reasonable advance notice, provide for the copying and distributing of course materials as well as the proctoring of exams.

Faculty members who develop or convert a course at the administration’s request should consult the Workload Equivalency section of this Handbook for additional information. Faculty who develop or convert a course for distance learning delivery will receive a workload equivalency appropriate to the scope and nature of the project, normally one (1) credit hour of workload for each credit hour of the course.  Faculty may also opt for a one-time cash payment to be made upon completion of the development of the course. The amount shall be agreed to by the faculty member and the Campus Dean prior to undertaking the development of the course.

Faculty members who teach a distance learning course will be compensated in the same manner they are compensated for teaching a traditional course, and those who travel among campuses in support of such courses are eligible for travel reimbursement consistent with University policy.  All travel reimbursements should be agreed upon by the faculty member and the Dean prior to the development and teaching of any distance learning course.

Faculty members are expected to schedule and attend at least five (5) office hours per week.  The office hours shall be posted on the faculty member's office door and communicated to the Assistant Dean’s office as well as to the faculty member's students.  If a student, for a legitimate reason or reasons, is unable to meet during the faculty member’s scheduled office hours, the faculty member will make every effort to meet with the student at an alternate time.

Each continuing tenured Faculty member is to prepare and submit an annual workload summary report according to procedures outlined in the current TT CBA.  Faculty shall submit the report to the Campus Dean. This report is to identify and update the Faculty member's efforts, accomplishments, scholarly contributions, ongoing professional activities, service and interests during that academic year. These reports will become an ongoing record of each Faculty member's professional activities providing information related to grant activities, collaborative scholarship and teaching activities. The annual workload summary report submitted by the Faculty member will include all materials specified in the current TT CBA.  The Campus Dean shall add to the report copies of the summaries of course evaluations for each course section taught during the previous academic year.  If necessary, the Campus Dean may request additional information from the Faculty member to clarify summary information and the Faculty member shall respond in a timely fashion.