Faculty Roles, Responsibilities, and Operating Policies and Procedures

Each faculty member is expected to contribute to the School, Campus, College and the University according to the terms and conditions of his/her letter of appointment.  Some faculty members make their primary contribution in teaching while others emphasize research and/or creative activity.  High quality teaching and scholarly activity are expected of all faculty members.  Service to the School, Campus, College, and the University is also expected of each faculty member.

Faculty members are expected to provide students with a syllabus which includes the subject matter to be covered in a course, a listing of assignments and/or reports, approximate dates of examinations, grading standards, attendance requirements, and other pertinent details of the conduct of the class.  A Student Survey of Instruction (hereinafter “SSI”) is required in each course in each semester and will be conducted under the auspices of the Director pursuant to applicable University policies and procedures (See, Section V of this Handbook).   Probationary faculty members are required to undergo peer review of teaching during each year of the probationary period.  Supervision and direction of undergraduate research projects and theses is part of the teaching function.

Scholarly activity is expected of all faculty members, although the extent and/or type of activity may vary with the terms of each faculty member’s assignment and campus location.  Faculty involved in research and/or creative activity and the graduate program are expected to present evidence of their endeavors as witnessed by publication, proposals submitted for extramural funding, performances and juried exhibitions and dissemination of research and/or creative activity in various venues as appropriate to the discipline. Activity in professional organizations is highly valued.  For graduate teaching and/or research assistants, the training of graduate students is also expected.

Service to the University is a responsibility of each faculty member.  Under normal circumstances, untenured tenure track faculty should have limited committee responsibilities and assignments that are commensurate with the expectations of new tenure track faculty who are working toward tenure.  School, Campus, College, and University committee or task force membership is expected as a normal part of a faculty member’s contributions.  Special or outstanding service above and beyond that which is typical may be considered during the review of a faculty member, but service alone will not reduce the expectations of quality teaching and scholarly activity. 

Public service is encouraged and recognized as a part of the professional responsibilities of each faculty member, although contributions in this area can be expected to vary widely due to the nature of the various disciplines within the School.

All full-time tenured and tenure-track faculty of the School are expected to carry a maximum workload of twenty-four (24) credit hours per regular academic year.  Full-time non-tenure track faculty members are expected to carry a maximum workload of thirty (30) credit hours per regular academic year.  (See, University Policy Register 3342-6-18).  Workload assignment typically include a combination of teaching, research and service assignments, which are determined in conjunction with the school Director based on outcomes from review of the Annual Faculty Activity Report, which must be submitted by all tenured faculty prior to the end of each spring semester of the academic year.  In the interest of maintaining a high standard of teaching and the desirability of faculty involvement in research and service activities, overload assignments are strongly discouraged.  Overload assignments (i.e. workload assignments which total more than twenty-four (24) credit hours per academic year for tenured and tenure-track faculty and which total more than thirty (30) credit hours for full-time non-tenure-track faculty) will be made only in unusual circumstances.  Such assignments require the agreement of the faculty member, and the approval of the Director and the Dean.

Workload assignments related to teaching will be conducted as follows in the Fashion School: for FDM-Core combined lecture and lab courses, faculty assigned to teach both the lecture and a lab section will be assigned 4 workload hours.  These courses include Fashion Visuals (FDM 10023/10024), Fashion Fabrics (FDM 10033/10034), and Introduction to Fashion Technology (FDM 10053/10054).  For all other FDM courses, faculty will be assigned one workload hour for each 1 credit hour of coursework; i.e., a 3-credit course is equivalent to 3 workload hours. 

Teaching assignments will be determined by the Director, with the assistance of the Undergraduate Program Coordinator with the understanding that not all faculty members contribute to the School in the same manner.  A faculty member whose primary responsibilities are undergraduate teaching and undergraduate programs may teach and serve in a greater diversity of courses than a faculty member who is also a member of the graduate faculty.  Most of the School’s full-time faculty members will be either a full or associate member of the graduate faculty.  All tenure track faculty members are expected to be involved in significant research and/or creative activity, serve on graduate student committees, and direct graduate student research.  Workload balance will be determined based on these respective roles, and modified, if needed, to respond to past performance or projected need.

Beyond teaching workload assignments, all full-time faculty members have the opportunity to be assigned responsibilities within the department that will serve as workload equivalents.  Workload equivalents may be, but are not limited to activities such as, administrative activities, being a program coordinator, individual research/grant activities that contribute to the mission of the unit, special departmental assignments considered essential to the academic mission of the School, or committee work that extends beyond the normal faculty expectation.  Activities associated with assigned workload equivalencies should be reported with outcomes in the Annual Faculty Activity Report and will be reviewed annually by the Director, in consultation with the faculty member.  Continuation of workload equivalent opportunities and responsibilities will be dependent upon the success of the outcomes.  Faculty members may, in consultation with the Director, choose to forego a workload equivalent, and be assigned only teaching workload hours.

The FAC shall advise the Director on issues related to teaching assignments, class schedules and the appropriate application of workload equivalencies.  The Director shall provide each faculty member with a statement of his/her workload prior to the start of each academic semester.

Faculty members are assigned to teach specific courses by the Director.  The primary considerations for course assignments are 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 Director.  In the case of a dispute or request for reassignment, the faculty member may request review by the FAC which will make a recommendation to the Director.

Scheduling of classes is the responsibility of the Undergraduate Program Coordinator with approval of the Director.  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.  Curricular needs, faculty expertise, and faculty preference are considered.  Consideration is also given to the number of preparations (different courses).

The Director welcomes requests for summer teaching assignments from all full-time faculty members.  Summer teaching cannot be guaranteed to any faculty member. The size, content, and staffing of summer courses are dictated by budgetary constraints and curricular needs.  TT and then NTT faculty have priority for summer assignments before part-time faculty can be hired.  Programmatic need and special expertise can override this order of priority.  Courses can be offered on an enrollment-contingency basis; however, if an enrollment target is not met for a specific course, the TT CBA requires that the course be cancelled.  Faculty members may elect not to accept a summer teaching assignment.

Faculty members are expected to schedule and attend at least five (5) office hours per week (See, University Policy Register 3342-6-18.101). If a student, for a legitimate reason, is unable to meet during the faculty member’s scheduled office hours, the faculty member is expected to make appointments to meet with the student at an alternate time.

In order to assist in student advising, faculty members should maintain current knowledge of University, College, and School programs and requirements.

Faculty members are expected to participate in recruitment programs, graduation ceremonies and other activities which are appropriate to their role as a faculty member in the School.

All faculty leaves of absence, sponsored or unsupported, personal or professional, are subject to the approval of the Director, the Dean, and the Provost.

Approved University faculty leaves of absence include but are not limited to:

• Research leaves.
• Medical, Military, Temporary Disability.
• Approved Leaves of absence without pay.
• Faculty Professional Improvement Leaves (Sabbaticals).
• Research/Creative Activity appointments.

Faculty members who will be absent from campus for professional reasons must submit a “Faculty Absence Authorization/Expenditure Estimate” form with the Director.  The request should be made at least one (1) month prior to the planned absence and is subject to the approval of the Director and the Dean.  Arrangements for any classes to be missed during the absence must be addressed to the satisfaction of the Director before approval will be granted.

Attendance at professional meetings is encouraged and approved travel expenses incurred in attending such meetings will be reimbursed when approved prior to travel according to the University's travel policies and are subject to the availability of School funds.  In general, greater amounts of support will be granted to meeting participants (i.e. those presenting a paper or Chairing a session) than to faculty members who simply attend professional meetings.

The Director is responsible for keeping complete records of faculty sick leave; however, faculty members are also required to submit the appropriate sick leave form(s) to the Director.  Sick leave forms should be completed and submitted to the Director within forty-eight (48) hours after an absence.

Faculty members may engage in professional activities outside the University provided the activities do not interfere with the faculty member's teaching, research, or service responsibilities to the School, Campus, College or University (See, University Policy Register 3342-6-24). These activities must not compete with University activity or the faculty member’s employment with the University and must be approved in advance by the Director and the Dean. Each academic year, each faculty member must disclose and seek approval for all outside employment or other outside activities on the form provided by the University.  Any outside employment or other outside activities are subject to the Faculty Code of Ethics and the University’s conflict of interest policies.  (See, University Policy Register 3342-6-17 and 3342-6-23).

All members of the School faculty are expected to maintain the highest ethical standards as teachers, scholars, university citizens and colleagues.  The University policy regarding faculty code of professional ethics can be found in the University Policy Register.  (See, University Policy Register 3342-6-17).

All faculty members should be aware of current copyright laws which restrict the copying of published materials.  For further information, contact the University’s Office of Legal Affairs.

The University policy regarding misconduct in research and scholarship and the Administrative policy and procedures regarding allegations and instances of misconduct in research and scholarship is included in the University Policy Register. (See, University Policy Register 3342-3-05).

A sanction is a documented corrective action in response to a faculty member's unsatisfactory performance of his/her duties and responsibilities as a member of the faculty.  (See, “Sanctions for Cause” in the Collective Bargaining Agreement).