Teaching Assignments and Workload Including Workload Equivalencies and Related Procedures
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Faculty Appointments
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Tenure Track Faculty
Normally, an earned doctoral or terminal degree (M.F. A.) in the discipline is required for all faculty appointments to a tenure-track position in the Department. Tenure track appointments are governed by University policy and procedures regarding faculty tenure (See University Policy Register 3342-6-14).
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Full-Time Non-Tenure Track Faculty (NTT) Appointments
Full-time non-tenure track faculty (NTT) appointments are made on an annual basis (See Section VI of this Handbook). NTT appointments are not included under the umbrella of the University policy and procedures regarding faculty tenure (See University Policy Register 3342-6-14) and NTT faculty members are not entitled to any rights with regard to tenure.
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Part-Time Faculty Appointments
When the Department cannot meet its teaching needs from the ranks of its full-time tenured and tenure-track faculty, full-time non-tenure track (NTT) faculty and graduate students, part-time faculty appointments will be made from an established pool of qualified applicants not currently on regular appointment at the University.
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Graduate Faculty Appointments
The Chair recommends to the Associate Dean for Graduate Studies, College of Arts and Sciences, graduate faculty appointments at the full or associate levels, based upon the recommendation of the Graduate Studies Committee. The Administrative policy regarding graduate faculty is included in the University Policy Register. (See University Policy Register 3342-6-15.1)
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Faculty Ranks
The basic definitions of faculty ranks are the following:
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Instructor
This rank is intended for persons initially hired with a master's degree. Normally, the Department does not hire at the rank of Instructor except for full-time non-tenure track (NTT) faculty positions.
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Assistant Professor
This rank is normally the entry level rank for tenure-track faculty holding the doctorate in an appropriate discipline.
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Associate Professor
Hire to or promotion to this rank presumes prior service as an Assistant Professor, significant academic achievements, and possession of the doctorate in an appropriate discipline (See Section V of this Handbook).
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Professor
Promotion to this rank requires credentials and achievements beyond those required for promotion to Associate Professor and is reserved for senior faculty members who have achieved significant recognition in their discipline (See Section 3 of this Handbook).
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Role and Responsibility of the Faculty
Research, Teaching, Service: Each faculty member is expected to contribute to the Department, Campus, College and the University according to the terms and condition of his/her letter of appointment. Some faculty members make their primary contribution in teaching while others emphasize research.
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 the graduate program are expected to present evidence of their endeavors as witnessed by publication, proposals submitted for extramural funding, and dissemination of research in various venues as appropriate to the discipline. Activity in professional organizations and the training of graduate students is also expected.
Not all faculty members contribute to the Department 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. Tenure-track faculty members at the Kent Campus are expected to be either a full or associate member of the graduate faculty. All tenure-track faculty members are expected to be involved in significant research activity, serve on graduate student committees, and direct graduate student research. Supervision and direction of undergraduate research projects and theses is part of the teaching function.
Service to the University is a responsibility of each faculty member. Department, 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. -
Teaching/Research Assignments, Kent Campus
Early in the academic year the Program Coordinators will make recommendations to the Chair for particular teaching assignments, based upon programmatic needs. Ordinarily, faculty will teach a range of courses, including upper-division and (when appropriate) graduate courses in their area of specialization, but also including lower-division and CORE courses. Faculty will also have an opportunity to express preferences for particular times and days they wish to teach. It is the responsibility of the Chair to finalize the teaching schedule, using programmatic need as the final criterion for assignments. Final notification of teaching assignments will come on the workload notification statement issued no less than thirty (30) days before the beginning of any academic year, as required by the full-time TT and NTT faculty Collective Bargaining Agreements.
Ordinarily, faculty are expected to remain active in scholarship, research, and creative activity appropriate to their appointments. Teaching and research assignments for Regional Campus faculty are determined by the Campus Dean. Teaching assignments for Kent Campus full-time NTT faculty generally will be distributed at the same time as those for full-time TT faculty. Final notification of teaching assignments (and any equivalencies, if appropriate) will be provided in the annual workload notification statement issued no later than thirty (30) days before the beginning of the academic year, as required by the full-time NTT faculty CBA (Article VIII.1D).
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Faculty Code of Ethics
All members of the Department 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)
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Faculty Workload and Workload Equivalents
All full-time tenured and tenure-track faculty of the department are expected to carry a maximum workload of twenty-four (24) credit hours per academic year. Full-time non-tenure track faculty members are expected to carry a maximum workload of thirty (30) credit hours per academic year. (See University Policy Register 3342-6-18) The workload for each individual faculty member is assigned by the Chair with the approval of the Dean. The FAC shall advise the Chair on issues related to teaching assignments, class schedules and the appropriate application of workload equivalents. The Chair shall provide each faculty member with a statement of her/his workload.
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Annual Workload Summary Report
Each continuing tenured faculty member is to prepare and submit on The Faculty Information system an Annual Workload Summary Report for the previous academic year by September 15. 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 shall be in the form of an annual updated curriculum vitae, a brief summary of the previous year’s professional activities, and the course syllabi for each course or section of course taught by the Faculty member during the previous academic year. The summary of activities for Kent Campus faculty should be recorded on the Department of English Summary of Annual Workload Form. The Chair 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 Chair/School Director/Dean may request additional information from the Faculty member to clarify summary information and the Faculty member shall respond in a timely fashion. The purpose of this report is to document the workload, including utilization of the specified workload equivalencies, for that academic year. This report may be used in planning future workload equivalencies. Any other use of the report requires the consent of the Faculty member. -
Annual Workload Report Form
Name: AY:
Scholarship
Authored books published
Edited collections published
Textbooks published
Scholarly editions/bibliographies published
Journals edited
Articles published
Edited collection chapters published
Translations published
Poems published
Short stories published
Creative non-fiction essays published
Plays published
Book series edited
Book reviews published
Conference papers presented
Plenary/invited speeches presented
Major external grant applications submitted
Major external grants awarded
Book MSS reviewed
Grant proposals reviewed
Journal article submissions reviewed
Extramural promotion cases reviewed
Major software patented/copyrighted
External research fellowships won
Teaching
Undergraduate
Sections taught
Enrollment
Individual investigations completed
Graduate
Sections taught
Enrollment
Individual investigations directed
Service
Programs coordinated
Programs chaired
Major departmental committees chaired
Major departmental committees served on
Major ad hoc committees chaired
Major ad hoc committees served on
Major non-departmental committees chaired
Major non-departmental committees served on
Major college committees served on
Major campus committees served on
Major university committees served on
Scholarly journal editorial boards served on
Writing contests judged
Regional/national/international professional
offices held
Classroom observation reports (colleague) written
Extramural committees served on
Outreach activities coordinated/conducted
Undergraduate research assistant supervised ______
Advising
Undergraduate
Writing portfolios directed to completion
Honors theses directed to completion
Writing portfolio committees (completed)
Honors thesis committees (completed)
Honors Research Project (completed) ______
Graduate
Doctoral dissertation defense committees served on
Doctoral dissertation defense committee, Graduate
Representative ______
Doctoral qualifying exams assessed
Dissertation Prospectus Oral Defense Advisor
or Co-advisor ______
Dissertation Prospectus Oral Defense Committee
Member ______
MA Theses directed to completion ______
MFA theses directed to completion
MA thesis defense committees served on
MA TESL Portfolios Assessed ______
MFA thesis defense committees served on
MA exams assessed
Placement Committee Chair ______
Placement Committee member
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Workload Equivalents for Departmental Administrative Responsibilities
Workload equivalencies are granted to faculty members who are involved in substantial departmental administrative activities. Although other administrative duties may be required in the future and others eliminated, at the present time, annual workload equivalents will be granted to Program Coordinators and Directors according to the schedule in Table 1. Other administrative responsibilities may arise from time to time, and with the approval of the Chair, FAC, and the College Dean, workload equivalents may be negotiated for these. Further, the Coordinators, Chairs, and Directors shall not be required to work during the summer unless on summer administrative appointment.
Table 1. Administrative Workload Equivalents
Title / Name of Assignment
Load Equivalent
(Range)
Frequency
Brief Description of Duties
Assistant to Chair
6
AY
See Section 1
Graduate Studies Coordinator
Up to 9
AY
See Section 1
UG Studies Coordinator
6
AY
See Section 1
Ass’t UG Studies Coordinator (NTT)
Up to 15
AY
See Section 1
Writing Program Coordinator
9
AY
See Section 1
Ass’t WPC (NTT)
Up to 15
AY
See Section 1
Director, ESL Center
Up to 9
AY
See Section 1
Director, Writing Commons (NTT)
Up to 15
AY
See Section 1
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Workload Equivalents for Research and Advising
Tenure-track Kent Campus faculty active in research or creative writing also normally will be given equivalents for appropriate scholarly or creative productivity according to the schedule in Table 2. The review period for research productivity is 5 years. Scholarship points follow guidelines for research for Graduate Faculty Status, referenced in Section 4. Tenured faculty who receive these equivalencies will be reviewed annually by the Chair by means of the faculty member’s Annual Workload Summary Report. Equivalencies above the hours indicated in Tables 2 and 3 below are subject to approval by the Chair and the Dean.
Table 2. Research Productivity Workload EquivalentsProductivity over 5-Year Review Period
Performance Rating
WLE in Hours/AY
5 publication points (PP) or 4 PP+2 equivalence points (EP)
Excellent
6
4 PP or 3 PP + 2 EP
Very Good
4
2 PP + 1 EP
Good
2
1PP + 1 EP
Poor
0
Table 3. Advising Productivity Workload Equivalents
Course equivalencies are determined by the average points earned over the prior 3 year period according to the following scale. Points are tallied from annual productivity reports submitted by each faculty member and checked against departmental records.
An average of 4 pts. /year earns a 1-course (3 CH) equivalency (I.E., at least 12 points total for 3 years).
Advising Activity
Points
Program Chair
2
Dissertation Defense Committee Member, including Outside Discipline Member; earned once defense is completed
1/student
MA/ /MA TESL Thesis Defense Committee Member; earned once defense is completed
.5/student
MFA Thesis Committee Member; earned once defense is completed
1 /student
TESL Portfolio Assessed
.5/student
Dissertation Prospectus Oral Advisor or Co-Advisor; earned once prospectus is approved
1/student
Doctoral Exam Evaluated
1/student
MA Exam Assessed
.5/student
Placement Committee Chair
3
Job Placement Committee Member
1
Writing Portfolio Directed; earned once Portfolio is completed
1 /student
Honors Thesis Directed; earned once thesis is defended
1.5/student
Honors Research Project Directed; earned once Project is completed
.5/student
Individual Investigation; earned upon completion of II
Up to 1 (a 3-hour Ind. Invest. earns 1 point)
Undergraduate Research Assistant Supervision; earned upon completion of research
.5
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Workload Equivalents for Dissertation/Thesis Direction
Dissertation supervision allows the director to elect, once only, a 3-hour equivalent for one semester at an appropriate time in the student’s career, for example, during the semester that the student defends. Directors of M.A. and M.A. TESL theses earn 2 hours of WLE per completed thesis. Directors of M.F.A. theses earn 2.5 hours of WLE per completed thesis.
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Workload Equivalents for Distance/Distributed Teaching
Faculty who initially develop a course for electronic delivery or who agree to revise a course extensively for electronic delivery shall receive a one-time cash payment, payment to be made upon completion of the development of the course, following procedures described in the CBA. Faculty developing or revising a course for distance learning are expected to submit their request with a syllabus to the appropriate program committee (Writing, Undergraduate Studies, or Graduate Studies Committee) for review. The Program Committee will make a recommendation to the Department Chair.
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Minimum Teaching and Advising Responsibilities
- Normally, workload equivalents will result in a faculty member teaching no fewer than four classes over the course of the academic year, with the exception of the Department Chair and faculty who receive equivalents for internal or University administrative appointments. (Note: This minimum does not apply to time purchased by grants or when a faculty member is on University research or professional improvement leave. In such cases, the academic-year minimum teaching load is to be negotiated with the Chair.) Faculty on a one-semester leave are expected to teach 9 hours in the remaining semester. Faculty receiving workload equivalencies for research are expected to be active in advising graduate students, through membership on advising, examination, and/or dissertation/thesis committees; mentoring; participation in placement workshops; etc.
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Special Provisions for Teaching Loads
a. Discretionary Load Reductions: The Chair can authorize discretionary teaching load reductions for certain duties or short-term tasks performed by faculty (3 hours/semester) but will consult with the FAC regarding teaching load reductions for long-term tasks (covering more than 3 hours or for work extending into another semester). Specifics of any workload equivalent in excess of 3 hours shall be reported and discussed with FAC, sent to the College Dean for approval, and reported back to FAC in a timely manner.
b. Teaching Outside the Department/Team Teaching: Faculty members who wish to teach outside the Department (for example, in the Experimental and Integrative Studies Program) or team teach with a colleague in another academic unit must secure approval from the Chair in advance if the class is to be counted as part of the teaching load. In the determination of teaching loads and schedules, the needs of the Department take priority, although every effort will be made to accommodate the needs of other programs in which English faculty may teach.
c. Teaching Large Sections: Faculty who teach two (2) large sections of undergraduate classes over the course of two consecutive academic years shall receive a reduction of one course in a subsequent semester consistent with the minimum teaching responsibilities defined in subsection F.7 above. Large classes shall be defined as those with enrollments of 50 students or more, including those courses that are electronically purveyed. -
Pre-tenure Load Reductions
Untenured assistant professors on Kent Campus normally receive 9 workload equivalency hours per academic year during the first two years of the probationary period. Pre-tenure equivalency hours in subsequent years must be approved by the Chair and normally will not exceed 6 hours.
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Banked Workload Equivalencies
Faculty may carry over WLE credits or debits of a maximum of 3 hours from one semester to another; the transfer must be completed within 3 AY semesters. Faculty on FPIL or other leave (academic appointment, medical, etc.) must transfer credits within 3 AY semesters after they return from leave. Such transfers will be recorded on each semester’s workload statement.
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Overloads
The Department discourages faculty from taking on regular academic year overload assignments, but on rare occasions overloads may be authorized by the Chair with the approval of the relevant Dean. It is also possible that, by mutual agreement of the Chair and the faculty member, a temporary overload in one semester may be balanced by a reduction in another, provided that the total load for the academic year remains at the 24-hour norm.
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Other Faculty Duties
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Peer Evaluations of Teaching
A candidate for Reappointment, Tenure, or Promotion is encouraged to invite colleagues to evaluate at least one class per year. The Chair and/or Program Coordinators or their representatives will visit at least one class, preferably during the candidate’s second year. In the third or fourth year and thereafter, a candidate must be reviewed through a specified Peer Evaluation Process leading to a summary report of the teaching. The process will emphasize the report of an Ad hoc Subcommittee of Evaluators, which should make use of whatever earlier peer evaluations are available.
Each Ad hoc Subcommittee shall comprise two tenured faculty members of higher rank than the candidate. One shall be chosen by the candidate, and the other appointed by the Chair. If the evaluation involves a graduate class, both evaluators must have graduate faculty status.
It is the responsibility of the candidate to initiate the process by contacting the person of his or her choice, advising the Chair, and making all necessary scheduling arrangements for the class visits and the examination of papers, syllabi, handouts, and tests.
Since the Subcommittee’s report is intended to assist the Promotion and Tenure Committee in the evaluation process, it must be included in the candidate’s promotion, reappointment, or tenure file.
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Duties of Subcommittee of Evaluators
- To visit at least one undergraduate or one graduate class and to review course syllabi, handouts, etc., in order to judge the quality of the course content.
- (Optional) To interview up to three students (suggested by the candidate) who have done individual research/study on the graduate or undergraduate levels (including Writing Certificate portfolios, Honors theses, etc.) in order to assess the quality of the candidate’s supervision.
- To review recent student evaluations.
- To review previous peer evaluations.
- To submit a confidential report of its finding first to the candidate and then, after sufficient time for a response, to the Promotion and Tenure Committee, including the response if the candidate desires.
- The Subcommittee, in order to ensure uniformity, should work toward a standard format modeled on previous reports, making improvements wherever possible. This format should specify certain elements of teaching that need to be assessed, such as organization of materials, effectiveness of handouts, ability to answer questions and elicit discussion, the helpfulness of written comments on papers, grading practices, and manner of presentation.
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Evaluation of Temporary Faculty
The performance of temporary faculty – including PT instructors and PT lectures – will be reviewed regularly. Since the nature of their appointments is almost exclusively instructional, the primary focus of evaluation will be teaching. Scholarship and service, though not required of temporary appointees, also will be considered when the activity is relevant to the appointment, although they are given less weight than teaching in the overall evaluation. Procedures and policies for evaluation of Temporary Faculty are in Section 5.
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Teaching Performance
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Class Management
- The following items are minimal expectations of any college instructor. For the most part, they involve actions and procedures easily undertaken and readily assessable.
- Regular and reasonable office hours consistent with departmental policy and the needs of students. Faculty are expected to schedule each semester at least one office hour per week for each 3-hour class taught. Full-time TT and NTT faculty should schedule a minimum of three (3) office hours per week.
- Provision of syllabus for every course taught, which must include the following:
1. Course number with prefix, title, and section number.
2. Semester and year of this course offering.
3. Instructor name and contact information – phone number, email address, when and where office hours occur.
4. Statement of course objectives and expectations.
5. Statement for courses that fulfill the university requirements – Kent Core, diversity, writing-intensive. Suggested wording by URCC:
For Core courses: This course may be used to satisfy a Kent Core Requirement. The Kent Core places emphasis on students being able to use, apply and explore knowledge in meaningful ways that support a deep approach to learning. The new requirements are centered on the four principles of Â鶹ÊÓƵ’s 21st-century undergraduate philosophy: knowledge, insight, engagement and responsibility.
For Diversity courses: This course may be used to satisfy the University Diversity requirement. Diversity courses provide opportunities for students to learn about such matters as the history, culture, values and notable achievements of people other than those of their own national origin, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, age, gender, physical and mental ability, and social class. Diversity courses also provide opportunities to examine problems and issues that may arise from differences, and opportunities to learn how to deal constructively with them.
For WIC courses: This course may be used to satisfy the Writing Intensive Course (WIC) requirement. The purpose of a writing-intensive course is to assist students in becoming effective writers within their major discipline. A WIC requires a substantial amount of writing, provides opportunities for guided revision, and focuses on writing forms and standards used in the professional life of the discipline.
6. Required and optional textbooks and materials.
7. Course prerequisites, including a statement that students in the course who do not have the proper prerequisites risk being deregistered from the class.
8. Statement on enrollment/official registration. Suggested wording:
The official registration deadline for this course is **(insert last date to register). University policy requires all students to be officially registered in each class they are attending. Students who are not officially registered for a course by published deadlines should not be attending classes and will not receive credit or a grade for the course. Each student must confirm enrollment by checking his/her class schedule (using Student Tools in FlashLine) prior to the deadline indicated. Registration errors must be corrected prior to the deadline.
9. General class calendar indicating the lecture topics, including important dates and deadlines for assignments, tests and/or projects.
10. The course withdrawal deadline
11. Clear statement of grading policy and grade distribution/percentages for all class requirements.
12. Statement concerning cheating and plagiarism. Suggested wording (should include as much detail as the instructor wants):
University policy 3342-3-01.8 deals with the problem of academic dishonesty, cheating, and plagiarism. None of these will be tolerated in this class. The sanctions provided in this policy will be used to deal with any violations. If you have any questions, please read the student cheating and plagiarism policy and/or ask.
13. Statement regarding students with disabilities. Suggested wording:
University policy 3342-3-01.3 requires that students with disabilities be provided reasonable accommodations to ensure their equal access to course content. If you have a documented disability and require accommodations, please contact the instructor at the beginning of the semester to make arrangements for necessary classroom adjustments. Please note, you must first verify your eligibility for these through Student Accessibility Services (contact 330-672-3391 or visit www.kent.edu/sas for more information on registration procedures).
- Punctuality in starting and ending classes.
- Reasonable notification of assignments, examinations, changes in syllabus.
- Provision of reasonable make-up procedures for legitimately missed exams or other graded work.
- Evaluation of work with adequate and constructive comments written on students’ papers or orally to the whole class as is appropriate to the character of the test or assignment.
- Evaluation of work within a reasonable timeframe that allows the student to benefit from the instructor’s comments prior to the next assignment.
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Basic Pedagogy
Although the intellectual and judgmental skills essential for acceptable teaching are more open to interpretation than class management techniques, the following items are presented as constructive suggestions for the improvement of teaching.
- Content, assignments, and approach should be keyed to the level, aims, and nature of the course.
- Appropriate teaching techniques should be employed.
- Each class session should reflect thorough preparation, including knowledge of and currency in the subject matter. It is the responsibility of faculty to remain current in the material covered in their courses and to be knowledgeable about developments in the disciplines, especially as regards changes in cognate courses within the Department or University curriculum.
- The administration shares this responsibility, first in providing time and encouragement for professional development, and, second, in responsibly managing class assignments appropriate to the knowledge and background of the individual faculty.
- Testing and grading practices should relate directly to course content and assignments.
- Methods of communication should be appropriate to the level of students and subject matter of the course. It is largely the responsibility of the Chair to identify a problem area in an instructor’s communication skills through appropriate screening procedures and in response to complaints made against an instructor. A plan for faculty development should be prescribed and then appropriate class assignments made for the instructor.
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Summer Teaching Assignments
Early in each fall semester, the Chair will ask full-time TT faculty about their interest in and preferences regarding summer teaching assignments for the next summer sessions. Faculty members are offered summer teaching assignments on an annual rotation system. The department will endeavor to distribute summer teaching opportunities equitably among members of the bargaining unit without regard to academic rank. Usually faculty will not be assigned more than one class until all requests to teach from full-time faculty have been met. Priority for Kent Campus assignments to Intersession and Summer Session courses goes to full-time Kent Campus TT faculty. Faculty members may elect not to accept a summer assignment. See also CBA Article IX, Section 3.
If additional teaching opportunities are available once all other scheduling needs have been addressed, the Chair will solicit interest in teaching a second class from qualified Kent faculty. Ordinarily, only after determining that no Kent TT faculty are available to teach will applications from Kent NTT faculty be considered. Departures from the priorities noted here will be reviewed by FAC.