Faculty Teaching Load
Full-time faculty members are issued contracts for at least one academic year. A full-time faculty member is one whose major employment is with the institution in a role of providing direct instructional activities and whose employment is on a contract for full-time employees based on the Faculty Salary Schedule. Direct instructional activities include interaction with the students related to instruction, preparation of such instruction, and evaluation of student’s performance. They also include administrative assignments which directly supplement the teaching function, such as heads of teaching departments, coordinator of special programs or multi-section courses, etc., and any other professional assignment which an institution considers to be directly related to the teaching function. In addition to teaching requirements, faculty are expected to participate in advising and scholarly or creative activities, curriculum development, policy making, and institutional planning and governance through committee assignments, department, division, and component meetings.
Faculty load is determined by the following term contracts:
- Contracts may be awarded for 12 calendar months (teaching requirement of 42 load hours).
- Contracts may be awarded for 9 calendar months (teaching requirement of 30 load hours).
- Associate degree nursing contracts may be awarded for 9 calendar months (teaching requirement of 40 load hours) and 12 calendar months (teaching requirement of 56 load hours).
A 9-month faculty member who teaches only on the 8-week semester format must schedule at least 3 semester hours of load during each of the 8-week semesters (Fall I, Fall II, Spring I, Spring II) of any given academic year.
A 9-month faculty member who teaches on both the 8 and 16 week semester formats must schedule at least 3 semester hours of load during each of the 16-week semesters (Fall, Spring) or during each of the 8-week semesters (Fall I, Fall II, Spring I, Spring II) of any given academic year.
A 12-month faculty member who teaches on both the 8 and 16-week semester formats must schedule at least 3 semester hours of load during each of the 16-week semesters (Fall, Spring) and during the10-week summer semester or during each of the 8-week semesters (Fall I, Fall II, Spring I, Spring II) and during the 10-week summer semester of any academic year.
A minimum of 1 course in any combination of 8 and/or 16 week semesters is expected to be delivered in any face to face format. The remaining courses may be taught in any modality. Any variation from this load policy must be approved by both the Division Chair and the Vice President of Instructional Services in advance.
Full-time faculty members are required to be on campus a minimum of ten hours per week for student conference periods in addition to teaching their scheduled classes and performing their assigned committee/taskforce and division/department/ program responsibilities. At least two hours of conference time shall be scheduled each day (Monday through Friday) for a total to ten hours per week. Office hours will be determined by semester teaching assignments and should be scheduled to provide accessibility for students allow time for lesson planning, grading, and other student-centered activities. Additionally, outside of scheduled instruction, full-time faculty will be available on Fridays from 8:00 a.m. -12:00 p.m. for scheduled professional development, departmental, division, committee and/or task force meetings.
Faculty unable to meet the two hours of office time per day due to the class schedules may increase office hours during other weekdays in order to meet the ten-hours-per-week obligation. Faculty office hours will be posted on faculty doors each semester. Deviation from posted office hours must be approved by the Division Chair/Director who will recommend the request to the Vice-President of Instructional Services for final approval.
Nine-month faculty teaching in the summer will post at least 1 office hour each day class is in session. Internet faculty need to be available to the students.
While summer hours are in effect, 12-month faculty will schedule 2.5 hours per day, Monday through Thursday.
Faculty, with direct student contact in a clinical area, will be exempt from office hours for that particular clinical day and will not be expected to make the hours up later in the work week. The clinical day must be six hours or greater to be excluded from office hours. (Ex. Nursing’s 6, 8, and 12 hour clinical.)
Computation of load hours for full-time and part-time faculty members include the following: Lecture hour equals 1 load hour; laboratory hour equals .50 load hour; individualized instruction in music (2 semester hour course) equals 1 load hour; individualized instruction in music (1 semester hour course) equals .50 load hour; individualized instruction in developmental courses equals .50 load hours; vocational nursing clinical hour equals .50 load hours; and associate degree nursing clinical hour equals 1 load hour. Distance learning course development and enrollment procedures are detailed in the Distance Learning Handbook.