POLICY ON FACULTY TEACHING ASSIGNMENTS (discussion draft)
Teaching Missions of academic units: Academic units within the University
have missions that include research, service, and teaching responsibilities.
The teaching responsibilities of a unit may be both general to the
discipline and may be in support of other university functions or academic
programs. The teaching missions of an academic unit have been developed
over time. Any new teaching missions should be created as a joint agreement
between the administration and the majority of the faculty in the unit, with
appropriate validation by the Graduate or Undergraduate Council and the
Academic Council.
Responsibility of unit chairs and deans: A chair is responsible for
assigning teaching duties to individual faculty members to meet teaching
needs consistent with the unit's mission. The teaching need is determined
by the chairman in consultation with both the fauclty and the office of the
dean. The central administration will have final authority in determining
the need to teach courses within a unit. Assignments of courses to
particular faculty members should be done with consideration of the faculty
member's skills, limitations, other university responsibilities, and
professional development goals. Assignments should be made known to faculty
in a timely manner via appropriate channels.
Responsibility of Faculty: Faculty are responsible for carrying out their
teaching assignments. If a faculty member believes that his or her
assignment is unfair or is a hardship, he or she may appeal through the
faculty grievance process. In making an appeal, the faculty member must
show that the assignment is unfair or a hardship when weighed in the context
of the unit's mission. Until a resolution is reached, the faculty member
must continue to teach his or her assigned classes.