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II 1.25 UMCES Policy on Faculty Workload

Download Policy II 1.25

Recommended by UMCES Administrative Council (10/12/94) and Faculty Senate (11/17/94); adopted by President Donald F. Boesch and approved for implementation by University System of Maryland Donald N. Langenberg 14 November 1994.

I. In adopting its Faculty Workload Policy, UMCES recognizes its responsibility to be accountable to the elected officials, agencies, and citizens of Maryland. This responsibility is in addition to the accountability its faculty members must honor to the organizations that provide extramural funding through grants and contracts. UMCES welcomes inquiries about the responsibilities it expects of its faculty members in the various components of its mission in research, education, and service.

This policy establishes a formal reporting mechanism within the context of the University System of Maryland. UMCES is prepared to provide additional information in response to requests from the people it serves.

  1. Purposes of UMCES Faculty Workload Policy
    1. This policy represents UMCES’ implementation of Board of Regents Policy II—1.25 Policy on Faculty Workload and Responsibilities.
      1. In implementing this policy, UMCES recognizes that teaching is central to the UM System’s comprehensive mission in education, research, and public service.
    2. III—7.10 UMCES Policy and Procedures on Graduate Education, affirms the importance of education as a vital component of the research mission of UMCES.
      1. UMCES encourages its faculty members who are eligible to do so through appointment to its institutional graduate faculty to contribute to the education programs of the UM System.

        1. UMCES faculty members may offer courses and supervise the study of students enrolled at any UM System institution, provided that such activities are consistent with the degree—granting institution’s education policies.

        2. As provided by UMCES policy, these activities will be primarily, but not exclusively, at the graduate level.

    3. This policy explicitly provides for the recognition of teaching as a component of professional scholarship to be recognized in the evaluation, promotion, and tenure of UMCES faculty members.
  2. Implementation and Accountability
    1. As provided in Board of Regents’ policy, this UMCES policy shall apply to faculty of the following ranks:
      1. tenure track:
        1. Assistant Professor or Agent
        2. Associate Professor or Senior Agent
        3. Professor or Principal Agent
      2. non—tenure track:
        1. Associate Agent
        2. Research Associate
        3. Research Assistant Professor
        4. Research Associate Professor
        5. Research Professor
        6. Assistant Research Scientist
        7. Associate Research Scientist
        8. Senior Research Scientist
      3. Faculty members in ranks ineligible for appointment to the UMCES Graduate Faculty shall not be included in the determination of the institution’s instructional workload.
    2. UMCES faculty workload shall be reported and evaluated on an institutional basis according to ranges authorized in the Board of Regents’ policy, as follows:instruction 5—15% research/scholarship 75—85% service 15—25%.
      1. Instructional workload shall be reported in equivalent course units (ecu), defined as follows in the Board of Regents’ policy:
        1. courses of instruction 1 ecu = 3 cr
        2. senior undergraduate studies 1 ecu = 21 cr
        3. M.S. thesis (799) 1 ecu = 13 cr
        4. Ph.D. thesis (800—899) 1 ecu = 10 cr.
      2. On an institutional basis, each UMCES faculty member is encouraged to assume an annual instructional workload of .5 — 1.5 ecu.*
      3. The President of UMCES shall employ the form shown in USM II—1.25 to compile data and compute institutional faculty workload estimates,and shall endeavor to report to the Chancellor faculty workload data according to any format established by the UM System.

        1. Because UMCES lacks a degree-granting obligation under its approved mission, it shall be inappropriate to report individual faculty member “exceptions” to this institution’s instructional workload.

        2. The President, in consultation with the Laboratory Directors, shall review faculty workload estimates annually and take corrective action should these estimates prove inconsistent with institutional policy or that of the Board of Regents.

        3. In the event that instructional workload declines significantly, the President may establish positive incentives to encourage individual faculty members to teach additional courses and/or supervise additional graduate student research.

    3. Procedures for systematic faculty review and recognition of outstanding performance are provided within II—1.20 UMCES Policy on Evaluation of Performance of Faculty.

* Consistent with estimates provided in Board of Regents policy, 5 ecu yr represents an instructional workload of approximately 50%, and 1 ecu yr (one course) represents an instructional workload of 10%.