Cross-Divisional Courses

There are two ways that faculty may teach courses that are housed in another academic division:

1. They may teach a cross-listed course. For example, a faculty member teaches a SOC/ATH course that draws from both the disciplines of sociology and anthropology. See Cross-Listed Courses for more information.
2. They may teach a course that has a single prefix or subject code that is assigned to a department from another division. For example, a faculty member in the Department of Social & Behavioral Sciences (which is on the Regional campuses) teaches a PSY course (which is housed in the Department of Psychology on the Oxford campus). Below is more information on this situation:

Courses with prefixes from one division offered by faculty in another division or campus

On occasion, a course which carries the prefix (known as a “subject code”) from a department or program in one division may be offered by faculty whose appointment resides in another division. This situation can occur when:

• A qualified faculty member whose appointment resides in one division offers a course that was created and approved by faculty in a department or program in another academic division (e.g., College of Creative Arts faculty member wants to teach a College of Arts & Science course); or
• A qualified faculty member whose appointment resides in one division wants to design and offer a new course carrying the prefix or subject code of a department or program housed in another division (e.g., a regional division faculty member with a PhD in English wants to offer a new ENG course that has never been offered before).

In both situations, the following guidelines must be followed:

• Instructors must notify and request permission from the Miami University department or program that owns the course prefix or subject code.
• Instructors who are not members of the unit that owns the course prefix or subject code must hold similar qualifications as the faculty within the unit holding the course prefix.
• The course offered by the new faculty member with an appointment in another division must follow similar content, outcomes, pace, rigor, and pre-requisites as the same course taught by faculty in the host department or program.

When a faculty member with an appointment in one division wishes to offer an existing course with a prefix from a department or program in another division, special efforts must be made to maintain academic continuity and quality of the course. The faculty member and host academic department or program should engage in the following activities the first time the faculty member teaches the course^[1]:

• participation in a course-specific meeting facilitated by the relevant Miami academic department;
• syllabi review by permanent Miami faculty from the host academic department or program;
• regular communication between the instructor and a faculty liaison in the academic department or program which developed the course.

After teaching the course the initial time, continuing conversations between the faculty member and the academic department or program which developed the course are expected.

When a faculty member whose appointment resides in one division wants to design and offer a new course carrying the prefix or subject code of a department or program housed in another division, he or she should propose the course to the host department. The course should undergo the same university approval processes as any new course offered within the host department and division.

In rare cases, a conflict may arise between the instructor and the host department. In this situation, the instructor and the chair or director of the host department or program should approach each of their divisional deans, and the deans should attempt to resolve the conflict. If the divisional deans are unable to resolve the conflict, the deans should approach the Provost who will make a final decision.

[1] Note: This policy only applies to faculty members who have not previously taught a given course with a prefix from another division. It does not apply to courses that have already been taught by current faculty housed in another division. For example, a regional faculty member who has taught STC 135 on the regional campuses for many years does not need to undergo the course-specific meeting or syllabi review.