CLAAS Divisional Workload Guidelines

CLAAS Divisional Workload Guidelines
April 2021

Role VAP Faculty TCPL Faculty Tenure Track Faculty Tenured Faculty
Workload Guidelines

Teaching Load = 4/4

Service = Not required

Research = Not required

Teaching Load = 4/4

Service = Required

Research = Not required

Teaching Load = 4/3

Service = Required

Research = Required

Teaching Load = 4/4 or 4/3

Service = Required

Research = Required

Teaching High-quality teaching High-quality teaching and academic advising (as assigned) High-quality teaching and academic advising (as assigned) High-quality teaching and academic advising (as assigned)
Service No expectations or requirement for service, but may participate in service activities Productive institutional and professional service  Productive institutional and professional service Productive institutional and professional service
Research Involvement/Output No expectations or requirement for research output No expectations or requirement for research output Regular and high-quality publishing/research productivity Regular and high-quality publishing/research productivity

Departmental governance will determine standards and processes to further define this policy. As circumstances require, departments, in consultation with the dean, can make exceptions to this policy.

Consistent with the table above, the default teaching load for full-time faculty members in the Department is 21 to 24 credit hours per academic year, typically expressed as a ‘4-4’ or ‘4-3’ teaching load. There can be credit and contact hours equivalencies. Exceptions may be made as follows:

  1. The Department Chair shall maintain a course load as assigned by the Dean or their designee;
  2. Assistant Chairs, Chief Departmental Advisors, Program Coordinators, or other administrative roles within departments may be eligible for a reduction in teaching load, subject to the approval of the Dean or their designee;
  3. Probationary tenure-track faculty members in years 1 to 5 of the tenure track generally carry a teaching load of 21 credit hours per year, typically expressed as a 4-3 teaching load;
  4. A tenured faculty member may receive a teaching load of 4-4 or 4-3, determined by departmental policies (see Procedures for Defining Course Loads for Tenured Faculty).  Determination of course loads will be based on future work not past accomplishments. These determinations are finalized at the department level and do not require approval of the Dean; 
  5. A tenured or tenure-track faculty member may be released from teaching duties by obtaining an Assigned Research Appointment or Faculty Improvement Leave via normal University procedures;
  6. A full-time faculty member may be eligible to use grants or other external sources of funding to “buy out” their course load in whole or in part, subject to the approval of the Dean or their designee;
  7. Any reduction of faculty course load must be covered with existing resources; 
  8. TCPL and Visiting faculty are generally not eligible for reductions from a 4/4 teaching load except in extraordinary cases, which are subject to the approval of the Dean or their designee;
  9. All reductions in teaching loads are dependent on departmental and divisional resources.