Teaching Loads

The policies in this section do not supersede the workload terms of individual employment contracts. Teaching loads are based on University policy.  The policy states that the teaching load of a tenure-track faculty member shall be the equivalent of twenty-four (24) credit hours of teaching per year.  The teaching load of a full-time non-tenure-track faculty member shall be the equivalent of thirty (30) credit hours of teaching per year.

For each term of the regular academic year, each member of the faculty shall receive a statement of his/her workload.  This statement shall include the number of credit/workload hours to be devoted to instructional assignments and the number of hours within the Department’s workload equivalence policy to be devoted to the discharge of responsibilities in the areas of research, special service and advising activities significantly above the level expected of all faculty in the Department, services of an administrative nature, and such other applicable workload equivalents as may be specified in the Department’s workload equivalency statement.  Department Chairs are expected to consult with the Dean when creating the faculty’s semester workload statements.

It is the Chair’s responsibility, in consultation with the FAC and Department Faculty at large, to specify which kinds of activities shall be equivalent to formal classroom instruction, to inform all full-time faculty in the Department via the workload letter, and to provide reasonable equity in workloads among faculty members.  In the case of a dispute or request for special consideration, a faculty member may request a review by the FAC which, following such review, will make a recommendation to the Chair.

Workload Equivalency Statement

General Statements on Workload Equivalencies

Only in exceptional circumstances would a tenure-track Faculty member’s teaching load fall below 12 credit hours per year.  Only in exceptional circumstances would a non-tenure-track faculty member’s teaching load fall below 24 credit hours per year.

All faculty members receive workload equivalency based on the following guidelines:

Research

The workload equivalencies for research may be given as 0, 3, 6, 9, 12 hours, etc., depending on the level of research productivity during the evaluation time frame.  The normal equivalency is nine hours assuming satisfactory performance as described below.

Decisions about workload equivalencies based on research productivity review the current partial calendar year and the prior three calendar years at the time of the evaluation.  For example, if it is fall 2015, and the workload and schedule for the 2016-2017 academic year are being prepared, the Chair should look back three years to January 2012 for research activity.  Using the point scale system from the Graduate Faculty Handbook and the associated journal lists for the College of Business Administration, three points for research publications will be enough to justify nine hours of workload equivalency for research.  At most one C-level publication can be used to meet this condition.

Presentations, textbooks, etc. do not count as research publications for workload equivalency (although in special situations, significant published research monographs, books or book chapters, or significant grants may also be considered for workload reduction with the Chair’s explicit approval).  Published manuscripts as well as written acceptance letters are included.

For manuscripts published in journals not included in the Graduate Faculty Criteria list, faculty members may request Department recommendation and the approval of the Dean to appropriately classify the journal for workload equivalency purposes. If possible, this request should be filed before the manuscript is submitted for publication.

An advisory letter informing faculty of a potential change in their workload equivalency for research is sent after three years of non-satisfactory research activity (i.e. less than three points as described above in the three-year period).  This letter is sent in late fall when the schedule and workloads for the fall semester of the next academic year are being prepared. The letter will indicate that the workload equivalency for research will be reduced based on this inactivity.  For example, if it is fall 2015 and the workload and schedule for the 2016-17 academic year (AY) is being prepared, the Chair should look back three years to January 2012 for research activity.  If there is not at least three points for publication(s) or acceptance(s), then the faculty member will receive an advisory letter that he/she will need to have an appropriate number of publications of a certain quality to continue to receive a nine-hour workload equivalency.  The following year, fall 2016, the workload for the 2017-18 AY is being prepared. If the requirements above are still not met in the latest three-year time period as detailed above, then the workload letter will have a reduced workload equivalency of six hours. If the faculty member still does not meet the requirements in the latest three-year period (fall 2017), then the workload equivalency will be reduced again by three hours.  If the requirement is still not met in the latest three-year period (fall 2018) the workload equivalency for research may be reduced to zero. This policy will take into account research grants, published research by faculty as well as other special situations.

Additional workload release is available for high levels of research activity. This level of research is normally multiple A and B level publications. Using the point scale system from the Graduate Faculty Handbook and the associated journal lists for the College of Business Administration, eight points for publications, not including points for C-level publications, in the three-year window will normally qualify for an additional three-hour research workload equivalency.

Grants

For successfully-funded research grants, excluding summer teaching and research grants awarded by KSU, the following point scales may be used in the same manner as the journal list point scale to award workload credit for reallocation to the faculty.  For example, an eight-point credit for grants is equivalent to an eight-point credit for research and publications. The same observation window that is used for journal articles, the current partial calendar year and the prior three calendar years at the time of evaluation, will also be used for grant receipt.  A faculty member receiving a multi-year grant can use his/her discretion in determining when during the grant life to consider the grant as given for the purpose of workload reduction.

Research Startup

Untenured assistant and/or associate professors in the tenure track will normally be granted twelve (12) hours of workload equivalency for research for the duration of the probationary period, in order to assist them in establishing an on-going research program, assuming evidence of activities necessary to build a prominent research record.

Teaching

The following activities justify a one-course reduction in teaching load for the academic year for faculty members:
1.    Teaching a large section for the first time; a large section being one where the enrollment requires the use of an auditorium style classroom.
2.    Teaching two large sections in an academic year.
3.    Developing an electronically-conveyed or distance-learning style class, or extensively revising a class for electronic conveyance or distance learning.
4.    Teaching an electronically-conveyed or distance-learning class that involves preparation far in excess of a conventionally-conveyed class.
5.    Teaching four or more different class preparations in two consecutive semesters or more than one new class preparation within two consecutive semesters.

Graduate Teaching

The Department does not normally differentiate workload equivalences for graduate teaching. Only where graduate teaching responsibilities are above and beyond the norm would a workload equivalency be granted.

Theses and Dissertations

The following activities justify course load reductions (amount of semester hour credit per activity is shown):
1.    A 2-semester-hour credit will be given to faculty members chairing a dissertation to completion.
2.    A 1-semester-hour credit will be given to faculty members involved in Ph.D. mentoring resulting in a presented working paper.
3.    A 0.5-semester-hour credit will be given to faculty members who serve on dissertation committees, for the completion of the dissertation.
4.    A 0.5-semester-hour credit will be given to faculty members for advising a thesis, upon completion of the thesis.

Summer Assignments

Unless undertaken as part of the assigned summer workload for which compensation is already provided, Faculty shall be entitled to workload credit for individual investigations, Honors thesis direction, and other similar individualized instruction at the rate of one-tenth hour of workload equivalency per student credit hour, provided that the individualized instruction is a programmatic requirement and/or is being taken by the student as a substitute for a programmatic requirement and with prior approval by the Department Chair or Regional Campus Dean as appropriate.

Off-Campus Courses

While voluntary on the part of the faculty, an additional 0.5-semester-hour credit will be given for teaching a course that is not located on the main campus.

Administrative Assignments

Workload equivalencies, if any, will be determined at the time the administrative assignment is made.

Undergrad/Master’s/Ph.D. Program Coordinator

An undergraduate, Master’s or Ph.D. coordinator will generally receive three hours of workload equivalency annually.  

Department/College/University Service

In some special circumstances, workload equivalency will be granted for service responsibilities which are above and beyond normal expectations.

Professional/Public Service

Workload equivalencies may be granted for professional and/or public service which is above and beyond normal expectations.

Externally-Funded Projects

Workload equivalencies may be assigned as funded in the grants.

Extraordinary Circumstances

The Department Chair, in consultation with the FAC, may grant course reductions in extraordinary circumstances for research, teaching, or service upon application by the faculty member. Where disagreement exists between a faculty member and the Department Chair, the Chair will consult with the FAC.

If a faculty member is not in agreement with the workload equivalency assigned, a written statement will be filed with the Department indicating the reason for the disagreement. These requests shall be reviewed by the FAC, which will make a recommendation to the Chair.

2.    Summer/Intersession/Overload Teaching

The Department Chair will solicit requests for summer teaching from all full-time faculty members. Summer teaching cannot be guaranteed, but equity of distribution is sought in making summer appointments. The primary concern in making summer appointments is the needs of the academic program. Secondarily, appointments depend upon the nature of the summer budget, which may vary from year to year.

Intersession teaching opportunities for Department courses, as contained in the University catalogs, may be available with the prior approval of the Department Chair.

Opportunities to teach an overload course assignment will be offered first to tenure-track faculty and then to continuing full-time non-tenure-track faculty.  The primary concerns in making overload assignments are the needs of the academic program.

3.    EMBA/Special Credit/Non-credit Course Teaching

Faculty members are assigned by the Chair, in consultation with the Dean, or the Dean’s designate, to teach on-campus/off-campus EMBA and Special Credit/Non-credit courses. The Chair will approve assignment of instructors for all courses in areas of instruction normally taught by Finance faculty. Faculty teaching assignments must be consistent with program needs, faculty expertise, quality of instruction, and satisfaction of AACSB/College/University rules. Any such courses are above and beyond a faculty member’s contractual workload and are optional to the faculty member. Normally, such teaching results in extra compensation to a faculty member.