Faculty Rights and Responsibilities
Faculty Rights and Responsibilities
Approved by the Faculty May 17, 2005
and the Provost June 6, 2005.
Applies to all full-time faculty who do not have administrative
appointment and who are not represented by collective bargaining. In
the absence of specific faculty approved policies by the
SOPP and SOM this policy includes faculty from SOPP and SOM.
Section A. Textbooks
When possible, faculty have the right to select textbooks
and other teaching materials (e.g. software, course notes,
etc) for the courses they are scheduled to teach.
Section B. Grades
Faculty retain the authority to make the final determination
of the grade to be awarded to each student in his or her
class. If a faculty member cannot be contacted, there
is a conflict of interest, or extraordinary circumstances
serve to make the grade inappropriate, the Chair, Dean or
a provost may change a grade awarded by a faculty member. A
grade may also be changed in accordance with specific academic
policies set by the Faculty Senate or in response to a petition
submitted by the student. Changing a grade to A, B,
C, D, F, P or U, however, requires the consent of the faculty
member who awarded the grade or under extraordinary circumstances,
consent of two or more other faculty members in the Department.
A Faculty member will explain a grade during regular office
hours or at a mutually agreed upon time, if a student requests
such an explanation .
Prior to the end of the seventh week of each quarter, faculty
will give students adequate feedback to make informed judgments
about their progress. Feedback may include examinations,
papers, or other components of a student's grade. In
those graduate and advanced undergraduate courses wherein
it is not feasible to comply with this requirement, faculty
members will include a statement to that effect in the course
syllabus.
Faculty will turn in course grades to their departments in
time to meet the registrar's published deadlines.
Faculty members will retain, for at least one year, any grade,
progress and attendance records that were used to determine
grades.
Section C. Course Syllabi
Faculty members will provide a course syllabus for students
in each course taught. The syllabus will include at
least a clear explanation of the course requirements, policies
on grading and expectations for class attendance. The
syllabus will be distributed or made available electronically
to students and to the Department Chair/Dean on the first
day of class or no later than by the end of the first week
of classes.
Section D. Faculty Availability
Faculty members have an obligation to meet their scheduled
classes throughout the scheduled time, unless an alternative
learning experience has been assigned in the syllabus as
part of the course requirement. Faculty members who
will be absent from class because of religious observance
will inform the students and Department Chair/Dean in advance. Faculty
members who will be absent from class because of attendance
at a professional meeting will request written permission
from the Chair/Dean.
When forced by illness or unforeseen emergency to cancel
class, the faculty member will inform the Department Chair/Dean
of such cancellation. If possible, the faculty member
will inform the Department Chair/Dean and the students of
the cancellation in a reasonable period of time before the
class is scheduled to meet.
Faculty members are expected to use the final examination
period designated by the Registrar for exams and other culminating
class experiences.
Section E. Office Hours
Faculty members shall maintain a sufficient number of regular
posted office hours to meet the reasonable needs of the faculty
member's students and advisees. E-mail, voice mail, and other
types of electronic communication may supplement regular
office hours but may not be used to replace opportunities
for face-to-face meetings.
Section F. Classroom Atmosphere
In order to maintain an appropriate learning environment,
faculty members have the right to remove disruptive students
from their classes.
Section G. The Internet
Faculty members will have access to the internet including
basic software for email communication at no cost to the
individual faculty member.
The University will not monitor any outgoing internet or
email activity of individual faculty members on that faculty
member's office computer(s) without reasonable suspicion
of unlawful or criminal activity. A faculty member
who commits a criminal act through the use of internet access
provided by the University will be liable for all damages
and costs incurred.
Section H. Institutional Environment
Within limits of available space and resources, the University
will make a reasonable, good faith effort to provide each
faculty member with suitable office space, a network-compatible
computer and related items, access to copying services, office
and classroom supplies, library resources, and other materials
necessary to their work.
The university will make a good faith effort to respond in
a timely manner to reasonable requests from faculty members
for measures to secure hazardous materials. |
