1. Definition of Full Time
Full-time faculty members teach 24 credit hours or an approved equivalency per academic year. For librarians, the office hour equivalency is 10 hours to 1 course taught. A full-time librarian contract is 40 hours per week over a twelve-month period.
The principal occupation of full-time faculty members is their work at Rochester University. Faculty members should consider no arrangement, including outside employment, that limits their schedules to specific hours on campus, makes impossible the keeping of regular office hours, hinders participation in normal campus activities, or is detrimental to the reputation and influence of the university.
Qualified Rochester University employees may elect to pursue overload teaching and non-teaching duties. However, Rochester University does not encourage overload contracts and limits the amount of overload contracts that can be pursued. Overload is limited to 15 credit hours of teaching per academic year. Overload cannot interfere with an employee’s primary duties; therefore, employees whose performance reviews demonstrate a need for improvement may be prohibited from pursuing overload.
In addition to fulfilling their assigned course load, full-time faculty members have many additional obligations, including the following:
2. Active Presence on Campus
During the fall and spring semesters, in addition to the time spent in classroom instruction, full-time faculty members are expected to 1.) spend a minimum of five hours per week in their offices, available to students, and 2.) spend a minimum of ten additional hours per week engaged in university activities or campus life (this can include additional office hours and meetings). Office hours must be listed on each course syllabus.
3. Summer Semester
Normal course load is generally fulfilled during the Fall and Spring Semesters although it may include the Summer semester with approval by the Dean of the School. Irrespective of when teaching load is fulfilled, there are additional obligations during the Summer semester. Faculty must also be available for contact with campus personnel and administration, including, but not limited to, consultation by telephone and email regarding academic matters, advisee issues, committee work, and departmental matters; to return messages; and to assist advisors in recruiting prospective students by being available for phone conversation or email exchange.
4. Scholarship
All faculty members are expected to maintain competency as scholars in their areas, to teach at the highest level of excellence, to promote other scholarly activities to the highest extent possible, and to promote scholarship on campus.
5. Academic Advising
Academic Advising is included among the general responsibilities of the faculty. The Center for Advising and Vocation assigns students to faculty advisors after they declare a major. See the
Advising Handbook for details about this important responsibility.
6. Chapel
Rochester University believes that Chapel is critical to the mission of the university and is important to the building of campus community. Faculty members are expected to participate on a consistent basis in Convocation/Chapel and should not schedule meetings with students or colleagues during regularly scheduled Chapel times (e.g., Tuesday/Thursday 11:10-11:40 a.m.).
7. Graduation
All faculty members are expected to participate in graduation ceremonies. No arrangements should be made that necessitate absence from commencement ceremonies without prior approval from the appropriate dean. The Office of the Registrar will coordinate the planning for the ceremonies. Faculty members are expected to verify their participation with the Office of the Registrar. The university will provide regalia to faculty members who do not possess their own regalia.
8. Text Book Orders
Faculty members are responsible for ordering the texts for their courses using the textbook order form: http://form.jotform.com/72845429132963. A form should be completed when a textbook is being changed from the previous time that course was offered or when a new textbook is being adopted.
Faculty members are responsible for requesting desk copies of their adopted classroom texts from the appropriate textbook publisher. The university will not reimburse faculty for texts purchased for classroom use. If a department anticipates an exception that will require purchases, they should submit a budget request and justification.
9. Committees
Participation in committee work is considered a normal part of faculty duties. See
section II.D of this document for details.
10. Course Offerings
Faculty members are expected to work with their appropriate deans, directors, and/or department chairs to plan the course offerings for future semesters. Once the specific courses are determined for each professor, the Office of the Registrar should be provided with information regarding the course and the teaching technology needed.