Faculty duties

The university-wide expectation of 15 credit hours per semester for full-time faculty applies. Lecturers and Instructors will normally teach seven courses per year, 4/3 or 3/4. Assuming 4-hour courses, this will average 14 credit hours per semester, 28 credit hours per annum. Tenure-line faculty receive one three-hour per semester release for service and another three-hour release to maintain a productive research agenda. This results in a teaching expectation of 9 credit-hours per semester. In Global Languages & Cultures, we try to make this conform to a 2/3 or 3/2 teaching load, but it is with the assumption that the total for the year will reach 18 hours. Faculty will ideally teach 3, 4-hour courses (12) and two 3-hour courses (6) over the course of the academic year.

Supervision of student-teachers or increased service assignments (Spanish Section Head, Assistant Chair, Lower-Division Coordinator for Spanish) may make up some of the 18-hour responsibility (4.5 student teachers = 3 credit hours).

While the above calculations support general parameters for faculty teaching assignments, some variation may necessarily occur. Especially in smaller sections, specific program needs, courses with small enrollment, or other factors may be considered along with credit hours in determining a faculty member’s teaching load.

As part of their teaching and advising responsibility, faculty also advise students and hold office hours, typically 5 hours per week (cf. Dept. Mission Statement). Advising needs in language sections may vary, but faculty accept the responsibility to share the load in an equitable fashion. It is also recognized that advising may take considerable time beyond scheduled office hours, especially at the beginning of the semester and during pre-registration periods.

For tenure-line faculty, a one-course release per semester applies to service. For lecturers and instructors, the service obligation is typically the equivalent of a one-credit hour release per semester, assuming a 28 credit hour teaching load. Tenure-line faculty have a variety of service roles, including service on department, college, and university committees, administrative responsibilities (Section Heads in German, French, Navajo), and other department initiatives. Tenured faculty especially accept responsibility for leadership roles, including service on the FSC, leading searches, and helping maintain and develop the department’s academic programs. Lecturers and instructors may expect to advise minors, contribute to department extra-curricular activities for students, and serve on committees. Where assigned service roles exceed the equivalent of a one-credit hour release per semester, additional release time may be negotiated with the chair.

All Global Languages & Cultures faculty strive to be active professionally and current in their fields. This implies commitment to continuing progress in the area of professional development. Tenure-line faculty receive a three-credit hour release for research each semester. The department has defined the term “research productive” to mean publishing at least one major research article, or the equivalent, every two years. Tenure-line faculty who do not meet this criteria may be asked by the FSC and the chair to take on additional teaching responsibilities in place of the course release for research. Tenure-line faculty who are still working toward tenure may expect to receive the course release for research automatically. Faculty understand that this guideline applies only as a minimum departmental expectation. For promotion to associate professor with tenure or to full professor expectations will be higher.

The department normally schedules classes from 8:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. MTWTh, and from 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. on Friday. Full-time faculty may be asked to teach at any of these times. Special pedagogical or program needs will receive first priority in determining where and when specific classes are scheduled. A genuine effort will be made to allow research-productive faculty one day per week without classes. To the extent possible, graduate assistants will receive consideration in adjusting their teaching schedules to the particular courses they need. (They hold responsibility for informing the Assistant Chair of their needs as soon as possible.) Personal preferences for teaching schedules will receive generous and collegial consideration after the above priorities and in keeping with the department’s obligation for equitable treatment of all faculty. Similarly, faculty should plan their non-teaching schedules to accommodate committee work, attendance at department, college, and university faculty meetings, and other service responsibilities scheduled during the above hours.

Global Languages & Cultures faculty agree to a collegial and constructive approach to maintaining quality in our departmental programs. All faculty accept the responsibility to work with section heads and coordinators to meet program goals. This responsibility applies especially to multi-section courses, where consistency across sections is important, as well as to assuring sequential articulation between courses in each program.

This policy statement to be subject to revision, as necessary, with approvals of department faculty (by a majority vote at a regular faculty meeting), the chair, and the dean.

The duties of the associate chair for the Department of Global Languages & Cultures will include (but will not be limited to) the following:

• preparing the departmental schedule of classes for fall, spring and summer sessions, including assignment of classrooms;
• with the chair, responsible for final review and approval of graduation applications for Global Languages & Cultures majors;
• oversee assignment of major and minor advisees to faculty; advise and assist students and faculty with advising questions / issues;
• work with the chair on administering the retro-credits program;
• ensure that the scholarship committee awards yearly scholarships from the Borozan Memorial Global Languages & Cultures Scholarship;
• serving as department resource and contact person for advising information and strategies and for orientation of new faculty with regard to advising;
• assisting the Chair with everyday student dealings, e.g. signing petitions, walk-in advising of students, open houses; extraordinary situations or faculty-related complaints, however, will be referred to the Chair; will keep a sufficient number of office hours per week to meet this duty;
• scheduling, coordination, and publicity for faculty colloquia and visiting speakers;
• advising the Chair on physical needs for the department (furniture, equipment, software and hardware, capital expenditures in general) and working with the Administrative Assistant to make relevant capital expenditures;
• acting as full-time Chair during the days that the chair takes vacation time, travels or is incapacitated; the chair will schedule vacation dates in consultation with the associate chair;
• maintains 10 posted office hours per week for assisting students and faculty.

The lower-division coordinator will maintain coherence in the design and application of the Lower-Division program, including articulation between levels, setting program goals, curricular design, text selection, and other basic aspects of the program. Specific duties include the following:

• preparation of exams, written and oral, in conjunction with the instructors;
• maintaining security in the distribution of all exams;
• organizing and conducting in-service training at the beginning of each semester and during the semester as necessary and appropriate;
• meeting with the instructors on a regular basis to gauge the progress of all sections;
• advising students with matters relating to their lower-division courses; referring students to the Section Head or the Department Chair, as appropriate;
• communicating with the office staff to ensure that all materials are provided to teachers in a timely and convenient fashion;
• coordination of, in conjunction with the section faculty, the adoption of texts and their incorporation into the curriculum
  the design and creation of syllabi;
• serving as a source of pedagogical advice and ideas to the Lower-Division teaching staff (does not imply preparing day-to-day teaching materials & worksheets for the program.);
• assisting the Chair and the Section Head in the screening and hiring of part-time faculty;
• assisting the Chair and the FSC in the evaluation of faculty teaching in the Lower-Division program, including lecturers, instructors, and graduate assistants.

Duties of a Section Head for the Department of Global Languages & Cultures will include [but will not be limited to] the following:

• provide leadership for the Section with respect to:
  • administrative matters
  • curricular issues
  • personnel relations
• answer the queries of students, parents of students, members of the community, alumni, businesses etc., whether in person, by phone or mail;
• help the Global Languages & Cultures Associate Chair coordinate advising for the Section;
• keep track of expertise and responsibilities of faculty in the Section so as to help students find appropriate faculty for assistance (advising on education, study abroad, etc.);
• work with the Lower-Division Coordinator to maintain consistency in the program and to coordinate the administration of CLEP, Challenge and Ph. D. language exams, and provide an accurate list [for the main office] regarding who is responsible for administering and/or correcting exams for each level;
• schedule and chair section meetings as appropriate, and prepare the agenda for same;
• assist in program planning and class scheduling for the Section;
• assist in the hiring of lower-division temporary faculty and collaborate with the Lower-Division Coordinator in their supervision;
• coordinate curricular planning and articulate curricular concerns for the Section to the department chair and to appropriate College and University committees;
• orchestrate dissemination of information for students on graduate schools, study abroad, internships, and other similar opportunities.

Administration of front office operations

The front office is the primary contact for students, visitors, faculty, and the general public. The half-time office specialist (when applicable) and student workers provide first-line contact, but the Administrative Associate oversees this office function and provides support when necessary. Specific front office operations which the Administrative Associate oversees include:

• information and assistance for students and visitors
• phone communications
• mail distribution, FAX transmissions
• maintaining and ordering supplies for office and office equipment
• updating and maintaining department and university forms
• hiring, training, and evaluation of office staff
• enrollment overrides

Assists department chair

Handles all problems and requests before they become problematic, or before they need to go to the Chair. Acts as a liaison to other departments and colleges on behalf of the Global Languages & Cultures Department. Receives, finds, distributes information for faculty and staff regarding university operations and policies. Streamlines requests to the Chair. Assists in creating new procedures as needed to accommodate evolving campus processes.

Department fiscal operations

Receives and processes all travel requests and vendor invoices, inputs them in the PeopleSoft Financials system, maintains monthly budget accounts, handles all office and department purchases. Oversees budget process for Language Learning Center (LLC Program Coordinator manages ordering and payment for LLC-related purchases and student workers). Manages ALL revenue generating challenge exam processes via eBusiness and email. Manages all RetroCredit applications and reconciliation at semesters end via eBusiness; including sending them to undergraduate admissions for unit entry.

Additional departmental operations overseen by the administrative associate

Initiates Hire Express and completes all hiring forms in PeopleSoft and I-9 forms via E-Verify for non-international Temp/Part Time employees and Graduate Teaching Assistance. Trouble shooting problems with duplicating machines and office equipment, reporting building needs and repairs (works with building manager to accomplish this), coordinating all office space with Chair for new faculty, managing furniture and telephone extension allocations utilizing campus communications interface. Assists in updating and maintaining department website. Additional tasks as required.