Standard 6.3

Standard 6 Element 3. Unit Personnel

Workload Policy in Support of Scholarship
College faculty are encouraged to be scholars in their fields, and this scholarship is to be reflected in teaching, research, and service.  The annual evaluation of faculty includes all three of these components, as do the university policies for promotion and tenure (see Faculty Handbook, pp. 30-34 and the proposed new faculty evaluation system. Service is expected to be both to the university and to the educational community at large. Since the last NCATE visit, faculty have averaged 4.2 publications , 6.6 professional presentations, 3.2 professional service roles, and participated in 3.5 professional organizations (For documentation, see faculty vitae, faculty data sheets, and examples of faculty publications and presentations on display in the exhibit room).

Faculty operate within the guidelines of NCATE and institutional workload policies . The average faculty load for faculty teaching undergraduate courses or a mixture of graduate and undergraduate courses is 12 credit hours per semester. For faculty teaching only graduate courses, the average teaching load is 9 credit hours per semester. (See fall 2006 course assignments ). In addition, faculty advise an average of 44 advisees per semester.

On-line Workload Policy
Instruction using electronic media/distance education as a primary method of content delivery is considered as a regular didactic course in faculty workload assignment. Faculty members using electronic media/distance education as a primary method for content delivery for the first time are provided with a one-course release, in addition to the electronic course, for skill and content development. Distance education faculty are expected to visit remote sites on a regular rotating basis.  When possible, instruction is initiated from the remote site as a means of improving candidate contact.  Similarly, faculty hold at least two classes of any on-line course with candidates physically on campus.  Expectations in content are to be similar to the appropriate didactic course, when one exists, but should be modified as required by the delivery system.  This policy became effective in fall 2003.

Use of Part-time Faculty
The college’s use of adjunct faculty is crucial to the mission, vision, and conceptual framework of the college from the perspective that these adjunct instructors provide an important link with the practicing P-12 profession. They also allow the college to staff courses with practitioners who have current experience in the subject area of that course and whose expertise is highly relevant to the specific content of the course. Adjunct faculty members meet with the department chairs and faculty. They are provided with a handbook as a means of integrating them into the university and college community.  During the semester of record for this NCATE visit, fall semester 2006, more individual adjunct faculty than regular faculty were employed, but full-time faculty accounted for a greater percentage of the total credit hours of College of Education programs. Adjunct faculty taught approximately 46% of the course load in fall semester 2006, compared to the 54% of the load taught by full-time faculty. This pattern has remained fairly consistent over the period since the last NCATE visit, never varying by more than 4% of the total credit hours taught. Average class sizes have also remained consistent, ranging between 15 and 20 at the undergraduate level and 11 to 15 at the graduate level.

Clinical Faculty 
The College of Education works closely with carefully selected P-12 teachers from the region who serve as clinical faculty in working with candidates engaged in both field experiences and student teaching/internship assignments.  As documented in the agendas of meetings held each semester for the past five years, these faculty are invited to join College of Education faculty and candidates for professional development activities. Further documentation on collaboration with clinical faculty is provided in relation to Standard 3:  Field Experiences and Clinical Practice.

Clerical Support Personnel
In addition to the dean’s administrative staff, which includes three clerical personnel, each department is staffed with a clerical staff member. The Central Alabama Regional Inservice Center also has one clerical individual, as does the Early Childhood Center, the Teacher Scholarship Program, and the Doctoral Program in Educational Leadership, Policy, and Law. This provides a total of 10 clerical staff working in support of college programs.

Support for Professional Development
During the 2006-2007 academic year, the COE dean’s office has budgeted $15,439.85 for travel. These funds represent support for two areas: student teaching supervision and professional travel. Workshops, both on and off campus, have provided faculty opportunities for professional growth.  In addition, the various departments of the college spent $30,611 for professional travel during the 2005-2006 academic year. The vice president for academic affairs provides full funding for all faculty to present papers at state, regional, national, and international conferences within their area of expertise. (See faculty 2-page vitae and faculty data sheets, on file with the Standard 5 documentation in the exhibit room.)