Faculty Availability on Campus

From SPSU Wiki

Dear Colleagues,

Given the level of interest on the topic of faculty availability on campus, I thought I'd try starting a Wiki page for discussing it, rather than bugging folks with emails they may not want to see. Please be aware that no policy is imminent, and none will be introduced without ample opportunity for discussion. I'm interested in hearing your views, so please weigh in.

Zszafran 18 October 2005 09:10 (EDT)

I would like to thank those of you who have sent commentary to me on this subject over the past few days. Just to summarize the emails that I've received thus far, a few have been positive ("I agree with the sample policy because..."), many have been neutral ("Any new policy needs to take into account that some faculty teach classes on a given day from 10AM to 10PM..."), and several have been negative ("This sort of policy flies in the face of faculty professionalism...", "Where's the time-clock?"). Perhaps the most important comments that have been received are those related to the questions "Is there really a big problem?" and "Shouldn't any policy be based on outcomes desired, rather than requiring some arbitrary amount of time on campus to no productive purpose?"

I think that these are good points. I'm not sure if lack of availability is really a big problem. Some faculty members have told me that it is--that it is very difficult to schedule meetings and get folks to attend them. Some have said that up to half of our faculty are on campus only two days a week. Others have told me that this is not true--very few faculty are on campus that little, and the great majority are readily available. So--I'd like to ask--what is your experience on this matter?

As to basing any potential policy on outcomes desired, I think that makes very good sense. In fact, I like the idea so much, I thought I'd give a shot to writing a sample policy based on outcomes that we might want to consider. Please let me know your views.

Faculty should maintain a presence on campus sufficient to accomplish the following outcomes:

• Having classes scheduled at times that are optimal for their students and departmental programs
• Meeting classes on time and for the duration scheduled
• Meeting with students outside of class on a reasonable basis to provide necessary additional help
• Scheduling at least 5 office hours a week during hours that are reasonable for students, and being available to assist students during those hours
• Meeting students being supervised in research/projects/independent study/internships on a regular basis
• Meeting advisees on a regular basis
• Being readily available for (and attending) departmental, school and campus meetings
• Participating in campus activities on a reasonable basis

Is there anything missing from the list, or anything there that shouldn't be? Weigh in! Your opinions are always welcomed.

Zszafran 18 October 2005 09:25 (EDT)