NEASC+Accreditation+report+2005

Here is the "Faculty" section of the NEASC accreditation report from 2005:

Standard Five UMass-Boston has an extraordinarily dedicated faculty who are committed to providing excellence in education for students at all levels. Among the full-time faculty, 92% hold terminal degrees from a broad range of distinguished institutions, and many are making outstanding contributions in the areas of teaching, research, and service. However, as a result of state budget cuts and early retirement incentive programs, UMass-Boston has experienced an 8.5% decrease in full-time faculty and a concomitant 8.7% increase in part-time faculty since 1993. Sixty-two of the 433 full-time faculty employed in 2003 held non-tenure track positions, with 398 part-time faculty constituting 132 full-time equivalents. Thirty-five percent of the current course offerings are taught by part-time faculty, including eighty-two percent of the first-year general education seminar courses.
 * FACULTY**

The majority of part-timers are “per course instructors” teaching two, and at times three, courses per semester. A small number are regular, part-time faculty who work half-time or more. Part-time instructors become members of the faculty bargaining unit after teaching five courses in three consecutive semesters. In addition, UMass-Boston also utilizes two types of teaching assistants. TA I’s provide instructional support; while TA II’s have responsibility for entire courses. There were 14 FTE’s teaching 28 sections at the TA II level in the 2003-2004 academic year. The University seeks to increase these numbers to between 25 and 30 FTE’s responsible for teaching 50-60 sections and is in the process of reviewing criteria for TA allocation. Instructional development for graduate students is carried out at the departmental level, which includes courses or seminars in teaching pedagogy during the first year.

The standard teaching load at UMass-Boston remains three courses per semester in spite of an increase of 119% in external grants and contracts from 1996 to 2004. However, some departments have moved to a 2/2 or 2/1 teaching load to accommodate increased levels of faculty research. Sponsored activity in Instruction and Public Service has experienced rapid growth, increasing 84% between the 1998 and 2002 fiscal year.

Full-time faculty bear the primary responsibility for the development and assessment of learning outcomes, out of classroom advising, academic planning and policy making, curricular development, and institutional governance. Increased reliance on part-time faculty poses a challenge for implementing and sustaining initiatives in these areas, in particular delivery of the general education program. In response, the administration has set a goal to replace 80% of the retirements with new tenure-track faculty within the next five years.

As noted in an earlier discussion, there is no designated graduate faculty for delivering the graduate curriculum and for serving on thesis and dissertation committees. This is a policy that warrants review in relation to the expanding research mission.

Faculty ranks and hiring are outlined in the “Academic Personnel Policy of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, Boston, and Worcester.” The University’s commitment to affirmative action has led to an increase in full-time minority faculty from 6.5% in 1985 to 22% in 2003. Women comprise 39.6% of the tenured faculty and 43.8% of the full-time faculty. In spite of this, the self-study expresses a desire for greater involvement from Affirmative Action in assisting with the identification, recruitment, and retention of minority faculty.

Faculty salaries and contracts are set by the collective bargaining agreement between the Faculty Staff Union and the Board of Trustees. Cost of living increases and merit pay are included in these agreements. Merit pay is awarded based on departmental assessments of productivity in research, teaching, and service. The Deans, Provost, and Chancellor may also make awards to recognize University service. There is an effort to regularize criteria for merit increases at both levels and to communicate the standards.

Faculty salaries exceed the median at peer institutions but need to be viewed in relation to the cost of living in the Boston area. In 2004, the Massachusetts legislature agreed to fund a 15% negotiated increase for faculty over the 2000-2003 contract period. This payment did not cover retirees or retroactive payments. Moreover, faculty contributions to health insurance coverage rose 50% to include a 15% contribution by faculty. Parking contributions increased from $3 to $6 per day and are expected to increase further. Faculty receive 85% coverage for health insurance, a dental plan, participation in a retirement program outside of Social Security, coverage of optical care under two plans, and access to pre-tax programs. Timely implementation of negotiated salary increases has been problematic.

Appointments, re-appointments, review, and tenure processes are outlined in the Collective Bargaining Agreement. Faculty are required to submit annual reports detailing accomplishments in the areas of service, research and teaching. Student evaluations are also required. Departmental personnel committees are responsible for conducting annual reviews. There is a comprehensive fourth year review prior to tenure. Every seven years after the granting of tenure, senior faculty submit a self-assessment report and propose strategic plans for their professional development and contributions to the University through the PMYR (a post tenure review) process. Each faculty member is given some money toward achieving the outlined goals. Faculty who serve as department chairs are given course reductions and a stipend which varies from one department and college to another. The central administration is working toward standards across colleges for compensation of chairs.

Start-up funds are provided for new faculty and efforts are made by the deans to provide course reductions for the development of research, scholarship, and artistic activities. Research Trust Funds are used to support travel, seed money, or supplementary funds for research projects. The Vice Provost for Research also administers four internal grant competitions for funds for research and outreach. Departmental merit increases and Chancellor’s awards for Distinguished Scholarship, Teaching, and Service also contribute to faculty development.

Faculty have further opportunities for professional development through the Center for the Improvement of Teaching, the Instructional Technology Center, and through the sabbatical leave process.

In short, we have found a dedicated and well qualified cadre of professors, but too few of them. They are, nonetheless, dedicated to their own development in pedagogy and research, and they are overwhelmingly devoted to their students both in and out of the classrooms.

We cannot help but be concerned about the rather heavy reliance on non-tenure track and adjunct faculty; such a distribution puts an increased burden on the regular, full time faculty members for service, both on and off the campus, and for student advisement. We should add here that staff reductions have placed a further burden on the faculty for taking over clerical responsibilities. Implementation of negotiated salary increases in a timely fashion seems more than warranted given current work loads. And, speaking of those work loads, they need to be regulated across colleges and within departments in a way that reflects the reality of increased research initiatives and graduate student supervision.

Here is a [|link] for the entire report from the university's last full accreditation review from NEASC in 2005. It can be found on the Provost's website.