Faculty Compensation

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Faculty Workload – Minimum Teaching Expectations

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Faculty members periodically receive reassigned time to support their teaching, university service and professional activities. In the event of an accumulation of reassigned time (including 499 and other accrued supervision), all full time teaching faculty are expected to teach a minimum of three courses (12 shs) each academic year with at least one course (4 shs) each fall and spring semester except in the case of a sabbatical or teaching sabbatical. Utilizing post-probationary reassigned times, full professors and post-probationary faculty with significant administrative responsibilities (two [8 shs] or three [12 shs] reassigned times) may be eligible to drop below the minimum standard within some constraints: faculty may not create a zero-course semester load, except when eligible for a teaching sabbatical, and faculty are not allowed to create back-to-back sabbaticals. Additional exceptions may exist for extraordinary University duties or projects and, occasionally, for teaching faculty holding significant leadership positions of four or more years’ duration with approval of the appropriate Dean. If such an exception is granted, the full time faculty member receiving the reduced load must teach at least one course in the fall semester and one course in the spring semester.

In calculating the workload for faculty members teaching graduate courses as part of their instructional duties, a three semester hour graduate-level course will count as four and one-half semester hours.

Governmental Activities and Outside Employment

(Information below in italics is reprinted from the Faculty Bylaws, Article X, Section 2)

The holding of public office is consistent with the principles of academic freedom, but intensive campaigning or a significant time requirement to perform the public duties may constitute interference with the faculty member’s loyalty to the University and to students. The amount and type of outside employment, especially with respect to outside teaching, consistent with the teaching objective is a matter to be resolved between the individual faculty member, the department chair, and the vice president for academic affairs. Research for monetary gain should be based upon an understanding between the individual faculty member and the University administration.

Faculty Salary

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Annual faculty salary increases are distributed according to an overall base increase, a merit increase, and adjustments. A merit increase is based on the criteria for evaluation of Teaching Faculty in this Handbook. A letter describing salary increases is included with each faculty member’s annual Letter of Appointment.

In calculating salary for faculty members teaching graduate courses as part of their instructional duties, a three semester hour graduate-level course will count as four and one-half semester hours.

Compensation for Internship Supervision

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Elon University values experiential learning and desires that schools, departments, and programs provide students with internship opportunities that are of high quality. Maintaining an internship program which is exemplary requires that faculty have adequate time and resources to plan, implement and assess internship experiences and that faculty are fairly compensated and recognized for their work. The University acknowledges that variation in size, structure, and intent among schools, departments, and programs necessitates some flexibility in a faculty internship compensation policy.

Internships Supervised During Fall, Winter, and Spring Semesters

Course-Based Internships

Departments, schools and programs are encouraged to offer internships on a course-basis with the faculty sponsor compensated as part of their standard teaching load. Actual faculty load for course-based internships is generally determined using the following ranges of internship hours supervised.

10 – 23 hours of student internship = 1 faculty load hour

24 – 35 hours of student internship = 2 faculty load hours

36 – 47 hours of student internship = 3 faculty load hours

48 – 60 hours of student internship = 4 faculty load hour

Schools, departments, and programs using the course-based approach should pay close attention to the quality of the experience for the individual student. As a general rule, 12 students per course is the recommended upper limit for a single faculty supervisor to ensure high quality experiences for all students. Faculty supervising more than 12 students should consult with their Department Chairs to discuss their course and supervision methodology.

Individual Intern Basis: Compensation by Overload Pay

Internships may be offered on an individual basis with a faculty member receiving compensation above their annual contracted salary, particularly in situations where the number of student intern credit hours is low. The amount of compensation will be computed as overload pay when internship supervision causes a faculty member’s annual load to exceed the standard load. Overload pay is calculated using current overload pay rates and the formula of 10 hours of student internship equals one faculty load hour. Faculty should supervise no more than 20 student intern credit hours (or 5 students) in any given semester. During winter term, faculty should supervise no more than 12 student intern credit hours (or three students) if they are also teaching a course. Faculty will receive overload pay in the spring semester for all internship hours supervised as overload during the academic year.

Individual Intern Basis: Multiple Semester Carryover of Load Credit Compensation by Course Release

When internships are offered on an individual basis, faculty may elect to accrue internship supervision hours for a future course release. The course release is determined using the formula of 10 student internship hours equals one faculty load hour. Faculty may bank intern credit hours over a two-year period; if they have not accumulated sufficient credit hours for a course release in the second year, they will be compensated with overload pay. Faculty should work with their Department Chairs in determining the appropriate time for the course release.

Internship Coordinator

In schools with an internship coordinator, faculty members are not compensated for internship supervision.

Internships Supervised During Summer Semesters

Faculty who supervise internships in the summer semesters are compensated by pay for all internship hours according to the ratio of 10 student internship hours equals one faculty load hour applied to the standard formula for determining summer school compensation.

Procedures for Record Keeping

  1. Faculty supervising individual internships must inform their Department Chairs of their intentions to seek annual overload pay or to accrue hours for course release.
  2. Faculty supervising individual internships should document their hours.
  3. Faculty seeking annual overload pay for internship supervision must submit a report of annual internship hours to their Department Chairs by the first day of classes in the spring semester so that overload may be applied to the spring salary.
  4. Faculty seeking a course release for internship supervision must submit a report of their supervision hours to their Department Chairs and work with their Department Chairs to arrange the future course release.
  5. Department Chairs must verify faculty internship hours and make faculty aware of the compensation policy and procedures.
  6. Department Chairs must submit projected overload and course release information to the Dean in a timely fashion to permit salary, schedule, and hiring adjustments.

Undergraduate Research Mentoring (4999/4998) Compensation Policy

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Elon University supports faculty in providing students with high quality, intensive research experiences. Developing and maintaining a premiere undergraduate research program requires that faculty have adequate time and resources to mentor students and to maintain active research programs, and that faculty are fairly compensated and recognized for this important work. As part of an ongoing effort to support, compensate, and recognize the intensive work of mentoring, the faculty approved the 4999/4998 course designation for research in each discipline and the University has developed a compensation program based on 4999/4998 credit hours.

The Undergraduate Research Program shares with individual faculty members the responsibility for tracking the number of student hours earned. The Undergraduate Research Program will provide Deans, Department Chairs, and individual faculty with 499/4998 mentoring reports in February, at which time, faculty will choose between compensation by course reassigned time or compensation by overload pay. If faculty do not indicate which they would prefer, then the hours are automatically banked for future use.

Faculty Load Hours

Faculty load hours for 4999 is based upon the following:

6 student hours of 4999 = 1 faculty load hour

12 student hours of 4999 = 2 faculty load hours

18 student hours of 4999 = 3 faculty load hours

24 student hours of 4999 = 4 faculty load hours

 

Faculty load hours for 4998 is based upon the following:

4 student hours of 4998 = 1 faculty load hour

8 student hours of 4998 = 2 faculty load hours

12 student hours of 4998 = 3 faculty load hours

16 student hours of 4998 = 4 faculty load hours

Research Supervised During Fall, Winter, and Spring Semesters

Faculty select one of the following two options:

 

Compensation by Overload Pay

  • Compensation for 4999/4998 is based upon the accrued faculty load hours in 4999/4998 as described above. 
  • Faculty must inform the Director of Undergraduate Research of their intent to seek annual overload pay in February.
  • There are two different banks (4999 and 4998). Faculty can choose to payout the current year’s credits for one of these (e.g., only 4999), both of these, or neither (by banking). Faculty cannot partially payout within the same bank (e.g., cannot payout 2 credits of 4999 and bank 2 credits of 4999).
  • The Director of Undergraduate Research will notify faculty, Department Chairs, and Deans by late February of their hours for overload pay for the academic year.
  • Faculty should also keep track of their 4998 and 4999 hours.
  • Compensation is based on current overload pay rates and will be made in the spring semester.

 

Compensation by Course Reassigned Time

  • Course reassigned times are based on accrued faculty load hours in 4999/4998 as described above.
  • Faculty must inform the Director of Undergraduate Research of their intent to accrue current year’s faculty 4999/4998 load hours for course reassigned time in February. 
  • There are two different banks (4999 and 4998). Faculty can choose to bank the current year’s credits for one of these (e.g., only 4999), both of these, or neither (by seeking payout). Faculty cannot partially retain hours within the same bank (e.g., cannot payout 2 credits of 4999 and bank 2 credits of 4999).
  • The Director of Undergraduate Research will notify faculty, Department Chairs, and Deans by late February of hours accumulated to date.
  • Faculty should also keep track of their 4998 and 4999 hours.
  • Faculty will work with their Department Chairs to schedule the course reassigned time.

     

    Limitations on Compensation

     

    In order to maintain budgetary operations of the various programs compensating faculty for undergraduate research, the following compensation limits apply:

     

  • Compensation for undergraduate research using the above options is limited to a total of 18 student research credit hours of 4999/4998 (combined) across the academic year. 
  • The maximum compensation by overload pay in a given year is equivalent to eight faculty load hours. All other accrued hours beyond that maximum level will be paid out in the following academic year.
  • Twelve faculty load hours are the maximum number of hours that faculty can have in their bank for compensation by reassigned time at any one time (combined 4999/4998). Accrued faculty load hours beyond this limit will be paid out, subject to the timing conditions above. 
  • Exceptions to these limits require approvals from the faculty member’s department chair and either the appropriate 4999/4998 director or the faculty member’s academic dean. Exceptions require a programmatic justification. Ending employment at the university is an exception to these limits.

 

Research Supervised During Summer Terms

Faculty supervising 4998 or 4999 credit during the summer will be paid based upon the current formula for summer pay.

Probationary Faculty Departmental Reassigned-Time Plan

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Policy

Each academic department will administer reassigned course time proportional to the number of its full time, probationary faculty. Only probationary faculty are eligible to receive departmental reassigned times. Probationary in this context includes all tenure-track faculty who have yet to stand for tenure, and all continuing- and lecture-track faculty with six or fewer years in rank, unless both successfully continued and promoted in rank prior to their seventh year. Reassignments will be given for teaching activities that are not counted as part of the course load, for service (contributions to the life of the University), and for professional activity/scholarship. Examples of these activities are described in the Criteria for Evaluation of Teaching Faculty. To request reassignment, members of the faculty must submit reassigned-time proposal forms to their Department Chairs by the fall deadline for all requests for University releases, the third Friday of September. Department Chairs will recommend appropriate requests for approval by the Deans. Department Chairs will list faculty granted reassigned times by their departments in their annual reports and explain, collectively, how faculty within the department have used reassigned times. Faculty who receive departmental reassigned time course releases are eligible to receive FR&D reassigned course releases during the same academic year, provided the multiple releases meet the criteria for Minimum Teaching Expectation found in this Handbook.

Application

To request reassignment, members of the faculty must submit reassigned-time proposal forms to their Department Chairs in the fall and include the proposals as part of their Unit I development plans. Department Chairs will recommend appropriate requests for approval by the Deans.

TIME SCHEDULE

The deadline for submissions of reassigned time requests will be the deadline for all requests for University reassigns, the third Friday of September. Department Chairs will meet with their Deans to review proposals during October. Reassigned time proposals are approved in early November.

EVALUATION

Department Chairs will list faculty granted reassigned times by their departments in their annual reports and explain, collectively, how faculty within the department have used reassigned times.

Chair Overload Policy

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Except under unusual circumstances, Department Chairs will not be allowed to carry overloads resulting in additional compensation. Approval to do so must be obtained from the Dean prior to the start of the semester in which the overload is to occur.