Section III: Comprehensive Standards (Faculty)

3.7.5.  The institution publishes policies on the responsibility and authority of faculty in academic and governance matters.

JUDGMENT OF COMPLIANCE

Compliance.

NARRATIVE/JUSTIFICATION FOR JUDGMENT OF COMPLIANCE

Northeast Alabama Community College demonstrates compliance. The college publishes in the Faculty & Staff Handbook policies on the responsibility and authority of faculty in academic and governance matters. The faculty of Northeast play an active role in the academic functions and governance of the college. The jurisdiction and participation of the faculty are accomplished through college committees, through the curricular divisions, and through the Faculty Council.

College Committees. Committees are designed to promote broad-based participation of college personnel in fulfilling the mission of the college. Committees draw on the efforts and expertise of their members to undertake in-depth study of their areas of assignment and make recommendations to college administrators. The following organizational chart demonstrates the committee governance structure of the college. Organizational charts are published in the Faculty & Staff Handbook and in the Institutional Management Plan, with updates provided by the Office of Institutional Effectiveness as needed.

Northeast Alabama Community College

Committee Governance Structure

Source: Organizational Chart: Committee Governance, January 2004. Office of Assistant to Dean of Instruction

As the organizational chart implies, committees are considered an integral component of the academic and governance structure and function of the college. Faculty members are assigned to committees by the president or the president’s designee, taking into consideration individual faculty member preferences as well as the knowledge and expertise required of each committee. Part-time faculty are assigned to committees and included to the extent feasible within the constraints of their time on campus. Descriptions of committee responsibilities are published in

the Faculty & Staff Handbook.

§         Academic Affairs. College policy assigns to faculty primary responsibility for the content, quality, and effectiveness of the curriculum. The committees with responsibilities specific to academic affairs are as follows:

w        Assembly

w        Curriculum

w        Developmental Programs

w        Dual Enrollment

w        Institutional Effectiveness

w        Instructional Resources

w        Learning Resources

w        Professional Development

w        Scholarship

An excellent example of the vital role of faculty in the responsibility for and governance of academic matters is the Curriculum Committee, whose authority and responsibilities are explained in Comprehensive Standards 3.4.1 and 3.4.12.

§         Governance. Faculty play a major role in the governance of the college. The committee with responsibilities most specific to governance matters is the Institutional Management and Planning (IMP) Committee. Faculty on this committee work with the president, deans, and other administrative personnel to develop institutional plans in the areas of program development and review, accreditation, instructional and learning resources, students services, public relations, economic development, management information, personnel, physical plant development and maintenance, resource allocation and financial management, administration, and institutional effectiveness. An explanation of the work of the IMP Committee is included in Core Requirement 2.5.

Curricular Divisions. The instructional functions of the college are organized into seven academic and technical divisions. Supervised by the division chair, faculty members set both individual and division goals, write and revise syllabi, select textbooks, and help develop the division budget. As published in the Faculty & Staff Handbook, the needs of the instructional programs are the primary consideration in budget planning. Instructors are highly involved in this aspect of the governance of the college. Along with their division chairs, they provide estimates of their expenditures for the projected budget year, including instructional materials, supplies, equipment, and travel expenses. The budgeting and purchasing policy is published in the Handbook. Division chairs as well as other faculty members make up much of the membership of both the Curriculum Committee and the Institutional Management and Planning Committee.

The Faculty Council is an elected body representing both full-time and part-time faculty. The Bylaws are appended to the Faculty & Staff Handbook. Members include five full-time faculty members, two part-time faculty members, and two division chairs (also faculty), elected by their respective constituencies at the beginning of each fall semester. The full-time faculty representative receiving the most votes becomes the chair. Meetings are held at least once per semester, with others called as needed. Prior to each meeting, the chair publishes a memo actively soliciting questions and issues from all personnel. Through this structure every faculty member is included—voting for representatives and either serving as a representative or communicating with a representative as needed. The purpose of the Faculty Council is (a) to transact faculty business, (b) to serve as a channel of communication between faculty and administration, (c) to ascertain and represent faculty viewpoints and recommendations on matters which involve or affect faculty members or the instructional program, and (d) to act as the final authority, as delegated by the president, for hearing/resolving sexual harassment grievances. 

During the spring semester of 2003, faculty members were surveyed concerning their agreement with statements about faculty governance through committees, financial procedures, and the Faculty Council. On a scale from 1, “Strongly Disagree,” to 5, “Strongly Agree,” the following averages were tabulated from the responses:

“Through committee assignments, I feel able to participate in the governance and growth of the college” (4.28 average).

“My committee assignment preferences are considered” (4.40 average).

“My supervisor considers my requests for instructional needs for preparing the annual budget” (4.49 average)

“I believe that the Faculty Council fulfills its stated purpose to ‘serve as a channel of communication between faculty and administration’” (4.51 average).

“I believe that the Faculty Council fulfills its stated purpose ‘to ascertain and represent faculty viewpoints and recommendations on matters which involve or affect faculty members or the instructional program’” (4.49 average).

In addition to the structures and procedures outlined above, NACC publishes a communications policy that describes the official lines of communication yet also encourages all employees to address the administrative offices directly, up to and including the Office of the President. Throughout the Faculty & Staff Handbook, published statements make it clear that faculty members have varied opportunities to participate in college governance and that faculty authority is an integral part of the academic and governance structure of the college. The Faculty & Staff Handbook is available to all personnel both in print and online.

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