DEPARTMENT OF CHEMISTRY - Appalachian State...

The A. R. Smith Department of Chemistry

Faculty Handbook

2

June, 2012 The A. R. Smith Department of Chemistry

Foreword

The A. R. Smith Department of Chemistry has developed over time a collection of departmental policy

documents that address specific processes and procedures adopted by the department. These documents,

here gathered in a single volume, constitute a departmental faculty handbook that serves as a supplement

to the Faculty Handbook of Appalachian State University. This handbook and the university Faculty

Handbook together provide ready access to information concerning the policies and procedures under

which the department operates.

As departmental policies, procedures, and operating guidelines that might affect portions of this hand-

book change, they will be incorporated in subsequent editions of this departmental faculty handbook.

Claudia P. Cartaya-Marin

Professor and Chair

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Unit Mission Statement1

The mission of the Appalachian State University A. R. Smith Department of Chemistry is to advance the

chemical sciences through the education of undergraduate students by providing them with quality class-

room, research and service opportunities. With a high standard for excellence in all three areas the de-

partment will produce students who are knowledgeable in chemistry and can think critically.

In support of our mission the Chemistry Department faculty members strive to:

Act as mentors to undergraduates through advising them in research.

Teach students the value of cross-disciplinary thinking by providing them with educational

and research opportunities between chemistry and other fields of study.

Promote innovative curriculum development while exposing students to advanced instrumen-

tation and technology.

Foster multi-disciplinary curriculum development to provide students with a breadth of

course options in Forensic Chemistry, Biochemistry, Natural Product Chemistry, Environ-

mental Science, Polymer Science and Chemical Education.

Encourage community awareness by providing students with service-learning opportunities.

Serve as good role models to students for safe and ethical professional behavior.

Provide high quality academic advising for all majors.

Encourage students to develop a global perspective through international experiences in

chemistry.

The primary focus for the department is the education of students majoring in chemistry, who are inter-

ested in pursuing careers as professional chemists, secondary school teachers, or healthcare profession-

als. In addition we also provide education for non-science students and other science majors. In order to

keep our curriculum challenging and relevant, we participate in workshops, meetings and conferences to

learn about new ideas in chemical education and employ them in our courses.

Scholarship in the department involves the expansion of the undergraduate learning experience beyond

the classroom through the establishment of externally funded research and curriculum development pro-

grams and through dissemination of the resulting peer-reviewed products. Active involvement in schol-

arship is essential to the professional development of our majors and the effectiveness of the faculty.

1 Approved by the Faculty of the A.R. Smith Department of Chemistry on February 14, 2008

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The department is dedicated to serving the academy through membership on College of Arts and Scienc-

es and university-wide committees and we encourage service to the profession by active participation at

regional and national professional societies. We seek to engage the community through professional con-

sulting, K-12 outreach, laboratory services, and programs designed to enhance both the interest in and

knowledge of chemistry and chemical education. We also serve as an exemplary model for chemical

safety training to chemistry departments throughout the state of North Carolina.

The Department of Chemistry reports to the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.

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Educational Goals

The courses offered by the Department of Chemistry enroll three categories of students:

students satisfying core curriculum science requirements,

students from cognate areas2 satisfying chemistry requirements, and

students satisfying the requirements for a major in chemistry.

The educational goals of the department stated below reflect the various needs of these categories of stu-

dents.

Educational Goals for Core Curriculum Science Students and Students Majoring in Cognate Areas

or in Chemistry

Develop an awareness that science, mathematics, and technology are interdependent human

enterprises with strengths and limitations.

Develop an understanding of the key concepts and principles of science.

Develop an appreciation for the unity and diversity of the natural world.

Develop the ability to use scientific knowledge and scientific ways of thinking for individual

and social purposes3.

Develop an awareness of the synergistic relationship of chemistry to the other physical and

biological sciences.

Educational Goals for Students Majoring in Cognate Areas or in Chemistry

Develop a working knowledge of the language of chemistry and science to allow effective

communication with both scientists and nonscientists.

Develop mathematical, critical reasoning, and computational skills appropriate for the appli-

cation of chemistry in the cognate areas.

Develop an understanding of the key concepts, principles, and methodologies used in the his-

torical development and in the current practice of chemistry.

2 Biology, physics, geology, exercise science, and home economics majors and non-degree-seeking students planning

on pursuing careers in engineering, pharmacy, nursing, physical therapy, etc.

3 Goals 1-4 were adapted from a description of the scientifically literate person that appears in Science for All Ameri-

cans, Project 2061 Report, American Association for the Advancement of Science, p.4.

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Educational Goals for Students Majoring in Chemistry4

To understand the basic and complex concepts in chemistry as evidenced by the ability of each stu-

dent to:

Demonstrate knowledge of fundamental principles in chemistry

Employ standard laboratory skills and techniques

Use modern instrumentation and analyze and interpret data

Apply chemical laboratory safety regulations

Employ current technology (databases, software, search engines etc…) commonly used by

chemists

Formulate scientifically sound questions through research and interpretation of chemical lit-

erature

Use appropriate chemical constructs to design experiments

Demonstrate mathematical and computational skills that apply to the chemical sciences

To be able to think critically and solve problems in a logical way as evidenced by the ability of each

student to:

Demonstrate effective written communication skills

Demonstrate effective oral communication skills

Use good discretion when considering situations that require the use of professional ethics

Interpret chemical problems with an interdisciplinary approach

Discuss local and global issues that are affected by chemistry

Department of Chemistry Statement of Vision

The Department of Chemistry endeavors to be a nationally-recognized model for educating and graduat-

ing students prepared to compete in and contribute to the ever-changing, technology-centered world of

the 21st century. To achieve this vision the department is committed to providing a course of study for

undergraduates in the chemical sciences which combines curriculum, scholarship and ser-

vice/engagement opportunities that are high-quality, innovative and intellectually challenging and em-

ploy state-of-the-art technologies.

4 Approved by the Faculty of the A.R. Smith department of Chemistry on February 14, 2008

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Department of Chemistry Statement of Essential Character

The primary focus for the department is the education of students majoring in chemistry, who are inter-

ested in pursuing careers as professional chemists, secondary school teachers, or healthcare profession-

als. In addition we also provide education for non-science students and other science majors. In order to

keep our curriculum challenging and relevant, we participate in workshops, meetings and conferences to

learn about new ideas in chemical education and employ them in our courses.

Scholarship in the department involves the expansion of the undergraduate learning experience beyond

the classroom through the establishment of externally funded research and curriculum development pro-

grams and through dissemination of the resulting peer-reviewed products and participation in national

and international conferences. Active involvement in scholarship is essential to the professional devel-

opment of our majors and the effectiveness of the faculty.

The department is dedicated to serving the academy through membership on College of Arts and Scienc-

es and university-wide committees and we encourage service to the profession by active participation

with regional and national professional societies. We seek to engage the community through professional

consulting, K-12 outreach, laboratory services, and programs designed to enhance both the interest in and

knowledge of chemistry and chemical education. We also serve as an exemplary model for chemical

safety training to chemistry departments throughout the state of North Carolina.

Department of Chemistry Statement of Core Values

We are a unique department that believes in promoting the professional development of individual stu-

dents and faculty members while at the same time working to realize our unified vision.

We value the application of cross-disciplinary and/or collaborative work and inquiry-based thinking to

the improvement of our undergraduate curriculum, the formulation and exploration of scientific questions

in the area of Forensic Chemistry, Biochemistry, Natural Product Chemistry, Environmental Science,

Polymer Science and Chemical Education, and the enrichment and engagement of our local and global

communities.

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We support a culture that promotes diversity, shared responsibility and mutual respect.

We emphasize open communication and transparent decision processes.

We have respect for the world around us and are committed to contributing to the advancement of scien-

tific discovery in the areas of energy, sustainability and the preservation of the natural environment.

We believe in contributing to the body of knowledge in science through undergraduate research.

Department of Chemistry Statement of Core Assets

We have dedicated, effective, and innovative faculty members, staff, students and administrators.

We have teaching and research facilities that support a productive and open learning environment.

We have state-of-the-art instrumentation for teaching and research.

We have a vigorous undergraduate research program.

We have a Forensic Science Program that is unique throughout the state for its emphasis on chemistry, its

breadth of courses, and its strong research component.

We have faculty members who are actively engaged in outreach through K-12 teacher and student educa-

tion, safety training, and community-based curricula and research. Our expertise in polymer, forensic,

environmental, and energy-related chemistry enable us to provide leadership in these areas throughout

the state and the region.

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A.R. Smith Department of Chemistry Faculty Evaluation, Reappointment, Tenure and Promotion

Document. Passed by secret ballot on 4-17-12

The procedures and processes described in this document constitute the framework for pre-tenured and

tenured faculty evaluation in the A.R. Smith Department of Chemistry. The procedures and processes

are subject to modification, adjustment, or amendment as the department’s faculty evaluation system

evolves.

The table below summarizes the relative level of emphasis in each of the three areas of professional ac-

tivity expected for full time tenure track (pre-tenured and tenured) faculty members.

Professional Activi-

ty

Pre-tenure Proposed

Goal

Tenured Pro-

posed Goal

Teaching 60% 60%

Scholarly Activities 30% 20-30%

Service 10% 10-20%

Pre-tenured faculty and tenured faculty members: The full time teaching load is 12 contact hours per

semester, with possible reductions for reassigned time. Reassigned time will be awarded in accordance

with the College of Arts and Sciences reassigned time guidelines, faculty handbook, or contract/award

replacement buy-out. The reduced load will be the specified teaching load for that faculty member for

that semester. All faculty members are expected to perform service to the Department, College and/or

University, and may be involved in professional service and/or outreach to the community. Tenured

Faculty may negotiate with the chair of the department a re-distribution of her/his emphasis. However,

all tenure track faculty evaluations will be based on the three areas of professional activity expected for

full-time tenure track faculty.

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Procedures for tenure-track faculty

Annual Reports

Each faculty member will upload her/his annual report via the appropriate University software program.

Additionally, electronic and paper versions of required Departmental supplemental report(s) and the Col-

lege of Arts and Sciences reassigned time report will be submitted by the deadline established by the

chairperson. The latter will be used to assess whether or not the faculty member will receive reassigned

time for scholarship for the upcoming academic year.

Criteria for Measuring Performance

The evaluation will be based on the faculty member’s professional activities throughout the entire year so

as to ensure that scholarly and service activities carried out in the summer are not excluded from consid-

eration.

Teaching

The minimum expectations for each faculty member include grading, preparation of lecture notes/

presentations, demonstrations, homework and handouts for pre-existing courses. These expectations are

part of the required job duties and will not be evaluated for points. Grading should be fair, consistent, and

timely. Course syllabi should be written in a manner that allows students to determine their standing in

the course. Faculty members must minimally provide the University’s mandated office hours per week

and post final grades by the registrar’s deadline. Maintenance of online course site(s) through the Uni-

versity provided technology is encouraged.

Criteria for Measuring Teaching

The student evaluations in all classes taught by a faculty member during the Spring and Fall

semesters are used to calculate 1) a “teaching GPA” based on the percentage of students who

rated the instructor as excellent, very good, good, fair or poor; and 2) the percentage of stu-

dents who would recommend the instructor to another student. The teaching GPA is calcu-

lated in accordance with the following equation.

TeachingGPA =(%Excellent)(4.0)+ (%Very Good)(3.0)+ (%Good)(2.0)+ (% Fair)(1.0)+ (% poor)(0.0)

100

Points are awarded based on comparison of the faculty member’s summary to a comparably

prepared departmental summary, using the equation below.

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5.0

PercentDepartmentAverage

RecommendWouldWhoPercent

GPATeachingartmentAverageDep

GPATeachingFacultyPointsEvaluationStudent

“Excellent” instructor rating percentage above departmental average: up to 2 points

Teaching a course other than independent study in an excess of the specified load: 0.5 points

for each contact hour over specified load.

Voluntarily (by student request) teaching an independent study course (extra course taken as

teaching overload; not part of undergraduate student research): 1 point per course

Existing course taught for the first time: 1 point per course

Developing new or special topics courses (courses that have never been offered at ASU,

could be on-line or in person instruction): 3 points per course

Developing or using innovative teaching techniques (for example i-clicker, active learning

techniques etc.): 1 point

Providing after-hours review help sessions; not part of the minimum requirements for teach-

ing; number of points depends on total number of review hours held per semester:

1 to 2 hours: 0.5 point, 2 to 5 hours: 1 point; 6 to 12 hours: 2 points

Substantial revision of an existing course: 0.5 to 2 points

Interdisciplinary teaching: teaching a course in another department in which the material is

interdisciplinary or team teaching cross-disciplinary courses with faculty from other depart-

ments: 1 point

Guest lecturer: depends on the number of lectures:

0.25 points (1 guest lecture) to 1 point for 4 or more lectures

Honors courses or Honors contracts, if they are not part of the regular teaching load:

0.5 to 2.0 points

Distance learning/teaching: 1 point per course

Development of service learning projects: 1 to 2 points

Class trips: 0.25 to 0.50 points depending on the activity

Professional development: up to 3 points

Supervision of student researchers:

0.5 point for each active student per semester (active student means a student who works a

minimum of 3 hours per week for at least ¾ of the semester) for a maximum of 4 points

Supervision of external student written grant proposals:

0.5 points per proposal for a maximum of 1.5 points

Supervision of honors thesis:

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1.5 points for each honors thesis during the year the thesis is written

Second reader on Honors thesis:

0.5 points for being second reader; 1 point if the faculty member also helps with editing of

the thesis

Teaching Awards:

State Teaching Award: 3 points; University Teaching Award: 2 points; College Teaching

Award: 1 point

Teaching efforts not covered above up to 2 points.

Rankings:

Qualitative Descriptor # of points

meritorious Above 10.5

commendable 7.5 to 10.4

acceptable 4.5 to 7.4

needs improvement 3.0 to 4.4

unacceptable Below 3.0

Scholarship

A major goal of the department is to encourage and support the development of faculty members as pro-

ductive scientists. Scholarship is defined as any activity that contributes to the body of knowledge in an

individual’s field of expertise and ultimately exposes this contribution to the scrutiny of her or his peers.

We encourage our faculty to develop an active research program and work with undergraduate students

on original research projects.

To award reassigned time for scholarship, the department chairperson will follow the College of Arts and

Sciences reassigned time for research guidelines. Products for reassigned time include (adapted from

College of Arts and Sciences): Journal articles; funded external grant proposals; unfunded external pro-

posals with high priority scores; books or substantial portions thereof, including textbooks, book chap-

ters, editing of scholarly editions, multi-volume works, or scholarly journals; and products granted pa-

tents or commercial licenses. In order to be awarded reassigned time, it is expected that a faculty member

will have 2 products every three years. Newly hired tenure track faculty initially will be given reassigned

time and three years to meet the criteria.

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Criteria for Measuring Scholarly Activity

The measures of scholarly activity include the following:

Active research program:

3 points (It is required that faculty members submit drafts for work in progress to document re-

search work. The same manuscript in preparation cannot be submitted in two consecutive years

or later.)

External Grants:

Funded proposals: points are awarded during the year that the grant was awarded. The table below is

based on the level of effort/contribution for each category.

Amount of the grant # of points

PI

# of points

Co-PI

# of points

Senior Personnel

$100,000 or more 8 to 10 6 to 7.5 4 to 5

$50,000 to $100,000 6 to 8 4.5 to 6 3 to 4

$10,000 to 50,000 4 to 6 3 to 4.5 2 to 3

Less than $10,000 1 to 4 0.75 to 3 0. 5 to 2

The chairperson may request the PI to estimate the level of effort of all persons involved in the prepara-

tion of the external grant proposal.

Non-funded external proposals (with good reviews or high priority score):

PI: 1-3 points, Co-PI: 0.5 to 2 points and Senior Personnel: 0.5 to 1 point

Funded internal grant proposals: $1,000 up to $50,000: 1 to 5 points

Funded external grant administration:

1-2 points: documentation of this effort should be submitted with the annual report.

Publications: The following criteria will be used to evaluate publications, including both original re-

search and review articles. A five-year journal impact factor average should be used if available.

Journal Impact Factor # of points

More than 6 8 to 12

2 to 6 4 to 8

<2 up to 4

If a primary journal in a faculty member’s field has an impact factor that does not reflect the importance

of the work, the faculty member may provide a written statement to the chairperson with reasons why the

publication should be considered for a higher number of points.

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Patents: 5 points

Book Chapters: 6 to 10 points

Development of a textbook: 8 to 12 points

Presentations:

National or International Conference: 2 points

Regional conference (for example Regional Meeting of the Southeast American Chemical Socie-

ty - SERMACS) or an invited presentation at another institution: 1 point

Local meeting (Appalachian State University Celebration of Student Research and Creative Endeav-

ors) or Regional State of North Carolina Undergraduate Research and Creativity Symposium

(SNCURCS): 0.5 points

Rankings for Scholarship:







Service

Service is defined as any faculty contribution to the Department, College of Arts and Sciences or Univer-

sity requiring the use of one’s professional expertise that is not defined as being within the areas of

teaching or scholarship. Outreach to the public schools, the community and the profession are also in-

cluded as eligible service activities.

Departmental Committee Service: To obtain points for service in a departmental committee, the com-

mittee chair must summarize the accomplishments and frequency of meetings in the annual report. Fac-

ulty members will be awarded points if their committee has been active during the academic year.

high productivity/very active: 2 points; Chair of the committee: 3 points

low productivity/average activity: 0.5 to 1 point; Chair of the committee: 1 to 2 points

inactive-did not meet during the academic year: 0 points

Departmental Personnel Committee Member: 2 points

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Departmental Personnel Committee EOA: 1 point

Departmental Personnel Committee Secretary: 1 point

Search Committees:

Members of the search committee are awarded points depending the number of searches

Tenure Track or Non Tenure Track.

1 point per Non Tenure Track search and 2 points for Tenure Track search

Other Service to the department:

Participation in open house and participation in recruiting efforts: 1 point

Advisor of a student club or student organization: 0.5 to 2 points

Seminar Coordinator: 2 points

Seminar host: 0.5 points

Library liaison: 0.5 points

Graduation reception organizer: 1 point

Laboratory coordinator (depending on enrollment): 2-4 points

Peer observer/evaluator: 1 point per observation/evaluation

Combined Campaign representative: 0.5 points

Organizer of a campus workshop (for example through the Hubbard Center or Graduate

School): 2 points

Academic Advising assignments:

5 to 10 students: 1 point

11 to 20 students: 2 points



> 40 students: 5 points

Student teaching supervision/observation:

1 point per student per semester that the faculty supervises or observes student-teachers

College or University Committee:

Member of a committee: 1 to 2 points

Chair of a committee (# of points depend on responsibilities): 1 to 3 points

Faculty Senate member: 1 to 2 points (depending on involvement)

Faculty Senate Chair: 4 points

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Sigma Xi Officer: 1 point

Service to another unit up to 4 points

Community involvement/outreach:

Elementary or high school science club advisor/organizer: 1 to 3 points

(depending on involvement)

Demonstration and presentations to K-12 schools: 1 point per event

negotiable with Department Chair

Science fair judge: 1 point

Providing a teacher workshop: 1 to 3 points (depending on involvement)

Service to the Profession:

Journal Peer reviewer: 1 point per manuscript reviewed

External grant proposal reviewer: 1 point per grant/contract reviewed

External Panel Reviewer: 2 to 3 points depending on level of work required

Editor of a journal: 2 to 3 points

depending on number of manuscripts processed per year

Officer of a professional society: 1 to 3 points depending on level of work required

Session chair at a professional meeting: 0.5 to 2 points per session chaired

Conference Organizer: 2 to 3 points

depending on size and complexity of

conference and level of work required

Service efforts not covered above: up to 3 points

Rankings:







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Overall Evaluation Summary

The overall evaluation summary will be used to determine a faculty member’s eligibility for merit pay,

but will not be used as specific criteria for judging applications for tenure, promotion, and/or reappoint-

ment. Faculty members are eligible for merit pay if their overall evaluation for the year is acceptable or

better. Following submission of the faculty member’s annual report and completion of the subsequent

conference, the chairperson will make an initial evaluation that will be reported to the faculty member on

the Individual Faculty Evaluation Summary form. The faculty member’s evaluation in each of the three

areas (teaching, scholarship, and service) will be converted to a numerical score based on the following

table.

The numerical scores in the three areas will be averaged. An overall qualitative descriptor will be as-

signed based on the above table and by rounding the average value to the nearest whole number. Through

a follow-up meeting, if requested, there will be an opportunity for further discussion and modification, if

warranted, of the chairperson’s initial evaluation. Criteria that can be considered are the faculty mem-

ber’s evaluations in each of the three areas (teaching, scholarship, and service), their defined role (reas-

signed efforts outside the department), and the congruity between the faculty member’s stated goals and

actual achievements during the evaluation year. If a faculty member’s overall evaluation suffers due to

assignments outside the department, the department chairperson can make a note to this effect in the

overall evaluation summary. The overall evaluation may be adjusted accordingly but points in individual

categories will not be modified.

Evaluation for Merit Pay

The eligible faculty member’s evaluation in each of the three areas (teaching, scholarship, and service)

will be converted to a numerical score as indicated above for the Overall Evaluation Summary. The three

Qualitative Descriptor Value

meritorious 4

commendable 3

acceptable 2

needs improvement 1

unacceptable 0

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numerical scores of the faculty member will be summed and a departmental sum (of eligible faculty) will

be obtained. An individual faculty member’s merit raise is calculated using the formula:

Tenure, Promotion and Reappointment

These guidelines are intended to serve the faculty member applying for reappointment, tenure or promo-

tion as well as the Department of Chemistry Personnel Committee and the Departmental Chair in their

consideration of personnel decisions. For the purposes of tenure, promotion, and reappointment the three

areas to be considered are teaching, scholarship and service and they are considered over a period of mul-

tiple years. Teaching and service will be assessed as indicated for annual evaluations, with consideration

of additional materials such as peer evaluations of teaching and letters of support. Scholarship will be

judged on the basis of scholarly products. The following are representative scholarly products that will

be accepted for tenure and promotion purposes: journal articles in peer-reviewed journals with appropri-

ate impact factor; funded external grant proposals; unfunded external proposals with high priority scores;

books or substantial portions thereof, including textbooks and book chapters; editing of scholarly edi-

tions, multi-volume works, or scholarly journals; and products granted patents or commercial licenses.

Credit towards the promotion and tenure timeline or for scholarly products generated while serving in a

tenure-track position at another university may be awarded to a successful candidate for a tenure-track

position at ASU. In order to be valid, such credits toward promotion and tenure will require the approval

of the dean and provost. Furthermore, any time served or scholarly products generated in a tenure-track

position at another university that are planned as credit toward promotion and tenure at ASU, must be

listed in faculty member’s initial contract or in an official memo of understanding prior to the faculty

member beginning service to ASU. If credit towards time is approved the timeline indicated on the initial

contract cannot be amended.

The following are the minimum standards required in order to be considered for re-appointment, promo-

tion or tenure.

Reappointment of a Tenure-Track Faculty Member

The following criteria will be used in considering reappointment of a tenure-track faculty member who is

in her/his 3rd

year of the four-year contract. The reappointment will be for a three-year contract. These

criteria are based on the faculty member’s performance since the original date of hire. The minimum

requirements to be considered are as follows.

Merit Raise = Sum of Numerical Scores

Department Sum

æ

èç

ö

ø÷´ Dollars available for merit raises

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Teaching: Rankings must show consistent high quality or general improvement over time from the

faculty member’s first year of teaching through the fall of the 3rd

year. At least one ranking of com-

mendable (or better) is required.

Scholarship: At least two scholarly products are required.

Service: A ranking of acceptable (or better) for at least one year is required.

Tenure and Promotion to Associate Professor

The following criteria will be used when evaluating tenure and promotion to associate professor. These

criteria are based on the faculty member’s performance since the original date of hire. The minimum

requirements to be considered are as follows.

Teaching: A ranking of commendable (or better) for at least three years is required, with no more

than one ranking below acceptable. Rankings must show consistent high quality or general improve-

ment over time.

Scholarship: At least four scholarly products are required, from which at least one must be a peer-

reviewed publication in the faculty member's primary research area with appropriate impact factor.

For tenure and promotion purposes faculty members are expected to publish original peer-reviewed

research articles in the area for which they were hired or in a related area. A faculty member may de-

velop research interests in an area of specialization other than that for which the faculty member was

hired. Therefore if the publications are in an area of specialization other than that for which the facul-

ty member was hired, the member applying for promotion and/or tenure must justify this change.

For tenure and promotion purposes publications appearing after the faculty member was hired at

ASU, but resulting from post-doctoral or doctoral work, will count as scholarly products if the facul-

ty member completed or continued the research here at ASU. If all of the work and research results

for the publication were completed at the other institution and the faculty member did not continue

the project or analyze results at ASU, and if the publication is the sole publication product that the

faculty is submitting for tenure and promotion, it will not count for tenure and promotion to Associ-

ate Professor. This means that the faculty member should have publications from research results ob-

tained during her/his time at ASU and preferably they should be with undergraduate students.

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Service: A ranking of acceptable (or better) for at least three years is required.

Promotion to Full Professor

Applications for promotion to full professor must include a discussion of progress in all three areas

(teaching, scholarship, and service) since promotion to associate professor. The applicant must

demonstrate clear evidence of excellence in all three areas and must have demonstrated leadership in the

area of teaching and scholarship. The following criteria will be used when evaluating promotion to full

professor. These criteria are based on work since promotion to associate professor. The minimum re-

quirements to be considered are as follows.

Teaching: At least one ranking of meritorious and at least four additional rankings of commendable

(or better) are required since promotion to associate professor. These rankings do not have to be ob-

tained in consecutive years.

Scholarship: At least four products are required since promotion to associate professor. At least one

of these must be an externally funded proposal as a PI or CoPI, and at least two must be peer-

reviewed publications with appropriate impact factors in the applicant's primary research area. These

publications must result from work performed at ASU or originated while at ASU (e.g., collaborative

work with researchers at other institutions). If the publications are in an area of specialization other

than that for which the faculty member was hired, the member applying for promotion and/or tenure

must justify this change. It is also required that the applicant has made at least one presentation at a

national or international meeting.

Service: At least one ranking of meritorious and at least four additional rankings of commendable (or

better) are required since promotion to associate professor. These rankings do not have to be ob-

tained in consecutive years.

Guidelines for Class Load Equivalents

Recognizing the inherent imperfection in attempting to describe each faculty member’s class load using a

single set of guidelines, it does seem advisable to establish some standards that would cover most of the

instructional assignments of the Appalachian faculty. It is not the purpose of these equivalents to de-

scribe a faculty member’s class load in every detail but rather to draw a broad, somewhat uniform picture

of load that will provide some commonality across campus as well as make some adjustments in the cur-

rent descriptions in the class load equivalents (Faculty Handbook, pp. 33-34) that were developed over

twenty years ago. These guidelines were proposed in April, 1992 and adopted in August, 1994.

The generally accepted measure of class load is the three-credit-hour lecture course. This unit of meas-

ure includes the time required for preparation, testing, grading, and outside-of-class consulting. The lec-

ture courses in introductory mathematics (MAT 1020), history (HIS 1101), and English courses (ENG

1000) are in the range of 25-30 students so this would seem a reasonable measure of the standard size for

a lecture course.

The following equivalents do not describe the hours required for a full load. This is more properly the

responsibility of the faculty member, the department chair, and the college dean. These equivalents are

an attempt to equate instructional assignments to the standard measure of the three-credit-hour lecture

course with an enrollment of 25-30 students.

Faculty Load

Prior to allocating reassigned time, each faculty member’s load for the forthcoming semester will be de-

termined using the following guidelines or assumptions:

1. A full load is assumed to be 12 contact hours per semester.

2. Contact hours = hours in class or lab per week.

3. CHE 3000, Introduction to Chemical Research is a one credit hour course that meets one hour a

week. Due to the speaking designator students are required to give a power point presentation at

the end of the semester, the instructor spends more than 3 hours a week assisting the students

with the presentations. Therefore CHE 3000 is considered a 3 contact hour course.

4. No adjustment in contact hours will be given for upper level courses. The extra preparation time

demanded by these courses is compensated for by their lower enrollment.

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5. The maximum number of sections that will be assigned to a faculty member is five, with no more

than four different preparations required.

6. The offering of a selected topic course will not be considered when making teaching assignments

based on the standard twelve-hour/five-section/four-preparation load. The offered selected topic

course would be counted in determining the teaching load but would constitute a voluntary teach-

ing overload. Subject to available resources and faculty goals, reassigned time could be request-

ed and could be granted for teaching such a course. The department chair may request a faculty

member to offer a selected topic course when there is a demonstrated student demand; and in this

case the course would be included in the standard load.

7. Independent study, undergraduate research, thesis, etc. will not be counted in determining the

standard load.

8. Teaching loads exceeding the standard twelve contact hours will be avoided if possible. Com-

pensatory time for an assigned teaching overload will be given in the following semester; such

compensatory time will not be considered as reassigned time.

Reassigned Time

The Faculty Handbook states: “Faculty members are expected to carry their share of student advising

and committee work in addition to the twelve-hour teaching assignment.” More narrowly defined, reas-

signed time represents an actual reduction in the twelve-hour maximum stated above.

Reassigned time will be granted for the following purposes:

At the departmental level, responsibilities for which reassigned time will be given are:

introductory laboratory coordinator (3 contact hours)

in accordance with the College of Arts and Sciences Reassigned Time Guidelines to

conduct documented research and scholarship.

to conduct documented5 curriculum development projects,

to conduct documented6 professional development projects

5 Documented in this context means a written statement describing the purpose or objective, the approach, expected

outcomes, and projected completion date of the project.

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Departmental Faculty Handbook Appalachian State University

Requests for reassigned time should be made to the chair at the appropriate time (for example, at the an-

nual faculty conference, when schedules are prepared, and/or following the completion of early registra-

tion). The decision to award reassigned time will be based on:

1. resources available to the department

2. the mission and responsibilities of the department

3. the goals and objectives of the faculty member as stated on the annual report and as agreed upon

in consultation with the chair

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Mentor Program for Pre-tenured Faculty

The Department of Chemistry Mentor Program is designed to serve a guidance, advisory, and advocacy

function for nontenured faculty.

Each nontenured faculty member will be assigned a mentor committee consisting of two tenured faculty

members.

The department chair will appoint the tenured faculty members to serve on the mentor committee. Ser-

vice on a mentor committee is strictly voluntary and willingness to serve will be verified by the chairper-

son.

The expected term of appointment to a mentor committee would be until the nontenured faculty member

was granted tenure (or was no longer a member of the Department of Chemistry).

The membership of the mentor committee would be changed either upon request of the nontenured facul-

ty member or upon request of the mentor committee member.

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Departmental Procedures for Peer Evaluation of Teaching

In recognition of the primary importance of teaching within the A. R. Smith Department of Chemistry,

the department has established the following set of guidelines for direct peer observation and evaluation

of teaching performance.

A. Classroom observations will be conducted once a year for non-tenured instructors (pre-tenure track

and part-time and full time non-tenure track) and once every three years for tenured faculty.

B. The department chair will assure that peer observers have reasonable preparation and training for

the observation process. This has been done either by meeting with the chair or by departmental

workshops conducted by a member of the Hubbard Center.

C. Faculty instructors to be observed will provide the names of two tenured faculty and of two pre-

tenure or full time non-tenured departmental faculty members to the chair of the department.

Whenever possible, the chemical expertise of at least one of the faculty named by the instructor

must lie in a discipline the same as, or closely related to, that of the instructor being evaluated.

D. The department chair will choose the peer evaluation team which will be composed of one tenured

and one pre-tenure or full time non-tenure track faculty members.

E. The instructor being evaluated will be notified in writing of team membership, after which the in-

structor and observers together will arrange the time for the pre-observation conference. During

this meeting the instructor will inform the peer evaluation team of the topic that he/she will be

teaching the day of the scheduled observation. At this time the instructors may also discuss teach-

ing techniques (active learning, group activities, etc.) that he/she will be using during the class/lab

being observed.

F. Peer observation teams will conduct classroom observations using the departmental approved Peer

Evaluation Worksheet. (See Appendix I.)

G. After observing the class and completing Peer Evaluation Worksheets, the peer team should write a

narrative report summarizing their observations and general appraisal of the observed teaching.

This general report should include an assessment of general performance and suggestions for im-

provement of teaching, based on information from the observation session.

H. Within a reasonable period (ten working days), observers will meet with and present the Peer Eval-

uation Worksheets and narrative report to the instructor. At that time the overall appraisal and any

suggestions for improvement should be discussed. The peer evaluation team and the instructor be-

ing evaluated sign the report.

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I. The instructor being evaluated and the Chair of the Department receive a copy of the signed report.

The department chair will discuss with the person being evaluated the issues noted or raised by peer

observers. Specific recommendations as to remedy should be made at that time, if deficiencies are not-

ed. Additionally, the chair would make every effort to help the instructor set specific goals and time-

lines for improvements in her or his teaching

This procedure was approved unanimously by the entire departmental faculty in the fall of 2005.

University Procedures for Peer Observation of Teaching

Guidelines for Peer Classroom Observations

Appalachian State University

November 7, 1994

Each academic department must provide for direct classroom observations by peers in at least two (2)

courses (when possible) for all probationary faculty and in all classes taught by teaching assistants. The

application of this procedure to part-time faculty is still under review.

All departments must conform to the following guidelines with respect to this process:

1. Direct classroom observations by peers must take place at a minimum before each personnel deci-

sion involving a probationary faculty member.

2. Peer observation teams must consist of at least two members.

3. Peer is to be defined by each individual department.

4. Peer observation teams will conduct direct classroom observations using a written instrument ap-

proved by the department.

5. Peer observation teams must prepare a written statement of their assessment and recommendations.

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6. Written statements of assessments and recommendations prepared by peer observation teams must

be conveyed to the observed faculty member in a timely manner.

7. A copy of the written statement prepared by the peer observation team must be presented to the de-

partment chair of the faculty member being observed.

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Peer Evaluation Worksheet

The A. R. Smith Department of Chemistry

Appalachian State University

Date _______________________________ Instructor Being Observed ____________

Class Being Observed_________________ Peer Observer ________________

Number of Students _________________

Please answer the following questions either “yes” or “no”. If answered “no”, then helpful suggestions and/or specif-

ic details should be provided.

Y N 1. The instructor began and ended class on time.

Y N 2. The instructor made effective eye contact with students.

Y N 3. The instructor used no distracting speech patterns or mannerisms.

Y N 4. The instructor made effective use of visual aids.

Y N 5. The lesson was delivered with enthusiasm.

Y N 6. The instructor displayed an adequate knowledge of chemistry.

Y N 7. The instructor invited questions and answered them appropriately.

Commendations Suggestions for Improvement

Peer Observer Signature

_________________________________ Date

_____________________________

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Personnel Committee Procedures

The regulations, composition, functions, and procedures governing the Personnel Committee of the A. R.

Smith Department of Chemistry are located in Section 4.8 of the Faculty Handbook.

Elections

Members of the Personnel Committee are elected by the faculty of the Department of Chemistry at a

scheduled faculty meeting, normally held in late September or early October.

Members of the Personnel Committee will be elected from a slate of candidates, each of whom has con-

sented to have her or his name on the ballot.

Election to the Personnel Committee requires a simple majority of the faculty members voting. Absentee

votes are not permitted.

Membership and Term of Service

The Personnel Committee will consist of three tenured faculty members, one nontenured faculty member,

and one alternate member.

Tenured faculty members are elected to serve a term of three years.

Nontenured faculty members are elected to serve a term of one year.

The alternate is elected to serve a one year term.

No faculty member may serve more than three consecutive years as a voting member of the Personnel

Committee.

Tenured faculty members who are elected to less than a three year term are eligible for re-

election upon expiration of their term but if elected will serve a term such that the length of con-

tinuous service will not exceed three years.

The alternate is not considered a voting member of the Personnel Committee.

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Submitted Materials

Persons under consideration for reappointment, promotion, or tenure shall present a written summary of

professional activities pertinent to the decision under consideration.

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