6.2.a Faculty Qualifications [CR]
For each of its
educational programs, the institution justifies and documents the qualifications
of its faculty members.
Non-Compliance
The
institution did not use the recommended SACSCOC Faculty Roster Form. The Excel spreadsheet provided was not
effective for the review process.
The
Compliance Report clearly states the qualifications needed to teach at various
levels (e.g., 100-300 level undergraduate courses) and provides a chart that
captures it in a simple manner.
Exceptions are in practical areas like music and nursing, where
experience and accomplishments also are considered. The process for determining faculty
qualifications includes a review by the Office of Faculty Affairs to confirm
that the candidate has the appropriate coursework for the assigned
courses.
The
institution provided faculty rosters that were carefully reviewed by the
Off-Site Reaffirmation Committee in order to determine the congruence between
the faculty qualifications and the teaching assignments. In most cases the reviews found that the faculty
members had a related terminal degree. However, the attached “Request for
Justifying and Documenting Qualifications of Faculty” form lists several
faculty for whom more information is needed to support a conclusion that the
faculty is qualified to teach the assigned courses.
More
information is needed on faculty members who lack terminal degrees, for whom
their degrees are not provided, or in cases where the degree is not in an area
in which they are teaching. Justification needs to be clearly outlined for
those whose experience or credentials may be appropriate for the teaching
assignment.
This response to the request for additional information uses
the SACSCOC “Faculty Roster Form: Qualifications of Full-time and Part-Time Faculty”
as recommended. Of the sixty-five faculty identified by the Off-Site Review
team’s “Request for Justifying and Documenting Qualifications of Faculty,”
thirteen faculty are no Longer employed at UL Lafayette, and are so noted in
the Other Qualifications and Comments section. The offsite reviewers made note
of the faculty whose degree was not noted or for which there was no transcript
or the link was broken, and those issues have been addressed in the new Faculty Roster Form, available as an
excel file or pdf file, both visible immediately upon opening this USB drive.
The comments of the off-site review team can be grouped into general categories: faculty holding a bachelor’s degree, those holding a master’s degree, and those holding a terminal degree. The issues specific to those faculty teaching with an earned bachelor’s degree include: qualifications by experience, degrees in unrelated fields, qualifications by certification, and ensuring that clinical faculty are not teaching didactic courses. The comments for faculty who have earned Master’s or terminal degrees note the need to specify the area of expertise or major area, the relevance of the degree to the courses being taught, and the need to demonstrate 18 credits of coursework within the subject area of the courses being taught. Additionally, justifications are needed for defining some Master’s level degrees as terminal degrees and master’s qualified faculty teaching graduate level courses.
The issue of Bachelor’s-prepared faculty occurs primarily in the College of Arts, College of Education, and College of Nursing and Allied Health. The courses being taught are typically not lecture courses and are schedule types that include musical lessons, kinesiology activity labs, and nursing clinicals. The University’s Policy on Faculty Teaching Qualifications states “In the absence of the educational background articulated above, qualification to teach in a particular field may qualify on the basis of other credentials.” Those credentials may include licensure and certification, honors and awards, professional experience, and publications.
The School of Music’s Traditional Music program frequently hires professional musicians as teaching faculty. The program is designed for musicians who learn by ear to explore such styles as Cajun, zydeco, and bluegrass, and to learn vocals and the accordion, fiddle, guitar, banjo, dobro, Cajun triangle, frottoir, and other instruments associated with these regionally specific music genres. Many of these instruments are not addressed in academic music programs, and it is therefore necessary to hire highly qualified musicians with extensive and recognized performance experience as qualified faculty.
The UL Lafayette Policy on Faculty Teaching Qualifications specifies that “Faculty assigned to teach Kinesiology activities classes (KNEA) need only possess a bachelor’s degree in an appropriate field.” In addition to degrees other qualifications that are considered include certifications, and experience in the specific sport.
Central to the nursing educational experience is the clinical course, whereby students are placed within area hospitals under the supervision of a clinical faculty member. Clinical faculty are qualified based on their experience, and only teach clinical courses. They do not teach didactic courses.
To address the need for clarification of the area of expertise and major area of qualifying degree, the specific area is noted in parentheses on the roster. Many of the faculty in the College of Liberal Arts are teaching general level courses in which their degree adequately prepares and qualifies them to teach the courses in question. Additional justification has been provided as needed on the roster. When appropriate, the roster specifies when a faculty member has earned 18 graduate credit hours in courses related to the courses being taught.
The University does consider exceptions to the general qualifying degree requirements of the UL Lafayette Faculty Teaching Qualifications Policy on a case by case basis. Faculty may be granted permission to teach following demonstration of qualification by other means, including experiences, awards, publication, or other specific qualifications. These requests can lead to exceptions to the required number of years of professional experience, or exceptions to standard degree requirements. In such cases, the department head makes a request to the dean, who reviews and submits it to the Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs - Faculty Affairs for final approval.
· UL Lafayette Policy on Faculty Teaching Qualifications
· Faculty Roster Form, available as an excel file or pdf file, both visible immediately upon opening this USB drive