Primary responsibilities of members of the Core Faculty at United States University include teaching, mentoring, and advising; University and College governance; scholarship and creative contribution; professional service; and community service. These responsibilities include program assessment, oversight of curriculum, mentorship of adjunct faculty, student advising, curriculum development, peer review, participation on search committees for faculty and designated academic administrators, professional development, and participation in governance. Core Faculty are expected to maintain ethical standards and behavior. Core faculty may also serve as Program Directors or program lead faculty providing oversight or leadership over a particular degree program.
Core Faculty are responsible for:
• Providing leadership to program faculty, particularly in modeling and ensuring adherence to the program, college, and University policies and decisions;
• Leading program improvement efforts, including active contribution to and participation in ongoing educational effectiveness, academic program review, and annual student learning outcome assessments; leading the improvement of the curriculum to ensure that student needs and learning objectives are met;
• Maintaining currency and rigor of program courses;
• Maintaining selected programmatic accreditations and certifications;
• Recommending the selection of program faculty;
• Recruiting, developing, and evaluating all program, program specialization, and associated academic certificate faculty to establish and maintain a vital academic community
• Setting, in collaboration with program faculty and the College Dean, performance expectations for program faculty;
• Maintaining a climate that promotes creativity and intellectual innovation.
• Recommending promotion, reappointment, deferral, non-reappointment, and merit actions for adjunct faculty members
• Outreach to community and prospective students;
• Developing, updating, and disseminating any program-unique policies and procedures necessary to ensure both program excellence and compliance with College and University policies and procedures.
Core Faculty Role in Governance
Subject to the provisions of the Introduction of the Faculty Handbook and the Statement of Shared Governance set forth herein, the faculty and the administration share the obligation and privilege of serving as architects of United States University's mission, as ultimately determined by the Board of Trustees. Governance and the creation of policies that guide institutional health are responsibilities that cut across the entire University, including the Board of Trustees, University's administrators, and the Faculty as a whole.
Faculty participate formally in governance through Faculty governance bodies such as the Faculty Senate and College committees. They are also expected to participate in essential decision-making bodies, including but not limited to those charged with hiring academic administrators (including College Deans, the Provost, and the President), discussing budgetary decisions, and developing the mission and goals and Academic Plan of United States University.
Core Faculty Participation in Academic Administration Search Process
The Provost and College Deans provide important academic leadership for United States University. These positions are critical to United States University and the Faculty, and Faculty have an interest in the process of their appointment and performance.
Provost
The President is responsible for appointing the Provost with input from the university community. The Faculty will be represented on the search committee for the Provost. Faculty will have opportunities to provide feedback to the search committee during the search process. The search committee will deliver to the President an assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of the final candidate(s) based on input from various sources.
College Deans
The Provost is responsible for appointing the Deans with the approval of the President. Faculty will be represented on the search committee for the Dean. The search committee will solicit input from faculty, staff, and students. The search committee will provide the Provost with an assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of the final candidate(s) based on input from the various sources.
2.3 b Role of the Faculty Senate
By virtue of Faculty appointment, every Faculty Member at United States University is a Faculty Senate member.
The Faculty Senate is a deliberative and collaborative body responsible for furthering and protecting shared academic governance and faculty members' welfare. To this end, the Faculty Senate is granted specific legislative and advisory authority by the President as outlined in the Faculty Senate Constitution. Procedures for the exercise of the Faculty Senate's authority are described in the
Faculty Senate Bylaws.
The administration will engage in substantive discussion with the Faculty Senate regarding the development and implementation of policies that affect faculty work and welfare, including those outlined in the Faculty Senate Constitution.
The Faculty Senate Executive Board members will circulate materials to and inform their constituents of the content of University Faculty Senate discussions. They will solicit the opinions of their constituents upon matters before the Faculty Senate Executive Board. Faculty members who accept their election to the Faculty Senate Executive Board thereby declare their commitment to work through it to realize the Faculty Senate's goals and represent their constituents.