Policies, Procedures and Practices » ACADEMIC AFFAIRS » ACADEMIC POLICIES AND PROCEDURES » UNIVERSITY PROFILE SYSTEM » FACULTY INFORMATION (UPS)
FACULTY INFORMATION (UPS)
The Faculty Information section of the UPS profiles instructors in terms of their degrees and their faculty status. It also indicates the degrees and/or professional experience that meet accreditation requirements and qualify instructors for each course they are assigned.
This information appears on the GCSU web site (www.gcsu.edu) if the box "show in departmental web site" is selected/checked, so it is very important that it be kept up to date.
The faculty information may be entered by anyone using the department chair's password, but the department chair is responsible for its accuracy.
During the summer and prior to the start of the new academic year, the faculty information should be updated:
- departed instructors should be removed from the roster
- newly hired instructors should be added with indicate of degrees and credentialing of qualifications
- instructors whose information or status has changed (tenure, promotion, degree, etc) should be revised
Faculty information should be entered according to the following guidelines:
1. The qualification of an instructor is in terms of the course(s) being taught.
Therefore, an instructor can be qualified for one course, but not for another.
2. Qualification can be normal or alternative. Normal qualification requires having an appropriate level of training in an appropriate discipline.
a. Appropriateness of discipline is indicated by a clean match of terms for the field of degree and the field of instruction qualifies an instructor for all courses in that discipline. Sometimes the term used for the field of degree is not the same term used as the field of instruction, but no one in the field would dispute the match (i.e., Speech & Communication); such cases are acceptable. But close matches (i.e, Biology & Botany) are not normally qualifying.
b. Level of training is specified as follows:
Graduate instruction requires a terminal degree in field.
Undergraduate instruction requires a master's degree in field, or a master's degree out of field plus 18 graduate hours in field or, for graduate teaching assistants only, 18 graduate hours in field plus supervision.
3. Both normal and alternative qualifications must be explained and documented.
a. Normal qualification is explained by the discipline match and documented by a transcript from an accredited institution.
b. Alternative qualification involves providing an alternative explanation and alternative documentation.
4. Alternative qualification is specific to a particular course, not an entire discipline.
a. An alternative explanation must show how the instructor's experience (education, training, work, scholarship, etc) makes him/her qualified to teach a particular course. This claim must be in terms of the course's content and outcomes.
b. Alternative documentation must prove the assertions made in the explanation, just as a degree transcript proves a claim of having a degree. The proof must be external (not produced by the instructor or GCSU) and reliable, just as a degree transcript is an external document from a reliable source. Models for solicitation of this documentation can be provided.
5. Alternative credentialing should be pursued only for undergraduate instruction. SACS does not approve of alternative justification for graduate instruction by faculty without terminal degrees.
6. Just as the official transcripts are kept on file in the Office of Academic Affairs, so must the alternative, course-specific justification claims and documentation be on file. Further, a profile of each instructor's qualifications must be entered in the online University Profile System.
7. The qualification of faculty (normal or alternative) should be explained online (UPS) and documentation (transcripts or other external records) should be filed in the Office of Academic Affairs at the time of hiring or whenever a new course assignment creates the need.