Part Time Faculty Handbook

Responsibilities and Procedures

Absences

Faculty

Money is not provided for substitutes for part-time faculty; therefore, it is important for instructors to meet each class. However, if an absence is unavoidable, the instructor should make arrangements with the division chair for anticipated absences. If a sudden illness or emergency arises, faculty must notify the lead instructor, division chair, and/or the division secretary as early as possible prior to the absence so that students can be notified. If unable to reach the lead instructor, division chair or divisio secretary, instructors should call the appropriate instructional dean: Academic, 281/425-6445, Applied Science 281/425-6442, Huntsville 936/291-0452. Part time instructors do not have the benefits of accrued/paid leave and therefore will not be paid for absences.

Division Chairs and Secretaries Contact Information

Attendance Records

Faculty members are required by the state to certify attendance in their classes.

1. Census Day Class Roles

State funding is based on student enrollment on the institutional twelfth class day/census day (or its equivalent in less than 16-week semesters); therefore, all faculty members are required to certify that the class list in the computer actually represents students who are in attendance. Instructors should receive these forms before the end of the fourth week of the semester. They must be signed and returned to the Admissions and Records Office.

2. Attendance Records

Instructors are no longer required to keep and submit daily attendance records. However for a variety of reasons, instructors are encouraged to keep some record of individual student attendance activity each term.

Grading and withdrawal policies vary by program. Depending on the division policy, students who have been absent from class for three hours or three sessions may be dropped by the instructor for non-attendance with grades of "F" or "W2" (instructor-initiated) drop.

Developmental classes have special attendance requirements. Instructors should check with their division chairs. To report excessive absences of students in developmental classes, instructors may call the Hotline at ext. 6222 (425-6222) and leave a message. Non-attendance drop cards are available in the Admissions and Records Office in Moler Hall or from the division secretary.

Explained Student Absences

At least one week prior to an activity, students representing Lee College and/or participating in Lee College-sponsored activities are to provide their instructors with a written explanation and dates for the absence, signed by the appropriate sponsors. Sponsored activities include trips or events officially funded by the College.

Students are responsible for all assignments and material during the absence, as well as exams and assignments immediately following the absence.

Division Meetings and Functions

Part-time faculty are invited to attend division meetings and other functions, but attendance is not required and there is no monetary compensation for attending. All new part-time instructors, however, are required to attend one orientation session their first semester. All other part time instructors are required to attend one orientation session annually. New and returning part time instructors will be notified of the time and place by their division chairs.

Neighborhood College Policies

Your efforts in working with our service area students are vital to the success of Lee College programs. Each of you fills a significant position in the overall mission of the College

1. If you are teaching a dual enrollment class at a high school during regular school hours, you must notify the high school itself, as well as your division if you cannot meet your class. Contact numbers are listed below. This helps the high school to schedule a substitute for your class; you might provide some suggestions on work that students could do in your absence.
2. Since there is no supervisor on-site for evening and weekend classes, you must notify your division or the dean’s office if you are unable to meet your class. If there is time, we will try to contact your students to preclude their driving a long way to encounter an empty classroom. See above listing for appropriate phone numbers.
3. Leave everything in your classroom undisturbed. Anything you or your students move should be returned to its place.
4. See that any trash is placed in proper receptacles and rooms left in order for the next morning.
5. Respect local policies. For instance, smoking is not allowed anywhere in the building or on the entire grounds at Liberty High School. Those who teach at other sites should know and follow the local smoking policy. Likewise, these locations may have parking policies for evening students. These policies should be followed by instructors and announced to students.
6. The teachers’ lounge may or may not be open for your use during class breaks. If you use the lounge, again, leave it as you found it.
7. Large printing orders may be taken to the Lee College Print Shop. This requires advance planning, but the Print Shop is generally fast, dependable and inexpensive. Your division secretary will help you with a Press Work Order. If you have not allowed enough time to use the Print Shop, there is a copier in the main campus library. Check at the front desk for a copier card available for off-campus teachers.
8. Some media equipment is available on site. To request or reserve media equipment, call 281/425-6337. Note the equipment you need, location, the date, and your room number. We will arrange to have it set up for you. Please provide at least two days’ notice.
   
   If there are problems with the equipment, you may ask whether a teacher in a nearby room can share with you whatever is available.
   
   Please inform us of any malfunctioning equipment or any other difficulty you encounter at your off-campus site. The deans’ office is your most direct line of communication/assistance. After office hours, you can leave a voice mail message at 281/425-6444. Include your telephone number. Problems can only be corrected if we know about them.
9. If you are teaching dual enrollment, keep in mind that you will submit grades both to Lee College and to the high school. During a semester, there will typically be three marking periods, for which the high school must have grades. Keep in touch with the high school’s counseling office regarding grade reporting, textbook policies (some districts provide and reuse them) and special events (pep rallies, TAAS testing, etc.), which might affect your class time.
10. Keys for off-campus sites should be returned promptly after semester’s end. Keys belonging to the high school should be returned to the high school.

We appreciate your serving at our “away” campuses and hope you enjoy the students you teach there.

Dress

Part-time faculty are expected to dress appropriately to the profession for which they are preparing students.

Emergency Procedures

The handling of all emergency situations is covered in detail in the Lee College Emergency Procedures Handbook included in the part-time faculty packet. If available, red emergency phones inside College buildings can be used to contact Security directly. The following covers only the most common emergency situations:

In the event of car trouble or locked car doors, both instructors and students should call ext. 6475 or 6888 during regular business hours and Security will assist.

In the event an employee or student has a medical problem or injury, the instructor should try to determine the extent of the problem. If an ambulance is needed, the instructor should call 9-911 from a regular phone and report the situation and location immediately. Instructors should not transport students to the hospital or medical facilities. Students are required to pay for their ambulance fees.

Should someone request/insist on seeing/locating a student at Lee College by coming on campus, the instructor should refer that person to the office of the Dean of Student Development. Spouses, boyfriends, girlfriends, ex-spouses, etc should not disrupt classes. At night, use the red security telephones, located prominently in each building, to contact Security.

If an altercation develops on campus between students or students/non-students, instructors should immediately contact Security at extension 6888, or pick up a red phone in the hallway of the building. They should not put themselves in jeopardy.

If students or instructors feel threatened, Security will escort them to their vehicle upon request.

In the event of delayed openings or early campus closure, call your immediate supervisor and/or listen to one of the following radio or television stations:

• KSHN 99.9 FM  
• KPRC TV Channel 2
• KWWJ 1360 AM
• KTRK TV Channel 13
• KTRH 740 AM    
• KHOU TV Channel 11
• KPRC 950 AM   
• KRIV TV Channel 26
• WNZH 1610 AM

Evaluation Procedures

 

The purpose of faculty evaluation is to improve instruction. For part-time faculty, the following procedures will be followed:

1. Part-time faculty members will be formally evaluated at least once a year.
2. Their division chair, lead instructor, and/or the appropriate instructional dean evaluate part-time faculty.
3. There can be several parts to the evaluation process:
4. Student evaluation of instruction
5. Part-time Faculty Responsibility Appraisal Form (See Appendix D)
6. Optional classroom visitation
7. When the Part-time Faculty Responsibility Appraisal Forms are filled out and signed, they will be placed in the faculty member's personnel file. Signing the forms, however, does not preclude additional evaluation throughout the term.

Faculty Responsibilities

Part-time instructors have the following responsibilities to Lee College and to their students. These are the criteria on which they will be evaluated:

• Meet classes on time and hold for specified time
• When unable to meet class, notify either the lead instructor, division chair, division secretary, or dean in a timely manner
• Maintain accurate student accounting records in compliance with College requirements
• Make all required student reports to the Admissions and Records Office according to schedule
• Direct and evaluate the learning experience of the students in accordance with adopted curricula and approved procedures
• Teach assigned classes in keeping with approved syllabi, outlines, and instructional materials
• Counsel/provide guidance to students when there is a need
• Report students' problems needing special consideration to the chair and/or the appropriate dean
• Within the first week, provide to students, lead instructors, and division chairs a course outline for each course taught, unless already provided, and a schedule of office hours or hours available outside of class
• Administer the classroom and its program of organization and management in accordance with adopted procedures
• Be available to students outside of class.
• Perform other duties assigned in their area of responsibility
• Attend orientation meetings as scheduled

Field Trip Procedures

Information and forms must be secured from division chairs and instructional deans and returned to division chairs. Student information forms are required from each student prior to the field trip. The division chair must sign vehicle requests forms and Purchase Requests. It is preferable to have forms to division chairs at least 10 days prior to the planned trip.

Grades

Please see the current Lee College Catalog for student grade information.

Purchasing Procedures

See the division secretary for assistance. Prior approval is required for purchases. Also, the Financial Services Procedures Manual includes a section detailing purchasing procedures.

Student Access

All faculty members, including part-time instructors, have a responsibility to ensure that their students have adequate access to them. Because part-time faculty members are typically on campus for only short periods of time, they have some special responsibilities:

Students must be provided with a telephone number(s) and times when a message may be left for the instructor. Division secretaries can take messages and explain procedures. E-mail addresses may also be used.

Part-time instructors must be available outside of class time for at least 30 minutes for each class they teach. Instructors should check with division secretaries about available space, or space can be reserved in the library for student conferences by calling ext. 6379.

Part-time instructors should encourage students to make appointments at reasonable times outside of class and must be available for any appointments that they schedule.

Supervision

The division chair in their subject area and the appropriate instructional dean supervises part-time faculty. In addition, several divisions assign full-time faculty mentors to part-time faculty.

Syllabus and Course Outlines

Every course at Lee College has a master syllabus. Part-time instructors should have a copy of the syllabus for each course they teach and must design their course in accordance with that syllabus. In addition to the syllabus, each instructor must prepare a course outline that contains at least the following information:

• Name and office telephone numbers for instructor, division chair, lead instructor, and division secretary
• Office location and office hours
• Course description and objectives
• Textbooks and other materials needed
• Outline of course structure, organized by weeks
• Grading criteria
• Other course requirements
• Goals based on course syllabus
• Absence Policy
• Statement for students with special needs.

The course outline should be distributed to all students during the first week of class.

Texas Academic Skills Program (TASP)

Since its inception in 1989, TASP has evolved into a complex set of rules that continue to change as colleges and state agencies apply the policy to individual cases. To help instructors answer students' questions regarding TASP, an overview of the current rules is available in the current College catalog. Any questions that are not answered there should be referred to the Counseling Center, 281/425-6384.

Lee College Placement Tests

The Accuplacer test offered by Lee College is an approved alternate for the TASP test and also the placement test used by the College. Accuplacer, like the TASP test and other approved alternatives, includes testing in Reading, English Composition, and Mathematics. The Reading, Mathematics, and a part of the English Composition portions of Accuplacer are computerized and the scores are available shortly after the tests are completed. The composition portion of the test requires from three to five days to score.

Additional information on placement tests may be found in the college catalog and/or the course schedule.

Mandatory Placement in Developmental Courses

Students who demonstrate deficiencies on the TASP will be required to enroll in developmental courses if they are taking more than five semester credit hours. Since the Reading, Mathematics, and English composition standards vary across programs, students with the same placement test scores but different majors may be considered to have different "deficiencies." Students whose placement test scores and choice of majors cause them to be placed in developmental classes must enroll in these classes each semester until their deficiency has been resolved.

At Lee College, mandatory placement in developmental courses does not prevent students from taking classes, which apply to their degrees, providing that they meet all course prerequisites and enroll in appropriate developmental courses at the same time.

Withdrawal From All Classes

Students who take developmental courses and do not meet attendance requirements will be withdrawn from all classes at the end of the term.

Textbooks and Supplies

Some divisions have copies of textbooks and other supplies for faculty available within the division area. In other divisions, they are available through the Lee College Bookstore. Part-time faculty should check with their division secretary for specific procedures.

According to Board Policy, during the term of employment, an instructor shall not act as an agent or attorney for any textbook publishing company selling textbooks in Texas. Acceptance of such agency or attorneyship shall by operation of law forfeit the person's position with the College.

Workload

Part-time faculty assignments will be no more than 10 lecture hours after conversion of lab and clinical hours to lecture hours (or 67% of a full teaching load) during fall and spring terms or the equivalent during summer term(s). The President must approve additional hours. Lecture and lab hours are paid at their respective rates. Practicum courses are paid at the lecture hour rate based on the number of students. Private music lessons (applied music) are paid at the lab hour rate.

Only the President has the authority to offer a temporary full-time appointment. Letters-of-appointment are assigned only to those faculty who are on grant monies, employed at the Huntsville Center or other off-campus locations, or for temporary semester assignments.