On Nov. 15, at 4:59 p.m., Dean of the Faculty Jon Chenette sent an all-campus e-mail stating that “there are approximately 14 current part-time and full-time non-tenure-track faculty members for whom new contracts were requested but not approved for 2010-11. The teaching loads of those faculty constitute the equivalent of seven full-time faculty members,” wrote Chenette, who also added that preliminary analysis “suggests that the 2010-11 curriculum overall may end up about 30 to 40 class sections smaller than this year.”
For more information on next year’s curriculum, read Senior Editor Molly Turpin’s article, “Changes to curriculum to be announced by Dean of the Faculty this week,” from the Nov. 5 issue of The Miscellany News.
Please continue checking miscellanynews.com this week for further reporting on changes to the curriculum. To see Chenette’s letter in full, see below.
To: Vassar Community
From: Jon Chenette, Dean of the Faculty
Re: Faculty Staffing Update for 2010-11
November 15, 2009
As President Hill has explained in her letters to the community, work on developing a faculty salary budget for 2010-11, as part of the College’s necessary response to the economic crisis, has been ongoing over the past several months. While the details of next year’s curriculum and who will staff it will evolve over the coming months as departments and programs continue their planning, the staffing plan that determines the overall shape of our curriculum for 2010-11 will largely be finalized this semester. I write to share with you an initial report on our work.
For several months, AGAFR (the Advisory Group on the Allocation of Faculty Resources) has been weighing faculty and student input, information about retirements, and other information about options for reducing the faculty salary budget in light of our educational mission and priorities. AGAFR’s advice has helped shape the parameters within which we are making faculty staffing decisions for 2010-11.
This week, all departments and programs at the College received my responses to their faculty staffing requests for next year. The process of responding to staffing requests from departments and programs takes place every year in the fall. This year, our consultation with chairs and directors took longer than usual because we knew we would be able to approve fewer requests than in the past. We wanted to be as well informed as possible.
In making staffing decisions, we paid particular attention to the desirability of having all faculty teaching at each level of the curriculum on a regular basis; we asked departments to coordinate more carefully the timing of faculty leaves; we asked departments and programs to preserve curricula that meet the needs of both major and non-major students, even if it meant that faculty could not teach all of the courses in special areas of interest; we limited the number of very small courses; and we asked departments to maintain a high level of commitment to multi-disciplinary program staffing.
Early in the semester we received requests from departments for authorization to conduct eight tenure-track searches. Three were requests to replace retiring faculty; three were to reauthorize searches that had been frozen in the previous year; and two were related to faculty members leaving the College. In consultation with an advisory committee made up of faculty from the Committee on Curricular Policies, the Faculty Policy and Conference Committee, and the Faculty Appointments and Salary Committee, we approved tenure-track searches in Biology, Economics, and Psychology. Some departments whose requests for a tenure-track line were turned down at this time were approved for other kinds of appointments.
Departments and programs submitted requests for about 75 new contracts for non-tenure-track faculty to start next summer. These requests were split almost evenly between faculty currently employed by the College whose contracts expire in 2010 and faculty yet to be hired. The contracts requested ranged from half a course to full teaching loads. If we had granted all 75 requests for new contracts, next year’s curriculum would have returned almost to the record size of last year’s curriculum.
Of the approximately 75 requests for new faculty contracts, two-thirds were approved. Ten of those were approved at a level lower than requested. The requests that were not approved were divided almost equally between those for new contracts for current faculty and those for faculty not yet hired. There are approximately 14 current part-time and full-time non-tenure-track faculty members for whom new contracts were requested but not approved for 2010-11. The teaching loads of those faculty constitute the equivalent of seven full-time faculty members.
We understand and deeply regret that our decisions concerning staffing requests will present particular hardships for those current faculty members for whom new contracts for 2010-11 were recommended, but not approved. We appreciate and thank them for the significant contributions they have made to our students and to the college community. We are working on ways to support them as they plan for the future.
Approximately half the College’s departments and programs are affected by these decisions to reduce or not approve requested contracts. Departments relatively unaffected by this year’s reductions were asked to contribute in other ways where possible, through such things as added Freshman Writing Seminars or expanded commitments to multidisciplinary program staffing.
Preliminary analysis suggests that the 2010-11 curriculum overall may end up about 30 to 40 class sections smaller than this year. This year approximately 1150 class sections are being taught. Reductions in release time from teaching for faculty who perform College service such as serving as chair or director or on various committees have preserved more than 30 class sections for the curriculum that might otherwise have been lost. We appreciate the cooperation of those who will be called on to provide leadership and service with fewer course releases, and we will take concrete steps to try to make their jobs easier and more rewarding.
Many people desire more information on how the reductions and non-approvals of requested contracts will affect specific areas of the curriculum. To the extent that such information can be shared while preserving the confidentiality of individual contracts and the privacy of those affected, we will compile that information and share it with students and faculty soon.
The strength of our College depends on the strength of our faculty and curriculum. Many within the faculty ranks have worked tirelessly to develop staffing plans that serve the best interests of our teaching, of our students, and of the College. While we have had to make difficult and sometimes painful choices, I believe that the deliberative process that has informed our decisions has led to plans for next year in which every area of the curriculum will continue to provide course offerings that are varied and exciting. I look forward to supporting the work of the remarkable teachers, scholars, and creative artists who constitute our faculty as we offer an extraordinary education for our diverse and talented students.
—
Jon Chenette
Dean of the Faculty and Professor of Music
