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Jocelyn Sanders, Accreditation Liaison
Karen Adsit, Steering Committee Chair
106 Race Hall
Dept #5405
615 McCallie Avenue
Chattanooga, TN 37403

(423)425-4515
(423)425-4088 fax

Jocelyn-Sanders@utc.edu
Karen-Adsit@utc.edu

Technical Support
Michael Miller, Web Development Assistant
Chris Tanis, Web Development Specialist
206A Founders Hall
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615 McCallie Avenue
Chattanooga, TN 37403

(423)425-5689 (Miller)
(423)425-4009 (Tanis)

Michael-Z-Miller@utc.edu
Chris-Tanis@utc.edu

Home / SACS Accreditation / 2.8 Faculty...

2.8 Faculty

The number of full-time faculty members is adequate to support the mission of the institution and to ensure the quality and integrity of its academic programs.

Judgement of Compliance:

Compliance

Narrative:

The number of full-time faculty members at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UTC) is adequate to support its mission and to ensure the quality and integrity of its academic programs.  
The UTC Faculty Handbook (section 5.2.1) defines a full-time faculty workload as twelve (12) credit hours, typically four (4) courses per semester. The full-time workload in the College of Business and in the School of Education (formerly Graduate Studies Division and Teacher Preparation Academy) is nine (9) credit hours. Other types of faculty appointments, such as research faculty and Chairs of Excellence, have reduced workloads while still being considered full-time faculty members. As Table 1 illustrates, average faculty workloads in each college conform to these norms. A comprehensive table of individual teaching loads is available on the webpage of the Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Institutional Research (OPEIR).

Table 1: Average Teaching Loads by College, Fall 2009

These standards allow each faculty member to focus on excellence in teaching and research without being overburdened.  Further proof of the adequacy of these numbers is found in the external productivity of UTC’s full-time faculty.  The list of publications and accomplishments for Fall and Spring 2010 shows the abundance and quality of UTC faculty productivity.  By maintaining these average course loads, UTC demonstrates a clear commitment to the quality and integrity of each academic program and to the students and faculty within those programs. 

Additional responsibilities of full-time faculty members are outlined in the Faculty Handbook.  After the first year of service, each full-time faculty member is expected to serve on University committees as needed.  Many of the University’s responsibilities are met through the functions of the Faculty Senate, Graduate Council, and their standing and ad hoc committees. In addition, the administration appoints faculty members to various administrative committees. As illustrated by the list of Faculty Senate, Graduate Council,  and faculty committee membership, there is an adequate number of full-time faculty members to populate these committees.  Because of the sufficient numbers, faculty are able to rotate in and out of service on these varied committees, and some faculty served on no committees during AY 2009-2010.

Finally, full-time faculty members are expected to advise students within their departments and to attend all faculty and departmental meetings when scheduling permits.  Evidence of the adequacy of faculty numbers can be seen in the fact that some faculty have as few as 4 student advisees.  If the number of full-time faculty members was not sufficient, one would expect to find faculty members burdened with a large load of student advisees.

The adequate quantity of full-time faculty can also be seen in the student/faculty ratios.  Table 2 compares UTC's total student to full-time faculty ratio in Fall, 2009 with that of its peer institutions.  Data were obtained from the Department of Education (IPEDS) database and reflect the Fall census date, 2009.  Student totals reflect all full- and part-time (headcount) students, and the faculty totals are limited to full-time employees with faculty status.  The last two columns examine the ratio of total students to tenured and tenure-track faculty in each of the institutions. 

Table 2: UTC vs Peer Institutions Total Enrollment per Full-time Faculty Fall 2009
Institutions Ranked by Students per total Full-time Faculty

These data provide evidence that UTC has adequate faculty to support its academic programs.  As a mid-sized metropolitan institution, UTC must balance its accessibility to students in the region with its commitment to reasonable class size and exceptional teaching and research.  The University Mission reflects the desire for this balance, and the full-time faculty numbers help achieve it.

Graduate Programs
UTC offers eighteen (18) Master’s degree programs, one (1) Specialist degree program, and four (4) Doctoral degree programs. The graduate faculty includes 266 full-time faculty members and is adequate to staff these programs. Table 3 indicates the distribution of full-time graduate faculty by college.  Many faculty in the Graduate School also teach Undergraduate courses.  The numbers seen above (individual teaching load and average course load) include graduate courses and point to a reasonable workload for each faculty member regardless of the type of course being taught.  The average graduate course enrollment is 14.3 students, reflecting the University goal of excellence in teaching as well as the adequacy number of full-time faculty in the graduate school.  Finally, the adequacy of numbers can be seen in the attached list of 2009-2010 graduate degree recipients and their research advisors.  Clearly, the graduate faculty are able to provide sufficient research support needed for dissertations, theses, and other culminating projects.

Table 3: Graduate Faculty and Students by College, Fall 2009