This guide is intended to be an ongoing resource and reference for
new (and old) faculty at USAO. Please bookmark it and keep it on hand
for questions that come up throughout the semester.
If you have any ideas for revisions or topics to add to this guide,
please contact me, Paul Regier, or any of the New Faculty Welcome
Committee.
-Paul Regier, Nick Boyde, Karen Karner, Jeff Taylor, and Junjae
Hwang
Best wishes for this year!
Beginning of Semester
Resources
Presemeter To-do
Checklist
For a detailed list of all beginning of semester to-do items, please
download/print and refer to the following “To Do List Before Semester
Starts.”
To
Do List Before Semester Starts
Finding Places on
Campus
Once on campus, we plan to get everyone a proper Campus tour at some
point. Until then, here is the campus map that
you can use to find your way around.
Meetings
During the Spring and Fall semester, Tuesdays, 11 am - 12
pm are reserved for faculty meetings. Generally, each Tuesday
of the month is reserved for meetings as follows.
- 1st Tuesday – Faculty Association
- 2nd Tuesday – School Meeting
- School of Education and Speech-Language Pathology
- School of IDS and Humanities
- School of Science and Physical Education
- School of Social Sciences and Business
- School of Visual and Performing Arts
- 3rd Tuesday – Committee meetings
- 4th Tuesday – Faculty Forum with Academic Vice President
Thursdays from 11 am-12 pm are sometimes used for other meetings
(with the President, committees, etc.).
Helpful advice from JC Sanders: “During Faculty Association meetings
(1st Tuesday of the month), there will likely be discussions that are
either confusing or meaningless to a new faculty member. Senior faculty
members may not include background information and often your colleagues
are extremely passionate about the topic being discussed. If this
happens, you should ask a fellow faculty member (or two or three) to
explain and bring you up to speed. It is a good idea to get a few
perspectives on the topic as it may be complex. You can ask the faculty
member who brought up the topic, another faculty member, or even your
dean for your school.”
Advising
For orientation on advising, set up a meeting with the dean of your
school. They can provide you with degree plans and tips on enrolling
students.
All USAO degree programs and their requirements are listed in the course
catalog, under the “Majors and Minors” navigation tab.
Degree checksheets and other information on your majors can be found
on the USAO Academics page.
Another way to find checksheets is simply to Google, for example, “USAO
math degree checksheet.” Usually, this will take you directly to the
most up-to-date check sheet.
We are always in the process of updating majors, so if you have any
questions regarding advising, don’t hesitate to reach out to your dean
or any nearby colleague.
General Tips
If a course is full and students need this course to stay on schedule
toward completing their degree, email the dean for your school (or they
may direct you to someone else). They have the authority to adjust caps
with the permission of the instructor. Courses necessary for completion
of the degree include:
- Major courses that would delay completing their degree
- Remedial courses, in the case when multiple courses are needed.
However, students may retake the exams at the end of the semester, so in
the case where they are simply rusty on a subject, they may be able to
pass an exam and avoid extra requirements. Talk to advisees about their
sense of this.
Course substitutions
and permissions
In helping our students get their degrees in the best way possible,
course substitutions are surprisingly common. Don’t hesitate to reach
out to your dean or other faculty to discuss appropriate course
substitution for an advisee.
Here are the procedures for:
Student Support
Attendance Rosters of
first 2 weeks of class (for Financial Aid)
For financial aid to meet US Department of Education regulations, we
need to submit attendance for all students, for each class, for the
first two weeks of class. For example, if class starts on a Thursday, we
should “record” attendance for all classes from that day until two weeks
from that Thursday.
For instructions for submitting your attendance rosters in Ellucian
Self-service, refer to the following video:
Notes regarding Financial Aid Attendance Rosters:
- The students you select as having never attended class are
candidates for an automatic withdrawal (AW), but your report to
Financial Aid does not automatically change any enrollment status with
the Registrar, it only affects Pell eligibility. If the student deserves
an AW, then you may discuss this with others and initiate that process
with the Registrar yourself.
- If you do not complete Financial Aid attendance rosters by the date
requested, Financial Aid will not be able to disburse Pell to students,
so Financial Aid will be reaching out to you!
Retention Alert
Messages
The Student Success Center manages alerts for students who are not
attending/not turning in work. The platform for submitting these alerts
is being updated this summer, so how-to videos for this are
forthcoming.
Student Success Center (SSC) Director, Kelli Monroe and the SSC
support staff are the main contact points for these alerts. You can
always reach out to them individually if you have concerns/questions
regarding individual students.
Kelli Monroe - kmonroe@usao.edu -405-574-1267
End-of-semester student
evaluations
There is abundant research and debate regarding the accuracy and
reliability of student evaluation of teaching (SET). However,
student feedback on evaluations – especially written responses – plays
an important role both in helping make changes to a course and in
writing your annual review.
Thus, you should encourage your students to complete end-of-semester
student evaluations of teaching. You can do this verbally, by allotting
time during class, and/or by other means outside of sheer bribery.
Offering extra credit to students for reaching a certain response rate
is NOT recommended as it can cause sample bias.
Example
Announcement
Below is an announcement I use in all my classes, given both as a
Canvas announcement and verbally given the day I plan to give time in
class for evaluations. I believe this practice, combined with
incorporating formative feedback earlier in the semester, has
contributed to relatively high response rates in my courses (60–80%).
Feel free to copy and adapt this announcement as you see fit.
Example Announcement:
At this point in the semester, course evaluations will soon be
available as a standard way to give your feedback on each of your
courses. Please plan to take a few minutes to thoughtfully complete each
course evaluation. Thank you in advance for your feedback!
Why do course evaluations?
- Evaluating your experience in this course can be an important
opportunity to reflect on your successes and struggles in this course
and consider how to help you and others like you benefit from your
experience.
- Your feedback can be used help improve the experience of future
students like you in your courses.
Who has access to your responses?
- Firstly, your instructor will review all responses to course
evaluations and use them in improving the course. These evaluations and
instructors responses to your feedback form a part of their annual
report they write and submit each January.
- Secondly, your instructor’s direct supervisor (school deans) will
have access to your responses through the annual report your instructor
submits, as well as other faculty reviewing faculty tenure. Effective
teaching is one of the primary goals of faculty’s work on campus!
How do I complete course evaluations?
Once available, you can complete course evaluations by clicking on
the Course Evaluation tab in Canvas and following the instructions
provided.
Recommendations for
Using Evaluations
Here are some recommendations from an anonymous faculty:
- Comments are typically polarized into extreme opinions (either good
or bad)…I provide targeted questions as a separate course evaluation for
my betterment that has specific questions about aspects of the course
that I think could be improved or I think went well but want feedback
on.
- Encourage students to do the course evaluations and provide honest
and constructive feedback. I always tell them if they hate me fine, but
tell me why.
When writing your annual review, you may include formative or other
“non-official” student feedback. However, be sure to respond to any
negative comments on your end-of-semester evaluations (individually or
in a general way). Otherwise, your dean may bring them up, out of
concern, to support you, and to ensure they have been properly
addressed.
Evaluation
Questions
Below are the questions that are currently used in end-of-semester
student evaluations.
Likert-Type Response Question:
- Tests and assessments of student performance (i.e., frequency,
adequate notice, and relevancy to material covered) were:
[Very Good, Good, Fair, Poor, Very Poor]
- Course management (use of time, materials, following the syllabus,
etc.) was:
[Very Good, Good, Fair, Poor, Very Poor]
- Grading standards were clear and applied fairly.
[Strongly Agree, Agree, Neutral, Disagree, Strongly
Disagree]
- [INSTRUCTOR NAME] was well prepared for class.
[Always, Usually, Frequently, Occasionally, Almost Never]
- [INSTRUCTOR NAME] taught this course effectively.
[Strongly Agree, Agree, Neutral, Disagree, Strongly
Disagree]
- The availability of [INSTRUCTOR NAME] to the student outside of
class as measured by being in the office at SCHEDULED office hours and
keeping appointments.
[Always, Usually, Sometimes, Hardly Ever, Never, I never
checked]
Open Response Questions
- What are the strengths of this COURSE?
- What recommendations do you have for this COURSE?
- What are strengths of MATERIALS used in this COURSE?
- What recommendations do you have for MATERIALS used in this
course?
- What recommendations do you have for GRADING and ASSESSMENT for this
course?
- What are the strengths of [INSTRUCTOR NAME]?
Grade Submission
Midterm and Final Grades are submitted on Ellucian Self-service
from the Faculty Tab. Keep an eye out for emails from the Registrar with
instructions for Grade submission and deadlines.
If you are liable to mis-entering grades like me, double-check the
final grade entry is a good idea because once grades are submitted, they
cannot be changed except by emailing the registrar.
Midterm Grades
The submission of midterm grades is a crucial University retention
tool. At the Student Success Center, midterm grades are utilized to
support students, particularly those with unsatisfactory grades of D, F,
NP, or RF. Additionally, students are categorized based on their overall
midterm grade profile using a CAN system: Congratulate, Alert, and
Nudge. Each student receives a personalized email reflecting their
progress at midterms.
Besides facilitating student outreach, informing students of their
academic progress at midterms allows them to make informed decisions
about their courses, including whether to consider withdrawing and
receiving a “W.” The midterm submission date is strategically scheduled
to provide students ample time to discuss their performance with the
instructor before the Automatic W deadline.
The midterm grade reporting date is also placed on the Academic
Calendar before the registration window opens for the next semester.
Academic advisors should use midterm grades when meeting with their
advisees to plan and register for the next semester. These grades help
advisors offer tailored support and suggestions for improvement and may
influence the selection of courses for the next term, especially if a
student has an unsatisfactory grade in a prerequisite or major-required
course.
Midterm grade due dates are listed in academic
calendar.
Final Grades
Final grades are due the Monday after finals week (at Midnight).
Again, once grades are submitted, they cannot be changed except by
emailing the registrar.
If an “Incomplete” is given to a student, the instructor will make a
plan/schedule with that student for making up missed work. The record or
details of this plan should then be included in an email to the student,
registrar, and dean of your school. Once work is completed and a grade
for the course has been assigned, send a “reply to all” on the above
email with the final grade so that the registrar to update the
grade.
Course planning
Course schedules for the next semester (including summer when the
Fall schedule is submitted) are due to the Registrar around a month
after the start of the prior semester. Revisions can be made for a few
weeks, but once courses are open for enrollment, changes of times, and
course offerings are not feasible, though switching instructors is.
Course Rotations
Special Topics
Courses
To teach a Special Topics course, there is a form for soliciting
student interest [ask the dean for your school for now]. Part of the
purpose of proposing courses and gauging interest is to gauge student
interest to tailor offerings to student needs. Keep in mind that if a
course doesn’t run, this information (and work in planning a course) is
useful for the process of offering the course in the future.
Annual Review
The annual report is a multiple-page document that lists your
teaching, advising, professional development, scholarly activities, and
service for that year. Your annual reports are the primary form of
documentation used when applying for tenure and promotion. To assist
with the writing of your report, it is a good idea to keep an organized
record of:
- teaching activities (e.g. syllabi, course evaluations, advising
materials/records,
- curriculum development)
- scholarly and professional development activities (e.g.
publications, presentations, conferences, workshops, works of artistic
expression)
- service (e.g. local & state committees, USAO committees,
sponsoring USAO clubs, meetings attended, volunteerism, and professional
organizations)
From your first day as faculty, it is a good idea to keep track of
the things you do (even if it is just a list with dates and short
descriptions) so you are not trying to remember everything you did one
year later. Annual reports use a calendar year (January through
December), rather than the traditional academic year. If you started at
USAO during the fall semester, your first annual report will be based
solely on the fall semester and will be used for reappointment. Annual
reports are due on January 31st and are submitted to the dean of your
school. After this, the dean will complete an administrative review of
your performance based on your annual report and set up a meeting with
you to discuss it.
There is a digital annual report template that you must use to
complete your annual report. The template may change from year to year,
but the basics stay the same. Feel free to fill out your report as you
go and get a head start. Ask your dean for your school for an annual
report template, and don’t hesitate to reach out to your dean for other
faculty for any questions on this.
Committees
Committee assignments are made at the beginning of each semester. The
Committee on Committees keeps an up-to-date list of committee members
for each committee. The officers of the Faculty Association serve on the
Committee on Committees and provide membership and descriptions for
Faculty Association Committees. So, if you are interested in being added
to a committee, talk to an officer of the faculty Association.
The committees are listed on pages 8-11 of the Faculty
Handbook, though the handbook has not been updated since 2018, so
some may be a out of date, or others may not be listed in the
handbook.
Types of Committees
- University Committees - composed of faculty, staff,
students, and administrators, appointed by the president from
nominations from the president. These committees change and are
periodically sent out by the VP of Academic Affairs. The latest is also
available here.
- Standing Committees - generally appointed by the
president
- Faculty Association Committees - appointed by the
president of the Faculty association. Here are the Faculty Association
committees as listed in the Faculty Handbook:
- Curriculum Development: To receive, review, evaluate,
initiate, and recommend to the Faculty Association regarding the
development of, or changes in, courses or curricula. Requirements: One
member from each school and one member at large. All members of this
committee should have completed at least three years as a full-time
member of the faculty at USAO.
- Faculty Handbook: To study, review, and keep current
policies and procedures that pertain to faculty, and, in cooperation
with the Vice President for Academic Affairs, edit the Faculty Handbook.
Requirements: One member from each school and one member at large.
- Resources: To formulate and protect criteria for improving
the instructional environment. Its goals include, but are not limited
to, increasing communication between faculty and administration;
preparing supply, support, and facility changes to enhance teaching; and
instigating changes in faculty benefits to encourage sound hiring and
faculty retention. Members are the current Faculty Association
president, immediate past president, president-elect, and one
representative from each academic school, two of whom will rotate off
each year.
- Faculty Promotion and Tenure: To review the candidate’s
tenure or promotion dossier, to evaluate the recommendations from the
School and the school dean, and to recommend directly to the Vice
President for Academic Affairs. Requirements: All members of the
committee must be tenured and in the rank of associate professor or
above. Two members from each school should be appointed to serve.
Ideally, these members should be from different disciplines within the
school. School deans may not serve.
Clubs
You are free to join and cosponsor a club with permission of the
other sponsor(s).
The process for club renewal (required every year) or new club
registration can be found here.
Cafeteria
To eat in the cafeteria, you can order a punch card (10, 25, or 50
lunches) from the Sodexo
website, under commuter plans. The easiest thing to do is to pay
online, and then pick up your lunch card from Jennifer Warren (jennifer.warren@sodexo.com) during lunch. Sometimes
she is not there. If so, email Jennifer to find out when you can pick up
your card.
Long-Term
Resources
This section includes items from a “Checklist for New Faculty” of
long-term items written by JC Sanders. Many of these
items you may learn about or gain exposure to naturally in the course of
your work, and some of these protocols described may have changed in the
past year (when we have time and input form these parts of campus, we
will update!); however, these details still may be helpful to know about
and are listed here for your reference.
Maintenance
Requests
Contact Information:
- Maintenance Office (at the corner of Grand Ave. and 19th St. across
from the Old Gym, aka PE Building)
- Danielle McAllister, Administrative Assistant, (405) 574-1233, dmcallister@usao.edu
Have a problem that requires maintenance or the groundskeeping crew?
Is the heat or air conditioning not working? Do you need some wall
anchors installed to hang your photos in your office? Or perhaps a light
has burnt out. Submit a maintenance request by emailing or calling
Danielle McAllister using the contact information above. Be very
specific in your request. Include the building and room location,
description of the problem, and any other pertinent information. If you
want something to be done a certain way (e.g. mounts for hanging
pictures) be sure to have a plan ready before you make the maintenance
request. You should also CC your school administrative assistant on the
e-mail in case you are not around when the maintenance request is
addressed.
The Assessment
Office
Contact Information:
- Assessment Office, Troutt Hall 318A
- Email: assessment@usao.edu (for Test Proctoring and Special
Accommodations)
Occasionally a student enrolled in one of your classes will be
identified by Student Services as needing special accommodation(s) to be
successful in their coursework at USAO. One possible situation is the
student may request to complete all examinations in the Assessment
Office (instead of the classroom). Your responsibility is to provide
either an electronic copy or paper copy of the exam, the correct form
identifying the student, and the date the exam will take place at the
Assessment Office. In addition, the Assessment Office can proctor a
missed exam, but you will need to make the appropriate arrangements.
Scantron Machine (OPTIONAL)
The Assessment Office has a Scantron machine for grading
multiple-choice exams. You are free to design exams as you see fit, but
if you would like to use some multiple-choice questions or perhaps take
a simple survey, this resource is available. Scantron forms for the exam
are acquired from your school office (NOT the Assessment Office). Give
the exam during class and have students fill out the Scantron form
including their last name, first name, ID number (bubbling in the
circles on the left side of the form that correspond with the last 4
digits on their ID card), and test form (usually A, but you can have
multiple versions of the exam if you prefer). They must also bubble in
the correct circles. They do NOT need to include their phone number on
the form. Following the exam, take all of the students’ Scantron forms
and an answer key to the Assessment Office. When you drop off the exam,
you will complete a form indicating what information you want from the
exam. Ask one of the student workers if you are unsure about whether you
need a certain item (these items include statistical analyses of every
question so you can see where your students are struggling). The results
of the exam (student scores) can be e-mailed to you in an Excel
spreadsheet if you request it (be sure to include your e-mail
address).
Absences from
Campus
Contact Information:
- Administrative Assistant for your School (see USAO faculty/staff web
directory)
- Dean for your School (see USAO faculty/staff web directory)
Absences from campus, especially those that result in missed classes,
meetings, or office hours should be documented. Ask your school
administrative assistant for the absence from campus form when
necessary. If you are absent for university business (conference,
seminar, etc.) this form documents that you are working and helps ensure
that you are covered in case something happens. Planned absences
(conference travel, research seminars, etc.) should be approved in
advance, so be sure to submit the form as soon as you are aware of the
details. It is your responsibility to see that your classes are covered
while you are away, so seek assistance from your fellow faculty members
and plan (e.g. schedule an exam that can be proctored by someone else).
For illness and other unanticipated absences, you should contact your
school’s administrative assistant and the dean of your school as soon as
possible so that the appropriate steps can be taken and fill out the
absence from campus form as soon as you return.
Purchasing and
Ordering Supplies, Equipment, etc.
Contact Information:
- Administrative Assistant for your school (see USAO faculty/staff web
directory)
- Dean for your school (see USAO faculty/staff web directory)
- Business Office, Troutt Hall 220
Purchasing and ordering may involve several different people. Funds
usually come from one of two sources: USAO funds directly through your
school budget or administration and foundation money from outside
(private) sources. The process differs depending on where the funds are
secured.
For University funds from your school or another USAO source, a
purchase order needs to be filled out and approved. Your purchase MUST
be approved before ordering. No orders are to be made until approved.
Ask your school administrative assistant and/or a fellow faculty member
to help you complete the form. Once the form is completed it will need
to be approved by several people, usually the dean of your school and at
least one vice president. New technology requests, both for classroom
and/or office use, should be discussed with the dean of your school
first and then sent to Information, Research, and Network Services. The
staff in Information Services will generate the PO for that
purchase.
For USAO foundation funds, the current purchase order form is
available on the USAO public share drive, which is accessible on the
USAO network or via remote login. This form changes from time to time,
so make sure you use the most recent version. Use the path
\\AHSERVER\Public Share\FOUNDATION FORMS to find the PO.
Once the form is completed it will need to be approved by several
University personnel and signed by the Foundation’s Executive Director
certifying that the funds are held at the foundation for the purpose
requested and verifying to the vendor that the funds will be encumbered
for payment.
Publicizing the
Great Things You Do, Communications and Marketing
Contact Information:
When you or your students do great things, get the press you deserve
by filling out the online request form. Some examples that we hope you
publicize include research, presentations, outreach, community service,
and just about anything that reflects positively on USAO or the local
community.
To best serve all USAO schools and departments, there is an online
Request Services System. If you have requests for services from anyone
in Communications and Marketing (excluding the print shop), please use
the online request form. Communications and Marketing want to utilize
their skills and abilities in the most strategic way possible to ensure
they are marketing to our target audiences effectively and consistently.
Please note Communications and Marketing will continue to support
specific ongoing, reoccurring events and projects as normal. Using this
online request form will not only ensure your project receives attention
but will help Communications and Marketing strategically plan and track
our progress. Please contact Communications and Marketing if you have
any questions. https://usao-gcgxy.formstack.com/forms/c_m_service_request_form