About
Full-time tenure-track and tenured faculty members may request an unbalanced teaching load to maximize their research and scholarship or to facilitate department course offerings. With an unbalanced teaching load, the faculty member shifts all or part of their teaching from one semester to the other.
Process
Requesting Unbalanced Teaching Loads
Faculty members who would like to request an unbalanced teaching load should submit their proposal to the Department Chair. The Department Chair should confirm that the request will not adversely affect course scheduling and course availability for students. The unbalanced teaching load must also not result in an increase in the instructional budget. Unbalanced teaching loads will not be approved if there is a negative effect on either course offering or on the budget.
If the Department Chair is in agreement with the request, they should include it on their annual Workload document in the section detailing proposed teaching loads for the upcoming academic year, for approval from the Associate Dean for Faculty Affairs. If approved, the unbalanced teaching load would then go into effect for the requested year.
Required Materials
Required Materials
- A proposal from the faculty member explaining the need for unbalanced teaching load, to be reviewed by the Department Chair. Should include information about their normal teaching load as well as describe the work to be done in place of their normal classroom responsibilities.
- A note and justification for the unbalanced teaching load on the department's annual Workload document.
Timeline
When to Submit Unbalanced Teaching Load Requests
Requests for unbalanced teaching loads should be submitted with the department's annual Workload document. See the Faculty Annual Review page for more information.