Handbook for New Faculty

The links below should provide you with a quick overview of UWL

• UWL Fast Facts
• UWL Homepage for Faculty
• Organizational Chart
• Majors and Programs of Study
• Mission, Vision & Values Statements
• History/University Archive/Digital Collections
• Campus Map

Be sure to review the Travel e-Reimbursements/Moving & Relocation Expenses GuidelinesBEFORE your move.

Visit the excellent Human Resources (HR) New Employee Guide and download the New Employee Checklist located there.  Complete and return all of your required new hire paperwork as soon as possible.  Delaying submission of these forms will postpone access to your email account and other campus online systems.

Review your UW System benefits information.  A new employee benefits orientation, provided by HR, will be a part of the two-day New Faculty Orientation on campus at the end of August.

After you have submitted your new hire forms and received your unique employee ID number from HR:

• Set up your NetID/email account
• Obtain your campus photo ID card, now (summer 2016) known as your “Eagle ID”
• Review campus parking permit and the city U-Pass bus pass options 

On your first day, log in and explore your My UW System portal, a secure portal that delivers all of your HR-related information (payroll, benefits, leave, tax statements, etc.) from any computer.

Download and retain a reference copy of the UWL Employee Handbook.

Note that we have a helpful employee assistance program (EAP).

• UWL Events Calendar
• Records and Registration Semester Dates and Deadlines
• Academic and Contract Year Definitions

Bylaws are department specific but follow a general university template for content items.  Please check with your Department Chair or Academic Department Associate if you have any trouble locating yours.  They should also be housed at your College Office website:

• College of Business Administration
• College of Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities
• College of Science and Health
• Murphy Library
• School of Education/DES (not available)

• Grants/Office of Research and Sponsored Programs (ORSP)

• It is recommended that all faculty members enter some professional and personal information into their UWL “Profile” Pages.  Not only are these informational for students and colleagues, and promotional purposes, they are also used by university communications staff when requests come in for expert commentary on a wide range of topics. You can edit your profile at UWL Share.
• Most faculty members will use D2L as the primary way to communicate all course-related information to students.  (It is also great for collaborative committee work, and you can request to have unique “ongoing” courses created for your use.)
• Faculty/Staff websites and social media (ITS page)

UW System faculty members have professional responsibilities that include teaching, research, and service, and that differ significantly from those of other unclassified staff.  Faculty workdays are scheduled according to academic, rather than business, practices and typically include nonstandard work hours to accommodate research and other professional activities.

Every Unclassified Faculty, Academic Staff, and Limited Term appointee in a leave-eligible position is required to submit a leave report on a monthly basis, whether or not leave is used.  This report may be submitted either via paper leave report or electronically.

You will find your leave reports at your MyUW portal in the Time and Absence module under the Statements tab.  The leave reports will be populated to your MyUW portal on the first of every month.  Contact your payroll office for instructions on how to access your electronic timesheet, if applicable. You can access your Portal by navigating to the UWL main website, then going to Faculty/Staff > My UW System (HR).

Full time employees will report leave in full day and half day increments.  Absences between two and six hours should be reported as a half-day.  Absences over six hours should be reported as a full day.  If you are less than full time, you may report your absences in 15 minute increments.

An Unclassified Faculty, Academic Staff, or Limited appointee who fails to file a report on leave usage as required by UW System policy in one or more months of any fiscal year shall not be permitted to accrue sick leave for that year in an amount exceeding 8.5 days for annual employees and 6.4 days for academic year employees.

Telephone: UWL began using the newer Voice Over Internet Protocol (VIOP) phone system in 2015. 

• Local: 7 +  seven digit phone number
• Long Distance (including 800):  7 + 1 + ten digit phone number (include area code)

VOIP Users Guide

Facility Reservations - Contact the Scheduling Office:

• Michael Slevin x8892
• Rebecah Neitzel - x8892
• Classroom Reservations
• Event Reservations

Miscellaneous Campus Information

• Business Cards 
• University ID - The card office is in 1131 Student Union
• Rec Sports - Faculty and Staff can purchase memberships to the Rec Eagle Center, as well as participate in Fitness Classes. 
• Outdoor Connections - Faculty and Staff may rent out sporting, camping, outdoor equipment, etc. from the Outdoor Connections. Great prices and a fun way to try a sport without investing in equipment immediately.
• Campus Stores
• Child Care
• Computer Services
• Murphy Library
• Parking
• Purchasing Services/Procurement Card 

Before doing any travel, check with your department ADA for important information. 

You must file an electronic travel preauthorization form before you go.

Review the Policies and Forms

• Travel
• Reimbursement FAQ

Employment Group Titles

IAS - Instructional Academic Staff

NIAS - Non Instructional Academic Staff

ADA - Academic Department Associate, your Department Professional Office Assistant

Divisions, Institutes and Centers

UWS - University of Wisconsin System

WTC - Western Technical College

Colleges

CASSH - College of Arts, Social Sciences, and Humanities

CBA - College of Business Administration

SAH (CSaH, CSH) - College of Science and Health

Education

SOE - School of Education 

DES - Department of Educational Studies

DPI - WI Department of Public Instruction

STEP - Secondary Teacher Education Preparation Program

Offices on Campus

GEL - Graduate and Extended Learning

IT (or ITS) - Information Technology

CATL - Center for Advanced Teaching and Learning

HR - Human Resources

Forms

SEI - Student Evaluation of Instruction

TAI - Teaching Assignment Information form (used for promotion and retention reviews)

Committees

JP&B - Joint Planning and Budget Committee

JPC - Joint Promotion Committee

UCC - Undergraduate Curriculum Committee

SEC - Senate Executive Committee

PTS - Promotion, Tenure and Salary Committee

• Academic Department Contact Information (HR site)
• Academic Department Associates (ADAs)

Office of Student Life

The mission of the Office of Student Life is to enrich and support the UW-L community through programmatic opportunities, as well as individual interventions.  We challenge and support individual growth through educational outreach, including the areas of wellness, alcohol education, campus safety, violence prevention, and programming for students in transition.  We strive to meet individuals where they are along their journey by providing the assistance and guidance they need and deserve. SLO is a campus resource and an integral part of the Division of Student Affairs.

And excellent resource for faculty members offered through this office is the Campus Assessment Response and Evaluation (CARE) Team.  It is a good idea to keep their contact info and some resources at this link handy, should any concerning problems arise.

Faculty Senate

Chapter 36 (the “Merger Law”) of the Wisconsin Statutes specifically provides that the faculty of each State institution “shall be vested with responsibility for the immediate governance of such institution and shall actively participate in institutional policy development.  As such, the faculty shall have the primary responsibility for academic and educational activities and faculty personnel matters.  The faculty of each institution shall have the right to determine their own faculty organizational structure and to select representatives to participate in institutional governance.”

At UWL, the primary representative body of faculty and instructional academic staff members is the Faculty Senate.  It shall be free to investigate, study, debate, and deliberate on all matters of general faculty concern and may exercise review authority in these matters if it deems such exercise lies in the best interests of the university (Articles of Faculty Organization).  Specifically, the senate directly, or through committees, is empowered to:

• Determine all curricula of the institution, graduate and undergraduate
• Determine academic standards and requirements for graduation
• Advise the chancellor on the appointment of administrative officials
• Participate in determining policies with respect to the annual budget
• Participate in planning the physical facilities of the campus
• Participate in formulating regulations pertaining to student activities
• Participate in the award of promotions and salary adjustments
• Participate in investigating cases and determining policies with respect to academic freedom, tenure, appointments, reappointments, leaves, dismissals and teaching loads
• Prepare the agenda for meetings of the general faculty and distribute copies of the agenda to faculty members one week prior to such faculty meetings
• Establish and terminate all faculty committees and determine their membership and functions
• Receive and disseminate minutes and reports of all committees
• Conduct nominations and elections of members of the senate
• Hear any faculty member on matters of concern to the member or the general faculty
• Hear the authorized agent of the organ of student government on matters of concern to the student body
• Inform the general faculty, the administration, and the student body of all senate actions affecting the areas of their respective concerns
• Provide for the election and instruction of representatives to extramural councils or committees which seek to communicate or consult directly with university faculty governance

Committees

There are several types of committees on our campus.  Serving on committees is one way to satisfy service expectations as they relate to retention, tenure, and promotion decisions.  Committees are generally grouped according to the various organizational levels on campus, thus there are the following major types: Department Committees, College Committees, Faculty Senate Committees, Joint Committees, Other Committees, and Student (Association) Committees and Clubs.

Department Committees.  Information about committees in your department should be available from your Department Chair or ADA.  These may be standing or ad hoc, including search and screen committees for new department members.  Membership is usually comprised of only your fellow department members and may be assigned or voluntary.

College Committees.  Information about committees in any of the Colleges, including the Library and School of Education, is typically available through your College Office webpages.  These also may be standing or ad hoc and membership may include faculty and staff from the departments within in your College and College Office.  A recent listing of typical College Committees is:

• for CBA, Curriculum Committee, International Business Advisory Committee, Scholarship Committee, Assurance of Learning Task Force
• for CASSH, Academic Oversight Committee, Assessment Committee, Creative Imperatives Committee, Inclusive Excellence Committee, Recruitment & Retention Committee, Recognition of Excellence Committee, Sabbatical Committee, Strategic Planning Committee,
• for CSaH, Assessment Committee, SAH College Committee, SAH Research Mentor Fellowship Committee, SAH Sabbatical Committee, Undergraduate Research Committees

Faculty Senate Committees.  These University wide committees are overseen by the Faculty Senate and are charged with conducting all manner of University business.  Information, membership, and meeting minutes are made available through your Faculty Senate webpages.  These also may be standing or ad hoc, and often include search and screen committees for upper level administrators.

Joint Committees.  These University wide committees serve to conduct highly focused University business and members serve at the discretion of and report to the Chancellor.  Membership can have representation from multiple/all campus employee types, with faculty membership assigned by the Committee on Faculty Committees and ratified by the Faculty Senate.  Information, membership, and meeting minutes are made available through the Chancellor’s webpages.

Student Committees.  The following committees and their Bylaws are created by action of the Student Senate, the legislative governing body for the UWL Student Association.  They are designed to provide a student voice in matters that promote, protect, and defend student interests.  Faculty membership on these committees is limited to the number indicated in parenthesis in the list below.  Faculty membership is assigned by the Committee on Faculty Committees and ratified by the Faculty Senate.  Committees include: Academic Affairs (2), Academic Initiatives (1), Athletics (4), Campus Community Enrichment Fund (1), Cultural Affairs (3), Legislative Affairs (4), Organizations (1), Segregated University Fee Allocation (2), Services & Buildings (2).

Other Committees.  At least 3 committees fall under this category.  Membership is assigned by the Committee on Faculty Committees and ratified by the Faculty Senate.  These are listed in the workload estimates table below.

Ad hoc Committees.  These are committees formed to accomplish specific tasks, objectives, or studies and are dissolved after the completion of the achievement of the objectives.  If anad hoc University committee is formed outside the Senate for any reason, faculty representation on such a committee shall be named or approved by the Faculty Senate Executive Committee, or by the senate as a whole.

The table below lists most of the standing university committees and shows (academic year) workload estimates and appropriateness for newer faculty members.  Each spring, faculty members are petitioned for the committees they’d like to serve on in the next year.  The Faculty Senate Committee on Faculty Committees then makes membership assignments according to Bylaws descriptions.

UW– L Committee Workload Estimates and Appropriateness for Newer Faculty

Faculty Senate Committees

Joint Committees

(Representation by multiple employee types and serve at discretion of the Chancellor)

Other Committees 

Student (Senate) Committees

All generally have lower workloads and are a good place for new faculty to start, if interested

Records and Registration Office

• Academic Policies (Helpful reference site!)
• Student FAQ on Registration, Schedule Changes, etc.
• UWL Catalog

Overrides

Note that override policies differ by department and college.  Some departments keep wait lists for some courses.  Others restrict overrides until after Freshmen Registration.  Please be sure to check with your Department Chair or ADA before handing out any of your own course overrides.

The WINGS Student Center will not allow a student to register for courses that are full or require special permission from the instructor, department chair and/or dean. Permission can given to a student either using an Override form available in your department office, or using the online permission through Wings. Electronic overrides are available for closed classes and pre-requisites until the fifth day of instruction. (Exceptions apply for Summer and Winter Sessions).

Discretionary Drops

A student enrolled in any course is expected to be in attendance from the first day or to have notified the instructor or the Office of Student Life that attendance is not possible.  A student registered in a section who fails to attend the first two class sessions or to provide proper notification may be dropped from the course at the discretion of the instructor.

An instructor who wishes to drop a student from a course during the first five days of instruction should complete a drop/add form and submit it to the Office of Records and Registration during the "drop/add/change of schedule" period. A decision by an instructor to drop a student from a class may not be appealed to any other individual or body in the university. A student should not assume that an instructor will use the discretionary drop if the student does not attend class. It is a student’s responsibility to withdraw from a class.

Final Exam Policy

Final Examination Schedule.  A final examination shall be given for one-credit courses at the last regular meeting of the class.  All other classes (two or more credits) will have final examinations given as scheduled in the special examination period prescribed by the faculty, the deans, and the administration.  The nature and relative importance of the final examination are to be determined by the instructor in charge of each course.

Instructor-initiated changes to the published examination schedule are permitted only if approved by your Chair and College Dean.  Instructors may send email requests to change an examination time by copying both of these people and providing very good reasons.  Changes may be allowed if they do not negatively impact any students in the class, but approvals are not guaranteed.  Room availability is also a major consideration in reviewing these requests.

No student is required to take more than three final exams on the same day.  If a night class is not involved, instructors of the fourth and subsequent exams on that day will be obliged to reschedule that student's exam if the Office of Records and Registration certifies that such an overload exists.  If a night class is involved, the night class and the student's first two exams of the day will remain as scheduled and the other instructors will be obliged to reschedule their exams for that student.

Textbook Rental

Talk to your ADA about books needed for your course sections.

There is a lengthy “Textbook Services Policy” that you might wish to peruse, as well as anOversight Committee that monitors our usage policies.  In brief, you may wish to know the following:

• Undergraduate students pay a segregated fee and then rent the majority of their textbooks.  Graduate students purchase their textbooks from the University Bookstore.
• One textbook is guaranteed in textbook rental for every class, OR multiple textbooks may be ordered up to the combined publisher's list price total of $95.  All textbooks must be used for a minimum of three years.
• Textbook Rental Services maintains an accurate inventory of all textbooks housed in Textbook Rental as well as a record of the use of textbooks in all classes each semester.  A listing of the updated inventory is available to all departments and programs at the beginning of each semester, or upon request at any time.
• Textbook Rental Services can assist faculty with information needed to obtain desk copies from publishers for the classes they teach.  When possible, Textbook Rental Services will provide one student desk copy to faculty/staff for a period of 30 days while the instructor is acquiring a desk copy.
• Textbook Rental Services will notify departments when a textbook goes out of print.  Textbooks that go out of print are no longer available for purchase from publishers or reputable book vendors.  Faculty/staff are expected to review the out-of-print list every semester and select another text for use the next time the course is scheduled to be taught.  Once the new text is selected and ordered by Textbook Rental Services, the out-of-print title will be disposed of in the same manner as all other discontinued textbooks.