School of Education

Contract dates affect how/when faculty report leave.

From the UWL Human Resources website:  The activities of faculty and academic staff are not organized in terms of a specific number of hours and days in specified locations. Rather, the time devoted to professional activities may vary from week to week or month to month during the course of an academic year. Frequently, faculty and academic staff engage in activity related to university responsibilities outside the academic year.

The "contract year" is typically defined in terms of the academic year, which is a continuous 39-week period starting one week prior to the start of Fall semester classes.  Typically this means that the academic year extends until the week following commencement in mid-May. 

SOE Specific expectations in relationship to the contract year: For SOE affiliated faculty, there are some required activities that may fall outside of the traditional contract year period:

• The schedule for PK-12 schools extends before and after the UWL contract year. SoE-affiliated faculty and staff that are serving as student teacher supervisors may need to be present in the schools for short amounts of time in late August (for Fall supervision appointments) or early June (for Spring supervision appointments), outside of the traditional contract year period. Currently faculty are not paid a stipend for this work, and it is considered part of the normal duties associated with the student teacher supervision workload assignment.
• SOE affiliated faculty and IAS  with student teaching and student teaching seminar obligations are required to participate in some limited meetings between August 15th and the start of the Fall contract. These meetings account for some of the total contact hours that comprise the student teaching observation workload credit(s).  SOE has no required meetings after the end of the Spring semester. However, student teaching supervisory responsibilities continue through the end of the PK-12 school districts where student teachers are placed.
• SOE holds a mandatory "data retreat" meeting at the start of the Fall and Spring semesters as part of the comprehensive assessment system in order to meet WI DPI requirements for ongoing programmatic assessment. The Fall meeting is sometimes held during the week prior to the traditional start of the contract period. The Spring meeting is typically held in late January, before the start of the Spring semester but during the contract period.  All SOE faculty and instructional academic staff are required to attend both meetings.
• SOE affiliated faculty and IAS  are required to attend monthly SOE meetings during the academic year.
• In accordance with UWL policy (see Employee Handbook, section E-10), SOE affiliated faculty and instructional academic staff are required to attend at least one commencement ceremony per academic year.  

Useful links to UWL guidelines and materials:  Faculty and IAS should refer to their department bylaws for additional department-specific guidelines.  

Provost page resources for Faculty and IAS review

Retention at UWL: Description of retention portfolio materials and how to generate them.

Faculty promotion process information: Links to HR promotion resources including schedules, policies, guidelines and forms; also includes a link to the Provost's Promotion Resources page.

Post-Tenure Review process information: PTR Policy, timeline, etc. in the Human Resources Knowledge Base.

IAS promotion resources:  Links to Links to HR promotion resources including schedules, policies, guidelines and forms; also includes a link to the Provost's Promotion Resources page.

Table 5-1: Typical Contract Review timeline for Tenure Track Faculty in their 2^nd Year

Table 5-2: Typical Contract Review timeline for Eligible Tenure Track Faculty in their 3rd-6th Year

Table 5-3: Typical Promotion Review timeline for Eligible Tenure Track Faculty

Table 5-4: Typical Non-Contract Review timeline for Eligible Tenure Track Faculty

Table 5-5: Typical Post-Tenure Review timeline for Eligible Tenure Track Faculty

Table 5-6: Additional Personnel Review Information

VIII. UW-La Crosse Ranked Faculty and Instructional Academic Staff Workload Policy (Draft May 4, 2026) 

A. Overview and Definitions

This workload policy complies with the UW Regent Teaching Workload Policy. The UW Regent Teaching Workload Policy takes precedence.

1. Faculty: Tenured faculty and faculty in tenure-track lines with the rank of professor, associate professor, assistant professor, or instructor, exclusive of librarians with faculty appointments.
2. Instructional Academic Staff (IAS): Instructional staff in Redbooked Instructional Academic Staff lines with the rank of teaching professor, teaching associate professor, or teaching assistant professor.
3. Credit Hour: A period of not less than 50 consecutive minutes per week of instructional time for each week of the semester or session that the course is offered, excluding the week of or the week immediately preceding final examinations. A credit hour may include an equivalent amount of other academic work leading to the designation of credit hours. When approved by the Dean and Provost, some instruction may be best captured by contact hours rather than credit hours, allowing for variations in type of instruction.

B. Workload Composition and Leave Calculation

By statute, a ranked faculty member's workload consists of three components: teaching, scholarly or creative activity, and service. The IAS workload expectation is primarily instructional, sometimes including duties related to advising and service. For the purpose of calculating leave over a full semester or academic year, the following distributions apply:

1. Faculty: Teaching constitutes 60% of a faculty member’s load, while scholarly or creative activities and service constitute the remaining 40%. 
2. IAS: Instructional related duties and teaching should represent the majority of an IAS member’s load.

C. Teaching Load Expectations

1. Faculty Teaching Expectations:
   1. Full-time faculty members are expected to teach a minimum of a 12 credit load of group instruction during each standard academic semester. If contact hours are the metric used by the department or college, a faculty member may be assigned 12 contact hours.
   2. While there may be individual variation between the Fall and Spring semesters, the total teaching load for the academic year should be 24 credit hours. f.
   3. Consistent teaching arrangements that exceed the minimum should be modified or reviewed for potential overload payments.
   4. Summer and/or winter session teaching is considered a separate contract for 9-month appointments and does not count toward the 24credit baseline.
   5. Twelve-month faculty are expected to teach at least one course in the summer session. Full-time faculty members engaged in graduate instruction or associated with programs that have accreditation-driven workload determinations typically have a reduced teaching load as indicated by the Dean and approved by the Provost. 
2. IAS Teaching Expectations:
   1. Full-time instructional academic staff are expected to teach a minimum of 15 credit load of group instruction during each standard academic semester. If contact hours are the metric used by the department or college, an IAS member may be assigned 15 contact hours.
   2. While there may be individual variation between the Fall and Spring semesters, the total teaching load for the academic year should be 30 credit hours.
   3. Consistent teaching arrangements that exceed the minimum should be modified or reviewed for potential overload payments.
   4. Summer and/or winter session teaching is considered a separate contract for 9-month appointments and does not count toward the 30credit baseline.
   5. Twelve-month instructional academic staff are expected to teach at least one course in the summer session.
   6. Full-time instructional academic staff engaged in graduate instruction or associated with programs that have accreditation-driven workload determinations typically have a reduced teaching load as indicated by the Dean and approved by the Provost.
   7. The Dean may establish up to 3 credit/contact hours of reassigned instructional duties depending on department or college needs, which may include service requirements such as committee work or advising. 

D. Determination and Monitoring of Workload Workload measurements are determined by UW System Administration (UWSA) guidelines and overseen by the Provost. The definitions of credit and contact hours are provided by UWSA and guided by accreditation standards. Instructional full-time equivalents (IFTE), student credit hours (SCH), and contact hours are the primary data monitored and reported at the individual, departmental, college, and university levels. Department and college-level workload data are used to determine resource allocation, including instructional lines.

The authority and process for determining workload are as follows: 1. Department Level: Individual workload assignments are determined by the department chair or program director. The department retains accountability for this determination. When calculating workloads, departments must consider the nature of instructional patterns (e.g., lecture, discussion, laboratory, clinical, field activities), as well as individual course enrollments (e.g., atypically small or large classes).

2. College Level: Any variation from the standard teaching loads (12 credits for Faculty; 15 credits for IAS) must be approved by the College Dean. Additionally, the Dean must approve the departmental workload calculations concerning instructional patterns.

3. University Level: All workload reassignments for administrative duties, including roles such as graduate program directors and associate chairs, must be approved by the Provost. Ultimately, the Provost is responsible for ensuring that individual, departmental, and college workloads fully comply with UWSA policy and guidelines.

UWL Workload Credit Policy --- Teacher Candidate Supervision in Undergraduate Teacher Education Programs 

(This policy applies to all UWL undergraduate teacher education programs.) (updated 1/2026) 

1. Workload Credit is assigned as indicated in Table 1. Workload assignments or credit adjustments within this policy are approved at the Department Chair/College Dean level. Workload assignment adjustments that are exceptions to this policy must be approved by the SoE Dean in consultation with the College Dean (if applicable). 
2. Distance and number of sites: If all student teachers are placed within Tier 1 sites (see Figure 1 and Appendix 1), then the higher number of Student Teachers (ST) for a given workload credit should be allocated unless the sites are far apart. Likewise, if any student teachers are placed within Tier 3 sites (see Figure 1 and Appendix 1), then the lowest number of ST for a given workload credit should be allocated. Otherwise, consideration should be given to multiple sites and total distance to those sites. Workload credit should be assigned to faculty in these situations based on consultation with the SoE Dean and the College Dean (if applicable). 

1. Remediation/action plans and other dispositional factors: Additional workload credit may be considered (in consultation with the SoE Dean and the College Dean (if applicable)) for faculty who are supervising ST with significant dispositional issues and/or Teacher Candidate Progress Review (TCPR) action plans. 

1. Banking Policy: For low volume programs with few teacher candidates (TCs) per semester or quarter, the same workload formula as in Table 1 applies, but faculty may accumulate the number of assigned student---semesters or student---quarters over a number of semesters. (For example, a faculty member may supervise one student teacher per semester in two different semesters and then earn a 1---credit reassignment the following semester.) Banking policies should be approved by the SoE Dean in consultation with the College Dean (if applicable). It is presumed that faculty will use their banked teaching assignment within one academic year. 

Table 1: Student Teacher Supervision Workload Formula 

Figure 1: Field and Student Teaching placement site locations. Sites are grouped into tiers based on the distance from UWL. A complete list of schools and distances is given in Appendix 1. 

Tier 1: < 14 mi (yellow/orange); Tier 2: < 28 mi (green); Tier 3: > 28 mi (purple). 

Process for assigning student teacher supervision workload: 

The timeline is indexed relative to the date of student teacher applications and refers to a cohort who has applied in the same semester (see Table 2). 

1. Within 30 days of the Student Teacher Application deadline, the Office of Field Experience (OFE) sends initial estimate of the anticipated number of student teachers (ST) to department Chairs (~10 months in advance of the student teaching semester). 

1. The Department Chair in consultation with the SoE affiliated faculty/IAS in their department assigns the number of ST workload credits using the approved workload policy (see Table 1). The ST workload credit assignment for each SoE affiliated faculty member should be communicated to OFE using the ST supervision assignment form. 

1. OFE assigns specific ST to faculty taking into account their preferences (location, student, number of sites) to the extent possible. ST placements should be completed no less than 30 days in advance of Student Teacher Kickoff each semester if at all possible (recognizing that there may be occasional last minute changes). 

1. Within 30 days of Student Teacher Kickoff, OFE sends to the Department Chair the updated list of ST to be supervised and their placement sites. Chairs work with faculty to adjust ST supervision workload credits if necessary, taking into account the the factors described in the policy above. Any changes to the initial workload credit assignments should be communicated to OFE using a revised ST supervision assignment form. Exceptions to the workload policy must be approved by the the SoE Dean in consultation with the College Dean (if applicable). 

Table 2: Timeline and Process for Assigning Student Teacher Supervision Workload 

Example shown with ST in Fall 2017 or Spring 2018 

Field Student Supervision 

Workload Credit is assigned as follows (see Table 3 for examples): 

1. Lecture hours reflected in WINGS/CIM are directly credited to the faculty of record for a given field course. This credit load is defined by the program and includes workload related to embedded signature assessments. 

1. Lab hours reflected in WINGS/CIM represent the “field time” component and are directly credited to the assigned supervisor for a given field course (this is often the same faculty member as in A, but not always). This credit load is defined by the program, and should align with SoE expectations. 

1. Faculty members that are maintaining and growing PDS (Professional Development School) sites are given an additional workload credit for the field experience. The SoE Dean has final approval in designating PDS workload credit. 

1. Field courses have varying enrollments and workload credit should reflect this. Workload credit is assigned according to the following scale as reflected in the table below: 

1. <10 students = Low volume (Volume Credit = 0) 

1. 10---17 students = Full volume (Volume Credit = 1) 

1. >17 students = High volume1 (Volume Credit = 2) 

1. Occasionally, students in a given Field section are placed at multiple sites and/or at sites far from UWL (see Figure 1). An additional workload credit may be assigned to faculty in these situations based on consultation with the the SoE Dean and the College Dean (if applicable). 

1. Any portfolio/edTPA review responsibilities that may be associated with a Field course are contained within the credits for the course; each program is responsible for articulating whether these responsibilities are associated with the lecture or lab component. For most Field courses, the instructor for the lecture and lab components is the same person so identifying the aligned component is not relevant to workload allocation. 

1. Banking policy for cases where the supervisor is not the course instructor but is a UWL faculty member should follow the banking policy guidelines for Student Teaching above.  

1 High volume credit is awarded in consultation with the SoE Dean and the College Dean (if applicable). 

 Table 3: Example Workload Credit Assignment Configurations for SoE Field Courses 

* STEP Teaching and Learning courses include BIO/CHM/PHY 469, MTH 421, ENG 405, or HIS/POL/GEO/SOC/PSY/ECO 408 

** This is a shortened Field course (7 week/35 hours) and the instructor does not do the supervision. Thus the instructor does not get a volume credit for this assignment. 

 Appendix 1: Field and Student Teaching placement sites  

The UWL Search and Screen Policy and Procedures are a comprehensive resource for all recruitment efforts at UWL. It provides Hiring Authorities and decision makers with necessary information and guidance to meet the requirements of state and federal legislation.  The policies were last updated  11/1/2016.

Excerpted from the UWL S&S Policy and Procedures document:

Positions that Cross Units or Divisions:

If a position includes appointments in two or more units or divisions, collaboration is expected throughout the recruitment process. Collaboration should occur on the position description (including required and preferred characteristics), on the selection of candidates for final interview, and any/all offers of employment.

School of Education Affiliations:

School of Education (SOE) affiliated position recruitment requests need to come jointly from the SOE Dean and the Dean of the home department. Departments are expected to follow the Hiring Procedures Policy for SOE Affiliated Faculty in Teacher Education Programs (approved 3/2017 - Provost and Human Resources) available on the SOE website.

Hiring Policy for Adjunct Field/Student Teaching Supervisors:

Adjunct Field and Student Teaching supervisors are funded and hired by the SOE Dean.  If a department/program is in need of adjunct Field or Student Teaching supervisors, the Program Director or Department Chair should contact the Field Experience Coordinator aligned with their licensure program to describe their needs. The Field Experience Coordinator will work with the prospective adjunct hire to communicate workload, salary, and other responsibilities, including required training for the supervisor, background check requirements, edTPA support activities, etcetera. All adjunct supervisor contracts are negotiated by the SOE Dean or their delegate.

Policy vetting process:

• Approved by 2015-16 Transition Team 4-0-0 on 1/25/2016.
• Introduced to Deans at Deans Council on 1/26/2016.
• Consultation with DPI on 1/26/2016
• Shared at S)EL team 2/8/2016
• DEADLINE for Chair & SOE membership feedback to the Transition Team (with cc: to Dean) by 2/19/2016.
• Revisions by TT - approved 4-0-0, 03/22/2016,  10/05/2016
• Shared with SOE membership on 2/1/2017
• Revisions by HR, Provost, Chair of Faculty Senate, Provost/Vice-Chancellor, Deans, Affirmative Action Director, Human Resources and three Department Chairs appointed by the Senate Executive Committee 11/2016
• Revisions by TT - approved 4-0-0, 3/7/2017
• Final approval Provost 3/24/2017

Advising policies in SOE stem from WI legislative code, which makes stipulations about advising for teacher candidates in educator preparation programs:

PI 34.13 (1) The institution shall ensure that all students have access to and are provided information and resources on student services, including personal, professional and career counseling, career information, tutoring, academic, and job placement assistance.

PI 34.13 (2) The Dean shall ensure that all students upon entry into and throughout the professional educator preparation program will be provided with an advisor and written information describing the educator preparation program leading to licensure.

PI 34.14 (1) The SCD shall create and implement an explicit plan with adequate resources to recruit, admit, and retain a diverse student body.

Thus UWL SOE has the following policies concerning advising:

• Program advisors are assigned by the department or college office when students declare their major/minor.
• Content area co-advisors are assigned by the content department or Dean's office (depending on the program).
• All advisees need to have a program plan for graduation/program completion that is initiated by the program advisor.  This plan is updated and shared with the advisee at each advising appointment (at least once per semester). The plan should be aligned with their Academic Advisement Report in WINGS, and should include any accommodations or exceptions.
• Co-advisors and program advisors should consult with each other to be sure they are working together to build the same advising plan, communicate concerning the progress of their advisee, and discuss any supports the advisee might need. 
• Students identified as being supported by the Senior Multicultural Advisor should be part of a shared database that is accessible to the Senior Multicultural Recruiter/Advisor, the Academic Services Director/Certification Officer, and the SOE Dean. 

Comprehensive Assessment System (CAS)

The CAS is a data system that tracks the progress of teacher candidates as they move through the teacher education program and into their careers.  Data from the CAS is reported to DPI as part of the Continuous Review Process.  Constituents of the School of Education (SOE) determined which data should be included within the system and the SOE assessment coordinator is tasked with gathering, organizing, and analyzing data, as well as preparing reports.  In addition to data on benchmark assessments, SOE collects the following data through surveys. 

• Program Evaluation/Exit Survey: The Program Evaluation Survey provides a comprehensive overview of graduating teacher candidates’ perceptions of their teacher education program, with special regard to the Interstate Teacher Assessment and Support Consortium (InTASC) standards; the Conceptual Framework; portfolio; strengths and areas of concern within field experiences, majors, and minors; Professional Learning Communities (PLCs); and advising.  Student teaching seminar instructors should make completion of this survey a requirement in their courses, with time in class to complete it if possible.

Recipients: All student teachers

Sent: Week 10

Due: Last day of classes

• Field Experience Survey: At the end of each semester, teacher candidates in field placements are asked to complete a survey relating to their perceptions of their most recent field experience.  The current survey is centered on the three edTPA tasks: planning, instruction and assessment. Teacher candidates are asked to rate their level of agreement with statements relating to each tasks (“In my field experience, I was able to practice…”), and data used to determine the level of opportunity teacher candidates have to practice the three tasks while in their field placements.  Field course instructors should make completion of this survey a requirement in their courses, with time in class to complete it if possible.

Sent: Week 11

Due: Last day of classes

• Alumni Study: In October 2010, the Alumni Survey was reinstated and redesigned to assess the perceived effectiveness of the teacher education program in preparing recent graduates for their professional careers.  An Employer Follow-Up Survey was also created to evaluate employers’ opinions regarding the quality of teacher graduates from UWL and their preparedness in the InTASC standards.  The surveys are sent to graduates and employers,   three and five years after graduation. 

Recipients: Graduates 1, 3 and 5 years out of the teacher education program

Sent: Fall semester – Week 5

Due: Survey remains open for two weeks from send date

Leadership Performance Evaluations

Faculty holding leadership roles with associated workload assignments are evaluated annually through surveys administered by the EPC Office.

• DES Chair Evaluation

Recipients: DES faculty
Sent: Spring semester – Mid May
Due: Survey remains open for two weeks from send date

• IPSE Director Evaluation

Recipients: IPSE staff

Sent: Spring semester – mid May

Due: Survey remains open for two weeks from send date

• Program Director Evaluations – (Appendix A)

Recipients: Program membership
Sent: Spring semester – Mid May
Due: Survey remains open for two weeks from send date

Program Specific Surveys - need some language and/or guidelines here?

Currently these surveys are specific to and developed by programs. They are sent using start and end dates determined by programs and/or instructors.  All programs are invited to create/modify program-specific surveys.

• NAEYC - Recipients: ECE Block
• MC-EA Program Evaluation Survey - Recipients: MC-EA student teachers
• PETE Evaluation Survey - Recipients: PETE student teachers
• Special Education Survey - Recipients: Special Education student teachers

Additional Surveys Sent to EPC Partners - cooperating teachers receive at most one survey

• Cooperating Teacher Survey

Recipients: Cooperating teachers

Sent: Spring semester – Week 15

Due: Survey remains open for two weeks from send date

• PDS Teacher Survey

Recipients: Cooperating teachers

Sent: Spring semester – Week 15

Due: Survey remains open for two weeks from send date

Excerpted from the UWL Departmental Bylaws Template: 
(All bylaws are available via the Academic Affairs website under Resources/Academic Departments - Administrative Resources)

The Role of Bylaws for Faculty Personnel Decisions: UW System and UWL policies and procedures govern the primary responsibilities regarding personnel review of faculty. Departmental by-laws serve as a faculty member’s guide regarding specific faculty responsibilities of teaching, scholarship and service, merit evaluation, and faculty personnel review as it relates to retention, promotion, and tenure. The by-laws template outlines the key policies and procedures associated with faculty functions under the guidance of UW System and UWL’s Faculty Senate. The Human Resources Employee Handbook reflects components of faculty employment associated with faculty as state and university employees.

In 2016 Faculty Senate approved the Statement on School of Education Affiliated Faculty Teaching, Scholarship, and Service Expectations, which can be found in Appendix B of the UWL Departmental Bylaws Template.  All departments housing SOE-affiliated faculty should have this Statement included as a part of their departmental bylaws.

The WI Department of Public Instruction (DPI) requires that candidates for admission to a teacher education, administration, or pupil services program successfully pass a criminal background check (CBC) as one criterion for admission (WI PI 34.018(2)). By applying for admission to one of these programs, candidates agree to provide the necessary personal information to UWL in order to initiate their CBC, and to complete their portion of the process prior to the deadline specified in their admission letter. Candidates are responsible for all costs associated with their criminal background check(s). Admission decisions by programs are contingent upon CBC clearance by the UWL Office of Field Experience or designated graduate program representative.

Additional criminal background checks may be required for teacher candidates if the time period between criminal background checks exceeds five years, if the CBC was performed prior to admission, and/or if there are other mandated CBCs that must be met. The Office of Field Experience will record the criminal background checks conducted each semester.