Also called "continuing funds" or "hard money." These funds are in budget lines that, unless altered, continue from year to year. Put another way, permanent money has a "line" in the university's operating budget; hence faculty positions are sometimes referred to as "lines." The leading examples of permanent money are tenure-track faculty positions, full-time staff positions, multifill lines, and departmental operations and maintenance accounts. A department's permanent funds increase upon occasion, such as when the faculty get salary increases or promotions, or when the department receives permission and funding for an additional permanent faculty line. A department's permanent funds decrease when there is reallocation from one unit to another, or when proration forces a permanent reduction in the university budget from one fiscal year to the next.

Also called "non-continuing funds," "soft money," or "one-time money." Sources of temporary money vary, but the most common are salary savings,extramural grant money, indirect cost money, or one-time allocations from the Provost Office or other university offices. Generally speaking, temporary money is used to hire extra graduate teaching assistants and instructors, and it also can be used for equipment purchases, faculty travel, and other needs that require only a one-time expenditure of funds. Temporary money held in departments is generally held in reserve accounts.

The Auburn University Foundation manages the university's endowments, and the "spendable" funds (that is, the "distribution" or interest accrued each year from the endowm a one million dollar endowment generates $50,000 spendable dollars per year).ent's principal) appear to us in accounts numbered 6-XXXXX. In general, the distribution on endowments is 5% per year (that is, most endowments are restricted funds but some are unrestricted funds).

Faculty may enter into all sorts of research, outreach, or instruction contracts through the Office of Sponsored Programs. Such contracts can include money for faculty salary, hiring of assistants, equipments, and so forth. Such contracts also can generate indirect cost money. All or practically all of the money generated from contracts is temporary money.

Faculty may enter into all sorts of research, outreach, or instruction contracts through the Office of Sponsored Programs. The university charges indirect costs on these contracts at varying rates, depending on the nature of the activity. For example, a $100,000 contract for off-campus sponsored research would have an indirect cost rate of 26%, making the total contract $126,000. The $26,000 in indirect cost money is split 50% for AU General Fund, 10% for AU VP for Research, 20% for college and 20% for department. At times the department or the college will allow the investigator to retain use of some or all of the indirect cost money. It is sometimes possible to waive indirect costs, or at least waive the department and college share of indirect costs, which either makes the contract less expensive for the sponsor or gives the investigator some additional money to spend on the project. However, waiving of indirect costs should be pursued as a last resort, not a first idea, in the negotiating of contracts with sponsors. The basic university policy is to recover full indirect costs on all sponsored activities, and the college will not (and departments should not) easily waivetheir shares of indirect costs.

Funds that may only be used for certain purposes. The most common types are endowment money and extramural grant money. The university has a number of sometimes complicated rules governing restricted funds, but the basic rule rests on common sense: the funds must be used for the purpose for which they were intended. Hence you cannot draw on a National Endowment for the Arts grant account for sculpture to instead fund brain research in psychology, and you cannot draw on an endowment for undergraduate scholarships in English to instead fund conference travel for philosophy faculty.

Current operating funds from the general funds of the university (chiefly tuition revenues and state appropriations) are contained in accounts numbered 2-XXXXX and are said to be unrestricted funds. These funds can be spent on anything (faculty and staff positions, equipment, travel, office expenses, etc.) not specifically disallowed by university or state policy -- an example of unacceptable expenditures would be holiday gifts for faculty.

An account with a permanent allocation that can be used to hire a number of different graduate teaching assistants or instructors. Typically, there is only enough permanent money in a multifill line to cover part of a department's instructional needs, and departments apply to the college and the Provost each year for additional temporary money to meet needs beyond the permanent multifill line.

Each department has a permanent allocation for operations and maintenance. Typically these funds are used to pay telephone costs, copier costs, and other office expenses. They can also be used to support faculty travel, to pay for searches for new faculty, and to buy equipment, among other things. Departmental maintenance and operations budgets are woefully inadequate, and on average they provide only 50% of the money spent by departments each year; the remainde of the funds come from temporary money.

Salary savings is unspent or unallocated money from permanent faculty and staff lines. There are different types of salary savings that accrue in different ways:

1. The college or department acquires permanent salary savings when a faculty member retires or leaves the university and a lower-paid faculty member is selected to replace her. For example, a full professor retires with a salary of $70,000, and a beginning assistant professor is hired to replace him at a salary of $40.000. The $30,000 in permanent money from this salary line that remains unallocated can be retained by the department to generate temporary money, can be used to create and fund a new permanent position, can be taken back into the dean's office for allocation to other departments, or, in some cases, can be taken back into the provost's office for allocation or budget reduction.
   The current policy on permanent salary savings is that departments will generally receive permission from the dean's office to fill vacated positions at the entry level, and the Dean will retain any permanent salary savings for potential reallocation.
2. Temporary salary savings are created when, for one reason or another, the funds in a permanent line are not spent during a fiscal year. For example,a faculty member leaves the department and his/her position remains unfilled for the year, either because it is too late to search for a permanent replacement or because permission is not granted for a search. If the faculty member's salary was $40,000, the department thus has $40,000 in temporary salary saving for that year (temporary because the department intends to hire a permanent replacement as soon as possible). Typically such money is spent on temporary instructors or graduate teaching assistants, or it can be moved into the department's reserve account for later use. Temporary salary savings may also be taken back into the dean's office or provost's office for allocation or budget reduction, such as proration payback.
3. Another example of temporary salary savings is a faculty member who is paid partly through extramural grant money or who takes unpaid leave. If a professor with a salary of $40,000 has 25% of her salary paid by an outside funding agency, this would generate $10,000 in temporary salary savings (temporary because the grant will end at some point and the department will resume paying the faculty member's full salary). Or, if a faculty member making $40,000 takes a semester of unpaid leave, the department would have approximately $20,000 in salary savings (temporary because the faculty member will be back on full salary the next year).

Such accounts are maintained both in departments and in the college. Reserve accounts can be used either to hold permanent money or temporary money, but such accounts are most commonly used to consolidate surplus temporary funds. Units are expected to maintain a reserve of between 0.5% and 1% of their total permanent budget. Some units have considerably greater reserves than this, some less. Reserve monies can be used for many purposes. At times reserves are used to deal with university real location or proration.

According to the state constitution, the government of Alabama cannot operate at a deficit. Each May or June, the state legislature appropriates money for the coming fiscal year, and in part its appropriations are based on projections of tax revenue available. Since state funding is highly dependent on sales tax revenues, which fluctuate considerably with shifts in the economy, every few years the sales tax revenues fail to reach the levels required to cover the amounts appropriated by the legislature for that fiscal year. The solution then applied is "proration," which is an after-the-fact reduction in appropriations in every area of government, including education. In a typical example, it becomes apparent around January or February that tax revenues will not be sufficient to cover appropriations for the year, and the governor and legislature then agree upon a proration figure (for example, 5%) and announce that governmental units will have to reduce their budgets by that percentage. This can involve either eliminating expenses for the remaining months of the fiscal year (for example, freezing travel funding or laying off staff on temporary money) or drawing upon reserves accumulated during previous years and sending money back to the state.

Advertising Format for Provost Units

The following guide is to be utilized when preparing vacancy postings to appear in printed or online media for tenured and tenure-track faculty, visitin faculty, and non-tenure track faculty positions as well as for administrative positions in those units reporting to the Provost. It is understood that for certain venues, a very condensed posting may be prepared, while for others the posting may be expanded. The style in which the posting is written, font size and type of print utilized, and information concerning the department, the college/school, the university, or the community are at the discretion of the college/school dean or appropriated vice president.

Heading:
This would include the discipline in which the vacancy exists and the position title.

Introduction:
Sample: The Department of Art at Auburn University, located in Auburn, Alabama, invites applications for a tenure-track position as an Assistant Professor in Graphic Design to begin Fall Semester 20xx.

If the posting is for a visiting faculty or other temporary appointment, the term of the appointment should be included. If an option exists to extend the term of the original appointment beyond what is stated in the posting, that information should also be included.

The following statement must be included in all postings:

Women and Ethnic Minorities are Encouraged to Apply.

To emphasize Auburn's commitment to diversity, it is suggested that this statement be included in the introductory portion of the posting. The statement may be put in bold type, capital letters, or emphasized in some other manner at the discretion of the dean or appropriate vice president.

Responsibilities:
This could include specific course(s) to be taught, course load, research expectations, outreach activities, advising, departmental service, etcetera.

Requirements/Qualifications:
All postings must include a statement of minimal education and experience requirements. The terminal degree is the minimum educational requirement for tenured and tenure-track faculty positions. If a doctorate is the terminal degree but ABDs will be considered, the posting must contain a statement to that effect. The acceptable discipline(s) in which the terminal degree is held must be included in the posting. If only candidates with specific types of research and/or instructional experience will be considered, that must be stated in the posting. Any desirable/preferred qualifications which will be considered in the applicant review process must be stated in the posting.

When determining the minimum requirements to be included in recruitment materials, please remember that all applicants who meet those minimum requirements must be considered for the position and any applicants who do not meet all the minimum requirements must be eliminated from consideration for the position. Desired/preferred qualifications cannot be used to eliminate applicants from further consideration during the initial review process. Desired/preferred qualifications can be used to differentiate between otherwise equally qualified applicants in selecting applicants for interview and in choosing the successful candidate. Qualifications not indicated in the posting cannot be used to eliminate an applicant, nor can such qualifications be used to enhance an applicant's consideration.

A department should have a clear view of its needs before recruitment materials are prepared. The advertisement should clearly state those needs. The stated qualifications should not be so broad that few specifics are provided on which to base selection or elimination of applicants nor so restrictive that few would apply or qualify.

Application Process:
This would include documents to be submitted in the application packet, which may include a cover memo, curriculum vita, transcripts, letters of reference, and any other appropriate materials as determined by the search committee. The address to which applications should be submitted and the date review of applications will begin should be indicated. A minimum of six weeks from the date the posting appears in all venues should provide sufficient time for interested applicants to respond.

While a closing date for receipt of applications may be included, this is not advised. A statement that review of applications will continue until a successful candidate has been identified may be more beneficial to the recruiting unit; however, such a statement is not required.

For More Information:
You may want to include a phone number, a FAX number, an email address, and/or a web site.

Closing:
The following statement must be included:

Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer

Recruitment of Postdoctoral and other Research Staff Positions

It is recognized that research contracts or grants may be awarded on short notice, precluding lengthy searches for postdoctoral and other staff positions, particularly when the duration of the contract may be for only one to two years.

Postdoctoral Positions
Departments or research units which may require personnel for such postdoctoral positions may create a pool of qualified candidates for these anticipated positions. A department or research unit wishing to establish such a pool must receive written approval from the dean to initiate recruitment. The request/approval must be renewed annually. At least once each year, the department or research unit must advertise that from time to time postdoctoral positions become available under a variety of research grants and contracts. A college may choose to utilize one posting for all departments and research units within the college. The specializations for which postdoctoral positions are anticipated must be included in the advertisement.

Both online and printed media may be utilized to advertise anticipated positions. These may include the college's web page as well as web pages for professional journals and/or organizations. To address the university's commitment to affirmative action and equal employment opportunity, it is suggested that notices be mailed to those universities graduating high numbers of minorities and to historically black colleges and universities, with notices to both being limited to those institutions with departments similar to the departments at Auburn which anticipate postdoctoral positions. The information should also be included in a block ad for faculty positions at Auburn University to be placed annually in Black Issues in Higher Education and the Affirmative Action Register.

When a postdoc has been identified as an appropriate match for a specific contract or grant, the department head must submit a memorandum through the dean to the provost, indicating the research to be conducted and how the postdoc is expected to contribute to that research. The contract or grant on which the postdoc will be working must be identified, including the date the contract or grant was awarded and the duration of the contract or grant. The postdoc's vita and graduate transcripts must be attached to the memo.

The above process applies only to postdoctoral positions funded with contract or grant money and only in those cases where there is insufficient time to conduct a normal search process and complete the research in the time allotted by the contract or grant. In all other cases, an HR100 and AA/EEO paperwork is required.

If a postdoc approached a department with his/.her own funding, no advertisement is required. The department head must submit a memorandum through the dean to the provost, indicating the research to be conducted and the AU faculty with whom the postdoc will work. The source of funding must be identified as well as the duration of the requested appointment. The postdoc's vita and graduate transcripts must be attached to the memo.

Staff Positions
A college which anticipates a need for research assistant or associate positions in connection with contract or grant activity should contact Human Resources to create a multifilled position. When a contract or grant provides funding for such a research assistant or associate, an advertisement can than be posted on the university's employment web page. A college anticipating such positions may also include this information in its generic advertisement for postdoctoral positions, with the understanding that a person applying for a research assistant or associate position through that source would be placed in a pool at Human Resources to be included in a review of allocations for specific positions as they become available and are posted.

7/30/01

Academic and Faculty Oversight Issues

1. Maintain original transcripts of all teaching personnel (and of research personnel when degree qualifications exist).
2. Complete an annual review of each faculty member before May 31. Topics ofdiscussion include evaluation of performance in teaching, research and service; future development; and collegiality. Refer to chapters 3 and 4 of the Faculty Handbook for relevant information. A written report of the conference, signed by the faculty member is also necessary. Also, follow university procedures for a "third year review" of pertinent faculty.
3. Ensure that faculty follow final examination regulations as stated in the Tiger Cub and in the Faculty Handbook. When there are sound reasons for moving a final exam, be sure the faculty member seeks approval through the proper channels. Rescheduling a final requires approval of the head/chair, dean (i.e., associate dean for academic affairs), and the provost (i.e., assistant provost).
4. Remind faculty not to administer tests the last three days of the term nor on Reading (Dead) Day.
5. Send to the associate dean for academic affairs a justification of any under-enrolled course in the department on or before the first day of class each semester. Enrollment minima are:
   • 15 students in 1000-2000 lower level courses
   • 12 students in 3000-6000 upper level courses
   • 8 students in 7000 master's level courses
   • 5 students in 8000 doctoral level courses.
   These values are based on the 1996 policy on minimum class size.
6. Remind faculty to submit final course grades on time, as stipulated by the Registrar. (It is prudent not to approve GTAs, instructors, or faculty to leave town without submitting final grades -- long distance submission of grades seems not to to work out well.)
7. Retain the course grade book ( and attendance record) when instructors, visiting faculty and departing faculty leave the department. Retroactive requests and grade revisions are not uncommon and heads/chairs may need to consult such records.
8. Remember that Incomplete grades (IN) must be cleared by the student and the grade revision submitted by the instructor within six months or less. After that, the incomplete is changed to an F grade.

Promotion and Tenure Issues

The head/chair and the candidate for promotion and tenure should follow explicitly the outlined procedures in Chapter 3 of the Faculty Handbook.

Consult the College's Schedule for Promotion and Tenure Review. Such a schedule is circulated each spring.

In soliciting external letters of assessment, the head/chair must use the Liberal Arts standard letter. Additionally, ask the reviewer to state for how long and in what capacity he/she has known the candidate, if at all.

Common omissions in preparing the dossier include

1. lack of peer evaluations for the requisite three-year period;
2. lack of head's/chair's statement describing the level of research support afforded the candidate, and
3. omission of grade distributions per course evaluation included in the dossier.

Heads/chairs should be mindful to include all requirements specified in the Faculty Handbook.

Dear___________:

Early in Fall Semester 20xx, the Department of __________ at Auburn University will be considering ___[name of faculty member]___ for promotion to the rank of Professor. I am writing you to ask whether you would be willing to help in the evaluation of Professor ___[name of faculty member]_'s__ qualifications for promotion.

According to the Auburn University Faculty Handbook, promotion to the rank of Professor requires "professional peer-recognition of the individual as an authority in his or her field of specialization." A candidate "must be recognized by associates as a capable teacher, scholar or artist, or extension specialist;" and "it is therefore expected that peers within and outside the University will attest to the candidate's high professional standing." The Faculty Handbook adds: "For this rank it is essential that the candidate should have demonstrated a marked degree of scholarship appropriate to his or her assignment through work, typically publication or creative endeavor, subjected to peer review. By means of such activity, a candidate for the University's highest academic rank should have a respected national reputation."

I am enclosing Professor ___[name's]___ curriculum vitae, and I would be happy to send along copies of any of [his/her] published work. If you would like additional information or materials, please let me know.

You are in a position to offer an unbiased, analytical evaluation of Professor ___[name's]___ academic credentials and relative standing in [his/her] field of specialization, and so I would be particularly grateful for a letter of evaluation from you. Your letter will remain confidential to the extent permitted by law and will be used by authorized faculty and administrators involved in the promotion process.

I hope that you will agree to help with this matter. If you do agree, I will need to have your letter of evaluation by __[date]__; it should be sent to me at the above address. Since I must complete arrangements for outside references fairly soon, I will be following up on this letter with a phone call to get your response and, if you like, to make arrangements to send you copies of Professor __[name's]___publications. In the meantime, if you have any questions, please call [phone number].

Sincerely,

(revised 5/30/94, 4/30/01)

Professional Improvement Leave (PIL)s

The most important thing is to begin discussing and arranging a leave at least a semester in advance of the proposed start date -- this is the minimum required time for leave approved by the provost. Starting a year in advance is even better, as there is then plenty of time to correct problems that frequently arise, especially with sponsored leaves. Furthermore, it is critical to have sufficient time to recruit replacement instructors if needed -- and they will be needed in many cases. If a full-time instructor is to be hired, time will be needed to conduct a suitable search; part-time instructors to teach a course or two can be hired without a large-scale search.

Leaves can be categorized and handled as follows:

Departmental "Leave"
When a faculty member receives a reduced course assignment (conmpared to departmental norms) or no course assignment for a semester, we tend to say that she is "onleave." It might be more techncially accurate to say that she is on a 100% research/creative work assignment for that semester, since it is only our viewpoint that makes a teaching assignment a "load" and research assignment a "leave." Departmental leave of this sort (internal reassignment of faculty duties) accounts for the vast majority of leave taken in the CLA and across campus. If the following conditions are met, such leaves normally are handled as departmental matters and need not involve the Dean or Provost.

1. The faculty member's instructional responsibilities are covered by departmental teaching rotation or by using exisiting departmental funds to hire instructors (in some instances departments may consult with the college about possible partial funding for instructional replacement).
2. the faculty member does not receive salary from any outside academic employer or funding agency during the period of the leave.
3. The faculty member maintains a degree of contact with the department andcarries out the agreed upon research/creative work/outreach program during the semester.

Sponsored Leave
A faculty member receives external salary funding for a semester or more or research/creative work/instruction to be undertaken either at AU or another institution. Such cases require the involvement of the Dean, the Provost, and various campus offices, and departments should allow plenty of time for arrangements to be made. The following rules apply:

1. If a faculty member receives a salary grant for research/creative work, he must apply for a Professional Improvement Leave Without Pay (LWOP) or for a Professional Improvement Leave With Partial Pay (LWPP).
2. If a faculty member receives an appointment as a visiting professor at another institution, she must apply for LWOP or LWPP.
3. External salary and benefits funding will be channeled through the Office of Sponsored Programs (OSP) unless the rules of rhe sponsoring institution forbid it.
4. Departments must demonstrate that the faculty member's instructional responsibilities will be covered, either through departmental rotations or by hiring instructors. Departments may consult with the college about replacement funding.
5. Sponsored LWOP or LWPP often involve costs to departments in the form of benefits paid or indirect costs waived or paid from department/college. The basic college policy is to encourage faculty to seek sponsored leaves and to try to provide funding packages that will permit them to take these opportunities without financial sacrifice.
6. In some cases, funding agencies require departmental/college/Provost approvals and financial commitments before faculty members can even submit proposals.

Competitive Professional Improvement Leave (CPIL)
The rules governing CPIL are set out fully in the Faculty Handbook. During fall semester, the Provost issues a university -wide call for applications for CPIL. Applications are submitted, reviewed by a committee, and a limited number of of applications are approved. The major differences between CPIL and other types of AU leave applications are that the Provost provides up to $5,000 in funding to the department to hire replacement instructors, and that faculty are only eligible to receive CPIL once during every five years of service. Faculty members can apply for a CPIL for either a semester's leave with full pay or a year's leave with half-pay. Faculty who have had long terms of service without leave can apply for multi-year CPILs, but these cases are rare. In practice, CPILs have become exceedingly difficult to get (only a handful are funded for the entire university). Adherence to the following guidelines will prevent problems and disappointments:

1. Eligible faculty who have departmental aproval for a leave should apply, because there is a chance for the department to get up to $5,000 replacement funding, and there is no penality associated with being turned down for CPIL.
2. Faculty and departments should not, however, build their leave plans around applications for CPIL -- the odds are bettern than 10-1 against approval.
3. CPIL applications should be negotiated, prepared, and signed well in advance of the deadline. Packets should include the completed PIL form, a short memo that describes the activities to be undertaken while on leave and demonstrates the benefit that will accrue to the university, and a short vita. The whole packet should not exceed five pages, including the PIL form.
4. Heads and chairs should be sure that they understand the PIL form and fill in all relevant blanks. The Associate Dean for Research can answer questions. It is especially important that the plan for replacement instruction be stated clearly on the PIL form.

Note that the College of Liberal Arts also has Competitive Professional Leave Grants.

Professional Improvement Leave With Pay (LWP), Professional Improvement Leave With Partial Pay (LWPP), and Professional Improvement Leave Without Pay (LWOP)
Many uses and procedures for these types of leaves are discusssed above. Faculty with external funding can apply fairly frequently and successfully for LWPP and LWOP, as long as the department and/or college can fund replacement instruction and any partial salary required. The rules for both LWP and LWOP are set out fully in the Faculty Handbook. Other rules and guidelines include:

1. Applications for "pure" LWP are straightforward. The application package should be the same as the one outlined under CPIL . Generally speaking, if the applicant is eligible, if the depatment and college approve, and if there is a clear and funded plan for replacement instruction, the application for LWP will be approved by the Provost within a month of submission, often less. Unsuccessful applicants for CPIL can immediately apply for and usually be granted a LWP.
2. In most cases, however, there is no compelling reason to apply for LWP, because approval does nothing except formalize the fact that a faculty member will not be teaching courses in a given semester. Faculty in these cases are, for all practical purposes, on a 100% research/creative work assignent, which is defined above as "departmental leave." If a faculty member intends to travel to some distant and exotic place where he will lose all contact with his department, then it is better to let the Provost know by applying for LWP. Otherwise, cases of de facto departmental leave should be handled internally.
3. Just a reminder: if a faculty member ever does travel to some exotic and foreign place and plans to claim expenses, he must file a Request for Authority to Travel at least 3-4 weeks in advance of the trip, and this RAT must be approved by the President.
4. Whenever a faculty member intends to forgo any part of her AU salary, she must file an application for LWOP or LWPP. "Pure" LWOP is straightwforward and covered in the Faculty Handbook. The difficult cases are those that involve sponsored leave in which a faculty member's salary is replaced partly or entirely by funding from an outside source. These cases can take months to arrange through the OSP, and departments should begin disucssion and action on such LWOP or LWPP cases well in advance of the proposed start of the leave.
5. Faculty members who have LWOP or LWPP are responsible for dealing with any tax, benefit, or other financial consequences caused by their leave. Payroll and Benefits along with the OSP are more than willing to explain the options and help arrange matters.
6. Note that sponsored research, such as that conducted under the NSF or other agencies, does not typically involve leave of any sort. Sponsored research proposals are channeled through OSP in advance, and successful proposals usually result in a promotion of a faculty member's time being "bought out" over several years. The faculty member normally continues to reside at AU, although there may be extended trips to research sites, and her instruction/outreach.service duties continue as usual but at reduced percentage levels. Faculty conducting sponsored research are employed fully by AU, but the funding source for at least part of their salary changes (i.e., they are paid from different accounts set up through OSP).

Contacts
The main contacts for discussing leave matters are the Associate Dean for Research, the Assistant to the Dean, the Executive Assistant to the Provost, and the Office of Sponsored Programs. In some instances, the Dean may become directly involved in leave arrangements.

Using Annual Leave Before Stepping Down

Leave policies regarding annual leave appear in Chapter 8 of the Faculty Handbook.

Full-time faculty and heads/chairs on 12-month appointments are compensated for accrued annual leave at the time of separation from University employment to a maximum of one additional month's compensation.

Persons converting from 12-month to 9-month appointments are not permitted to carry forward any accrued annual leave. Heads/chairs are hereby notified to use up any annual leave during the 3 months prior to their 9-month conversion.

(Only in rare cases would the college approve a maximum of one month to be reimbursed for unused annual leave. In such rare cases, funds should be departmental, not college.)

RAT: Request for Authority to Travel,
Effective 08/16/2006

The following is the text of a memo from Jenny Pate, Executive Assistant to the Provost, to all the deans and other administrators at AU.

• RAT-50 MUST be approved prior to travel. "After the fact" RAT-50 will be rejected and reimbursement of expenses denied.
• RAT-50 MUST be submitted at least one month prior to departure date. RAT-50s submitted less than one month prior to departure will have to have a memo from the Vice President, Dean, or Director containing justification for the Provost to authorize an exception to AU policy.
• RAT-50 should describe the purpose of the trip, the benefit of the trip in terms of not only the traveler, but the value of such travel to the department, college, and/or the university. This can be done on the form itself, but if more room is needed, a separate memo may be used.
• RAT-50 MUST be approved prior to any commitment of university funds for travel expenses outside of the 50 states including airfare, registrations for conferences, visas, inoculations, etc. This will be enforced.
• RAT-50 MUST be submitted at the same time when multiple AU faculty, students or administrators are attending the same event. A cover memo from the VP, Dean, or Director justifying the need for multiple travelers will be required.
• RAT-50 may be signed only by the actual Department Head or Deans. Delegated signatures will not be accepted.
• RAT-50 must show source of funding. If AU account, sufficient funds must exist in the funding account. If travel is funded outside AU, the name of the sponsoring agency must be provided where indicated on the form.
• RAT-50 must show source of funding for AU EMAP Ins. fee $40 - Dept FOAP DEBIT Acct.
• RAT-50 must be signed for AUTHORIZATION FOR THE RELEASE OF INFORMATION UNDER THE PRIVACY ACT.
• For emergency assistance purposes a RAT-50 must be completed when traveling to any location outside the 50 US States (including US territories such as: Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands, Guam, etc.). Failure to complete a RAT-50 will result in the loss of coverage for 24/7 emergency assistance including medical evacuation, repatriation of remains, etc.
• Travel to countries for which there is a US DOS travel warningis subject to review by the Provost. Due to AU liability insurance requirements, all travelers to such locations will be required to sign an informed consent and liability waiver. Student travel to countries for which there is a US DOS travel warning is subject to review by the Office of International Education and the Office of the Provost.
• Once submitted, all changes to any travel plans should be sent by memo or email to the Office of the Provost in a timely manner to avoid any added insurance charges. Cancellations after the fact will result in loss of any premium paid, no refunds.
• Only the new RAT-50 form will be processed by the Office of the Provost after Aubust 16, 2006. Please destroy any old copies of the RAIT. If you have bookmarked the link to the old RAIT pleasechange the URL to the new RAT-50 pdf file at: http://auburn.edu/academic/international/rat50/rat50_2006a1.pdf. (RAT-50 form is a pdf file that is form fillable and can be printed as well as saved on your computer.)

Concurrent Employment

Consult Chapter 7 of the Faculty Handbook regarding University policy for full-time faculty who wish to teach one course at another institution.

The other institution must prepare a memo of explanation and request to hire the Auburn faculty member for one course. Typically, that provost/high-ranking official writes the Auburn Provost, with approval routing through the department head/chair and dean. The memo should specify all particulars with regard to course credit, meeting time, salary arrangement, and such. The department head/chair should attach the completed UPO 10 form to the memo before routing to the dean and provost.

When AUM is the other institution, the formal external memo can be replaced with a brief memo of explanation form the head/chair.

Final Examination Policy: A Reminder

(Memo from Linda Glaze, Assistant Provost, Student Affairs, 11/13/00)

Please remind faculty and graduate teaching assistants that unless formal arrangements are made between instructor and department head, a final examination is to be given in all undergraduate courses on the day and at the time scheduled by the registrar. Rescheduling a final examination for a class requires permission from the department head, dean and provost.

University policy on final examinations is found in the University Bulletin and the Faculty Handbook: for courses at the 6000 level and below, a final examination, given at the officially scheduled time, is expected. Exceptions are allowed as follows: A faculty member may, with the approval of the department head, substitute "other forms of evaluation appropriate to the objectives of the course" for the prescribed final examination "in unusual circumstances." In this case, the department head approves the action and informs the dean and provost. Rescheduling a final for a class requires approval from department head, dean and provost. Rescheduled exams must not interfere with students' scheduled academic activities, and all students must be accommodated.

In rare cases, it may be necessary to reschedule a final examination for an individual student. Again, the student must have permission from his or her dean in order to reschedule a final examination. Students with three or more examinations in a row or on the same day may appeal to their deans for such permission; in such cases, if necessary, the student's dean will assist the student in rescheduling.

Tests should not be given during the last three days of classes, and the day between the end of classes and the first day of final examinations (Dead Day) is set aside for study; it is not to be used as another test day.

Finally, it is a violation of FERPA (the Federal Educational Rights and Privacy Act) to post publicly grades in examinations or in courses using the students' names or social security numbers. (See the Bulletin for details). The Faculty Handbook recommends that "if a faculty member wishes to post grades, he or she must do so in such a manner so that no student can be personally identified by others" (4:6D).

Faculty Reminders

Rebekah Pindzola, Interim Dean

Please be cognizant of your faculty responsibilities which include attention to the following items.

1. Provide all students with a written course syllabus or post it in ###. The Faculty Handbook delineates the necessary components. Additional recommended components are to state that:
   • students are responsible for meeting course pre-requisites;
   • the Program for Students with Disabilities is available in HC1244;
   • academic dishonesty is an offense that will be reported;
   • state a reasonable deadline (e.g., 5 or 10 days) for students to turn in medical excuses for missed exams such that make-ups can be scheduled in a timely fashion (say, within 10 days).
2. Post office hours, as required by the Faculty Handbook. The role of thumb is a minimum of three hours a week.
3. Arrange all course such that students receive evaluative feedback prior to midterm. (A midterm exam is not mandated but students deserve some sort of evaluation prior to the deadline for dropping courses.)
4. Students may not drop a course after midterm. When extenuating circumstances exist and there is sufficient documentation of these circumstances, the dean's office will determine if an exception to university policy should be made.
   • As a faculty member, do not indicate to a student that he/she may drop your course after midterm -- that determination is made only in the dean's office.
   • Do not agree to assign a WP (withdraw passing) if that is not the case. When a student is allowed to drop after midterm, the course instructor is called upon to indicate the passing/failing status of the student as of the effective date of the drop. The dean's office has discretionary power to allow a drop without academic penalty after midterm when circumstances dictate.
5. While the taking of daily class attendance is not a university requirement, faculty should adopt some method of monitoring attendance, even if on selected days.
   It is crucial to verify the class roll distributed by the Registrar prior to midterm. Unless notation is made to the contrary, the instructor's signature on this roster testifies that all students listed are attending.
   The Registrar contacts students who are not attending, based on this signed roster. This is the opportune time for students to drop classes they "forgot" to drop.
   It is quite problematic when a student requests to drop a class near the end of the semester by claiming they "never attended" and the instructor --at the urging of the student --writes a note to that effect in direct contradiction to their earlier signed verification of the class roster.
   When students are allowed to drop a course retroactively, the last day of attendance must be accurate as it carries financial consequences. It is inappropriate to take the student's word that "they never attended." By spot checking attendance and treating class roster verification seriously, these problems can be curtailed.
6. Do not reschedule final exams without permission to do so from the department head/chair, dean, and provost. Also, tests should not be given during the last three class days of an academic term nor on Reading (Dead ) Day.

Faculty Suggestions on How to Prevent/Discourage Cheating During Exams

based on information from the Academic Honesty Committee

• On test day use assigned seats. Rearrange seat assignments for each test. This prevents prearranged "sharing" by students.
• If room permits, spread the students out.
• Insist that students be still and quiet when exams are being passed out. This is a prime time for cheating to occur.
• When proctoring an exam, circulate around the rom. Never do own desk work.
• Instruct entire class to keep their eyes on their own paper. Discourage looking around the room. (Never insinuate that one particular person was looking around.cheating; always announce reminders to the entire class.)
• Never walk out of the classroom during an exam, not even for a minute.
• If cheating from another paper is suspected notice which students are in neighboring seats for later test comparisons.
• Never snatch away a student's exam. Allow student to finish.
• Use different versions of the same exam, if possible. This is especially useful in large classes. Announce that different exams are being used to further discourage cheating.
• Change tests and term paper topics often. This renders illicit "test files" obsolete.

What to do if you suspect a student has cheated: (see Tiger Cub)

• Tell the student that you "have some concern about their test" and set up an office appointment. Do not discuss the matter in the classroom or in the hallway. Respect the privacy of the matter.
• Invite an impartial faculty member to attend the appointment as a witness.
• Talk to the student about what you think is the concern. Allow the student to respond.
• Decide whether or not to pursue the honesty case based on the evidence and the student's response. Do not allow the student to talk you out of pursuing the case. Do not bargain anything.
• If the student does not honor the appointment, call him or her. However, proceed with the official paperwork immediately. (Do not allow the student to stall the proceedings.)
• If proceeding with the case, write a detailed letter to the Provost. Supply a copy to the department head.
• Meanwhile, do not talk to the student or the student's parents about the matter. If pressed, simply respond that "it has gone to the Committee."
• The Committee handles these cases in one of two ways: via automatic review or a hearing requested by the student.
• Do not assign any grade on the suspected exam: hold it "in question" until a decision is made on the Academic Honesty case.

Sexual Harassment Policy

Excerpts from the University's policy on Harassment and Discrimination, see TigerCub for complete policy.

Sexual Harassment in academic settings and in the employment arena were student are involved is defined as unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal, graphic, or physical conduct of a sexual nature when:

1. Submission to such conduct may be explicitly or implicitly a term or condition of a student's academic success or employment; or
2. Submission to or rejection of such conduct may be used as the basis for employment or academic decision affecting the student and the student's total educational and/or work experience; or
3. Such conduct has the purpose or effect of substantially interfering with a student's employment or academic performance or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive work or educational environment.

Consensual Relations:
The following is a brief list of the potential pitfalls of relationships between students and faculty.

• The relationships often involve one person exerting power over another.
• Seduction of a much younger person, rather than consent, may be involved.
• Conflict of interest issues often arise when the teacher has the ability to:
  • determine grades.
  • give or refuse recommendations.
  • hire or fire the student.
  • substantively influence colleagues for or against the student.
  • withhold credit for a project.
• The potential for abuse and exploitation is high because of unequal power.
• The potential for retaliation is strong when a relationship ends.
• Other people may be affected and claim favoritism.