Texas Tech University is in compliance with Comprehensive Standard 3.7.3.

Texas Tech University expects faculty to be familiar with current trends in their discipline. There is an unwritten assumption that faculty with earned doctorates and who are actively engaged in research will be motivated to stay current with developments in their discipline through their own research and class preparation efforts. Nevertheless, the university and its subunits provide support for professional development in a variety of ways.

Faculty Development Leaves. The State of Texas does not support a program of sabbatical leaves for university faculty. However, legislation does provide for the university to fund a faculty development leave program that allows faculty to apply for a competitive one-semester leave at full salary or a two-semester leave at half salary. This program is described in O.P. 32.29: Faculty Development Leaves (http://www.depts.ttu.edu/opmanual/OP32.29.pdf). Currently, the university provides funding for 32 leaves annually. A faculty member who wishes to be awarded a faculty development leave must submit an application with a detailed proposal of the activity to be undertaken during the leave period. The faculty member’s direct supervisors (department chair and dean) must sign the application form. The proposal may be for research, retraining, or any other activity that enhances the applicant’s professional capabilities or enhances his or her teaching, research, or service capabilities.

Leaves of Absence. The university allows faculty to apply for up to a one-year leave of absence without pay, with the possibility of a one-year renewal. Such leaves are solicited through the applicant’s immediate superior and must be approved by the dean and provost. (O.P. 32.15: Faculty Leaves of Absence http://www.depts.ttu.edu/opmanual/OP32.15.pdf)

Attendance at Professional Meetings. Most academic departments set aside funds to cover all or part of travel expenses and registration costs for faculty to attend professional meetings. Individual departments determine what part of their annual maintenance and operation budget to allocate for travel and establish their own priorities for awarding travel funds. In general, to receive funding a faculty member must be an active participant in the meeting, presenting a scholarly paper, participating in a panel discussion, chairing a session, serving on a committee, or engaging in other formal activities of the sponsoring organization. Occasionally, if it is in the interest of the university, travel funding may be awarded for attendance at workshops or short courses that are relevant to the areas in which a faculty member is teaching or conducting research. The Graduate School and the Office of the Provost may also provide funds for travel, as they are available and to the extent that such travel enhances the mission of the university.  

The State of Texas places certain restrictions on the use of state appropriated funds for foreign travel (for purposes of state agencies, travel to Mexico and Canada is considered as domestic travel). However, the university may pay for foreign travel from locally-generated funds if the travel is deemed to be within the mission of the institution.  

Some departments provide funding for graduate students, including Graduate Assistants and Graduate Part-Time Instructors, to travel to present scholarly papers or otherwise participate in professional meetings. Funding may also be provided for such travel by the Graduate School and the Office of the Provost. The decision to allocate funding from state appropriated funds for student travel is largely left to the discretion of individual departments. In some cases endowment or other discretionary funds may be allocated for student travel.

In addition to the opportunities to engage in off campus development activities, Texas Tech University provides opportunities for faculty professional development on campus.  

The Teaching and Learning Technology Center provides personal training, workshops, panels and discussion groups, and other opportunities for faculty to improve their teaching. One principal focus of the TLTC is on utilization of technology in the classroom (Power-Point slides and outlines, web-based materials, interactive TV, Web CT and Blackboard, etc.), but it also provides fora for discussion of topics of current interest such as classroom management, tips for teaching large classes, how to develop a curriculum vitae, and a faculty incentive grant program for teaching improvement. The TLTC website provides additional information on its programs and activities (https://www.tltc.ttu.edu/content/asp/main/start.asp). 

Office of Research Services provides support for proposal development and budget preparation. The ORS maintains a library of funding agencies and foundations and provides access to electronic requests for proposal (RFP) and similar information. The ORS also provides standard institutional information (boilerplate) for proposal preparation and other commonly used text and data. The ORS website provides additional information on their services (http://www.ors.ttu.edu/Newors/newhome/home/trymain.html).  

In addition, individual colleges and departments offer occasional workshops on proposal development, mentoring for junior faculty, and other professional development help. The College of Engineering encourages faculty to become involved in summer consultation and collaborative work with government laboratories and private industry as a means of professional development. Several departments and colleges have institutes and centers that provide opportunities for faculty to interact with people in government and the private sector, where they may be exposed to new developments in their discipline.

SACS Off-Site Committee Finding: 

3.7.3     The institution provides evidence of ongoing professional development of faculty as teachers, scholars, and practitioners. 

___       Compliance
_X_      Non-compliance
___       Did not review 

Comments:   

Although there are many opportunities for professional development, evidence that professional development took place was missing.  It could be inferred from internal promotions that development occurred.  Further, 32 funded “not called sabbatical years” for the faculty of an institution of 29,000 students does not appear to be adequate.

TTU Response:  

With respect to the number of faculty development leaves, the university actually grants up to 36 per year, not 32, as cited in our original statement. Proposals for leave are solicited from the faculty each fall for leaves to be taken in the subsequent year. Proposals are evaluated by the Faculty Development Leave Committee, an elected faculty committee with representation from each of the university’s colleges. The number of proposals in a normal year exceeds the number of available leaves by a small number and in most recent years, fewer than 36 proposals have been submitted. We feel the number of leaves is adequate to meet the demand.

FACULTY DEVELOPMENT LEAVES

2001-2006 

Number of Applications and Recipients 

            Academic Year            Applications Received             Leaves Awarded 

          2001-02                                 34                                             34 

    2002-03                                 32                                             30 

          2003-04                                 38                                             35 

          2004-05                                 26                                             23 

          2005-06                                 31                                             29 

With respect to evidence of professional development, all faculty are required to submit an annual report in which they list their activities with respect to teaching, research, and service. These reports are submitted to the department chairs each January, with copies forwarded to the dean of the respective college. The reports contain information on professional meetings attended, continuing education courses, research activities, and other professional development activities of individual faculty. Annual Faculty Reports are retained in the offices of the respective deans for a minimum of five years and may be accessed there. 

Additional information on faculty development activities in teaching, research and service is contained in the department and college annual assessment reports submitted as part of the university’s strategic planning process. These reports are available on line at http://techdata.irs.ttu.edu/stratreport/.  

The Teaching and Learning Technology Center conducts a variety of short courses, discussion groups, and other activities directed toward teaching improvement. The TLTC’s 2004 strategic planning assessment report lists 35 teaching/learning workshops, 134 short courses, and 375 individual faculty consultations offered. The TLTC also awards a number of competitive grants under its Faculty Incentive Grant Program.  A list of grants awarded over the past decade is online at http://www.tltc.ttu.edu/content/asp/main/grants_awarded.asp.  Additional information on the activities of the TLTC may be found in the center’s annual assessment report for 2003, on line at http://techdata.irs.ttu.edu/stratreport/Reports/33_3318_2003.pdf.  

Aside from the requirements for tenure and promotion, the university does not have specific policies regarding faculty development. The tenure and promotion policies for the university are on line in the Operating Procedures Manual at:  http://www.depts.ttu.edu/opmanual/OP32.01.pdf  and in the Board of Regents Rules at http://www.depts.ttu.edu/oppol/Chapter04.pdf.