School of History, Technology, and Society
Faculty and Staff Guidelines
(Revised May 2014)
MISSION STATEMENT
As the names of our degree programs suggest, HTS is not a harbor of refuge, isolated
from the larger culture of Georgia Tech. In keeping with the Institute’s focus on STEM
education and research, we look for our alums to work effectively in a variety of
contexts, as part of collaborative teams addressing the panoply of challenges and
opportunities posed by our technological age. Similarly, we aim through our minors and
certificates to foster such capabilities among students pursuing degrees in engineering,
computing, and the sciences.
Achieving those ends involves creating forums inside the classroom and out where
students and faculty from across the Institute interact freely and openly. It involves
equipping students with analytical techniques and communications skills necessary for
filling the vital roles of translators and synthesizers, able to bridge the realms of
technology and society and contribute distinctive insights. And it involves cultivating
ingrained habits of learning and inquiry, which will open doors to further study and
enable our graduates to assume positions of leadership.
Our ultimate goal is to nurture an environment in which students and faculty can develop
awareness and understanding of the social and cultural dimensions at play in all scientific
and technical endeavors, in every corner of the globe, including those in our own city,
state, and region. We look though our scholarship and teaching to elucidate processes of
social change, past and present, and to comprehend how technology, science, and
engineering contribute to them. Each component of our multi-disciplinary unit supports
those common, overarching objectives.
SCHOOL CALENDAR
HTS maintains a calendar using Zimbra. Most meetings of the faculty and its various
committees occur during the TTH open hour, from 11:00 to Noon. These include HTS
faculty meetings on the first Tuesday of each month during the academic year and
Executive Committee meetings the previous Thursdays. The Graduate Forum convenes
and most other speakers present on Monday afternoons from 4:00-5:30. The P&T
committee meets in September to review P&T cases, in early December to conduct thirdyear critical reviews, and in January to discuss Periodic Peer Reviews. The actual
calendar for 2013-1014, which can serve as a template, is reproduced below. Precise
dates of committee meetings, job talks, and special events for the current year will be
placed on the calendar at the earliest opportunity, announced at faculty meetings, and
communicated via email.
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Fall 2013 AUGUST SEPTEMBER OCTOBER NOVEMBER DECEMBER 8-­‐9 15 18 22 27 1 3 3 9 16 19 23 26 30 1 21 22 23 24 25 28 31 4 5 11 14 IAC Dean’s Leadership Retreat HTS Welcome Back Reception, 12:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 First Day of Classes Executive Committee Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Faculty Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 SCHOOL HOLIDAY -­‐ Labor Day IAC Faculty/Staff Meeting, 11:00 AM, Clough Commons, Room 144 IAC Reception, 3:00 PM, Habersham Bldg HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Promotion & Tenure Committee Mtg, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Rm 104 HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Executive Committee Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Faculty Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Faculty Meeting, 3:00 PM, Student Center Theatre Promotion & Tenure Packets Due HTS Graduate School Panel, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 HTS Extended Faculty Meeting, 3:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room G10 HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Executive Committee Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Faculty Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 African American History Job Talk -­‐ Frank Guridy, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 18 HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 19 African American History Job Talk – Quincy Mills, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 25 HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 26 Executive Committee Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 28-­‐29 SCHOOL HOLIDAY – Thanksgiving 3 Faculty Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 5 Critical Review Committee Mtg, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Rm 104 6 Last Day of Classes 6 HTS Holiday Party, 3:30 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 9 African American History Job Talk – Erin Chapman, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 9 Final Exams Begin 14 Fall Commencement 23-­‐27 Winter Break 4
Spring 2014
JANUARY FEBRUARY MARCH APRIL MAY 1 6 9 13 14 17 20 27 30 3 4 5-­‐7 10 17 24 25 27 3 4 6 10 12 13 14 17-­‐21 24 27 31 1 3 7 14 22 23 24 24 25 28 29 3 SCHOOL HOLIDAY – New Year First Day of Classes Executive Committee Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Faculty Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Critical Review Packets Due SCHOOL HOLIDAY – Martin Luther King HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Executive Committee Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Faculty Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Academic Program Review HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Periodic Peer Review Committee Mtg, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Rm 104 Executive Committee Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Faculty Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Phi Alpha Theta New Member Induction Ceremony HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 IAC Leadership Meeting, 11:00 AM IAC Founder’s Day Periodic Peer Review Packets Due Spring Break HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Executive Committee Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Faculty Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 President’s Town Hall Meeting, 11:00 AM, DM Smith, Room 105 HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 HTS Speaker Series, 4:00 PM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 IAC Faculty/Staff Meeting, 11:00 AM, Clough Commons, Room 144 IAC Reception, 3:30 PM, Habersham Bldg Executive Committee Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 HTS Spring Reception, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Courtyard Last Day of Classes Final Exams Begin Faculty Meeting, 11:00 AM, Old CE Bldg, Room 104 Spring Commencement 5
ADMINISTRATIVE STRUCTURE
A. Faculty Meetings: The regular meeting of HTS faculty takes place at 11 a.m. on
the first Tuesday of each month, from September through May, in room 104 OCE
building. Attendance is expected, and all colleagues should clear their calendars to
accommodate these meetings. Any changes in the time or the place of the regular
meeting or any special faculty meetings called by the Chair or the Executive Committee
will be announced as much in advance as possible. An agenda will be set by the Chair in
consultation with the Executive Committee and circulated to the faculty no later than the
day before the meeting. Faculty may move to add items to the agenda at the opening of
the meeting. A designated member of the faculty will take and, later, distribute minutes
of the meeting, which will be approved at the following meeting. Meetings are run
according to standard rules of parliamentary procedure. Votes are usually taken orally or
by show of hands, but the chair or another member of the faculty may in some cases call
for paper ballots. If approved by the majority, such ballots shall be cast and counted in
the room before the assembled faculty. In rare cases, ballots might be cast at a later time
and collected and counted by the Administrative Manager of the unit. Absentees may
vote by proxy only if that right is approved in advance of the vote by the majority.
Although visiting faculty and academic professionals may attend meetings, only tenuretrack faculty may vote.
In addition to the regular monthly meetings, the HTS faculty generally convenes once
each academic year for an extended meeting or retreat. The date, time, and location of
this meeting will ordinarily be fixed at the start of the fall semester.
The Chair may occasionally convene unscheduled meetings of the faculty for special
purposes, such as consideration of job candidates. Such meetings will be announced at
least a week in advance, and proxies will be allowed for those in residence in Atlanta but
unable to attend.
HTS embraces a commitment to faculty self-governance, in which all issues of substance
come before the faculty meeting for open discussion and equal vote by all full-time,
tenure-track colleagues in attendance at the meeting, without regard to rank. Colleagues
with joint appointments in HTS are entitled to vote in all matters before the meeting.
Part-time and visiting professors are welcome to participate in faculty meetings on a nonvoting basis. Because of the importance of hearing and taking part in deliberations of the
School at the meeting, absentee votes by proxy are not permitted.
Like any academic unit, HTS also relies on colleagues and committees to coordinate and
carry out the work of the School between formal faculty meetings. In doing so, it tries to
strike an appropriate balance between democracy and efficiency and, when adjustment is
necessary, to tilt toward the former.
B. Chair: The Chair is appointed by the Dean of the Ivan Allen College -- ideally in
consultation with the HTS faculty and always subject to the approval of the Provost and
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President -- and serves at the pleasure of the Dean. The Chair is accountable to the Dean
and the Georgia Tech Administration for running the unit, and especially for supervising
the administrative staff and managing the budget. The Chair shares some decisionmaking responsibilities with the faculty, both individual colleagues and HTS committees,
in regard to hires, salaries, and teaching assignments.
C. Standing Committees: All HTS standing committees, whether elected or
appointed, should be constituted to reflect, as much as is possible and appropriate, the
diversity of the School with regard to academic discipline, academic rank, gender, and
racial and/or ethnic identity. It is expected that each committee will meet at least once
each month and report, either in writing or in oral presentation, to the monthly meeting.
D. Reappointment, Promotion and Tenure Committee is responsible for all matters
relating to reappointment, promotion, tenure, and post-tenure review. The Committee
consists of all associate and full professors of the School and one non-tenured assistant
professor, but on questions of promotion and/or tenure, only those members who have
already achieved the status sought by the colleagues(s) under review are eligible to
participate in the deliberations and decisions. The chair of the P&T Committee is a full
professor designated by the HTS Chair.
In addition to the standing committees, the School also elects a full professor to serve a
three-year term on the Ivan Allen College Advisory Committee for Reappointment,
Promotion and Tenure.
Appointment and Responsibilities of the RP&T Chair
NB: This section of the guidelines should be read in conjunction with Appendix A and
with the sections of the Institute Faculty Handbook pertaining to RP&T.
The School Chair shall appoint a member of the tenured faculty as Chair of RP&T
Committee for a three-year term, renewable subject to the approval of the HTS Chair.
When appointing a new RP&T Chair, the appointment will be made at the end of the
Spring term.
The Chair of the RP&T Committee has several responsibilities, including:
•
Attending the Ivan Allen College Promotion and Tenure town hall meeting held
each Fall.
•
Meeting with the School Chair at the end of each Spring semester in order to
identify, tenure-track faculty members for promotion and/or tenure in the next
academic year and tenure-track faculty members for critical review for the
following academic year.
•
With assistance from the Administrative Manager, maintain a comprehensive
calendar of all RP&T activities, which will include deadlines for the preparation
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and distribution of materials and the dates and times of all meetings. This
schedule will be set in accordance with the dictates of the Institute and College
P&T calendars, so that committees and the School Chair have sufficient time to
prepare letters. Meeting times shall be announced at the earliest possible moment
at the start of the fall semester, once the Institute and the College have announced
their schedules.
For a candidate coming up for tenure and/or promotion in the Fall term, the RP&T Chair
will:
•
Work with the candidate late in the spring semester in order to ensure that the
candidate is aware of the timeline for submitting materials, prepares his or her
materials in accordance with GT policy, and meets submission deadlines provided
by the Dean’s Office.
•
Identify a list of potential External Reviewers, and along with the Chair, generate
a final list of External Reviewers that includes some names submitted by the
candidate. It is important that the candidate identify any professional
relationships with the suggested reviewers.
•
Write each of the External Reviewers in early summer, requesting his or her
assistance by providing a letter evaluating the candidate’s submitted materials,
with particular focus upon the candidate’s research materials and the impact of the
candidate’s research. The RP&T Chair will work with the candidate on the
materials to be sent to the set of External Reviewers.
•
Meet with the School Chair at the beginning of the Fall term in order to review
the status of candidates coming up for tenure and/or promotion.
Critical Review
For a candidate coming up for critical review in the Spring, the RP&T Chair will work
with the candidate in the fall term in order to ensure that the candidate is aware of the
timeline for submitting materials, prepare his or her materials in accordance with GaTech
policy, and meets submission deadlines provided by the Dean’s Office.
Periodic Peer Review
Periodic Peer Reviews (PPR) are aimed at facilitating faculty development, and ensuring
intellectual vitality and competent levels of performance by all faculty throughout their
professional careers. In both regards, the goal is to maximize the talents of tenured
faculty within the broad array needed for effective performance of the units and the
Institute. Periodic Peer Reviews are both retrospective and prospective, inasmuch as they
recognize past contributions and provide the means for continuous intellectual and
professional growth. It is recognized that, within the traditional mix of professional
activities, different emphases may be appropriate at different stages in a faculty member's
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career. As a faculty development tool, the review provides an opportunity to assist a
tenured faculty member in formulating a multi-year plan of professional growth and
activity in teaching, research, and service based on his or her interests and the needs and
mission of the unit and the Institute. To assure professional competence, the review
provides an opportunity to assess the tenured faculty member's effectiveness in teaching,
research, and service over a multi-year period. Assessment of professional activities over
a relatively long time span encourages faculty members to undertake projects and
initiatives that do not readily lend themselves to annual evaluation. The Georgia Institute
of Technology recognizes that the granting of tenure for university faculty is an important
protection of free inquiry and open intellectual debate. This Periodic Peer Review policy
defines a system of periodic peer evaluation of all tenured faculty which is intended to
enhance and protect the guarantees of tenure and academic freedom. It is recognized that
Periodic Peer Reviews are most appropriately conducted by a committee of faculty peers.
E. Executive Committee is elected by the faculty in May, at the last faculty meeting
of the academic year, to serve in the subsequent academic year. Members of the
Committee, comprised of five full-time HTS faculty members, at least one of whom
should be a non-tenured colleague, serve staggered two-year terms so that no more than
three rotate off in a given year. The Executive Committee meets with the Chair on a
monthly basis, typically on the Thursday before the regularly scheduled HTS faculty
meeting, to review and set the agenda, and during the annual review process to help the
Chair evaluate faculty performance reports with regard to determining raise criteria. The
Chair or the Executive Committee can also call special meetings of the Committee or of
the faculty as a whole.
F. Graduate Committee provides guidance, develops policies, and supervises
recruitment and admissions for the graduate program. Membership is determined in the
same fashion as on the Undergraduate Committee. The Graduate Committee is chaired
by the Director of Graduate Studies, an appointee of the HTS Chair, who serves a threeyear term, renewable subject to the approval of the HTS Chair, in consultation with the
Executive Committee.
Responsibilities of the Graduate Director
The Director of Graduate Studies (DGS) is appointed by the Chair from among the
tenure-line faculty. Ordinarily, the DGS holds tenure. The initial appointment is
typically for a three-year term, but the agreement may be terminated by either the Chair
or the DGS with a month’s notice. The position ordinarily carries a course release, which
may be taken during either the fall or spring semesters, and pays a stipend, which is
added to the nine-month salary and must be relinquished when the DGS leaves the
position.
The DGS is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the graduate program. The DGS
is chair of the Graduate Committee, which is appointed annually in consultation with the
School Chair and meets monthly during the nine-month academic year. The DGS works
directly with students, and with faculty involved in any aspect of graduate education in
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the School. The DGS has administrative support for this purpose from the Academic
Advisor, a staff member (currently, LaDonna Bowen).
The DGS defines the classes taught each semester bearing in mind the need to offer
mandatory courses on a regular basis, recruits faculty to teach the classes, and schedules
classes to allow full-time and part time students the opportunity to build a coherent
intellectual program. The DGS’s job is broken down into four main categories:
recruiting, financing, advising and mentoring, and other school or campus activities.
Recruiting
The DGS is the main contact point for people who wish to enter the graduate program
either full-time or part-time. In that capacity the DGS responds to all inquiries made by
prospective students, arranges to meet personally with interested candidates who visit
campus, ensures that the graduate committee has all the requisite material needed to
choose the best possible candidates from the application pool, negotiates the offers made
to new entrants, and formally informs those who are not accepted of the reasons for the
refusal. The enrollment procedure involves frequent contact with the Office of the
Registrar and the Office of Admissions. The DGS promotes the program at conferences
and meetings, and contributes a dedicated section to the annual HTS Newsletter that is
intended as a recruitment tool.
Financing
The DGS is expected to ensure the financial health of the program. This involves
securing funds to pay GTA’s from the chair of HTS and other sources at the Institute,
ably managing foundation funds to support graduate student tuition, requesting tuition
waivers from the IAC, and bidding for President’s Fellowships and the Dean’s
Fellowship at the Institute and College level. The DGS also allocates travel and research
funds to graduate students from various sources, and secures money for a variety of
social and intellectual events that directly concern the graduate student community
(graduate forum, annual party, etc).
Advising and Mentoring
The DGS is the main academic advisor for full time and part time students in the graduate
program. The DGS assists students in charting their intellectual trajectory through
graduate school, using the graduate handbook as point of reference. The DGS upgrades
this handbook regularly to reflect changes in the form and content of the program, and
keeps students abreast of those changes, with assistance from the Academic Advisor.
The DGS actively seeks to professionalize graduate students, by encouraging them to
take courses in CETL, by helping them prepare papers and Power Point presentations for
conferences, by engaging them in various activities related to the graduate forum
speaker’s series, by assisting them to apply for grants, fellowships, prizes, summer
internships, and adjunct teaching positions, and by helping them in every possible way as
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they enter the job market, including having them give one or two lectures to the class in
which they TA. The DGS is pro-active in seeking feedback from students on their
learning experience in the program, and responds to suggestions for improvement. The
DGS encourages the graduate students to elect a student representative from among their
ranks, and works with their elected representative to identify and satisfy student needs.
Other School and Campus Activities
The DGS is actively engaged in assessing various aspects of the program to meet the
requirements of the OATS system, implementing suggestions for improvement where
needed. Systematic data are kept on faculty evaluation of their GTAs, and on student
evaluation of their attendance at conferences, their learning experience in HTS, and of the
DGS and the program as a whole.
In consultation with the HTS Graduate Committee and with approval of the HTS faculty,
the DGS revises the graduate curriculum to take account of the changing skills of the
HTS faculty and the changing requirements of the job market. Curriculum changes are
presented to the appropriate Institute committee for approval, and eventually accepted by
the Board of Regents.
In collaboration with the Speakers Committee, the DGS organizes the graduate forum,
balancing invited outside speakers with in-house faculty ‘brown-bag’ presentations and
student presentations. The DGS works actively with CETL to improve the training of
GTAs. The DGS works with faculty to enable GTA’s to give one or two lectures per
semester in the class that they TA for.
The DGS is in ongoing contact with the Associate Dean of Research in the Ivan Allen
College, aligning the program with the needs and possibilities of the IAC and meeting
frequently with the DGSs in other Schools to identify shared needs.
G. Undergraduate Committee provides guidance and develops policies for the
undergraduate program. Membership on the committee is determined by the Director of
Undergraduate Studies, subject to approval of the HTS Chair and, of course, to the
willingness of colleagues to serve. An effort is made to provide representation from both
history and sociology and to include untenured as well as tenured faculty. The HTS
Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies, an Academic Professional hired by the
HTS Chair on an annual basis, serves, ex officio, on the committee in a non-voting
support role, as do two HTS majors chosen each fall by the DUS.
Responsibilities of the Undergraduate Director
The Director of Undergraduate Studies (DUS) is appointed by the Chair from among the
tenure-line faculty. Ordinarily, the DUS holds tenure. The initial appointment is
typically for a three-year term, but the agreement may be terminated by either the Chair
or the DUS with a month’s notice. The position ordinarily carries a course release, which
may be taken during either the fall or spring semesters, and pays a stipend, which is
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added to the nine-month salary and must be relinquished when the DUS leaves the
position.
The Director of Undergraduate Studies (DUS) is responsible for curricular issues,
program and policy development, as well as some of the day-to-day operation of the
undergraduate program. The DUS is chair of the HTS Undergraduate Curriculum
Committee (HTS UCC) and works especially with the Associate Director of
Undergraduate Students (ADUS) to meet the needs of undergraduate HTS majors and
other Georgia Tech students, and HTS faculty. The duties and responsibilities of the
DUS fall into five main categories: HTS UCC, curriculum development, course
scheduling, program assessment, and other school and campus activities.
HTS Undergraduate Curriculum Committee
The HTS UCC includes the ADUS (ex officio) and two undergraduate HTS majors (also
ex officio) selected at the beginning of the fall semester by the DUS. The remainder of
the committee is composed of three to five tenure-line HTS faculty selected annually by
the DUS, with approval by the Chair of HTS. The DUS serves as the chair of the HTS
UCC, setting meeting schedules and agendas. The DUS also submits a program report
for each HTS faculty meeting.
One specific duty of the HTS UCC is to select recipients of the undergraduate awards
offered by HTS: the Bellon Prize, the Slotkin Award, and the HTS Chairs Award.
Winners of these awards are selected early each spring semester, and the winners receive
the awards at the Annual GT Student Honors Luncheon. The DUS and the HTS UCC
also nominate HTS majors for IAC and GT student awards.
Curriculum Development
The DUS is responsible for programmatic changes, including changes to the HTS
Undergraduate Degree Checklist. This checklist outlines the requirements for completing
a BS degree in HTS. Making such changes involves consultation with the ADUS, the
HTS UCC, HTS Chair, and HTS faculty. The DUS is also tasked with getting new HTS
courses approved to ensure that HTS course offerings reflect the research interests,
strengths, and knowledge of HTS faculty.
The DUS is responsible for guiding such proposed changes through the approval process,
including approval from the IAC Dean and GT Vice Provost and especially the Institute
Undergraduate Curriculum Committee (IUCC).
Programmatic development can also require the DUS to work with directors of
undergraduate studies in other IAC schools or other colleges at GT, to coordinate the
development of new certificates, minors, majors, or other activities for undergraduates.
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Course Scheduling
The DUS is charged with creating the course schedules for HTS. Importantly, this
involves ensuring that required courses are offered on an appropriate rotation for HTS
majors, and that enough sections of HTS survey courses (HIST 2111, HIST 2112, and
SOC 1101) are offered each semester. This process also requires attention to the daily
and weekly (i.e., time and day) schedule for all HTS courses to minimize conflicts with
other HTS courses and courses fulfilling the GT Core Curriculum. The DUS is
responsible for ensuring that courses have the appropriate restrictions (e.g., permit only,
restricted to HTS majors) and student enrollment caps.
Part of the scheduling process involves working with HTS faculty to create a schedule
that is balanced (e.g., time of day, and MWF/TH) for undergraduate students, while still
allowing faculty flexibility in their schedules for research and other responsibilities.
In this process, the DUS must secure part-time instructors to cover courses. The DUS
coordinates with the HTS Director of Graduate Studies to avoid conflicts for faculty
teaching graduate and undergraduate courses. The DUS must also work with the DGS to
avoid conflicts for GTAs assigned to HTS survey courses.
Finally, the DUS works with the HTS Academic Advisor, who enters the schedule into
Banner/Oscar and works out classroom assignments.
Program Assessment
The DUS is responsible for completing the assessment of the HTS undergraduate
program, particularly uses GT’s Online Assessment Tracking System (OATS). In this
process, the DUS using exit surveys completed by HTS graduates, seminar rubrics, and a
variety of information (e.g., students’ acceptance into graduate programs, student awards,
conference presentations, etc.) to gauge the success of the program.
The DUS must complete the OATS form and report results to the HTS UCC and the HTS
faculty. Based on the program assessment, the DUS makes recommendations for
programmatic changes.
Other School and Campus Activities
The DUS directs internships during the fall and spring semesters, which includes helping
students find internships, complete appropriate paperwork, and assess final projects (e.g.,
papers).
The DUS works also closely with the ADUS on issues such as recruitment, advising, and
assisting with other matters relating to HTS undergraduates. The DUS assists with
recruitment efforts by the IAC and GT, particularly FASET orientation for new students
and other events (e.g., Women’s Reception, Connect with Tech, etc.).
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In addition, the DUS coordinates activities for HTS undergraduate majors, such as
“Welcome Back Reception” in September, Graduate and Professional School Information
Session in the fall, and HTS Graduates’ Reception in the spring.
Responsibilities of Associate Director/Academic Professional
The Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies (DGS) is hired by the Chair. It is a
twelve-month position occupied by an Academic Professional whose salary is set in
accordance with guidelines provided by Georgia Tech’s Office of Human Resources.
The appointment is renewable on an annual basis and may be terminated with appropriate
notice from the Chair, under guidelines provided by the Office of Academic Affairs, or
by notice from the person holding the position.
The Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies (ADUS) is responsible for the day-today operations of the undergraduate program. The ADUS works directly with students,
while assisting the Director of Undergraduate Studies with matters of programming and
policy, and serves as a permanent ex-officio member of the HTS Undergraduate
Curriculum Committee. The ADUS job is broken down into four main categories:
teaching, advising, recruiting, and other school or campus activities.
Teaching
The ADUS position includes both teaching and administrative roles, with a current
teaching load of one class per semester (fall and spring). The ADUS may also supervise
undergraduate students conducting independent research and serve on honor’s thesis and
Research Option committees.
Advising
The ADUS serves as the main academic advisor for HTS majors, as well as students
minoring or obtaining a certificate in HTS. The ADUS currently (2011) also serves as an
advisor to Undecided Ivan Allen College students, though this may not be a permanent
duty. Advising requires the following duties: holding daily office hours, advising students
choosing/changing a major, FASET advising for new first year and transfer students,
mandatory advising for first year and “at-risk” students as well as student athletes,
advising students participating in the International Plan and Research Option, advising
students on the curriculum and class selection, advising students on careers and
graduate/professional school, maintaining student files and degree checklists, maintaining
the HTS listserv and blog, processing forms for minors and certificates, assisting with
degree petitions and exit surveys, assisting with the readmission process and intensive
advising for readmitted students, keeping students informed of current academic rules
and regulations, sending letters to students on warning, probation or drop status, sending
letters to students on the Dean’s List or who receive Faculty Honors, and maintaining the
HTS information bulletin board and plasma screen. In a role that bridges teaching and
advising, the ADUS also serves as the internship coordinator and assists students
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in obtaining internships, enrolling them in the appropriate internship courses, and
evaluating final projects.
Recruiting
The ADUS serves as the main recruiter of both new undergraduate students (those
coming to Georgia Tech directly from high school or other universities) and internal
transfer students (those changing majors to HTS from within Georgia Tech). The ADUS
is involved in on-campus recruiting activities such as Connect with Tech, Preview GT,
Presidents’ Scholars Weekend, Women’s Receptions, IAC Shadow Day, programs for
minority students such as Es.Tu.Dia and Welcome Weekend, and the Majors Fair. On
campus events such as “Get to Know HTS” are also held in the fall semester, depending
on the budget, and the ADUS routinely meets in person with prospective students still in
high school when they come to campus for a visit.
Recruiting of prospective students is also done via email, mailings, and instant messaging
on the HTS blog. For example, all students who come to campus for a tour and have
expressed interest in IAC and/or HTS are contacted ahead of time via email, all
prospective students who provide contact information are sent a packet about Tech and
HTS, prospective students use the instant messaging function on the blog to ask questions
about the program, and prospective students who have maintained contact with HTS
receive a holiday card. The ADUS contacts Undecided Ivan Allen College majors and
high achieving students in HTS classes—as recommended by other HTS professors—as
well as visits history and sociology survey classes to present information on the major,
minors, and certificates.
The ADUS also works with entities such as the Ivan Allen College Dean’s Office,
Georgia Tech Communications and Marketing, and the Office of Admissions to make
sure that HTS has current and correct promotional materials and representation on outside
websites (e.g., IAC, the main GT site, the GT catalog, the annual GT admissions view
book, etc.). The ADUS also works with guidance and career counselors at potential
“feeder” high schools to provide promotional material and/or do high school
informational visits and college fairs. In addition, the ADUS maintains active contact
with the Office of Admissions.
Other School and Campus Activities
Because of the responsibilities of the day-to-day functioning of the undergraduate
program, the ADUS must maintain contacts with a variety of groups and organizations
around campus, as well as be versed in various databases and/or software. The ADUS
must be well versed in GTAAD (formerly AFACTS), Buzzport, and OSCAR, as well as
appropriate sections of BANNER. The ADUS must also be familiar with the transfer
equivalency catalog and the Georgia Tech catalog, and be able to assess coursework for
transfer or foreign credit approval. In his/her capacity as advisor, it is expected that the
ADUS will be involved with the academic advising association on campus, called
GTAAN. The ADUS may also serve as a liaison to offices on campus such as the
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Undergraduate Research Opportunities Program, Office of International Education,
Athletic Association, Office of the Registrar, and Office of Admissions.
H. Speakers Committee, appointed by the Chair each spring from faculty volunteers,
coordinates the annual speakers’ series. Typically, the committee aims to bring in one
outside speaker per month during fall and spring, or a total of 6-8 speakers per academic
year, depending on the budget. Most speakers present work to an audience of HTS
faculty and graduate students as part of our weekly forum. The chair of the speakers
committee, also appointed each spring by the Chair, works with graduate students and
faculty to coordinate a schedule for the forum. Typically, the forum schedule for the fall
is set by the previous May, while that for the spring is set by September. In the case of
Black History Month (February) and Women's Awareness Month (March), the committee
attempts to secure speakers of broad appeal who can give public lectures to audiences
from across the entire campus community, including undergraduates. Scheduling of
these lecturers generally occurs in late spring or early summer. In securing speakers, the
committee solicits recommendations from faculty and graduate students, and its chair
maintains a list of potential speakers from year-to-year. The committee assembles the
annual slate of speakers, allocates funds (including an honorarium, when appropriate),
and extends invitations. The committee assigns an HTS "host" to each speaker, who
takes responsibility for communicating with the speaker, coordinating travel
arrangements, and arranging meetings and meals during the visit. Typically, the faculty
member who recommended the speaker will fill this role, in collaboration with the chair
of the speakers committee and with the assistance of the HTS budget administrator.
I. HTS Awards Committee, constituted by the HTS chair from members of the
Executive Committee, identifies campus honors and awards for which HTS faculty, staff,
and students are eligible, alerting the HTS community to these opportunities and
coordinating nominations as appropriate. In most instances, nominations are ultimately
submitted by the Chair, although individual members of the faculty are free to prepare
and submit nominations when rules permit.
J. Hiring Search Committees are constituted by the Chair to recruit colleagues for
full-time, tenure-track faculty positions. Preferably, the Search Committee should consist
of three members, two from the discipline designated in the search (one of whom will
typically serve as Committee Chair) and another colleague from the other discipline in
the School. The Search Committee is responsible for drafting and, subject to approval by
the HTS faculty, placing the advertisement(s) for the position; reviewing candidate
applications; recommending candidates for off-campus interviews and/or on-campus
visits; coordinating candidate visits; recommending candidates for the job offer;
communicating with unsuccessful candidates; and maintaining records required in
accordance with affirmative action and other administrative procedures. Search
committees ordinarily serve for one academic year, during which the position is filled. If
a search fails to secure an occupant for the position, the School Chair will constitute a
new Search Committee. The reconstituted committee may or may not include members
of the previous Search Committee
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It is important to note that the actions and recommendations of the Search Committee are
subject to the review of the Chair and the vote of the faculty; throughout the search
process, all candidate files will be available for evaluation by all tenured and tenure-track
faculty members. At the same time, all external communication with or about candidates
should be made only by the Chair of the Search Committee or the Chair of HTS; in some
cases, however, a faculty colleague may undertake such communication subject to the
prior approval of the Chair of the Search Committee and the HTS Chair. Moreover, once
an offer has been extended to a candidate, all discussions and negotiations about salary,
summer support, teaching load, and other job-related issues should involve only the Chair
of HTS and the candidate in question.
K. Other Committees: As occasion may dictate, the Chair may name ad hoc
committees to attend to necessary business of the School. In appointing such
committees, the Chair will consult with the Executive Committee and inform the faculty
at a monthly meeting. Such notification should include a description of the business to be
undertaken and specify the anticipated outcome and duration of service.
DEPARTMENT INFORMATION
Emergency Preparedness
In an emergency call 911 or 404-894-2500. For additional information please view the
Emergency Response Guidebook:
http://www.police.gatech.edu/emergencypreparedness/resources/documents/guidebook.p
df
Street Address:
221 Bobby Dodd Way
Atlanta, GA 30332-0225
(404) 894-3196
(404) 894-0535 (fax)
Location:
OCE Building 058
Websites:
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GT: http://www.gatech.edu/
Ivan Allen College: http://www.iac.gatech.edu
HTS Website: http://www.hts.gatech.edu/
Faculty Handbook: http://www.academic.gatech.edu/handbook
Classified Employee Handbook: http://ohr.gatech.edu/hrpolicies
GT Fact Book: http://www.irp.gatech.edu/factbooks/factbook.html
Policies and Procedures: http://ohr.gatech.edu/hrpolicies
WEB Policies: http://security.gatech.edu/
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BOR Policies and Procedures: http://www. Admin-Fin.gatech.edu/business
GT Admin. Policies Procedures Manuals: http://www.gatech.edu/business
To post grades in OSCAR: https://Oscar.gatech.edu
Georgia Tech ID
Your number that is on your Buzz Card that begins with 901 ……… is your GT ID
number which is used for academic business such as grading. AFACTS, OSCAR, etc.
Your employee ID number is the number on your check stub and should be used with
your travel authorization form and your travel reimbursements.
FACULTY
NAME
Daniel Amsterdam
Laura Bier
Doug Flamming
Larry Foster
Carla Gerona
Ken Knoespel
John Krige
Nikolay Koposov
Hanchao Lu
Kristie Macrakis
Mary McDonald
Greg Nobles
Willie Pearson
Jonathan Schneer
Jennifer Singh
Jennifer Smith
John Smith
John Tone
Steven Usselman
William Winders
TITLE
ROOM
Assistant Professor
Assistant Professor
Professor
Professor
Associate Professor
Professor
Kranzberg Professor
Visiting Professor
Professor
Professor
Professor and Rice Chair
Professor
Professor
Professor
Assistant Professor
Assistant Professor
Assistant Professor
Professor
Professor and Chair
Associate Professor
G18
G21
118
121
G19
116
105
G24
122
120
123
105 French Bldg.
119
G16
G22
G20
137
117
108C
106
PHONE
4-6834
4-6833
4-6850
4-6845
5-3182
5-4947
4-7765
4-6828
4-6844
4-2185
4-6835
5-7535
5-2265
4-6848
4-7445
4-1819
5-0244
4-2606
4-8718
4-8401
ACADEMIC PROFESSIONAL
Amy D’Unger
Academic Professional
124
4-7448
108B
108D
4-8630
4-3198
STAFF
Grace Marriott
LaDonna Bowen
Administrative Manager
Academic Advisor I
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JOB DESCRIPTIONS
Grace Marriott
Administrative Manager
Room 108; 404-894-8630: marriott@gatech.edu
Manage financial affairs of school and provide faculty support. Maintain records of all
personnel files; manage everyday operations of the School department. Orient new
faculty and staff to departmental policies and procedures and Georgia Tech curriculum.
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Budget and Financial Records
Promotion and Tenure, Critical Review and Periodic Peer Review
Hiring Packages
Faculty Vitae
Maintain Faculty Searches
Business Cards and Supplies
Buzz Card Access OCE
J-1 Visa’s for Visiting Scholars
Telephone Maintenance/Repair Requests
Process Payroll, Time Documents, Personal Services Forms
Staff Evaluations
Supervise Student Assistants
Vacation, Sick and Consulting Report for Faculty
Faculty Employment Forms (leave of absence; insurance; activity reports; GTF
grant requests; conflict of interest forms; etc.)
Travel requests and reimbursements
Develop and implement policies and procedures
LaDonna Bowen
Academic Advisor I
Room 108; 404-894-3198: ladonna.bowen@hts.gatech.edu
Meet with graduate students concerning questions and issues regarding various aspects of
their academic program. May include questions regarding academic program
requirements, curriculum, academic progress, and Institute policy. Prepare assessment
reports; maintain student related records, files and databases. Review and process
curriculum related actions.
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Graduate Admission Coordinator and Graduate Administration Advisor
Registration Coordinator (courses, rooms, study abroad, overloads, permits,
independent study)
Course/Instructor Opinion Survey (CIOS) Department Coordinator
Room Scheduler (OCE)
Class Changes
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Grade Changes
Special Events Coordinator
STS Graduate Certificate
Mail
The School of HTS Mail Code is 0225. Trays for outgoing mail are located in the mail
room in room 108. The mail is picked up every day at 4:00 p.m. Mailboxes are in the
hallway of the first floor in front of Room 118.
Express Mail
UPS packages should be brought to the front office in room 108 for scheduled pickup.
The campus post office, located in the Student Center, has express mail and all other post
office conveniences.
Copier Machine
Upon employment each employee is given a copier code. Individuals without an account
number will not be able to access the machine. The department is charged by the
company on a per page basis for both color and black and white copies.
ID accounts will also be set up for sponsored projects. Faculty, PI’s or Instructors are
responsible for making sure only authorized individuals are given access to the numbers.
High volumes of copies will be charged to sponsored projects.
Fax Machines
There is a fax machine located in the front office on the counter. This is available for
business related communications by faculty and staff. The number is (404) 894-0535.
Computer Support
If you require assistance, please e-mail helpdesk@iac.gatech.edu. If you are unable to
send a message to the helpdesk notify someone in the Administrative Office, and they
will send a message for you.
Office Supplies
Most day-to-day supplies are kept in room 103. Supplies that are not stocked may be
requested by emailing your supply needs to the Administrative Manager.
Student Assistants
Student Assistants and Federal Work Study Students are limited to 20 hours per week
during periods of enrollment and 40 hours per week during periods of non-enrollment.
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Their main responsibilities are scanning or copying documents; answering phones;
greeting visitors; running GT business errands; prepare, deliver and/or open mail; assist
in office projects; other duties as assigned by the Administrative Manager.
Keys
Faculty and staff will receive one key for their office and one main door key that will
open all conference rooms and the library. You will also receive a mailbox key. All keys
checked out must be returned before termination for final paychecks to be processed.
Travel
Faculty are responsible for booking their travel and filling out all travel forms. A travel
Authority Request form (TAR) must be filled out anytime an employee travels. The form
must be completed before travel, or you will not be reimbursed. A Travel Expense
(TES) form must also be completed after travel, (and within 30 days after returning) to
receive a reimbursement.
Travel Authority Request forms are now available on the electronic travel system in
TechWorks. GT Business Services will not accept a paper form. Please enter TAR forms
two weeks prior to the departure date of the trip. CAUTION: The department will not
reimburse faculty who fail to submit a TAR form. Below are links that outline the
procedures for entering a TAR form using the electronic system.
Tutorial Guide:
https://techworks.psauth.gatech.edu/gt_data/content/tutorial_guide_training_resources_pr
ocessguide.pdf
Travel Agent
Travel Incorporated is a full service travel agency that serves Georgia Tech, faculty, staff
and students for business travel. They are the only travel agency authorized to directly
bill the Institute for Georgia Tech business airfare tickets. You are responsible for
making your own reservations after receiving School’s authorization. Please note that
they charge an additional $23.00 fee for making any travel arrangements.
Phone:
Toll Free:
Fax:
(770) 291-5190
(877) 548-2996
(770) 291-5175
Professional Travel
Providing support for travel to professional conferences is one of the highest budgetary
priorities for HTS; it is also one of the most expensive and under-budgeted. In order for
the Chair to spread travel money around as widely and equitably as possible, each
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colleague will be asked at the beginning of the academic year to submit a list of projected
trips that will require HTS support, keeping in mind the following considerations:
1. HTS will provide support for travel to a professional conference at which the faculty
member is a formal participant on the program, whether as a presenter, commentator,
or chair of a scheduled session. HTS will also support travel for colleagues who edit
a journal whose editorial board meets at the conference or who chair a major
professional committee that meets at the conference.
2. HTS support for travel will be limited to the equivalent of a round-trip, discount-fare,
domestic ticket from Atlanta to the conference site, other related travel expenses
(airport parking, taxis to and from the destination airport), conference registration,
and four days/three nights of meals and accommodation, in accordance with Georgia
Tech travel guidelines. Colleagues who anticipate exceptional expenses, especially if
the total exceeds $1,000, should confer with the Chair in advance about the budget for
the trip.
3.
Institutional support for international travel to conferences must come from the
Georgia Tech Foundation (GTF) faculty grants and/or from the Ivan Allen College’s
annual allocation from the Georgia Tech Research Corporation (GTRC). In either
case, colleagues should contact the Dean’s office well in advance of the trip for
application information.
4. In all cases, travel arrangements are subject to the rules and guidelines contained in
the Georgia Tech Faculty Handbook.
Receipts
All receipts should be the original and are required (except meals). Please give all
receipts to the Administrative Manager. If a taxi is used you must show destination to
and from. See Georgia Tech’s policy manual for detailed information.
Georgia Open Records Act
As a state university, Georgia Tech is subject to the provisions of the Georgia Open
Records Act, which provides that all citizens are entitled to view the records of state
agencies on request and to make copies for a fee. The Act requires that Georgia Tech
produce public documents within three business days. If you receive a request for
records under the Act, please call the Office of Legal Affairs immediately (404) 8944812; if the request is in writing, fax the request to their office (404) 894-3120.
Student Rights
The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) guarantees students access to
their educational records and prohibits disclosure of educational records without a
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student’s consent. If you have specific questions regarding educational records, please
contact the School of History, Technology, and Society Administrative Office.
Gifts
Any questions regarding the receipt of gifts should be addressed at the following website:
http:// http://www.policylibrary.gatech.edu/gift-processing.
Leave Reporting
On the first of every month you will receive an automated email reminding you to report
your sick or vacation time for the preceding month along with a link to Access TimeOut
in TechWorks. Even if you have not taken any time off you still need to go in and submit
your report by the 8th day of the month. Sick leave will not be paid out upon termination
of employment.
Sick leave is earned in proportion to the time worked at the rate of one working day
(eight hours) per calendar month. All absences due to illness or injury to the employee
or the employee’s immediate family or because of bereavement should be called into the
employee’s immediate supervisor as soon as possible.
Faculty Absence from Class
Instructors are responsible for scheduling a colleague to assume their class in the event of
a planned absence. It is not appropriate to ask a staff member or a student assistant to
cover a class or exam. In the event of an emergency or illness, the instructor should
contact the School’s administrative office to have the class covered or dismissed.
According to Georgia Tech policy, a faculty member who misses class is required to
deduct the entire eight hour day as sick leave from their monthly compensation absence
form.
Personal and Professional Leave
Like every other unit of the University System of Georgia, Georgia Tech has, as yet, no
sabbatical program. Accordingly, HTS tries to foster various professional development
opportunities for faculty colleagues. In recent years, for instance, untenured assistant
professors have been given a “research assignment” term -- i.e. no teaching duties -following the third-year critical review.
Colleagues who seek to take formal leave, either unpaid or supported with external grant
funding, should confer in advance with the Chair about the terms of their anticipated
leave. The goal of HTS is for every colleague to be able to take the greatest possible
advantage of the opportunity for leave while still taking appropriate responsibility for
helping to cover the professional and financial needs of the School. Untenured colleagues
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should understand that any paid or unpaid formal leave, even for a semester, will stop the
tenure clock for that whole year.
Faculty receiving outside grants and prestigious national fellowships of sufficient value
may buy out courses at the rate of 1/9 of their nine-month salary per course. Faculty
considering buying out courses must consult with the Chair prior to applying for the grant
or fellowship and again immediately upon receipt, in time for the Chair to find suitable
replacement instructors. Faculty may need to adjust their buyout schedules in order to
accommodate needs of the unit. Faculty buying out courses with fellowship funds should
anticipate teaching two regular courses for each course bought out before again buying
out courses with funds from a fellowship.
In general, everyone should understand that all course reductions and buy-outs are not a
contractual entitlement. In all cases, the needs of the School must take precedence over
any anticipated course reductions of individual faculty members: the Dean and Chair may
not permit a particular colleague to have a course reduction in a particular semester if
such a reduction would seriously jeopardize the School's curriculum or program due to
leaves, illnesses, or unforeseen circumstances causing many faculty to be away from the
School during that semester.
Consulting
The institute encourages faculty consulting. Consulting is defined as “professional
activity related to the person’s field or discipline, where a fee-for-service or equivalent
relationship with a third party exists.” The maximum number of permissible consulting
days is 13 days per semester, or 52 days per fiscal year. The faculty member must
complete a consulting form naming each client and the total number of consulting days.
These forms must be resubmitted to the Chair at the start of every fiscal year. Faculty on
HB1 visas are forbidden to consult. The complete policy is detailed in the faculty
Handbook in the section titled “Institute Policies, Consulting.”
Commencement
Every semester the Ivan Allen College requests two faculty members from each
department to participate in commencement. The record is kept by the Administrative
Manager and is assigned to the faculty member who is next on the school’s
Commencement Roster. If for some reason you are unable to participate it is up to you to
find a replacement.
Conference Room Reservations
To reserve the HTS conference room 104 and 304, email the Academic Advisor with the
pertinent information. Under normal circumstances they will reply within two business
days.
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Maintenance Requests
All building maintenance requests (i.e. broken windows, leaks, etc.) should be reported to
the Administrative Manager.
Smoking
Smoking is prohibited in all buildings on campus. This includes in the privacy of your
own office due to the air-conditioning systems distributing the smoke to other offices in
the same zone. You may smoke outside, 25 feet away from the building.
Phones and Long Distance Policy
All faculty and staff offices are equipped with a phone line which consist of long distance
access and voicemail. For any additional features see the Administrator of the
department. For international calls there is a conference phone in the main conference
room, room 104.
Local Calling:
Long Distant:
International Calling:
Inter Office Calls:
dial 9 + (area code) + number
dial 9 + 1 + (area code) + number
dial 9 + 011 + (country & city code) + number
dial the last five digits of the phone number
It is the policy of Georgia Tech that the use of Institute’s long distance telephone services
is limited to official Georgia Tech business. Further, State law precludes Georgia Tech
employees from using State resources for personal gain or benefit.
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Personal use is prohibited
Charges identified as unofficial are to be reimbursed by the caller
Violation of this policy may result in disciplinary action, up to and including
termination.
I. PROFESSIONAL CRITERIA
This section should be read in conjunction with Appendix A, which spells out specific
criteria and assessment procedures for RP&T.
Each new faculty member will be assigned a faculty mentor who will help in guiding the
new hire through their first few years.
HTS maintains a strong commitment to high standards of research, teaching, and service.
Theoretically, all three are valued and weighted equally, but in reality, especially for
considerations of reappointment, promotion and tenure, the first two are paramount. Still,
service -- whether to the School, the College, the Institute, the profession, or the
community and nation -- is expected of everyone. That said, it is reasonable to add that
service expectations are somewhat lower for junior colleagues, because of their
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comparatively recent arrival at Georgia Tech and their need to establish strong records of
research and teaching; indeed, junior colleagues are well advised to be selective about
their service commitments at least until after the third-year critical review. On the other
hand, service can be given greater weight in the post-tenure review process: senior
colleagues who already have well-established records of research and teaching may
emphasize service as a way to define their major contribution to Georgia Tech or to the
profession.
It is difficult, of course, to define with precision exactly what constitutes adequate
research, teaching, and service at each level of review, or even what counts, or how
much. The formal guidelines for reappointment, promotion, and tenure are included in
the Georgia Tech Faculty Handbook, which is the document governing all policies and
practices at the School level. It is the responsibility of each colleague to become familiar
with those guidelines, and it is also the responsibility of the HTS Chair and the chair of
the P&T Committee to communicate those guidelines to each candidate for
reappointment, promotion, and tenure. The standard measure for research, at both the
School and the Institute levels, is refereed publications, including, in most cases in HTS,
a book and/or a number of substantial journal articles, for each level of promotion.
There are other forms of research that also merit consideration: papers presented at
professional conferences, successful grant applications, and innovative pedagogical
research. Effective teaching is measured in part by the student course evaluations, but
colleagues should note that the Institute increasingly looks for other indications of aboveaverage effort, including teaching awards, classroom observation by the Chair or some
other colleague(s), participation in one of the CETL Faculty Fellow seminars, the
development of new courses and/or new instructional methods, and the successful
supervision of undergraduate and graduate students. Credible service is sometimes the
hardest of all to evaluate. Here one ought to be able to show not just membership in an
organization or committee, but leadership, or at least sustained effort and considerable
contribution; put differently, it is more important to make a meaningful impact in a few
activities than to make a series of superficial appearances in many. There are also several
forms of quasi-academic activity -- writing book reviews, evaluating manuscripts,
consulting on film or museum projects, and so forth -- that fall under the service
category.
In addition to being the basic data of the reappointment, promotion, and tenure process,
one’s research, teaching, and service activities figure significantly in the School’s annual
raise evaluations. At the beginning of the calendar year, each colleague is asked to
submit a report of his or her activities and accomplishments for the previous year. The
Chair and each member of the Executive Committee reviews the reports and assigns a
value of 0-15 points for research, 0-10 points for teaching, and 0-5 points for service.
The Chair then meets with the Executive Committee to make any necessary adjustments
in point totals, and the final figures form the basis for determining percentage raise
increases for the coming fiscal year. It is important to note, however, that the annual
reports are just the beginning point for setting salaries; the final salaries are subject to
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considerable budgetary negotiations involving the Chair and the Dean and needing the
ultimate approval of the Provost and Board of Regents.
II. TEACHING
Over the years, HTS has developed a very strong reputation for effective, studentcentered teaching, and that reputation remains a central element of our departmental
identity. Accordingly, we have a responsibility to hold ourselves, as well as our students,
to high standards and, at the same time, to establish a learning environment in which
students can feel they are being challenged intellectually and treated fairly. The
following guidelines are intended to help us maintain some measure of consistency across
the School without constraining any individual colleague’s independence in the
classroom.
Class Scheduling
During the middle of the term, faculty members are asked to designate those courses they
wish to teach during the following term. Depending on departmental need, the Chair and
the chairs of the Undergraduate and Graduate committees will try as much as possible to
accommodate each colleague’s choices of classes, class days, and class times; although
there are no guarantees that anyone can always have a set schedule (e.g. TTH, late
afternoons), consideration will be given to special personal, familial or professional
circumstances that make such a schedule advisable. There may be occasions, however,
when a colleague may be asked to teach a different course or at a different time from
what she/he had requested. In that case, the appropriate response is either to accept the
situation with grace or to discuss it with the Chair.
Teaching Assistants
A Teaching Assistant (TA) may grade tests, hold review or discussion sessions for a
professor, or teach one or two classes for a professor. (See the Graduate Program
Director for more information)
The School of HTS has limited resources for TA’s and the following policy has been
established to deploy those resources for the maximum benefit of the students. The
School provides the following:
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One to two TA’s for large sections of survey classes HIST and SOC with 180
student enrollment caps
Course Reserves
The Library collaborates with faculty by making student assigned readings available on
Course Reserves. Most reserve readings are available electronically (Electronic
Reserves), while books, videotapes, and other items are made available at the Circulation
/ Reserves Desk on 1st floor East. Some examples of materials on Course Reserves
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include: class notes, homework solutions, course syllabi, articles, “Word” (previous
exams, quizzes, etc.), books, video-tapes, DVDs, etc. For more information, see:
http://www.library.gatech.edu/course_reserves/submit_reserves.html.
Start of Class
MWF classes begin at :05 after the hour and last fifty minutes, until: 55; TTH classes
begin at either :05 or: 35 after the hour and last seventy-five minutes. Whatever the class,
it is important to make clear to students the policy on tardiness and, of course, to set a
good example by coming to class on time oneself.
Book Orders
Soon after course schedules are set, faculty members will be asked to submit book orders
to: http://www.hts.gatech.edu/book_orders/ . The standard order is placed through the
Georgia Tech Bookstore, although some colleagues in HTS and other units are also using
Engineer’s Bookstore or some other alternative vendor. The only guidelines for book
orders are that the books assigned be of a reasonable number and price. It is also a good
idea to warn students that the bookstores begins returning texts around the middle of the
term, and books not purchased in the early part of the term may not be available by the
end of the term.
Syllabus
Every instructor should have a syllabus available for the students on the first day of class,
and preferably a day or so before for students who might want to inquire about the class.
There is (as yet) no set Institute form for the syllabus, but each one should contain the
following elements: name, office address, office phone number, and e-mail address of the
instructor and, if applicable, TA(s); a statement indicating that students should be familiar
with and adhere to the Georgia Tech Honor Code; a list of books and other readings;
weekly or daily reading and writing assignments; due dates for papers and exams;
grading policy, with weights assigned, various requirements (including, if appropriate,
class participation); and any other policies specific to the class (e.g. attendance). It is
useful for the Chair and the Directors to have copies of all syllabi on file so that they can
better advise students; accordingly, faculty members are expected to submit a copy of
their course syllabi to the Administrative Supervisor.
T-Square
T-Square is an online course management software that facilities faculty student
communication. This includes class rolls, assignment submissions, grading, providing
course syllabi, reading material, discussion boards, email, posting of web links and
lecture notes, etc. Please use T-Square in your classes, log on at http://tsquare.gatech.edu. CETL provides workshops and support for using such technologies in
the classroom.
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Drop Day
Instructors and students should be aware of Drop Day, the last day to drop a class with a
“W” on the transcript, is listed in the OSCAR. Although it is not technically a
requirement, it is customary for students to have received at least one significant grade in
the class by Drop Day so that they can have some sense of how they are doing. Students
should realize, though, that dropping a class before the deadline is their responsibility, not
that of the instructor.
Dead Week Policy
It is Georgia Tech policy NOT to give tests including final exams, or quizzes during the
week before finals. If this policy is violated, students are likely to submit a grievance.
Teaching Evaluations
Toward the end of the term, usually in the last week, students are encouraged to complete
teaching evaluations for their classes, using the standard form provided by the Center for
the Enhancement of Teaching and Learning (CETL) and, if the instructor so chooses, an
instrument of the instructor’s own design. CETL-initiated teaching evaluations are used
for other purposes as well, primarily as part of the reappointment, promotion and tenure,
and post-tenure review processes; all faculty members, especially junior and untenured
colleagues, are therefore well advised to develop a substantial record of teaching
evaluations in some form.
Grades
Instructors are responsible for submitting grades by the Monday morning after exam
week. It is inappropriate to leave a grade space blank, even if there is some confusion
about all or some of a student’s work being missing. In that case it is better to give the
student a tentative grade, even an “F,” and sort out the situation later. Incompletes (“I”)
are to be given only at the request of the student and only in cases of emergency or
unavoidable difficulty (e.g. sickness, death in the family, etc.). Students who request and
receive “I” grades should understand that the “I” turns into an “F” if the work is not
completed during the next term that s/he is enrolled. In turn, faculty members who grant
“I” grades should realize that it is their responsibility to be available to grade the
student’s work if it is submitted before the deadline. In cases where the student is graded
on a pass-fail (S/U) basis, faculty members should remember that C-level work is the
minimum for a passing grade. The School has forms for making grade changes, which
require a brief explanation from the instructor and the approval of the Chair.
Honor Violations
Instructors and TAs should become familiar with the provisions and procedures of the
Georgia Tech Honor Code, copies of which are available in the School and on the
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Georgia Tech web pages. In the event of a suspected Honor Code violation, it is best to
contact the office of the Dean of Students and not to accuse the student(s) on one’s own.
Undergraduate Mentoring Program
In 2010 a mentoring program for incoming first year and external transfer students was
put into place. Current HTS students who have finished at least their first year are eligible
to become mentors. They are required to participate in a one-hour training session and
are provided with a mentoring information notebook at the conclusion of the training.
All incoming students who are either first year students or transfer students from an
institution outside of Georgia Tech are assigned a mentor. Mentors typically have 1 – 2
mentees and location of residence is taken into consideration in pairing mentors and
mentees. Mentors are asked to keep in touch with their mentees via email, text, or phone
calls and to meet with them in person at least twice during the semester, preferably at a
campus location such as a coffee shop or the library. In addition, a mentor/mentee dinner
is held during the fall semester at an off-campus location
Faculty-Sponsored Speakers
Any members of the teaching faculty wishing to invite an off-campus speaker to address
the duly registered students of their regularly scheduled class, or a special session of their
scheduled class or seminar in the assigned classroom space is free to do so. When the
audience is expanded by open invitation or when centrally administered space is
requested in anticipation of a larger audience, however, the faculty member shall comply
with the following procedure:
•
The faculty member shall obtain written approval of his/her department head.
This written approval shall be submitted to the Office of the Associate Vice
President for Facilities as soon as possible by the department head so that
appropriate campus service organizations may be alerted.
•
If a change of facilities is involved, the speaker should not be invited or the event
advertised until approval of the use of space is received by the department.
III. INFORMATION, REFERENCE, AND RESEARCH SERVICES
The Library is a 24-hour professionally-staffed facility from Sunday at noon to Friday at
6:00 p.m. and Saturdays, 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. (access is limited to Georgia Tech
students, faculty, and staff from midnight to 7:30 a.m.). Hours are increased during prefinals and finals weeks and are reduced during school term breaks and holidays.
The Library’s Information Services Desk is located on the first floor of the Library’s
West building. Staff members at the Desk provide information, research and technical
assistance in person, via phone, email, or chat. Information, reference, and circulation
services also are provided in the Architecture Library on the first floor of the College of
Architecture building. Additionally, subject librarians are assigned to each teaching
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department or college, and Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI), for support in
instruction and research. Subject librarians offer orientations, instruction and
demonstrations for classes, groups, or individuals as well as customized instruction
geared toward specific classes and assignments. To locate a subject librarian, link to
http://www.library.gatech.edu/research_help/subject_librarians.html or call the
Information Services Department at 404-894-4530.
Subject librarians also are responsible for collection development and welcome faculty
and student input on library purchases. The ongoing relevancy of library resources to all
Institute degree programs is accomplished through a variety of means including: the
Libraries’ collection development policies: Information Services 197
http://www.library.gatech.edu/about_us/collection_dev/ and a web-based faculty /student
acquisitions’ form: http://www.library.gatech.edu/borrow_order/purchase_request.html.
The Information Services Desk in the Library West Commons (LWC) area is a joint
project between the Library and the Office of Information Technology (OIT). The LWC
consists of a state-of-the art 80-workstation computer cluster featuring an extensive array
of software and access to the Library’s electronic resources. Both information and
technical assistance is provided by full-time Library staff and student user assistants. WC
also includes a 20-workstation Multimedia Center featuring cutting-edge multimedia
production hardware and software. OIT staff members provide expert assistance, 8:00
a.m. to midnight most days, supporting student and faculty multimedia needs. In addition,
the Library partners with faculty to provide LWC cubicles as tutoring space for teaching
assistants. Adjacent to the LWC, the Presentation Rehearsal Studio is available for
students, featuring smart technology and digital video recording equipment. Technology
offered here replicates the computer-supported classrooms on campus.
Library Resources
The Libraries’ web site: http://www.library.gatech.edu is a comprehensive and userfriendly primary source of information about Library resources and services for both onand off-campus users. The web site provides access to the GT Catalog (GIL) [the
Library’s catalog of books, journals, reports, conference proceedings, etc.], over 250
databases, approximately 13,000 electronic journals, over 30,000 electronic books,
electronic reserves, subject guides, other library catalogs, and information about Library
services. The Library financially supports the majority of the resources made available to
Georgia Tech faculty, researchers, staff, and students. A subset of these resources from
GALILEO (Georgia Library Learning Online) and GIL are funded by the Governor and
the General Assembly for the University System of Georgia (USG). Databases and
full-text sources are available electronically both in the Libraries and at remote
locations. Instructions for authorization, authentication and access to the
Libraries’ resources are at:
http://www.library.gatech.edu/research_help/login.html. All electronic information
resources, including Course Reserves materials, provided for access by the Georgia Tech
Library and Information Center must be in compliance with U.S. copyright law, the
policies of the Board of Regents and the Institute, and any license or contract agreements.
Electronic content may be printed, downloaded, or emailed for personal use only. Further
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information on the fair use of copyrighted materials may be found in the Regents Guide
to Understanding Copyright and Educational Fair Use, and at the Georgia Tech Library
and Information Center Electronic Reserves “Copyright & Fair Use Guidelines”
http://www.library.gatech.edu/course_reserves/copyright.html.
IV. STANDARD DEPARTMENTAL POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
Staff Policies
Because the size of the administrative staff in the School is small, it is very important that
they all work as a team in fulfilling the School’s academic, research, and service
missions.
In addition, it is important that each member of the staff be subject to the same set of
policies as these relate to hours of work, personal phone calls, and absences from campus
for personal business.
The following guidelines will be strictly enforced in the School of HTS.
1. Each staff member is expected to work an eight-hour day, Monday through
Friday, with one hour for lunch. Subject to the requirement that at least one staff
member be in the office between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m., there is flexibility in
staff starting times. For example, one staff member might work between 7:30
a.m. and 4:30 p.m. while another works between 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m.
According to whatever arrangements have been made with the Chair. However, it
is not permissible to alter starting times day-to-day or week-to-week.
2. Personal phone calls are to be made and received sparingly. If a staff member has
completed all of his or her work, then as a member of an office team, it is
expected that the staff person will assist his or her office colleagues in helping the
office carry out its business.
3. Personal business is to be conducted either during one’s lunch hour or outside of a
staff member’s workday. In many cases, personal business can be scheduled so it
does not conflict with the workday. However, in the event that one must be
absent from the office outside the lunch hour for personal reasons, then the staff
member must:
a.
notify his or her supervisor when the appointment is made in order
to avoid staffing conflicts;
b.
deduct the time taken for the appointment from his/her vacation/
sick leave time.
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Comp Time
As an employer, Georgia Tech is subject to the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA or the
Act). Under the provisions of the Act, all clerical, technical, maintenance, custodial and
undergraduate student employees are considered nonexempt employees and, as such, are
covered by the Act. All executive and professional employees are exempt from the
provisions of the Act. Employees with research titles are also exempt from the
provisions of the Act. Research titles are comparable to the professional titles assigned to
academic faculty. Under no circumstances will overtime be paid or compensatory time
be granted to employees who are exempt from the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards
Act. Any questions as to whether an employee’s position is considered exempt or
nonexempt should be referred to the Compensation Administration Office in OHR at
(404) 894-8459. The Act requires that all non-exempt employees report hours worked on
a weekly basis on time sheets. The biweekly time sheets and time documents currently
being used as the mechanism for reporting hours worked satisfy this requirement.
Visitors in the Workplace
It is the policy of Georgia Tech to provide a workplace for all employees that is
professional and free from distraction. Individual department managers may impose
restrictions, which are considered appropriate to the successful operation of the individual
unit, on visitors in the workplace. Except when authorized by the departmenthead/manger, all visitors including relatives of employees, who do not have official
business with the department may be restricted from prolonged visits to the workplace.
Time spent attending to a personal visitor, especially a child, detracts from work
production of not only the employee, but also co-workers. In no case should the work
site become a substitute for a day care center. Institute work areas should be off limits to
anyone but employees authorized access to minimize physical risk to the individual as
well as risk to the Institute. However, if visitors must visit risk-associated areas, they
should be accompanied by an authorized employee.
Holidays
Georgia Tech celebrates 12 official holidays per year.
Accrued Sick Leave
Regular, full-time faculty accrues one day of sick leave per month. An employee who
has been employed for 12 months and has worked at least 1,250 hours during the
previous year is eligible for 12 weeks.
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