The Auburn University senate proposed a new employment format for its instructors during a meeting Tuesday. The senate also discussed the possibility of changing the class registration process.
Under the current format, instructors who teach mostly "core classes" do not have the possibility of gaining tenure.
After an instructor has taught five years, that instructor must drop from 100 percent employment to 80 percent or lower. This allows instructors to retain health benefits, but does not allow them to qualify for tenure.
The new lecturer/senior lecturer option will allow instructors to remain at 100 percent employment after five years.
Kathryn Flynn, senate chair, said she feels this new format will provide better opportunities to faculty members.
"This new option will allow us to keep teachers who are not eligible for tenure at full-employment," she said.
The senate created this lecturer/senior lecturer proposal, in part, to help provide more security for instructors.
Michel Smith, chair of the non-tenure track instructor committee, explained the proposal to the senate.
"One of the purposes of this position series is the ability that (instructors) will have more security in their position," he said. "If you're upon termination, the individual will have the right to due process."
Professor Margaret Marshall, along with several other professors and senators, stressed the importance of the new format.
"Many other institutions, and institutions I have worked with that have these lecturer options," she said, "show these options help provide better job security and a better work environment for these lecturers."
The senate also announced the Academic Affairs Committee was looking to alter the current class registration process for students who need to add a class after the first class day.
The current process now forces students who need to register for a class after the first class day to get permission from the instructor and the department before the department manually registers a student for that class.
"This process can take up a lot of staff time," Flynn said.
The Academic Affairs Committee is looking to possibly extend the amount of time a student can register for the class to include the first class day. This process would allow the student to electronically register for the class without having to get permission from the department.
The amount of time a student would have to add the class is still under discussion.
"I think this makes sense," Flynn said. "It (current registration process) can be problematic for some students who have classes that conflict with each other."
The senate also formally approved a long-standing policy on final exams. This policy allows students who are scheduled to take three or more final exams on one calendar day to reschedule, so the student has no more than two final exams on one day.
This was Flynn's last meeting as senate chair.
"I appreciate all of the senate and faculty," she said, "for the opportunity to serve this university.
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