Greetings faculty colleagues,

Our work, in the Office of Faculty Affairs, often centers on faculty-related policies that impact your daily responsibilities. From approving processes like external activity reporting, differential allocations, and additional pay, to developing, interpreting, and implementing policies with campus partners, our efforts are guided by our core value of “equity.” We believe that good policy is inclusive, clear, fair, and free of unnecessary barriers.

We understand the significant role university policy plays in faculty life, and we are excited to announce an expansion in our capacity to serve in this area. Please join us in welcoming Meagan Patterson as our new Associate Vice Provost for Faculty Policy and Recognition! Meagan has recently served in our office as a Provost Fellow and will expand on much of her previous work in this new role as she takes on a leadership role in developing policy, reviewing policy processes and enhancing educational programming related to faculty policy. Additionally, she will develop and promote faculty recognition initiatives and coordinate campus-level faculty award committees within the Office of Faculty Affairs. Read more about Meagan's prior university experience and our goals for this new position at this link.  

As we continue to work together to revise, refine, and enhance faculty-related policies and procedures, we invite you to explore the policy resources available on our website. Our Getting to Good Policy page is especially helpful when developing or updating policy within your unit. Stay tuned for more updates and educational opportunities as we expand our policy portfolio with the addition of our new Associate Vice Provost role. 

As always, we will keep you informed through these monthly newsletters but also feel free to reach out directly to us at facultyaffairs@ku.edu if you have any questions in the meantime.  

Thank you for your continued partnership – wishing you a successful beginning to your spring semester! 

Amy Mendenhall 
Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs  
Professor, School of Social Welfare 

Faculty Finals Fest took place on December 11 and 12 to recognize and celebrate the incredible impact of faculty this past semester at KU. See more photos from Faculty Finals Fest in our Featured Facebook posts.

As the spring semester gets underway, we want to remind you of helpful resources from the Student Access Center, related to students with disabilities. Please visit the Instructor Center site for general instructor information on implementing academic accommodations, providing exam accommodations, recruiting a notetaker and other topics. You can also find a sample syllabus statement, guidance on working with students with temporary injuries, as well as general rights and responsibilities of both students and faculty. There is also an Instructor Portal on the SAC homepage, where instructors can log in to view and manage student accommodations.

Faculty often have questions about accommodations surrounding attendance and deadlines. Detailed information can be found in the Disability-Related Absence section of the SAC website. It is important that the SAC and instructors communicate about accommodations so a shared understanding can be made regarding the extent an accommodation is reasonable in your specific course. This process includes finalizing an agreement form via the SAC online system to ensure the student, instructor and SAC are all on the same page. Anytime faculty have questions about this or any accommodation, please reach out to the SAC. We are happy to consult with faculty individually, or even come to a department meeting to answer questions about the process.   

Don't forget to nominate an exceptional instructor for a University Teaching Award! The nomination and selection process will be open until 5:00 p.m. on Monday, February 3, 2025. Departments and schools are encouraged to think broadly and inclusively when considering nominees. 

Please review the following opportunities and nominate: 

As part of KU's strategic plan, Jayhawks Rising, the Office of Faculty Affairs presented their Strategic Alignment presentation last month. These presentations highlight areas of focus in which our mission and the Jayhawks Rising model align and contribute to advancing the University's priorities of research & discovery, healthy & vibrant communities, and student success, as well as priorities to focus on in the future. 

Below are a few highlights from our presentation.

As a reminder, the HLC Site Visit will take place on March 3-4, 2025. During the visit, the review team will ask KU administrators to pull previous and current syllabi in each modality (online; face-to-face) to assess the degree to which KU adheres to these standards and assumed practices.  It is critical that all syllabi are uploaded to the Simple Syllabus Repository by the 10th day of class (Monday, February 3, 2025) and that they comply with components outlined in KU’s Syllabus Policy. 

One way in which you can create a streamlined process is by creating your syllabi within Simple Syllabus. The internal audit of Fall 2024 syllabi found that syllabi created in Simple Syllabus were 97% to 100% policy compliant. CTE offers syllabus resources that are also available as you plan for the spring semester.  

Office of Civil Rights & Title IX invite you to connect with your community over hors d'oeuvres and a hot chocolate bar January 23 from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. at the Pub in the Jayhawk Welcome Center. Please RSVP at this link.

The Center for Teaching Excellence invites you to the Student Learning Symposium on January 31 in the Kansas Room of the Kansas Union. The symposium provides a yearly occasion for faculty, staff and administrators to reflect on the university's work in assessing student learning. Click here to register.

The Provost Office invites you to relax and connect with your co-workers during their upcoming Thank Goodness It’s Thursday get-together on February 20 at the Hawks Nest on the lower level of the Kansas Union. Free drinks (including wine, beer, seltzer and an assortment of non-alcoholic beverages) and light snacks will be provided. RSVP at this link.

This week’s Monday Motivator shares some great tips for getting your semester started on the right foot! Guidance on the first step in getting started: developing a clear and realistic strategic plan, can be found in one of NCFDD’s Core Curriculum Courses, Every Semester Needs a Plan. And we can help with the next two steps: committing yourself to at least 30 minutes of writing every day and connecting with a community of support, through our Spring Faculty Writing Circle! During our Writing Circle, you will carve out dedicated writing time for yourself, while being among peers who can help encourage you and keep you accountable. 

As a reminder, KU is an institutional member of NCFDD, which ensures all KU academic faculty and staff can register for an NCFDD membership at no additional cost. To join the NCFDD community, be sure to sign up here.   

The Provost invites nominations of candidates for up to two university distinguished professorships. These professorships are unrestricted and may be filled by a distinguished scholar in any field, although special consideration will be given to nominations of faculty from groups, fields, or disciplines that have limited representation among the individuals currently holding named or university distinguished professorships. Departments and schools are encouraged to think broadly and inclusively when considering nominees. A list of the current distinguished professors can be found at this link.

Read the call in its entirety at this link and find additional information on the nomination process on our Distinguished Professorships website.

The nomination process will remain open until Friday, February 21, 2025, at 5:00 p.m.

COACHE Survey Postponement

Faculty Senate, United Academics of KU, and KU Leadership have agreed to delay the next iteration of the COACHE Faculty Job Satisfaction Survey, which otherwise would have been delivered during the negotiations of our initial collective bargaining agreement. All parties are committed to shared governance and are working together to address concerns raised in the prior survey as we strengthen KU for our faculty, staff, and students.

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