The Report of the CSU Faculty Workload Study Group

AS-2606-03/FA - March 6-7, 2003

RESOLVED: That the Academic Senate of the California State University (CSU) thank the CSU Faculty Workload Study Group and commend them for their efforts, which resulted in the CSU Faculty Workload Report and the Comparable Faculty Workload Report as well as the accompanying Findings and Recommendations; and be it further

RESOLVED: That the Academic Senate CSU recommend that campus senates review the report together with the study group's findings and facilitate campus-based discussions to develop strategies for aligning faculty duties and responsibilities so that they are competitive with those at peer institutions; and be it further

RESOLVED: That the Academic Senate CSU recommend that campus senates develop methods to evaluate a faculty member's total contribution to the institution; and be it further

RESOLVED: That the Academic Senate CSU urge that the Chancellor's Office work with the Academic Senate CSU and with the California Faculty Association (CFA) to identify best practices that each campus can use to implement the recommendations stated in the report; and be it further

RESOLVED: That the Academic Senate CSU work with the Chancellor's Office and the CFA in an effort to educate the legislature regarding the workload of the CSU faculty, specifically relative to the workloads of faculty at peer institutions.

RATIONALE: A high quality university system must provide faculty with adequate time to engage in teaching, scholarship, and service activities. While satisfaction among CSU faculty has increased over the past ten years, faculty have generally indicated a desire to spend more time doing research and creative activities.

Because faculty in the CSU already work significantly more hours per week on average (50.28 hours) than faculty at peer institutions (47.25 hours), making greater time available for research and creative activities cannot simply be accomplished by a further increase in the CSU faculty workload. Rather, campuses should develop various models and strategies that recognize the many different faculty contributions that are necessary to offer a high quality education. This would allow faculty to develop a workload that builds upon their individual strengths. Unless we align our workload with national norms with respect to teaching, research/creative activities, and service, the CSU will suffer in its efforts to recruit and retain the next generation of well-qualified faculty.

APPROVED UNANIMOUSLY - March 8-9, 2003