Graduate Faculty

Qualifications of Graduate Faculty

The Graduate Faculty are the Louisiana Christian University faculty whose expertise and professional accomplishment are considered by their school deans or division chairs to be of superior quality, and as such appropriate for instruction of students enrolled in graduate degree programs.

Membership

Criteria for membership on the Graduate Faculty will be based upon demonstrable elements in three primary areas: A) Qualifications; B) Performance in program development activities; and C) Performance in academic activities.

Qualifications:

1. Membership on the Graduate Faculty shall be restricted to those who have an earned terminal degree (highest degree awarded in the discipline) in or related to the faculty member’s area of assigned graduate responsibility from an institution accredited by a recognized accrediting agency.
2. Graduate Faculty must hold the rank of Assistant Professor or higher.
3. Graduate Faculty must hold appropriate licenses if required for the program of study.
4. Graduate Faculty must be professionally active in their field of discipline.

1. Performance: Complete documentation must be provided for all the below.
   1. Authoring a book, or two or more book chapters in nationally recognized academic presses, or two articles in refereed journals in the last five years; juried invitations resulting in musical performance or art exhibition or an original work sponsored by an arts organization or institution of national scope or recognition or presentations at nationally refereed conference resulting in at least two publications in the last five years; or
   2. Authoring for regional, state, and non-refereed publications resulting in at least two publications in the last five years; juried invitations resulting in musical performance or art exhibition sponsored by an arts organization or institution, or regional or state resulting in at least two presentations in the last five years; or
   3. Authoring grant proposals and contracts resulting in at least one externally funded grant in the last five years; or
   4. Two presentations of professional, creative, and scholarly work during the last two years; or
   5. Holding offices in professional and scholarly organizations during at least two of the last three years.
   6. Participating in consulting, commissions, and other professional endeavors and/or service to enhance the graduate program during at least two of the last three years.
   7. For clinical faculty, appropriate professional experience or professional participation, such as continuing educational units, may be used in conjunction with or in lieu of scholarly activities.

2. Program Development Activities: These activities shall be conducted at the initiative of the faculty member or at the request of the school dean or division chair and documented and/or verified.
   1. Program development may include active participation in curriculum development, in the recruitment and retention of qualified graduate students, and in the development of resources or facilities for the enhancement of the graduate program.

3. Academic Activities: Teaching, policy making, advising, and directing activities to be conducted in accordance with essential needs of the mission of the graduate program shall include the following:
   1. Teaching a minimum of one graduate course per year as assigned by a school dean or division chair.
   2. Verified involvement in a graduate-level policy-making Graduate Council, advising students in the graduate curriculum and career matters, directing and/or serving on graduate committees for student research, internships, professional papers, recitals, and exhibitions, and assisting with the direction of the graduate program as needed.

School deans and division chairs have the authority to approve qualified individuals who do not hold membership on the Graduate Faculty to teach designated graduate courses. Such approval must be renewed every three years.

Privileges and Duties/Responsibilities

The privileges and duties/responsibilities of the membership on the Graduate Faculty include the following:

1. teaching graduate-level courses and seminars;
2. teaching graduate students effectively;
3. supervising and guiding graduate student research and study to its completion;
4. serving on the Graduate Council as needed;
5. participating in the formulation of graduate curriculum and policy;
6. ensuring graduate programs in their disciplines are relevant and high quality;
7. maintaining proficiency in their discipline.

Work Load

A faculty member who attains and maintains membership on the Graduate Faculty may be accorded a three-hour reduction in teaching load at the discretion of the school dean and/or division chair, and the Vice President for Academic Affairs.

Graduate Council

The Graduate Council receives information from graduate program heads and makes recommendations regarding admissions to graduate programs based on approved program admission policies; receives, studies, and makes recommendations to the graduate faculty concerning admission and/or curricular changes in graduate programs originating with individual departments; reviews and makes recommendations on proposals for new graduate programs; and monitors the evaluations of graduate programs in assessing the effectiveness of achieving specific program objectives. Committee membership includes the Vice President for Academic Affairs, the deans/chairs of each graduate school/division, additional graduate faculty members, and three administrative and/or staff members.

In addition, the Graduate Council is responsible for

• developing and establishing university policies and procedures for graduate work.
• establishing and maintaining the academic standards and regulations for graduate students and faculty.
• conducting continuous study of the graduate curriculum in its relation to the purpose of the institution.
• reviewing and approving modifications of existing graduate courses, course descriptions, and other curriculum changes—after departmental approval.
• reviewing and recommending for approval all new graduate programs or the deletion of graduate programs.
• functioning as the Graduate Appeals Committee to hear and determine graduate student appeals.
• functioning as the Graduate Admissions Committee to review admission applications and appeals for students who do not meet minimum admission requirements.
• designing and publishing the Graduate Catalog through the office of the VPAA.