Applies to:	Original Policy Date:	Date of Last Review:	Approved by:
Full-Time Faculty	September 4, 2024	September 4, 2024	Dr. John Z. Kiss Provost and Senior VP for Academic Affairs

Policy Owner: Office of the Provost

Policy Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to establish a clear framework for compensating university full-time faculty members who are assigned to duties beyond their standard full-time load.

Policy Scope

This policy applies to all full-time faculty members.

Policy Statement

Florida Institute of Technology recognizes the importance of maintaining a balanced workload for all faculty members to ensure the excellence in teaching, research/scholarly activity, and service. Faculty overload occurs when a full-time faculty member is assigned additional duties beyond the standard full-load, resulting in a workload that exceeds 100% of the faculty member’s base time in an academic term. This policy provides a process for identifying, requesting, reviewing, and approving faculty overload to ensure that an overload assignment is fair, reasonable, and compensated appropriately.

Florida Tech shall adhere to the procedures and guidelines described herein.

• Full-time faculty members may be given an overload assignment when their expected duties exceed the standard full-time load in an academic term.
• Full-time faculty members who receive an overload assignment shall be compensated as described herein.
• Faculty members who use research grant funds or other resources to “buyout” of a course to reduce their teaching load may not receive an overload assignment.

Procedures/Guidelines

A full-time faculty member’s primary responsibilities include a combination of teaching, research/scholarly activity, service, or, for library faculty, librarianship. A full-time faculty member’s standard full-time load is divided into five units per academic semester, each representing 20% of the faculty member’s base time. The specific balance and expectations for these activities may vary based on the faculty member’s academic appointment. Unless otherwise agreed upon in writing with the supervisor, duties, responsibilities, and assignment of a full-time faculty member must be consistent with the expectations established for the faculty member’s track and rank within their respective academic unit.  See also Faculty Load Policy.

An overload assignment occurs when a full-time faculty member is assigned to teach or perform other duties, including but not limited to administrative service, that would constitute a workload beyond the faculty member’s standard full-load (equivalent to 100% of the faculty member’s base time) in an academic term. An overload may only be assigned when no other viable option is available to resolve the circumstances that are leading to the potential overload situation.

• To avoid faculty overload, the supervisor is expected to make strategic rearrangements such as redistributing tasks among other faculty members, hiring part-time staff (e.g., adjuncts), or temporarily reducing the faculty member’s other obligations such as service or administrative duties (e.g., program chair).
• The supervisor must provide written justification as to why the faculty member is requested to be assigned additional duties that push their total workload beyond the standard five-unit load (100% of faculty-time).
• An individual faculty member may not be assigned more than one-unit (20% of the faculty member’s base time) as overload per academic term.
• A faculty member who “buys out” of a course to reduce their teaching load may not be given an overload assignment. Academic unit heads should consider whether an overload situation in the academic unit is foreseeable before granting buy-out requests.
• The Provost has authority to approve or deny the overload assignment for any reason.

Compensation for Overload

Compensation for an overload shall be provided one of two agreed-upon ways:

1. For each unit of overload assigned to a full-time faculty member, he or she shall be compensated by
   1. 10% of his or her annual salary in addition to the faculty member’s full-time salary per:
      • 16-week fall or spring term
      • 8-week fall or spring term where courses are delivered face-to-face or synchronously online, or
   2. with a salary supplement equal to the standard online adjunct pay per 8 week fall or spring term where online courses are delivered asynchronously.
2. For a unit of overload assigned to a full-time faculty member in an academic term, the faculty member will receive an equal amount of load reduction from a subsequent fall or spring term within the same academic year. The Supervisor is responsible for managing faculty workload to ensure equitable distribution of duties and prevent cascading overload issues.

Overload compensation will be processed according to the university’s payroll schedule.

Documentation and Approval Process

All overload assignments and associated compensation must be documented and approved by the department chair, dean, and the Provost according to the process described below.

1. Submission of Overload Request: The supervisor consults with the faculty member the terms of proposed overload assignment, including expectations, responsibilities, and compensation. The supervisor submits a written formal overload request to the Dean’s Office, including
   • Rationale for the overload, including actions taken to attempt to mitigate or eliminate the circumstances leading to the overload;
   • Description of the additional duties and expected time commitment;
   • Anticipated duration of the overload (not exceeding one academic term); and
   • Potential impact on existing responsibilities (if any).
2. Preliminary Review: The Dean reviews and evaluates the supervisor’s overload request. The Dean may require modification of the request prior to making a decision to support or deny the overload request. If supported, the Dean makes a recommendation to the Provost, confirming the need for an overload assignment.
3. Final Decision: The Provost provides a final decision to approve, modify, or deny the overload request. If approved, the written agreement is required to be signed by the faculty member, dean, and the Provost to confirm mutual understanding and acceptance of the terms of overload, including assigned work, expectations, and salary compensation.

Definitions

Full-time Faculty: See FH 2.5.1 Full-time Faculty Definition in the Faculty Handbook

Standard Full-Time Load: A full-time faculty member’s standard load is constituted by five units, each unit representing 20% of faculty-time for which a base salary is paid, per academic term. The five units are generally expected to consist of some combination of teaching, research/scholarly activity, service, or, for library faculty, librarianship. A unit need not be exclusively dedicated to teaching, research/scholarly activity, service, or librarianship.

Overload: An overload occurs when a full-time faculty member is assigned duties beyond his or her standard full-time load, and the standard load cannot be rebalanced such that the additional duties can still reasonably fit into the standard load.

Academic Term: 16-week Fall or Spring term, or 8-week Fall-1, Fall-2, Spring-1, or Spring-2 terms.

Librarianship: Professional library duties that support the academic mission of the institution, including but not limited to reference services, information literacy instruction, collection development, library systems and technology management, digital initiatives, etc.

Responsibilities

Faculty Members are responsible for

• accurately assessing their ability to take on additional duties and for communicating any concerns about potential overload; and
• adhering to the agreed-upon terms of the overload assignment.

Supervisors are responsible for

• evaluating overload requests, considering the faculty member's current workload, and ensuring that any approved overload aligns with institutional goals and faculty well-being;
• providing ongoing support to faculty members under overload agreements and monitor their workload to prevent reduced job performance; and
• managing faculty workload to ensure equitable distribution of duties and prevent cascading overload issues.

Deans are responsible for

• evaluating and assessing overload recommendations submitted by the faculty’s supervisor; and
• ensuring the supervisor was unable redistribute tasks among other faculty members to avoid overload assignment.

Office of the Provost is responsible for

• the final review of overload requests; and
• ensuring that overload requests comply with institutional policies and workload limits.

Human Resources, in conjunction with the Office of the Provost, is responsible for

• maintaining records of overload agreements; and
• ensuring that overload agreements are equitable and sustainable across the institution.

Compliance Reference

The university’s faculty members for the professional exemption. Faculty members are usually engaged in teaching, research, and scholarly activities, which align with the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)s professional exemption criteria. They are not subject to the overtime provisions of the FLSA. Any additional compensation for extra overload teaching is handled in accordance with the universities policy, but it does not alter their exempt status.

SACSCOC Standards 6.1, 6.2.b.

See also Faculty Load Policy.