Policy & Committee

School of Architecture & Community Design Governance

STATEMENT ON ACADEMIC FREEDOM

Universities are institutions based on the principle of Academic Freedom. This constitutes the freedom to discuss all relevant matters in the classroom; to explore all avenues of scholarship, research, and creative expression; to speak freely on all matters of university governance; and to speak, write, or act as a public citizen without institutional discipline or restraint.

Protection of academic freedom shall be fundamental to the operation of the SACD.

STATEMENT ON COLLEGIALITY

The fundamental premise of this document is that all SACD Faculty, students, staff and administrators are dedicated to the successful operation and advancement of the mission of SACD in a collegial manner. Collegiality among and between Faculty, staff, and students is required behavior in the School. Faculty, staff, and students shall not speak to each other, or about each other, in a discourteous manner in public settings. Faculty, staff and students shall not use language or exhibit behavior that denigrates people for their age, class, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, religious affiliation, or sexual orientation.

STATEMENT ON DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION

In order to achieve and sustain excellence in education, the SACD aims to reflect a diversity of cultures with particular emphasis on those that have historically not had adequate representation in decision-making roles. Diversity is the range of human differences, including race, ethnicity, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, social class, physical ability or attributes, religious or ethical values system, national origin, and political beliefs. Inclusion is the act of welcoming and respecting diversity. The SACD is not currently a multi-campus unit. If unit faculty are hired at branch campuses we will modify our governance and Tenure & Promotion documents to ensure that those faculty are included in matters of faculty governance and T&P to ensure they have a voice in school issues. We recognize the principles of equity of assignment, resources and opportunities of faculty across a multi-campus university.

1. Mission Statement
2. Director
3. Assistant Director(s)
4. Faculty
5. Peer Review Committee
6. Annual Evaluations
7. Curriculum
8. Search Committee
9. Admissions Committee
10. Tenure and Promotion Committee
11. Promotion to Full Professor Committee
12. Governance Document Amendment

I. MISSION STATEMENT

The University of South Florida School of Architecture and Community Design (SACD) is committed to delivering a graduate level education that:

• Provides a holistic design curriculum through a variety of pedagogical approaches.
• Encourages individual and collaborative discoveries.
• Emphasizes continuity between design and construction.
• Builds technical and professional proficiency.
• Offers wide ranging global learning experiences.
• Provides opportunities for engagement with diverse communities.

And for students and faculty to conduct scholarly research and creative activity that:

• Is innovative, disciplinary, and interdisciplinary.
• Advances the understanding of the built environment and relative to society and culture.
• Contributes to theory and practice in the disciplines of architecture and urbanism.
• Is relevant to local communities.
• Advances the contemporary state of critical practice.
• Provokes (stimulates/instigates) critical discourse on architecture and urbanism.
• Explores (embraces) emerging technologies.

Our aim is to graduate professionals who will be recognized for their design excellence in enhancing the quality of the built environment.

II. DIRECTOR

Duties and Responsibilities include:

• • The areas listed are: Instruction related activities; University, College, and Unit Governance, Faculty, Staff and Students; Administrative; Development; Marketing; PR; Outreach; Budget; and Facilities.
• The Director shall serve as an advocate for faculty, staff and students and work to address the needs and concerns of the School.
• The Director shall seek the advice and consent of the faculty on the hiring of adjuncts, visiting faculty, and staff; assignment of curricular and production responsibilities; and allocation of budget and other resources.
• The Director will annually review tenured and non-tenured faculty, including adjuncts, visiting instructors, instructors, and tenure earning faculty, based on a class visitation, guest critic appearance, and/or review of faculty activity narrative. All full-time faculty shall submit an annual self-narrative.
• The Director will oversee the Master’s in Architecture program (M. Arch) and work closely with heads of the Florida Center for Community Design and Research (FCCDR) and the Master of Urban and Community Design program (MUCD) on issues of budget, personnel and pedagogy, as appropriate.

III. ASSISTANT DIRECTOR(S)

• Appointed by the Director as determined necessary to the operation of the SACD.
• Duties and Responsibilities may include:
  • Organizational liaison between the Director and Faculty, Staff and Students
  • Oversee school scholarships
  • Signatory for the Director as assigned
  • Special projects as assigned

IV. FACULTY

• Voting member composition:
  o Full-time Faculty on regular lines (tenured, tenure-track and non-tenure earning such as permanent instructors; on non-visiting lines).
• Non-voting members:
  • Adjunct, visiting, affiliate and courtesy faculty are non-voting members.
• All Faculty members should attend faculty meetings. Adjunct faculty members and visiting faculty may also request or be asked to attend on occasion.
• Faculty meetings of SACD will take place once a month or more, when necessary.
• All full-time faculty are responsible for submitting their annual self-narrative as outlined in Section 5.
• Functions of Faculty meetings:
  • The function of the faculty meetings is to discuss and decide with the Director all matters pertaining to the purpose and function of the academic unit. These matters include but are not limited to: curriculum, scholarship money, direction and the strategic goals of the unit, student progress, student disciplinary problems, budget allocations, and tenure / promotion (tenured Faculty only).
    o Given the modest size of the SACD faculty, the faculty shall serve, for most governance matters, as a committee of the whole.
    o A quorum for meetings is defined as over 50 percent of the voting members in residence in a given semester. Members of the quorum are present in person, by conference call, or by other forms of telecommunication that allow real-time participation for listening and discussion.
• Affiliate and Courtesy Faculty Appointments:
  • Courtesy faculty are from outside of USF (typically other Universities) but are not on the SACD payroll; Affiliate faculty members are from within USF (typically other departments) but not on SACD payroll; Courtesy and Affiliate faculty appointments are made by the Director to promote research, support creative activities, and enhance intra- disciplinary work in support of the SACD academic mission.
• Faculty Senate Seat: SACD will hold elections whenever the Faculty Senate seat for the school is vacant. The result will be forwarded to the Faculty Senate Office.

V. PEER REVIEW COMMITTEE

• Member composition: all faculty, full-time tenured or tenure earning. The membership of the committee will elect one or two faculty member(s) to serve as chair(s) and facilitator(s).
• Annually, the Peer Review committee will prepare a narrative statement of the progress that tenure-earning faculty members are making. They will us the FIS Archivum system to provide a full evaluation. It will also include suggestions that will help the candidate successfully receive tenure.
• The committee will review the annual self-narrative for all full-time regular faculty including visiting faculty, instructors and research faculty. Tenure-track faculty (not yet tenured) will not peer review tenured faculty.

VI. ANNUAL EVALUATIONS

• Purpose: The purpose of the annual evaluation is to assess and communicate the nature and extent of an employee's performance of assigned duties consistent with the criteria specified herein. Annual Evaluations will be conducted per the University of South Florida / United Faculty of Florida Collective Bargaining Agreement, Article 10.
• Process: The USF FIS Archivum system is used in the review process. Faculty must enter an overview of activities following the criteria herein. Faculty are encouraged to submit images of creative works, design studios and so forth as appropriate. Faculty will submit their overview of activities on a calendar-year basis (spring – summer – fall semesters) by the start of classes each spring. The Director will review and provide assessments within 30 days of faculty submittal.
• Criteria: The annual performance evaluation shall be based upon assigned duties, and shall carefully consider the nature of the assignments, in terms, where applicable, of:

1. Teaching
   
   Teaching effectiveness, including effectiveness in presenting knowledge, information, and ideas by means or methods such as lecture, discussion, assignment and recitation, demonstration, laboratory exercise, practical experience, and direct consultation with students. The evaluation shall include consideration of effectiveness in imparting knowledge and skills, and effectiveness in stimulating students' critical thinking and/or creative abilities, the development or revision of curriculum and course structure, and adherence to accepted standards of professional behavior in meeting responsibilities to students. The evaluator may take into account class notes, syllabi, student exams and assignments, and any other materials relevant to the employee's teaching assignment. The teaching evaluation must take into account any relevant materials submitted by the employee, including the results of peer evaluations of teaching, and may not be based solely on student evaluations when this additional information has been made available to the evaluator.
   
   
2. Research / Creative Activities
   
   Contribution to the discovery of new knowledge, development of new educational techniques, and other forms of creative activity. Evidence of research and other creative activity shall include, but not be limited to, published books; articles and papers in professional journals; design competitions; commissioned projects and buildings both built and unbuilt; papers presented at meetings of professional and academic societies; research and creative activity that has not yet resulted in publication or exhibition; grants and contracts. The evaluation shall include consideration of the employee's productivity, including the quality and quantity of what has been done during the year, and of the employee's research and other creative programs and contributions; and recognition by the academic or professional community of what is done.
   
   
3. Public Service
   
   Public service that extends professional or discipline-related contributions to the community; the State, including public schools; and the national and international community. This public service includes contributions to scholarly and professional organizations and governmental boards, agencies, and commissions that are beneficial to such groups and individuals.
   
   
4. Governance / Administration
   
   Participation in the governance processes of the institution through significant service on committees, councils, and senates, beyond that associated with the expected responsibility to participate in the governance of the institution through participation in regular departmental or college meetings.
   
   
5. Other Assigned Duties
   
   Other assigned university duties, such as advising, counseling, supervision of interns, and academic administration, or as described in a Position Description, if any, of the position held by the employee.

• Ranking of criteria: These criteria are ranked on a 1-5 scale with five being the high ranking:
  5.0: Outstanding
  4.5: Strong to Outstanding
  4.0: Strong
  3.5: Satisfactory to Strong 3.0: Satisfactory
  2.5: Weak to Satisfactory 2.0: Weak
  1.5: Unacceptable to Weak 1.0: Weak

  n/a: Not Applicable

VII. CURRICULUM

• Member composition: The faculty will serve as a committee of the whole on major curricular matters, notwithstanding the Curriculum Committee as described below. Said matters will be placed on the agenda of a regular faculty meeting and discussed as required. Additional special meetings may be called to address curricular matters.
• The faculty initiates, reviews and approves independent study proposals, new course proposals, and other matters that affect the curricula of the SACD. When necessary, issues approved by the School will go to the appropriate college and university committees for review and approval.
• In addition, the SACD will assess on a continuing basis all architecture and urban design courses, particularly as related to NAAB accreditation.
• The structure of the curriculum emerges from the collective will of the faculty and director, taking into account NAAB accreditation expectations, professional expectations, overarching pedagogical strengths of the faculty, adjunct faculty and visiting faculty. Academic area coordinators will be appointed by the Director and will meet as the Curriculum Committee. The chair of the Curriculum Committee shall be elected by the committee membership. Academic areas will be represented as follows and should meet at least twice each semester:
  • Undergraduate studio coordinator (includes all design related coursework in undergraduate sequence)
  • Core Studio coordinator (Core 1-3)
  • Advanced Graduate Studio coordinator (all advanced design studios)
  • Technology coordinator
  • History/Theory coordinator

VIIII. ADMISSIONS COMMITTEE

• Member composition for Graduate Core Admissions: The teaching faculty in the Graduate Core Studio sequence will serve as the admissions committee for Graduate Core applications each spring (three faculty total). A committee chair will be elected. If a Graduate Core faculty cannot participate, the Director will appoint a member.
• Member composition for Advanced Graduate Admissions: The Director will appoint a committee of three faculty to review advanced graduate applicants. A committee chair will be elected.

X. TENURE AND PROMOTION COMMITTEE

• Member composition: The committee shall consist of all tenured faculty. The committee will elect one member to serve as chair.

XII. GOVERNANCE DOCUMENT AMENDMENT

• This document may be amended by a 2/3 vote of the faculty of the University of South Florida School of Architecture and Community Design.

Approved: 06.10.2020
Amended: 09.23.2020
Approved by the Provost’s office 1-21-2021