Meredith Herald
Volume XV, Issue 22
We attract bright, talented, ambitious students. Naturally, we’re a women’s college. March 17,1999
On the
inside:
Study offers chance to understand workload
□ MCA trav
els to Charlotte
to build Habi
tat houses for
spring break.
Page 2
□Aqua Angels
prepare for
Themes from
the Silver Screen
this week.
Page 5
□ Cibo Matto
make rare NC
appearance.
Page 6
Meredith Herald
at
Meredith College
3800 Hillsborough St.
Raleigh, NC 27607
(919) 760-2824
FAX (919) 760-2869
Email;
cattent@metedidxedu
□ The Faculty Affairs
Committee initiates fac
ulty work load study.
Kristen Bostedo
Siarf Repofter
The Faculty Affairs Com
mittee is conducting a study
this semester on how exactly
the professors at Meredith
spend the majority of their
school related time. Michael
Novak, head of the history and
politics department at Mered
ith, is heading the study for the
committee.
Although participation in
this study is voluntary, all fac
ulty have chosen to take part.
This Faculty Work Load Study
lasted 10 weeks. The first step
in the study was asking all fac
ulty to fill out a survey request
ing information on their work
loads. The surveys were then
sorted into categories of facul
ty; new faculty, faculty in lab
or studio classes, and faculty
directing departments or pro
grams and others-
The second step was asking
all full-time faculty to track
two full weeks with a daily
time log that would show how
Iheir time was spent. The log
was divided into four sections
of faculty duties.
The first, teaching, includes
class time, class preparation
and grading. The second, pro
fessional development, identi
fies time professors spend on
attending professional work
shops, conducting research and
taking part in other enhanced
development within their fields
of study.
The third category was non
teaching academic duties,
which are responsibilities the
professor has within the school
or department. These include,
but are not limited to, commit
tees for the administration of
departments or programs and
departmental meetings or
work.
Finally, there is a column
called "time with students.”
This column is used to record
the time faculty spend in con
ferences, advising or being
involved with campus events
where they can interact with ail
students-
To ensure accuracy, the two
weeks that each faculty mem
ber tracks are not consecutive
and are chosen at random.
There is no set schedule and
the professor is notified direct
ly priOT to the week he or she
should track.
After the professor has
tracked the first week, he or she
is asked to tally the hours and
turn them into the Faculty
Affairs Committee. The proce
dure is then followed again for
the second week that he or she
is requested to track.
At the end of the study, all
full-time faculty will be asked
to reflect on their individual
time logs and make sugges
tions about what would have
helped them the most.
Once all of the logs have
been received, the Faculty
Affairs Committee has the task
of processing the information
to decide how the majority of
professors’ time is actually
spent. Rhonda Zingraff of the
sociology department will
oversee this part of the study. A
few faculty have volunteered to
track the entire 10 weeks in
their work logs. With this type
of information compared to the
statistical representation, accu
racy is almost assured.
Although many opinions
exist about where the faculty
spend their hours, there has
never actually been a systemat
ic study of how time is spent.
The Faculty Work Load Study
is a way to measure and come
up with systematic evidence.
Novak feels that it is an
excellent time for a study of
this nature to take place. On
one hand, the Initiative 2000
Strategic Plan calls for new
partnerships in learning
between faculty and students.
Consequently, the opportunity
for more partnerships within all
of the Meredith community
exist with a new president tak
ing office this summer.
Said Novak, “1 am opti
mistic that the study will give
us rigorous and meaningful
answers to the question of
where our time currently goes
and what .sort of changes will
make it possible to be better
teachers and advisors."
all full-time faculty to track students. track the entire 10 weeks m
See WORK LOAD page 4
Trustees approve new $27.8 million budget
□ More spending will executive vice president. pas-wide information system to the College.
□ More spending will
mean a hike in tuition,
romn and board.
Press Release
Onice ot Marketing & Communications
During their semi-annual
meeting on Feb. 26, Meredith’s
Board of Trustees approved a
6.46% increase in the College
operating budget for the 1999-
2000 fiscal year.-The budget
includes a 5% increase in
tuition, room and board ($450
increase in tuition; $200
increase in room and board) for
full-time students and a $15 per
credit hour increa.se in tuition
for part-time students, still
keeping Meredith among the
least costly private colleges in
the state. The tuition increase
plus a slight increase in student
enrollment contribute to the
approved increase in budget,
according to Charles Taylor,
executive vice president.
Over 60% of Meredith’s
operating budget for 1999-
2000 will be expended for
salary and benefits of the Col
lege’s faculty and staff. This
budget includes an increase in
compensation for continuing
employees. Except for some
specific program enhance
ments, non-personnel depart
mental expenses are capped at
2.5% of current budgeted
amounts.
According to Taylor, the fol
lowing 14 new initiatives and
enhancement were approved
for the 1999-2000 operating
budget;
• Increase in adjunct teach
ing sections to support the final
phase of the exercise and sports
science major.
• Funds to distribute the
new promotional video to
prospective students.
• Staff support for the cam-
pu.s-wide information system
project.
• Combining seven adjunct
teaching sections to create one
new full-time position in interi
or design.
• Combining five adjunct
teaching sections to create one
new full-time position in social
work.
• Fund 22 credit hours of
instruction by adjunct profes
sors in child development and
provide additional supplies for
the B-K certificate program.
• Increased clerical support
for the teacher licensure pro
gram in the Department of
Education.
• Fund a part-time recruiter
for the graduate school, a posi
tion which was temporarily
funded for 1998-99.
• Fund a contract with an
outside company to conduct a
phonathon directed toward
alumnae who have never given
to the College.
• Funding for a special pro
motional program to encourage
young alumnae to become con
sistent givers to Meredith.
• Fund a summer stipend
for the human environmental
sciences department head’s
work with the graduate pro
gram in nutrition.
• Fund a half-time position
for an assistant to the College
controller.
• Funding to continue an
expanded search mailing,
which was started in the 1998-
99 year with program develop
ment funds.
• Funding for a disabilities
coordinator to .serve students
with physical and learning dis
abilities.
In addition to approving the
operating budget, the trustees
also approved several capital
See BUDGET page 4