Here you will find theoretical and practical information of all sorts to help you teach UBalt students. Explore, enjoy, benefit and email Associate Dean Ron Castanzo if you have any questions, comments or suggestions about the content of this guidebook.
If you are teaching at the Universities at Shady Grove, reference the Universities at Shady Grove Faculty Guidebook.
The Hiring Process
Adjunct faculty members are initially hired by division chairs, program directors or core course coordinators (that is, full-time faculty members or administrators) within the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS). Some adjunct faculty members have applied in response to an advertisement, others are professional colleagues of existing faculty members and some are UBalt alumni or staff members. Adjunct faculty members must meet certain educational and professional standards to be appointed to teach courses at the bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral levels.
Adjunct faculty members’ salaries are based on the level of course they will teach and the highest degree they have earned. The College of Arts and Sciences does not distinguish among ranks for adjunct faculty members.
The hiring process requires recommendation for hire from the academic program, approval by the associate dean, completion of certain application forms and submission of various documents.
To learn more about the hiring and evaluating processes for CAS adjuncts, please click here.
Adjunct faculty are not required to complete timesheets for their adjunct teaching responsibilities. In the spring and fall semesters adjunct faculty are paid twice; in the summer semester adjuncts are paid once, given the contract is submitted to the Office of Human Resources prior to the first day of the semester. For more information, see the Adjunct Hiring Checklist .
View the current Pay Schedules.
Paystubs are not distributed to your UBalt mailbox in hard copy. Those employees who have not applied for direct deposit will receive their paychecks via mail, at their home addresses only.
Learn more about UBalt Payroll
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Adjunct faculty members should address questions related to the courses they will teach to the faculty member who hired them. They should address questions about the hiring process and contracts to Sonja Journee (410.837.5355), business services specialist in the Office of the Dean, Academic Center, Room 249.
UBalt's Adjunct Faculty Policy
Getting Started
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ADMINISTRATIVE SUPPORT
Your divisional administrative assistant or academic program specialist can provide support in:
- locating your mailbox and the division's adjunct office; you are encouraged to check your mailbox regularly for student correspondence, University notifications and student evaluation packets.
- photocopying
- placing textbook orders
- identifying and completing various academic forms: administrative withdrawal, grade change, request for Incomplete "I" grade, etc.
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Division of Science, Information Arts and Technologies
Vineda Myers, administrative assistant II
410.837.6222
Academic Center, Room 200Division of Legal, Ethical, and Historical Studies
Claudette Booth, administrative assistant II
410.837.4186
H. Mebane Turner Learning Commons, Room 300Division of Applied Behavioral Sciences
Angela Miller, program administrator and counseling adviser
410.837.6282
H. Mebane Turner Learning Commons, Room 401Klein Family School of Communications Design
Gary Sieck, administrative assistant II
410.837.6038
Liberal Arts and Policy Building, Room 317
COMPUTER ACCOUNT/UBalt NETID
Your NetID allows access to MyUB, email, UBalt office computers, the campus wireless network and computers in UBalt computer labs. NetIDs for adjunct faculty members are active for one calendar year from the start of their contracts. If the contract is renewed, so is the calendar year of NetID account activation. If you teach at least one semester per year, you should not experience interruptions in your account activity. Once an account is deactivated (meaning you cannot use it to log in to UBalt systems), it is maintained as an inactive account for approximately two semesters; should you be rehired during that two-semester period, the account can be reactivated easily.
HUMAN RESOURCES INFORMATION
The HR Self Service area of MyUB allows you to view and change your personal information (My Personal Information link), view current and past paychecks (View Paycheck link), and view and update your education and personal development information (Education and Personal Dev link) with the Office of Human Resources. Note that you should notify the Office of the Dean about education and personal development updates, too, as these can positively influence your salary.
You can also browse other pertinent human resources information in the Human Resources Information area of MyUB.
For more information about employment of adjunct faculty, please see the UBalt policy guide.
Payroll Online Service Center
Go green and enroll to access your payroll information electronically, including pay stub history, W-2 forms, address update functions, direct deposit authorization and W-4 withholding changes.
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Sexual harassment policies
- University System of Maryland policy
- University of Baltimore policy
- Procedure for filing complaints of sexual harassment
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Student grievances regarding sexual harassment
See the nonacademic grievances section; these are handled through the Office of Community Life .
MYUB: OUR ELECTRONIC GATEWAY TO ALL TRANSACTIONAL BUSINESS
Through MyUB, our secure online portal for transaction business, you can access your email and your personal data storage drives (M, R, H and S: see the OTS glossary for more information about these drives). You can also view course-related information, enter grades and email your rosters.
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Logging in to MyUB
There are three ways to log in to MyUB:
- From the University of Baltimore website, www.ubalt.edu, click on "MyUB" in the blue header section.
- From any computer and with any browser, visit www.ubalt.edu/myub
- From any computer and with any browser, visit http://myub.ubalt.edu.
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Viewing your class schedule
- Log in to the MyUB portal.
- Click on My Faculty Center.
- Select the appropriate term.
- Your schedule for the selected term will display.
E-COMMUNICATIONS
All official UBalt email business must be conducted via a UBalt email account; your UBalt email account can be forwarded to your personal email address for your convenience. (See the official email policy.)
Everything you've ever wanted to know about UBalt email and more
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Access your email through Outlook Web Access
- Log in to the MyUB portal.
- In the Tools section (upper, right-hand corner), click on “Email” (top left icon).
- Outlook Web Access will open in a new window.
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You can email your entire class using My Faculty Center on the MyUB portal.
- Log in to the MyUB portal.
- Click on My Faculty Center.
- In your class schedule, click on the class roster icon for the appropriate class.
- At the bottom of the roster, click “Notify Listed Students.” (You can also email a selected group of students by clicking on the check boxes next to their names and then clicking "Notify Selected Students.")
- You'll see a screen from which you can email these students.
You can learn more about how to view your class roster or browse portal help topics.
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Assignment submission through FTP
The University provides special drop box-style FTP (File Transfer Protocol) sites as alternatives to using Sakai and email for student work submissions (especially if they're submitting large files). Rather than asking students to email you their assignments, thus requiring you to save attachments from individual emails and organize them for storage, students can “drop” their assignments into the FTP drop box. This method prevents students from seeing each other's work but allows you to access the assignments through the FTP site or download them as a group to your computer.
To set up an FTP drop box, contact the Office of Technology Services, 410.837.6262.
Frequently asked questions (about all things electronic)
ONLINE COURSE MANAGEMENT
Access UBalt’s online course management tool, UBOnline (powered by Canvas), from the Tools menu in MyUB. To access UBOnline, use your UBalt username and password. If you want a Canvas class site to support your course, please contact Constance Harris (410.837.4087), director of online learning in the Center for Excellence in Learning, Teaching, and Technology, to set up the Canvas site.
ACADEMIC CALENDAR
View the academic calendar for the current semester, or reference the course offerings for each semester.
Logistics
UBalt BEE CARD
The Bee Card is your official University ID card. Once your contract has been processed by the Office of Human Resources, visit the Office of Campus Card Operations in the Academic Center, Room 105, to obtain your Bee Card; you'll need a form of photo ID to have your Bee Card issue.
The Bee Card is required to use library services, including checking out library books. Showing your Bee Card at the Barnes & Noble at the University of Baltimore makes you eligible for a 10 percent discount. Bee Cards may also be necessary for eligibility for various faculty/teaching privileges and discounts with outside vendors and retailers.
PARKING
Adjunct faculty members can select one of two options to park in campus facilities (see the campus map). Your Bee Card serves as your parking access card.
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Two parking options are available to adjunct faculty:
- flat monthly rates to park at either the Maryland Avenue Garage ($15/month) or the Fitzgerald Garage ($32.50/month); you must set up a parking account to take advantage of this option
- a flat daily rate of $5, payable by credit/debit card, Bee Card or cash each time you park; no account is required
Visit the UBalt parking website for more information.
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Before creating your parking account, make sure you have the following information handy:
- your UBalt ID number (listed on your paycheck and accessible on your MyUB MyHR page by clicking "Payroll, Taxes and Salary," then "View Paycheck," then locating "Employee ID;" note this is not your UBalt username) and UBalt email address
- your vehicle information (make, model, color, license plate number and state of issuance) for every vehicle you plan to park in a UBalt parking facility
- your driver's license number and state of issuance
- your payment information, including your credit/debit card number and card expiration date.
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To apply for a flat monthly rate:
- Access the PMI website for UBalt parking registration.
- Select the link for adjunct faculty under "Employee Resources" on the right-hand side of the page.
- Log in or select "Click Here!" below the "Submit" button.
- Select an account location: 30301-1102-1104 for the Maryland Avenue Garage or 30313 for The Fitzgerald Garage.
- Fill out the form. Type your UBalt employee ID number into the first field, which requests “Faculty/Employee #.” Click "Submit."
- You will receive additional information by email.
Your Bee Card serves as your garage entry card. Once you have selected your preferred parking option, your Bee Card will be activated for use.
Visit the UBalt parking website for more information.
TEXTBOOK ORDERING
Your academic program specialist can help you submit textbook orders or you can order them yourself through Barnes & Noble at the University of Baltimore.
You should order textbooks for your class as soon as possible through the Faculty page of the bookstore's website. (Alternatively, you can access the UBalt bookstore's home page and click on "Faculty Resources" in the top, right-hand corner.) Register to submit course and book information, review books used for courses in previous terms, select new titles and provide the bookstore with additional information about course and book needs.
If you are not using any text materials, you must indicate this through the bookstore's website.
You may want to reference the bookstore's frequently asked questions about textbook ordering.
PRINTING
Learn more about printing in the labs.
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Copyright, electronic and hard copy reserves information
- copyright information
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electronic reserves information
Students have access, from both on and off campus, 24 hours a day, seven days a week to password-protected electronic versions of book chapters, journal articles, documents, Power Point presentations, spreadsheets, etc., that you identify for your courses. The library will handle copyright compliance, assisting faculty by seeking permissions, acquiring materials and help to sort out the somewhat complicated rules of Fair Use. -
hard copy reserves
In addition to electronic reserves, Robert L. Bogomolny Library also offers traditional hard copy reserves, allowing students to access books and media items (DVDs, VHS tapes, etc.) during library hours. Most reserves are held as "two-hour, in-library use only," but arrangements can be made to make reserve materials available for overnight or two-, three- or seven-day circulation.
PHOTOCOPYING AND FAXING
For information about how to photocopy and fax on campus and where the appropriate tools can be accessed, please consult your divisional administrative support.
In the Classroom
SYLLABUS
A syllabus for a college- or university-level course can have a variety of purposes. Foremost is that of informing its students what standards, requirements and outcomes will be expected of them in the course. The course syllabus is not a true contract, but in many ways it expresses an "informal agreement" between the instructor and the students. Students will ordinarily hold instructors to the content of the syllabus throughout the course. And conversely, instructors will hold students to that content throughout the course.
A second purpose is to inform other colleges and universities of the content of a course so they may determine if it is equivalent to a similar one that they offer, necessary when students transfer out of the University of Baltimore or graduate and then go on to pursue a higher degree.
A third major function of the syllabus is to present accreditation bodies with a thorough understanding of curriculum and instruction practices. Professional accrediting bodies will examine the integrity of departmental instruction and will look to course syllabi as part of their evaluation process.
For faculty members in tenure-track positions, syllabi may also be used as part of the tenure and promotion process in the evaluation of teaching.
For all of these purposes, the construction of a syllabus cannot be taken lightly. It must represent a true picture of the content and expectations of the course. Since it may be both an internal and external document, certain elements should be present for the purpose of clear identification and explication. The following components of a course syllabus are based on these four uses of the syllabus and the audiences likely to view it.
Ordinarily, the instructor is responsible for the course outline and syllabus; however, for required courses (including many general-education and program-requirements courses), certain content may be mandated as part of the course. The course coordinator or program director can provide you with this sort of information and may also be able to give you some sample syllabi from other instructors.
MAINTAINING YOUR CLASS ROSTER
viewing your class roster(s) (.pdf)
At the start of the semester, faculty members are expected to take attendance and verify that all students who are attending their class are on the official class roster and that no student whose name is on the official class roster has failed to attend the class.
College of Arts and Sciences policy prohibits students who are not registered for a particular course from attending those classes. Instructors may not permit any student to sit in a class with the hope that they will be allowed to register late or that the instructor will overload the class. Students seeking late registration for a class that is full should be referred to their adviser. Individual faculty members may not overload classes.
By the end of the first month of the semester (first two weeks of a summer semester), faculty members should notify the Office of the University Registrar if a student has never attended their class. The faculty member may complete paperwork for a WA (withdrawn administratively) grade and submit the request to the dean’s office. Faculty members must file any request for a WA grade prior to the “last day to withdraw with a W” (about eight weeks into the semester). Likewise, a student can file a request for a W grade. If, at the end of the semester, a student has not petitioned for a W grade and the faculty member has not requested a WA grade, then the student who has not had sufficient attendance to pass the course must be issued an FA grade; this last is computed into the student’s GPA just like an F grade would be.
To prepare for situations in which students attend class “now and then” or who miss considerable classtime and then want to resume attending, faculty members should include an attendance policy in their syllabus. Students who do not meet the attendance requirement can be issued a WA grade prior to the “last day to withdraw with a W."
ACADEMIC INTEGRITY
Read the USM and UBalt academic integrity policies. All UBalt students are required to complete satisfactorily the University's plagiarism tutorial.
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Turnitin
Turnitin is a Web-based solution for managing writing assignments, via multiple phases of feedback and revisions. Its three interrelated services greatly accelerate the learning process, involving students in their own development, freeing instructors from the burden of tracking papers and promoting critical thinking while maintaining academic integrity.
Turnitin is fully integrated with Sakai; simply select "Use Turnitin" when creating an assignment in Sakai, and a Turnitin originality report will be generated for any student submission for that assignment, generally within an hour of submission.
To access Sakai, use your UBalt username and password. -
Getting help
- Reference instructor tutorials for using Turnitin.
- If you have further questions, reach Turnitin's technical support staff at helpdesk@iparadigms.com or 510.287.9720, extension 241. You can also contact Constance Harris (410.837.4087), director of online learning, Center for Excellence in Learning, Teaching, and Technology.
CLASSROOMS
Classrooms are assigned through the University’s room scheduling system.
- Learn more about our classroom technology.
- Request audiovisual equipment.
- Use a computer lab .
- Take advantage of a portable computer lab.
CANCELLATION OF CLASSES
Information about Baltimore weather and other closings can be obtained from the University’s website or its weather information line, 410.837.4201.
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Illness and personal emergencies
If you need to cancel your class due to illness or personal emergency:
- email your entire class about their canceled class as early as possible.
- Contact your divisional administrative support as early as possible to allow enough time to post a sign on the classroom door. Specify the course name, course number, course day and time, and room.
- Notify the Office of the Dean (410.837.5358) that you have canceled your class and that you have made arrangements with your divisional administrative support to notify your students and to post a notice.
- Report seasonal flu instances (for yourself only) to your direct supervisor.
Note that if you have already notified students of canceled classes (planned in advance) via your syllabus, reminding your divisional administrative support and the Office of the Dean a day in advance of your canceled class is sufficient.
ONLINE COURSE MANAGEMENT
Access UBalt's online course management tool, UBOnline (powered by Canvas), from the Tools menu in MyUB.
Learn more about UBOnline or contact Constance Harris (410.837.4087), director of online learning, Center for Excellence in Learning, Teaching, and Technology.
If you wish to have a Canvas site for a course, contact Constance Harris (410.837.4087), director of online learning, Center for Excellence in Learning, Teaching, and Technology.
Robert L. Bogomolny Library
Find, get and use library resources, including searching multiple catalogs and databases, taking advantage of InterLibrary Loan and getting research help.
Learn more about specific faculty services including electronic reserve requests, library instruction sessions, InterLibrary Loan requests and Library Liaisons.
GRIEVANCES
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Academic
- grade challenges
- academic grievances (other than grades)
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Nonacademic
See the nonacademic grievances section; these are handled through the Office of Community Life .
SPECIAL STUDENT ISSUES
Student Code of Conduct
The Counseling Center delivers mental health services to the UBalt community.
The Achievement and Learning Center offers writing and math assistance, placement testing, tutoring services, workshops and more for UBalt community members. Find out more about the faculty services.
The Office of Disability and Access Services offers assistance to students with disabilities and provides training to accommodating these students.
Wrapping Up the Semester
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GRADES AND GRADING
- Entering Grades (.pdf)
- Credits and Grading
- Information about undergraduate grades can be found in the current Undergraduate Catalog
- Grade deadlines and relevant dates are always available on the Academic Calendar .
- Grading Challenges and Grievances
COURSE EVALUATIONS
The University distributes electronic course evaluations via email to students. To enhance return rates, faculty should consider allocating some class time to allow students to complete the evaluations. Faculty will receive their evaluations approximately one week after grades are due.
College Organization
The Yale Gordon College of Arts and Sciences offers seven graduate degree programs, five graduate certificate programs and 11 undergraduate degree programs across a wide range of disparate disciplines. Organization is key to keeping us running, so here's an overview of how we work:
- You teach classes within one or more programs, each of which has a program director.
- These programs are grouped into a school (which has an associated center of excellence) and three divisions, each of which has a division chair: Division of Applied Behavioral Sciences, Division of Legal, Ethical and Historical Studies, Klein Family School of Communications Design and Division of Science, Information Arts and Technologies
- All schools and divisions have an academic program specialist or administrative assistant to help with administrative tasks.
- Most schools and divisions have an academic program coordinator to help with academic advising and other academic tasks.
- The required courses in the upper-level general-education core are each administered by a course coordinator. The core courses required for students are WRIT 300: Advanced Expository Writing, IDIS 302: Ethical Issues in Business and Society, and either IDIS 301: World Cultures or IDIS 304: Arts and Ideas (CAS/CPA only).
- The Office of the Dean is home to collegewide administrative staff, including the dean, associate dean, assistant dean and academic adviser.
Resources
Robert L. Bogomolny Library
Find, get and use library resources, including searching multiple catalogs and databases, taking advantage of InterLibrary Loan and getting research help.
Learn more about specific faculty services including electronic reserve requests, library instruction sessions, InterLibrary Loan requests and Library Liaisons using the links in the Faculty and Staff tab in the lower, left-hand corner of the Robert L. Bogomolny Library home page.
OFFICE OF HUMAN RESOURCES
Explore timesheet information, employee benefits, policies, general employment/compensation information and all HR-related forms.
OFFICE OF TECHNOLOGY SERVICES
These pages provide all the information you need about technology support on and off the UBalt campus.
OFFICE OF COMMUNITY LIFE AND THE DEAN OF STUDENTS
Resources for you and your students.
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STUDENT AFFAIRS RESOURCES
The Achievement and Learning Center offers writing and math assistance, placement testing, tutoring services, workshops and more for UBalt community members. Learn about our faculty services.
The Career and Internship Center offers job search and placement assistance to students and alumni. Find more information for faculty.
The Henry and Ruth Blaustein Rosenberg Center for Student Involvement provides campus activities that encourage a sense of community and development of leadership skills and social consciousness.
The Counseling Center delivers mental health services to the UBalt community.
The Office of Disability and Access Services offers assistance to students with disabilities and provides training to accommodating these students. Learn how we accommodate students with disabilities.