The purpose of the Siena College reassigned time program is to promote and support significant faculty scholarship/creative activities, advances in pedagogy, and innovative curricular development. The program recognizes that outstanding teaching-scholars are of paramount importance at Siena College. The reassigned time program seeks to support outstanding teaching by providing faculty members with the resources to remain at the cutting edge of their discipline. 

In awarding reassigned time, consideration will be given to the impact on a faculty member’s professional development as well as the reputation of the College. These projects can take the form of advancing the state of knowledge in a field or advancing the pedagogy in a specific field of knowledge. Awards will be made based on the judgment of the academic deans and the VPAA.

Projects undertaken with reassigned time should both strive to engage students and keep curriculum current, and have a goal of peer-reviewed presentation and publication. Peer review ensures that a minimum level of quality has been achieved in one’s work. It also can serve to enhance the quality of one’s future professional development activities as well as enhance the reputation of the College. Please refer to your departmental standards for tenure and promotion for guidance on acceptable outcomes. 

Tenured faculty members may apply for a reassignment of teaching load up to a maximum of six (6) credit hours per year. Such applications may be for a minimum of one semester or a maximum of six consecutive semesters before reapplication.

All new tenure-track faculty automatically will be granted three (3) credits of reassigned time during each semester of their six-year (twelve-semester) probationary period. These faculty members will not be required to submit annual review but will be expected to meet the standards for the mandatory two and four-year reviews and are required to discuss their progress toward tenure and promotion annually with department heads, with that progress documented on the classroom observation forms. 

Faculty may include reassigned time in grant proposals. This may be in addition to the College reassigned time program described above. The grant proposal must include a statement from the department head about the suggested replacement needs of the department; that is, can faculty be replaced by single course adjunct. 

Faculty must teach a minimum of 18 credit hours per academic year. Faculty may not be compensated for teaching an overload in the semester for which they are receiving reassigned time. Exceptions to this rule are allowed for department heads and in other circumstances specifically approved in advance by the Vice President for Academic Affairs (VPAA), in consultation with the deans.


Procedure for Seeking Approval of a New Reassigned Time Project:

Applications for new reassigned time projects starting in the next academic year will be submitted electronically via the online web form to the dean by January 10 of the year preceding the reassigned time being requested. Applications must include the following information:

  1. A working title or titles (if multiple projects)
  2. A description of the project(s) (limited to a total of 2 pages beginning with a one paragraph abstract)
  3. A timeline for completion of the project(s) including the number of semesters of reassigned time requested.
  4. A specific description of the intended peer review forum (conference, publication, etc.) and what form that will take (paper presentation, journal article, book publication, etc.)
  5. A description of the outcome of previous reassigned time awards
  6. Professional Data Record

The dean will then review faculty member’s application and notify the applicant of his/her decision on the application by January 31. 

If the application is denied, faculty may appeal the dean’s decision directly to the VPAA. Appeals need to be made by February 10 and a final determination will be made by the VPAA by February.


New Reporting Requirements: Procedure for Review and Update of a Reassigned Time Project Previously Approved

By January 10 of each year for which a faculty member is receiving reassigned time, he/she will be required to submit an update. The update will include progress made on the original reassigned time project. The dean will review the update and notify the faculty member of the decision on the update by January 31. Decision responses will be one of the following:

  1. Approve – Satisfactory
  2. Approval – Marginal
  3. Discontinuance

Approve – Satisfactory Decision: If the decision is “Approve – Satisfactory,” no other actions are required until the next annual review period.

Approve – Marginal Decision: If the decision is “Approve – Marginal,” the faculty member receives a warning that s/he is not making sufficient progress on the reassigned time project, a discussion about how to remedy the situation will take place between the dean and the individual immediately following the dean’s decision. Another discussion and update on progress will take place in late May, allowing for progress to be made on the project, and yet another “check-in” discussion will take place by September 8 at the latest. At that time, if the faculty member has still failed to make significant progress on his/her proposed project, the dean has the right to withdraw the previously awarded reassigned time, effective the spring semester following this decision.

Under these circumstances, faculty may appeal the dean’s decision directly to the VPAA. Appeals need to be made by September 15 and a final determination will be made the VPAA by September 30.

Discontinuance Decision: If the decision is “Discontinuance,” the reassigned time award will be withdrawn effective in fall semester of the following academic year.

Under these circumstances, faculty may appeal the dean’s decision directly to the VPAA. Appeals need to be made by February 10 and a final determination will be made by the VPAA by February 15.

Future applications for reassigned time will not be impacted by previous reviews. 

If a review is not submitted in a timely manner (within 10 days of the due date), the reassigned time award will automatically be discontinued effective in fall semester of the following academic year. 

If a faculty member is awarded a sabbatical during the granting of reassigned time, the reassigned time clock is suspended and will recommence upon the completion of the sabbatical.