Faculty Handbook
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III. D. COURSE LOADS
(Source: CAPP minutes, April 10, 2000, April 26, 2004 and December 8, 2014)
The normal course load for Reed College faculty is five semester courses per year or the equivalent. Generally, any semester course that carries one Reed unit of credit is considered a single semester course. Each semester of Humanities 110 is understood to count as 1.5 courses. CAPP is also broadly concerned to encourage conference or laboratory teaching, except where other kinds of teaching are more appropriate. For this reason, a single course in one semester that is taught in two separate conferences because of large enrollments may count as two courses. Variations from the five-course model may be possible, but need to be approved by CAPP in light of the best interests of the academic program. CAPP understands, further, that the good health of the academic program or considerations of equivalency may require that departments currently having six-course loads maintain such loads for the foreseeable future.
Departments may request that course loads for first-year tenure-track faculty be reduced by one course. Any such request must be accompanied by a statement from the department regarding curricular implications. Faculty who wish to come up for tenure after four semesters of full-time teaching may not take a course reduction. In cases where reduced course loads have been approved for first-year tenure-track faculty, each such faculty member will be expected to assume a normal load of committee assignments, as determined by CAPP.
For faculty who are teaching half-time in a particular year-either because of a sabbatical, paid leave, family or parental leave, or unpaid leave-it is expected that their course load during that year will be no less than two and one-half courses or the equivalent. Alternative arrangements-perhaps involving a balance of course-loads over a number of sabbatical- or leave-affected years-will be considered by CAPP on a case-by-case basis and in light of implications for the quality of the academic program.