Annual Evaluations
All faculty members are required to be evaluated annually. The chair evaluates all faculty and
staff members in the department. The deadline for submission of material for consideration by
the chair is January 31. Three areas will be evaluated: teaching (50%), professional growth and
development (20%), and service (10%), with an additional 20% given to one of the three
previous areas as designated by the faculty member. The evaluation period is based on the
calendar year. The dean solicits comments from department members and evaluates the chair.
Refer to the Faculty/Administration Manual. (pages 71-81). A copy of the current departmental form is available from the chair or may be downloaded.
Permission to access to the solvent storage building must be obtained from either the stockroom manager or the chair. No one may enter that facility alone. No materials are to be stored in the solvent building without the permission of the stockroom manager.
The stockroom manager is responsible for the teaching labs waste disposal while faculty members are responsible for research areas. Research students should wear proper protective clothing, shoes, and
eyewear. Wastes should be stored in proper containers that are labeled as to identify all
contents. Please inform the stockroom manager when they should be picked up. The College
has a contract for disposal of wastes which are picked up twice per year. A monthly safety
inspection of the department is conducted by the chair, the stockroom manager, and a selected
faculty member. Please purchase minimal quantities of reagents. While this may appear economically unsound on the front end, in the long haul due to storage and disposal costs this is more cost effective.
Summer school assignments are made so as to equalize opportunities for all but also have a
first-come first-serve component in making actual assignments.
The teaching of special topics courses is welcomed and encouraged. Please make your wishes
known to the chair.
If you are not requesting reimbursement use theVerification of Travel form.
Annual Report
The department annual report is compiled by the chair each May. Information from faculty
annual evaluations is used as well as updated information from the spring semester. The annual
report covers each acadenic year from one spring commencement to the next.
Bachelor's Essays, Senior Research, and Tutorials
Chem 499 Bachelor's Essay, CHEM 481 & CHEM 482 Introductory Research, and CHEM 399
Tutorial are courses open only upon permission of the faculty member. Forms must be signed by
the faculty member, the student, and the department chair and left on file in the office as well as
forwarded to the registrar's office. Copies of bachelor's essays as well as research reports must
be submitted to the chair for archiving in the department office. This is neceassry to maintain our ACS certification. The awarding of the grades for these courses are totally under the purview of the faculty member.The Center for Effective Teaching and Learning
CETL organizes a yearly series of seminars
for all faculty. The seminars are designed to provide a forum for the discussion of effective
teaching/learning techniques. The series will involve the best of the faculty at the College of Charleston, effective teachers who are faculty from other institutions, outside experts in an area of effective teaching and learning, and staff from the College when their expertise relates to effective teaching and learning.Change of Grade
These forms have to be picked up at the Registrars Office by the faculty member.
1) If you are changing a grade to a different grade within 2 days after grades were due in
the Registrar's Office, only the instructor's signature is required.
2) If you are changing a grade to a different grade within 3 days or more after grades were
due in the Registrar's Office, the instructor, Department Chair, and Dean of Undergraduate
Studies signatures are required.
3) If you are changing an Incomplete" to a grade within 60 days after the last date of
scheduled final exam, only the instructor's signature is required.
4) If you are changing an "Incomplete" to a grade 60 days after the last date of schedule
final exam, the instructor, Department Chair, and Dean of Undergraduate Studies signatures are
required.
Chemistry Fund
The College of Charleston Foundation maintains a Chemistry Fund whose disbursements are
controlled by the Department Chair. Contributions to this fund are tax deductable. Please make
sure that your contributions are clearly markes as for the "Chemistry Fund". Uses for this fund
are to reimburse seminar costs for guests and faculty. It is also used to cover travel expenses
that are not reimbursed by the College. Balance sheets are available for inspection upon request.
The chair will also make reports to the department at regular intervals.
Cougar Club
Faculty can get free tickets to athletic events and have use of athletic facilities. By joining the Cougar Club extra privileges can be obtained.
Department Budget
The Department maintains three funds, all controlled by the department chair
Balance sheets are available for inspection upon request. The chair will also make reports to the
department at regular intervals. Current budget information is available.
Electronic Mail and the Internet
Each faculty member is expected to obtain an electronic mail account to regularly check their
mail on it. Each faculty member has a page on the departmental web site and is encouraged
to use it. Please give Jim Deavor any material that you wish to place on the web site. The material should be on a diskette. Images can scanned and used also. The department's URL is
http://www.cofc.edu/~chem.
Electronics Shop
Don Barret may be reached at 708-2009 or via e-mail. An electronics shop work order must be completed with each request. Don services all four science departments as well as the Grice Lab.
End-of-Year Funds
Occassionally the Provost releases funds to the department for out of the ordinary purchases for
major equipment items.
Entertainment of Department Guests
Faculty members often incur expenses when officially entertaining department guests. Expenses
for the guest speakers for the fall seminar series will be reimbursed from the Chemistry Fund
with the College of Charleston Foundation. Faculty members may get reimbursed for personal
expnses if they hav econtributed to that fund. Unlike travel reimbursements, receipts are
required.
Faculty Awards
The College awards four faculty awards for distinguished teaching, service, research, and
advising. Nominations are solicited by the president or provost in April. The School of
Sciences and Mathematics also awards a distinguished achievement award. The Mebane
Teaching Chair in Chemistry & Physics is awarded every two years.
Faculty Research & Development
Financial support for faculty research and development is available through the Faculty Research
& Development Committee and the Departmental Research Budget. Deadlines for the former
are published by that committee and are typically in September and January. The department
chair is responsible for the latter.
Faculty Club
Faculty may join the Faculty Club for a membership fee of $2.00 per month that can be directly deducted from your payroll check. Members may use the Faculty House on Glebe Street and have reciprocal proleges at MUSC, USC, and over 100 other colege and university faculty clubs throughout the US and Canada. The Faculty Dining Room is located in the Craig Cafeteria via the St. Philips Street entrance.
Final Exams
Final exams are required to be given in all courses. Common ACS multiple choice standardized
exams are given whenever these eams are available from the ACS. Mr. Tomlinson is the keeper
of the ACS standardized tests. In a timely manner, he will solicit from the faculty their needs in
regards to these tests. Please return the test booklets and answer keys to him when you are
finished. Ms. Emons is in charge of scheduling rooms for the Exams may be given either
during the departmental final exam period or at the designated time for that class as
published by the Office of the Undergraduate Dean. These times cannot be changed. Students
must obtain an excuse from the undergraduate dean's office for missing a final examination.
Students must take the exam at the scheduled time with the following exceptions: 1) two or
more exams scheduled simultaneously, 2) thy student has three consecutive examinations, 3) if
Saturday is thy Sabbath of the student's faith and the exam is scheduled for a Saturday.
Permission may be obtained from the Undergraduate Dean's office but this permission
must be obtained prior to the first day of the exam period. The final exam schedule can be found at http://www.cofc.edu/~undrgrad/examschl.htm.
Grading Scale
There is no college-wide or departmental grading scale. The College uses the grades A through
F including '+' grades. Consult the Undergraduate Bulletin. It has been and continues to be the tradition of this department to grade on against a standard as opposed to using a "bell" curve.
Faculty mustdistribute their grading scale at the first class meeting each semester.
Keys
Please contact Jeff Tomlinson, Stockroom and Business Manager extension 3-8092 or by e-mail tomlinsonj@cofc.edu in the
Science Center, room 316 to arrange for your office key, key to the Chemistry & Biochemistry
office and a key to the outside door of the building, and a key to your lab.
Library
Your faculty ID gives you access to the College library. A staff-only photcopier is available for
use there. The code is available from the department chair. The departmental library liason is
Gary Asleson. Please give him requests for
new jpurnal and monograph purchases. Copies of
journal articles or books not available in the collection are available through interlibrary loan.
Chemistry library resources are available
over the internet.
Office Hours
Please announce and post your office hours as well as inform Wanda Emons of them.
Parking
Contact Auxilliary Services, extension 3-7934 to arrange for your parking space. There are
difference prices for different types of parking. They will explain the prices and how the
parking system works. Parking decals must be displayed in all campus lots during normal
business hours.
Personnel
Contact Human Resources, extension 3-5512, for information on your pay arrangements, health
benefits, etc. Faculty Leave Policies are outlined on pages 121-126 of the
Faculty/Administration Manual.
Petty Cash
you may purchase items up to $50.00- if you need to make a petty cash purchase and you know it
will be over $5O.00, please tell Jeff Tomlinson and he will get the proper form as it requires special pemission from the Chair. You must have a receipt in order to be reirnbursedl
Turn your receipt in to Jeff Tomlinson in room 316 of the Science Center, with your name and
account number on the receipt. If you turn in $20,00 or less for reimbursement, you will receive your petty cash that day. If you turn in more than $20-00 for reimbursement a check will be mailed to you within seven (7) working days. If you do not receive your check within that time please notify Jeff immediately.
If you wish to purchase items from the College Bookstore and you want to be reimbursed, you
must go to the Chemistry & Biochemistry office and have Jeff fill out an "IDT". You then can
take the IDT to the College Bookstore and purchase what you want. If you purchase items at the
College Bookstore without an IDT, the College will not reimburse you.
Photocopying
Class work takes precedence over research or service projects. For classes please allow 24
hours for turn around. For other needs please allow at least 48 hours. If possible the department
should be reimbursed from grant funds for special projects. For faculty committee work
photocopying should be done by the Faculty Secretariat.
Public Safety
Do NOT call 911 in case of an emergency. Instead call 3-5611. Public Safety is
available to escort both faculty and students after dark. In case of an accident in lab please use to report the incident. The proper procedure to follow whenever any lab accident occurs is to call Public Safety and let them handle the matter.
Purchasing
When you need to order supplies for your classes or labs, contact Jeff Tomlinson in room 316B
of the ScienceCenter, extension 3-6371, Mr. Tomlinson orders all laboratory supplies and will
notif you when they have arrived. He has catalogs available in her office. Office supplies are
ordered by Ms. Emons. Faculty members should be aware of deadlines placed on purchasing at
the close of each fiscal year. These are typically
Released Time
The chair with approval by the dean may schedule released time for tenure-track faculty
members. Released time may also be purchased using grant money. Faculty members in their
first three years will normally be granted a one course reduction each semester. It is the
responsibility of other faculty members to make their wishes known to the chair about
requesting released time.
Reprints/Page Costs
Faculty members with funding are expected to bear page charges and reprint costs from their
grant accounts. Departmental funds will be expended for this when needed.
Sabbatical Policy
Tenured faculty members and senior instructors who have completed six successive academic years of full time service at the College of Charleston since initial appointment or since a
previous sabbatical leave may apply for sabbatical leave to comrnence during the following year.
Appropriate sabbatical leave activities include, but are not limited to (1) conducting research, (2)
writing for professional publication, (3) engaging in graduate or post- doctoral study at an
institution of higher education. Sabbatical leave may be granted for the academic year at one half year's salary or for one semester at full salary. In October of the academic year, the provost will send all faculty members a letter inviting them to apply for sabbatical leave. An eligible faculty member, who wishes to apply for sabbatical leave, will prepare a formal proposal using the stated guidelines as an outline. The completed proposal is due in the dean's office by December 1.
Safety and Waste Disposal
The Department has stated safety policies that must be followed.
In case of an accident in lab please use to report the incident. The proper procedure to follow whenever any lab accident occurs is to call Public Safety at 3-5611 and let them handle the matter.
The College's Chemical Hygiene Officer is Mr. Rick Krantz 3-5499 or >A HREF="mailto:ktrantzr@cofc.edu">krantzr@cofc.eduSeminar Program
The Department sponsors seminars throughout the year. CHEM 491 Chemistry Seminar is a
course that meets each fall where speakers from graduate programs around the southeast are
invited to make presentations. Each speaker is hosted by a faculty member. Invitations are
offered by the director of the seminar program. Freshman Seminars are held periodically to
recruit majors. A spring semester bag lunch series is given by faculty members of the
department. Please notify the seminar coordinator of anyone you wish add to invite to give a seminar.
Special Enrollments (Overides)
A student request a Special Enrollment into a class by going to the Chemistry & Biochemistry
office and filling out a form. The Chair of the Department is the only person who can grant a
student a Special Enrollment. The individual faculty member cannot approve it. Overides are
granted only in the most special cases. Documentation from the student is required, such as a
letter from an employer when needing a special class time.
Student Attendance Guidelines
The attendance policy of the College of Charleston is printed in the Undergraduate Bulletin (which may be obtained from the Chemistry & Biochemistry office). The attendance policy in your particular class, if different from that statement, is established by you and disseminated to the students on the first day of class.
Absence Validation Service is a service provided by the Office of Undergraduate Studies for
Students and Faculty. The absence validation service provided by Undergraduate Studies is
intended to benefit both faculty and students in that it saves the student from having to report
confidential information or circumstances to 4-6 different faculty members. The staff cannot
verify illness or other issues without proper documentation, nor can the office "excuse!' students
from any classes. The decision as to whether an absence will be excused is always up to the
individual professor. Additionally, all class work for all missed classes must always be made
-up regardless Of the reason for absence. Policies for making up tests are governed by the
individual faculty member.
As soon as possible after any absence from class for a bona fide reason, the student comes to the
Office of Undergraduate Studies to fill out an "Absence Memorandum Request." The student is
asked to fist the classes, professors, and days missed on the form and provide us with the
documentation. In the case of an emergency (such as hospitalization of the student), the request
can be filed by telephone.
Once the form and documentation are provided, all requests are routed to a dean for approval. If
approval is given, the absence memorandum is routed by electronic mail to the appropriate
faculty through the departmental administrative specialists. Each department has a slightly
different format for reporting these. Normally this is accomplished within 24 hours from receipt
of the form and documentation.
Student Awards and Scholarships
At the April department meeting selections for the various student awards will be made. The
chair will circulate the criteria and relevant data about students in a timely manner prior to the
meeting. Scholarships are awarded when available.
Student Evaluations
All lecture classes with more athn two students will be evaluated every semester. The chair will release results to
the respective faculty members as expetiously as possible after reviewing the results.
Student Travel
Faculty grant money should be used first to cover these expenses. Departmental and school funds can be used to help but th echair must be informed in advance. Use of personal cars by students must be approved in advance by the chair and car pooling utilized as much as possible.
expenses.
Teaching Schedule
Contact Wanda Emons in the Science Center, room 316B, extension 3-5587 for your teaching
assignment, times and the location of your classes. Teaching assignments are made by the chair
in consultation with the faculty. Please keep him advised of any changes that you wish to make.
Telephone
The Department budget pays for telephone monthly charges as well as long distance calls. Long
distance calls reserved for school or professional society business only. When possible
reimbursements from professional societies should be made to the department. Personal long
distance calls may be placed but should be billed directly to a credit card.
Tenure & Promotion Guidlines
College policies for tenure and promotion can be
found in the faculty manual. The Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry has additional
requirements. A copy of these may be acquired from the chair or from the web.
Text Books
Multisection courses use a common textbook decided upon by the faculty teaching that course. Adoptions are submitted to the bookstore via screens BK1 an BK3 on the SIS system.
Travel
If you are planning to attend a conference come to the Chemistry & Biochemistry Office to
pickup a Travel Authorization Form (TA). After the TA has been filled out, it will go to the
Chair for his approval and signature. After the Chair has signed it, you will receive a photocopy
and the original will be fowarded to the Dean's office for his signature. According to C of C
rules, the TA should be filled out, signed and approved by the Chair two weeks prior to your trip.
You receive $32.00/day for meals (receipts not required). Upon your return, you must have
receipts for your air fare, hotel stay, registration fees, taxi fare. If you are driving your own
personal vehicle, you can be reimbursed for your mileage (receipts not required). You will have
to fill out a Travel Reimbursement Form (can be picked up in the Chemistry & Biochemistry
office) with the receipts attached. Submit this in duplicate along with a copy of the Travel
Authorization. Once the travel reimbursement has been turned into the Accounts Payable office
they will process the paperwork. It usually takes about ten days to receive your reimbursement.
if you have not received your reimbursement within ten days notify Jeff Tomlinson in the
Chemistry & Biochemistry office. Airline tickets may be purchased through Palmetto Travel
at 820-1468 and billed directly to the College, thus avoiding you having to carry them on a
personal credit card. Expenditure Authorizations can be issued to pay registrations ahead of
time. Work-Study & Non-Work Study Students
If you have been allocated monies for a work study/non-work student, the students must come to
Jeff Tomlinson's office in room 316 of the Science Center to fill out the necessary paperwork.
They will not receive a paycheck until the paperwork has been processed. The regulations are
the same if you have a student working under a grant.