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Grant or Contract Related Redistribution of Effort in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences

Policy
Purpose: 

To describe the process for the “buying out” of teaching responsibilities with grant or contract funds in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences.

Applies to: 

Faculty members in the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences

Campus: 
Edwards
Lawrence
Policy Statement: 

The faculty member shall make a course buyout request to the unit chair or director for review and possible endorsement. In reviewing the request, the unit chair or director shall take the following into account:

  • the teaching needs of the unit
  • the unit’s overall credit-hour production
  • the effect that the teaching reduction may have on the unit’s faculty to GTA credit-hour production ratio
  • the effect on students’ timely completion of their degrees

If the chair or director endorses the request, the chair or director shall forward it to the associate dean assigned to their unit for review and possible approval.

The funds needed to buy out a course depend on the faculty member’s salary and the percentage of their position attributed to each of their courses. The following examples assume the standard distribution of effort of 40% teaching, 40% research, and 20% service. For a larger or smaller teaching percentage, the funds needed would be proportionally higher or lower.

  • If a faculty member normally teaches four courses per year, a one-course reduction would require funds equal to 10% of the faculty member’s academic-year salary and fringe.
  • If a faculty member normally teaches three courses per year, a one-course reduction would require funds equal to 13.33% of the faculty member’s academic-year salary and fringe.
  • If a faculty member normally teaches two courses per year, a one-course reduction would require funds equal to 20% of the faculty member’s academic-year salary and fringe.

If the computation prescribed above does not equal at least $5,000, a higher percentage of the faculty member’s effort must be funded from the grant or contract. In addition, regardless of the computation described above, a maximum amount of $20,000 will be considered sufficient to fund a one-course reduction.

Salary that is released as a result of a grant- or contract-related redistribution of effort will be returned 100% back to the faculty member’s unit and will normally be used to hire instructors.

Contact: 

Director of Finance and Planning
College of Liberal Arts & Sciences
University of Kansas
200 Strong Hall
1450 Jayhawk Blvd.
Lawrence, KS 66045
785-864-3661

Approved by: 
Dean of the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences
Approved on: 
Monday, November 1, 2010
Effective on: 
Monday, November 1, 2010
Review Cycle: 
Biennial (Every Two Years)
Keywords: 
course buyout, redistribution of effort, reduced teaching load
Change History: 

07/01/2021: Minor revisions to remove references to associate dean for administrative affairs.
11/03/2020: Added $20,000 maximum for a one-course reduction.
05/22/2019: Revised to clarify funds required for course buyouts and expected uses of funds.
06/22/2017: Updated contact information.
07/08/2016: Updated to remove gendered pronouns.
10/14/2015: Converted from PDF to live text.
11/01/2010: Approved by the Dean of the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences.

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