ADJUNCT FACULTY
DEANS
DEPARTMENT CHAIRS
SENATE FACULTY
VICE PROVOSTS
Dear Colleagues,
In accordance with APM 025 Conflict of Commitment and Outside Professional Activities of Faculty Members, I write to remind you of the policy’s annual reporting requirements and expectations.
Faculty
Faculty must certify and submit their Annual Report of Outside Professional Activities by September 30, 2020. Faculty members who have already certified their 2019-20 activities in OATS have fulfilled their annual reporting obligation.
Annual Reports are to be submitted, reviewed, and approved online using the Outside Professional Activities Tracking System (OATS). Access OATS at https://ucsc.ucoats.org. Instructions are posted at the UC OATS General Campus Faculty Training webpage.
The 2019-20 reporting period is July 1, 2019 through June 30, 2020. Every faculty member covered by the annual reporting requirement must submit an Annual Report, even if no outside professional or teaching activities were engaged in during the reporting period.
Academic Deans and Full-time Faculty Administrators
All academic deans and full-time faculty administrators are subject to the APM 025 reporting requirement, as well as additional requirements. These appointees will be contacted directly by the Academic Personnel Office with instructions. Annual Reports from these full-time administrators will route to the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs for review and sign-off, and not to their department chair.
Department and Program Chair Responsibilities
Chairs are responsible for reviewing Annual Reports from their department’s faculty for compliance with APM 025. By October 31, 2020, chairs are to report to the dean that all Annual Reports were received and reviewed for each faculty member in their unit covered by APM 025 during the 2019-20 reporting period.
Dean Responsibilities
By November 15, 2020, deans are responsible for submitting to the VPAA the list of faculty in their division who were required to submit a 2019-20 Annual Report.
Instructions for the departmental and divisional reporting requirements and a summary of relevant policy sections are attached.
More information and resources related to the University’s Conflict of Commitment policy and OATS is available on the Academic Personnel Office website at https://apo.ucsc.edu/oats. Policy questions may be directed to your divisional academic personnel coordinator.
Sincerely,
Grace McClintock
Assistant Vice Provost, Academic Personnel
CC:
VPAA Lee
Department and Program Managers
Divisional Academic Personnel Coordinators
Attachment:
ANNUAL REPORTING REQUIREMENTS FOR DEPARTMENTS AND DIVISIONS
Instructions for generating the departmental and divisional report are available at APO’s Resources for OATS Users, Reviewers, and Approvers webpage.
Department and Program Chair Responsibilities
Chairs are responsible for reviewing Annual Reports from their department’s faculty for compliance with APM 025. By October 31, 2020, chairs are to report to the dean that all Annual Reports were received and reviewed for each faculty member in their unit covered by APM 025 during the 2019-20 reporting period. If a faculty member does not submit their report due to an approved medical leave, chairs should annotate their departmental report accordingly. Faculty members on medical leave will be required to submit their Annual Report to their chair (via OATS) upon return from leave.
Dean Responsibilities
By November 15, 2020, deans are responsible for submitting to the VPAA a list of faculty in their division that were identified as being required to submit a 2019-20 Annual Report. The Dean’s list will document the faculty who have met the reporting requirement and note those whose Annual Report is still outstanding without justification. Academic deans are also responsible for reviewing Annual Reports from their department chairs and divisional appointees for compliance with APM 025.
VPAA Responsibilities
The VPAA will contact faculty whose Annual Report has been identified as outstanding, informing them that they are out of compliance and therefore considered not to be in good standing. Consequences of this standing may include denial of leaves and other privileges, or other consequences, including the potential for disciplinary action for violation of the Faculty Code of Conduct.
APM 025 – GENERAL PRINCIPLES AND KEY POINTS
Obligations to the University
Outside professional activities must be undertaken in a manner consistent with the faculty member’s professional obligations to the University. Outside activities must not conflict with the faculty member’s obligations to students, colleagues, or to the University as a whole.
Faculty APM 025 Responsibilities
Faculty are responsible for complying with APM 025, including: obtaining prior approval to engage in a Category I outside professional activity; submitting annual reports of all Category I and II activities (or the lack thereof) to the Department Chair; disclosing any current or prospective outside professional activity to the Department Chair when in doubt about the potential for a conflict of commitment; and obtaining prior approval to involve a student in an outside professional activity. The prior approval requirements apply to activities during summer months and leaves, including leaves without pay.
Monitoring Compliance
Department Chairs shall monitor compliance with this policy by: reviewing requests to engage in a Category I activity; collecting and reviewing annual reports; and consulting with the Dean about any concerns regarding a faculty member’s outside professional activities.
Non-compliance
Situations where faculty will be considered out of compliance include, but are not limited to: failure to obtain prior approval to engage in a Category I activity; failure to obtain prior approval for involving a student in an outside professional activity; failure to comply with time limits for Category I and II activities; and failure to accurately disclose and describe the nature and scope of Category I and II outside professional activities.
Time Restrictions
A full-time faculty member on an academic-year appointment is permitted a maximum of 312 hours (39 days) during the academic year to engage in Category I and II activities. A full-time fiscal-year faculty member is permitted a maximum of 384 hours (48 days) during the months of active service. For part-time faculty appointed at 50 percent time or more, the maximum number of days is prorated based on their appointment percentage.
During the summer period, academic-year faculty do not have restrictions on the number of days for Category II and approved Category I activities unless the faculty member is receiving additional University compensation. Faculty are still subject to disclosure, prior approval, and the annual reporting requirements for all Category I and II activities that occur during summer.
