Instructor II Status

What is Instructor II Status?

Starting in the 2017-18 academic year, qualified part time Instructors may apply to be considered for Instructor II status after four successful years teaching at WMU, at their option. Applying for this status is completely voluntary. Instructor II Status comes with a range of benefits, outlined below. Detailed information about the qualifications required for application for Instructor II status, and the benefits associated with Instructor II status can be found in Article 10 of the WMU-PIO Agreement.

Why did PIO negotiate Instructor II Status?

The Professional Instructor Organization is committed to advocating for the fair compensation, just work-place treatment and institutional support of part-time faculty at WMU. Creating and negotiating a designation that rewards excellence in teaching is an important step in demonstrating the value of what we do for students and the institution.

Benefits

Eligiblility for longer-term appointments (multi-semester, multi-year)
Priority consideration for teaching appointments over those with Instructor I status
Compensated no less than any Instructor I within their department for similar work
Receive strong institutional support for pay increases

Eligibility

Have taught in the at WMU (for any one or combination of academic units) 4 out of the last 5 years.
Have taught at least 3 credits within one semester per year for 4 out of the last 5 years.
Have received positive ratings on the last two annual evaluations prior to applying for Instructor II status. (Note: if no formal evaluation or observation was done and you were reappointed, that counts as a “positive” evaluation)

What is Included in the Application Process?

At the time of the 4th year of teaching (within a 5 year period) for any one or combination of academic units at WMU, Instructor I’s may elect to voluntarily put together a Professional Competence Portfolio for formal evaluation. This portfolio will include the following items at a minimum:Self-evaluation (4-5 pages) that reflects on the instructor’s teaching philosophy, effectiveness and innovations

Annual Performance Reviews completed by Instructor’s department leadership
Student Evaluations
Course Syllabi
Current Curriculum Vitae and/or Resume
Sample of course materials that demonstrate teaching effectiveness

Consultations will be available to all part-time instructors interested in going through the process of applying for the Instructor II Status promotion (through the PIO-WMU 2016-2021 contract). If you are interested in assistance toward preparing to apply for Instructor II Status, or would simply like to know more about what it is, please request a consultation with the Part-time Faculty Fellow, Elise DeCamp (elise.decamp@wmich.edu). Potential topics to be covered include:

Overview of Instructor II status
Eligibility for the status
The timeline of the application process
The Faculty Activities Reporting System (FARS)
How to assemble/what to include in the brief teaching portfolio for the Professional Competence Evaluation.