Faculty Handbook

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The mission of the Rhetoric Program and the Department of Rhetoric and Language is to teach all University of San Francisco students to communicate effectively and ethically in academic, civic, and professional contexts. Through our classes, service, and co-curricular activities, we advance the Jesuit ideal of eloquentia perfecta– reason and eloquence in writing, speaking, and literacy–and guide our students as they learn to engage critically with the texts that influence their beliefs, values and actions.
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Program Learning Outcomes
Upon successful completion of the rhetoric program, students will be able to:
1. Explain and apply rhetorical concepts, theories, and principles in the process of analyzing various texts and rhetorical situations.
2. Produce research-driven written, oral, and digital communication that demonstrates awareness, knowledge, and application of rhetorical concepts.
3. Evaluate the ethics and effectiveness of their own and others’ communication in academic, civic, and professional situations.
4. Articulate and interpret their own rhetorical choices and composing processes.

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Office Protocol
The Department office in Kalmanovitz Hall 202 is open Monday-Friday 8:30 am – 5:00 pm. You may access the office outside of regular office hours with your USF ID card.
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About Our Program Assistants
While the program assistants are happy to answer questions and help you, their contract does not allow them—true to the job title and description—to do secretarial work for individual faculty members.
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Office supplies (located in the drawers below the mailboxes) and equipment are available for everyone to use. Please do not remove items such as staplers, tape dispensers, and hole-punchers from the office. Feel free to ask our program assistants about any additional supplies that you might need.
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Faculty mailboxes are for mail and messages, not storage. Please check your mailbox at least once a week.
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Student Paper drop-offs and pick-ups: We encourage you to collect and return assignments during class. You may, however, have students submit assignments to our department office’s front desk. Please do not instruct your students to turn papers to the program assistants’ office location (e.g. KA 204, instruct them to go to KA 202). Students must fill out their name, your name, the date, and time on the sign-in sheet, and drop their assignment in the student paper drop box underneath the sign-in sheet clipboard. A Program Assistant or student assistant will then place the assignment in your mailbox. Please do not ask students to place assignments directly in your mailbox.
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You may also leave graded assignments for students to pick up in the top drawer of the wooden filing cabinet in the office. The assignments must be placed in the folder labeled with your name. Students may come by during regular office hours and a program assistant can retrieve their assignment for them. Students, including our student assistants, are not allowed in the filing cabinet and are not allowed to pick up assignments for classmates. Assignments not picked up by the end of the semester will be discarded.
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Student papers must not be put in the hallways or on office doors. Besides being a safety hazard, this is a breach of student confidentiality. You should plan to distribute papers and handouts in class and use the office drop-off/pick-up system for students who are absent.

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The fourth floor of Gleeson Library has a shared resource space for all Arts & Sciences adjunct faculty. The resource space is open during regular library hours and accessible by USF ID card. There are lockers available for reservation each semester. Contact the Dean’s Office to reserve an office. Please put your name on books, desk copies, and other items that belong to you. Please be aware that at the end of the spring semester, you may be asked to box up all your items and label them clearly so they can be stored if needed over the summer.

Computers
There are 14 shared computers (7 Macs, 7 PCs) available in the Gleeson Adjunct Resource Space. There are an additional 10 laptop computers (PC’s) available for check-out from the library to use in the wireless lounge. A network printer/copier is available in the faculty adjunct space. 

Desks
There are 24 individual carrels in the resource space. Carrels are available on a first-come-first-serve basis. Tables are also located in the six separate conference rooms available for individual and group conferencing with students.

Conference Rooms
Conference rooms are available on a first-come-first-served basis. Faculty may reserve a conference room by writing their name on the sign-up sheet at the front desk of the Adjunct Resource space. At the moment, advanced reservations are not required.

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Student-Teacher Interaction
In accordance with University policy as presented in its Mission Statement, instructors should treat students professionally and with dignity in the classroom, in one-on-one interactions, and in written or electronic communications. Students have the right to freedom from mistreatment or negative commentary regarding their race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, age, background, or physical appearance. Please be sure to avoid communicating with students in ways that are (or may be perceived as) derogatory, intimidating, or disrespectful in any way. For additional discussion of guidelines for teacher behavior (including sexual harassment issues), part-time faculty should refer to the Collective Bargaining Agreement between the university and the part-time Faculty Association (Article 10, section 1 and Article 18), and full-time faculty should refer to the Collective Bargaining Agreement between the university and the full-time Faculty Association (Article 12 and Article 23, sections 21 through 23).

Conversely, students are expected to demonstrate respect for both their instructors and their fellow students. Instructors are encouraged to confer with students whose behavior is disruptive, though they are also encouraged to seek the help and advice of the Department Chair. However, students who refuse to behave in a mature and responsible manner consistent with the University’s academic culture may be referred by the instructor to the Department Chair and/or the Office of Student Academic Services.

If a student appears to be misplaced in your course, please see the Department Chair before the last day students can add a class.
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Student Permission to Use Voice, Likeness
USF Multimedia Release Agreement WCAG 2018
The department and its faculty members may not use any photos, videos, or written words of students without the individuals’ written permission. No class photos, videos, written comments, etc. may be used on websites, publicity, or educational material without written consent from each individual involved. Students who give permission do so voluntarily. Students may decline to allow us to record or photograph them and use those images on our website or other places. Signed forms may be turned in to your Program Assistant.

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SMART Classrooms: Classroom Technology, part of Computer Support, handles the technology resources (including computers, projectors, and other AV equipment) available in a variety of classrooms throughout the campus. All classrooms in Lone Mountain and most in other buildings on campus are SMART classrooms, Level 1 or Level 2. Level 1 rooms are equipped with a laptop, DVD/CD & VCR player, a screen, and a projector. Level 2 rooms are equipped with a laptop installed in the podium, DVD/CD & VCR player, a screen, and a projector.

All faculty assigned to a SMART classroom will need a key to access the technology. Keys can be obtained from the ITS Help Desk on the first floor of the Gleeson Library or in Lone Mountain North, 2nd Floor Monday – Friday 8:00 am – 5:00 pm. The Lone Mountain Conference Center in room 102 can also provide keys to Smart Classrooms. Faculty must present their USF ID to check out a key. Contact ITS at x6668 with any questions regarding classroom technology keys. Additional classroom technology info can be found here.

Electronic Reserve
Faculty may place materials on electronic reserve on the library website. Information about Classroom Reserves.

Education Technology Services (ETS)
ETS is a teaching, learning, and research facility designed to provide USF faculty, staff, and students with access to the tools for the successful integration of technology into today’s classrooms. ETS provides training in current desktop and multimedia applications, and demonstrations and workshops on the latest technology solutions for higher education. Click here to view the available workshops and trainings.

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1) Anticipated absences
Any anticipated absence from class (for example, to attend a conference) must have prior Dean’s approval. Please complete the Request to be Absent form, and submit it to your Department Chair at least two weeks prior to the absence. The Chair will review the form and either ask for revisions or send it on to the Associate Dean for approval. The form asks you to provide a rationale for your absence, and a plan to either provide a substitute instructor or otherwise make the class up–for example, through individual writing conferences with students. Please note that requiring your program assistant to proctor any kind of class activity as a substitute for you is not a viable option, as such duties are not in the OPE job description and thus cannot be allowed. Substitution is the preferred option here, but if you are not able to use this option, make sure you clearly indicate how the missed seat time will be made up; note that one option that is not acceptable is having students work individually or in groups on a project with no instructor present. Faculty frequently make up class time by scheduling individual writing conferences with students.
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2) Unanticipated absences
If unexpected circumstances prevent you from making it to your class (such as illness or sudden emergency), you should notify your program assistant, who will know the procedure to follow. If you are able to send an email, please also copy the other Rhetoric and Language program assistant and the associate dean’s assistant to the email (just in case your program assistant is not available). If you have special instructions for your students, you should pass them on to your program assistant. Note: you should notify your program assistant of your absence even if you are able to contact your students through email or through Canvas, but it’s not a bad idea to create an email list or to load the Canvas app to your phone so that you can get a message to your students quickly and efficiently.

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If a student appeals a grade, you and the student must follow the grade appeal resolution method outlined in the Fogcutter and the Full-Time Faculty CBA. This process should begin with student and instructor meeting in-person to review and respond to the student’s complaint.

Change of Grade
Any change of grade must be initiated by the faculty member. This can be done electronically on faculty self-service banner.

Grades of “W”
Your Grade Roster will have a “W” posted in the grade column for students who have officially dropped the course after the census date. If a student has simply stopped attending class, the grade space will be blank. In that case, you should give the student an “F.” In exceptional circumstances, it may happen that a student officially dropped the course after the Grade Rosters were issued. In that case, you should still assign a grade of “F.” In the computer, a “W” will override the “F” grade if the student has officially dropped.

Grades of “I”
Grades of Incomplete (“I”) are discouraged. An Incomplete may be appropriate for students who, near the end of the semester, experience a significant event typically beyond their control (e.g., severe illness or injury, death in the family) that prevents them from completing the requirements for the course(s). To invoke this privilege, students should have completed at least 75% of the coursework before the event. Students must provide written verification (e.g., physician’s note) of the circumstances. The Incomplete is not intended as a means of avoiding a poor or failing grade or obtaining an extension not afforded all other students in the course. In no case should attendance in your class during the following semester be required or allowed in order to complete the course requirements. After one semester, the “I” will be converted to an “F” unless the work is made up and the instructor provides submit the Change of Grade form.

Final Grades
All final grades are to be submitted via the internet. The Registrar’s office will provide detailed instructions on the use of the Web-Grading system. Your PIN will permit you to grade only those classes for which the computer system recognizes you as the instructor of record.

Under no circumstances should your PIN be shared with anyone else; in particular, TA’s and program assistants are not permitted to enter grades on your behalf.

Final Exams
If you give a final exam, one electronic copy of each exam for each class you teach is due to your program assistant on the date indicated by the Dean’s Office. The schedule for final exams is available online. Faculty members must adhere to this schedule; they may not change the date, time, or place of final exams and may not give an exam during the final two regular weeks of classes.

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For class related expenses (e.g. field trips), faculty must request permission from the Department Chair. Qualifying purchases can be made in advance via your Program Assistant’s purchasing card (p-card). Faculty members are responsible for reconciling their own out-of-pocket expenses, which they can do through USF’s online Concur Expense Service. Remember to keep all receipts. Training is required to gain access to Concur Expense Service. Please review the tutorial on how to submit for reimbursements.

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Mobile One Card was introduced in Fall 2021. Information can be found here. Your USF ID card provides access to campus facilities, functions, and privileges (e.g., use of the library, computer labs, sporting events). You can also put money on your ID card/One card and use it as a debit card for discounts on purchases at the dining facilities and bookstore on campus. Access to Gleeson Library and the 4th floor Adjunct Faculty office is with USF ID ONLY. You will not be given access to the Library if you do not have your USF ID. The One Card office is in UC 501 (415-422-7663).

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Your Program Assistant can request your access to the department’s budget for printing and copying. There is a limited budget for duplicating so please be judicious about what you are copying and the amount you copy. Please try to limit your copying and recycle whenever possible. You have access to the copy machines in the department office and around campus.

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Gleeson Library
Circulation Phone: 415-422-2660
Reference Phone: 415-422-2039
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Library homepage

Students in RHET 110, 130, 195 and 250 equivalents are REQUIRED to have an orientation to the USF library, and other classes are encouraged. You may also arrange for a tour of the library; this is especially valuable for freshmen if given early in the semester. As the instructor, you may want to have the library session tailored to your course. You may ask for specific emphases or you may want to arrange the date to coincide with the beginning of work on the research paper for the course. Librarian Joe Garity will send you an email with more information and directions for scheduling your visit. It is important for you to prepare your class for, and accompany them on, the library visit, and to follow up with an exercise or exercise which have students put into practice what they have learned.

The Learning, Writing, and Speaking Center offers academic assistance to all students at no cost. Services include subject-specific tutoring, writing assistance, and public speaking support. The Learning Center also provides opportunities for academic skill development, in the forms of 1:1 coaching and group workshops. Click here for more info.

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Textbook orders

A list of approved books for all courses can be found here. If you have any specific questions regarding textbook choices, contact your Area Director. Some examination copies are kept in the Department Library (KA 374) as a reference, you can access it through your PA. If you would like a desk copy of a textbook, you should request it directly from the publisher. 

Access the textbook ordering platform app through your myApps or through this link: aip.bncollege.com

Textbook orders must be submitted no later than October 15 for the spring semester and May 1 for fall semester, or as soon as possible after you have been assigned to a class.