College of Arts and Sciences: DCRP Service Assignments

Unit Policy

Title

College of Arts and Sciences: DCRP Service Assignments

Introduction

Purpose

This document outlines the official service roles and responsibilities for faculty in the Department of City and Regional Planning, detailing the expectations, duties, and governance structures associated with each position. It serves as a reference guide to ensure clarity, consistency, and accountability across departmental leadership and service assignments.

Scope

This document applies to faculty members in UNC-Chapel Hill's Department of City and Regional Planning who hold—or may be assigned—formal service, administrative, or leadership roles within the department.

Policy

Service Assignments

  • Department Chair
  • Associate Chair; Director of MCRP Program and MCRP Admissions (MCRP DGS)
  • Director of PhD Graduate Studies (DGS)
  • Director of Undergraduate Studies (DUS)
  • Summer School Administrator
  • Teaching Review Committee
  • CPJ Advisor
  • Center for Urban and Regional Studies (CURS) Director
  • Honors Court Liaison
  • Appointment, Promotion, Tenure/ Post-Tenure (APT/PTR) Review Committee(s) 
  • Junior Faculty Mentorship Committee(s)
  • Prize Czar(s)
  • Specialization Directors
    • ED
    • HCD
    • LUEP
    • TPO

Service Role Position Descriptions

Department Chair

The leadership role of department chairs is vital to a strategic, bold and student-focused College of Arts & Sciences. The success of the College’s faculty, staff and students depends on the strong leadership of department chairs working collaboratively with the deans. Department chairs must be trusted to lead their respective departments with a sense of responsibility, vision and flexibility that is consistent with all relevant rules, regulations and best practices that have been developed by the College and the University with oversight from the UNC System Office.

Through a collaborative working relationship with the deans, the position of department chair should be a rewarding experience — one in which the chair can effectively establish goals and priorities for the department and advocate for them, while also serving as a key intermediary between the department and the College and the University. Perhaps the most important responsibility of the department chair is to establish a collegial environment where all members of the department feel they are a part of a team, and that they have ownership of the success of the department. Clearly agreed-upon leadership roles, responsibilities and expectations for chairs help identify the best departmental leaders, and ultimately help them carry out their responsibilities successfully.

The following describes the roles, responsibilities and expectations of department chairs. These criteria form the basis of department chair’s annual evaluation meeting with the Senior Associate Dean each summer. Performance of these roles and responsibilities determines annual raise increases as well as eligibility for continued appointment as chair or reappointment to a second term.

Departmental priorities and goals

Leads the department in developing, implementing and articulating short- and long-term strategic goals, and establishes a vision consistent with the mission of the College and the University’s goal to be a leading global, public, research university. Takes a leadership position on diversity, equity and inclusion in all departmental matters.

  1. Leads the department in establishing strategic priorities in research, teaching, diversity, equity and inclusion, and public service engagement.
  2. Challenges the department’s faculty to identify the qualities and characteristics to be a nationally top-ranked department.
  3. Sets the tone within the department that fosters a spirit of cooperation between faculty and staff within the department.
  4. Serves as a liaison with the College of Arts & Sciences, as a member of the dean’s leadership team, and liaise with other university offices.
  5. Oversees departmental faculty search processes and recommends the appointment of new faculty in concert with existing faculty input and directives from the senior associate dean and/or dean and in alignment with the department’s diversity plan.
  6. Works closely with the Dean’s Office on the equitable retention of faculty.
  7. Collaborates on development and fundraising initiatives for the department with the Arts and Sciences Foundation and dean.
  8. Fosters a culture of communication within the department, including convening and running department faculty meetings regularly (approximately once a month during the academic year).
Faculty, staff and student development

Creates an environment and culture within the department in which faculty, staff and students feel supported and valued. Model to others and performs in a way that actively and constructively supports the spirit of the university’s diversity and inclusion in the workplace goals.

  1. Advocates for faculty, students and staff through active communication with the Dean’s Office.
  2. Ensures that an effective faculty mentoring program is in place to nurture faculty (assistant professors, and where requested, associate professors) and encourages faculty development more broadly.
  3. Encourages and supports diversity across all levels of the department.
  4. Monitors and acknowledges additional service contributions (e.g. student mentorship or committee work) by faculty from different identity groups (e.g. women faculty, faculty of color, LGBTQ+ faculty, and faculty from other protected identity groups) by appropriately recognizing this work in the annual evaluations and promotion reviews and ensuring that the balance of work is equitable.
  5. Ensures that service loads borne by women faculty, faculty of color, LGBTQ+ faculty, and faculty from other protected identity groups are balanced with service performed by all other faculty in the department, because service is part of all faculty members’ job description.
  6. Reviews and makes decisions regarding faculty proposals for awards and research and study assignments; advocates for outstanding faculty by nominating them for teaching awards, leadership programs, distinguished professorships, etc.
  7. Encourages and assists faculty to improve professionally through study, research, service and participation in professional activities and service to the state.
  8. Monitors, with faculty advisors and program coordinators, the academic progress of student cohorts.
Curriculum planning and evaluation

Leads (or appropriately delegates) the department in coordinating the yearly plan of course offerings, including developing the annual course (teaching) schedule based on curricular needs and coordinating the evaluation of the instruction. The chair (or delegate):

  1. Works closely with the registrar, director of undergraduate studies and director of graduate studies to set course offerings.
  2. Oversees the assignment of courses and teaching assistants.
  3. Establishes expectations for regularly evaluating instruction and making corrections as needed.
Personnel management

Effectively communicates expectations and objectively and constructively reviews faculty and staff annually.

  1. Establishes the leadership structure in the department.
  2. Leads the review process for personnel decisions involving promotions and post-tenure review for all tenure-track and fixed-term faculty members.
  3. Works closely with the departmental manager to evaluate departmental staff.
  4. Actively create a productive work environment within your department that is free of harassment and bullying.
  5. Ensures an equitable distribution of workload among faculty and among staff.
  6. Leads the process for annual salary raises, with direction from the Dean’s Office.
  7. Works closely with the senior associate dean on retention of faculty.
Fiscal and space management

Works in close consultation with the department’s administrative/budget manager in serving as the fiscal and space officer for the department.

  1. Manages the department’s budgets (instructional, F&A, trust funds, etc.) in collaboration with departmental and College accounting staff.
  2. Oversees the operation of all departmental space in collaboration with the administrative manager, facility personnel and assistant dean for facilities in the College.
  3. Leads fundraising for the department or curriculum. Because such “development” work is important, and because most of us are untrained for it, we have included a separate section, Development, about it.
Liaison to the College

Works collaboratively and cooperatively to the benefit of both the department and College, and advocates for the department’s faculty, staff and students to the senior associate deans and dean.

  1. Works cooperatively with the department faculty and support staff to prepare reports (annual report, student learning outcomes, faculty workload, etc.) requested by the Dean’s Office and appropriate outside agencies.
  2. Supervises the resolution of grievances and grade appeals, following established departmental, College, and University-wide procedures.
  3. Promotes ethics and integrity in research and teaching.

Source: Office of the Chair | College of Arts and Sciences Business Operations

Associate Chair; Director of MCRP Program and MCRP Admissions (MCRP DGS)

In our department, the Associate Chair is also the MCRP Program Director, and MCRP Admissions Director. In addition to supporting the chair and advancing departmental initiatives and priorities, the Associate Chair is also responsible for:

MCRP Curriculum and Accreditation
Ensuring consistent curriculum delivery
  • Develop back-up teaching rotations for all required core courses.
  • Develop back-up teaching rotations for all required specialization courses.
  • Review the course schedule and course prep assignments to ensure that the following ordered priorities are maintained:
    1. Ensuring 2-year graduation/course delivery for the MCRP curriculum, then
    2. Minimizing new course preps for junior faculty, then
    3. Maximizing undergraduate enrollment, then
    4. Prioritizing the accommodation of junior faculty when scheduling conflicts arise
  • Serve as the instructor of record for students who wish to pursue academic credit for their internships.
  • Serve as the approver for any course substitutions
  • Fill in for the specialization director as needed
Admissions and Recruitment
Defining, communicating and enforcing admissions standards
  • Ensure that departmental admissions standards are compliant with all University policies and procedures and satisfy the requirements of PAB accreditation.
  • Build consensus among the faculty as to the skills and attributes of students that will excel in our program in order to recruit strong cohorts of MCRP students.
  • Clearly document and communicate the guidelines that emerge from the faculty consensus to:
    • Prospective applicants and so they can accurately assess their fit with the program and prepare the best application they can.
    • Current students who participate in the Admissions Committee so that they can fairly and consistently evaluate applications and make recommendations.
  • Attend all Admissions Committee meetings, including training sessions, and providing advice as necessary.
  • Apply application review standards fairly and consistently in making final admissions decisions.
  • Select nominees for university-wide fellowships and assemble timely and compelling materials in support of these nominations.
Managing the recruitment budget
  • Build and maintain a strong understanding of program costs and funding options to ensure ability to efficiently provide accurate advice to students, faculty and staff.
  • Leverage the admissions budget provided to recruit the best students possible.
  • Work with the Department Chair and the CAS Foundation to develop new sources of support for the recruitment of students.
Engaging Faculty in the Admissions Process
  • Ensure that faculty are engaged and well-represented in the recruitment of students, including participation in events and communication with applicants.

See the following resources for additional, general university descriptions and expectations of this role:

Director of PhD Program (DGS)

Overseeing Program Governance
  • Oversee recruitment of PhD Policy Committee and hold meetings as needed (in fall).  This Committee should work to address issues most critical to students and faculty. It is often helpful to ensure there is an all-student meeting at the start of the Fall semester so that students can be updated on developments and the DGS can understand student concerns/goals.
  • Present PhD issues at faculty meetings
  • Maintain PhD guide and ensure students and faculty are informed about the document and relevant changes
Doctoral Program Administration
  • Attend start of year Graduate School information session (mid- August)
  • Ensure program policies are being followed by monitoring student progress and working with faculty advisors.
  • Develop budget requests (by July 1) and manage budget for items/events related to the PhD program
Doctoral Student Admissions
  • Develop admissions process that ensures fair and equitable evaluation for all applicants.  Coordinate with student services manager to gain access to required systems.
  • Establish applicant notification date and open house date in coordination with Chair and student services manager (by July 1)
  • Submit nominations for Graduate School fellowships (generally late January)
  • Select and notify students of admissions and funding. All funding decisions must be approved by the Chair.
  • Organize doctoral student open house and organize faculty recruitment of doctoral students.

See the following resources for additional, general university descriptions and expectations of this role:

Specialization Directors

The specialization directors are responsible for overseeing the requirements of the specialization, hosting advising for students within the specialization; organizing events and programming for the specializations, and overseeing and managing the time of the student specialization assistants.

Director of Undergraduate Studies (DUS)

The DUS oversees DCRP’s undergraduate minor and connects the Department to offices overseeing undergraduate teaching and research. 

  1. Attend the fall orientation for DUS's ;at this event, UNC administration often discusses curriculum and requirement changes, and policy shifts that will apply for the coming academic year.  
  2. Monitor changes in undergraduate teaching policies and curriculum and inform faculty.
  3. Liaise with Office of Undergraduate Education
    1. Respond to UNC office of Undergraduate education calls to keep the catalog up to date.  They send out a call for additions, removals, changes around October for the following academic year.
    2. Develop relationship with Office of Undergraduate Research to link students to opportunities to work with DCRP faculty
    3. Work with Academic Advising to ensure awareness of DCRP courses, minor requirements, and troubleshoot any issues.
    4. Be aware of student tracking responsibilities and understand how to use tools, e.g., TarHeel Tracker.
  4. Consider new programmatic offerings for undergraduates and present them to faculty, e.g., ‘4+1 programs’, courses
  5. Review syllabi for new and updated undergraduate course proposals
  6. Review undergraduate student requests, including:
    1. Independent studies
    2. Interdisciplinary Studies Major proposals
    3. SPCL courses
    4. Internship credit
    5. Transfer course requests
    6. Course substitutions
    7. Study Abroad course requests
    8. Honors theses
  7. Advise undergraduate students:
    1. Serve as faculty advisor for relevant undergraduate student organizations
    2. Nourish pipelines into MCRP for promising students
    3. Review applications for students applying to the dual Bachelor/Master’s program
    4. Create community by ensuring undergrads are alerted to appropriate departmental events and hosting undergraduate-oriented event (e.g., ice cream social)
  8. Organize outreach to UNC departments to advertise the minor and recruit students to increase enrollment. This may include social events, open houses, interviews and presentations at UNC-wide events, interviews, etc.
  9. Serve as liaison to the Office of Undergraduate Curricula (course and program proposals)
  10. Serve as liaison to the Office of First Year Seminars/Curricula
  11. Serve as liaison to the Office for Undergraduate Research
  12. Serve as liaison to the Undergraduate Admissions Office
  13. Serve as liaison to the Office for Instructional Innovation
  14. Serve as faculty advisor to undergraduate student organizations
  15. Maintain, review and update minor requirements as needed.
  16. Review course offerings and ensure sufficient undergraduate course offerings
  17. Organize outreach to UNC departments to advertise the minor and recruit students to increase enrollment. This may include social events, open houses, interviews and presentations at UNC wide events, interviews, and so on.

See the following resources for additional, general university descriptions and expectations of this role:

Summer School Administrator

The Summer School Administrator is responsible for arranging summer courses that appeal to students and help satisfy their requirements for graduation and is responsible for recommending faculty / graduate student instructors to teach these courses. The Summe School Administrator is also responsible for keeping track of enrollment and communicating with faculty about cancellations.

The Summer School Administrator service role is year-long. During October and early November, the Summer School Administrator should review the previous summer's courses and plan for the upcoming summer's offerings.  The Summer School Administrator should also ensure that all courses are set up by the departmental manager or department scheduler with the University Registrar by November 15. In the spring semester, the Administrator finalizes the instructor assignments; ensures faculty are aware of the dates and expectations for teaching their assigned course(s); assists the department manager in preparing nomination forms for payroll; oversees any changes in course offerings, such as the addition of sections to accommodate waitlists; and ensures faculty are up-to-date on all required and relevant trainings and policies. In mid-April, the Administrator should contact Summer School regarding any class having fewer than 10 students.

The salary for the Summer School Administrator will be based on the number of courses that DCRP offers and will be paid in Second Session, unless DCRP offers no courses in Second Session. If DCRP only offers courses during First Session, the Summer School Administrator will be paid in First Session.

The Summer School Administrator is typically an associate chair or the director of undergraduate studies. Summer School prefers that the Administrator should be a faculty member. In special circumstances, an EHRA non-faculty staff member might be appointed. SHRA employees cannot be the Administrator. A faculty member who is on leave cannot be the Summer Administrator.

See the following resources for additional, general university descriptions and expectations of this role:
Summer School Policies

Teaching Review Committee

The teaching review committee includes all tenured faculty in the Department that are not on leave. Each year, certain faculty require peer teaching reviews for Appointment, Promotion, and Tenure (APT) or for Post-Tenure Review (PTR) purposes. The department will endeavor to distribute all teaching review assignments during the summer prior to the start of the academic year, with the goals of allocating reviews in a way that 1) account for faculty leaves and review deadlines (as set by the CAS and University), and 2) distributes review workloads equitably across faculty.

Responsibilities of peer teaching reviewers include:

  1. Contacting the faculty members that are to be reviewed to schedule a date for the in-person review (Zoom may also be utilized if in-person sessions are not possible). Reviewed course sessions should avoid guest speakers, field trips, class work sessions, or other situations that would restrict a reviewer’s ability to accurately gauge the instructor's teaching activity.
  2. Reviews should employ the CAS teaching evaluation form. Additionally, the reviewer may also optionally use the additional, Departmental feedback form to give the instructor more fine-grained feedback (but this is not required). These forms are located on the Department’s internal DCR Procedures site.
  3. Upon completion of the review, the reviewer will send the CAS teaching evaluation form back to the Instructor, Department Manager, and Department Chair.
  4. The reviewer will also schedule a debriefing session to discuss the CAS form and to offer additional verbal feedback to the instructor. At this session, the reviewer should describe their views of the strengths and weaknesses of the teaching performance in the course session reviewed, as well as opportunities for improvement.
  5. Finally, after this meeting, please email the Chair, Department Manager, and instructor to confirm that this meeting has been completed.

Carolina Planning Journal (CPJ) Advisor

The CPJ Advisor will support and mentor the CPJ Editors and Editorial Board. To fulfill that role, the CPJ editor will:

  • Teach up to two 1.5 credit courses per year in which the CPJ Editors, Editorial Board members, and other interested students will develop the skills and knowledge necessary to maintain CPJ’s tradition of excellence. Topics may include:
    • Selecting appropriate and timely themes
    • Developing a journal production schedule
    • Recruiting contributors including practitioners, faculty and students
    • Giving and receiving editorial feedback
    • Developing marketing, distribution and growth strategies
    • Maintaining and developing sources of financial support
  • Mentor and advise the CPJ Editors
  • Advise and oversee the selection of incoming editors

Director of the Center for Urban and Regional Studies Director (CURS)

The UNC DCRP Center of Urban and Regional Studies (CURS) uses a community engaged scholarship lens to carry on CURS’ nearly 70-year tradition “to promote and support within UNC- Chapel Hill, high-quality basic and applied research on urban, regional and rural planning and policy issues.”

CURS partners with residents, community organizations, and local governments to respond to data requests and community driven research needs. Additionally, CURS explores 1) other community- academic research collaborations, 2) the feasibility of the Lab to act as a hub for community-based research in the Department of City and Regional Planning (DCRP), and 3) the demand for trainings in community engagement methodologies. The long-term goals of CURS are to establish sustained and healthy research collaborations with local communities as the norm within DCRP and to ensure all students across our program graduate with community engagement as a core competency. CURS is integral to DCRP’s continuing implementation of UNC’s CarolinaNext strategic plan in fostering career development for students and faculty (Strategic Initiative [SI] 3), pursuing creative collaboration in research and scholarship to solve difficult and divisive problems (SI 4.1; 4.3; 5.2), and foster meaningful and effective community partnerships (SI 6).

The CURS Director responsibilities include:

  • Shepherding community engagement research activity within the department.
  • Developing community engaged teaching and service opportunities
  • Allocating departmentally provided research assistant (RA) and engagement funds appropriately
  • Allocating departmentally provided course release (when available) among CURS-engaged faculty. The intent of this release is to provide faculty members with additional time for community engaged research and grant writing. This course release is meant to be equitably distributed among relevant faculty each year.
  • Developing an Annual Report on departmental community engagement that relies on faculty and student surveys and other data.

Junior Faculty Mentorship Committee(s)

See DCRP Junior Faculty Mentoring Program description on the Department’s internal DCR Procedures site under “faculty”.

Roles of a Faculty Mentor 
  1. Career Enhancing Mentoring – those aspects of the relationship that enhance learning the ropes, strengthening professional skills and scholarship, and preparing for advancement in the organization and within the mentee’s professional field. 
  2. Networking – exposure to positive, career-building opportunities (individuals and resources) on the UNC campus and potentially outside. 
Roles of a Mentee 
  1. Proactive responsibility for their career development 
  2. Openness to feedback and understanding the expectations of the mentor 
  3. Engage in self-reflection and align career plan with individual strengths 
Best Practices for mentors and mentees: 
  • Establish “Ground Rules,” thereby building trust, and communication 
  • Establish regular, confidential meetings to check-in at least once a semester outside of departmental annual review. 
  • Provide space and flexibility to identify and meet needs of mentee 
  • Provide support and preparation for departmental faculty annual review (performance review) 
  • Discuss negotiation and communication skills 
  • Guide mentee through the promotion and tenure requirements 
  • Encourage professional development 
  • Encourage peer mentoring and multiple mentors, including a career mentor distinct from a research mentor 
  • Develop faculty (both mentor and mentee) involvement in formal development of mentorship skills: the Office of Graduate Education and the CFE/NC TraCS offer a free, evidence-based, mentorship training curriculum 
Monitoring 

The faculty annual report will include a question about overall satisfaction with mentoring programs with summarized information reported and discussed during the annual faculty retreat. The chair will check in on mentoring during the annual review conversations during the one-on-one portion of the conversation. 

Prize Czar(s)

DCRP is committed to having infrastructure to ease the process of nominating students, staff, and faculty for prizes and awards, both internal to UNC and the UNC system, as well as external awards in planning and adjacent fields.

Price Czar(s) responsibilities include:

  • Maintain and update list of UNC and UNC system awards for faculty, students and staff from UNC + elsewhere in planning.
  • Develop materials to reduce nomination workload, including letter templates and collecting sample nomination packages from previous successful awards.
  • Nominate faculty, students, and staff for awards.
  • Propose, establish, and select individuals for additional internal awards.

Related Requirements

External Regulations (if applicable)

  • Is this Policy connected to any Policies, Laws (federal, state, local, regulations), and/or Accreditation requirements?
  • Are there any related UNC System-wide Policies?
  • Is this Policy connected to any UNC-Chapel Hill Policies, Procedures, or Standards?
  • Are there any other resources or materials readers of this Policy might likely refer to or need to follow or understand this Policy?

Unit Policies, Standards, and Procedures (if applicable)

  • Is this Policy connected to any other Unit Policies, Procedures, or Standards?

Contact Information

Primary Contact

Office: Dean's Office

Telephone: 919-962-1165

Email: artsandsciences@unc.edu

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