Faculty Job Satisfaction

The COACHE Report on Faculty Job Satisfaction (2015)

In 2015, Loyola once again partnered with the Collaborative on Academic Careers in Higher Education (COACHE) to survey tenured and tenure-track faculty about satisfaction across areas of faculty life: teaching, scholarship, service, academic leadership, governance, and work-life balance. The COACHE survey is arguably the most important and reliable for supporting faculty success at institutions across the nation. COACHE is based at the Harvard Graduate School of Education since 2003 and it provides institutions an independent, research-driven, comparative study that helps Loyola continue to attract, retain, and nurture the highest quality faculty.

The survey is a beginning, not an end. It is a snapshot and an occasion for conversation, deliberation, and planning. COACHE explains, "Academic leaders use COACHE results to focus attention, spot successes and weaknesses, and then take concrete steps to make policies and practices more effective and more prevalent." To that end, Amy Wolfson, former Vice President of Academic Affairs worked closely with a COACHE advisory team and the Faculty Affairs Committee to design a process to share the results in an open manner, to provide opportunities for faculty engagement to better understand questions raised by the results, and to report back some of the survey's impact. May the conversation continue.

COACHE Results

Overview letter (2 pages)

Amy Wolfson, Professor of Psychology (former vice president for academic affairs)

2015 Provost's Report (61 pages)

Compiled by COACHE at the Harvard Graduate School of Education

Responses to 2015 COACHE Report (as of May, 2016)

Recommended starting points

- Results at a Glance (pages 14-15) 

- Guide to Dashboard Data (pages 16-17)

- Dashboard Results by Division (1 page) 

        - Slide presentation on Reading the COACHE report (24 slides, from November info sessions)

Recommended Questions as You Read the Report

First takes: Are the data consistent with our perceptions of our institution? What is surprising?

Group trends: Are there practically significant differences in the perception of some faculty (by gender, rank, tenure status, or within divisions) that create opportunities or raise concerns?

Priorities and Comparisons: Considering the current circumstances at Loyola, are some ingredients or areas more important than others?

What has the biggest impact on our lives as faculty?

Are there areas of strength we want to nonetheless improve or cultivate in comparison to peer institutions, perhaps to be distinct?

Are there areas of relative weakness or dissatisfaction that nonetheless don’t warrant our attention right now?

Is there one item that can be addressed relatively quickly that you would prioritize?

Is there one item that would be your top priority, even if it requires focused effort over time or additional resources?

Best practices: Considering the hallmarks and best practices offered by Harvard’s COACHE team for a given area, is there one idea or model that Loyola should pursue in particular? Here are some guidelines, by topic:

- Routine Practices of Effective Department Chairs (1 page)

- Faculty Appreciation and Recognition (7 pages)

- Department Leadership (7 pages)

- Department Engagement, Quality, and Collegiality (7 pages)

- Faculty Mentoring (7 pages)

- Nature of Work: Research (8 pages)

- Nature of Work: Service (8 pages)

- Nature of Work: Teaching (8 pages)

- Nature of Work: Tenure and Promotion (8 pages)

- Interdisciplinary Work and Collaboration (7 pages)

COACHE Timeline and Engagement Opportunities

Below is the plan for communication and faculty engagement. Feedback on the process is welcome to Brian Norman, Chair of COACHE advisory team.

Event	Time	About
Preparation	Fall 2014	COACHE launch plans
Survey	Spring 2015	Announce Survey and Examples of Initiatives Informed by Past Survey (Jan 26) Faculty Writing Retreats Mid-Career Advancement Efforts Universal tenure-track mentoring program Launch survey (Jan 29) Encourage participation in multiple venues while survey is open through April
Receive Results	Early Fall 2015	VPAA receives Provost's Report (Aug 19) COACHE advisory team finalizes communication plan, in consultation with Faculty Affairs Committee
Share Results	Mid Fall 2015	VPAA overview letter, with access to report results and plan on COACHE website (Oct 15) Discuss overview and plans at All Chairs meeting (Oct 22) COACHE results inform annual VPAA fall address (Nov 13) "Reading the COACHE Report" info session, offered by COACHE advisory team (Nov 4 & 5, 9 am, CC107, Skype available--contact Lona Thomas)
Targeted Dissemination	Mid Fall 2015	VPAA and COACHE team provide relevant report sections to key groups working on related questions. Request that groups use the data and best practice recommendations to inform their work, send a delegate to the "How to Read the COACHE Report" session (above), and report back at year end how they are using the data. Groups that received the report with a request to report back in April: Compensation and Benefits Committee (Loyola Conference); Employer of Choice (Strategic Plan working group); Faculty Affairs Committee (Academic Senate); Faculty Life (Strategic Plan working group); Finding the Path to Full (Academic Affairs initiative); Graduate Vision (Strategic Plan Working Group); ReImagining the Undergraduate Curriculum (Strategic Plan Working Group). FYI copies: All faculty; Accreditation; Chairs; Deans; Institutional Research and Effectiveness; Library; President's Office/Cabinet; Strategic Planning Steering Committee.
Engage Faculty	Early spring 2016	VPAA Conversations with Faculty Groups  Jan 21: Faculty of Color (copy of presentation) Jan 28: Tenure-Track Faculty (copy of presentation) Feb 4: Women Faculty (copy of presentation) Feb 12: All Faculty Assembly on COACHE Results, Facilitated by Faculty Affairs Committee (copy of presentation) April 13: Tenured Faculty, with guest Fr. Linnane (copy of hand-out)
Report Back	Late spring 2016	Faculty Affairs Committee provides prioritized recommendations and timeline to VPAA FAC Follow-up Recommendations (March 2016; reported to Academic Senate April 2016) VPAA communicates preliminary results of how survey results are being used Responses to 2015 COACHE Report(as of May 2016) Pay Equity among Tenured and Tenure-Track Faculty (May 2016)

COACHE Advisory Team

Jeff Barnett, PsyD, ABPP, Professor of Psychology & Associate Dean, Loyola College of Arts and Sciences

Kathy Forni, Ph.D., Professor of English & Chair, Faculty Affairs Committee

Lorie Holtgrave, M.A., Assistant Vice President for Academic Operations, Office of Academic Affairs

Brian Norman, Ph.D. (Chair), Professor of English (former associate vice president for faculty affairs and diversity)