2.10 Staff Members Teaching

Policy No. 2.10

Policy: Under certain conditions, a Berklee staff member may teach a course during the fall semester, spring semester, or 12-week summer session. The following provisions apply:

  1. The staff member may teach the course only if no qualified faculty member is available to teach the course (due to schedule, course load, necessary expertise, sudden illness of the faculty member originally scheduled to teach, or another appropriate reason). 
  2. The staff member must receive prior written approval for the teaching request from their supervisor, the appropriate department chair or academic program director, and appropriate dean, as well as the senior vice president for Academic Affairs. The department chair or academic program director who desires to use the staff member to teach a course will seek those approvals.
  3. This policy applies to a staff member who teaches a course for a complete semester, any portion of a semester, or any single class during the semester.
  4. The staff member is required to comply with all applicable institutional, divisional, departmental, and academic policies.
  5. The staff member will not receive an academic rank (e.g., associate professor).
  6. The staff member will not be required to join the faculty union or pay union dues for the duration of the teaching assignment, except in special instances in which the individual receives a part-time teaching contract for the teaching assignment.
  7. This policy does not apply to the following:
    1. Academic leadership personnel who are considered staff and who teach. This includes, but is not limited to, chairs, assistant chairs, academic program directors, deans, and academic vice presidents.
    2. Individuals who are considered staff members and who have been teaching classes for many years (“grandfathered situations”).
    3. Berklee's campus in Valencia, Berklee City Music, the Aspire: Five-Week Music Performance Intensive program, and other special programs. Please note that those programs operate under separate policies and procedures, which may include a policy similar to the above.

Berklee reserves the right to amend, suspend, or cancel this policy at any time, with or without notice.

September 2024