Voluntary (39)
This popular term generally states that the teaching of distance education courses is voluntary and that faculty cannot be forced to teach in this mode. Thirty-nine colleges included this term. The AAUP recommends that colleges include language on this topic in its Statement on Distance Education (1999b). This term is a permissive term for bargaining.
Examples
Observations. The suggestions of the AAUP have been helpful to unions in determining how to approach distance education at their institutions. In most cases included in this study, negotiated agreements included the AAUP recommended language or something somewhat less protective of faculty. Interestingly, much of the “voluntary” language included in the contracts included in this study contain language that is more stringent than that recommended by the AAUP. The AAUP suggests that faculty not be required to teach in the distance mode without adequate training. Most of the contracts included in the study say that faculty cannot be required to teach in the distance mode at all, regardless of the training provided.