New Faculty Onboarding FAQs

Yes, you must register with University Parking Services, located on the first floor of Campus Center North, down the hall from the More Card office.

Faculty hangtags may be obtained by presenting a valid Purchase ID (More) card and the vehicle registration. There is an annual vehicle registration fee (currently $16 per vehicle).

Purchase College employees are encouraged to use college facilities, including the gymnasium and the library. Employees must show their Purchase College ID (More) cards. The gym charges a modest fee for locker usage.

For more information, see:

• Athletic Facilities
• Library

Faculty members with a current Purchase College ID card receive a 50% discount (two tickets per event) on The Center’s professional series. View the schedule.

Classes are canceled or delayed by the college only under extreme circumstances. Cancellation information is recorded on the Purchase College weather emergency hotline, (914) 251-7500 and posted on the faculty and staff portal by 6:00am for morning classes, by 10:00am for afternoon classes, and by 3:00pm for evening classes.

For notification of delays and cancellations, see public access cable Channel 12 and radio stations WFAS 1230 AM (White Plains), WCBS-AM 880 (New York City), and WHUD 100.7 (Peekskill). For more information, please see Guidelines for Extraordinary Weather Conditions.

If you plan to use a textbook, there are two ways to go about it. Please place your order as soon as possible:

• Follett discover via the Moodle portal
  • If you select this link it will take you directly to Follett on line Discover. This system is being fed course information so any classes that they are listed as the faculty will be listed. Please enter the 13 digit ISBN number for the text they want. This system also will present other options such as used texts, OER, etc for their course.
• Send an E-mail to bookstore@purchase.edu with the information of the course ID and text information (13 digit ISBN or title/edition/author
• Questions/concerns, please call at (914) 251-6330
• Target dates for ordering are: Fall: February 15 • Spring: September 15 • Summer: January 15. Purchase College is required by law to provide textbook information, including costs, to students at the time of registration.

For guidelines on classroom copying, see Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). For further information, consult your director.

Instructions and forms necessary to put materials on reserve are on the library’s website.

Material on reserve at the library must comply with copyright guidelines, whether the item is placed on traditional, in-library reserve or made available online through Brightspace, the learning management system.

Class lists are available through myHeliotrope. Then click Faculty Services, then Class List. Select the term and course you would like to view the class list for.

Faculty members who cannot access this site or who experience difficulty for any other reason should contact the Office of the Registrar. You may also refer to the myHeliotrope user guides.

If you are not assigned a “smart” (technology enhanced) classroom, CTS can provide Mobile Teaching Units (MTUs) consisting of a laptop and projector network card mounted on carts that can be wheeled into any location on campus for electronic presentations.

To make arrangements for a Mobile Teaching Unit, use the link on Campus Smart Classrooms to fill out a CTS work order requesting one.

Visit the Academic Calendar.

Your director or colleagues will be happy to provide you with sample syllabi. Please be sure to include the appropriate general education and/or Program Learning Outcomes. Program Learning Outcomes are available under each major’s webpage.

Please refer to Planning the Course Syllabus for additional information on how to construct your syllabi.

Yes, each student in a course must be provided with a written course syllabus at the first class meeting. A copy of the course syllabus must also be filed with your director.

Except in the School of the Arts and in College Writing where attendance is required, the number of student absences allowed in a particular course is at the discretion of the instructor.

However, faculty members are urged to encourage attendance, and must state the attendance policy clearly on the syllabus. Students absent from class for any reason are expected to complete any missed work.

Grades are due no later than three days after the end of semester or session and are submitted online through myHeliotrope. Click on Faculty Services, then Final Grades, then select the term and course you are entering grades for.

Faculty members who cannot access this site or who experience difficulty for any other reason should contact the Office of the Registrar. You may also refer to the myHeliotrope user guides.

For detailed information on the grading system, see the Purchase College Catalog.

After an instructor has submitted a student’s grade to the Office of the Registrar, the grade may be changed only with the approval of the Director of Student Support and Academic Achievement.

If there has been a clerical error or if the student feels the grade received is inaccurate, he or she should discuss the evaluation with the instructor.

If there are further questions, the student should discuss the evaluation with the Director of Student Support and Academic Achievement.

The final evaluation, however, is the prerogative of the instructor.

Full-time faculty members are required to hold a minimum of three office hours a week while the semester is in session and to post their schedule prominently on their office door.

There are several sources of funding available to faculty for professional development:

SUNY and Purchase College Faculty Awards

Annual information on SUNY and Purchase College faculty awards programs, including application forms and deadlines, is available on the Office of the Provost and Academic Affairs website.

NYS/UUP Joint Labor-Management Committees’ Programs

Six Joint Labor-Management Committees, negotiated in the 2016–2022 NYS/UUP Agreement. Please see the current information.

Sponsored Programs

Sponsored Programs under the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs promotes the growth of externally funded research, programs and projects in support of Purchase College’s commitment to providing the highest-quality education and assists Purchase College faculty with securing external grant funding in support of their research, programs or projects.

Services offered are:

• Find Funding Sources
• Interpret Grant Guidelines
• Develop Proposals
• Construct Budgets
• Edit Project Narrative
• Prepare Applications For Submission
• Prepare Interim and Final Financial Reports To Grant Sponsors

Faculty and staff are asked to contact the Sponsored Programs office at the initial intake point for any and all questions about external funding.

Limited funding for research support or travel may also be available from your director.

Student Evaluations

Student evaluations of instruction are administered in the fall, spring, and summer terms through an online process administered through the Office of the Student Support and Academic Achievement. Faculty participation in the student evaluation of instruction is a requirement for promotion, reappointment, or merit increases. No other evaluation or instrument may be substituted for this requirement. The results will be made available to the faculty member, the Department Chairs, the Director, and the Provost, and will become part of the official personnel file.

Peer Evaluation

Peer evaluation of instruction is encouraged by the College and is considered to be an important aspect of the general evaluation of faculty for reappointment and promotion. There is no formal procedure for peer evaluation. New faculty should consult their Dept. Chair if they are interested in having a colleague observe their teaching.

External Evaluations

External evaluations are required for all reappointment reviews in the sixth year of the standard seven-year probationary period. External evaluations are also required for all reviews involving promotion to associate or full professor and associate or full librarian.

Members of the teaching faculty are evaluated on the basis of their teaching, scholarly and/or professional activities, and community service.

Faculty members are expected to meet standard obligations in all three areas and to achieve excellence in two of these areas, one of which must be teaching.

For more information, please refer to the Faculty Handbook under Evaluation, Reappointment, and Promotion.

The academic advising of students is an integral part of the faculty teaching obligation. Faculty members may be asked to advise undeclared students, as well as undergraduate and/or graduate students who have declared a major.

A list of your advisees can be found on myHeliotrope. Click Faculty Services, then Advising Menu, then Advisee Listing. Finally, select the term you want to view your advisee list for.

Faculty members who cannot access this site or who experience difficulty for any other reason should contact the Office of the Registrar. You may also refer to the myHeliotrope user guides.

You may also view your advisees’ transcripts and check their academic progress using the Degree Progress Report from the Advising Menu on myHeliotrope.

Graduation requirements for each major and minor can be accessed via the links on the Academics webpage.

When you meet with your advisee, you should review their Degree Progress Report in myHeliotrope with them to ensure that they are meeting their particular degree requirements. Students are ultimately responsible for their own academic progress.

Faculty advisors should also be familiar with general education requirements.

For answers to advising questions about which the advisor or the student is uncertain (e.g., information about academic regulations, policies, and procedures), contact the Advising Center at x3990 or by email at ADV.advising@purchase.edu.

Faculty can view the course schedule on myHeliotrope > Faculty Services > Course Search.

Yes, tutoring in writing, lower level mathematics, and other disciplines tutoring is available throughout the academic year at the Learning Center in the lower level of the Library. Natural Sciences tutoring is available at the Einstein Corner, Natural Sciences Building (Room 3046). Ask students to schedule an appointment at learning@purchase.edu.

Students may also use the Learning Center’s Online Writing Lab (OWL) to submit papers for online feedback from trained tutors.

The college’s policy on academic and professional integrity is published in the Student Handbook and online on the Community Standards website.

The academic-integrity process is designed to be as simple as possible and to keep decision-making in the hands of the faculty. When a faculty member encounters an alleged violation of academic integrity, he or she notifies the student and sets up a meeting.

Notification and resolution forms, plus a faculty guide, are available under “More Faculty Resources” on the Faculty Resources and Forms webpage.

Faculty use the Starfish platform (available under the Academics tab on the faculty and staff portal) to raise a flag(s) that corresponds with the specific area of concern.

Raising a flag will prompt outreach from the appropriate office, including Health Services, Counseling Center, Office of Community Standards, or the Wellness Center.​

To receive disability services, students must supply appropriate documentation to the Office of Disability Resources.

Students should make an appointment at the beginning of each semester to discuss their needs. The Office of Disability Resources will notify faculty of any accommodations.

Yes, CTS automatically creates an e-mail distribution list for each class each semester, with the faculty member as the list manager.

Three semesters of lists are available: past, present, and future. The format for these lists is: YYYY-TERM-Subject-Code-CRN@purchase.edu (i.e. 2014-40-WRI1105-40115@purchase.edu).

Purchase College uses the D2L Brightspace learning management system, with several other third-party learning tools integrated into the environment.

Brightspace allows faculty to manage course communications, provide resources to students, set up learning activities such as assignments, discussion forums, and quizzes, as well as keep track of student progress and manage grades

Brightspace also provides access to Turnitin, a plagiarism prevention tool, VoiceThread, a digital media presentation and discussions application, ThinkingStorm, a virtual tutoring resources, among others.

For assistance with setting up your courses in Brightspace, please contact the SUNY Online Help Desk (https://online.suny.edu/help) and/or contact the Teaching, Learning, and Technology Center (TLTC) at TLTC@purchase.edu.

Brightspace support is available via the SUNY Online Help Desk and the TLTC. 

Upcoming workshops are posted on the TLTC website.

Purchase College uses the Moodle learning management system and Mahara ePortfolio system, with several other learning applications integrated into this environment.

Moodle allows faculty to manage course communications, provide resources to students, set up learning activities such as assignments, discussion forums and quizzes, and maintain grade information in the gradebook.

Moodle also provides access to Turnitin anti-plagiarism and paper grading tools, VoiceThread digital media presentations and discussions, Atomic Learning tutorial resources, NetTutor live tutoring, and other external services.

The ePortfolio system allows students, faculty, and staff to collect examples of their work and other materials from across courses and co-curriclular activities, to develop portfolio presentations for multiple audiences.

Getting started and general help material for Moodle and associated tools is available on the Teaching, Learning, and Technology Center (TLTC) website. For consultations on the use of these learning applications, contact the TLTC at tltc@purchase.edu or x6440.

The TLTC, in collaboration with other campus departments such as the Library, periodically conduct workshops on a variety of pedagogical and instructional technology topics. Purchase faculty and staff are also encouraged to take advantage of programming, trainings, and other professional development opportunities offered by SUNY Center for Professional Development (SUNY CPD), https://system.suny.edu/suny-cpd/.

A faculty member should receive his or her first paycheck approximately four weeks after the initiation of a full-time faculty appointment—assuming all required forms have been submitted to Human Resources.

If you have any questions about initial payments, please contact the Payroll Office at x6095.

College employees may have their paychecks deposited directly into their bank or credit union by signing up for the NYS Direct Deposit Program. To enroll in Direct Deposit, employees will first need to access the College’s Human Resources Employee Tracking System (HRETS) Once you access HRETS: 

1. Click on the Employee Datasheet link listed under the Personnel ETS Options (bottom left). Your own Employee Datasheet will open.
2. Review all of your personal data listed under each tab to ensure that it’s correct and up-to-date. Please make sure to save your edits.
3. Click on the HR Documents tab. On this tab you will find a link to the Direct Deposit form*
4. Click and download the form to your computer. Complete the form and save it to your hard drive. Once you have saved, completed and signed the documents you will need to upload the documents in the same section.

*(Do not forget to attach a voided check or written verification form from your financial institutions as directed in Section B of the Direct Deposit Form)

The college offers a wide variety of benefits to eligible employees, including but not limited to: Health Insurance, Retirement Plans, Paid Family Leave, Paid Parental Leave, Voluntary Savings Plans. Please visit the college’s Human Resources/Benefits Information website for detailed information on these benefits.

Additionally, the college participates in the U.S. Department of Education Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program (PSLF). Please access their website for more information about eligibility and requirements.

Academic-year faculty employees do not accrue vacation time, but do accrue sick leave.

Full-time Faculty

Full-time faculty members accrue sick leave as follows. Maximum allowable accrual is 225 days.

• During the first year: 1.25 days per month
• During the second year: 1.33 days per month
• During the third, fourth, and fifth years: 1.50 days per month
• During the sixth year: 1.66 days per month
• During the seventh and subsequent years: 1.75 days per month

Part-time Faculty

Part-time faculty employees who serve on a part time basis and are initially appointed or commence part-time service on or after July 1, 2018 shall be eligible to accrue sick leave as follows: 

• One course taught: 0.25 days per month
• Two courses taught: 0.50 days per month
• Three courses taught: 1.00 days per month

Part-time faculty employees who teach and who serve on a part-time basis and are initially appointed or commence part-time service on or after July 1, 2024 shall be eligible to accrue sick leave as follows:

• Three (3) credit hours/three (3) credit hour equivalents to <6: 0.25 days per month
• Six (6) credit hours/six (6) credit hour equivalents to <9: 0.50 days per month
• Nine (9) credit hours/nine (9) credit hour equivalents or more: 1.00 day per month

Yes, all faculty members are required to submit monthly electronic timesheets.

For instructions on how to complete an electronic faculty timesheet, HR has listed, on its website, an electronic time and attendance PowerPoint presentation that you can use as a step-by-step guide.

If you have any questions about the process please contact Susan Ciliberti, Time and Attendance Coordinator (x6057), Robin Farrell, Payroll Manager (x6096), or Ricardo Espinales, Associate Director of Human Resources (x6086).

Electronic timesheets have to be completed and submitted via the SUNY website. To access the site you’ll need a SUNY ID number that is unique to you only. If you don’t know what your SUNY ID number is, you can retrieve from your Employee Data Sheet located in HRETS or you can contact one of the following staff members in Human Resources for assistance: Susan Ciliberti, Time and Attendance Coordinator (x6057), Robin Farrell, Payroll Manager (x6096), or Ricardo Espinales, Associate Director of Human Resources (x6086).

UUP-represented employees may take one course per semester (including summer session) tuition-free, provided that space is available and the employee meets any course prerequisites.

In addition, all SUNY and Research Foundation employees who work at least half-time are eligible to apply for reimbursement through the SUNY Employee Tuition Waiver Program, which provides partial reimbursement for a maximum of six credits per semester for courses taken at any four-year SUNY institution.

Dependent children of actively employed UUP members may be eligible for a UUP Benefit Trust Fund Scholarship, if that benefit is available under the new UUP contract currently being negotiated.

For complete information, request the UUP Benefit Trust Fund Benefits Booklet from the Office of Human Resources or download it from the UUP website.