A recently proposed NC Senate Bill would require all professors in the UNC System to teach at least eight classes per academic year.

This legislation, if passed into law, would especially impact research universities like UNC-Chapel Hill where many professors teach fewer classes in order to conduct research.

UNC Faculty Chair Bruce Cairns says that research is an important part of the university’s mission.

“There’s so much more to being a professor than fulfilling a requirement for four classes a semester or eight classes a year.”

Cairns says university research advances knowledge and helps drive economic development. He adds the proposed legislation invokes questions about the purpose of the university.

“‘What does it mean to have a great global public research university? And what does it mean to provide education, research and service? And how do we combine these elements to help develop the next generation of leaders.’”

Sen. Tom McInnis is the primary sponsor of this bill, SB 593. McInnis issued the following statement to WCHL:

“This bill is the result of countless complaints and conversations from constituents across the 25th Senate district who are upset that their expensive and prestigious college education often lacks instruction from credentialed college professors. My hope is that this bill will generate legitimate debate about the role of professors in the classroom and how they balance research with teaching. I understand the great importance of research at our flagship universities, but that important work shouldn’t result in the short-changing of our students and their learning experience.”

Cairns also says education and research are not mutually exclusive and many students participate with professors in research.

“We have something like, in one year, 3,000 undergraduates produce original research in 140 courses across the spectrum.”

The bill states that professors who teach fewer than eight courses per year would get a pay cut. But a professor could be paid from the constituent university’s endowment fund.

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