Overview

This procedure outlines the process for assigning faculty office space at The Ohio State University at Newark and Central Ohio Technical College. The Superintendent of Facilities administers the annual office assignment process, which occurs each spring and allows eligible full-time faculty to rank available offices. Assignments are made according to status, seniority, and rank to ensure a fair and consistent process.

The procedure also addresses eligibility for office space, temporary assignments, office changes related to administrative appointments or leaves of absence, appeals, and special situations such as renovations or new facilities.

Procedure

1. The superintendent of facilities shall administer this policy.
2. The person administering the assignment of faculty office space will notify all eligible faculty members of available office space before the end of April (via the most recent faculty email directory). Faculty members are responsible for submitting a request for a change of office space by the stated deadline in this communication.
3. Faculty eligible to receive permanent offices are those designated as eligible by the Ohio State Newark dean and COTC president at the time of assignments. Bidding occurs in one round that includes all Newark campus full-time faculty. Full-time tenure-track and full-time clinical/teaching/practice faculty at Ohio State Newark, full-time COTC faculty, and full-time associated faculty (i.e., lecturers and senior lecturers) at Ohio State Newark are eligible to bid on an office. Individuals holding temporary full-time faculty appointments at either institution may receive a single-person office if such space is available but may also lose their office space if it is needed to house regular, full-time COTC faculty or Ohio State Newark tenure-track, clinical/teaching/practice or associated faculty.
4. Faculty office space will be assigned based on status, seniority, and rank, in the following order of consideration:
   • Status:
     • COTC regular faculty, Ohio State Newark Tenure Track and Clinical/Teaching/Professional Practice faculty
     • Lecturers and Senior Lecturers
   • Seniority: Accrued full-time service (based on Length of Service date as indicated in the Positions File) at the Newark campus for Ohio State Newark faculty and at any campus for COTC faculty.
   • Rank:
     • Professor
     • Associate Professor
     • Assistant Professor
     • Instructor
     • Senior Lecturer
     • Lecturer
   • Tie Resolution: If applicants for a specific office are faculty who have equal status and seniority but different ranks, then the office will be assigned to the highest-ranking faculty member. If a tie remains after considering status, seniority, and rank, the assignment will be determined by drawing lots. The person designated to assign faculty office space shall notify the faculty as well as any administrative staff members who regularly communicate with that faculty member.
5. Offices assigned to faculty after the yearly, regular, office-assignment process is complete are assigned as temporary offices. These office assignments to vacant office space include office assignments for new faculty and are made as vacancies occur. These temporary office assignments shall be relinquished by the faculty member and made available for general bidding at the time of the next regular office assignment process. If eligible, members occupying temporary offices will be notified in advance when they need to bid on a permanent office. Individuals who are assigned to a temporary office are urged to bid on a permanent office the following year but will be permanently assigned to their current location if they do not bid on an office and no one else is assigned to their office through the normal bid process.
6. Eligible faculty who had been assigned to a temporary office and are unsuccessful in obtaining the office(s) of their choice through the bid process and must leave their current office will be temporarily assigned an office per above. 
7. A faculty member assigned to temporary (less than one year) administrative duty on the Newark campus for more than one semester may be required to vacate their faculty office. However, this person will retain the right to return to the original faculty office when the assignment has been completed.
8. Faculty on authorized leaves of absence up to one calendar year in length retain the office space that they occupy. After one year’s time the space is forfeited. During the leave of absence, the space is subject to temporary assignment, usually to the absent faculty member’s replacement.
9. Ohio State Newark faculty appointed as Associate Deans.
   • Faculty will relocate to the Associate Deans’ suite in Hodges Hall during their term in the role. At the conclusion of the appointment, they will be permitted to return to their regular faculty office.
   • During the appointment period, the faculty member’s regular office will be included in the office lottery and assigned to an Ohio State or COTC faculty member through the April office bid process. The individual assigned to the space will be informed that the assignment is temporary and tied to the duration of the Associate Dean appointment.
   • Once the Associate Dean appointment concludes, the faculty member will be able to return to their original office beginning in the autumn semester following their return to the faculty.
   • The Ohio State Newark dean may authorize exceptions to the relocation requirement in certain circumstances.
10. Any office can be designated as a double office to accommodate a need for faculty office space. If a faculty member has occupied an office as a single office that becomes a double office, the office will revert to the original single occupant at the first opportunity.
11. Faculty may be assigned to cubicles. As with private offices, these assignments may also be permanent or temporary.
12. Faculty who retire and continue to contribute to the mission of the campus may receive access to workspace (but not necessarily an office) if space is available. Space must be requested in writing to the COTC president or the Ohio State Newark dean.
13. COTC faculty who wish to appeal office assignments may do so through the COTC president in consultation with the COTC Faculty Union president. Ohio State Newark faculty who wish to appeal office assignments may do so through the Ohio State Newark dean directly or in consultation with the Ohio State Newark faculty representative.
14. The steps of the bidding procedure are as follows:
    • To all eligible faculty, the superintendent of facilities or the superintendent’s designee emails a form that lists all available offices and invites recipients to rank the offices from most preferred to least preferred for those offices in which they are interested. The email is sent before the end of April and faculty have one week to respond.
    • The superintendent of facilities or the superintendent’s designee orders the lists according to criteria outlined in Section IV above (status, then seniority, and then rank). The faculty member with the highest priority under these criteria will receive their highest-ranked available office. Each subsequent faculty member will be assigned the highest-ranked office remaining on their list. This process continues until all offices have been assigned.
15. In certain situations, special rounds of bidding may be conducted outside the normal bidding process, or the campus may assign offices by using a procedure that does not involve bidding. In the case of a new building that houses faculty offices, the Ohio State Newark dean and COTC president will consult with the faculty of their respective institutions in deciding which faculty will be eligible to bid on the offices and in deciding on a procedure for assigning the offices.
16. In the case of a renovation, faculty displaced from their offices due to the renovation will return to their original offices if the renovation does not alter the number or location of the offices. If the renovation alters the number or location of the offices, then the displaced faculty will participate in a special round of bidding that will occur prior to the normal office bidding but still following the procedures in Section IV of this document. Any offices remaining vacant after the special round of bidding will be included in the regular bidding process.
17. Faculty who are relocating or no longer eligible for an office will receive a deadline for vacating their office from the Ohio State Newark dean, the COTC president or their designees.
18. The Ohio State Newark dean and COTC president may assign faculty offices outside of the provisions of this policy.

History

Issued: Unknown

Revised: 10/31/2023 (Approved by Drs. MacDonald and Berry)

Revised: 03/24/2026 (Approved by Drs. Smith and Berry)