Each year, College of Arts and Sciences department chairs and directors are required to be evaluated by the faculty members in their unit. Faculty participation in this process is an important component of university citizenship. The responses to the chair/director evaluation questionnaires provide valuable feedback to the chair/director and assist the upper administration in gauging chair/director effectiveness.

In the spring semester at a time to be determined by the dean, each faculty member will respond to a questionnaire regarding the performance of the appropriate chair/director. The questionnaire must be answered before department chairs/directors evaluate faculty members. However the responses to the questionnaire will be compiled and held until after the chair/director completes faculty evaluations.

To facilitate this process, a web-based survey of chair/director performance is administered through the CAS website. Faculty responses will be anonymous. A report of the responses for each chair/director will be compiled electronically and forwarded to the dean. At the appropriate time, the dean will provide this review to the chair or director.

A meaningful evaluation process entails responsibilities for both chairs/directors and faculty.

Chair/director responsibilities

• Chairs/directors shall meet with faculty annually to discuss department vision, mission, and goals.
• Prior to the initiation of the survey, each chair/director shall present his or her department with a progress report addressing the department's vision, mission, and goals.
• Following the completion of the evaluation period, the chair/director shall conduct a faculty meeting to respond to his/her evaluation.

Faculty responsibilities

• Faculty must respond thoughtfully to the survey. Faculty should not only choose a rating score, but should also provide additional information or specific examples, where appropriate, by using the "Comment/recommendation" boxes provided. These comments are essential to ensure a meaningful evaluation.