Part II. Department Policies and Procedures

Participation in a Department Promotion Committee or Department Tenure and Promotion Committee is an important duty. It is expected that all eligible committee members will carefully review candidate files and participate in departmental deliberations and votes.

It is further expected that all faculty members who have attained the rank of either associate or full professor will participate in the mentoring of faculty who have not yet attained that rank.

1. The tenured associate and full professors of the Department, in consultation with the faculty, shall be responsible for establishing departmental policies and procedures for tenure and promotion. The policies and procedures must be approved by a simple majority of all tenured associate and full professors.  Departmental policies and procedures are then reviewed by the Dean and Provost. Departmental policies and procedures become effective upon approval by the Provost.
   
   
2. The associate and full professors of the Department, in consultation with the faculty, shall be responsible for establishing departmental policies and procedures for promotion in the teaching, clinical, and research tracks. Departmental policies and procedures are then reviewed by the Dean and Provost.  Departmental policies and procedures become effective upon approval by the Provost.
   
   
3. The Department shall develop specific criteria and guidelines that it expects a candidate to meet for tenure and promotion purposes. Links to online Department, College, and University guidelines shall be given to the candidate upon initial employment. The Department Chair shall provide updated departmental guidelines as they become available to tenure and promotion candidates. It is, however, the responsibility of the candidate to keep current on changes in the guidelines.
   
   
4. The Chair shall consult with tenure-track non-tenured faculty members each spring to evaluate performance during the current academic year, to plan for the following year, and to review the requirements for and progress towards tenure and promotion. This annual evaluation will be done in accordance with guidelines provided by the Office of the Provost.
   
   
5. A mid-term evaluation during the spring term of the third academic year for each tenure-track faculty member with a six-year tenure probation period will be made by the Department's Tenure and Promotion Committee and the Department Chair. For faculty members with timeline adjustments, the mid-term evaluation timing should be defined on the approved timeline adjustment form. This evaluation, based on requirements for tenure and promotion, should provide information to the candidate on his/her progress. This evaluation should be performed as outlined in Faculty Handbook section 4.9.5.
   
   
6. Each department shall define the composition of the department promotion and tenure committee for each rank. Each department shall also set a minimum number for department promotion and tenure committee membership and procedures for expanding the committee with faculty from other departments if the number of eligible members within the department is insufficient.
   
   
7. Each department shall devise specific criteria for solicitation of a minimum of four external peer reviewers of candidates for tenure and/or promotion with research expectations (research track appointments and tenure-track/tenured appointments).  These criteria must be consistent with the Faculty Handbook 4.9.7C which indicates that at least one external reviewer must be selected from the candidate’s list of recommended reviewers. Every effort should be made to minimize biases for or against the candidate when selecting qualified peers. No more than one of the reviewers may have been a major advisor of or a collaborator with the candidate. A summary of the reviewers' credentials will be included in the dossier. Candidates will not have access to the external review letters at the departmental level.
   
   
8. The recommendation and supporting statement of the Departmental Tenure and Promotion Committee shall be forwarded to the Department Chair along with the vote count. The supporting statements should accurately reflect both strengths and weaknesses of the candidate’s performance and how those were balanced into the committee recommendation.
   
   
9. The Department Chair shall have the responsibility for providing in the dossier a written discussion of the quality of the candidate's productivity, including the nature and scope of the outlets where the candidate's products have appeared (refereed or non-refereed; invited or submitted for review, local, regional, national, international; disciplinary, interdisciplinary, and/or public, etc.). The Department Chair's recommendation is independent of the Committee's recommendation. The Department Chair may not be present during the Committee's deliberations or votes.
   
   
10. The Chair shall forward the Committee's report as well as his/her own recommendation and supporting statement to the Office of the Dean.
    
    
11. Requests for a tenure probation reduction are due to the Dean no later than March 1st of the calendar year in which the tenure application will be made unless negotiated at the time of hire. All timeline adjustments require an approved timeline adjustment form to be included in the candidate's dossier with the signatures of the Chair, Dean, and Provost.
    
    

Part I. The Dossier for Tenure and Promotion
Part II. Department Policies and Procedures
Part III. College-Level Policy and Procedures for Tenure and Promotion
Part IV. Approvals
Tenure and Promotion Calendar