Transcript PREPARING A DOSSIER FOR REAPOINTMENT, TENURE AND …

PREPARING A DOSSIER
FOR REAPOINTMENT,
TENURE AND PROMOTION
Richard Miller
Matt Serra
Office of the Senior Vice Present and Provost
Let’s get the technical stuff
out of the way first.
What IS
tenure????
There are two types of employment:
At Will – you can be terminated for any
legally allowable reason or for no reason
at all. Most people are employed at will.
For Cause (or Contractual) Employment –
you can only be terminated for specified
reasons. Tenure is for cause employment.
Tenure is NOT a guarantee of life time
employment!!!!!!
Faculty can be terminated for:
1) Serious violations of University Rules or Laws
(which may have other consequences).
2) Failing to perform their stated duties in a
satisfactory manner.
3) Serious budgetary issues.
4) Program/Degree elimination.
However, tenured faculty are
entitled to due process prior to
termination.
At UC, this is covered by the
Collective Bargaining Agreement
(CBA).
TITLES
• Unqualified
– Have no qualifier
– Tenure track
• Qualified
– Have a qualifier such as “research”,
“educator”, “practice”, “clinical” and “affiliate”.
– Not tenure track
TITLES
• Title information is found:
– University Rules 50-3-03; 50-15-02 and 03.
– In Article 6 of the CBA
• Your title is VERY important. Specifics of
the reappointment, promotion and tenure
process are tied to your title.
TWO REALLY IMPORTANT
DEFINITIONS!
Academic Unit = The smallest academic
unit you belong to. Usually a department,
but it could be a college, library jurisdiction,
or other type of unit.
Unit Criteria – the Reappointment,
Promotion and Tenure (RPT) Criteria of
your unit.
THE BASICS – TENURE TRACK
• You get an initial appointment.
• About 18 months before the end of the initial
appointment, you go through reappointment.
• You can be reappointed for 3, 2 or 1 year or not
be reappointed.
• If you are reappointed, the process repeats until
the end of the probationary period.
• Prior to the end of the probationary period, you
apply for tenure. Tenure is an “up or out”
process.
Probationary Periods
TITLE
TERM
Assistant Professor
7 years
Associate Professor
5 or 6 years
Assistant or Associate Librarian
7 years
Senior Associate Librarian
5 or 6 years
Instructor/Beginning Librarian
Cannot be tenured at this rank. Must
be promoted prior to tenure. Time in
this rank counts toward probationary
period of the higher rank.
Initial appointment and probationary
periods are in Article 6 of the CBA!
THE BASICS – NON-TENURE
TRACK
• You get an initial appointment.
• About 18 months before the end of the initial
appointment, you go through reappointment.
• You can be reappointed for 1 to 5 years (based on Unit
Criteria) or not be reappointed.
• If you are reappointed, the process repeats 18 months
before the appointment expires.
• Faculty with qualified titles who have been here at least
7 years may have an expedited review.
THE BASICS – NON-TENURE
TRACK
• Reappointment of faculty with qualified titles is subject to
program need.
• Reappointment of research faculty is usually tied to the
ability to obtain sufficient funding to support a research
program and some percentage of the faculty member’s
salary.
– The initial appointment letter will spell this out.
• Faculty with qualified titles may not be required to meet
the RPT standards in all 3 areas of teaching, scholarship
and service.
– Depends on the title and is spelled out in initial appointment
letter or the unit RPT criteria.
THE PROCESS
• Your unit RPT Committee reviews the dossier and
makes a recommendation.
• Your Unit Head reviews the reviews the dossier and
makes a recommendation.
• Your College RPT Committee reviews the dossier and
makes a recommendation.
• Your Dean reviews the dossier and makes a
recommendation.
• The Provost reviews the dossier and makes a
recommendation for tenure or promotion to Professor or
Senior Librarian to the Board. The Provost grants
reappointment or other promotions.
THE MOST IMPORTANT
RULES
CBA 7.3.2 … Academic recommendations at all levels of
review shall be based on (the Unit’s) approved RPT
Criteria…
CBA 7.5.6 The recommendation from the Academic Unit
RPT Committee shall be given serious consideration, and
no committee or administrator shall make a different
recommendation except for substantial reasons stated in
writing.
Reappointment, promotion or
tenure are granted only if you
meet the stated RPT criteria of
your unit.
The dossier is the
“proof” that you have
met this criteria!!!
ANOTHER IMPORTANT RULE
According to the CBA, the ONLY material
any committee or administrator is allowed
to consider is what is in the dossier.
If something is NOT there, it cannot be
considered.
WHO CAN PUT THINGS IN
THE DOSSIER?
• You – at any time.
– Updating your dossier when something
happens (a “thank you” letter from a student,
a paper published, you get a grant, etc.) is a
good idea.
• A RPT committee or an administrator.
– You must be copied
– You may respond
TYPICAL SCHEDULE –
Assistant Professor
Appointment
Starts
Dossier Due1
Appointment
Ends
Initial Appointment August 15, 2014
February 15, 2016 August 14, 2017
First
Reappointment
August 15, 2017
February 15, 2018 August 14, 2019
Second
Reappointment
August 15, 2019
N/A
Tenure
1
August 14, 2021
October 15, 20202 Never if you are
successful!
This assumes no change to the CBA. COM had different deadlines, see Article 7 of the CBA. Colleges may
establish earlier dates with proper notice.
2 Early tenure and promotion applications are allowed. See Article 7 of the CBA and your Unit Criteria.
WHEN SHOULD YOU START
ASSEMBLING YOUR DOSSIER?
NOW!!!
Now is the time to start collecting
things for you dossier!
You can always leave something out,
but you cannot add something you
do not have!!!!
A SUCCESSFUL DOSSIER
TAKES PLANNING!
YOU NEED TO THINK
ABOUT WHAT YOU MAY
NEED SO YOU HAVE IT!
TEACHING
(What you need at a minimum)
• Student evaluations for EVERY course
with comments.
• A reflection on each class and what you
can improve.
• Any other feedback (peer review, letters
from students, awards, etc.)
• Examples of course creation, improvement
and/or innovation.
SCHOLARSHIP
(What you need at a minimum)
• Copies of things published since you joined UC
– even if they are based on work before you got
here.
• Copies of proposals – even those not funded.
Keep any comments, too.
• Information about or copies of presentations,
showings, recitals, exhibits, etc.
• Examples of any impact of the work – patents,
products, policy changes, awards, etc.
SERVICE
(AT A MINIMUM)
• Lists of
– Committee service
• Unit, College, University, Professional, Community.
– Special projects
– Special assignments (e.g. accreditation)
• Keep track of time spent and contributions.
• Good record keeping is essential. You will not
remember three years from now how much time you
spent on a committee this semester!
REAPPOINTMENT-TENURE
TRACK
Each unit has its own criteria, but most units’
reappointment criteria can be summed up as:
Given where you are in the probationary
period, is what you have done so far in
teaching, scholarship and service
consistent with a trajectory that suggests
that you have a reasonable chance to
meet the tenure and promotion criteria at
the end of the probationary period?
REAPPOINTMENT
For non-tenure track faculty:
Reappointment is based on achieving specific
goals set forth in the Unit RPT Criteria.
READING THE CRITERIA IS
IMPORTANT!
It is important to meet the stated criteria!
Examples:
It is expected the successful candidate will publish an average of 1.5 to 2 papers in
refereed journals per year.
The candidate must have a book published or at the publisher and needing only
minor changes. The publisher must be a reputable publisher of scholarly materials.
The candidate is expected to, on average, fund 50% of his/her salary from research
grants.
If they say it, they mean it!!!!!
IF ONLY IT WERE THAT
EASY…….
Some criteria is pretty nebulous:
“The candidate shall exhibit excellent
teaching.”
What EXACTLY does that mean??
ASK YOUR UNIT HEAD
• As soon as practical, meet with your Unit
Head.
– Go over the criteria.
– Ask for clarifications.
– Ask for examples of success.
– Ask about “interpretations”
• Schedule a meeting with the RPT chair or
committee and ask the same questions.
DEANS ARE SCARY BUT…
Actually, Deans are not really scary, but it can
be intimidating.
However, you should meet with your Dean to
get an idea of how your Dean would interpret
the criteria.
What you are trying to determine is
the usual interpretation of the
criteria.
Example – one unit criteria says
“publications showing excellence in
research” but the unit committee
stated they interpret this as 1.5 – 2
publications/year.
SO WHAT ARE WE LOOKING
FOR??
•
•
•
•
Do you meet the criteria?
Is the performance good in an absolute sense?
Are there signs of progress and growth?
Is there evidence of both independence and
collaboration?
• If applicable to your title, are you building a
consistent and excellent scholarship program
that contributes to the field?
• Do you have a good relationship with students?
QUALITY MOST OF ALL
We are looking for quality over quantity.
In general, it is better to have fewer things of
high quality.
But quantity is important too!!!
WHAT TO PUT IN THE
DOSSIER
• Initial letter of appointment.
– Tells us where you in the probationary period
– Your title/status (e.g. unqualified vs. qualified)
– Any special conditions of offer (e.g. reduced
course loads, need to fund % of salary).
– Modifications/exemptions from criteria (e.g.
Educator series are usually exempt from
scholarship requirements).
WHAT TO PUT IN THE
DOSSIER
• Subsequent letters of reappointment
– Tells us when your appointment ends.
– Summarizes previous evaluations.
– Helps us judge if you addressed previous
areas of concern.
• Annual performance reviews
– Charts your progress.
WHAT TO PUT IN-TEACHING
• All student and peer evaluations
• Evidence of course creation/improvement
• Evidence of student learning
– e.g. “My students performed above average on block
exams.”
• Awards, letters from students, other evidence of
excellence.
• Evidence of training (such as CET&L courses)
• Scholarship in teaching and learning (grants, papers,
presentations).
WHAT TO PUT INSCHOLARSHIP
• Papers, books, reviews, or other evidence of
written scholarship.
– Separate reviewed and non-reviewed
– Separate journal from conference
– Include any evidence of impact
– Include reviews if available
• Evidence of presentations, recitals, showings,
etc.
– Include reviews if available.
WHAT TO PUT IN SCHOLARSHIP
• Proposals – funded and not funded
– Indicate your involvement
– Include reviews if available
– Separate internal/external.
– Separate competitive from non-competitive
– Include evidence of level of competition if
available
• Information on funded grants
– Indicate your involvement
WHAT TO INCLUDE –
TEACHING & SCHOLARSHIP
• Evidence of undergraduate advising
• Advising of MS and PhD students
– Include information about publications,
presentations or other works with students.
• Any other significant mentoring
– Study abroad
– Special studies
• Graduate committee service.
WHAT TO PUT IN -SERVICE
• Describe service activities.
• Describe how this contributes to your
overall growth as a faculty member.
• Describe how the University benefits at
any level.
• This is the least important category for
new tenure track faculty.
SINS OF OMISSION
• Don’t leave out bad reviews
– We will ask for them anyway.
– Use these to demonstrate improvement.
• Provide all facts about papers, grants and
service.
– Don’t “conveniently” leave out information that
would show you have limited participation. Be
honest about what you contribute.
We know new professors sometimes get off
to a rough start – we look for improvement.
We know what constitutes quality.
We have seen people inflate their records.
We have seen people flat out lie.
Be honest – it is your best bet.
WHEN WE DISAGREE…
• The CBA says the Unit Decision is given
“serious consideration”.
• If an upper level of review disagrees and
gives a different decision (positive or
negative), they MUST state the reason. It
must be based on “substantial reasons”
and their interpretation of the Unit Criteria.
NEGATIVE DECISIONS
• You have the right to dispute negative
decisions within 14 days of the first
negative decision.
• You have the right to add things to the
dossier which may impact the decision.
GRIEVANCE
• If you are denied reappointment,
promotion or tenure, you can grieve:
– Violation of academic freedom.
– If the Unit RPT criteria were not followed.
– If there was an error in process.
• You cannot grieve judgments.
• Grievance can get you a new review. RPT
is never granted for error.
BUT HERE IS THE GOOD
NEWS
Most Faculty members are of very high
quality and do JUST FINE.
In fact – reviewing RPT files is very
encouraging. Seeing how well faculty
member are doing shows the over all
excellence of our faculty.
RESOURCES - PEOPLE
•
•
•
•
•
Your Unit Head and Unit RPT Committee.
Senior Faculty.
Your College RPT Committee and Dean.
AAUP (if represented).
Vice Provost for Academic Personnel.
RESOURCES - WRITTEN
• Unit RPT Criteria
• The Collective Bargaining Agreement (online)
• University Rules (on-line)
Know the rules!
Ignorantia legis neminem excusat!