Effective Date: 09.07.17
Last Reviewed: 06.07.23*
* name of title changed and was amended
To provide tenure-track faculty recognition and support beyond that given by a department or program, probationary faculty members will undergo a pre-tenure review. The pre-tenure review should assist the faculty member, the Department, and the Administration in assessing the faculty member's progress toward tenure. Ordinarily, the tenure-track faculty member will be reviewed in the spring semester of the third year of service. If the faculty member is eligible for an early tenure decision, the faculty member and the appropriate School Dean will determine the date for pre-tenure review at the time of the initial contract. All tenure-track faculty hired at the rank of Assistant Professor will undergo a pre-tenure review.
1. Early in the fall semester, the Associate Provost for Diversity, Assessment, and Faculty Development will notify all faculty members who are scheduled for pre-tenure review.
2. No later than January 25111 in that academic year, the faculty member under review will provide his/her Department Chairperson with the following information:
a. A one-page personal statement which describes current projects and future aims in the three areas of teaching, scholarship, and service;
b. a current curriculum vitae in the approved format;
c. copies of all publications, documentation of performances or exhibits, and papers referred to in the curriculum vitae;
d. representative course materials, including syllabi and assignments;
e. any other relevant information.
3. Departmental Evaluation
a. The tenured faculty members in the Department/Program will assess the faculty member's performance in all three areas (teaching, scholarship and service). This evaluation should include an assessment of the candidate's teaching based on peer review and class observation of every course by the tenured members of the Department; on the faculty member's syllabi, examinations, and other course materials; and on student evaluations. In the event there are not two tenured members in a department, the Chairperson and the faculty member under review shall select other faculty members to observe teaching. The Department members should also review all publications and work in progress.
b. The Chairperson should oversee the production of a single, written departmental report on the faculty member's teaching, professional development, contributions to her/his field and the college community. A copy of this evaluation will be made available to the faculty member under review by March 1st. The faculty member may then respond in writing to the Department's assessment and may elect to have the response included in her/his materials.
4. Pre-Tenure Review Committee
a. By March 1st, the Department Chairperson or Program Director for the faculty member under review will assemble a Pre-Tenure Review Committee, and notify the Associate Provost for Diversity, Assessment, and Faculty Development of the committee composition. The Pre-Tenure Review Committee will consist of two faculty from outside the department, (at least one of whom has recently served on the Rank and Tenure Committee), plus a faculty member of the department or program (usually the chair). Normally the departmental representative will serve as chair of the Pre-Tenure Review Committee.
b. All of the faculty member's submitted materials, together with the departmental evaluation, shall be forwarded to the Pre-Tenure Review Committee no later than March 15th. The Pre-Tenure Review Committee will review the materials and produce a written evaluation signed by all members of the committee; in addition to an evaluation of the faculty member's progress towards tenure, it may include recommendations, such as mentoring or additional support for professional development. A copy of the evaluation will be sent to the faculty member and the department chair.
5. Administration Review
a. The Pre-Tenure Review Committee evaluation, the departmental recommendation, and the faculty materials will be sent by May 1 to the appropriate School Dean by the department chair. The School Dean will review all materials, develop a recommendation, and present all materials to the Vice President for Academic Affairs by May 30.
b. The Vice President for Academic Affairs will send written comments to the candidate by the end of the fiscal year (June 30).
c. When requested to do so, the faculty member will meet with the appropriate School Dean to review the Vice President for Academic Affairs' comments and recommendations, and to incorporate suggestions into a Development Plan.
d. The Pre-Tenure Review Committee is not itself responsible for implementing the recommendations for individual faculty members. This responsibility falls on the faculty member, with the assistance of the Department Chairperson, the appropriate School Dean, and, if necessary the Vice President for Academic Affairs.
6. The Pre- Tenure Review
The Pre-Tenure Review Committee's recommendations, as well as the departmental evaluation and relevant School Dean's recommendation will become part of the faculty member's permanent record. Both should be available when the faculty member becomes a candidate for tenure and promotion.
7. A report indicating suitable progress is not a guarantee of tenure.
8. In circumstances where the probationary faculty member shows little promise of achieving tenure, an administrative decision may be made to issue a terminal contract.