Revised 4/15/96
The Department of Physics has developed the following written policy for use in evaluating candidates for tenure. The department reserves the right to change this policy from time to time in accordance with the needs of the department. The policy is not to be construed as creating any contractual right to tenure. No one should construe performance appraisals or reappointment as a guarantee of a positive tenure decision. The criteria and procedures set forth in The Reynolda Campus Faculty Handbook and the policies and procedures established by the Board of Trustees, as amended from time to time, necessarily take precedence over any departmental provisions.
1. The department chair will reach a clear understanding with each tenure-track faculty member concerning the presumed academic year in which he or she will be reviewed for tenure. This understanding will be committed to writing and will be kept in the faculty member's file in the departmental office and in the Offices of the Dean and the Provost. Any change in the presumed year will also be committed to writing, with copies sent to the same offices.
2. Each tenure-track faculty member will be given a copy of this policy at the time of arrival. Any changes in this policy will be distributed to all tenure-track faculty at the time the changes are made.
3. The department chair will give each tenure-track faculty member an annual written evaluation of his or her performance, not to exceed two sentences. Copies of the annual evaluations will be placed in the faculty member's file in the departmental office.
4. A tenure track faculty member may receive a series of two-year appointments. In September of the second year of a two-year appointment, the department chair, after consultation with the faculty in the department, will make a recommendation to the Dean and Provost for reappointment or nonreappointment. The faculty member will receive notice of the action taken by the administration on the department's recommendation by December 15.
4a. A second review will be held in April of the third year. The department chair, after consultation with the faculty in the department, will make a recommendation to the Dean and Provost for reappointment or for nonreappointment. In the former case the faculty member will receive a two-year contract for the fifth and sixth years. In the latter case employment will end at the end of the fourth year. The faculty member will receive notice of the action taken by the administration on the department's recommendation by June 15.
5. Tenure track faculty will ordinarily be reviewed for tenure in their sixth year of service (or in such year as stated in their original letter of appointment). Tenure reviews before the sixth year will be very rare. If a faculty member is denied tenure then he or she will automatically receive a nonrenewable appointment for one more year.
6. At the beginning of the tenure review year, the department chair will discuss with each candidate the procedures that will be followed by the department in conducting the tenure review.
7. The department chair will be responsible for assuring compilation of the candidate's dossier and for seeing that all steps are followed according to schedule. The dossier shall consist of any and all materials that reasonably relate to the candidate's qualifications for tenure, as defined in the department's criteria. It will include both materials collected by the department chair and materials submitted by the candidate.
8. The department chair will ask the candidate to supply a complete and up-to-date curriculum vitae. The candidate and the department chair will discuss what additional materials the candidate wishes to submit and the timetable for their submission.
9. Full-time tenured faculty in the department are given an opportunity to provide a confidential evaluation of the candidate's qualifications for tenure.
10. The candidate will be allowed, upon request, to inspect the contents of his or her dossier, with the exception of confidential evaluations, whether internal or external.
11. The completed dossier will be made available to all faculty in the department who will participate in the decision well in advance. Participants will be all tenured faculty, regardless of rank. The department chair will make arrangements to obtain the input of tenured faculty on leave of absence or serving as overseas director.
12. The candidate's qualifications for tenure will be discussed in at least one meeting of the tenured faculty before a decision is reached. The department chair will let tenured faculty know in advance when these meetings will take place.
13. The department will proceed by the "consultative" method. Each tenured faculty member will be asked to provide his or her opinion of the candidate's qualifications for tenure. The department chair will tally the results and will inform members of the tenured faculty of the outcome.
14. The department chair will give the candidate written notice, not to exceed two sentences, of the outcome of the department's deliberations and the nature of his or her recommendation to the Dean and Provost. (The candidate will not be told the numerical vote or the opinion of any individual faculty member.)
15. The department chair will make his or her recommendation to the Dean and the Provost by February 1. In addition to his or her recommendation, the chair will inform the administration of any division of opinion within the department. If a substantial part of the department holds an opinion different from that of the chair, the chair will ask a representative of that opinion to provide a "dissenting view" to accompany the chair's own recommendation.
16. Departmental evaluation by faculty is guided by principles that apply throughout the College. See pages VI - 3 and VI - 4 of The Reynolda Campus Faculty Handbook (1991 ed.).
17. The three criteria of teaching, professional activity, and service are ranked by the department in that order of priority. Emphasis is on quality teaching and demonstrated willingness to work closely with individual students, followed by professional activity indicated by scholarly achievement; a lesser, though not inconsequential, emphasis is upon participatory service to the University, the community, and the profession.
18. In conjunction with all the above criteria, and apart from them, the department considers as extremely important the faculty member's personal integrity, sympathy with and concern for colleagues, students, and others, and compatibility with the stated purposes of the College and University.
19. The criterion of teaching includes both primary teaching, defined as the offering of formal instruction by teaching regularly-scheduled courses, and secondary teaching, which includes academic advising, informal exchanges with students and colleagues within the department, overseeing students research projects, the maintenance of library orders within assigned fields, advising student organizations, etc.
20. For the purpose of evaluating teaching, the department will ordinarily draw upon the following five sources of information: (a) documentary materials from courses taught; (b) the candidate's own statement on teaching; (c) the perception of students; (d) student evaluations; and (e) the perception of other faculty within the department.
21. The department views the mark of professional development to be publication of scholarly research, but adheres to no rigid quantitative formula regarding the number and types of publications required for promotion or tenure. It is expected, however, that to be recommended for tenure, an assistant professor would have had published (or accepted for publication) several articles or book chapters, or, perhaps, a book. These publications would normally be in refereed journals or by respected academic publishers. Minor work, such as book reviews, or incomplete work, such as working papers, are considered evidence of professional activity, but are not alone sufficient for tenure or promotion. For evaluation of a candidate's published work, the department relies on the judgement both of its own members and sometimes of outside evaluators.
22. Other recognized forms of professional activity include presenting papers at professional meetings; serving on editorial boards of scholarly journals; holding offices in professional organizations; obtaining external grants to support one's research; and participating in workshops and seminars. While these kinds of activities enhance one's qualifications for tenure, they are not sufficient in the absence of the kind of publications described in paragraph 21.
23. The "service" criterion encompasses service to the department, the University, and the community at large, and might best be viewed as citizenship. It includes departmental committee work and administrative responsibilities, as well as participation in faculty meetings, committee work of the undergraduate and graduate faculties, other university events such as convocations, and support of voluntary organizations that enhance the common life of the University. Simple cooperativeness and some competence generally suffice in this area. A candidate's record of service is usually maintained on forms submitted annually to the Office of Institutional Research.