04.02.20 Tenure and Promotion

01. REFERENCES

01.01. This College Policy and Procedure Statement sets forth criteria and guidelines for tenure and promotion of tenure track faculty and promotion of non-tenure line faculty in the College of Health Professions. These criteria are based on the following sources:

a. AA/PPS No. 04.01.01: Faculty Hiring

b. AA/PPS No. 04.01.22: Clinical Faculty Appointments

c. AA/PPS No. 04.01.26: Faculty of Instruction 

d. AA/PPS No. 04.01.23: Faculty of Practice Appointments

e. AA/PPS No. 04.02.01: Development /Evaluation of Tenure-Track Faculty

f. AA/PPS No. 04.02.20: Tenure and Promotion Review

g. AA/PPS No. 04.02.21: Non-Tenure Line Faculty Promotion Review

h. American Association of State Colleges and Universities, The Core of Academe

i. Faculty Handbook, Texas State University

02. DEFINITIONS

02.01. For the purposes of this document, the following definitions apply (AA/PPS No. 04.02.20):

a. Stand-alone programs, Departments, or Schools constitute Academic Units.

b. Schools and Programs that are equivalent to tenure-granting Departments have all the rights and obligations noted for tenure-granting Departments, and their Directors have all the rights and obligations noted for Department Chairs.

c. A Unit's recommendation includes the recommendations of both the Personnel Committee and the Academic Unit Leader.

d. A College recommendation includes the recommendations of both the College Review Group and the Dean.

03. TENURE TRACK CANDIDATES FOR TENURE AND/OR PROMOTION

03.01. Criteria for Appointment

a. Academic units set their own criteria for appointment based on university and accreditation requirements.

b. In accordance with University policy, tenure-track faculty members whose rank is below associate professor must apply for tenure at the same time they apply for promotion. It would be expected that a faculty member who meets the criteria for tenure would also meet the criteria for promotion to associate professor (AA/PPS No. 04.02.20).

c. Faculty wishing to apply early for promotion must meet with both the academic leader and the Dean to discuss the promotion packet and implications if not selected.

d. Faculty are encouraged to complete any fields not automatically populated on tenure and/or promotion documents, such as end-of-course critique averages.

04. BASIS FOR RECOMMENDATIONS

04.01. 

The tenure and/or promotion process is a dynamic process of cumulative feedback and achievement that starts at the Unit level. Academic Unit level. Academic Unit Leaders are responsible for guiding faculty members through the tenure and promotion process, including providing faculty with guidance about their development.

04.02. 

Recommendations for promotion and/or tenure are based on professional judgements about the faculty member's contributions and performance in: a) Teaching, b) Scholarly and/or Creative Activity, and c) Service to the Department/School/Program, College, University, Profession, and the Community, as applicable. These recommendations are based on the guidelines/expectations set forth in the Unit policy.

04.03.

This College policy sets forth minimal requirements for the consideration of tenure and/or promotion. Each Unit will further define what constitutes the specific criteria for each of the areas of evaluation, i.e., Teaching, Scholarly/Creative Activity, and Service. The requirements are minimal College criteria that may be exceeded by individual Units. Attainment of these minimal required levels of performance only allows, but does not obligate, the reviewers to recommend tenure and/or promotion. All recommendations are based on professional judgements and the criteria are designed to inform those judgements.

04.04.

a. Teaching:

In accordance with The Core of Academe, the four components of teaching, including academic program planning and development, instruction, evaluation, and student academic advertisement, are of importance in evaluating this area. The College expects its faculty to be good teachers and to work continually to improve their teaching and their courses. Teaching in the College of Health Professions is inclusive of the classroom, personalized instruction, online and hybrid instructions, internship and preceptorships, therapeutic settings, supervision of client and patient care, and across a variety of settings such as hospitals, community service, and public and private sector organizations. At a minimum, evaluation of teaching must involve the students, Personnel Committee, and the Academic Unit Leader, as defined in unit policies. Each Unit will develop its own standards and items to be assessed for the consideration of tenure and/or promotion in this area. High-quality teaching is necessary but not a sufficient achievement upon which to base tenure and promotion.

b. Scholarly and/or Creative Activity:

1. It is expected that all tenured and tenure-track faculty will be engaged in scholarly and creative activity, and clinical, practice, instructional, and research faculty as required by department policies. A range of activities defines scholarly and creative endeavors, including such activities as the publication of peer-reviewed journal articles books, and books chapters; scholarly presentations; workshops; invited lectures; grants and other related external and internal funding activities, patents, or commercialization will be considered. Both the quality and quantity of the faculty member's efforts and success will be considered for tenure and promotion. All candidates for tenure and promotion must provide a documented record of sustained peer-reviewed scholarly/creative activity. Therefore, collaborative work is encouraged but not sufficient to obtain tenure and/or promotion; a demonstration of leadership in this area is required, including, including first authorship, originality, and a significant body of contributions. Faculty should provide necessary documentation for this determination to be made. All faculty are expected to participate in peer-reviewed and published contributions, or equivalent, that enhance knowledge, skills, and clinical/practice in education or relevant disciplines (e.g., reports, presentations, publications, performances) for success for promotion.

2. Related to quantity and quality, each Unit in the College of Health Professions will define specific criteria relating to such factors as number, type, and contribution of publications and presentations within the scholarly and creative activity category for their discipline. However, Units and their Academic Unit Leaders must be mindful of meeting university expectations in this area, and equity across Units must be ensured by the Dean.

3. Funding beyond budgeted allocations is the means by which faculty support their research, teaching, and service. It is expected that all tenure-track and tenured faculty will be engaged in sponsored program proposals to support their work. Both the quality and quantity of the faculty member's efforts and success will be considered. Faculty should provide necessary documentation for this determination to be made. Each Unit in the College of Health Professions will define criteria relating to funding for its academic unit. 

4. Academic Unit Leaders should develop, with input from their Personnel Committees, faculty, and the Dean, annual evaluation criteria that guide faculty towards meeting university tenure and promotion criteria.

c. Service:

1. In accordance with The Core of Academe, service manifests itself in three areas: (a) institutional service, (b) professional service, and (c) service to the community.

2. Leadership in service increases in importance as faculty become candidates for associate professor, and is considered essential for promotion to full professor, and is considered essential for promotion to full professor. Each Unit will develop its own standards and items to be measured for the consideration of promotion and/or tenure.

3. Services performed for external remuneration (outside employment) refers to the professional services performed based on faculty expertise for which a consultation or service fee is paid over and above the faculty member's base salary. Faculty should follow the rules of the University regarding outside employment (UPPS 04.04.06). In addition, professional services may also be performed on a volunteer basis without renumeration. When such activities are related and enhance the University, the College, the Unit, and the faculty member's development, these activities can be  counted as additional service activities. Faculty must submit documentation to substantiate this contribution.

d. Quality and Quantity of Performance

1. Academic Units must define what constitutes quality and quantity of performance in each of these three areas - teaching, scholarly/creative activities, and leadership/service, including expectations for collegial contributions to the university community considered for tenure and promotion. Quantity and quality are both considered important, and each faculty member must provide documentation for a judgement to be made in this determination.

2. Evidence of high-quality teaching may include, but is not limited to: 

a. Student evaluations

b. Peer evaluations by members of the PC and other faculty

c. Peer evaluations by tenured faculty at Texas State external to the CHP

d. Course syllabi

e. Reflective narrative/teaching philosophy statement

f. Major assignments and evaluation procedures

g. Samples of student work

h. Letters from alumni or students

i. Presentations at conferences related to teaching

j. Innovative use of appropriate technology to support instruction

k. Participation in course, program, and departmental curriculum planning and development

l. Teaching grants/awards received

m. Participation in university programs designed to enhance and support instructional efforts

n. Evidence of enhancing teaching excellence (e.g., presentation of improvement in learning data tied to instructional innovation, etc.)

o. Number and nature of courses taught (e.g., face-to-face, online, hybrid, service learning, study abroad, study in America, etc.) each semester

p. Number of completed doctoral dissertations, master's theses, independent studies, and culminating research projects supervised

q. Number of doctoral dissertation and master's thesis committees on which the candidate served as a member

05. REVIEW PROCESS FOR TENURE AND/OR PROMOTION

05.01 Unit Personnel Committee and the Academic Unit Leader

a. The Personnel Committee and Academic Unit Leader make independent, separate recommendations on each candidate for promotion and/or tenure. The Personnel Committee prepares their recommendation for the Academic Unit Leader. The Academic Unit Leader then reviews the Personnel Committee's recommendation prior to their review. In order to be advanced to the next level of review, either the Personnel Committee and the Academic Unit Leader, each candidate will be notified by the Academic Unit Leader of his/her application for tenure and/or promotion (AA/PPS No. 04.0220).

05.02 External Reviewers

a. Tenured and tenure-track candidates must be reviewed by at least two qualified peers (at the rank the candidate is seeking) outside the University, selected by both the candidate and the unit Academic Unit Leader. The outside reviewers will be acceptable to the faculty member's contributions and performance in: a) Teaching, b) Scholarly and/or Creative Activity, and c) Service to the Department/School/Program, College University, Profession, and the Committee's review of candidate's material. In the event external reviewers meeting the above criteria cannot be located/are not available/do not exist, the candidate may be evaluated by a qualified faculty (at the rank the candidate is seeking) outside the candidate's College but in a related field (pending Dean/Provost approval).

05.03 College Review Group and College Dean

a. The College Review Group and College Dean make independent, separate recommendations on each candidate for promotion and/or tenure. The College Review Group first reviews and submits its recommendation to the Dean. The Dean then prepares their recommendation, taking the College Review Group's recommendation into consideration. In order to be forwarded to the next level of review, either the College Review Group or the College Dean must recommend the candidate.

b. Within thee (3) days of the completion of action by the college Review Group and the College Dean, each candidate will be notified by the College Dean of the status of his/her application for promotion and/or tenure (AA/PPS No. 04.02.20).

05.04 Provost, President, Chancellor, and Board of Regents

a. The Provost will consider all candidates for promotion and/or tenure who are forwarded from the College Review Group and the College Dean. After consultation with the College Dean, the Provost will make recommendations to the President of the University. The President will make the final recommendations to the Chancellor and the Board of Regents.

06. TIMELINE FOR THE TENURE AND/OR PROMOTION PROCESS

06.01 The timeline set by the university will make allowances for weekends by moving due dates to the next business day when relevant (AA/PPS No. 04.02.20). For the specific dates regarding each year's tenure and promotion calendar, see the Faculty and Academic Resources webpage.

06.02 By May 1, the Academic Unit Leader will submit to the Department faculty and the College Dean a list of faculty members eligible for promotion and tenure review.

06.03 By June 1, eligible faculty members must notify the Academic Unit Leader in writing of their intention to apply for tenure and/or promotion. Faculty who fail to inform the Academic Unit Leader by that date will not be considered in the year's cycle. For a tenure and promotion calendar, see the Faculty Records webpage.

06.04 By June 1, the Provost will publish the calendar for the tenure and promotion cycle for the upcoming academic year.

06.05 The Academic Unit of Leader and faculty member in consideration for tenure and/or promotion should inform external reviewers regarding the timeline. For example, a promotion should inform external reviewers regarding the timeline. For example, a specific range of dates should be given to the external reviewers to allow time for completion of the candidate's packet by October 13th (due date for faculty submission of documentation).

06.06 By September 15, the Academic Unit Leader will send a copy of the list of candidates to the Personnel Committee and College Dean. 

06.07 By September 22, the Dean will provide a list of all candidates for tenure and/or promotion in the College to the Provost.

06.08 By October 13, the candidate must complete and submit an up-to-date Texas State Vita and a promotion and/or tenure form to the Academic Unit Leader. The candidate should also submit documentation of teaching, scholarly/creative activity, and leadership/service as defined in Departmental/School and College criteria. Additional supporting material, dated approximately, may be submitted before the formal meeting of the review group. Faculty who do not submit material by October 13 will not be considered during the cycle. 

06.09 By November 17, the Personnel Committee will have a) reviewed each candidate's application and documentation, b) voted, and c) submitted recommendations to the Academic Unit Leader.

06.10 By December 1, the Academic Unit Leader will submit his/her recommendations, along with those of the Personnel Committee, to the Dean.

06.11 By February 1, the College Review Group and the Dean will have completed the review of all candidates, and the Dean will submit his/her recommendations, along with those of the review group, to the Provost.

06.12 By April 30, the Provost will notify candidates of the President's tenure and promotion recommendations to the Board of Regents. 

07. PROCEDURES FOR APPEAL

07.01 Candidates denied promotion and/or tenure are referred to AA/PPS No. 04.02.32 and AA/PPS No. 04.02.20.

07.02 Accountability of Individuals Participating in the Review Cycle

a. All individuals involved in the tenure and promotion process must be ethical, responsible, accountable, and maintain strict confidentially in dealing with career decisions of others that is beyond question of bias or self-interest. Reviewers are responsible for being familiar with the tenure and promotion criteria and policies and procedures for their respective levels of review. Reviewers will be accountable for their evaluations and are expected to have adequately reviewed the candidate's portfolio prior to making decisions. Each person in the review and evaluation process has a professional responsibility to treat information that evaluates another person's work as confidential.

8. MAJOR RESPONSIBILITIES ASSOCIATED WITH THIS CHP/PPS

8.01 Major responsibilities for routine assignments associated with this PPS include the following:

a. The Dean of the College of Health Professions shall review this PPS E2Y.

9. CERTIFICATION STATEMENT

9.01 This CHP/PPS has been approved by the following individuals in his/her official capacity and represents College policy and procedures from the date of this document until superseded.

CHP Associate Dean; Senior Reviewer of this PPS

CHP Dean; Secondary Reviewer of this PPS