(A) Probationary periods are established
for tenure-track faculty members. During a probationary period a faculty member
does not have tenure and is considered for reappointment annually.
(B) Length of probationary
period.
(1) An appointment as
professor or associate professor will generally entail tenure. However, a
probationary period not to exceed four years may be granted by the office of
academic affairs upon petition of the tenure initiating unit and college. For
the petition to be approved, a compelling rationale must be provided regarding
why appointment at a senior rank is appropriate but tenure is not. All
appointments to the rank of associate professor or professor require prior
approval of the executive vice president and provost.
An appointment to the rank of instructor is
always probationary and may not exceed three years. An instructor must be
approved for promotion to assistant professor by the beginning of the third
year of appointment or the appointment will not be renewed beyond the end of
the third year. When an instructor is promoted to the rank of assistant
professor, prior service credit may be granted for time spent as an instructor
if the faculty member requests such credit in writing at the time of the
promotion. This request must be approved by the tenure-initiating unit's
eligible faculty, the tenure-initiating unit head, the dean of the college, and
the office of academic affairs.
An appointment to the rank of assistant
professor is always probationary and may not exceed six years, including prior
service credit. An assistant professor is reviewed for promotion and tenure no
later than the sixth year of appointment as an assistant professor and informed
by the end of the sixth year as to whether promotion and tenure will be granted
at the beginning of the seventh year.
(2) Promotion and tenure
may be granted at any time during the probationary period when the faculty
member's record of achievement merits tenure and promotion. Similarly, a
probationary appointment may be terminated at any time subject to the notice
provisions of rule 3335-6-08 of the Administrative Code and the provisions of
paragraphs (G) and (H) of this rule.
(3) Probationary
tenure-track faculty members will be informed no later than the end of the year
in which their mandatory review for tenure takes place as to whether tenure
will be granted by the beginning of the following year. If tenure is not
granted, a one year terminal year of employment is offered.
(C) Annual review of probationary
tenure-track faculty members.
(1) At the time of
appointment, probationary tenure-track faculty members shall be provided with
all pertinent documents detailing tenure initiating unit, college, and
university promotion and tenure policies and criteria. If these documents are
revised during the probationary period, probationary tenure-track faculty
members shall be provided with copies of the revised documents.
(2) During a probationary
period a tenure-track faculty member shall be reviewed annually in accordance
with this rule and with policies of the tenure initiating unit, college and
university. The annual review should encompass the faculty member's
performance in teaching, in scholarship, and in service; as well as evidence of
continuing development. The involvement of tenure initiating unit faculty in
annual reviews is strongly encouraged. External evaluations of the faculty
member's work, required for tenure and promotion reviews, may be obtained
for any annual review if judged appropriate by the faculty review body or
tenure initiating unit chair. The tenure initiating unit chair shall inform
probationary faculty members at the time of initial appointment, and in a
timely fashion each year thereafter, when the annual review will take place and
provide a copy of the office of academic affairs dossier outline to be
completed by the faculty member in reporting accomplishments to date. At the
completion of the review the tenure initiating unit chair shall provide the
faculty member and the dean of the college with a written assessment of the
faculty member's performance and professional development. The assessment
should include both strengths and weaknesses, as appropriate. If the
chair's recommendation is to reappoint the faculty member to another
probationary year of service, that recommendation shall be final. A
recommendation from the chair to not reappoint the faculty member to another
probationary year requires a review that follows fourth year review procedures
(see paragraph (G) of this rule) and the dean shall make the final decision in
the matter. All annual review letters to date shall become a part of a faculty
member's dossier for subsequent annual reviews during the probationary
period, including the review for promotion and tenure.
(3) When probationary
tenure-track faculty receive their annual review, the tenure initiating unit
chair shall inform them of their right to review their primary personnel file
maintained by their tenure initiating unit and to place in that file a response
to any evaluation, comment or other material contained in the file (see
paragraph (C)(8) of rule 3335-3-35 of the Administrative Code).
(4) The fourth year
review of probationary tenure-track faculty shall follow the same process as
the review for tenure and promotion at the tenure initiating unit and college
levels with two exceptions: Solicitation of external letters of evaluation may
or may not be required by the tenure initiating unit and review by the college
promotion and tenure committee shall be optional in all cases where both the
tenure initiating unit and the dean approve the renewal of the appointment.
Renewal of the appointment of a probationary assistant professor for the fifth
year requires the approval of the dean of the college. Before reaching a
negative decision or a decision contrary to the tenure initiating unit's
recommendation, the dean must consult with the college promotion and tenure
committee.
(D) Exclusion of time from probationary
periods.
(1) There are three
circumstances under which probationary tenure-track faculty may obtain an
exclusion of time from probationary periods, also known as extending the tenure
clock. These exclusions recognize factors that impact the ability to meet the
criteria for tenure within the probationary period outlined in paragraph (B) of
this rule. A request to exclude time from the probationary period for any of
the reasons listed in paragraphs (D)(1)(a) to (D)(1)(c) of this rule must be
made prior to April first of the year in which the mandatory review for tenure
is scheduled.
(a) A probationary tenure-track faculty member will have one year
excluded from the probationary period for the birth or the adoption of a child.
The maximum time that can be excluded per birth or adoption is one year. This
exclusion is guaranteed provided the faculty member informs the TIU head in
writing within one year of the birth or adoption unless the exclusion is
prohibited in paragraph (D)(3) of this rule. It is the responsibility of the
TIU head to inform the college dean and office of academic affairs of the birth
or adoption. The probationary faculty member may decline the one-year exclusion
by informing the TIU head in writing before April first of the original
mandatory review year.
(b) A probationary tenure-track faculty member may apply to
exclude time from the probationary period in increments of one year because of
personal illness, care of a seriously ill or injured person, an unpaid leave of
absence, or factors beyond the faculty member's control that hinder the
performance of the duties associated with being a successful faculty member,
i.e., teaching, scholarship, and service. For faculty members requesting an
exclusion due to personal illness or care of a seriously ill or injured person,
requests shall be made in writing to human resources which will work with the
TIU head to determine the necessary documentation. Requests to exclude time
from the probationary period due to unpaid leave or factors beyond the faculty
member's control must be submitted in writing to the TIU head within one
year of the unpaid leave or the extenuating factors. Such requests shall be
reviewed by the TIU promotion and tenure committee which will advise the TIU
head on the appropriateness of the request. In units that do not have a
promotion and tenure committee, the eligible faculty shall review the request.
All requests require approval by the TIU head dean, and executive vice
president and provost. The extent to which the event leading to the request was
beyond the faculty member's control and the extent to which it interfered
with the faculty member's ability to be productive will be considered in
granting or denying the request.
(c) Probationary tenure-track faculty members on less than
full-time service for part or all of their probationary period may request an
exclusion of time. Such requests require approval of the TIU head, dean, and
executive vice president and provost. The exclusion shall be for an integer
number of years based on the principle that the usual probationary period
represents full-time service. The maximum exclusion of a probationary period
for less than full-time service is one year for a probationary instructor,
three years for a probationary assistant professor and two years for a
probationary associate professor or professor.
(2) A request to exclude
time from the probationary period for any reason will not be granted after a
nonrenewal notice has been issued nor will previously approved requests to
exclude time from the probationary period in any way limit the
university's right not to renew a probationary appointment
(3) Except in
extraordinary circumstances, a maximum of three years can be excluded from the
probationary period for tenure track faculty for any reason or combination of
reasons covered in the provisions in paragraphs (D)(1)(a) and (D)(1)(b) of this
rule. For probationary faculty who are on appointments of less than full time,
the maximum is four years for an instructor, six years for an assistant
professor, and five years for an associate professor or professor for any
reason or combination of reasons covered in the provisions in paragraphs
(D)(1)(a), (D)(1)(b), and (D)(1)(c) of this rule. Exceptions require the
approval of the tenure initiating unit chair, dean, and executive vice
president and provost.
(4) Tenure-track faculty
members will be reviewed annually during their probationary periods regardless
of whether time is excluded from that period for any of the above reasons
unless their absence from campus during an excluded period makes conduct of
such a review impractical.
(5) For purposes of
performance reviews of probationary faculty, the length of the probationary
period is the actual number of years of employment at this university less any
years of service excluded from the probationary period under the terms of this
rule. Expectations for productivity during the probationary period cannot be
increased as a consequence of exclusions of time granted under the terms of
this rule. Probationary faculty who are on part-time appointments should be
reviewed in the context of their reduced duties.
(6) The exclusion of time
granted under for reasons specified in this rule in no way limits the award of
promotion and tenure prior to the mandatory review year.
(E) Service credit of up to three years
may be granted for prior work experience at the time of the initial appointment
and requires the approval of the tenure initiating unit chair, dean, and
executive vice president and provost. Prior service credit shortens a
probationary period by the amount of the credit and once granted cannot be
revoked except through an approved request to exclude time from the
probationary period.
(F) Probationary appointments may be
terminated during any probationary year because of inadequate performance or
inadequate professional development. At any time other than the fourth year
review or mandatory review for tenure, a nonrenewal decision must be based on
the results of a formal performance review conducted in accord with fourth year
review procedures as set forth in paragraph (C)(3) of this rule. Notification
of nonrenewal must be consistent with the standards of notice set forth in rule
3335-6-08 of the Administrative Code.
(G) Probationary appointments may be
terminated for fiscal or programmatic reasons. When nonrenewal is based on
fiscal or programmatic reasons, the faculty member should be advised that such
nonrenewal is a possibility and formal notice of nonrenewal should be provided
as soon as possible after the need for nonrenewal is established. Nonrenewal of
a probationary appointment for fiscal or programmatic reasons does not entail a
performance review and requires the prior approval of the executive vice
president and provost. Because hiring decisions should be based on informed
assumptions regarding the future availability of resources and of programmatic
needs, approval of such nonrenewals will be based on the extent to which
convincing evidence is provided that the fiscal or programmatic reasons for the
nonrenewal could not be anticipated when the appointment was made and are
expected to be long lasting.
(H) Decisions affecting the nonrenewal of
a probationary appointment may not be arbitrary or capricious or carried out in
violation of a faculty member's right to academic freedom. Faculty rule
3335-5-05 of the Administrative Code provides a procedural mechanism under
which an aggrieved probationary faculty member can challenge a nonrenewal
decision believed to have been improper. In that instance, however, the burden
of proof is on the probationary faculty member to establish that the nonrenewal
decision was improper (see rule 3335-6-05 of the Administrative
Code).
