Rule 3344-16-15 | Faculty Tenure.
(A) Tenured appointments. Tenure is the status established by formal action by the board of trustees granting the prerogative of a faculty member to employment on a continuing basis by the university subject to dismissal only for specific causes specified in this policy and after due process. The status of tenure provides a faculty member with the academic freedom to conduct scholarly research and teach topics that may be unpopular but that are in keeping with appropriate academic rigor in the relevant discipline of study. In no way does academic freedom limit the diversity of intellectual viewpoints in the classroom or other academic settings.
(B) Tenure-track probationary appointments. A person appointed without tenure to a full-time faculty position is subject to termination in alignment with university policy. Faculty members with probationary appointments shall serve a probationary period not to exceed six years. Faculty members with probationary appointments are eligible for tenured appointments in accordance with the applicable terms and procedures of the university.
(C) Tenure and academic rank. Tenure may be granted only to faculty members of the rank of associate professor or professor. Promotion to the rank of associate professor or professor must be accompanied by the granting of tenure. The awarding of tenure to a faculty member already holding the rank of associate professor or professor is based on evidence that the candidate continues to meet the appropriate standards for these academic ranks.
All aspects of this policy that apply to assistant professor, associate professor or professor appointments shall also apply to clinical assistant professor, clinical associate professor or clinical professor appointments, respectively.
(D) Time limits.
(1) Evaluation for tenure of faculty members whose original appointment was as instructor or assistant professor must take place no later than the sixth year of the probationary period. If the board grants tenure, it shall become effective the beginning of the next academic year. If tenure is not granted by the end of the probationary period, the appointment for the next academic year will be a terminal appointment. Faculty members on such a terminal appointment may not be candidates for promotion or tenure unless a review is mandated as part of the resolution of an appeal.
(2) Unless granted at the time of the original appointment as associate professor or professor, tenure may be granted during a probationary period which shall not exceed three years or, for a person without previous full-time college teaching experience, four years. Faculty members whose original appointment was as instructor or as assistant professor shall have a probationary period not exceeding six years.
(3) In computing years of service in fulfillment of this six-year maximum probationary period, credit shall be given for a maximum of two years of prior service if the service includes all of the following characteristics: full-time; tenure-track; in a position requiring research; and service performed post-terminal degree. The absence of any one of these characteristics disqualifies the prior service for credit. The above parameters also apply to all faculty, including college lecturer and visiting positions (but excluding professional staff positions) with prior service at CSU.
For faculty hired as pre-terminal degree tenure-track instructors at CSU, all years count toward the probationary period except that the faculty member may elect not to count up to two years of such service. At the time of moving to the assistant professor rank, the faculty member wishing not to count such service must so inform the dean and department chair or school director in writing.
(4) A faculty member whose original appointment was as instructor or assistant professor may request an extension of their third-year or fifth-year reviews or their probationary period. Extensions may be requested whether or not the faculty member qualifies for or takes a leave of absence. An extension may be requested for the following reasons:
(a) Extended illness or disability of the faculty member;
(b) Providing primary care for an immediate family member (e,g, spouse or domestic partner, a child, or parent) who is ill or disabled;
(c) Providing primary care for a child under eighteen months of age (the child must be living with the faculty member who provides the primary care); or
(d) Providing primary care for an adopted child (the child must be living with the faculty member who provides the primary care) within eighteen months of adoption.
(5) Timing. Requests for an extension of the probationary period may be submitted at any point in the first five years of the probationary period, but no later than March first of the fifth year.
(6) f. Procedure. A faculty member must timely submit the request to the provost, including the proposed new tenure date, along with a current curriculum vitae and evidence to substantiate the qualifying reason for the extension.
If the request is for the faculty member's own health condition or disability, any medical information shall be submitted to the human resources department in accordance with the ADA reasonable accommodation guidelines.
If the request for extension is to provide primary care for a child, proof of the birth or adoption must be provided (unless it has been submitted to human resources for benefits purposes), along with a certification by the faculty member of primary care provider status.
If the request for extension is to care for an ill or disabled family member, the request must include documentation from a health care provider that such care is required and a certification by the faculty member that the faculty member is providing the primary care.
(7) Decision making. The provost may consult with the relevant department chair or head and or dean about the request.
If the faculty member seeks the extension based upon the faculty member's own health condition, the request may be considered as a request for reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act and considered by the provost in accordance with applicable guidelines and forms designated by the department of human resources and in consultation with the employee ADA coordinator.
The provost's decision is final.
Decisions regarding the granting of an extension are based on:
(a) Verification of the condition(s) leading to the request; and
(b) Verification that the faculty member demonstrated significant progress toward achieving the standards for review, reappointment, promotion, and/or tenure prior to the condition(s) leading to the request.
(8) Length of Extension. Initial extensions may be granted for one year. Total duration of allowable extensions of the probationary period is two years, with the second year being either an approved continuation of the original extension or a new extension for another reason. The faculty member must initiate a request for a second extension. If tenure is not granted at the end of the probationary period, notice of termination shall be given.
(E) Evaluation for tenure. The evaluation of tenure will follow the applicable processes and procedures defined in the CSU-AAUP collective bargaining agreement for promotion and reappointment.
(F) Standards for granting tenure. The following shall be considered in evaluating faculty for tenure:
(1) Teaching. The highest standards are comprehensive knowledge of the field of study, thorough preparation, intense interest in students as well as sensitivity to student interest, open-mindedness, independence and integrity, and above all, intellectual enthusiasm which is transmitted to students.
(2) Creative Achievement. The standard of scholarship requires a working commitment to inquiry, research and to creative achievement. The university obligation for the generation of new knowledge and practices imposes a responsibility for creativity, whether in inquiry and investigation, writing, design and production or in the performing and fine arts. In the best of scholars and the best of teachers, creative inquiry is joined with effective classroom teaching. Candidates for tenure who submit co-authored material for review shall also provide an explanation of their contribution to such materials.
(3) Professional Service. A university faculty member is a "citizen, a member of a learned profession, and an officer of an educational institution," according to the 1940 joint AAUP/AAC statement of principles on academic freedom and tenure. After a period of personal growth and development as a teacher and creative scholar, a faculty member may properly be expected to assume increased responsibility, in keeping with the faculty member's professional interests, for the governance of the university, the standards of the faculty member's discipline and the welfare of the civic community.
(G) Tenure for administrative appointments. Individuals who are recruited to Cleveland state university for appointment as administrators, who also desire a tenured appointment in an academic department, shall submit credentials to the academic department concerned. The department may request an interview with the individual. The bargaining unit members of the department shall vote by secret ballot as to whether the individual is acceptable for appointment to the department. The appropriate departmental PRC, or in those colleges in which departmental PRCs do not exist, the members of the department shall make a recommendation as to the individual's qualifications for tenured academic rank. The recommendations shall then be forwarded to the chairperson of the department who will submit them along with their recommendation to the dean.
(H) Appeals. If a faculty member wishes to appeal the final evaluation, the faculty member may do so by submitting an appeal application to the provost's office within fifteen business days alleging: material procedural error or misapplication of the selection criteria. An appeals committee, three faculty members appointed jointly by the provost and faculty senate chair, plus a non-voting HR advisor, will issue a recommendation within twenty business days. The president issues a final decision; the board retains ultimate authority.
(I) Policy Review Cycle. The provost's office is responsible for this policy. At a minimum, every five years, the provost shall ensure that the policy is reviewed and recommend whether the policy should be reaffirmed without revision, amended, or rescinded. The provost may invite the participation of faculty bodies in such a review. Policies may be reviewed on an earlier timeline depending on necessity and change in law or practice.
Last updated December 20, 2025 at 12:43 AM
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