It is the policy of the university of
Toledo (UT) that all faculty and faculty administrators hired into the
university at the rank of associate professor or above and who have previously
been awarded tenure at an accredited academic institution with standards
comparable to or surpassing those of the university, may, subject to the
procedures and approvals outlined below, be awarded tenure upon their entry
into UT.
(B)
Purpose of policy
UT is committed to recruiting, hiring,
and retaining outstanding faculty and faculty administrators who have
demonstrated sustained excellence in teaching, professional activity, and
service. The university is also committed to providing an expedited process for
exemption from the probationary period and awarding tenure upon entry when the
faculty member or administrator, who has previously been awarded tenure, has
met the high standards of the relevant discipline and meets or exceeds the
standards for tenure at UT.
(C)
Scope
This policy applies to all external
faculty and faculty administrators who have accepted and signed a letter of
offer for a position at UT at the rank of associate professor, professor, and
endowed professor or chair and who hold tenure at another accredited academic
institution.
Rank is not within the scope or
authority of this policy. Deans retain the authority to determine the
appropriate rank of external new hire faculty and/or faculty administrators
subject to the approval of the provost and the reviewing units outlined in the
collective bargaining unit. (CBA).
The expedited tenure process shall not
be used for faculty members or academic administrators who are currently
employed and/or under contract at UT.
(D)
Procedure
At the time of the selection of the
search finalists for faculty or administrative positions, the candidate's
curriculum vitae (CV) shall be reviewed by the first-level
faculty committee, e.g., department personnel committee (DPC) or its
equivalent. The first-level faculty committee shall make an initial
determination that based on the materials presented the candidate "should be
considered for expedited tenure review." If the first-level faculty committee
fails to respond within ten days of receiving the official curriculum vitae
from the dean or search committee chair, the dean will presume the first-level
faculty support the candidate's evaluation for expedited tenure
review.
Upon the acceptance of the offer
letter, the dean shall provide an abbreviated dossier pertaining to the
individual selected for hire. The abbreviated dossier shall include a complete
CV, application letter and/or personal statement, documentation of tenure at
another institution, and evidence of teaching effectiveness (if applicable).
Additional external evaluation letters are not necessary.
The abbreviated dossier shall be sent
to the appropriate reviewing units outlined in the CBA or college of medicine
and life sciences' (COMLS) criteria and/or faculty rules and regulations for
faculty not bound by a CBA.
The abbreviated dossier shall be
circulated electronically to accelerate the process. Letters of recommendation
from each level will be sent electronically and must answer the question "do
you recommend tenure for this appointment?". If the result of the expedited
tenure review awards tenure the recommendations will be collected and submitted
to the official personnel file of the individual.
Each evaluating unit must consider the
contents of the abbreviated dossier and compare its contents to the
departmental or programmatic standards in place at UT. If applicable each
evaluating unit will also consider discipline specific standards that may
exceed or not be reflected in tenure standards at accredited institutions
designated as peer or aspirational to UT.
Each evaluating unit will be notified
simultaneously and will have twenty-one calendar days to respond. The
appropriate evaluation units are listed as followed:
(1)
Faculty governed
by the CBA: department personnel committee, chair, college personnel committee,
dean, university personnel committee.
(2)
Faculty governed
by the COMLS' criteria and procedures or faculty rules and regulations for
faculty not bound by a CBA; department chair; appointment, promotions and
tenure committee (APT); dean.
The expedited process does not require
an evaluation based on the prior levels of review. Each evaluating unit shall
make a determination based on the materials presented. An evaluating unit's
failure to respond within the timeframe will result in a presumption of support
for tenure by that evaluating unit. If a level of evaluation does not provide a
written evaluation, the dean shall be required to add the following to the
dossier:
(a)
the dated notification sent to the evaluating
level;
(b)
all communications sent to secure an evaluation within the
evaluation process.
The recommendations will be compiled
and forwarded to the provost. If the provost recommends tenure, the evaluation
will be submitted to the president, who will make a recommendation to the board
of trustees.
