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Promotion and Tenure Policies and Procedures - MSB

Merrick School of Business

Approved by Faculty 10/24/90
Approved by Attorney General's Office 3/14/91
AY 05-06 revisions pending final external approvals

Preamble: The Robert G. Merrick School of Business is an upper-division, professional institution with a large graduate enrollment. The ideal faculty member is terminally qualified in his/her area of teaching, is an effective teacher at both the graduate and the undergraduate levels, is engaged in scholarly activities of research and publication appropriate to the maintenance and enhancement of scholastic qualifications in his/her field, has professional ties to current business practice, and finally, discharges his/her obligations as a faculty member through responsible service on university committees or other such assignments.

Ranks
Committee
Promotion Criteria
Tenure Criteria
Promulgation

I. Ranks and Qualifications by Rank

The rank of persons hired as faculty members of the Robert G. Merrick School of Business should be consistent with the qualifications for promotion to that rank. The rank of individuals being hired is of concern to the existing faculty of the School.

The hiring contract of each assistant professor, associate professor, and professor shall state the year for tenure consideration if within the term of that contract, and the number of years credit for prior experience given towards promotion, if any.

Rank: Professor
Qualifications:
1. Educational Preparation - The earned doctorate in an appropriate discipline; exceptions may be made in extraordinary circumstances, including appropriate combinations of exceptional academic, professional, business, governmental, or non-profit credentials and/or experience, exceptional research undertakings and/or results, etc. Exceptions may be made by the president.
2. Teaching
  1. ten years of full-time college teaching experience, exclusive of summer or part-time teaching, and at least seven years in the associate professor rank. Exceptions may be made for comparable professional activity or research.
  2. excellence in instruction, as indicated by an examination of all relevant sources of information, including input from students, peers, and administrators.
  With regard to student input, objective guidelines and procedures should be used, which are not administered by the faculty member. Special efforts should be made to insure that the student input is not contaminated by different academic standards among instructors, and is otherwise unbiased.
  
  Different styles of teaching must be recognized. The School of Business must provide for those who appeal to the highly motivated, exceptional students, as well as those whose "mass education" skills are outstanding.
3. Professional and Scholarly Activity - Evidence of continued interest, involvement, and productivity in the area of specialization through such activities as research, publication, participation in the programs of professional societies, or additional education.
4. University, Professional, and Community Service
  1. contributions to the university through faculty or administrative committee service, acceptance and fulfillment of special assignments from faculty organizations or the administration, and services rendered to student organizations as advisor or participant in programs.
  2. contributions to the broader community through the participation in and/or provision of services to local, regional, and national professional organizations, and through providing educational, training, and research services through seminars, conference, and other non-traditional academic programs.
Rank: Associate Professor
Qualifications:
1. Educational Preparation - The earned doctorate in an appropriate discipline; exceptions may be made in extraordinary circumstances, including appropriate combinations of exceptional academic, professional, business, governmental, or non-profit credentials and/or experience, excellent research undertakings and/or results, etc. Exceptions may be made by the president.
2. Teaching
  1. seven years of full-time college teaching experience, exclusive of summer or part-time teaching and at least five years in the assistant professor rank. Exceptions may be made for comparable professional activity or research.
  2. excellence in instruction, as indicated by an examination of all relevant sources of information, including input from students, peers, and administrators.
  With regard to student input, objective guidelines and procedures should be used, which are not administered by the faculty member. Special efforts should be made to insure that the student input is not contaminated by different academic standards among instructors, and is otherwise unbiased.
  
  Different styles of teaching must be recognized. The School of Business must provide for those who appeal to the highly motivated, exceptional students, as well as those whose "mass education" skills are outstanding.
3. Professional and Scholarly Activity - Evidence of continued interest, involvement, and productivity in the area of specialization through such activities as research, publication, participation in the programs of professional societies, or additional education.
4. University, Professional and Community Service
  1. contributions to the university through faculty or administrative committee service, acceptance and fulfillment of special assignments from faculty organizations or the administration, and services rendered to student organizations as advisor or participant in programs.
  2. contributions to the broader community through the participation in and/or provision of services to local, regional, and national professional organizations, and through providing educational, training, and research services through seminars, conference, and other non-traditional academic programs.
Rank: Assistant Professor
Qualifications:
1. Educational Preparation - The earned doctorate in an appropriate discipline is required; a candidate who has completed all but the doctoral dissertation (ABD) will be considered if available evidence indicates that the degree will be completed; exceptions may be made in rare circumstances. In areas where there are few doctoral programs and/or insufficient graduates, this requirement may be waived.
2. Teaching - A minimum of three years of full-time university/college teaching experience. Exceptions may be made for comparable professional activity or research and in areas in which there is a critical shortage of doctorates.
3. Professional and Scholarly Activity; University, Professional, and Community Service - Available evidence should indicate that the individual can and will perform competently in these areas.
Rank: Instructor
Qualifications:
1. Educational Preparation - The earned Master's degree in an appropriate discipline is required; evidence of pursuit of the doctoral degree in an appropriate discipline is desirable.
2. Teaching; Professional and Scholarly Activity; University and Community Service - Available evidence should indicate that the individual can and will perform competently in these areas.

II. The Tenure and Promotion Committee

Purpose

The Tenure and Promotion (T&P) Committee will serve the critical function of representing the faculty of the Business School in the evaluation of:
1. The eligibility for tenure of their colleagues who are in the year of tenure review (See Section IV of this document).
2. The eligibility for promotion of their colleagues who have requested promotion to a higher rank (See Section III, of this document).
The principle to be followed in the tenure and promotion reviews is one of in-depth evaluation of strengths and weaknesses, so that a decision can be recommended which takes into account all aspects of the candidate's abilities and accomplishments or lack of them. While the committee should help the candidates put their best foot forward, it should also safeguard the interests of all faculty and the university by seeking proof of the fitness of the candidate to be tenured or promoted.

Thus, the principle is one of intensive investigation. It is not, for example, a selling of the candidate by emphasizing only the positive factors, or alternatively, the reaching of a negative decision and justifying it by citing only the negative considerations.
Election of the T&P Committee
1. By Whom - The T&P Committee will be elected by the School of Business Faculty. All full-time members of the faculty are eligible to participate in the election. Two representatives and one alternate from each department will be elected by their respective departments. Elections will be held within each department. Representatives and/or alternates elected who decide to submit their names for tenure and/or promotion are not eligible to serve on the committee for that academic year.
  
  Departmental chairpersons are not eligible to serve on the committee. The Faculty Senate will assure that members of the Tenure and Promotion Committee are elected by a proper secret ballot.
2. When - The T&P Committee will be elected in March of the preceding academic year in order to give the committee maximum time to complete a thorough evaluation. Results will be reported by the department chairperson to the president of the School of Business Faculty Senate before April 1.
3. Composition of the T&P Committee - The committee will be composed of ten full-time members of the faculty of the School of Business. Of the ten members, two will be representatives of each of the five Academic Departments. These representatives will be elected to serve terms of two academic years; the number of terms a representative can serve is not restricted. Representatives will serve a staggered two-year term; alternates are elected for one-year membership.
  
  There will also be five additional individuals designated as committee Alternates. One alternate will represent each of the Academic Departments. Should one of the regular departmental representatives to the committee be unable to participate in a substantial portion of the committee's activities (e.g. due to illness), the Alternate to that department should be requested by the departmental chair or the chair of the T&P Committee to serve as a replacement for the rest of the academic year.
4. Eligibility - Eligibility for serving on the committee is limited to tenured faculty, except in departments where there are insufficient tenured faculty to serve on the committee.
The Functioning of the T&P Committee
1. The committee is generally free to operate in the manner it considers most appropriate given its assigned responsibility. The T&P Committee will distribute its review steps, procedures and guidelines on the teaching, scholarly activity, format for curriculum vitae, and service criteria to all faculty by June 1. The following general guidelines should be adhered to in order to help insure that each candidate is given equal and fair consideration.
2. Within two weeks after appropriate deadlines (See Sections III and IV) the committee should inform the candidate of pertinent aspects of its intended hearing procedures and of the date by which the candidate will be reviewed. (The candidate should notify the chairperson of the committee if he or she wishes to appear before it.)
3. The chairperson (to be elected by the committee) should call as many committee meetings as are felt necessary to evaluate the candidate(s) properly. The committee should interview any candidate who wishes to appear before it, as well as any other member of the university community who in its judgment can make a contribution to the evaluation. Every opportunity should be afforded the candidate to present his or her qualifications, before a decision is made. The candidate may invite faculty members or any other parties, at his or her discretion, to accompany him or her and to testify upon his or her qualifications for promotion or tenure.
4. All procedures (including formal hearings and deliberations) are confidential, and the members of the committee should be charged not to discuss the proceedings outside the committee meetings.
5. Within two weeks of its decision on a candidate, the T&P Committee will report its recommendation in writing directly to the dean and to the individual. Department chairpersons will make their recommendations to the dean separately from the working of this committee. A positive recommendation means that the candidate has met all criteria, on balance. The report should discuss fully all criteria, putting them into perspective in the particular discipline, and state the reasons for the committee's judgment on each. The report must be signed by all committee members, except by those committee members who choose to sign and submit minority reports. The report and all data reviewed by the committee will then be transmitted to the dean. A copy of the report will be sent to the candidate and to the candidate's chairperson simultaneously. The candidate's report will include a paragraph on appeals (Section III of the University of Baltimore's Policies and Procedures on Appointment, Rank, and Tenure). All materials related to the entire process must be kept confidential. Copies of the final report should not be distributed to members of the T&P Committee. However, the candidate may distribute copies according to his/her desires.

III. Criteria and Procedures for Promotion

No one will be promoted as a faculty member in the Robert G. Merrick School of Business without being evaluated by the Tenure and Promotion Committee as provided in these procedures.

Criteria - To be considered for promotion to any rank, the candidate must possess as a minimum the qualifications listed for that rank (See Section I of this document). It should be noted that possession of the minimum qualifications for a rank does not guarantee promotion to that rank.
Procedures - To be considered for promotion the following steps should be taken:
1. By September 15, a faculty member should submit written notice of his/her intention to apply for promotion to his/her departmental chairperson, to the dean, and to the T&P Committee.
2. By October 1, a faculty member should submit to the T&P Committee his/her curriculum vitae (prepared according to the format promulgated by the P&T Committee) and any other material required as evidence that minimal qualifications for the next rank have been met. Simultaneously, the candidate will submit a copy of his/her curriculum vitae to his/her chairperson and to the dean.
3. Each department shall form a committee of all members of the department that hold the sought after rank or higher, which shall forward its recommendations and the reasons for its recommendations to the T&P Committee in writing. The department chair is responsible for delivering the recommendations.
4. The department chairperson should prepare a letter detailing his or her recommendation regarding the requested promotion, including in the letter all information considered in arriving at the recommendation.
5. The department's written evaluation should be delivered by the departmental chairperson to the T&P Committee and to the dean by October 15. The department's written evaluation and the department chairperson's letter of recommendation should be delivered by the departmental chairperson to the dean of the School of Business by October 15.
6. The T&P Committee will function from the point as outlined above (see Section II).
7. The candidate shall be notified in writing of the decision concerning his candidacy for promotion by April 15 and shall receive copies of all documentation, including the reports and recommendations of the T&P Committee, departmental chairperson, dean, provost, and president, by the same date.
  
  In order to facilitate this process, it is understood that the decisions will progress according to deadlines as follows:
  
  By Decisions and reports rendered by
  
  12/15 T&P Committee
  
  2/15 Dean
  
  3/15 Provost
  
  4/15 President
  
  By mutual agreement in writing the candidate and the university may agree to waive these deadlines.

IV. Criteria and Procedures for Tenure

No one shall be hired by the Robert G. Merrick School of Business with tenure as a faculty member without due consideration by the Tenure and Promotion Committee. No current faculty will be tenured in the Robert G. Merrick School of Business without being evaluated by the Tenure and Promotion Committee as provided in these procedures.

Criteria - While a recommendation for tenure signifies favorable recognition of a faculty member's past accomplishments, it should be more importantly an expression of confidence in a candidate's future contribution to his profession, his department, the School of Business, the university and the community. A forecast of future performance must be based on an evaluation of past performance in the required areas of competence as explained below. It must always be remembered that the granting of tenure is the most important decision made about a faculty member, since it is upon the tenured faculty that the future of the School of Business depends.

Specific factors to be considered in the evaluation of the candidate are:
1. Educational Preparation - The earned doctorate in an appropriate discipline; exceptions may be made in rare circumstances. (See I.A1, I.B1, and I.C1 of this document).
2. Teaching Competency - (See I.A2, I.B2, and I.C2 of this document).
3. Professional and Scholarly Activity - (See I.A3, I.B3, and I.C3 of this document).
4. University, Professional, and Community Service - (See I.A4, I.B4, and I.C4 of this document).
Year of Review Eligibility - The year of tenure review will be calculated in accordance with the policies established by the university and The University of Maryland System and the hiring contracts with faculty members.
Deferrals - The T&P Committee does not have the authority to consider, recommend, or grant deferrals.
Procedures - The following activities should be performed as the tenure review process:
1. By September 15, the dean of the School of Business should calculate the year of review for each of the faculty, and give appropriate written notice to those candidates to be considered in any given year, to the candidate's department chairperson, and to the T&P Committee. A faculty member may request an earlier review.
2. By October 1, a faculty member should submit to the T&P Committee his/her curriculum vitae (prepared according to the format promulgated by the T&P Committee) and any other material required as evidence that minimal qualifications for tenure have been met. Simultaneously, the candidate will submit a copy of his/her curriculum vitae to his/her chairperson and to the dean.
3. Each department shall form a committee of all tenured members of the department, which shall forward its recommendations, and the reasons for its recommendations, to the T&P Committee in writing. The department chair is responsible for delivering the recommendations.
4. The department chairperson should prepare a letter detailing his or her recommendation regarding tenure, including in the letter all information considered in arriving at the recommendation.
5. The department's written evaluation should be delivered by the departmental chairperson to the T&P Committee by October 15. The department's written evaluation and the department chairperson's letter of recommendation should be delivered by the departmental chairperson to the dean of the School of Business by October 15.
6. The T&P Committee will function from the point as outlined above (See Section II).
7. The candidate shall be notified in writing of the decision concerning his/her candidacy for tenure by April 15 and shall receive copies of all documentation, including the reports and recommendations of the T&P Committee, departmental chairperson, dean, provost, and president, by the same date.
  
  In order to facilitate this process, it is understood that the decisions will progress according to deadlines as follows:
  
  By Decisions and reports rendered by
  
  12/15 T&P Committee
  2/15 Dean
  3/15 Provost
  4/15 President
  
  By mutual agreement in writing the candidate and the university may agree to waive these deadlines.

V. Promulgation

Authentication - Each page of the current Promotion and Tenure Procedures will be hand initialed and dated by the chair of the Promotion and Tenure Committee following School of Business Faculty Senate approval.
Distribution - Following each change to this document the president of the School of Business Faculty Senate will mail a copy of the revised document to each member of the faculty and the dean. The dean will provide a copy to each newly-hired faculty member as part of the hiring process. The dean and the president of the School of Business Faculty Senate will maintain in file for inspection an official copy of the latest document.