UNDERLINING =CHANGES AFTER 11/19
DRAFT - NOVEMBER 2002
The
POLICIES GOVERNING
ACADEMIC FREEDOM,
RESPONSIBILITY, AND TENURE
Contents
Page Topic
2................. Academic Freedom &
Responsibility of the Faculty Member
3................. Academic Freedom &
Responsibility of The University Administration
3................. Definition of Tenure
3................. Eligibility for Tenure
Consideration
4................. Probationary Period
5................. Criteria for Tenure
6................. Procedures for
Consideration & Grant of Tenure
6................. Locus of Tenure
7................. Evaluation of Tenured
Faculty Members
12................. Termination of Tenure
14................. Disciplinary Sanctions
Other than Termination for Adequate Cause
15................. Appendix A--Procedures
for Consideration & Grant of Tenure
15....................... Tenured Faculty's
Recommendation
15....................... Department Head's
Recommendation
15....................... Dean's Recommendation
16....................... Chief Academic
Officer's Recommendation
16....................... Chancellor's
Recommendation
16....................... President's
Recommendation
16....................... Action by the
Board of Trustees
17................. Appendix B--Termination
Procedures for Category A Adequate
Cause:
Unsatisfactory Performance in Teaching, Research, or Service
17....................... Preliminary Steps
18....................... Chancellor's
Decision to Initiate Termination Proceedings
18....................... Suspension With
Pay or Reassignment Pending Completion of Termination
Proceedings
18....................... Failure to
Contest
18....................... Hearing Under
TUAPA
19....................... Hearing Before a
Tribunal
21....................... Chancellor's
Recommendation on Termination
22....................... Review by the
Board of Trustees
23................. Appendix
C--Termination Procedures for Category B Adequate
Cause:
Misconduct
23....................... Preliminary Steps
23....................... Chancellor's
Decision to Initiate Termination Proceedings
24....................... Suspension or
Reassignment Pending Completion of Termination Proceedings
24....................... Failure to
Contest
24....................... Waiver of Hearing
Under TUAPA
25....................... Hearing Under
TUAPA
26....................... Expedited
Procedure for Termination or Suspension Without Pay in Certain Cases of
Misconduct
The
POLICIES
GOVERNING
ACADEMIC
FREEDOM, RESPONSIBILITY, AND TENURE[1]
Approved by the UT Board
of Trustees at its meeting of
The Board of Trustees is constituted by statute of the State
of
The principal mission of The University is the discovery and
dissemination of truth through teaching, research and service.[3]
The Board recognizes that freedom of inquiry and expression is indispensable
for this purpose and believes that it and the administration and faculty should
cooperate to that end. In The
University's program of teaching, research and service, it is essential that
the Board, administration and faculty cooperate voluntarily, each contributing
freely, according to his or her qualifications, in a mutually beneficial
exchange of information and ideas.
The following statement is intended to record the policy and
procedures of The University with respect to academic freedom, responsibility,
and tenure. The Board considers these principles compatible with its statutory
authority and responsibilities and the constitutional guarantee of freedom of
speech and inquiry to each citizen of the
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Academic Freedom and Responsibility of the Faculty Member
A healthy tradition of academic freedom and tenure is
essential to the proper functioning of a University. At the same time, membership in a society of
scholars enjoins upon a faculty member certain obligations to colleagues, to the
University and to the State that guarantees academic freedom.
1. The primary
responsibility of a faculty member is to use the freedom of his or her office in an honest, courageous,
and persistent effort to search out and communicate the truth that lies in the
area of his or her competence.
2. A faculty member
is entitled to full freedom in research and in publication of the results,
subject to the adequate performance of his or her other academic duties, but
research for pecuniary gain either within or beyond the scope of his or her
employment must be based upon an understanding with The University
administration, according to The University's policies (e.g., Compensated
Outside Services, Conflict of Interest).
3. A faculty member
should maintain a high level of personal integrity and professional competence,
as demonstrated in teaching, research, and service. Academic freedom does not exempt a faculty
member from an evaluation by colleagues and administration of his or her
qualifications for continued membership in their society.
4. A faculty member
is entitled to freedom in the classroom in discussing the subject, but the
faculty member should use care in expressing personal views in the classroom
and should be careful not to introduce controversial matters that have no
relation to the subject taught, and especially matters in which he or she has
no special competence or training and in which, therefore, the faculty member's
views cannot claim the authority accorded his or her professional statements.
5. A faculty member
should recognize that the right of academic freedom is enjoyed by all members
of the academic community. He or she
should be prepared at all times to support actively the right of the individual
to freedom of research and communication as defined herein.
6. In addition to
the normal responsibilities of a citizen of the state and nation, including the
duty to uphold their Constitutions and obey their laws, a faculty member also
should conduct himself or herself professionally with colleagues. He or she should strive to maintain the
mutual respect and confidence of his or her colleagues. He or she should endeavor to understand the
customs, traditions, and usages of the academic community.
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7. When, as a
citizen, a faculty member speaks outside the classroom or writes for
publication, he or she should be free, as a citizen, to express his or her
opinions. Each faculty member should
conduct himself or herself professionally, should be accurate, should exercise
appropriate restraint, should show respect for the opinions of others, and
should make clear that he or she speaks for himself or herself and not for The
University.
Academic Freedom and Responsibility of the University
Administration
1. The University
is committed to recruiting, appointing, retaining and promoting faculty members
by processes which are thorough, thoughtful, equitable, and in which the
professional judgments of faculty members are of major importance.
2. Administrative
officers should actively foster within The University a climate favorable to
freedom of teaching and research. In its
pursuit of excellence, The University should reward its outstanding faculty
members.
3. The administration
is responsible for enforcing all Board and campus policies applicable to
faculty members. It is the duty of the
administration--beginning with department Heads, Deans, and Chief Academic
Officers--to remove from the faculty any faculty member who has been found,
through proper procedures, seriously derelict in his or her responsibilities as
a member of the academic community.
4. The Board
requires that each campus and its constituent academic units develop
appropriate policies and procedures necessary to implement the Board's tenure
policy. These campus and academic unit
documents must be approved by the Board of Trustees in time for campus policies
and procedures to be effective on
A. Definition
of Tenure
Tenure is a
principle that entitles a faculty member to continuation of his or her annual
appointment until relinquishment or forfeiture of tenure or until termination
of tenure for adequate cause, financial exigency, or academic program
discontinuance. The burden of proof that tenure should be awarded rests with
the faculty member. Tenure is acquired only by positive action of the Board of
Trustees, and is awarded in a particular unit, department, school, college, or
other department of a campus. The award of tenure shifts the burden of proof
concerning the faculty member's continuing appointment from the faculty member
to The University.
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B. Eligibility
for Tenure Consideration
Eligibility for
tenure consideration shall be subject to the following minimum standards:
1. Regular,
full-time, tenure-track faculty appointments at the academic rank of instructor,
assistant professor, associate professor, or professor are eligible for tenure;
2. Temporary, term,
and part-time appointments are not eligible for tenure;
3. Appointments funded in whole or in part by
grants, contracts, or other funds available on a limited term basis ("soft
money") are not eligible for tenure; [delete]
4. Faculty members pursuing degrees at the
campus where they are appointed are not eligible for tenure.
3. Untenured faculty members may not pursue a degree at
the campus
where they are appointed
to a tenure-track position.
Each
campus may establish additional eligibility requirements for tenure
consideration. For example, additional requirements might include completion of
a terminal or other specified degree or a minimum rank of assistant professor.
After approval by the Board of Trustees, campus eligibility requirements for
tenure consideration shall be published in the campus Faculty Handbook.
No
faculty member shall be appointed initially with tenure except by positive
action of the Board of Trustees upon the recommendation of the President and
after review by the tenured faculty and department Head, Dean, Chief Academic
Officer, and Chancellor.
C. Probationary
Period
A tenure-track
faculty member must serve a probationary period prior to being considered for
tenure.
1. Length of
Probationary Period
The probationary
period at The University shall be no less than one and no more than seven
academic years; however, for good cause, the President, upon the recommendation
of the Chancellor, may approve a probationary period of less than one academic
year. If a faculty member has served in
a tenure-track appointment at
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another institution,
his or her total probationary service may extend beyond seven years. The original appointment letter shall state
the length of the faculty member's
probationary period
and the academic year in which he or she must be considered for tenure if he or
she has met the minimum eligibility requirements for consideration. The
stipulation in the original appointment letter of the length of the
probationary period and the year of mandatory tenure consideration does not
guarantee retention until that time.
For good
cause related to procedural error, The University and a tenure-track faculty
member may agree in writing to extend a seven-year probationary period for a
maximum of two additional years. The
proposed extension must be approved in advance by the Chief Academic Officer,
the Chancellor, the Senior Vice President (or designee), and the General
Counsel (or designee).
2. Suspension of Probationary Period
The
Chief Academic Officer shall decide whether the probationary period will be
suspended when the following circumstances occur:
a. the faculty member accepts a part-time
faculty position;
b. the faculty member accepts an
administrative position; or
c. the faculty member is granted a leave of
absence.
The
Chief Academic Officer shall give the faculty member written notice of the decision concerning suspension of the
probationary period.
3. Notice of Non-renewal
Notice
that a tenure-track faculty member's appointment will not be renewed for the
next year shall be made in writing by the Chief Academic Officer, upon the
recommendation of the department Head and Dean, according to the following
schedule:
a. In the first year of the probationary
period, not later than March 1 for an academic year appointment and no less
than three months in advance for any other term of appointment;
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b. In the second year of the
probationary period, not later than December 15 for
an academic year appointment and no less than six months in advance for any other term of appointment; and
c.
In the third and subsequent
years of the probationary period, not less than twelve
months in advance.
These
notice requirements relate only to service in a probationary period with The
University. Credit for prior service shall not be considered in determining the
required notice. Notice of non-renewal shall be effective upon personal
delivery or upon mailing, postage prepaid, to the faculty member's residential
address of record at The University.
D. Criteria for
Tenure
Tenure is
awarded after a thorough review which culminates in The University
acknowledging a reasonable presumption of the faculty member's professional
excellence, and the likelihood that
excellence will contribute substantially over a considerable period of time to
the mission and anticipated needs of the academic unit in which tenure is
granted. Professional excellence is
reflected in the faculty member's teaching, research, and service including the
faculty member's ability to interact appropriately with colleagues and students. The relative weights of these factors will
vary according to the fit between the faculty member and the mission of the
academic unit in which he or she is appointed.
Each campus
may establish more-specific criteria for tenure. After approval by the Board of Trustees,
campus criteria shall be published in the campus Faculty Handbook. Campus criteria for tenure shall include and
be consistent with the criteria stated in this policy.
An academic
unit may also establish more-specific criteria for tenure in that unit. After approval by the Dean and campus Chief
Academic Officer, these criteria for tenure shall be published in the bylaws of
the academic unit. The tenure criteria
for a department shall include and be consistent with the criteria stated in
this policy and any criteria established by the department's college and
campus.
E. Procedures
for Consideration and Grant of Tenure
Each campus
shall establish procedures for considering a faculty member for tenure. After
approval by the Board of Trustees, these procedures shall be published in the
campus Faculty Handbook. The procedures shall include and be consistent with
the minimum components stated in Appendix A.
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F. Locus of
Tenure
Tenure at The
University of Tennessee is granted in a particular academic unit (e.g.,
department, school) of a specific campus in a position appropriate to the
faculty member's qualifications. Reorganizations that result in the merger or
splitting of departments do not affect the tenure or probationary status of the
faculty involved.
If a tenured
faculty member voluntarily transfers from one UT campus to another, his or her
tenured status is not transferred. However, a review by the responsible
administrators in consultation with the tenured faculty of the receiving
department may result in an immediate recommendation to the Board of Trustees
that tenure at the new campus be granted to the transferred individual; on the
other hand, a new probationary period in the receiving unit may be established.
There shall be no involuntary transfer of faculty members between campuses.
Transfers of
tenure between departments on the same campus do not require Board approval,
but must be approved by the responsible campus administrators in consultation
with the tenured faculty of the receiving unit, with notice to the Board of
Trustees. In any event, prior to the effective date of the transfer all
conditions relating to tenure must be documented and accepted, in writing, by
the transferring faculty member. If a non-tenured faculty member transfers from
one existing department to another, a new probationary period must be
established and documented under the same guidelines that would be followed if
the faculty member came from another institution. All conditions relating to the new
probationary period must be documented and accepted, in writing, by the
transferring faculty member.
If a tenured
faculty member accepts a part-time faculty position or an administrative
position with The University, neither of which can carry tenure, the faculty
member retains tenure in the full-time faculty position he or she vacated.
G. Evaluation of
Tenured Faculty Members
Competent
teaching is a crucial responsibility for faculty members, and the effective use
of appropriate instructional evaluation (including departmental files of class
syllabi and related materials, student evaluation, and peer evaluation) is
important to all objective review processes.
Faculty members with research responsibilities should have the quantity
and quality of their work fairly assessed.
Each faculty member's service contributions should be evaluated
impartially.
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1. Annual
Performance-and-Planning Review. Each
faculty member and his or her department Head will engage in a formal annual
performance-and-planning review, examining the previous year's activities and
planning what should occur during the coming year. Each campus must seek to reward faculty members
who maintain outstanding performance, and University-wide and campus
administrators shall develop guidelines for each campus to allocate funds for
this purpose whenever feasible. Each
faculty member's Annual Performance-and-Planning review should proceed from
guidelines and criteria which are appropriate to the department, college, and
campus. A document
summarizing the review--including an objective rating of the faculty member's
performance (e.g., "Outstanding," "Satisfactory," or "Unsatisfactory")--must
be signed by the faculty member (to acknowledge receipt of the review document)
and the department Head; a copy must be sent to the Dean. A faculty member whose performance is deemed
to be unsatisfactory shall be ineligible for rewards (e.g., salary increments),
and must provide to the department Head a written interim progress report of
remedial steps taken on his or her performance in area(s) noted as
unsatisfactory. The Dean must notify the
campus Chief Academic Officer of all faculty members whose performance is
deemed unsatisfactory.
2. Cumulative
Performance Review. There shall be
comprehensive, formal, cumulative, performance reviews of all tenured faculty
members to promote faculty development and to ensure professional vitality. Each campus shall establish policies and
procedures which ensure that these reviews include peer evaluation and take
place with sufficient frequency.
Additionally, a rigorous and thorough review shall be made of any faculty
member whose performance is deemed to be unsatisfactory in two consecutive
Annual Performance-and-Planning Reviews.
A Review Committee shall be convened by the department Head within
thirty days of the second negative review, and shall be composed of the
department Head, appropriate tenured departmental faculty members, and faculty
and administrative staff from outside the department. If a faculty member is evaluated by the
Review Committee as unsatisfactory, the department Head, Dean, Chief Academic
Officer, and Faculty Senate President or Faculty Senate Executive Committee
shall reach consensus on one of two actions:
a. recommend
that the Chancellor initiate proceedings to terminate the faculty member for
adequate cause; or
b. develop with the affected faculty member a written remediation
plan (e.g., skill-development leave of absence, intensive mentoring,
curtailment of outside services, change
in load/responsibilities) normally of up to one calendar year,
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and a means of their
assessing its efficacy. At the end of
the remediation period, the Review Committee, Dean, Chief Academic Officer, and
Faculty Senate
President or the
Faculty Senate Executive Committee shall send a written report to the campus
Chancellor, recommending:
(i) that the faculty member's performance is no
longer unsatisfactory; or
(ii) that the Chancellor initiate proceedings to
terminate the faculty member for
adequate cause.
G. Evaluation of Tenured Faculty Members
Competent teaching is a crucial responsibility for faculty
members, and the effective use of appropriate instructional evaluation
(including departmental files of class syllabi and related materials, student
and peer evaluation, etc.) is important to all objective review processes. Faculty members with research
responsibilities should have the quantity and quality of their work fairly
assessed. Each faculty member's service
contributions should be evaluated impartially.
1. Annual Performance-and-Planning Review. Each faculty member and his or her Department
Head will engage in a formal annual performance-and-planning review, examining
the previous year's activities and planning what should occur during the coming
year. Each campus shall strive to reward
faculty members who maintain outstanding performance, and administrators shall
develop guidelines for each campus to allocate funds for this purpose whenever
feasible. Each faculty member's annual
review should proceed from guidelines and criteria which are appropriate to the
department, college, and campus, and this annual review should be a key element
involving merit pay or performance-based salary adjustments. A document summarizing the review--including
an objective rating of the faculty member's performance, below--must be signed
by the faculty member (to acknowledge receipt of the review document) and the
department Head; the Head must send a copy to the Dean and to the Chief
Academic Officer.
Performance ratings
for annual reviews shall be as follows:
Outstanding
for Rank
Exceeds
Expectations for Rank
Meets
Expectations for Rank
Needs
improvement for Rank
Unsatisfactory
for Rank
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