Statement on Intellectual Contribution
The Gary W. Rollins College of Business at The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga is committed to providing quality educational programs that provide our students with the knowledge, business skills, and professional education necessary for success. In conformity with its Mission Statement, the College recognizes as an intellectual contribution any activity that:
- Supports and encourages research with an emphasis on quality, peer-reviewed, basic or application-oriented publication.
- Creates an environment that supports learning, teaching excellence, educational innovation, and pedagogical research.
- Engages practitioners and students as coauthors.
The purpose of this statement is to ensure that the research activities and initiatives of the College fully support its mission, engage the support and participation of its stakeholders, and enhance the reputation of the College in the business and academic communities.
The College recognizes the importance of research and scholarship not only to the general advancement of its mission, but also to the faculty members performing such activities. Publication often provides solid evidence of intellectual contribution since publication enables peers within the profession, as well as within the academic community, to judge the quality of scholarship. However, publication is not the sole evidence of scholarly achievement, which may also be judged through presentations at professional meetings, participation in professional and academic conferences, preparation of seminars and workshops, and other forms of intellectual contribution.
Since evaluating the relevance and quality of intellectual contribution is inherently subjective, practical criteria are needed to minimize subjectivity and standardize the evaluation process. One criterion that offers important evidence of quality is critical review by a broad representation of peers. Additional criteria include usefulness and relevance to stakeholders, the impact of research on business and professional practices, and faculty development and growth across a wide range of scholarly activities. Over the long term the most important measure of the relevance and quality of intellectual contribution is the extent to which it advances the mission, standing, and reputation of the College.
Faculty are expected to engage in a variety of scholarly activities which include, but are not limited to (AACSB,Standards for Accreditation, 2001, p. 29):
- Instructional Development: The enhancement of the educational value of instructional efforts of the institution or discipline.
- Applied Scholarship: The application, transfer and interpretation of knowledge to improve management practice and teaching.
- Basic Scholarship: The creation of new knowledge.
A primary objective of the College is that intellectual contributions culminate in reviewed publications, with a minimum expectation of one publication per year on average. Although priorities change over time, a diverse range of intellectual contribution is encouraged and expected of all faculty beginning with their initial appointment.
Adopted 3/05/01