SUBJECT:  PROVOST AND VICE PRESIDENT FOR ACADEMIC AFFAIRS' PROCEDURES                      FOR DOCUMENTATION OF PROMOTION AND TENURE CASES
                     (supplement to #15.1.2 and #15.1.2.1)

APPLICABILITY: FACULTY

Philosophy 

The primary academic unit (division, department or professional school) of a candidate for promotion and/or tenure has the greatest responsibility in the process for recommending the candidate, including a thorough scrutiny of the accomplishments of the candidate and assessment of the external letters of recommendation. The dean has the responsibility for ensuring that any candidate who is positively recommended meets the expectations of the school/college and to the best of the dean’s judgment, the expectations of the university. The Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs' responsibility is to ensure that the candidate meets university standards and that the recommendation conforms to institutional policies and procedures. 

Procedures 

In evaluating candidates for promotion and tenure, the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs is concerned only with essential information, whereas reviews at the division/department and school/college level will require more detailed information that should not be forwarded to the Vice President for Academic Affairs. Specifically, documentation for a recommendation for promotion and/or tenure that is forwarded to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs should be uniform from school/college to school/college and should consist of all of the following elements, which should not exceed 20 pages for candidates currently at the rank of assistant professor or 22 pages for candidates currently at associate professor rank. 

            1. A cover sheet according to the form accompanying this statement of procedures (Basic
             Information Form).  

            2. A complete curriculum vita of the candidate in the standard university format.  

            3. A statement(s), in the form of a letter or memorandum, from the chair and/or dean of the primary academic unit (division/department or school) explaining why the candidate is recommended, including an indication of why the candidate is deemed to be outstanding in either teaching or research/creative activity and adequate in the other categories, a brief summary of the credentials of the external referees, an indication that annual merit evaluations have been conducted and a summary of how annual merit evaluations of the candidate compare to other faculty members in the same area, division, department, school, etc. and evidence that the faculty member has been advised and counseled annually by the chair or the Promotion and Tenure Committee. (Note: In the event of a negative recommendation, this statement may be abbreviated but must indicate that annual merit evaluations have been conducted and provide evidence that the annual advising and counseling requirements have been met.)  

            4. A brief statement indicating the recommendation of the Promotion and Tenure Committee.  

            5. A summary analysis of teaching evaluations over the period of time covered since the appointment or last promotion, whichever is later, with a clear indication of what scores mean in comparison with the overall performance of the departmental faculty.  

            6. Three letters of recommendation for faculty members currently at the rank of assistant professor; five letters for faculty members at higher ranks (Note: multi-page letters count as a single page). These letters should be solicited from scholars at institutions with programs at least comparable to those at the University of North Texas and who have already attained the rank and tenure status being sought. These letters should not be solicited from close personal friends of the candidate or from those involved in a recent faculty-student relationship with the candidate.  A minority of letters may be solicited from graduate school colleagues, former professors, or former professional colleagues of the candidate in exceptional circumstances.  Documentation must be provided outlining what the exceptional circumstances are.  Referees should evaluate the candidate's record as a scholar and comment on his or her potential for continued productivity.  They should confirm an achieved national reputation for promotion to professor and an emerging national reputation for promotion to associate professor and evidence regarding continued productivity. 

Procedure for Submitting More Than One Candidate from a School/College

In addition to the material outlined in the preceding section, any dean submitting more than one recommendation should also include a covering memorandum briefly listing the name, department of and recommendation concerning each candidate, with candidates from the same department listed together. Deans who do not also serve as department chairs should also provide a brief statement of their reasons for the recommendation. Examples are shown below. 

Example: College with Formal Departments and Multiple Candidates  

Jane Doe, astronomy, associate professor with tenure. Doe has impeccable recommendations from the most outstanding astronomist in the world, principally because of her definitive monograph on astronomy. Popular with students, she has won one department and one university teaching award. She is an exciting young scholar recommended unanimously throughout the promotion and tenure process.  

Richard Doe, astronomy, professor. Doe is a competent classroom teacher, but his scholarship is negligible since his promotion to associate 10 years ago. He does not have the national reputation that promotion to professor implies. The advisory committee voted unanimously against recommending him.  

John Jones, studies in youth, tenure. Jones is in his third year as an associate professor, coming to UNT from the Ponce de Leon Institute. He is completing a three‑year study funded with an $800,000 NIH grant and has already received good reviews on publications produced from the preliminary data analysis. Had he stayed at Ponce de Leon, he would have been tenured that fall. The advisory committee voted 5‑2 in favor of the recommendation. The two negative votes resulted from poor departmental documentation of his teaching, but I have received additional, positive information about his classroom performance to support a positive recommendation with enthusiasm. 

Example: School with No Departments but Multiple Candidates 

Jane Doe, associate professor with tenure.

Richard Doe, tenure only.

John Jones, denial of promotion to professor.  

UNIVERSITY OF NORTH TEXAS

BASIC INFORMATION FORM

PROMOTION AND TENURE RECOMMENDATIONS

Date:                                                                                 

College/School:                                                                                                                                                                                    

Department/Division:                                                                                                                                                                           

Faculty Member:                                                                                                                                                                                  

Academic Progress at UNT:

             Date of Employment:                                                                         Rank:                                                         

          Date of Promotions:                                                                                                                                                               

                                                                         Rank:                                                                                                              

             Current Rank:                                                                                                                                                                         

             Years in rank at end of current academic year:                                                                                                                       

             Tenured at UNT?                  Yes                    No         If yes, Date:                                                                                       

             Previously Tenured Elsewhere?                Yes               No     When?                                                                                    

             Where?                                                                                                                                                                                    

             Last Rank Held There?                                                                                                                                                            

List of Courses Taught at UNT (Number of times taught in parenthesis): 

             Undergraduate                                                                     Graduate 

Department/Division Chair:                                                                                                                                                                 

P & T Committee:

             P&T Chair, if not same as department chair:                                                                                                                           

             Members: