College of Social and Behavioral Sciences
Office of the Dean, PO Box 15700 Flagstaff, AZ 86011 (928-523-2672)
STATEMENT OF EXPECTATIONS: FAQs
Q: What is a statement of expectations (SOE)?
A: A statement of expectations (SOE) is a document that specifies a faculty’s workload
goals or expectations for a contract period (usually the upcoming academic year) and is
the context within which faculty performance in the contract period is evaluated. It is
individualized for each faculty and is the result of negotiation between the faculty
member and the chair or director. For tenure eligible and tenured faculty, it includes the
following: (1) the faculty’s workload assignment for the contract period; (2) the
percentage of effort that is anticipated in each of the areas of the workload assignment;
and (3) the inclusion of or reference to the formal, written criteria that will be the basis
for the evaluation of the faculty’s performance, both annually and for retention,
promotion, or tenure, as appropriate (CoFS 2007, Section 1.4.5.1.a).
Q: Who is expected to have a SOE?
A: The SOE is required of all tenured, tenure eligible, and non-tenure eligible faculty.
This includes faculty who are full- or part-time, with part-time being defined as faculty
hired on a course by course basis.
Q: What is included in the SOE?
A: Unless otherwise specified, tenure eligible and tenured faculty include their goals
or expectations, workload assignment, and the percentage of effort that is anticipated in
the upcoming academic year in the following areas: (1) teaching, advisement, and other
student-related responsibilities; (2) scholarship, research, and/or creative activity; and (3)
service to the profession, the university (administrative and/or university, college and unit
levels) and the community (local, state, national, and international) as it relates to the
mission and guidelines of the university and the profession (CoFS 2007, Section
1.4.5.1.c). In addition, tenure eligible and tenured faculty include or refer to the formal,
written criteria that will be the basis for the evaluation of their performance.
SOEs for full-time non-tenure eligible faculty (whether one-year/temporary or
continuing) include the specific responsibilities for which they have been employed and
refer to the formal, written criteria that will be the basis for the evaluation of their
performance.
SOEs for part-time faculty (those hired on a course by course basis) include the duties
enumerated at the time of hire and may include a statement about performance
expectations (advising, for example) and/or evaluation. These SOEs are brief and may
use a letter format.
Administrative faculty (chairs, directors, program coordinators, and the like) include
their administrative responsibilities and faculty responsibilities (if appropriate), indicate
the percentage of effort devoted to them, and establish the criteria for evaluation of their
administrative performance.
SOEs for faculty serving more than one academic unit should clearly specify the
allocation of effort that will be assigned to each of the units served and how the
allocations will be distributed in each of the areas to be evaluated.
Q: How are SOEs created?
A: For most faculty, the SOE is the result of negotiation between the faculty and the
chair/director and, when indicated by unit policy, the unit’s Faculty Status Committee or
Promotion and Tenure Committee. For administrative faculty, the SOE is the result of
negotiation between the faculty and the Dean.
Q: When are SOEs created?
A: For new hires, the SOE is created early in the first semester at NAU in negotiation
with the chair or director. This initial SOE is based upon the expectations, workload
assignment, and percentage of effort found in the new faculty’s formal letter of offer. For
most other faculty, the SOE for the next academic year is created in late February/early
March of the preceding spring semester.
Q: Who reviews and signs off on the SOE?
A: The SOE is signed by the faculty and the chair or director. If the Faculty Status or
the Promotion and Tenure committees are a formal part of the process, the chair of the
committee also signs the SOE. The signed SOEs from faculty who are being retained in
the unit are sent as a package to the Dean, who signs off on them when satisfied that the
unit’s expectations for the upcoming academic year will be met. The Dean’s Office
retains copies of the signed SOEs and returns the original signed SOEs to the unit. Unit
chairs/directors retain copies of the signed SOEs in the professional review file kept for
each faculty in the unit office and distribute the original signed SOEs to the faculty.
Q: Can the SOE be revised?
A: If there are significant changes in the faculty’s responsibilities or individual
circumstances during the period covered by the SOE, the document should be revised
through a negotiation process involving the faculty and the relevant administrators (and
the unit committee, if a part of unit policy). The revised SOE must show the signatures
of all relevant parties, and copies must be kept by all parties involved.
Q: When is the packet containing the SOEs for a unit’s continuing faculty due in the
Dean’s Office?
A: The signed and completed SOEs for faculty who are being retained are submitted by
chairs/directors to the Dean’s Office no later than the Friday before Spring Break.
Revised 18 January 2008