Promotion & Tenure Notes 1/2011
• Resources
– http://sphhp.buffalo.edu/faculty_affairs/index.php
– http://www.business.buffalo.edu/UbbContent/Hrs/facultyhandbook/
– http://www.provost.buffalo.edu/facultyaffairs/
• Process
– The tenure clock
– Appointment and reappointment
– The dossier
• Expectations
– Make sure you know the expectations of your Chair
– Guiding Principles from the President & Provost and Excerpts from the UB
Faculty/Staff Handbook
– Review SPHHP Guiding Statements for Promotion & Tenure
• The Plan
• The Formula: NO THERE ISN’T A MAGIC FORMULA
• Questions?
Resources
• Hardcopy or electronic files:
–
–
–
–
UB Faculty Staff Handbook
SUNY Policies of the Board of Trustees
Agreement between UUP & State of New York
Promotion and Tenure: Guiding Principles (Statement from
President & Provost)
– SPHHP Guiding Statements for Promotion and Tenure.
• People:
– UB Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs: Lucinda Finley
– SPHHP Assoc. Dean for Faculty Affairs: Scott White &
Administrative Assistant: SPHHP Barbara Putzig
<Putzig@buffalo.edu>
Process: The Tenure Clock
Dossier & External
Review in Fall ‘15
through Spring ‘16
If start is
09/01/2010
Mid SPHHP review
~ 09/2013
Termination
date is
08/31/2017
Termination
letter/notice:
08/31/2017
You have 7 years total. The review starts in your 6th year. You can
not extend your clock, only stop it with justification.
Consider: Start up time, pilot data, publication lag, grant reviews
(2 and out).
Process: Appointment and reappointment
• You are an unqualified (tenure-track), term
appointment (refer to article 30 of UUP contract)
– Tenure-track with renewable terms the last of which
terminates at the conclusion of your 7th year.
– Terms can be 1, 2 or 3 years at the Dean and Chair’s
discretion.
• Non-renewal (UUP articles 32 and 33)
– Things are not working out
– Continuing appointment (tenure) is denied (Article 33)
Process: Dossier
• You:
– Curriculum Vitae (complete and accurate)
– Statements: Research, Teaching, Service (clear, exciting and
interesting; explain discrepancies; sell yourself)
– Teaching portfolio
• Chair: External Reviewers and Internal Reviewers (4-6/2-3)
– Department vote and Chair’s letter
• School Promotion and Tenure Committee
– SPHHP P&T vote; Chairs’ vote and Dean’s letter
• UB Presidents Review Board and PRB Chair’s letter
• Provost’s review and Provost’s recommendation letter to the
President.
• President’s review, and his/her letter with decision sent to
SUNY Chancellor –last chance dossier review in President’s
office.
Expectations: Faculty/Staff Handbook
III. University at Buffalo Academic Policies
• A major responsibility for establishing and
maintaining a high degree of excellence rests on the
department chairs, who must recruit individuals of
great promise, ensure that faculty will be regularly
evaluated, and oversee efforts to assist current
faculty members in improving their performance.
• Faculty members should be regularly evaluated in
three areas: teaching, research or creative activity
and service.
Expectations: Faculty/Staff Handbook
III. University at Buffalo Academic Policies
• The basic consideration in assessing the performance of
professorial faculty are mastery of subject matter, effectiveness
in teaching, scholarly accomplishment, effectiveness of
university service, and potential for continuing professional
growth.
• The evaluation of the candidate’s work should be supported by
substantial evidence of peer review … appropriate to the
discipline. The candidate must demonstrate solid professional
achievement and the potential to meet requirements for the
rank of full professor. Clear and convincing evidence must be
submitted to show that each candidate has credentials to
achieve continuing appointment as an Associate Professor in his
or her discipline at the leading public research universities.
Expectations: Faculty/Staff Handbook
III. University at Buffalo Academic Policies
• The importance, value and quality of the candidate’s
research or creative activity, and the promise of
continuing first-rank performance in this area, are
primary considerations.
• One of the most important factors in distinguishing
university faculty from faculty at other levels of
higher education is the continual willingness to place
one’s ideas and works before peers for their critical
judgment.
The Plan
1. Make sure you are properly mentored and that you are
receiving annual, timely reviews of your progress in terms of
scholarship, teaching and service
– Chair
– Annual reviews, Department P&T committee or other.
– Mentoring committee
2. At the end of 5 years, be able to present clear and convincing
evidence of solid professional achievement.
– Establish a record of scholarly achievement that reflects a trajectory
(“promise to continue to achieve”) that will lead to promotion to
full professor.
•
•
•
Peer reviewed publication in quality journals
Peer reviewed grants
Support of peers in your discipline.
– You cannot be a bad teacher. If you have difficulty as a teacher in
the beginning there are support structures to help you get better.
– Meet the SPHHP’s expectations for service
Trajectory
Research
[ a(x + x΄) + b(y + y΄) + z ] + σn + m = tenure
Who Knows
Tenure Model
History
Assist.
Prof.
Assoc.
Prof.
Prof.