May 1, 2012
Professor John Jones
School of Education
Stanford University
Stanford, CA 94305
Dear Professor Jones,
Thank you for agreeing to be an external reviewer for Dr. Susan Smith. As noted in my previous
email, Dr. Smith is being considered for tenure and promotion to the rank of associate professor
in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at Indiana University. I very much appreciate
your willingness to provide an evaluation of her accomplishments.
In the School of Education at Indiana University, a candidate for tenure and promotion is
required to excel in at least one of the categories of research and development, teaching, or
service and be at least satisfactory in the other two areas. An alternative, which Dr. Smith has
selected, is the “balanced case,” where a candidate may present evidence of balanced strengths in
all three areas. According to the School of Education criteria,
“A balanced case requires at least very good/highly satisfactory performance in each of
the three categories of teaching, research, and service. Very good/highly satisfactory is
defined as appreciably better than satisfactory, but less than excellent performance. In
the balance case, it is expected that there would be thoughtful and purposeful integration
among the candidate’s teaching, research, and service activities. A candidate must
present evidence of balanced strengths that demonstrate excellent overall performance of
benefit to the university and profession that is comparable to excellence in a single
category. In all cases, the candidate’s total record should be assessed by comprehensive
and rigorous peer review.
A copy of the School of Education criteria document is enclosed. A description of appropriate
teaching, research and development, and service activities may be found throughout section B
pages 3 to 6 and the specific criteria for promotion to associate professor are listed beginning on
pages 6 through 8. Because this is a balanced case, Dr. Smith must achieve considerably higher
than the criteria for satisfactory in all three areas, but she does not need to reach the criteria for
excellence. Note that separate criteria are listed for research and development (page 7-8) and she
needs to meet one rather than both of these. As noted on page 3 of the document
… the primary criteria for attaining tenure or promotion is that the candidate provides
evidence of his or her intellectual engagement in his or her chosen fields of study, and
that this engagement has resulted in the production of scholarship that has been
recognized by his or her peers (e.g., scholarly papers, articles, and other manuscripts.)
Members of our promotion and tenure committees are particularly interested in your appraisal of
the extent to which Dr. Smith meets the various criteria. In most cases, external reviewers are
able to say more about research than about teaching or service. However, any comments you
have about the quality and quantity of Dr. Smith’s teaching or service activities are welcomed.
Comments about her service in national organizations are particularly helpful.
Dr. Smith’s vita, copies of selected publications, and her personal statement are enclosed for
your reference. Along with your frank appraisal of the extent to which Dr. Smith meets our
criteria, I would appreciate overall comments about the extent to which her accomplishments
match or exceed those of other professors at a similar stage in their careers. Does the candidate’s
research represent the work of a person who has the potential to achieve a position of leadership
in her field? And finally, please let us know the extent to which you are personally acquainted
with or have worked with Dr. Smith.
Your letter will be seen by administrators and faculty members serving in a tenure and
promotion advisory capacity. The candidate may request access to the entire dossier at any time,
and the University is legally compelled to comply.
Please mail your appraisal by August 1, 2012. Should you have any questions, please feel free to
contact me (joalexan@indiana.edu) 812-856-8352.
Thank you.
Best Regards
Joyce Alexander
Professor and Executive Associate Dean