Sam Houston State University (SHSU) publishes and implements policies regarding the appointment, employment, and regular evaluation of each faculty member, regardless of contract or tenure status.
Overview
Chapter V of the Texas State University System (TSUS) Rules and Regulations, “Component Personnel,” governs and gives overall guidance to faculty appointment, employment, and evaluation within the University [1].
Comprehensive, detailed policies pertaining to the appointment, employment, and regular evaluation of each faculty member are published in the University’s Academic Policy Manual, which is available online [2].
Published and implemented policies pertaining to the appointment of faculty members include the following:
Published and implemented policies pertaining to the ongoing employment of faculty members include the following:
Published and implemented policies that pertain to the regular and periodic evaluation of each faculty member are found in the following sections:
Each of these policies undergoes a thorough review on a periodic basis as part of the Division of Academic Affairs policy review cycle. During fiscal year 2016, the Division initiated a policy review project in which all academic policy statements would undergo review and be placed in a 5-year review cycle. The review cycle is initiated by either a 5-year time elapse or upon necessity as other rules and/or processes evolve. The policy review process involves edits, revisions, and/or approvals by academic administrators, the Council of Academic Deans, the Faculty Senate, the Provost, TSUS Office of General Council, Academic Affairs Council, and the President [25]. Creation of new policies is subject to this same process.
Appointment of Faculty Members
Policies concerning faculty appointment, employment, and evaluation are addressed in the TSUS Rules and Regulations, Chapter V, Section 4, “Faculty” [26]. The Board of Regents “strongly desires to maintain learned faculties who, by precept and example, will instruct and inspire their students and reflect credit upon the Component.” SHSU shares this desire and has implemented extensive, relevant policies in order that it may be realized.
Academic Instructional Staffing
Published and implemented policies pertaining to the appointment of faculty members include those pertaining to diversity, allocation of position allowances, recruitment, hiring processes, and appointment of interim faculty on an emergency basis.
Diversity
The University maintains that a diverse faculty best prepares students to meet the challenges of a twenty-first century global culture and marketplace. The overall responsibility for the implementation and administration of diversity plans is included in the job duties of the University President. As the chief administrator, the President has delegated to the vice presidents, deans, directors, and department/school chairs the authority and responsibility for diversity plans and procedures at each corresponding level. The University is committed to a rigorous recruitment and selection system to ensure the consideration of a diverse pool of candidates for each vacant faculty, teaching assistant, and laboratory assistant position. It is expected that consideration will be given to attracting and selecting qualified candidates reflective of the diverse populations that comprise the State of Texas [27].
Position Allowances
Each faculty appointment is based upon the assignment of a corresponding position allowance, defined as an authorized allocation for faculty staffing that provides the basis for the assignment of instructional personnel to academic program areas of the University. Each position allowance is categorized as either a tenured position, a tenure-track position, or a term position. A tenured position is one in which the occupant holds tenure as a member of the faculty of the University in accord with established tenure policy. A tenure-track position is one in which the occupant is expected to progress toward a tenure decision in accordance with established University policy. A term position is one that is allocated to an instructional program on a term basis (i.e., for one or more semesters or during a summer on either a part- or full-time basis) [28]. During the preliminary budget request cycle, each academic dean/director develops and presents to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs a statement of position allowance needs, which addresses the number of position allowances required for tenured faculty, the number required for tenure-track faculty, and the number requested for term appointments. The President of the University makes the final decision regarding the allocation of position allowances and informs the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs as early as possible so that a maximum amount of time can be utilized for program planning and the associated recruitment of personnel. Generally, it may be assumed that the number of position allowances for tenured and tenure-track positions shall be reaffirmed annually, provided the occupants of these positions do not change. However, the number of tenure or tenure-track positions assigned to an academic unit is subject to review at any time [29].
Recruitment
All faculty job vacancies are posted and publicized in accordance with University policy to maintain Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) compliance. All full-time and part-time faculty vacancies are posted for at least ten working days prior to filling a faculty vacancy. Except in cases of a bona fide emergency, a tenure or tenure-track faculty position vacancy will be advertised locally, statewide, and nationally. Advertisement takes place throughout the appropriate media. It is policy to advertise the position through professional journals, professional organizations, and notices to graduate schools specializing in the area of the vacancy [30]. An example job posting is provided [31].
An individual expressing an interest in employment is expected to complete the online employment application process and to furnish official transcripts of all academic work. Applicants deemed to be best qualified for the position are interviewed by the administrator of the University hiring unit, and, in the case of tenure-track and clinical faculty, by faculty members within the hiring unit. Utilization of search and screen committees in the selection process of new faculty appointments is encouraged. The administrator of the hiring unit recommends through the proper channels the priority list of the candidates deemed to be best qualified. Every possible consideration is given to attracting and selecting qualified minority candidates. Criteria for selection from among the applicants include the following: competitive quality of academic transcripts, recommendations from prior employers, the caliber of previous academic and nonacademic work experience, established record of or potential for research publications or creative activity, and the alignment of the expertise possessed by the applicant with that required of the position [32] [33].
Hiring Protocols
The hiring unit notifies the Department of Human Resources as soon as it is determined that a sufficient number of applicants has been secured. The job is then placed in a “closed” status and advertising discontinued for that position. Additional applicants are not considered unless the job is reopened with proper administrative approvals [34]. From each applicant, the hiring unit requests pertinent job-related information (e.g., vitas, copies of research, teaching evaluations, compositions, and references). Using an initial screening device (referring to elements cited in the advertisement), the hiring unit evaluates each candidate and may choose to invite one or more applicants to provide additional job-related information or to visit the campus for a more detailed interview. During the campus interview, the candidates may meet with the departmental/school chair and faculty, make a professional presentation, and be evaluated with respect to the posted job requirements. The hiring unit develops job-related interview questions to be asked of all candidates during the interview, with both questions and answers being recorded and maintained [35].
Once a priority list has been established, the administrator of the hiring unit presents a written recommendation through proper channels for the employment of the preferred candidate. Along with the proposed rank, salary level, and recommendation for years transferred for tenure purposes, the file will contain an SHSU faculty application, official transcripts, at least three letters of recommendation, the evaluation tool, criteria for ranking candidates, and the interview questions and answers. If the dean concurs, his/her written recommendation, along with the entire file, is forwarded to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.
The dean, prior to an official offer to an applicant, ensures Affirmative Action (AA)/EEO compliance in the hiring procedure by reviewing the evaluation tool showing how the candidate compared to the requirements for the position, the criteria used in the evaluation, and the interview questions and answers. Upon favorable recommendation of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs and the subsequent concurrence of the President, a letter of offer for the position is issued to the successful candidate by the President with appropriate notification to the administrators involved [36].
Emergency Hires
As a result of the need for unique academic expertise, unexpected increases in student enrollment, or other unforeseen events, it sometimes becomes necessary for the University to authorize the emergency employment of interim faculty members on a semester-by-semester or summer basis. When an academic unit is forced to utilize the emergency hire provisions, the hiring manager supplies the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs a report outlining the details of the emergency hire(s), which includes reasons for the hire(s), the date the hiring manager had knowledge of the vacancy, the date the request was made for an emergency hire, and what efforts were made to conduct a regular search [37].
Faculty Reappointment, Tenure, and Promotion
The Academic Ranks
The University utilizes the following academic ranks for tenure-track and tenured faculty appointments: Instructor, Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, Professor, and Distinguished Professor. The terminal degree or special credentials are required for all tenure-track ranks except Instructor. The following academic ranks are utilized for interim, non-tenure-track faculty: Visiting Scholar, Adjunct Faculty, Clinical Assistant Professor, Clinical Associate Professor, Clinical Professor, Clinical Faculty, Lecturer-Pool Faculty, Lecturer-Special Faculty, Lecturer, Research Faculty, Visiting Assistant Professor, Visiting Associate Professor, and Visiting Professor [38].
Upon appointment, the University’s commitment to employ a tenure-track faculty member (also referred to in University documents as a “probationary faculty” member) and to employ a non-tenured faculty member is “limited to the term specified in the faculty member’s contract for that appointment period [39]. An annual offer for reappointment of a tenure-track faculty member is based upon satisfactory advancement toward tenure (see below). An offer for reappointment of other non-tenured faculty members is based upon the needs, resources, and desires of the University.
General Policies and Provisions
Policies regarding tenure and promotion are interwoven at the University. The following policies regarding tenure pertain to tenure-track faculty members. Policies regarding promotion pertain to both tenure-track and tenured faculty members, as applicable.
Tenure denotes a status of continuing appointment as a member of the faculty at the University, and the stated position of the University is that tenure “is the most important decision [the] university makes with regard to its faculty.” Tenure is granted to faculty after a rigorous probationary period on the basis of meritorious performance in teaching, research, and service. A faculty member is normally reviewed for tenure during the sixth year in a tenure-track position [40] [41].
Only members of the faculty with the academic rank of Associate Professor or Professor may be granted tenure. Tenure and promotion from Assistant Professor to Associate Professor are linked. A faculty member cannot be promoted to the rank of Associate Professor without a concomitant award of tenure. Tenure may be granted at the time of appointment to an academic rank of Associate Professor or Professor, or initially tenure may be withheld pending satisfactory completion of a probationary period of faculty service [42].
To be recommended for an award of tenure and/or promotion, an applicant must document a sustained pattern of professional competence and effectiveness in each of the categories of performance listed in the University’s policy. Additionally, the applicant should have a clearly developed and ongoing strategy for sustaining professional development throughout his/her career [43]. A sample Tenure and Promotion packet has been provided [44].
For a faculty member to be considered for promotion and/or tenure, the faculty member must prepare a Faculty Review Portfolio. The Faculty Review Portfolio may contain any information or materials that the individual deems pertinent for consideration. The department/school chair and college dean may, on behalf of the University, place in the portfolio file any additional information that may be pertinent to the faculty member’s status [45].
Categories and Standards of Performance
Recommendations for reappointment, tenure, and/or promotion utilize the following established categories and standards of performance:
Teaching – This category includes, among other things, classroom and laboratory instruction; development of new courses, laboratories, and teaching methods; publication of and/or development of electronic instructional materials; academic advising; and supervision of undergraduate and graduate students.
Scholarly and/or Creative Accomplishment – For most disciplines, this category consists of research and publication. For some disciplines, however, it may include other forms of creative works and activities, such as instructional technology, patents or commercialization of research (where applicable), poetry, painting, musical performance or composition, and sculpture.
Service – This category includes service to students, colleagues, program, department, school, college, and the University; administrative and committee service; and service beyond the University to the profession, community, state, and nation, including academic- or professionally-related public service.
Collegiality – This category addresses the faculty member’s ability to function as an effective professional in accomplishing the goals of the tenure unit and the University.
Meeting of the above criteria, especially the first three, does not guarantee or confer an entitlement to tenure and/or promotion [46]. To be recommended for an award of tenure and/or promotion, an applicant must document a sustained pattern of professional competence and effectiveness in each of the categories of performance. Additionally, the applicant should have a clearly developed, ongoing strategy for sustaining professional development throughout his/her career [47].
Associate Professor:
Professor:
Faculty applicants for tenure and promotion are evaluated based on accomplishments for each of the four categories of performance. The weight given to each of the four categories may be determined by department and college tenure and promotion documents; however, greater weight is given to teaching and creative or scholarly activities than to service or collegiality. Successful performance in any or all such categories does not guarantee or entitle the applicant to tenure and/or promotion [50].
All recommendations for reappointment, tenure, and/or promotion or assessment of progress toward tenure are based on the above categories and standards. Department- and college-specific requirements relating to these categories and standards must be approved by the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs. While these documents are provided to the faculty member at the outset of employment in a tenure-track position, it is the faculty member’s responsibility to know these criteria [51].
Tenure Unit Procedures
Each tenure-track faculty member is evaluated each year within the “tenure unit” in which the faculty member teaches, or chiefly teaches. Tenure units are delineated in University policy and, generally speaking, constitute an academic department or what one might normally associate with an academic department [52]. Each tenure unit forms a Department Promotion and Tenure Advisory Committee (DPTAC). The DPTAC is an advisory body, ordinarily composed of all of the tenured faculty members appointed in the tenure unit. The dean appoints the chair for this committee [53].
In the case of a probationary faculty member, the members of the DPTAC are appointed to review the performance of the probationary faculty member every year beginning with the second year of employment and continuing until a final recommendation concerning tenure is made. In the case of promotions, the members of the DPTAC are appointed to review the performance of the faculty member every year beginning with the second year after the previous promotion and continuing until a final recommendation concerning promotion is made [54].
The full DPTAC limits its recommendations to tenure decisions. Decisions about promotion are made by all members of the DPTAC holding at least the rank for which the candidate is being considered for promotion. A separate record of the vote count for tenure and/or promotion from the DPTAC members is transmitted to the appropriate administrator and to the University’s Standing Faculty Tenure Committee [44] [55].
In addition to annual reviews, an extensive review is conducted during the spring semester of a probationary faculty member’s third academic year of service by the DPTAC, as well as the department chair and dean. The primary purpose of the review is to provide the candidate and the University with guidance concerning the likelihood of the candidate obtaining tenure. If the faculty member’s performance is not meeting departmental expectations, guidance is provided as to what needs to be done to increase the likelihood of a successful tenure decision. The review includes an indication of the degree of consensus of the DPTAC, in the form of a preview vote, regarding the probationary faculty member’s progress toward tenure. The general result (whether the majority vote was favorable or not favorable) is reported to the faculty member by the department/school chair and dean. A written summary of the DPTAC’s assessment and the department chair’s review is kept in the probationary faculty member’s tenure file [44] [56].
Formative review of faculty is an ongoing process at the University. A faculty member in the first year of probationary service as an instructor, assistant professor, or non-tenured associate professor is reviewed by the department chair based on the performance categories outlined in policy [43]. If the progress of the faculty member toward meeting the required standards of performance is judged to be insufficient, the chair may notify the faculty member of his/her non-reappointment [57]. If the progress of the faculty member toward meeting the standards of performance required for eligibility for tenure and/or promotion to assistant or associate professor is judged to be inadequate, the dean makes a renewal decision and, if a faculty member is not to be renewed, notifies the faculty member in writing [58]. If the performance of the faculty member is judged to be satisfactory to continue in probationary status, the department chair discusses the results of the review with the faculty member (with a view toward improving performance) and provides her/him with a copy of the written report [59].
The title of instructor denotes a probationary appointment and is used to appoint a faculty member who is near completion but does not have the terminal degree in his/her area. The maximum period that generally may be served in the rank of instructor is two years. Recommendations for promotion to assistant professor are made at the earliest opportunity for consideration by the Board of Regents when a faculty member serving in an instructor position has completed all requirements for the terminal degree. Otherwise, during an instructor's second year of service, the department/school chair notifies the instructor in writing not later than thirty days prior to the end of the current academic year that the subsequent year will be the terminal academic year of appointment. Notice is not required where termination of employment is for good cause or program reduction or abandonment [60].
The Review Process and Timetable
A timetable for the tenure and promotion process is established by University policy. The University’s Standing Faculty Tenure Committee [61] posts a specific calendar at the start of each academic year. However, the review process and the approximate annual timetable for the review procedure are as follows:
Faculty members who are denied promotion and/or tenure have the right to appeal. All appeals shall follow the established policies and procedures for faculty grievances [12]. All appeals must be initiated by September 1 of the calendar year in which the denial of promotion and/or tenure occurs [63].
Employment of Faculty Members
In addition to policies that pertain specifically to faculty tenure, promotion, and annual evaluation, the University has numerous policies pertaining to other aspects of faculty employment.
Faculty Instructional Workload
The workload policy is designed with the recognition that faculty members’ interests, strengths, and skills evolve throughout their careers. The University policy incorporates flexibility that allows the academic deans, with permission of the Provost, to assign workloads that meet the University’s changing needs, as well as the interests and skill sets of the faculty [64].
Since 2004, the normative instructional workload for tenure-track and tenured faculty at the University is nine credit hours, or the instructional workload equivalency, per semester. This schedule equates to .75 full-time equivalent (FTE) as per reporting requirements established by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, which defines 1.0 FTE as the teaching load of twelve credit hours. The University’s instructional workload is in essence .75 FTE for teaching and .25 FTE for faculty research. This workload policy was designed to allow faculty members to place greater emphasis on research than would be possible with a teaching load of twelve semester hours per semester.
Some tenured faculty members, chiefly some faculty members who were tenured prior to 2004 and who desire to place a greater emphasis on teaching in their careers, teach twelve credit hours, or the load equivalency, per semester with a reduced, but not absent, expectation of research productivity [64]. The full-time workload for non-tenure-track faculty members is twelve semester hours per semester.
University policy addresses all aspects and levels of faculty instruction, as well as how those variables are computed against a nine- or twelve-hour workload. Normally, a three-hour course is the equivalent of .25 FTE, but exceptions to that standard calculation are defined in policy, such as doctoral classes and selected classes in studio art, kinesiology, dance, and music [65].
Faculty Overload Assignment
Generally, the practice of assigning an instructional overload is discouraged at the University; however, it is desirable for the University to maintain a measure of flexibility in meeting the exigencies that may arise in the staffing of course offerings, and so a limited utilization of instructional overload assignments to a faculty member is one means whereby the University preserves such flexibility.
Market Advances in Salary
Market adjustments in salary are designed to reflect changing salary structures in the market for a discipline, and they are separate from consideration for merit pay (see Merit Advances in Salary below). The purpose of market adjustments is to treat tenured and tenure-track faculty members in a fair and equitable manner both internally and externally and to remain competitive in order to attract and retain quality faculty members in all disciplines [66].
Both individual performance and comparison with national peer salary data are considered in determining market pay adjustments. To be considered for a market adjustment, a faculty member must have completed credentials appropriate for the discipline and be tenured or on the tenure track; the faculty member must be performing exceptionally well on the Faculty Evaluation System (below); and the faculty member’s salary must be out of alignment with national salaries for faculty with similar accomplishments in the same discipline, with comparable rank and time of service [67].
Merit Advances in Salary
The academic rank system is designed to provide a framework for annual merit advances in salary within rank guidelines. Merit-based salary increases are considered in accordance with policies specific to merit advances and with policies and standards encompassed in the University’s Faculty Evaluation System (see Regular Periodic Evaluation of Faculty Members below). Correspondingly, evaluation in the following categories will be considered in determining whether or not a merit advance in salary within rank will be recommended:
To be considered eligible for a merit advance in salary within rank, a faculty member shall have demonstrated merit in a combination of evaluative categories used during annual faculty evaluations [69].
Graduate Faculty Status
Whether through classroom instruction, guiding academic research, professional supervision, or mentoring, the University seeks to find avenues to allow each graduate faculty member to best use his/her particular strengths. Toward that end, the University incorporates three categories of graduate faculty membership: Full Membership – Doctoral, Full Membership – Master’s, and Associate Membership. Membership in these categories is based on academic qualifications and productivity in teaching and research/creative accomplishments. Faculty members awarded Full Membership – Doctoral status may teach graduate classes, serve on thesis and/or dissertation committees, serve on the Graduate Council, and chair theses and dissertations. Faculty members awarded Full Membership – Master’s status may teach graduate classes, serve on thesis and/or dissertation committees, serve on the Graduate Council, and chair theses. Faculty members awarded Associate Membership status may teach graduate classes, serve on thesis and/or dissertation committees, and serve on the Graduate Council [70].
Members of the graduate faculty possess a terminal degree in the teaching discipline or a related discipline from an institution accredited by a recognized accrediting agency, demonstrate evidence of currency in the literature of the discipline, are effective educators at the graduate level, and are consistently active in scholarly and/or artistic endeavors. On rare occasions, a faculty member with a long-standing record of exemplary scholarly and/or artistic accomplishments with a subsequent lapse is granted graduate faculty status at the appropriate level. The distinction among the three categories of graduate faculty membership rests primarily in the minimum scholarly or artistic expectations as broadly described in policy. The colleges and/or departments/schools provide more specific guidelines based upon the norms and expectations of their particular disciplines and provide a copy of these guidelines to the Office of Graduate Studies.
Criteria for Full Membership – Doctoral
Criteria for Full Membership – Doctoral status requires substantial, documented evidence of excellence in scholarly and creative activities on a current and sustained basis. These scholarly and creative efforts must be peer-reviewed publications, performances, or competitive externally funded contracts or grants in the disciplinary or related area of assigned graduate responsibility. In addition, for Full Membership – Doctoral status, graduate faculty members must be tenured, tenure-track, or clinical faculty members.
Criteria for Full Membership – Master’s
Criteria for Full Membership – Master’s status requires documented evidence of scholarly and creative activities on a current and sustained basis. These scholarly and creative efforts must be peer-reviewed publications, performances, or competitive externally funded contracts or grants in the disciplinary or related area of assigned graduate responsibility. In addition, for Full Membership – Master’s status, graduate faculty members must be tenured, tenure-track, or clinical faculty members.
Criteria for Associate Membership
Criteria for Associate Membership status requires documented evidence of scholarly and creative activities on a current and sustained basis. These scholarly and creative efforts must be peer-reviewed in the disciplinary or related area of assigned graduate responsibility. Scholarly and creative efforts include, but are not limited to, publications, performances, competitive externally funded contracts or grants, and presentations at scholarly conferences. For clinical faculty and other non-tenure-track faculty or staff, appropriate professional experience may be used in conjunction with or in lieu of scholarly and creative activities [71].
Nominations and Appointment
Nominations for appointment may be submitted at any time in a faculty member’s career and are not connected to the reappointment timelines. Nominations are initiated by the individual faculty member, the appropriate departmental/school chair, and/or the appropriate academic dean, using a supplied form [72]. The nomination form and a current curriculum vita will be routed through the departmental/school chair, academic dean, Graduate Council, and the Dean of Graduate Studies. The Dean of Graduate Studies makes the final appointment [73].
Faculty Grievance Procedures
The university has policies in place to provide for compliance with the TSUS Rules and Regulations applicable to SHSU faculty member grievances. The general categories of grievances encompassed by TSUS Rules and Regulations are those pertaining to “Wages, Hours, or Conditions of Work,” or “Non-renewal or Termination of Employment,” the latter of which includes “Faculty Grievances of Non-renewal or Termination of Employment at the End of the Contract Period,” and “Faculty Grievances of Termination Prior to End of the Contract Period” [12]. To initiate a grievance, the SHSU Faculty Grievance Form and any supporting documents are taken in person to the President’s Office.
Regular Periodic Evaluation of Faculty Members
Chapter V, Subsection 4.28 of the TSUS Rules and Regulations requires an annual evaluation of all faculty within the System [74]. The University utilizes an annual Faculty Evaluation System (FES) that is established to provide an orderly, comprehensive approach to the evaluation of faculty performance at SHSU. The system is designed to maximize objectivity and minimize bias. The evaluation system is important for purposes of faculty development, promotion in academic rank, rewarding meritorious performance through salary adjustments, contract review for probationary faculty members, and decisions concerning future contracts for non-tenured and non-tenure-track faculty members [75]. FES policies and procedures [76] are published online in the Academic Policy Manual [2].
FES Overview
Annual evaluation encompasses the twelve-month period beginning January 1 of each calendar year and ending December 31 of the same calendar year [77]. Provisions are made in the FES for the following:
A summary rating of each faculty member based upon FES 1 through FES 4 is completed by the department/school chair, is discussed with the faculty member, and is signed by both the chair and the faculty member. The signature of the faculty member represents merely an indication that the completed report has been reviewed with the faculty member by the chair and does not necessarily indicate concurrence with the report’s contents. The faculty member’s signature does not preclude the faculty member from appealing the summary rating report [78]. A faculty member who fails to sign the FES Summary Report shall be ineligible for any merit increases based on productivity in the time period covered by the unsigned FES Summary Report [79].
A faculty member may appeal his/her FES Summary Rating Report score to the chair and/or academic dean. The faculty member must submit in writing his/her rationale for the appeal accompanied by appropriate documentation. If not satisfied with the dean’s decision, the faculty member may appeal to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs. The decision of the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs is final [80].
Annual Reviews
Annual reviews include tenured and tenure-track faculty, non-tenure-track faculty, and graduate teaching assistants. The tenured and tenure-track faculty are reviewed on the basis of their teaching effectiveness, scholarly and/or creative accomplishments, and service [81]. Results of faculty evaluations are retained in the respective chairs’ offices with summaries available in the deans’ offices [82].
Pursuant to the annual review, and in accordance with timelines established by the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, all tenured and tenure-track [83] faculty members at the University are required to submit an annual report of the faculty member’s professional activity to the respective department/school chair. This report includes an updated curriculum vita, a report on the faculty member’s research or creative accomplishments, and a report on the faculty member’s service activities for the most recent calendar year [84]. Deans and department/school chairs use the annual reviews not only to evaluate performance but also to identify faculty who do not meet the general performance levels of their unit and to provide these individuals with developmental advice and support. Additionally, the annual reviews of non-tenure-track faculty provide a basis for re-employment decisions [81].
Evaluation of Teaching
The teaching performance of all faculty members, regardless of academic rank, and of all teaching assistants who are instructors of record is evaluated each year by the chair of the faculty member’s department [85], as well as each semester by students within the faculty member’s courses through the use of the nationally normed IDEA Student Ratings of Instruction (SRI) survey [86].
Chair’s Evaluation of Teaching Effectiveness
A department or school chair may decide to use a faculty committee to assist him/her in evaluating faculty teaching effectiveness. Teaching may include, among other things, classroom and laboratory instruction; development of new courses, laboratories, and teaching methods; publication of and/or development of electronic instructional materials; and supervision of undergraduate and graduate students. The chair’s rating of faculty teaching effectiveness is based on as much information as can be reasonably obtained. A variety of inputs are utilized to give the evaluation maximum validity. Two primary sources of information often utilized are a teaching portfolio prepared by the faculty member and a conference with the individual being evaluated. Other inputs include, but are not limited to, comments from students, student outcome measures, and results of assessment measures. Each college/department/school defines its own performance standards for the chair’s rating of faculty teaching effectiveness. Items that may be considered by the chairs include, but are not limited to, the following categories.
Professionalism:
Content and Pedagogy:
In accordance with college and/or department/school policy, each faculty member may present a teaching portfolio and update it on an annual basis. The portfolio provides information relating to teaching effectiveness. Because of the wide variety of programs and teaching situations, departments/schools develop criteria as to the appropriate content, limitations, and uses of portfolios [87].
Students’ Evaluation of Classroom Teaching Effectiveness
SHSU uses the IDEA-SRI instrument (commonly referred to as the IDEA evaluation) to collect feedback from students on their perceived learning within courses and their observations on teaching methods. By collecting feedback on student learning and teaching methods, faculty and administrators are able to make improvements to courses that lead to improved student learning. The Office of Academic Planning and Assessment at the University coordinates the institution’s IDEA evaluation process [88] [89]. Evaluations are conducted online during the last few weeks of the semester. Students are asked to rate their instruction and course materials using a 5-item rating scale [90]. The class instructor does not have access to survey results and diagnostics until all course grades have been submitted to the Registrar. Student privacy and anonymity is completely protected [91].
In addition to being an evaluative device for department chairs, program coordinators, and deans in their annual reviews of faculty members, the information gathered in the IDEA-SRI process is used by faculty members to design strategies for improved student learning and professional improvement. The raw, aggregate, and summary data are housed in the individual departments/schools and colleges as well as in the Office of Institutional Research [86]. A sample summary report is provided [92].
Evaluation of Tenured Faculty (Post-Tenure Review)
Chapter V, Subsection 4.28 of the TSUS Rules and Regulations [93] implements Section 51.942 of the Texas Education Code, which requires that the performance of all tenured faculty members be reviewed and that the reviews “be directed toward the professional development of the faculty member” [94].
In accordance with Academic Policy Statement 980204 “Performance Evaluation of Tenured Faculty” every tenured faculty member will be given a comprehensive performance evaluation every fifth year after receiving tenure or a promotion, returning to a faculty position following an administrative assignment, or after receiving a previous comprehensive performance evaluation [24]. Exceptions to this schedule can be made by the chair when there is a sufficient reason (e.g., illness) to do so, but the period must not extend beyond six years.
The comprehensive performance evaluation will normally begin in the spring with written notification from the chair to the faculty member. The date for this notification is specified in the policy along with the dates involving the vote of the assembled DPTAC. The periodic comprehensive performance evaluation focuses on helping the faculty member improve performance in the conduct of professional duties [95].
Information gathered in the FES is used as support data during the Performance Evaluation of Tenured Faculty process. The Post-Tenure Review process makes use of FES records for the five most recent years. If a simple majority of the tenured faculty determine that the faculty member exceeds the accepted minimum standards of the unit, then that faculty member is certified as satisfying the Performance Evaluation of Tenured Faculty, and no further actions are required.
A faculty member who has been judged to be performing below the appropriate minimum level as demonstrated by a negative vote in the Periodic Comprehensive Performance Evaluation is required to formulate and follow a Plan for Assisted Faculty Development (PAFD). The goal of the PAFD is to aid in restoring the faculty member to a level of performance that meets or exceeds the appropriate minimum. The PAFD delineates the specific sort of activities or accomplishments necessary to bring about the restoration of adequate performance. The PAFD is developed promptly and in consultation with peers and the chair. Although each PAFD is tailored to specific circumstances, each plan includes the following:
The chair and the faculty member sign the PAFD to indicate their agreement with the terms of the plan. If the chair and the faculty member are unable to come to agreement on a suitable plan, they consult others, including the dean, in an attempt to reconcile their differences. If there is still no agreement, the faculty member is required to adhere to the PAFD as formulated by the chair. A copy of the plan is sent to the dean of the college and to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.