As part of Academic Transformation, a top priority this fall is to revise the University’s Procedures for Faculty Appointment, Annual Evaluation, Promotion, and Tenure document. This document – which governs the annual, promotion, and tenure evaluation processes – was last updated in 2014.
NOTE: A final version of the new proposed University Procedures document is linked below. There are two versions available. One version is marked with comments and changes; the other is a "clean" version with comments removed and tracked changes accepted. Both versions include edits based on comments submitted through November 11, 2022. A document outlining the submitted comments and their associated responses is also available for review.
The Goal
The goal behind making these changes is two-fold.
- To expand the definition of what counts in teaching, research, and service – including such areas as public, community-engaged, and multidisciplinary scholarship and social justice work that impact and engage a variety of external audiences. This would lead to a more inclusive approach by recognizing a wider range of contributions made by faculty.
- To ensure rigor and consistency in our faculty evaluation processes and provide greater transparency about University practices regarding non-retention of tenure-track and non-continuation of tenured faculty. Even though these cases are exceedingly rare, representing less than 1% of all faculty personnel actions, it is important that everyone understands how the process works and the criteria for making such decisions.
The Process
The process for revising the University’s Procedures document began in February 2021 with the Faculty Rewards and Recognition Committee who met on a weekly basis to identify segments of the document in need of editing and clarification.
Multiple drafts were reviewed with University leadership, academic deans, the Academic Transformation Advisory Council, Faculty Senate Executive Committee, and WVU’s General Counsel for additional feedback. Each group was informed of the changes made based on their feedback.
In Fall 2022, the Office of the Provost launched a series of “town hall” discussions to present proposed changes, gather feedback and discuss additional changes in advance of distributing the document to the campus for a period of formal comment. These town hall meetings continued into November.
On October 7, the new draft of the University’s Procedures document was shared with WVU faculty for an open-comment period through Friday, November 11, 2022.
Comment submissions were regularly monitored, and the Provost’s Office responded
directly to some faculty members regarding their submission. Some comments and
feedback resulted in additional changes to the proposed document, and updates
were shared on the website.
A final version of the new proposed University Procedures document is linked
below. There are two versions available. One version is marked with
comments and changes; the other is a "clean" version with comments removed and
tracked changes accepted. Both versions include edits based on comments
submitted through November 11, 2022. A document outlining the submitted
comments and their associated responses is also available for review.
The final version of the new proposed document will be discussed at the December 2022 Faculty Senate meeting and submitted for a vote at the January 2023 meeting.
If approved, the document will then go to President Gee for his approval and be posted to the faculty website.
Understanding the Changes
The proposed changes to the new draft University Procedures document fall into three main categories:
- Expansion – These changes in the draft document expand the definition of what counts in teaching, research, and service, and clarify the type of documentation faculty should provide in their annual evaluation and promotion and/or tenure files to receive credit for their work.
- Alignment and Consistency – These changes in the draft document ensure that key components of the faculty evaluation processes are standardized and applied consistently across colleges, school, and campuses and types of faculty positions.
- Accountability and Transparency – These changes in the draft document clarify the responsibilities and steps in the faculty evaluation process and make transparent the procedures for non-retention of tenure-track and non-continuation of tenured faculty.
A more comprehensive summary of changes is provided at the beginning of the new proposed document.
resources
Faculty members are encouraged to review the following additional resources also
linked above:
- NEW! Faculty Senate Presentation (PDF)
- Town Hall Presentation (Video)
- Town Hall PowerPoint Presentation (PDF)
- Equity-Minded Reform of Faculty Evaluation Policies: Audit Resource (ACE)
- Equity-Minded Reform of Faculty Evaluation: A Call to Action (ACE)
- Translating Equity-Minded Principles into Faculty Evaluation Reform (ACE)