Section IV.B: Promotion and Tenure Reviews - Law School
I. TENURE
A. Tenure is the continuing right of a faculty member to hold his or her position without discriminatory reduction in salary, and not to suffer loss of such position except for the reasons and in the manner provided for in these principles. Teaching effectiveness, scholarship, professional activity and effective collegial involvement in the governance of the Law School are all part of the obligations and responsibilities of full-time faculty members and will be important considerations in the tenure decision. Under these principles, the granting of tenure is a very serious matter. It should be a specific act and the decision should be made only after careful consideration of all relevant factors.
B. To receive tenure, a faculty member must demonstrate excellence in teaching, scholarship, and service as provided below:
- To receive tenure, a faculty member must demonstrate that he or she is an excellent teacher. Teaching includes classroom teaching and teaching activities outside of the classroom, such as the supervision of student papers and student advising. The evaluation of a candidate’s teaching shall be based upon peer review, student evaluations, and such other factors as the candidate or other faculty members deem appropriate to bring to the attention of the Promotion and Tenure Committee or the faculty.
- To receive tenure, a faculty member must demonstrate excellence in scholarship. It is expected that a candidate will, prior to receiving tenure, produce scholarship of sufficient quality and quantity as to demonstrate that he or she has the requisite ability and commitment to remain a productive scholar throughout his or her academic life. While there are no fixed rules on the quantity or type of scholarship necessary to meet this standard, it ordinarily is expected that prior to receiving tenure, the candidate will have published, or have had accepted for publication, the equivalent of at least two articles in established law journals. The evaluation of a candidate’s scholarship shall be based upon a review by peers within the Law School. In addition, the Promotion and Tenure Committee shall arrange to have the candidate’s scholarship evaluated by external reviewers selected in accordance with the procedures set forth in Section III below.
- To receive tenure, a faculty member must demonstrate a commitment to service to the Law School, the community at large, and the profession. It is expected that each faculty member’s contributions in this area will necessarily differ and will reflect his or her special interests and talents.
C. A “tenure in position” faculty appointment with the potential ranks and privileges of assistant professor, associate professor, and professor shall be available to the Lawyering Director and such other positions as may be defined by the dean and the faculty. A faculty member initially hired at the instructor level may transfer to the “tenure in position” professorial ranks only pursuant to the 80% hiring rule. A faculty member hired pursuant to a “tenure in position” appointment shall be subject to the same promotion and tenure standards and procedures applicable to other tenure-track faculty members except for the following considerations:
- If the dean and the faculty member so agree, the tenure consideration may be postponed beyond the time period specified in paragraph D below.
- The evaluation of the faculty member’s teaching shall include teaching activities appropriate to the position and the requisite administrative functions of the position.
- The evaluation of the faculty member’s scholarship shall be in the context of the position.
- A faculty member tenured in position shall be accorded the same rights and privileges as other tenured faculty members except that they shall be subject to the following additional criteria of cause for termination of tenure.
- In the case of a faculty member tenured in position as the Lawyering Director, cause shall include the termination or substantial modification of the Lawyering program or the refusal of the faculty member to fulfill his or her responsibilities as the Lawyering Director. In the event the dean and the faculty authorize additional tenure-in-position appointments, cause shall include the failure of the faculty member to carry out the responsibilities of the position or the termination or substantial modification of the program underlying the position.
D. The annual contract or salary agreement of each faculty member shall state whether the appointment is “with tenure” (including “tenure in position”), “without tenure,” or “not on tenure track.” A faculty member appointed to the rank of assistant professor under an initial appointment specified to be without tenure shall be considered for tenure during his or her fifth year of full-time service to the Law School, or in the option of the Promotion and Tenure Committee, during his or her sixth year. A faculty member appointed to the rank of associate professor or professor under an initial appointment specified to be without tenure shall be considered for tenure during his or her fourth year of full-time service to the Law School or at the option of the Promotion and Tenure Committee during his or her fifth year. A faculty member may be considered for tenure at an earlier time than specified in these principles only if specified in the faculty member’s initial letter of appointment or when approved in writing by the dean and the Promotion and Tenure Committee. Except as provided in paragraphs C and E of this section, a tenure decision may not be postponed beyond the time periods specified above.
E. Any formal leave of absence granted to a faculty member for reasons of illness, disability, pregnancy, childbirth, parental, or other family needs shall at the option of the faculty member be excluded from the candidate’s tenure review period. Other approved leaves may extend the tenure review period only with the prior written approval of the dean.
If tenure is denied, or if the faculty member elects not to be considered for tenure within the time periods specified in paragraph D above, the dean shall notify the faculty member that his or her appointment will terminate at the end of the succeeding academic year.
II. PROMOTION
A. Promotion to the rank of associate professor requires a record of excellence in teaching, a demonstration of scholarly ability, and a commitment to service to the Law School, the community at large, and the legal profession. Teaching will be evaluated by both peer review and student evaluations. Scholarship will be evaluated by peer review. While there may be varying ways of fulfilling the scholarship requirement, it is ordinarily expected that a faculty member will have published, or have had accepted for publication, the equivalent of at least one article in an established law journal before his or her promotion to associate professor.
B. Promotion to the rank of professor requires a continuing record of excellence in teaching as evaluated by peers and student evaluations. Promotion to the rank of professor also requires outstanding success as a scholar as evidenced by scholarly pursuits beyond those required for associate professors and in addition to those required for tenure. Ordinarily it is expected that a candidate for promotion to the rank of professor will have published, or have accepted for publication, the equivalent of at least one article in an established law journal in addition to the articles required for tenure. Candidates for promotion to the rank of professor must also demonstrate a continuing commitment to service to the Law School, the community at large, and the legal profession.
C. Unless otherwise specified in the initial letter of appointment, a faculty member appointed as an assistant professor shall ordinarily be considered for promotion to associate professor during his or her third year of full-time service to the Law School. Unless otherwise specified in the initial letter of appointment, a faculty member shall be considered for promotion to professor after serving as an associate professor for at least three years. While a faculty member may upon rare occasions receive an initial appointment as a professor without tenure, in no event shall a faculty member initially hired as an assistant or associate professor be promoted to professor before he or she receives tenure. A faculty member may not be promoted and tenured in the same academic year.
III. PROCEDURE FOR PROMOTION AND TENURE
A. The dean shall appoint the Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and the Associate Dean for Faculty Development, and other faculty as appropriate, to the Promotion and Tenure Committee in each academic year in which a faculty member is eligible for consideration for promotion or tenure. It shall be the role of the committee to communicate with any faculty members eligible for promotion or tenure and to obtain from them a promotion or tenure file containing the evidence necessary to support a decision for promotion or tenure. The candidate’s file shall include a current curriculum vitae, relevant teaching evaluations, scholarly works, and any other information considered relevant by the candidate. The committee shall be responsible for summarizing student evaluations of teaching effectiveness and for arranging peer review of teaching effectiveness and of scholarship. For tenure considerations, the committee shall arrange to have the candidate’s work reviewed by at least two external reviewers selected after consultation with the dean, the candidate, and other faculty members, if any, expert in the candidate’s field of interest. The candidate may solicit additional internal or external evaluations beyond those requested by the committee.
B. The contents of the candidate’s promotion or tenure file including any written evaluations by internal or external reviewers shall be open to the candidate unless the candidate agrees in writing that any particular evaluation shall be confidential. The candidate shall be entitled to respond to any evaluations of teaching, scholarship, or service. The committee shall communicate the results of the reviews of teaching and scholarship along with the candidate’s responses, if any, to the faculty.
C. The voting members of the faculty of the Law School who are superior in academic rank to the person under consideration (or, in tenure cases, tenured members of the faculty and members of the faculty with indefinite contracts) shall decide by majority vote of those present and voting whether to recommend the candidate’s promotion or tenure to the dean. In making this decision, the faculty members shall take into consideration the qualifications for promotion and tenure set forth in these principles, the information contained in the candidate’s promotion or tenure file, the information presented by the Promotion and Tenure Committee, and any other relevant information presented by the candidate or other members of the faculty. The faculty recommendation shall be forwarded to the dean, together with the reasons for, and the results of, the vote.
In making this decision, the faculty members shall take into consideration the qualifications for promotion and tenure set forth in these principles, the information contained in the candidate’s promotion or tenure file, the information presented by the Promotion and Tenure Committee, and any other relevant information presented by the candidate or other members of the faculty. The faculty recommendation shall be forwarded to the dean, together with the reasons for, and the results of, the vote.
D. The dean shall forward the faculty recommendation for promotion or tenure, with reasons, along with his or her evaluation of the recommendation, and if different, with his or her own recommendation to the president, who shall make the final decision.
If tenure or promotion is granted, the president shall notify the dean and the candidate in writing. A positive promotion or tenure decision shall be effective as of the beginning of the academic year following the positive decision. If tenure or promotion is denied, the president shall notify the candidate and the dean in writing and in the case of a negative tenure decision, the dean shall notify the faculty member that his or her appointment will terminate at the end of the succeeding academic year.