Criteria for Tenure

.156        Conferral of tenure requires consideration not only of the qualifications of the individual Faculty member, but also of the needs and purposes of the institution. The judgment must be based on an aggregate assessment of the duties that the candidate will be expected to carry, and no single factor should govern, although research and teaching are primary.  The following are important factors to be considered in all recommendations: 

a. The purpose of the appointment in relation to the mission and needs of the Program, Department, School, and University;

b. The candidate’s present and projected competence and scholarly productivity at least at the level required of an Associate Professor (D-3.139-140), including his or her standing among scholars at comparable stages of their careers in the same field of specialization;

c. The candidate’s competence as a teacher, including where applicable ability as a director of dissertations or as a director of clinical or field training as well as such matters as the updating and introduction of new material into courses, the offering of new courses, and pedagogical soundness and effectiveness;

d. The indications that the candidate is not merely competent at a minimal level but is one of the most qualified among those available for the position; accordingly, the reviewing bodies must explicitly weigh the candidate’s qualifications against the advisability of seeking to recruit another Faculty member who might prove more promising and, in time, better qualified for tenure;

e. The candidate’s moral integrity, including respect for the ethical obligations of the teaching profession;

f.  The candidate’s commitment to the stated aims and goals of the University, School and Department;

g.  The candidate’s active participation in Departmental, School, and University activities and willingness to carry committee and other Faculty responsibilities;

h.  The candidate’s ability to work in a collegial fashion with other members of the academic community, including students and other Faculty members;

i.   The candidate’s participation in the activities of the appropriate learned societies and professional organizations, meetings, and conferences and, where applicable, professional registration, licensing, or certification.

.157        If at the time of consideration for tenure, a Faculty member is also being considered for promotion in rank, the promotion review should be conducted first. The reviewing bodies should consider the application for tenure on its own specific merits according to the criteria outlined above.  Promotion in rank does not by itself imply the acquisition of a claim to continuous tenure.