91PORN

The following sections of provide the basis for this document. The University of Colorado Board of Regents set the standards for earning reappointment, tenure, and promotion, and is ultimately responsible for awarding tenure. Primary academic units set the criteria for meeting the university standards. College criteria are advisory to the primary units and provide consistency across the College of Engineering and Applied Science.

Regent Standards for Tenure (Policy 5 Section 5.D.2) [excerpts] 

1. “Tenure may be awarded only to faculty members with demonstrated meritorious performance in each of the three areas of teaching (or librarianship), scholarly/creative work, and leadership and service (to the university, profession and/or public); and demonstrated excellence in either teaching or scholarly/creative work.”
2. “A recommendation of tenure based on excellence in scholarly/creative work shall include evidence of impact beyond the institution. A recommendation for tenure based on excellence in teaching shall include multiple measures of teaching evaluation and demonstrated achievement at the campus, local, national, and/or international level which furthers the practice and/or scholarship of teaching and learning beyond one’s immediate instructional setting.”

Primary Unit Criteria for Reappointment (to a tenure-track position), Tenure, and Promotion (Policy 5 Section 5.D.3) [quoted] 

1. Primary units develop criteria that define the teaching, scholarly/creative work, and leadership and service expectations for faculty, such as expectations for publications, grants for scholarly/creative work, measures of clinical excellence, etc., in terms of their scholarly field(s).  These primary unit criteria are reviewed for rigor, fairness, and consistency with regent requirements and are not effective until approved by the dean and provost.  In those cases where the primary unit has requested and received Board of Regents approval of specific alternative or additional criteria, those criteria shall be applied in appointment, reappointment, tenure, and promotion decisions
   1. If new or revised primary unit criteria have been adopted during a faculty member’s tenure probationary period, the faculty member may choose to be evaluated for tenure based on the new criteria or the criteria in place at the time of appointment.  When a faculty member is evaluated for promotion to full professor, the current primary unit criteria shall apply. See the corresponding administrative policy statement (APS 1022).
2. The merit of the candidate is the only consideration in recommendations for awarding tenure. The program requirements of the primary unit shall be considered only at the time of appointment and reappointment.
3. To be promoted to the rank of Professor (also referred to as “Full Professor”), an individual should have the terminal degree appropriate to their field or its equivalent, and
   1. A record that, taken as a whole, may be judged to be excellent; and
   2. A record of significant contribution to graduate and undergraduate education, unless individual or departmental circumstances can be shown to require a stronger emphasis, or singular focus, on one or the other; and
   3. A record since receiving tenure or promotion to Associate Professor that indicates substantial, significant, and continued growth, development, and accomplishment in teaching (or librarianship), scholarly/creative work, and leadership and service.” [Regent Policy 5.D.3.(C)]

Additional Guidance

Regent Policy 5, Section 5.C.2(E) states that “The process leading to the award of tenure is an evaluation of a faculty member’s cumulative performance and is a process that is separate and distinct from the annual performance evaluation.”   

Section VII C. specifies that “For cases involving reappointment at comprehensive review, faculty and review committees at each level of review vote on whether the candidate is either: (1) on track for tenure; (2) not yet on track for tenure but could meet standards for tenure with appropriate corrections; or (3) not on track for tenure." However, 91PORN campus practice is to seek a determination based on a single vote on the question of whether the candidate is on track to meet tenure standards at the time of tenure review.  

CU System Administrative Policy Statement (APS) 1022 Section IX discusses post-tenure review (PTR). 

1. Post-tenure review (PTR) is a summative evaluation over a five-year review period.  The purposes of PTR are to facilitate continued faculty development and to ensure professional accountability to the university community, the Board of Regents, and the public.
2. Each campus shall have procedures for appropriate peer evaluation during PTR and for appeals of the PTR evaluation.  Primary units shall have written guidelines that conform to the campus procedures and this APS.

The College expectation is that faculty will demonstrate continued growth, development, and accomplishment in teaching, scholarly/creative work, and leadership and service after they are awarded tenure.  The specific criteria for meeting expectations during PTR are set by the primary unit.

I. Review by Primary Unit

The primary unit is normally composed of the faculty members of a department or program authorized to vote on matters of appointment, reappointment, tenure, and promotion. Only members of equal or higher rank relative to the proposed action are authorized to vote on personnel cases. Each unit must have a minimum voting membership of at least five eligible faculty members. Supplementing the voting membership of the primary unit requires the review and approval of the Dean.

Primary Unit Evaluation Committee and Report

This group from within the primary unit is elected or appointed as specified in the unit's bylaws. The PUEC is responsible for assisting the candidate in assembling their dossier, soliciting opinions from outside reviewers, and providing a written and, often, oral summary of the candidate's dossier to the full membership of the primary unit. The PUEC report should include a description of the findings of the Committee with regard to (A) teaching performance, (B) scholarly and creative work, and (C) university and professional leadership and service.

The written report of the evaluation committee becomes part of the dossier. The names and affiliations of the external reviewers should not be revealed in these materials. The Chair or Director should not serve on the PUEC or write its report (as their recommendation is expressed in a separate report).

Primary Unit Review of Dossier

All faculty members who are eligible to vote on a particular case must be allowed to review the entire dossier before they are asked to vote on the case. Votes should be recorded in the categories of ‘for’ the proposed action, ‘against’ the proposed action, ‘abstain’, or ‘excused absence’. Excused absences should be limited to faculty members who are on leave and unable to participate in the review and vote. For tenure cases, there must also be three additional votes taken, where each member casts a vote of “excellent”, “meritorious”, or “not meritorious” for the candidate’s performance in each of teaching, scholarly/creative work, and leadership and service. The Chair or Director should not vote, but they may be present during the discussion by the primary unit.

Report of the Chair or Director

The Department Chair or Program Director should write a report, in addition to the primary unit evaluation committee report, to the Dean on the actions taken by the primary unit, including the results of the vote(s), reasons for the recommendation, and an explanation of any dissenting opinion as expressed in the vote(s). The report should include a description of the review and the voting process that was followed. It should also include the recommendation of the Chair or Director on the proposed personnel action, along with reasons for disagreement if this recommendation differs from the majority vote of the primary unit. The report or letter from the Chair or Director to the Dean must not identify the external reviewers by name or in any other way. This report becomes a part of the dossier.

II. Review by College

First-Level Review Committee

The Dean will appoint a First-Level Review Committee (FLRC) of faculty to provide a report on the merits of the cases considered in any given academic year. The members should be tenured, full profes