Non-Tenure Line Faculty Promotion Criteria and Guidelines

The purpose of providing supplemental materials for promotion and/or tenure reviews is to assist reviewers in their efforts to evaluate candidates’ dossiers and to assess the strength of the evidentiary base.  The supplemental materials should correspond directly to sections of the dossier, including the narrative statement. 

For example, reviewers typically desire ready access to evidence of teaching effectiveness for all of the courses noted in the dossier.  It is therefore desirable to provide evidence of teaching effectiveness (e.g., SRTE results, including student comments) in the supplemental materials for each of the regular courses listed in the dossier.  Reviewers also typically desire ready access to all publications listed in the dossier.  It is therefore desirable to provide access in the supplemental materials for each publication listed in the dossier.

Candidates should work with their Department Heads to make reasonable judgments about what to include and what to exclude.  It is not necessary for the supplemental materials to encompass all of the candidates’ accomplishments.  Examples of materials not generally relevant include evidence of participation in professional meetings; proof of participation on editorial review committees; and copies of publications not listed in the dossier.

Candidates should also work with their Department Heads to organize the materials in ways that make it easy for reviewers to find the relevant evidence.

It is appropriate and usually desirable for the supplemental materials to be provided in an electronic format rather than on paper.  However, if an item is difficult to digitize (e.g., an instance where the candidate was an editor for a large handbook), it is appropriate to supplement the electronic format with an alternative format (e.g., a hard copy/paper version of the handbook).

Statement Endorsed by the College of Education Faculty Council on April 19, 2018.

The ranks of instructor, assistant teaching professor, associate teaching professor, and teaching professor recognize the qualifications and achievements of fixed term, non-tenure line College of Education faculty members with special qualifications and abilities in pedagogy, outreach, and/or service.  These ranks may be achieved as part of the appointment process or through a promotion process.  The College will apply progressively more exacting standards as a candidate moves from the rank of instructor to assistant teaching professor, from assistant teaching professor to associate teaching professor, and from associate teaching professor to teaching professor. 

Eligible individuals who are early in their careers are normally appointed at the instructor rank if they have not earned a doctoral degree or its equivalent and at the assistant teaching professor rank if they have earned a doctoral degree or its equivalent.

In accordance with AC 21, Individuals who have not earned a doctoral degree or its equivalent are eligible for promotion to the ranks of assistant teaching professor and associate teaching professor.  These individuals are not eligible for the rank of teaching professor.  Individuals who have earned a doctoral degree or its equivalent are eligible for promotion to the ranks of associate teaching professor and teaching professor.

Individuals who earn a doctoral degree or its equivalent while holding the rank of instructor will ordinarily be reappointed as assistant teaching professors without needing to go through the promotion review process.

In the cases of promotion, the process should observe the following guidelines.

Qualifications

Candidates for promotion generally should have served at least five years at the prior rank at the time of application for promotion, although exceptions can be made.  Requests for “early” reviews should be made by the relevant department head to the dean of the college.  Approval for the conduct of an “early” review is not the same as approval for the promotion.  It is solely an approval to conduct the review “early.”     Importantly, promotion is not guaranteed by service for a minimal number of years, but is rather a recognition of substantial contribution to the instructional program of the College and/or other contributions to the College’s pedagogical mission.  Performance of the candidate should demonstrate accomplishment in the following areas:

Mastery of subject matter;

Teaching, as relevant, measured and documented by appropriate student evaluations (including SRTE scores and student comments from Penn State courses if these are part of the candidate’s teaching accomplishments), peer evaluations, other student evaluations, comments from cooperating teachers and/or school administrators, and such other evidence as the candidate and the department may wish to submit, such as a teaching portfolio;

Professional engagement related to teaching, research, outreach, and/or advising, if relevant to the assignment;

Contributions to the program/unit/department/university/community as a whole in terms of curriculum development, collaborative involvement with tenure line and fixed term faculty, administrative and organizational functions, if relevant; and

Service to the campus, the college, the public, and the profession, if appropriate (e.g., service on department committees or other professional service to the university community).

Materials to be submitted by the candidate to the department head:

Required core:

1.  A current curriculum vitae; and

2.  A narrative statement of no more than three pages explaining responsibilities, accomplishments, and contributions during the Penn State career.

Other (based on job responsibilities):

1.  Syllabi from selected courses taught;

2.  Appropriate and representative student evaluation data (e.g., SRTE scores including student comments) over the past five years;

3.  Other evidence of teaching performance (e.g., peer evaluations and open-ended student comments) over the past five years; and

4.  Evidence of scholarship and creative activities (e.g., grant proposals, publications, supervision of master’s papers and theses, service on doctoral committees, presentations, and administrative or other position related accomplishments).

 Materials to be submitted to the college fixed term faculty promotion review committee by the department head:

1. 1. All the required materials listed above as submitted by the candidate to department head;
   2.  Any other materials listed above (based on job responsibilities) submitted by the candidate;
   3.  A letter of evaluation from the department committee; and
   4.  A letter of evaluation from the department head.

Materials to be submitted to the dean by the college fixed term faculty promotion review committee:

1. 1. All of the materials submitted to the college fixed term faculty promotion review committee; and
   2. A letter of evaluation from the college fixed term faculty promotion review committee.

Process

Fixed term faculty members will be considered for promotion after being nominated as follows:  a) nominated by an appropriate academic administrator (typically a department head) or b) nominated by the relevant department faculty committee after consultation with the appropriate academic administrator.  Once nominated, and following construction of the package of materials in collaboration with the department head, the candidate will prepare the materials listed above and submit them to the appropriate department head before April 1 before the anticipated July 1 promotion date.

Once the candidate’s materials have been submitted to the department head, it shall not be appropriate for any additions to be made to the materials other than what is provided for in these guidelines.

The department committee will review the submitted materials and will make a written recommendation with rationale to the department head.

The department head will also review the submitted materials (including the recommendation from the department committee) and will make a written recommendation to the dean.

The college will empanel a fixed term college committee.  The committee will consist of five fixed term faculty members with professorial titles that will be elected at large by the same to serve staggered two-year terms.  The college committee will review the submitted materials, including the recommendation of the department committee and the recommendation of the department head and will make its own written recommendation to the dean. 

The dean will review the submitted materials along with the recommendations from the department committee, the department head, and the college committee of fixed term faculty members with professorial titles and will decide whether or not to offer promotion in rank to the candidate.  The dean will share the results of the review with the candidate.

Where fixed term faculty members have budgeted joint appointment or are assigned responsibilities in more than one academic unit, their home academic department unit will administer the promotion review process.  In these cases, the materials submitted will represent the candidate’s complete range of assignments, and the head(s) of the other unit(s) will provide a letter of recommendation before the home department committee and head add their recommendations.

Assuming the promotion is approved, a salary increase associated with the promotion and a possible additional merit increase will be provided.

Endorsed by the College of Education Faculty Council on February 21, 2019