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Publication Date: May 7, 2004

Chapter 2

Faculty and Academics

2.10 Faculty Reappointment, Tenure, and Promotion

  1. General Provisions

    2. Policies concerning reappointment, tenure and promotion in The University of Texas System are set forth in Part One, Chapter III, Section 6 of the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents of The University of Texas System.   Faculty titles in which tenure may be granted is discussed in Part One, Chapter III, Subsection 1.62 of the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents and Section 2.2 of this Handbook.  All UTSA faculty and administrative personnel are expected to be familiar with UT System and institutional policies related to appointment, reappointment, tenure and promotion.

    Appointment, reappointment, tenure and promotion policies for faculty at UTSA are without regard to race, color, national original, religion, sex, age, veteran status, or disability.

    Tenure denotes a status of continuing appointment as a member of the faculty at UTSA.  Only members of the faculty with the academic titles of Professor or Associate Professor may be granted tenure.  Tenure may be granted at the time of appointment to either of such academic ranks, or tenure may be withheld pending satisfactory completion of probationary period of faculty service.

    Only full-time service in the academic ranks of Professor, Associate Professor, Assistant Professor, and Instructor, or any combination thereof, shall be counted toward fulfillment of a required probationary period related to the award of tenure.  Periods during which a faculty member is on leave of absence or on part-time appointment shall not be counted toward fulfillment of a required probationary period.

    Prior service at other academic institutions, whether inside or outside the System, shall not be counted toward fulfillment of the required probationary period.

    The maximum period of probationary faculty service in nontenured status at UTSA in any academic rank or combination of academic ranks specified in Part One, Chapter III, Subsection 6.21 of the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents and Section 2.2 of this Handbook shall not be more than seven years of full-time academic service.

    Not later than thirty (30) days prior to the end of the sixth academic year of probationary service, all nontenured faculty serving in a rank which accrues time toward satisfaction of a probationary period shall be given notice that the subsequent academic year will be the terminal academic year of appointment and a Memorandum of Appointment shall be provided to such faculty member in accordance with Part One, Chapter III, Subsection 1.61 of the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents, or that beginning with the subsequent academic year tenure will be granted.  The notice required by this Subsection is not applicable where termination of employment is for good cause under the Regents' Rules and Regulations.

    For purposes of calculating the period of probationary service, an "academic year" shall be the period from September 1 through the following August 31.  If a faculty member is initially appointed during an academic year, the period of service from the date of appointment until the following September 1 shall not be counted as academic service toward fulfillment of the maximum probationary period.  One year of probationary service is accrued by at least nine months full-time academic service during any academic year.  A faculty member shall be considered to be on full-time academic service when in full compliance with Regental and institutional standards pertaining to minimum faculty work loads.

    In accordance with Chapter III, Section 6.242 of the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents, a faculty member who determines that certain personal circumstances may impede his or her progress toward achieving demonstration of eligibility for recommendation of award of tenure may make a written request for extension specifying the reason(s) for the requested extension.  See provision "O." in this policy.

    All faculty appointments are subject to the approval of the Board of Regents.  No nontenured member of the faculty shall expect continued employment beyond the period of his or her current appointment as approved by the Board of Regents.  Any commitment to employ a nontenured member of the faculty beyond the period of his or her current appointment shall have no force and effect until approved by the Board of Regents.

    A person appointed to a faculty position with the Title of Instructor, Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, or Professor at UTSA may not, during the term of such appointment, hold a tenured position on the faculty of another educational institution.

    Appointments to the above specified titles shall be conditioned upon the appointee having resigned any tenured position that the appointee may then hold on the faculty of an educational institution outside of the UT System.  Such resignation must be completed and effective prior to the effective date of the appointment at UTSA; otherwise, such appointment shall be void and of no effect.

    The acceptance of an appointment to a tenured position on the faculty of an educational institution outside UT System shall be considered as a resignation of any UTSA faculty position with the title of Instructor, Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, or Professor that such appointee may hold at UTSA.

    In the event of a decision not to reappoint a non-tenured faculty member in an academic rank specified in Chapter III, Subdivision 6.21 of the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents, written notice will be given him or her not later than March 1st of the first academic year of probationary service if the appointment expires at the end of that academic year, or not later than December 15 of the second academic year of probationary service if the appointment expires at the end of that academic year.  After two or more academic years written notice shall be given not later than thirty (30) days prior to the end of the then current academic year that the subsequent year will be the terminal academic year of appointment and a Memorandum of Appointment shall be provided to such faculty member in accordance with Chapter III, Subsection 1.61 of the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents.  The notice required by Subsection 1.61 is not applicable where termination of employment is for good cause or program abandonment under the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents.

    Reappointment of non-tenured members of the faculty to a succeeding academic year, or the award of tenure, may be accomplished only by notice by the President or his or her delegate with the approval of the Board of Regents.  Notwithstanding any provisions of Part One, Chapter III, Subsections 6.23, 6.7, or 6.8 of  the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents to the contrary, no person shall be deemed to have been reappointed or to have been awarded tenure because notice is not given or received by the time prescribed in Section 6.23,  6.7, or 6.8.  Should it occur that no notice is received by the time prescribed in Section 6.23, 6.7, or 6.8, it is the duty of the academic employee concerned to make inquiry to determine the decision of the President who shall without delay give the required notice to the academic employee.

    Each faculty member shall keep the President of the component institution or his or her delegate notified of his or her current mailing address.


  2. Categories and Standards of Performance

    3. In making recommendations for reappointment, tenure, and/or promotion, the following categories and standards of performance are to be considered:

    1. Categories of Performance
      1. Teaching: This category includes, among other things, classroom and laboratory instruction; development of new courses, laboratories, and teaching methods; publication of instructional materials; and supervision of undergraduate and graduate students.
      2. Creation and dissemination of new knowledge or of other creative works and activities:  For most disciplines, this category consists of research for publication. For some disciplines, however, it may include other forms of creative works and activities, such as architectural design, engineering technology, fiction, poetry, painting, musical performance, and sculpture.
      3. Service:  This category includes service to students, colleagues, department, college, and the University, including academic advising, counseling, and other student services;  administrative and committee service; and service beyond the University to the profession, community, state and nation, including academic or professionally related public service1.

    2. Standards of Performance
      1. Associate Professor.  For the faculty review committees to recommend award of tenure and/or promotion for candidates for Associate Professor, the faculty member must clearly demonstrate that he or she meets each of the following standards of performance:

        2. (1) Effective teaching2 accompanied by program support such as curriculum development or thesis/dissertation supervision as appropriate for the discipline.

        (2) A focused program of research3, creative activities, and/or scholarly work that contributes to his or her field as judged by peer review4.

        (3) Service demonstrating peer-recognized contributions to the university, profession, and community as appropriate for the discipline.

      2. Professor.  For a favorable recommendation to be made by a faculty review committee for candidates for promotion to Professor, the faculty member must clearly demonstrate that he or she meets each of the following standards of performance:

        3. (1) Teaching5 and program support that are effective.

        (2) A nationally-recognized body of quality research6, creative activities and/or scholarly work, as defined above, that contributes significantly to the field and represents continuing accomplishment as judged by peer review7.

        (3) Service demonstrating peer-recognized leadership to the university, the profession, and the community as appropriate for the discipline.

      Faculty members who are candidates for tenure and promotion are evaluated based on accomplishments for each of the three standards of performance; however, greater weight shall be given to teaching and the creation and dissemination of new knowledge or other creative activities as defined above.  Particularly, emphasis is placed on the quality and impact of publications and creative works as judged by peer review.  In addition to meritorious accomplishments, candidates for tenure and/or promotion must demonstrate a high potential for continued excellence.

      All faculty review committee recommendations for reappointment, tenure and/or promotion, or assessment of progress toward such shall be based on the above categories and standards and shall be fully documented.  The Department chair, Dean, Provost and President shall make evaluations related to each of the standards of performance following review of faculty review committee evaluations and recommendations.

      Authority to approve or disapprove recommendation for reappointment or nonreappointment resides with the Provost, while authority to recommend tenure or promotion rests with the President, subject to the approval of the Board of Regents.  Disapproval of a recommendation for tenure or promotion by the President is final.

  3. Review Timetable

    4. Recommendations and all supporting data for nonreappointment, reappointment, tenure, or promotion are normally submitted to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs on or before January 1 of each year.  The Provost shall make his or her recommendations to the President, who shall make the final recommendations to the Board of Regents in the cases of favorable review and shall make final decisions in the case of an unfavorable review.   Final decisions shall be transmitted to the Dean of the College no later than March 31.  A timetable for the year under consideration shall be provided to the Deans by the Provost before the Fall semester.

    Faculty members in their first or second year of probationary service as an Instructor, Assistant Professor or untenured Associate Professor may be reviewed at the request of the Dean, the Department Chair or the Division FRAC.  The Dean is responsible for forwarding all recommendations not to reappoint to the Provost on or before November 15.  The Provost will make a recommendation on nonreappointment to the President, who will make the final decision.  A decision will be transmitted to a faculty member in his or her first year by March 1 and to a faculty member in the second year by December 15.

  4. Faculty Review File

    5. An up-to-date file shall be established for each faculty member who is a candidate by the Department Chair no later than September 15.  The faculty member shall place in the file any and all material pertinent to his or her status and the Department Chair and/or College Dean shall, on behalf of the University, place in the file any and all material he or she also determines pertinent to the faculty member's status.

    For a faculty member to have his or her application considered for promotion and/or tenure, the file should contain all documents relevant to the three areas of consideration noted in B.1. above including

    1. A full and accurate curriculum vitae listing the following major categories:
      1. Academic Training
      2. Summaryof Work Experience
      3. Refereed Publications

        4. (1) Journal articles
        (2) Book Chapters and Other Publications
        (3) Conference Proceedings

      4. Non-refereed Publications

        5. (1) Journal articles
        (2) Book Chapters and Other Publications
        (3) Conference Proceedings

      5. Paper Presentations
      6. Creative Activities
      7. Significant Professional Service
      8. Honors, Awards and Other Special Recognition
      9. Funded Grants (research and institutional grants listed separately) and Patents
      10. Theses and Dissertations Supervised (completed and in progress listed separately)
    2. documented evaluations of teaching effectiveness, including the originals (with student comments) of all student evaluations, as well as all summary reports of student evaluations, course syllabi, examinations, course materials, and grades for all courses for a period determined by the DFRAC for faculty being reviewed for tenure and/or promotion and all such materials for the last five years for faculty being reviewed for promotion to Professor;
    3. all publications and other evidence of research, creative activities, and scholarly efforts appropriate to the faculty member's academic discipline.  Only copies of articles and book chapters should be included, not the complete journal or book unless the whole book has been written by the faculty member.  A publication or letter of acceptance that becomes available after the review process has begun may be entered into the faculty member's file by the faculty member.  Once all materials have been delivered to the Office of the Provost, no additional materials can be added; and
    4. a minimum of three letters of evaluation from nationally- and internationally- recognized members of the discipline outside UTSA who are qualified to judge the quality and significance of the faculty member's work.  Independent outside evaluators shall be selected by the Department Chair from a list of names developed after consultation with members of the discipline and the faculty member.  The faculty member may submit a list of names in advance of people that she or he would not like to be included as outside reviewers, with appropriate justification based on professional or personal reasons.  Former mentors and current or former collaborators or students should only be contacted for comment when necessary to clarify the independence of the faculty member's scholarly contributions.  Such responses do not suffice as independent external evaluations.  Once the list is established, only the Department Chair may contact the outside evaluators. All letters of evaluation are to be requested by the Department Chair, and the replies must be addressed to the Department Chair.  A one-paragraph description of the background and professional accomplishments of each external evaluator will be placed in the file.  The relationship, if any, between the external reviewer and the applicant will be clearly stated.
    5. A file shall be compiled by the Dean for submission to the Provost and shall include:
      1. Items in Sections D.1. through D.4. above;
      2. Recommendations

        3. (1)  by the Department Faculty Review Advisory Committee (DFRAC);
        (2)  by the Department Chair;
        (3)  by the College Faculty Review Advisory Committee (CFRAC); and

        (4)  by the Dean.

      Recommendations shall be based on an in-depth and independent written analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of faculty members reviewed for reappointment, promotion and/or tenure and must be based on criteria appropriate for the faculty member’s field and for each of the Standards of Performance listed in Section B.2. above.

  5. Procedures for Review

    6. Review of the faculty member for nonreappointment, reappointment, tenure, and/or promotion may be initiated by the Dean, Department Chair and/or DFRAC.  The individual faculty member may apply for consideration for promotion and/or tenure when, in the judgment of the faculty member, his or her record merits such consideration.  It is not required that the faculty member is in the sixth year of the maximum probationary period before consideration for promotion or tenure may occur. However, the same performance standards outlined in Section 2.10 B. in this policy  shall be applied to faculty members reviewed prior to the last year of the maximum probationary period as to those faculty evaluated in the last year of the maximum probationary period.

    For an initial appointment to a tenured faculty position, whether the duties are predominately academic or administrative, a prospective faculty member must undergo a tenure review by the respective DFRAC.  For a prospective faculty member who holds tenure at his or her current institution, the DFRAC shall review the search file.  When the prospective faculty member does not hold tenure at his or her current institution, external review letters shall also be requested by the Department Chair as outlined above and reviewed by the DFRAC.  The DFRAC shall forward its assessment and recommendation to the Department Chair, or on a potential Department Chair appointment to the Dean, within ten work days following receipt of the complete set of materials for review.

    For current UTSA faculty, the Department Chair shall recommend to the Dean, the Dean shall recommend to the Provost, who in turn shall recommend to the President on nonreappointment, reappointment tenure and/or promotion.  The Provost and the President shall conduct a full and complete review of the applicant's file and make independent judgments.  The Provost and President may also seek such additional information as needed.

    In formulating recommendations, a Department Chair shall give full consideration to the assessments and recommendations of the DFRAC; the CFRAC shall give full consideration to the recommendations of the Department Chair and DFRAC; and the Dean shall give full consideration to the recommendations of each entity prior to making their independent judgments.  The Dean shall transmit, along with his or her written assessments and recommendations to the Provost, those of the Department Chair, the DFRAC, and the CFRAC.

  6. Department Faculty Review Advisory Committee

    7. The DFRAC shall be advisory and composed of the tenured faculty members appointed at least one half time in the Department, except only tenured Professors may serve for the review of applicants for promotion to Professor.  If the committee, when constituted in accordance with the Handbook and College Bylaws, has fewer than three tenured Professors, the Dean shall appoint additional full professors from the college until there are at least three on the committee.

    When the number of tenured faculty members in the Department exceeds nine, the tenured faculty may petition the Department Chair and Dean to elect a DFRAC of no fewer than five members of the tenured faculty to consider tenure cases only.  In those Departments where there are (in addition to the Department Chair) fewer than two tenured faculty appointed at least half time in the Department, the Department Chair, in consultation with tenured faculty, may invite on a year-to-year basis, tenured faculty from other Departments to participate as members of the DFRAC.

    The DFRAC shall limit its recommendations to faculty nonreappointment, reappointment, or tenure of an untenured Associate Professor, or promotion to Associate Professor with tenure, promotion to Professor or the initial appointment of a faculty member with or without tenure.

    Any minority reports from DFRAC members shall be transmitted to the Department Chair by the DFRAC Chair along with the DFRAC report and recommendations.  No

    other information or correspondence may be placed in the applicant's file for transmittal to the Department Chair.

  7. College Faculty Review Advisory Committee

    8. The CFRAC, which shall be advisory to the Dean, shall be constituted in accordance with this Handbook and College Bylaws and shall include at least one tenured faculty member with vote from outside the College.

    The CFRAC shall limit its advisory recommendations to faculty nonreappointment reappointment, or tenure of an untenured Associate Professor, or promotion to Associate Professor with tenure, or promotion to Professor.  Only Professors on the CFRAC may consider applicants for promotion to Professor.  If the committee, when constituted in accordance with this Handbook and College Bylaws, has fewer than three tenured Professors, the Dean shall appoint additional full professors until there are three on the committee.

    Any minority reports from CFRAC members shall be transmitted to the Dean by the CFRAC Chair along with the CFRAC report and recommendations.  No other information or correspondence may be placed in the applicant's file for transmittal to the Dean.

  8. University Faculty Review Advisory Committee

    9. The UFRAC, which shall be advisory to the Provost, shall be comprised of five tenured Professors. Each Department shall elect one full professor to form a pool from which the Provost will select one per college.  The Provost shall select the fifth member from a list of eligible tenured Professors throughout the University.  Committee members will elect the UFRAC Chair.  Elections and appointments shall occur in the Spring prior to tenure and promotion review process.  Those serving in any one year are not eligible to serve again until they have been off the UFRAC for a one year time period.  Assistant Department Chairs Department Chairs, Associate Deans, Deans and Associate Vice Presidents are not eligible to serve on the UFRAC.

  9. Professional Responsibilities

    10. All those involved in the peer review process have the responsibility to read all tenure and promotion materials, to review the applicant's performance on each of the performance criteria thoroughly, and to participate in committee discussions and formulation of committee recommendations.   Abstentions should be exercised only in limited, unusual circumstances such as conflict of interest or partiality.

    All those involved shall adhere to the highest standards of ethical and professional conduct, shall focus on factual information, shall avoid practices that would conflict with the ability to be fair and unbiased, and shall guard against inaccuracies caused by either emphasis or omission of information.

  10. Faculty Member's Access to Promotion and Tenure Material

    11. During the review process, faculty members may request to see the materials they submitted and organized.  Access to said materials will be at the time they are ready to be forwarded from one level to the next higher level.  Once the process of tenure and/or promotion review begins, the faculty member will have access to materials placed in the file by others to the extent provided by the Texas Public Information Act.  They shall only be entitled to see the summary of student evaluations.  The Dean may, upon the applicant's written request, provide a verbal summary of the assessments and recommendations of the DFRAC, Department Chair, CFRAC and Dean related to the faculty member's application for promotion and/or tenure following the transmittal of the tenure and promotion file to the Provost.

  11. Appointments Without Tenure

    12. Formative review of faculty is an on-going process.  Faculty members in their first or second year of probationary service as an Instructor, Assistant Professor or untenured Associate Professor may be reviewed based on the performance categories outlined  in Section B. of this policy at the request of the Dean, the Department Chair, or the DFRAC.  If the progress of the faculty member toward meeting the required standards of performance is judged to be insufficient the Department Chair shall forward the recommendation to the Dean, and, the Dean is responsible for forwarding all recommendations not to reappoint to the Provost on or before November 15.  The Provost will make a recommendation on nonreappointment to the President, who will make a final decision.  A decision will be transmitted to a faculty member in his or her first year by March 1 and to a faculty member in the second year by December 15.

    1. Third-Year Review of Assistant Professors.  UTSA requires that all nontenured faculty with tenure track appointments be reviewed during their third year of full-time service to the University.  This review formally will be conducted during the Spring semester of the faculty member’s third year.
      1. Purpose.  The purpose of the Third-Year Review is to assess overall performance and provide the basis for a fair evaluation and sound judgment about contract renewals for junior faculty.  It is also intended to simulate the tenure review process and inform the Departmental Review and Advisory Committee’s (DFRAC) deliberations.  Candidates are afforded an opportunity to practice preparing their files for review, document their achievements, and understand how they will be judged for tenure and promotion at UTSA.  In terms of criteria for evaluation in the Third-Year Review, candidates should refer to Section B of this policy for teaching, research, and service areas of documentation that remain standard for all evaluations of faculty work.  Each College within the University will base contract renewal decisions on these criteria with consideration for the stage in the candidate’s development, as well as an evaluation about the candidate’s promise for achieving promotion and tenure, unless it is clear that the expected date for tenure and promotion review will be extended for extenuating circumstances as defined in Section O of this policy.

        2. It is important to note that faculty at UTSA have widely different assignments, expectations, and emphases that vary within and across programs, departments, and colleges; professional ranks; undergraduate and graduate faculty status; teaching and administrative assignments; levels and years of experience, etc.  Therefore, performance review processes must be designed to be flexible enough to evaluate a faculty member’s performance in relation to his or her specific situational context.

      2. Process.  The Third-Year Review should not differ significantly from the review that takes place for promotion from assistant to associate professor with tenure.  Candidates should demonstrate a scholarly track record that would allow peers to judge their likelihood of success for tenure and promotion at UTSA. Peer deliberations will be weighed against program mission and needs and other goals of the College in determining contract renewal.  The review will consider aspects of the candidate’s file that reveal talent and promise for contributions to the field of study or in other viable communities of practice. Significant attention will be devoted to teaching evaluations and the creation and dissemination of new knowledge or of other creative works and activities.  Additionally, discipline and service to the department, College, University, and community-at-large will also be used in this process – with expected levels of service commitment determined by the department.  Faculty members should submit a corpus of material arranged in files or a binder in the following order:

        3. (1)  Contents check sheet (signed by the Department Chair)

        (2)  Table of Contents for the materials submitted

        (3)  Current copy of the faculty member’s curriculum vita

        (4)  A statement with separate sections discussing the faculty member’s teaching philosophy and how they have contributed to the curriculum in their field; research agenda and scholarly productivity to date along with future plans; and service to the department, College, University, as well as the discipline and community-at-large.

        (5)  Teaching Section – Copies of syllabi and any other relevant materials used in courses taught over the past three years.  Departments will provide the faculty member with copies of his or her IDEA survey summary results and class grade distributions and awards, honors, and special recognition in teaching.

        (6) Research/Creative Activities Section – Copies of all publications in print or in page proofs, copies of work accepted for publication along with editor’s correspondence; copies of work that is in progress toward publication along with relevant editor’s correspondence; copies of funded/non-funded grant proposals, copies of book chapters in an unpublished manuscript, copies of conference papers, and awards, honors, and special recognition in creative activities.

        (7) Service Section – Copies of any relevant material documenting service activities and awards, honors, and special recognition in service.

        Miscellaneous awards, honors, and special recognition.

        For examples of additional materials, faculty should consult the Addendum (Optional Tenure and Promotion Materials) included in The University of Texas at San Antonio Checklist for Required Tenure and Promotion Materials.

      3. Review Committee.  The DFRAC will elect a subcommittee of no fewer than three tenured faculty members or it may elect to operate as a committee of the whole.  In either case, one DFRAC member will be elected by the reviewing committee to serve as chair.  A member of the committee will be selected to record salient information from the proceedings.  The Committee Chair is charged with ensuring a fair and uniform review for each candidate.  Additionally, the Committee Chair is charged with producing a written report that provides a fair and uniform assessment of the faculty member’s strengths and areas of needed improvement.  Each committee member must sign-off on the Chair’s report.  The subcommittee’s report will be made available to the DFRAC for final review and approval.  Once approved, the DFRAC report is then forwarded to the Department Chair who will write a report and forward all supporting materials to the Dean.
      4. Post Review Process.  The Department Chair and Chair of the Third-Year Review Committee will arrange to meet with the faculty member after March 1 to discuss the review.  The faculty member under review should receive a copy of the reports from the DFRAC and Department Chair at least 48 hours in advance of the meeting.

        5. After discussing the review, the faculty member will have the opportunity to respond to the reports from the DFRAC and Department Chair.  Candidates who choose to respond are invited to comment on the reports in terms of clarification, the likelihood of accomplishing the necessary steps to be awarded tenure, neglected or additional information that came in after the review process was initiated, and explain any extenuating circumstances that may warrant further consideration before a decision will be rendered about contract renewal.  The candidate may elect not to respond to the report without penalty.

      5. Deadlines.  University policy calls for third-year reviews to be conducted at the outset of the Spring Semester.  The Provost’s Office establishes deadlines for faculty submission of complete review files for the completion of review processes.  The Department Chair will inform faculty of all important deadlines.  However, it is reasonable to assume faculty will be notified by the Department Chair no later than October 15.  At this time, faculty will be provided with guidelines regarding the third-year review process.  Faculty members should submit third-year review files to their respective departmental offices no later than February 1.  Faculty under Review may submit additional materials to support their files until March 1.  A subcommittee of the DFRAC charged with undertaking the evaluation of the third-year review materials should submit a written report to the Department Chair no later than February 15.  The Department Chair will forward a written report to the Dean no later than March 1. The Dean will then determine if the faculty member’s performance has been satisfactory or unsatisfactory.  In the case of unsatisfactory performance, the Dean must submit a report to the Provost no later than April 15 along with the written reports from the DFRAC and the Department Chair.  The President’s decision will be transmitted to the Dean who will then discuss the results with the faculty member by May 15.  If the faculty member’s appointment is not being renewed, the President will notify the faculty member in writing not later than thirty (30) days prior to the end of the then current academic year that the subsequent year will be the terminal academic year of appointment and a Memorandum of Appointment shall be provided to such faculty member in accordance with Chapter III, Subsection 1.61 of the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents.  The notice required by Subsection 1.61 is not applicable where termination of employment is for good cause of program abandonment under the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents.

        6. If the performance of the faculty member is judged to be satisfactory to continue in probationary status, the Dean and the Department Chair will discuss the results of the review with the faculty member, and provide him or her with a copy of the written reports.

    2. Appointments of Instructors.  The title of Instructor denotes a tenure-track, probationary appointment and is used to appoint a faculty member who is near completion but does not have the terminal degree in his or her area.  The maximum period that may be served in the rank of Instructor is four years.  Reclassification as Assistant Professor will be processed through administrative channels at the earliest opportunity for consideration by the Board of Regents when a faculty member serving in an Instructor position has completed all requirements for the terminal degree.  Otherwise, not later than an Instructor's third year of service, the Department Chair shall recommend to the Dean, who in turn shall recommend to the Provost, that the individual be placed on terminal appointment for the next year (the fourth).  If the instructor's appointment is not being renewed, the President will notify the instructor in writing not later than thirty (30) days prior to the end of the then current academic year that the subsequent year will be the terminal academic year of appointment and a Memorandum of Appointment shall be provided to the instructor in accordance with Chapter III, Subsection 1.61 of the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents.  The notice required by Subsection 1.61 is not applicable where termination of employment is for good cause or program abandonment under the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents.


    3. Appointments of Assistant Professors.  When an Assistant Professor is reviewed prior to the sixth year, the DFRAC, Department Chair, and the CFRAC shall recommend to the Dean, who in turn shall recommend to the Provost that the individual be promoted to Associate Professor with tenure, be continued at the rank of Assistant Professor without tenure, or be placed on terminal appointment for the next year.


    4. Appointments of Associate Professors.  Associate Professors normally are appointed with tenure.  The Provost will interview all prospective faculty members who are being offered positions at the Associate Professor level.  Under no conditions will the maximum period of time that may be served as a non-tenured Associate Professor exceed five years.  Not later than an individual's fourth year of service as a non-tenured Associate Professor, or the sixth year of combined service as Instructor, Assistant Professor and Associate Professor, the DFRAC, the Department Chair, and the CFRAC shall recommend to the Dean, who in turn shall recommend to the Provost that the individual be granted tenure at the Associate Professor rank or be placed on terminal appointment for the next year.

  12. Appointments of Professors

    13. Appointments to the title of Professor shall be with tenure except when the appointment is that of Visiting or Adjunct Professor, which are non-tenured titles.  The Provost will interview all prospective faculty members who are being offered positions at the Professor level.

  13. Promotion to Professor

    14. For Associate Professors with tenure, consideration for promotion to Professor may be initiated at any time by the Dean, Department Chair, DFRAC, or at the request of the faculty member.  The DFRAC, Department Chair, and the CFRAC  shall recommend to the Dean, who in turn shall recommend to the Provost that the individual (1) be promoted to Professor or (2) be continued at the rank of Associate Professor.

  14. Emeritus Titles

    15. The title of Professor Emeritus and Associate Professor Emeritus may be given to a retired faculty member or in anticipation of the retirement of a faculty member, effective upon retirement.  The conferring of one of these titles is not automatic upon retirement.  A recommendation should originate from the tenured Professors of the DFRAC and proceed to the Department Chair, CFRAC, Dean, Provost, and President.  If the President approves a recommendation, it shall be forwarded to the Board of Regents for final review and approval.

  15. Extension of the Maximum Probationary Period

    16. Personal circumstances that may justify the extension include, but are not restricted to, disability or illness of the faculty member; status of the faculty member as a principal caregiver of a preschool child; or status of the family member as a principal caregiver of a disabled, elderly, or ill member of the family of the faculty member.  It is the responsibility of the faculty member to provide appropriate documentation to adequately demonstrate why the request should be granted. 

    The request for extension shall be limited to one academic year.  A request for an additional extension will follow the established request process, with the maximum duration of extension, whether consecutive or nonconsecutive, to be two academic years. 

    Requests for extension must be made in advance of the academic year or semester for which the extension is desired and may be made no later than three months prior to the deadline for initiation of the mandatory review process to determine recommended award of tenure or notice, that the next year will be the faculty member's terminal year of appointment.

    The faculty member requesting an extension shall submit his or her written request to the Department Chair.  The Department Chair will provide his or her recommendation to the Dean within five work days from receipt of the request.  The Dean will provide his or her recommendation to the Provost within five work days from receipt of the Department Chair's recommendation. 

    The decision regarding the request shall be made by the Provost within five work days from the date of receipt of the Dean's recommendation. 

  16. Preamble to Policy on Periodic Performance Evaluation of Tenured Faculty

    17. Tenure at UTSA is defined to mean continuous appointment as a member of the faculty.  It is not granted automatically or on the basis of seniority.  In accordance with the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents, tenure is granted to faculty, after a  probationary period, on the basis of meritorious performance in teaching, research, and service and demonstrated excellence in teaching or research.

    There are several aspects of tenure that support UTSA's mission in education, research, and service and also contribute to the state's economic development:

    Tenure promotes a climate of free inquiry, in which faculty and students study and learn the lessons of the past, understand the present state of knowledge, and pursue new paths of inquiry without having to adapt to current intellectual preferences or fashions.  Tenure promotes learning and research related to controversial subjects and protects teachers from inappropriate retribution.  The resulting formulation of new knowledge and ideas improves people's lives and benefits the citizens of Texas and the nation.

    Tenure allows faculty to take a long-term approach to teaching, research, and service rather than pursue short-term goals, as most other institutions must.  Society benefits from the creative space that tenure provides faculty.  But this time to experiment and be creative is a privilege that demands accountability.  Tenured faculty must show that they are productive as teachers, researchers, and providers of service to the community.   UTSA must hold faculty accountable in order to maintain public trust.

    Tenure is a critical factor in attracting and keeping excellent faculty.  Many faculty could work in the private sector and earn higher salaries.  Tenure is a compensating factor that helps to encourage some talented teachers to accept the lower salaries offered by universities.

    Tenure protects faculty, and indirectly students, from academic and administrative actions based on factors other than performance, such as political pressure and personal prejudice.  A free society depends upon the development and expression of ideas, even politically or culturally unpopular ideas.  UTSA, with the tenure system, has been and remains a bulwark of independent thought.

    Tenure provides for the orderly induction of individual faculty into the community of mature scholars, based upon a rigorous evaluation of past accomplishment and future promise in teaching and research as measured by objective criteria and experts from outside.  Excellence, rather than mere adequacy, is required.

  17. Policy on Periodic Performance Evaluation of Tenured Faculty

    18. The following constitutes the implementation at UTSA of The University of Texas System Guidelines for Periodic Performance Evaluation of Tenured Faculty approved by the Board of Regents.

    1. Every department shall conduct an annual review of all its faculty as specified by Chapter 2, Section 2.11 of the UTSA Handbook of Operating Procedures.  This review may be conducted in connection with the determination of merit raises.  Faculty members shall provide an annual report and evidence of teaching quality.  Faculty may also provide further evidence of research and publication, service, and other professional or creative activities.  Each faculty member will be informed in writing of the result of the review.


    2. Tenured faculty will be reviewed every six years.  The evaluation shall be based on the faculty member's professional responsibilities in teaching, research, service, and administration with due consideration to the time devoted to each.  The evaluation may not be waived for any tenured faculty member but may be deferred in rare circumstances when the review period will coincide with approved leave or comprehensive review for tenure, promotion, or appointment to an endowed position.  No deferral of review of an active faculty member may extend beyond one year from the scheduled review.  Periods when a faculty member is on leave need not be counted in calculating when the comprehensive evaluation is required. 


    3. Reasonable individual notice of at least six months of intent to review will be provided by the Department Chair.  This review will normally occur at the time of the annual review process.  At the time of notification of the review, the Department Chair shall give the faculty member a copy of previous annual reports, statistical summaries of teaching evaluations for the review period, and the results of previous annual reviews for the review period.  The faculty member being reviewed shall submit a resume, including a summary statement of professional accomplishments, previous annual reports for the review period, and statistical summaries of teaching evaluations.  The faculty member may provide a statement of professional goals, a proposed professional development plan, and any other additional materials she or he deems appropriate.  The requirement of periodic review does not imply that individuals with unsatisfactory annual evaluations may not be subject to further review and/or appropriate administrative action.


    4. The six-year review will be carried out at the department level by a committee of tenured faculty elected each September by the voting members of the departmental faculty.  The Chair of the committee shall be elected by committee members.  Evaluation shall include review of the resume, evaluations of teaching for the review period, (including student evaluations and supporting evidence), annual reports for the review period, and all materials submitted by the faculty member.  Upon their request, faculty members will be provided with the opportunity to meet with the review committee.  The chair of the committee shall communicate the result of the review in writing to the faculty member and to the Department Chair and the Dean for review and appropriate action.  In addition, the results of the evaluation will be communicated by the Dean to the Provost and the President for their review and appropriate action.  If the result of the review is satisfactory, no further action will be taken. 


    5. If the result of the review is unsatisfactory and when the Dean determines that more intensive review of a faculty member is needed, or if the faculty member requests it, then the Dean, in consultation with the tenured faculty in his or her college shall appoint a peer committee whose members shall be representative of the college or division and who will be appointed on the basis of their objectivity and academic strength.  In all colleges, committees appointed to perform more intensive review shall be comprised only of faculty of the same or higher rank as the faculty member being reviewed.  Each committee shall elect its chair.  A committee may request further information from faculty members under review.  Upon his or her request, the faculty member will be provided with the opportunity to meet with the review committee.  The committee shall report its findings within six months of its being constituted.  The result of the review will be communicated in writing to the faculty member, and to the Department Chair, the Dean, the Provost, and the President for review and appropriate action. 


    6. A sixth year periodic review of tenured faculty members who are assigned full-time administrative responsibilities as Department Chair, Dean, Vice President, Associate Vice President, Vice Provost, Provost or President will be conducted by the tenured full professors in the division in which the academic appointment is held and will be based on all materials submitted by the individual being reviewed relevant to their duties as a faculty member, taken as a whole, in the areas of teaching, research and service in proportion to the time devoted to each.  Appropriate consideration shall be given to the demands of administrative assignments and their impact on the level of research activity, courses taught and the extent of service contributions.  An elected chair of the committee of the whole of full professors will inform the faculty member in writing of the result of the review, with copies to the appropriate Department Chair and/or Dean, and the Provost and President.


    7. For individuals found to be performing unsatisfactorily, review to determine if good cause exists for termination under the current Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents may be considered.  All proceedings for termination of tenured faculty on the basis of periodic performance evaluation shall be only for incompetency, neglect of duty or other good cause shown and must be conducted in accordance with the due process procedures of the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Regents, Part One, Chapter III, Section 6 including an opportunity for referral of the matter to alternative dispute resolution.  Such proceedings must also include a list of specific charges by the chief administrative officer and an opportunity for a hearing before a faculty tribunal.  In all such cases, the burden of proof shall be on the institution, and the rights of a faculty member to due process and academic freedom shall be protected.


    8. Phase-in:  The post-tenure review process will be phased in over six years, beginning with the 1998-99 academic year.  Approximately one-sixth of the present tenured faculty in each division shall be reviewed each year.  The year in which each faculty member is first reviewed shall be determined by lot, with the following exception:  faculty appointed with or promoted to the rank of associate or full professor after the 1993-94 academic year shall be reviewed every six years after their initial appointment or promotion.


    9. Monitoring:  The Academic Freedom and Tenure Committee of the UTSA Faculty Senate is charged with monitoring this review process and with reporting its findings annually to the Faculty Senate and the UTSA administration.  If its findings warrant, the Committee shall recommend revisions of the procedures for faculty review at   UTSA, the System-wide guidelines for post-tenure review of faculty, or both.


    10. Nothing in this institutional evaluation policy, or its interpretation, shall be interpreted or applied to infringe on the tenure system, academic freedom, due process, or other protected rights nor to establish new term-tenure systems or to require faculty to reestablish their credentials for tenure.

_______________
1Extended education shall be included in this category. [Back to Section B.1.c.]

2Evaluation of effective teaching shall include a thorough review of student evaluations, in all classes surveyed at UTSA, course syllabi, examinations, course materials, grading patterns for all courses taught, and other pertinent materials, at UTSA. [Back to Section B.2.a.(1)]

3Research grants shall be included in this category. [Back to Section B.2.a.(2)]

4Peer review for purposes of this standard is to include review by external nationally- and internationally-recognized experts in the faculty member's field. [Back to Section B.2.a.(2)]

5Evaluation of teaching shall include the review of student evaluations for all classes surveyed at UTSA for the last five years and course syllabi, examinations, course materials, and grading patterns for all classes taught during the past five years. [Back to Section B.2.b.(1)]

6Research grants shall be included in this category. [Back to Section B.2.b.(2)]

7Peer review for purposes of this standard is defined to include review by external nationally- and internationally-recognized experts in the faculty member's field. [Back to Section B.2.b.(2)]

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