Handbook

A GUIDE FOR UNTENURED FACULTY IN THE DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH

Untenured faculty should be thoroughly familiar with the following: "Academic Faculty Tenure Policy" in the CSU Faculty/Staff Manual, "Promotion-Tenure Committee" in the Department Code, "Functions and Procedures of the Promotion-Tenure Committee," "Department Guidelines for Evaluation," "Departmental Guidelines for Promotion," and the University's "Tenure and Promotion Application" form. In addition, untenured faculty members should give special attention to keeping their performance files up to date. The performance file, which may be had upon request from a departmental secretary, must contain a copy of all publications or completed portions of long work(s) in progress and a record of all service to the profession, the Department, the College, or the University.

The Promotion-Tenure Committee is charged with annual evaluation of each candidate's teaching, scholarly and creative activity, and service, as well as an annual report of progress toward tenure and a final recommendation for tenure. The Promotion-Tenure Committee communicates the results of its deliberations to the Chair of the Department, not to the untenured faculty member. Since the annual evaluation and the annual report of progress toward tenure are advisory, all questions relating to either should be directed to the Department Chair. Other matters may be addressed to the Chair of the Promotion-Tenure Committee or to any current member.

Responsibility of the Candidate

1. Annually by October 1, candidates shall bring their performance files up to date with:
   1. a full record of service, including the candidate's own statements of specific contributions and any existing documents attesting to the quality and extent of the service (see "Departmental Guidelines for Evaluation");
   2. copies f all scholarly or creative activities as specified in the "Department Guidelines for Evaluation";
   3. any other materials the candidates wish the Committee to consider (e.g., additional peer evaluations of teaching, evaluations by colleagues and editors of scholarly and creative work, and so forth).
2. In the penultimate calendar year before the candidates are to be considered for tenure (the fifth calendar year for assistant professors) they shall begin keeping careful records of the material required by the University's "Tenure and Promotion Application." (Note: for "Enrollment," give the number enrolled at the end of the add-drop period; see the office staff for these numbers early in each of the four terms in question.)
3. No later than November 15 of the year the candidates are to be considered for tenure (usually the sixth year for assistant professors), the candidates must fill out the relevant parts of the University's "Tenure and Promotion Application."

General Standards for Tenure in the Department of English

1. Promotability: To be recommended for tenure, assistant professors ordinarily must have met requirements for promotion to associate professor (See "Departmental Guidelines for Promotion.")
2. Progress toward Tenure: To enjoy continual reports of progress toward a favorable recommendation for tenure, a faculty member weak in one or more areas must demonstrate enough progress from year to year that a favorable recommendation may be expected by the end of the probationary period. All candidates, especially those weak in one or more areas, should construe reports of progress toward a favorable recommendation for tenure as a report of progress toward, not a guarantee of, a favorable recommendation.
3. Teaching: To be recommended for tenure, a candidate's teaching must normally be "quality" by the end of the probationary period. Observation of teaching will begin the second semester, will continue throughout the probationary period, and will cover as wide a variety of representative classes as possible.
4. Service: To be recommended for tenure, a candidate must achieve a satisfactory record of service by the end of the probationary period. The Promotion-Tenure committee does recognize that initial service responsibilities of faculty on first appointment normally are light, but the Committee will be looking for evidence of contributions to the Department, College, University, or profession by the third year of a candidate's career in order to grant the candidate a satisfactory rating.
5. Scholarly and Creative Activity: Before a positive recommendation for tenure will be granted by the Tenure Committee, a candidate's scholarship and creative activity must be consistently and solidly satisfactory. The Committee realizes that publication will not normally be possible during the first two years of a candidate's teaching career, but even then some scholarly progress should be evident (articles in circulation, papers read at conferences, for example). At the point of decision on tenure, the Committee will be looking for a continuous record of satisfactory scholarship that meets the standard for promotion (see "Department Guidelines for Evaluation").