Career Track Guidelines

GUIDELINES FOR APPOINTMENT, EVALUATION, AND PROMOTION FOR CAREER-TRACK LECTURERS, SENIOR LECTURERS, AND PROFESSORS OF PRACTICE

Date: June 29, 2018 Authors: Dean’s Task Force

CAREER-TRACK (CT) LECTURERS, SENIOR LECTURERS, AND PROFESSORS OF PRACTICE

 Career-track Faculty (carrying the titles of Lecturer, Senior Lecturer, or Professor of Practice in the Eller College of Management) are nontenure-eligible employees whose Notice of Appointment incorporates the ABOR Conditions of Faculty Service (ABOR-PM 6-201, et seq.) and do not have visiting or adjunct titles. According to the Office of the Provost, faculty in these positions maintain a focus on excellence in teaching but also have substantial responsibility in one or more of the following areas: teaching graduate or clinical courses, conducting scholarship/research, and other mission- critical work such as leadership in curriculum design, assessment, advising, program management, etc. According to UHAP, conversion from Senior Lecturer to Professor of Practice must be "justified by increased responsibilities such as expanded teaching or supervisory duties" as well as outstanding performance, as indicated by annual reviews (UHAP 3.3.03.E). 

I.   GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS

Career-track (CT) faculty are typically hired primarily for teaching with a clearly articulated scholarship and/or service component. It is essential that the workload responsibilities of CT faculty be clearly spelled out in the letter of offer at the time of hire and that they be reviewed each academic year. The offer letter must include workload allocation based on an established workload plan agreed upon by the unit head/director and the faculty member.

The components below may be included in the workload allocation plan:

1. A defined expectation of “teaching load.” Teaching load may be measured by the total number of classes per year, total number of preparations, and/or student credit  hours.
2. A defined component of scholarship as agreed upon by the unit head and the faculty member, if applicable.
3. A defined component of service to the unit, college, campus, and/or discipline.

The distribution of the various components may vary from year to year but must be specified in documents that are discussed with the CT faculty member to set out duties and goals for the coming year. Lecturers, Senior Lecturers, and Professors of Practice will typically hold faculty appointments that include both teaching and service responsibilities. All such faculty, whether full-time or part time, will be expected to carry one of the following workload allocations:

• 80% teaching and 20% service.
• 80% teaching, 10% service, and 10% research.
• Other distribution as approved by the dean.

In a full-time position, a load of 80% teaching is equivalent to six 3-credit courses taught in the academic year for faculty on academic contracts or eight 3-credit courses for faculty on fiscal contracts. Course responsibilities are expected to be spread across all sessions (i.e. fall and spring for academic appointments; fall, spring, and summer for fiscal appointments).

The following title definitions are used for career-track faculty in the Eller College of Management:

Lecturer

The title Lecturer is to be used with appointments of one to three years that satisfy criteria laid out in Section II below. These appointments may be renewed, depending on the needs of the unit.

Senior Lecturer

The title Senior Lecturer is to be used as a peer evaluated promotion from a Lecturer position (see the Criteria for Promotion section below). Individuals who have demonstrated excellence in teaching through significant teaching experience may be hired or promoted into a Senior Lecturer position. As with Lecturers, the title Senior Lecturer is to be used with appointments of one to three years. These appointments may be renewed, depending on the needs of the unit.

Professor of Practice

Consistent with ABOR 6-201, a Professor of Practice is an individual who has established himself or herself by expertise, achievements, and national reputation over a substantial period of time to be a distinguished professional in an area of practice or discipline. The title Professor of Practice is to be used with appointments of one to three years. These appointments may be renewed, depending on the needs of the unit. 

II.   CRITERIA FOR APPOINTMENT, EVALUATION, AND PROMOTION

Career-track faculty participate in an annual review process within their department based on the criteria in this section. Annual reviews should include information and discussion about progress toward promotion. According to UHAP 3.3.03.B, promotion requires excellent performance and the promise of continued excellence as determined by the specific duties assigned to individual faculty members. ABOR section 6-201(1)(4)(a) notes that criteria for evaluation should consider teaching effectiveness; quality of service to the profession, university, and community; and the quality of scholarly research, publication, or creative endeavors (if the faculty member has assigned research duties). Research is also integral to the scholarship of teaching and the scholarship of engagement, as recognized by the University's inclusive view of scholarship.

The following general criteria will be used for appointment, evaluation, and promotion of CT faculty.

Teaching and Supervision

Candidates must present evidence of successful teaching appropriate to the unit's mission, including lower-division, upper-division, and graduate courses (when included in the candidate's workload assignments). In meeting the standard of excellence in teaching, consideration should be given to the candidate's ongoing efforts to improve their teaching. Where applicable to the workload as defined by the unit, the faculty member must also have demonstrated excellence in supervising teaching assistants. Evaluation of performance in this category must be consistent with standards of the unit and will be made on the basis of a) course syllabi and other course and classroom materials, b) student course evaluations, c) peer evaluations, including reports from classroom observations, and d) any other relevant evidence such as new approaches, workshops taken, etc.

 The required evaluation of teaching for promotion must have two major components: peer review and student feedback.

• Peer review: Academic units must make provisions for peer review for faculty being considered for promotion, including peer course observations. Materials for this observation are available through the Office of Instruction and Assessment, which has developed a variety of tools to guide UA faculty conducting a peer review of teaching including face-to-face and online courses. See: teachingprotocol.oia.arizona.edu
• Student feedback on teaching: CT faculty should use the university Teacher-Course Evaluation forms for the student surveys.

Scholarly Activity

When scholarly activity is part of the faculty member’s workload, measures of scholarly achievement may include (but are not limited to) the following: publications; evaluations from independent external reviewers; grants, contracts, and awards; invitations to deliver papers at professional meetings, university lecture series, and national or international workshops and conferences. Consistent with a broad definition of public scholarship, candidates may also engage in the dissemination of knowledge to non-academic publics by publishing in trade publications specific to their fields, magazines, and newsletters, electronic sites and other media. Research- based contributions to outside institutions, communities, or businesses are considered important as well. Evaluation of these publications will be based on their strategic value to the field and on the extent to which they effectively represent the candidate as an expert in his or her areas of knowledge.

Service, Outreach, and Administration

When service is part of the faculty member’s workload, on-going engagement within the university and with local, regional, and/or national constituencies is expected. Evidence of excellence in this category should include contributing to the activities of departmental committees or other department-level service. Chairing committees and serving on college or university level committees is not mandatory but constitutes important evidence of excellence. Within the Eller College of Management, CT faculty may serve as voting members on the following standing committees in the college: the College Advisory Committee, the Undergraduate Studies Committee, and the Graduate and Professional Studies Committee. Given that research is not the primary responsibility of Lecturers, Senior Lecturers, and Professors of Practice, such individuals will not serve on the Research and Doctoral Studies Committee or the Faculty Status Committee. CT faculty may serve on department and college committees that are established for the promotion of other CT faculty of lower rank. Evidence of contribution to the broader profession includes service to professional organizations, advisory committees, professional journals, and groups working on issues important to the local community, the state, and the nation. Service contributions can vary depending on the duties and workload allocation set forth by the unit head and the Dean’s office. Example of service  contributions may include:

• Serving on campus committees, working groups, task forces, and teams;
• Actively participating in faculty governance in a unit, college, or the university, or participating in associated activities;
• Applying one’s expertise to address local, regional, national or international issues;
• Providing non-credit courses, extension programs, or short courses to governmental agencies and  professional organizations;
• Presenting community lectures or performances;
• Technical reports to outside communities;
• Articles for popular and special interest publications;
• Online  resources  developed  for  communities,  businesses,  agencies,  or  disciplinary associations;
• Expert testimony or consultation inside or outside the University.

In some cases, one or more of these items can be counted as “Scholarly Activity” depending on departmental criteria, the candidate’s field(s) of expertise, and on the particular workload responsibilities of the candidate.

Professionalism and Collegiality

Faculty are expected to meet the standards of professionalism and collegiality with units across campus, the city, the state, and the nation. All of these activities outlined above require the highest level of professionalism and collegiality.

The following criteria will be used for promotion by rank.

Criteria for Promotion to Senior Lecturer

Promotion from Lecturer to Senior Lecturer may occur after an individual has held the title of Lecturer (or a comparable title) for six or more years. Individuals who have held the title of Adjunct Lecturer or Adjunct Instructor in the Eller College of Management and who have performed duties comparable to those of a Lecturer may apply this service toward their evaluation for promotion to Senior Lecturer. Additionally, individuals who have held a tenured/tenure-track professorship (of any rank) may apply this experience toward their evaluation for promotion or assignment to Senior Lecturer.

Promotion to, or appointment at the level of Senior Lecturer is based chiefly on the candidate's experience and performance in the following areas:

• Excellent student, peer, and administrative evaluations that demonstrate effective teaching practices.
• Contributions to course and/or curriculum development, outcomes assessment, and instructional innovations that build on the latest techniques and pedagogical approaches to improve student success.
• Effective advising, mentoring, and student-support activities.
• Participation in committee and collaborative governance within the program, department, college, and/or university.
• For Lecturers who have workload assignments that include research, demonstrated excellence in research includes publishing articles in professional journals, trade journals, textbooks, technical reports, etc.; presenting at professional association meetings, teaching related and AACSB conferences, and at leading business schools; and conducting research and analysis that relates to the strategy and administration of a college center, program, or teaching/pedagogy.
• Additional considerations may include the development and publishing of case studies for teaching, participation in seminars on teaching methods, and other scholarly activities that contribute to the mission of the college and university.

The conversion of a Senior Lecturer appointment to a Professor of Practice appointment may occur after an individual has served as a Senior Lecturer at the University of Arizona for five or more years if the individual has taken on expanded responsibilities as noted in UHAP 3.3.03E. The candidate is required to hold a Ph.D. or other appropriate terminal degree.

 A conversion to a Professor of Practice appointment requires that a candidate possess extensive teaching and practical experience in relevant areas. In addition to the above requirements at the Senior Lecturer rank, candidates for the Professor of Practice title demonstrate excellence in the following areas:

• An extensive past and current teaching and service load.
• Truly outstanding past and current teaching and service contributions relevant to the department, college, and university as a Senior Lecturer.
• Recognition such as awards that demonstrate outstanding teaching effectiveness and innovations in course design.
• A record of engagement in the academic field that enhances the faculty member's superlative accomplishments in teaching and service, and advances the national reputation of both the candidate and the Eller College of Management. Such a record should provide evidence of activities such as, but not limited to, publishing articles in professional journals, trade journals, textbooks, technical reports, etc.; developing and publishing of case studies for teaching; participating in seminars on teaching methods; presenting at professional association meetings, teaching related and AACSB conferences, and at leading business schools; and conducting research and analysis that relates to the strategy and administration of a college center, program, or teaching/pedagogy.

 As noted at the beginning of these guidelines, UHAP requires that an appointment to a Professor of Practice be justified by increased responsibilities. These new responsibilities may include mentoring junior faculty and graduate students, supervising graduate teaching assistants, curriculum development, and sharing best teaching practices with faculty inside and outside the university. The Professor of Practice title is considered by the Eller College of Management to be a very distinguished title, and by definition is awarded rarely. As such, awarding the Professor of Practice title is limited as follows. At the time of considering the promotion of a Senior Lecturer to Professor of Practice, the following college-wide ratio must be maintained: the total number of Professors of Practice in residence in the college may not exceed 10% of the total number of tenured and tenure-eligible faculty in residence at that time.

Dismissals, non-renewals, and terminations of career-track faculty appointments are governed by UHAP 3.4.03.

III.         THE PROMOTION PROCESS

The promotion process is initiated by the candidate in consultation with the relevant department or unit head.

 Promotion Candidate Dossier

 CT faculty candidates for promotion should submit a dossier using the dossier templates and documentation from the Vice Provost for Faculty Affair; see, facultyaffairs.arizona.edu

Some sections of the dossier may be marked as N/A for "Not Applicable" if they are not relevant to the candidate's assigned duties. Note that dossier templates and documentation may change from year to year, but dossiers submitted by CT faculty should include the following:

• Dossier Section 1: Summary Data Sheet
• Dossier Section 2: Summary of Candidate's Workload Assignment
• Dossier Section 3: Departmental & College Promotion & Tenure Criteria
• Dossier Section 4: Curriculum Vitae & List of Collaborators
• Dossier Section 5: Candidate Statement
• Dossier Section 6: Teaching Portfolio
• Dossier Section 7: Evaluation of Teaching & Advising
• Dossier Section 11: Recommendations for Promotion

If candidates wish to document their leadership of curricular and outreach initiatives, and/or significant contributions to interdisciplinary programs, they may add the following sections to their dossier:

• Dossier Section 8: Optional Service and Outreach Portfolio
• Dossier Section 9: Membership in GIDPs or Other Interdisciplinary Programs
• Appendix E: Sample Letter for Research Collaborator and Professional Client, or Other Community Collaborator

In the preparation of the dossier, candidates should note the "Prepared by" information on each dossier section. The Office of the Provost provides several resources for preparing a promotion dossier. Of particular note is a set of guidelines for teaching portfolios available at facultyaffairs.arizona.edu/teaching-portfolios-and-reviews.

Letters from outside evaluators and collaborators are not required for CT faculty but may be included if the candidate so wishes. Letters from students and GTAs are of limited value, as there is potential for the candidate to exert undue influence on these students. The most valuable letters would be those from independent sources that speak to the candidate’s potential for excellence after promotion.

Promotion Review Process

The promotion review process for CT faculty follows the procedures given in UHAP 3.3.03. Reviews of CT faculty dossiers will involve the following levels: