fsfaculty: Promotion doc. for non-tenure track faculty

Faculty Senate created an ad hoc committee to write a promotion document for non-tenure track faculty. A promotion document will accomplish the following:

1. None of the current procedures have been formalized. This document permits colleges and units to create promotion procedures for non-tenure track faculty.

2. The procedures for academic promotion and for non-tenure track promotion will be more consistent. As a result, an associate professor and an associate research professor will have similar stature.

3. Promotion procedures across units will be more uniform.

4. The procedures will be less administrative driven since peer review and external peer reviews will be required.

5. Achieving a national reputation will be the common characteristic of all candidates for promotion and tenure at MSU.

6. Each unit or department with the approval of the immediate supervisor will establish the standards for promotion. The promotion standards will be approved by a college promotion committee and appropriate dean/director. In this way, the standards for promotion will be written and evaluated by people most familiar with the standards of the discipline.

The major elements of the promotion process will be these:

1. For promotion, non-tenured faculty will be reviewed by a department-level promotion and tenure committee or by a promotion committee composed of non-tenured faculty, if appropriate.

2. The applicant will be reviewed by external reviewers.

3. The applicant will be reviewed by the immediate supervisor/department head.

4. The applicant will be reviewed by a college or unit promotion committee of non-tenured faculty.

5. The applicant will be reviewed by a dean or director.

6. Recommendations will be made by appropriate vice president/s.

Please send us your comments by July 20 to either Mail Stop: 9728 or mgoodman@comm.msstate.edu.

Mark Goodman

Faculty Senate