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UMMC Policy and Procedure Manual	E-SPH-GEN-GEN-PO-00053
Subject: SOPH Faculty Promotions for Non-Tenure Track Faculty
Revised Date: 11/17/2021	Effective Date: 4/25/2018
Prepared By: Jeanna D. Wilkes	Approved By: Natalie W. Gaughf Reviewed By: Sydney R. Murphy

John D. Bower School of Population Health

DOCUMENT TYPE: Policy

REVIEW PERIOD: 1 Year

TITLE: SOPH Faculty Promotion for Non-Tenure Track Faculty

PURPOSE: To establish a standard for appointments and promotions for non-tenure track faculty in the John D. Bower School of Population Health at the University of Mississippi Medical Center. 

POLICY: All appointments and promotions of ranked faculty members of the John D. Bower School of Population Health are made by the Board of Trustees of the University upon the recommendation of the Dean of the John D. Bower School of Population Health, the Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs, and the Chancellor of the University of Mississippi in conformity with the approved policies of the University. No appointment is official until it is approved by the Board of Trustees and announced by the Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs. 

PROCEDURE:  

Introduction. Advancement in academia depends on adequate qualification in three areas: education, research, and service. The John D. Bower School of Population Health’s (SOPH) Faculty Promotions for Non-Tenure Track Faculty Policy will assist the faculty member and the chair in preparing the required documentation for the faculty member’s promotion portfolio.

A. FACULTY TITLES, TRACKS, AND EMPHASIS AREAS

1. Faculty Titles. The following titles will be used for faculty members:
   1. Instructor: An individual who has attained the minimal degree, training, and/or scholarly productivity appropriate for the discipline. The individual may still be in training (e.g., senior post-doctoral fellow). Instructor is not a ranked faculty title.
   2. Assistant Professor: An individual with a doctoral or other appropriate terminal degree who has potential in education, research, and/or service missions of the SOPH and institution. Assistant Professor is a ranked faculty title.
   3. Associate Professor: An individual with a doctoral or other appropriate terminal degree who substantially contributes to the education, research, and/or service missions of the SOPH and institution. Associate Professor is a ranked faculty title.
   4. Professor: An individual with a doctoral or other appropriate terminal degree who continually contributes substantially to the education, research, and/or service missions of the SOPH and institution and who has gained national and/or international recognition. Professor is a ranked faculty title. 
      

It is emphasized that "time in rank" is a consideration. Promotion is based on evidence of excellence or competence in education, research, and service, and it is based on evidence of commitment to the SOPH and institution. In the case of new faculty recruits to the SOPH, "time in rank" at other accredited academic institutions is not automatically awarded but may be considered on a case-by-case basis at the time of hire.

1. Tracks. There are two tracks: tenure and non-tenure.

Tenure track faculty must demonstrate effort in all three emphasis areas, to reflect the mission areas of the institution: education, research, and service. Non-tenure track faculty are required to demonstrate effort in two emphasis areas. This policy describes the non-tenure track process.

Faculty members, with concurrence of the SOPH department chair, may apply for movement from a tenure track to a non-tenure track position or vice versa but only if a position exists in the appropriate track and the faculty member qualifies and is accepted for such a position.

1. Emphasis Areas. The following three mission areas are recognized as emphasis areas: education, research, and service. At the time of promotion evaluation, contributions in all three mission areas will be considered; however, non-tenure track faculty are required to demonstrate significant contributions and meet SOPH standards for promotion in two emphasis areas.. At the time of initial employment, the SOPH department chair with the input of the faculty member will determine a faculty rank, track, and emphasis areas for the faculty member. Ranked faculty members will be evaluated for promotion according to faculty title, track, emphasis areas, and guidelines established by the SOPH Promotion and Tenure Committee. Criteria are provided as reference standards on which to evaluate faculty.  Faculty members with the concurrence of the SOPH department chair may change emphasis areas.

B. APPOINTMENT OF INSTRUCTOR AND APPOINTMENT/PROMOTION TO ASSISTANT PROFESSOR

Initial appointment immediately out of training would be expected to be at the Instructor level unless a faculty member has completed extra training and scholarly productivity beyond that which is expected. Neither the appointment of an Instructor nor the appointment or promotion to the rank of Assistant Professor require action of the SOPH Promotion and Tenure Committee. The SOPH department requesting the appointment of an Instructor or the appointment or promotion of a faculty to the rank of Assistant Professor must ensure that the faculty member’s CV and portfolio have been updated in the institutional repository, which is currently MySite, and complete the steps for an Off-Cycle Faculty Promotion request process with the UMMC Office of Faculty Affairs.

C. APPOINTMENT AND PROMOTION TO ASSOCIATE PROFESSOR AND PROFESSOR

Appointment or promotion to the rank of Associate Professor or Professor does require action of the SOPH Promotion and Tenure Committee. The faculty member will be considered for a faculty rank, track, and emphasis area.

D. SECONDARY APPOINTMENTS

A faculty member who significantly contributes to the SOPH in a manner that is not directly and explicitly a part of the primary appointment in another UMMC school may be considered for a secondary appointment in the SOPH. A secondary appointment may occur upon recommendation by the secondary department chair and primary department chair to the SOPH dean. Secondary appointments do not require action of the SOPH Promotion and Tenure Committee. A secondary appointment is usually appointed at a similar rank as the primary appointment.

E. TIMING FOR CONSIDERATION OF PROMOTION

To be nominated for promotion from one faculty rank to another, the faculty member must have completed at least five (5) full fiscal years in the lower rank using the calendar of July 1 to June 30 beginning after placement in at least an Assistant Professor level position. Part-time faculty are subject to meeting the guidelines with depth and breadth. Only in exceptional circumstances, will nomination for promotion be considered sooner than five (5) full fiscal years in rank. UMMC does not support “skipping rank” for promotion. Except in unusual circumstances to be determined by the dean, the faculty member shall not be promoted to associate professor or professor except at the beginning of the fiscal year. Reconsideration or a passed over promotion or consideration for higher promotion will require a new nominating letter from the department chair along with new supporting documentation.

F. DOCUMENTATION REQUIRED FOR PROMOTION

Before a promotion can be considered, there must be adequate documentation from both internal and external sources.

1. Internal Documentation. The internal documentation for promotion of a faculty member will be the responsibility of the faculty member and respective department chair and shall consist of the following items
   1. Faculty member:
      1. The faculty member’s complete and updated curriculum vitae (CV) (in MySite);
      2. The faculty member’s complete and updated portfolio (in MySite);
   2. Department Chair:
      1. A summary recommendation from the departmental promotion and tenure committee.
      2. A letter from the department chair in support of the candidate.
2. External Documentation. As much information as possible about the candidate and the candidate’s national stature should be obtained from a good cross-section of external sources. Three external to UMMC reviewers should be chosen carefully by the candidate and the chair to provide a fair and impartial evaluation of the candidate’s achievements in comparison to faculty of a similar rank at comparable universities or health science centers. In extenuating circumstances, two external reviewers may be allowed with approval of the dean and department chair. The External Reviewer Relationship to Candidate Recommendation and Evaluation Form should only be requested from external reviewers by the department chair or the SOPH Promotion and Tenure Committee chair. Furthermore, it should be stipulated that the information is confidential.
   
   

G. CHAIR RECOMMENDATION

Both the primary responsibility for the initiation of the process for promotion rests with the candidate, and the primary responsibility for assembling the CV and portfolio documentation rests with the candidate. Primary responsibility for the required letter from the chair rests with the chair. The chair can best interpret individual efforts in terms of overall departmental goals and objectives. In a cohesive and well-integrated unit, individual members assume responsibilities on the basis of the interest, capabilities, and requirements of the group. Thus, it is incumbent upon the department chair to collect all the relevant data and prepare a letter of recommendation to be addressed to the dean of the SOPH. The chair should provide a letter with complete documentation (i.e., the CV and portfolio) as to why the candidate is being recommended for promotion. It should be specific in that examples of the candidate's accomplishments should be included in every section dealing with the three areas under consideration. It should explicitly state the areas in which the candidate's record is considered excellent and competent. The letter should highlight accomplishments of the faculty in the emphasis area(s), the faculty member’s value to the department, school, and institution, and the rationale to support the faculty for promotion.

H. DEPARTMENTAL PROMOTION AND TENURE COMMITTEE

Each department should have a promotion and tenure committee that conducts a review of the faculty member(s) being considered for promotion. The format of the review is determined by the individual departments, but should involve senior faculty when possible. The departmental promotion and tenure committee shall be appointed by the department chair. The candidate should provide the committee with a complete curriculum vitae and portfolio. The committee will review the documentation provided for each candidate, vote, and make recommendations to the SOPH Promotions and Tenure Committee.

I. SOPH PROMOTION AND TENURE COMMITTEE

The SOPH Promotion and Tenure Committee shall be appointed by the SOPH dean. A duty of the committee shall be to determine that appropriate documentation has been collected for each respective candidate prior to review. The committee will review, vote, and make recommendations to the SOPH dean. Any member of the committee who has a conflict of interest with a candidate shall not be privy to the discussion of the candidate. After discussion is complete on each candidate, a secret ballot shall be taken, committee members will vote yes or no to recommend the candidate for promotion and/or tenure, and the results of this shall be known only to the Dean. The secret ballot that comes from the SOPH Promotions and Tenure Committee shall be considered to be advice to the SOPH dean.

1. Membership:
   1. Primary Associate Professor or Professor rank in the SOPH. When possible, the committee will include at least two members who have attained tenure.
   2. The appointment to serve as chair of the SOPH Promotion and Tenure Committee shall be made by the dean of the SOPH or dean’s designee. The chair of the SOPH Promotion and Tenure Committee will serve for one year, but can be appointed for additional terms as chair by the dean or dean’s designee.
   3. The dean, or the dean’s designee, will appoint a minimum of five (5) regular members, three (3) of whom are primary faculty in the SOPH, and two (2) from other UMMC schools. If there are not a sufficient number of eligible faculty members, additional committee members may be included from other UMMC schools.
      

J. PROMOTION PROCESS

1. On or after July 1^st, SOPH department chairs will be notified about faculty eligible to apply for promotion and/or tenure. SOPH department chairs will notify department promotion and tenure committee chairs and faculty.
2. By August 31, faculty should meet with their chair and/or departmental promotion and tenure committee chair to discuss the eligibility criteria, review the promotion and tenure policy and procedure, and initiate the promotion and/or tenure process.
3. By October 1, faculty must submit an updated CV and an updated Portfolio in the institutional repository, which is currently MySite.
4. The department chair or department promotion and tenure committee chair should request External Reviewer Relationship to Candidate Recommendation and Evaluation Forms by October 31.
5. External Reviewer Relationship to Candidate Recommendation and Evaluation Forms must be received by January 31.
6. Department chair letters must be submitted to the SOPH dean by January 31.
7. The SOPH departmental promotion and tenure committee will review the completed applications, vote, and submit recommendations to the SOPH Promotion and Tenure Committee for consideration by February 28.
8. SOPH Promotion and Tenure Committee will review the applications and recommendations from the departmental promotion and tenure committee, vote, and submit recommendations to the SOPH dean for consideration by March 31.
9. SOPH dean will be the final authority for promotion recommendations.

SCOPE: SOPH Faculty

REFERENCES: None

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APPENDIX