Promotion & Tenure of The College of Communication and Fine Arts

The College of Communication and Fine Arts Tenure and Promotion Committee receives and reviews a candidate’s credentials following review and recommendation by the Departmental Tenure and Promotion Committee and / or the appropriate departmental faculty and the candidate’s department chair.  Each candidate for tenure and / or promotion should review the departmental policies and those of the university before preparing his / her dossier.  Departmental guidelines are available on their individual web sites.   Other pertinent information is available on the Office of the Provost web site http://academics.memphis.edu/provost/ and in the faculty handbook http://www.memphis.edu/facultyhandbook/. The university calendar for tenure and promotion is available at http://academics.memphis.edu/provost/tpevents2.htm. A printable (pdf ) version of the Tenure and Promotion Guidelines and Procedures is available at http://ccfa.memphis.edu/.

Guidelines and Procedures for Promotion and Tenure

Membership in the College Tenure and Promotion Committee:
* Only tenured associate or full professors are eligible for membership on the Tenure and Promotion Committee.
 
* Each department in the College will have one elected member on the committee.
 
* The term of service is two (2) consecutive years.
 
* One-half of the committee will rotate off each year while one-half will be retained from the previous year.
 
* Members of the committee should not serve consecutive terms.
 
* Faculty members who are themselves applying for promotion may not serve on the committee.
 
* Committee members must excuse themselves for the discussion of candidates from their own departments and may not vote upon these candidates.
 
Operating Procedures of the College Tenure and Promotion Committee:
* The candidate’s dossier, letters from external reviewers, recommendations by the departmental tenure and promotion committee and/or the appropriate departmental faculty, along with the chair’s recommendation are sent forward to the College Tenure and Promotion Committee by the designated deadline.  Transmittal of these materials must be from the departmental chair, via the Dean, to the College T & P Committee.
 
* The Committee, through its chair, may request other pertinent information from the departmental T&P Committee.  Such information should be transmitted by the candidate’s department chair via the dean to the College Committee.
 
* The College Committee reviews the departmental and university guidelines and standards and makes a determination regarding the candidate’s achievement of those standards.  The Committee is also charged with evaluating the candidate’s potential for future growth and development based on the materials presented.
 
* Individual Departmental Tenure and Promotion Committees and/or appropriate faculty bodies should record and report votes by specified number.  If a department wishes to submit a minority report it must be submitted with the committee and chair recommendations.
 
* At the College Tenure and Promotion Committee, voting will be by secret ballot.  All members, except those who have excused themselves, are eligible to vote.  Each member shall vote yes, no, or abstain.
 
* Because promotion to associate professor accompanies tenure in all cases, unless that rank has already been attained, the vote for tenure shall also be the vote for associate professor, where applicable.
 
* In all decisions on tenure or promotion, the Committee shall include a written rationale for its vote reflecting the Committee’s discussion.  A minority report, if one is made, should be included with the committee report.
 
* The committee chair will forward the final report and recommendations to the Dean.
 
* The Dean prepares a recommendation based on the available material and forwards all appropriate forms, his/her recommendation, and those of the Department Chair, the College T & P Committee, and Department Tenure and Promotion Committee and/or the appropriate departmental faculty to the Office of the Provost.
 
* When a senior faculty member is hired with the expectation of tenure, the Committee will convene a special meeting to examine the faculty member’s credentials.  The Committee’s recommendation will be sent forward through the Dean, Provost, and President in time for consideration at the Tennessee Board of Regent’s first meeting of the academic year.
 
* Committee deliberations must be considered and kept strictly confidential at both the department and college level.