Recommendation from the
Faculty Senate Coordinating Committee on Education (Sheldon Pollack, Chair)
with the concurrence of the Executive
Committee (Jeff Jordan, Chair) for the request to approve a resolution of the University of Delaware Faculty Senate, regarding
certain provisions in the Collective Bargaining Agreement that affect decisions
on faculty promotions and tenure (attachment)
WHEREAS, Article 11.5 of the Collective Bargaining
Agreement entered into by and between the administration of the University of
Delaware (the “Administration”) and the University of Delaware Chapter of the
AAUP (the “AAUP”), effective July 1, 2010 through June 30, 2013 (the “CBA”),
includes certain provisions that affect the standards applied in decisions on
faculty promotions and tenure; specifically, such provisions require that in
decisions on faculty promotions and tenure, proportionate weight must be given
to the candidate’s workload with respect to service, teaching, and
research/scholarship/creative activity; and
WHEREAS, establishing the standards and requirements that apply in
decisions on faculty promotions and tenure is a responsibility delegated to the
Faculty of the University of Delaware, subject to approval by the
Administration, and exercised by the committees of the Faculty Senate and the
several colleges and divisions, as provided for under Chapter 2 (II)(D)(2) of
the Bylaws of the University of Delaware and Section 1, Subsection XIV of the
Bylaws and Regulations of the University Faculty Senate; and
WHEREAS, such provisions in Article 11.5 of the CBA that require that proportionate weight be given to the candidate’s workload effectively limit the discretion and authority of the Faculty inso establishing the standards and requirements that apply in decisions on faculty promotions and tenure; be it therefore
RESOLVED, that the Faculty Senate respectfully requests that the
Administration and the AAUP, with all due haste, at the next contract negotiation or sooner, come together to amend
Article 11.5 of the CBA to remove the aforementioned provisions that limit the
discretion and authority of the Faculty Senate to establish the standards that
apply in decisions on faculty promotions and tenure.
Article 11.5 of the CBA:
“In the distribution of merit pay and in the promotion and tenure
process and in the peer review process, the weights assigned to teaching,
research/scholarship/creative activity and service must be directly related to
the workload developed with the faculty member for the period of review. The relative proportions of teaching,
research/scholarship/creative activity and service necessarily vary widely
across the faculty. For instance, in promotion and tenure decisions, the
weighting given to each of these three areas shall be proportionate to its
weighting in the applicant’s assigned workload. The criteria written by each
department to fit its particular circumstances and needs must accommodate all
possible combinations of workload.”
Recommendation from the Committee on Rules (Anu Sivaraman, Chair) with
the concurrence of the Executive Committee (Jeff Jordan, Chair) for the request
to approve a resolution to Define Tenure
at the University of Delaware (attachment)
(attachment
1)
WHEREAS, promotion
and tenure is of fundamental importance to the Faculty and Administration of
the University of Delaware, and
WHEREAS, the
current Faculty Handbook does not contain a definition
and/or description of tenure, and
WHEREAS,
revisions to the Faculty Handbook require
Faculty Senate approval, be it therefore
Tenure
is granted to faculty by the University to safeguard academic freedom and
promote the free and open discussion of issues on campus. Tenure is a formal
assurance that a faculty member’s professional security and academic freedom
will not be placed in question without the observance of full academic due
process. Tenure provides that no person continuously retained as a full-time
faculty member beyond the specified probationary period may thereafter be
dismissed without adequate cause No
faculty member who has been awarded tenure may be dismissed, demoted, or
terminated without adequate cause
(within the meaning of Section 4.1.15 of this Faculty Handbook on “Terminations
and Non-Renewals” and subject to the procedures and protections provided
therein) or in the case of extraordinary financial circumstances (as provided
for in Article 14.1 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) and Section
3.4 of this Faculty Handbook on “Faculty Involvement Related to Extraordinary
Financial Circumstances”). The award of tenure carries with it certain
responsibilities and obligations as well. These include the obligation of
tenured faculty to maintain high standards of teaching, scholarship,
research, and service, and to perform in all
their professional activities in accordance with the applicable policies of the
University.