5.3 Pre-Tenure Review

1.1.  Policy Statement – Pre-Tenure Review

The university pre-tenure review follows the guidelines of the USG BOR Policy Manual. The purpose of the pre-tenure review is to (i) provide tenure-track faculty feedback on progress toward tenure, (ii) identify areas needing improvement, and (iii) provide guidance in preparing the professional portfolio to support the review for tenure. All tenure track faculty members shall also comply with discipline-specific expectations developed by each academic department or Library.

1.2.  Pre-Tenure Review Committee

At the beginning of each spring semester, the deans will appoint, from the pool of associate and professors in all the departments or equivalent academic units from all of the university campuses, to serve on the Pre-Tenure Review Committees (“Pre-TRC”).  The Pre-TRC will conduct the pre-tenure review of eligible faculty members in their respective departments based on the departmental, college and university criteria for tenure.  Upon completion of the review, the Pre-TRC will provide the department heads/coordinators written letters of their findings (“Pre-TRC Letter”), which will include (i) explicit, informed and candid feedback for each area, including teaching, service and scholarship, concerning the faculty member’s accomplishments, quality of contributions, and weaknesses or deficiencies; and (ii) guidance on improving performance in each area, including teaching, service and scholarship, particularly with reference to recommendations for faculty development activities that might address deficiencies in the faculty members’ supporting documentation.

1.3.  Criteria for Pre-Tenure Review

All tenure-track faculty members at the rank of assistant professor or higher will go through the pre-tenure review in the third year of employment at the university.  The criteria to be used when conducting a pre-tenure review are (i) effectiveness in teaching; (ii) service; and (iii) scholarship.

1.4.  Timing for Pre-Tenure Review

The pre-tenure review process will be conducted for faculty members as follows:

• No prior credit toward tenure – during the third year of service at the university.
• One year of credit toward tenure – during the second year of service at the university.
• Two years credit toward tenure – during the first year of service at the university.
• Three years credit toward tenure – during the first year of service at the university.

In cases where faculty members have been granted credit toward tenure, consideration may be given to supporting documentation related to work done prior to joining the faculty at the university, particularly with reference to effectiveness in teaching and scholarship.

1.5.  Procedure for Pre-Tenure Review

The purpose of these guidelines is to assist faculty members in presenting their professional experiences and accomplishments in the best possible context and to assure equity of consideration during the pre-tenure review process.  If requested by the department head/coordinator, dean, or Pre-TRC, the faculty members may add materials or documents that were incomplete or under review at the time of the original submission. 

1.5.1.     Documentation

1. The following documentation will be presented in a university electronic portfolio system:

• Cover sheet providing the following information in order as applicable: 
• Name of college and department 
• Name of individual 
• Degrees earned (highest first) 
• Area(s) of specialization with the discipline 
• Current title 
• Date of hire and total number of years at the University including the current academic year 
• Years at the university in a tenure-track position 
• Credit awarded toward tenure at the time of hire 
• Dates of temporary suspension of the tenure process (e.g.: leaves of absence – refer to faculty handbook) 

2. Current CV and a summary of documentation if not included in the CV 

Teaching 

• List of all courses taught (prefix, number, title, semester) 
• Course/curriculum development 
• Supervision of students’ honors, research, thesis, creative activities 
• Published teaching materials 
• Honors and awards associated with teaching 

Service 

• Academic advisement – number of undergraduate and graduate students for the current academic year 
• Published service materials 
• Committee service (names, dates, roles) 
• Department 
• College 
• University 
• University System of Georgia 
• Professional organizations (names, dates, roles) 
• State 
• Regional 
• National 
• International 
• Honors and awards associated with service  

Scholarship 

• Updated degrees – institutions and dates 
• Advanced studies or continuing education 
• Professional certifications Publications and creative activities with complete bibliographic information 
• Academic and professional activities 
• Contracts and grants 
• Honors and awards for professional achievements 

3. Departmental Promotion &Tenure guidelines  [login required]

4. Summary statements of each area in teaching, service, and scholarship up to six pages 

5. Performance evaluations – annual self-reports with department head/coordinator and dean’s evaluations for the years under consideration 

6. Letter from the primary campus academic administrator if different than department head/coordinator 

7. Student evaluation summaries and complete sets of evaluations with students’ comments for all years under consideration 

8. Letter from the Pre-TRC – added after the review with explicit recommendations 

9. Letter from department head/coordinator – added after the review with explicit recommendations and a faculty development plan, if needed.

1.5.2.     Process and Timeline - Please see the Master Calendar for P&T dates

1.5.2.1.     Faculty members submit the documentation, identified in Section 2.5.1 above, electronically via D2L by the first Monday in February.

1.5.2.2.     The department head/coordinator shall review the faculty member’s documentation and make either a positive or negative recommendation.

1.5.2.3.     Members of the Pre-TRC shall review the faculty member’s documentation and provide the Pre-TRC letter.  The Pre-TRC will provide department heads/coordinators Pre-TRC letter by the first Monday in March. 

1.5.2.4.     The department heads/coordinators will meet with each faculty member and review and discuss the Pre-TRC letter by the first Monday in May.

1.5.2.5.     If a faculty member desires, he has the opportunity to prepare written responses to the Pre-TRC letter, and the written responses will be appended to the Pre-TRC letter. 

1.5.2.6.     By the fourth Monday in May, the department heads/coordinators and the faculty members should sign the Pre-TRC letters and file the pre-tenure documentation in the appropriate department and/or college personnel files.  The department heads/coordinators will furnish the appropriate deans their explicit recommendations by the first Monday in June. 

1.5.2.7.     The deans will submit to the provost the list of names of faculty members who complete the pre-tenure review by the third Monday in June. 

Once a faculty member has received the Pre-TRC letter, he/she should utilize it to further develop a record of teaching effectiveness, service and scholarship that will promote a successful tenure application. It is important that faculty members understand that the recommendations in the Pre-TRC letters in no way represents a contract between the university and the faculty member, nor is it a guarantee that tenure will be granted.