Faculty Information

BCLASSE Promotion Guidelines

Approved 4/16/2024

OVERVIEW

The BCLASSE Tenure-Track Promotion Policy is intended to be consistent with the YSU-OEA Collective Bargaining Agreement. The Collective Bargaining Agreement takes precedence over this document and, should any inconsistencies between the two be accurately identified, the BCLASSE DAC would revise its Promotion Policy in an appropriate manner.

This policy applies to two promotion processes:

• Faculty at the rank of Assistant Professor and applying for Tenure with Promotion to Associate Professor and faculty at the rank of Associate Professor applying for promotion to Full Professor (YSU-OEA Article 10)
• Faculty at the rank of Lecturer applying for promotion to Senior Lecturer and faculty at the rank of Senior Lecturer applying for promotion to Principal Lecturer (YSU-OEA Article 10)

For candidates for promotion to Associate or Full Professor, the College Review Committee (CRC) shall examine candidates’ records in teaching, service and scholarship. The University will promote only those faculty members who have shown consistent and sustained evidence of quality performance and promise in all three areas. 

The College Review Committee (CRC) shall examine candidates’ records in teaching, service, and potentially scholarship. Per the YSU-OEA Collective Bargaining Agreement, Article 29.2, Lecturers and Senior Lecturers are responsible for “teaching with no expectations for scholarship or research, and minimal expectations for service.” Principal Lecturers, Per the YSU-OEA Agreement, Article 29.2 must have a “strong record of teaching who has demonstrated community engagement and service to the university.” Should a candidate for promotion to Senior Lecturer or Principal Lecturer submit scholarship or research with their promotion materials, it may only be viewed as a benefit to the candidates application—it may not be counted against their application for promotion. For candidates for promotion to Senior Lecturer the college shall use the same requirements for teaching and a modified set of service requirements (noted below).

The CPC shall classify candidates for Associate or Full Professor in the following groups:

The CRC shall classify Senior Lecturer and Principal Lecturer candidates in the following groups:

The faculty member is responsible for deciding the year in which the promotion review is to occur.  A faculty member must apply for Tenure with Promotion in their fifth (considered “early”) or their sixth year as a tenure-track Assistant Professor (YSU-OEA Article 10.2). Candidates applying for promotion to Professor must have six or more consecutive years at YSU at the rank of Associate Professor before the year of application (YSU-OEA Article 10.6). For promotion to Senior Lecturer the candidate must be in their fifth consecutive year of teaching or beyond or for Principal Lecturer after having been at the rank of Senior Lecturer for five or more years (YSU-OEA Article 10.6). 

The Committee shall provide a written explanation of its decision to place candidates in the “Not Recommended” groups.  

The Committee’s recommendation shall be based on an examination of the evidence prepared by the candidate. Additional evidence may be required by those seeking promotion in Education (see Appendix A for details).

The college recognizes that community engagement can be reflected in the three areas of evaluation: scholarship, service, and teaching. BCLASSE encourages community engagement in the three areas of evaluation. A demonstrated record of community engagement is required for Senior Lecturers applying for promotion to the rank of Principal Lecturer (YSU-OEA Article 29.2).

i. Teaching

• A.) written statement by the candidate describing:

1. Teaching experiences including the kinds of courses taught (e.g., GER, advanced undergraduate, graduate), discussion of approaches to the courses and discussion of successes and challenges and how challenges were addressed [mandatory];
2. Instructional evaluation evidenced by evaluation of teaching by chairpersons, colleagues, students, (i.e., university adopted course evaluations, projective essay evaluations, personalized teaching evaluations reflective of the course or field experiences) [mandatory];
3. A discussion of student evaluations of teaching and learning and indication of how they have been responded to [mandatory];
4. Supervisory activities (e.g., part-time faculty, graduate TAs, M.A. theses, independent study, student research, service learning);
5. Activities and contextual factors that may be considered (see Appendix B)

• B.) It is highly encouraged that an Appendix to the written statement include:

1. Syllabi from a variety of (but not all) courses taught; 
2. A selection of tests and assignments with indications of grading criteria from a variety (but not all) courses taught;
3. Examples of graded written work (e.g., essay exam responses, term/research papers) and other relevant forms of student assessment.;
4. Lists of conferences and workshops on teacher development that the candidate has attended with an indication of how ideas presented at workshops or conferences have been or will be implemented in courses taught by the candidate;
5. Additional activities identified in the Collective Bargaining Agreement;
6. Additional materials deemed relevant by the candidate.

II. SCHOLARSHIP *

• Sustained regular growth and progress in one’s discipline as documented by:
• A.) Essential elements:

1. The candidate shall meet the number of peer-reviewed publication or the equivalent as indicated in the department governance document, provided that this number is not less than two, in venues appropriate to the candidate’s discipline or research expertise; these venues may include: 
   1. Academic journals or creative venues;
   2. A book written by the candidate and published;
   3. A chapter in an edited collection.
   4. Refereed online publications.
2. Additional elements and activities that may be weighed with evidence from Section 1 above: 
   1. Alternative products of work appropriate to one’s discipline;
   2. Applied products of work appropriate to one’s discipline; 
   3. Other activities that may be weighed with evidence described above, such as:
      1. Book reviews or encyclopedia entries; 
      2. Editing of journals or collections of essays; 
      3. Letters of acceptance or contracts for works in progress; 
      4. Grant applications (for grants received or pending); 
      5. Conference presentations; 
      6. Appropriate discipline-related writings or publications for scholarly venues; 
      7. Textbooks. 
3. The candidate shall include a discussion of the contribution one’s scholarship makes to one’s discipline. It is incumbent on the candidate going up for promotion to make the case for the impact of their work. This can be done in a number of ways including but not limited to journal rankings or references made to the work of the candidate. 

Activities and contextual factors that may be considered (see Appendix C)

Additional materials to be considered:

1. Relevant material in the candidate’s personnel file;
2. The recommendation of the Departmental Promotions Committee and the Department Chair and letters from the Chair and from any members of the DPC who supply them.

* This section of Scholarship is NOT required for candidates to Senior Lecturer or Principal Lecturer

III. SERVICE

A written statement by the candidate listing and describing service activities in as many of the following categories as applicable, with the stipulation that for candidates for Senior Lecturer have minimal expectations for service and that candidates for Principal Lecturer must show “demonstrated community engagement and service to the university over a period of five or more years.”:

1. Service to the Department (e.g., work on sub-committees, ad hoc committees, special projects, advising students, assessment, mentoring, appointed service roles, etc.)[mandatory];
2. Service to the College and/or University (e.g., work on standing committees, ad hoc committees, special projects, appointed service roles, etc);
3. Service to the Association (e.g., work as an officer or on standing committees, ad hoc committees, special projects, etc.);
4. Service to the community (i.e., local, state, national, international); 
5. Service to the discipline (i.e., local, state, national, international) including, but not limited to:
   1. Serving as an officer or committee chair in a professional organization; 
   2. Participation in planning and conducting a professional conference; 
   3. Chairing a panel at a professional conference; 
   4. Reviewing textbooks;  
   5. Serving as a referee for a scholarly journal. 
6. Evidence of the willingness and ability of faculty to work collaboratively (or cooperatively) with other faculty, university staff, P-12 personnel and agencies in pursuit of established program, departmental, or college goals.
7. The candidate shall include a discussion of the contribution one’s service activities makes to one’s department, college, university, community, or discipline.    

Activities and contextual factors that may be considered (see Appendix D)

APPENDIX A

1. The “Chairperson’s Evaluation of Faculty Performance” form will be a primary source of information for documenting the department chairperson and dean’s evaluation of the faculty member’s progress toward promotion.

2. Another source of information is the promotion portfolio.  A faculty applicant should provide documentation that corresponds with the promotion guidelines.  The applicant is strongly encouraged to consult with his/her department chairperson/dean prior to the preparation of the promotion portfolio.

3. The chairperson will counsel the faculty member regarding his/her progress toward promotion during the formal evaluation period.  If the Chairperson indicates that progress toward promotion is unsatisfactory, then the Chair will counsel the faculty member on a regular basis as initiated by the faculty.

4. Publications are required but are not sufficient for consideration of promotion.  

APPENDIX B

The following are examples of TEACHING related activities that candidates may provide evidence of active participation:

• Evidence of contribution to student success beyond the classroom, such as mentoring, sponsorship of service learning, assistance in preparation for graduate or professional school;
• Proficiency maintenance activities designed to keep current with the theory, research, and literature of one’s professional specialization, (e.g., Specialized Professional Associations (SPAs) and instructional teaching area(s);
• Modeling best professional practices in teaching according to discipline standards (e.g., CAEP);
• Collection and analysis of Teaching assessment data;
• Instruction, preparation, and supervision;
• Field-based, alternate-site, or off –campus instruction;
• Laboratory design, preparation, instruction, supervision and other associated responsibilities;
• Measurement of student performance including the preparation, administration, grading and evaluation of tests, papers, examinations and grade reports, student teaching supervision and evaluation;
• Authentic assessment, including but not limited to projects, videos, and observations of teaching;
• Conferences with candidates and academic advisement of candidates outside of their registration needs;
• Experiments in teaching methods and teaching-oriented research;
• Writing letters of recommendations for candidates;
• Selection and procurement of books, films, and other materials for classroom or library use; 
• Periodic evaluation of library holdings and recommendation of books to be ordered by the library;
• Development of new courses and programs of study;
• Development and participation in course and program assessment activities;
• Active participation in efforts to improve student retention and graduation rates;
• Service as a member of an undergraduate or a graduate candidate’s research, honors or special project committee;
• Comprehensive exam development and/or evaluations;
• Instructional collaboration – team teaching or collaborative instruction within a department or across colleges and university, across universities, or with practitioners in the field;
• Service on Doctoral dissertation or Master’s thesis committees;
• Directing formal and informal projects for candidates, field experiences, research collaborations and presentations;
• Development and implementation of distance learning: web-based, interactive distance learning, video based, etc.;
• Establishing and maintaining a course related website.

APPENDIX C

The following are examples of SCHOLARSHIP related activities that candidates may provide evidence of active participation:

• Collaboration in grant writing, research, publishing, etc.;
• Sharing research with the public;
• Book reviews for awards and/or publication;
• Editing a professional journal;
• Serving as a referee of manuscripts that have been submitted to a journal;
• Reviewing texts in one’s field of specialization for a publisher;
• Proposal review; e.g., grants, conference presentations;
• Attendance and participation in meetings, conferences, and conventions of professional associations;
• Writing proposals for financial support of research or other projects, including academic institutes, workshops, or field-based or alternate-site projects;
• Consulting with YSU faculty on research proposals or projects;
• University-sponsored research;
• Discipline-connected consultation or discipline-connected community service;
• Invited publication in a state, regional, national or international journal;
• Invited state, regional, national or international presentation;
• Recipient of professional awards, honors, or achievements;
• Achieving and maintaining national or state board certification and/or licensure;
• Development & implementation of web-based materials/works designed to support the mission of the BCLASSE.

APPENDIX D

The following are examples of SERVICE related activities that candidates may provide evidence of active participation:

• Accreditation and program review processes, serving on standards’ committees, development of critical tasks, scoring of activities related to the state evaluation system and/or state metrics, TaskStream implementation.  
• Provision of active service and contributions to accreditation / SPA committees and preparation for accreditation (e.g., CAEP, CACREP) / SPA reports / visits;
• Service on departmental/College/University curriculum development and revision committees; 
• Participation in recruitment and retention activities;
• Leadership in the profession, as in schools and/or professional associations at state, national and/or international levels;
• Service on Department, College and University Committees;
• Service on Association committees;
• Service on Academic Senate and its committees;
• Service on University-related committees;
• Interviewing and screening candidates for student admission;
• Interviewing and screening candidates for faculty and staff appointments;
• Coordination, advisement, and supervision of student organizations or student activities not directly related to the academic program:
• Service as the designated representative of the University;
• Participation in community sponsored activities within the University;
• Discipline related public service;
• Mentoring of new, non-tenured and part time faculty;
• Activities related to General Education Requirements;
• Professional Board Memberships;
• Inservice, consultations, etc., including but not limited to: presentations to community groups and organizations; outreach/collaborative activities with community or educational groups to develop opportunities for grant writing, research, and/or program implementation;
• Community and/or school service, e.g., committees, boards, etc.;
• Development and maintenance of institutional or public service web site;
• Coordination and supervision of academic programs;
• Assigned administrative responsibilities;
• Long-term mentoring and collaboration with professional peers in the field;
• Mentoring non-tenured or part-time faculty;
• Relationships with colleagues in P-12 schools and faculty in other units of the institution to develop and refine knowledge bases, conduct research, make presentations, publish materials, and improve the quality of education for all candidates.