Physics & Astronomy Policy Statement: Promotion and Tenure
Adopted May 3, 2005
This departmental policy document is supported by and consistent with the logic and criteria contained in the Physics & Astronomy Faculty Evaluation and Merit document that was unanimously approved by the department on February 16, 2005.
Faculty in the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Appalachian State University are expected to exhibit excellence in all teaching duties normally associated with such a position. In addition, it is expected that the faculty member will in a collegial manner participate in physics and/or astronomy related scholarship and other activities attendant to the operation of the department, such as committee work, student advising, preparation of reports, curriculum review, and faculty meetings.
At each annual conference, the faculty member's planned scholarly activities and percent division of work time between teaching, research, and service are discussed with the chair. In this regard, teaching and research carry minimum weights of 40% and 25%, respectively. Unless negotiated with the department, the Provost, and a national physics or astronomy organization, service can be at a maximum 20% of the faculty member’s planned workload. They should reach an agreement on this plan and the time division should be specified in the planning section of the annual report (this can be changed each year by mutual agreement). At each year's annual evaluation of faculty, the chair should discuss with the faculty member his/her performance, and should voice concerns, if any, as to the faculty member's need to improve performance in accordance with the agreed upon work plan. The purpose of this discussion is to give each faculty member a rough idea of the probability for tenure, promotion, or both, since the DPC is also involved in the decision.
The following paragraphs and sections provide the general criteria for promotion and tenure in the department of physics and astronomy. In this regard, promotion and tenure decisions made by the DPC and department chair will be made primarily on the basis of contributions and achievements of the faculty member that can be directly identified with the itemized criteria outlined in this document and those described in the Departmental Faculty Evaluation and Merit Document. However, it is understood that these departmental policy documents are not all inclusive. As such, the DPC and department chair will use common sense and departmental collegiality to make final promotion and tenure decisions that will be in the best long-term interest of the department of physics and astronomy.
A) Tenure and/or Promotion to Associate Professor: Tenure and the rank of associate professor require that the faculty member demonstrates high quality performance in the areas of teaching, scholarship, and service as supported by the weights and criteria mentioned previously.
Teaching/Instruction: must be excellent as measured by materials and evidence provided by the faculty member, peer-evaluations, and student evaluations; plus evidence that the candidate will contribute to the enhancement of the department’s curriculum.
Scholarship/Research: high quality in an established program of research publications and scholarly paper presentations. This scholarship should be able to stand scrutiny beyond the immediate confines of the department; the faculty member must demonstrate potential for continued scholarly contributions in physics, astronomy, or their associated pedagogy research; a clear record of active scholarship including departmental majors; has maintained the average productivity for scholarship listed in the College of Arts & Sciences Policy on Reassign Time for Scholarship; has prepared extramural proposals for scholarly work as principal investigator and received strong priority scores from the review process.
Service: Evidence of service and leadership potential in the department, university, and physics and/or astronomy related work.
B) Promotion to Professor: The rank of professor requires that the faculty member continues to demonstrate all of the attributes associated with the rank of an associate professor and demonstrate evidence of leadership of value to the department.
Leadership: The rank of professor assumes that the individual has taken and will continue to take a leadership role in the academic life of the department. It is understood that leadership develops over time. Although concrete measurements of leadership are open to interpretation by the DPC and department chair, the following are possible indicators of leadership: stature as a scholar and mentor within the discipline; ability to represent the department and university externally and to enhance its reputation; commitment to and evidence of leadership in professional organizations in physics or astronomy; evidence of senior role activities within the university.
Teaching/Instruction: must be excellent as measured by materials and evidence provided by the faculty member, peer-evaluations, and student evaluations; demonstrated and commitment to continuing contribution to curriculum development
Scholarship/Research: Continued evidence of high quality in publications and in scholarly paper presentations including our students; demonstrated ability to attract extramural funding as principal investigator on scholarly grant applications; productivity consistent with College guidelines for reassign time. This scholarship demonstrates the ability to stand scrutiny beyond the immediate confines of the department.
Service: Evidence of high quality service to the department, university, and/or the physics or astronomy external community
C. LIST of ACHEIVEMENT ITEMS for PROMOTION & TENURE DECISIONS:
1. Activities that lead to publication of new, original scientific data, results, and/or conclusions in scholarly journals, conference proceedings, professional society bulletins, books, scientific or pedagogical magazines, web publishing.
2. Activities that lead to the presentation of results at international, national, state, or regional professional society meetings. These do not include departmental, college, university or local affiliate meetings - such activities are in the nature of service.
3. Activities that lead to publication of novel processes, apparatus, Methods, designs, etc., in a patent disclosure or a
4. Recognition of scholarly activity by others, including acknowledgements, awards, and citations.
5. The writing, submission, and administration of grants related to research projects.
6. Direction of research or thesis projects carried out by either undergraduate or graduate students.
7. Development and management of facilities for use in research (development of labs, work areas, observatory facilities, acquisition of surplus or donated equipment, etc.).
8. Reviewing, refereeing, or editing of research-oriented publications, grant proposals, or draft manuscripts of these.
1 . Providing services to the public, where those services are related to the disciplines of physics or astronomy, and are rendered without personal profit.
2. Serving on committees of, chairing sessions of, or serving as an officer of international, national, or regional physics and/or astronomy professional societies.
3. The writing, submission, and administration of grants related to physics and/or astronomy service projects.
4. Presentation of seminars or talks related to physics or astronomy to campus, local, regional or larger groups, which are not composed of members of one's own profession. (Example: presentations at teachers' meetings.)
5. Providing consultation services, with or without charge, on areas of expertise in physics or astronomy.
6. Providing support for the local schools, in the form of teacher workshops, science fair judging, coordination of equipment loans, giving presentations and demonstrations.
7. Coordination of speakers, colloquial workshops, or major regional, local or national meetings of departmental relevance.
8. Sponsorship of physics and/or astronomy related student organizations, such as the Society of Physics Students.
Instructional Activities
1. Writing or revision of laboratory manuals.
2. Development of new demonstrations, experiments, and related equipment and lab exercises, especially where these activities lead to the publication of a paper or presentation of the work at a regional or national professional meeting.
3. Development of facilities for instructional use (development of labs, work areas, observatory facilities, acquisition of surplus or donated equipment, etc.).
4. Writing of pedagogical publications, such as textbooks, papers, magazine articles.
5. The writing, submission, and administration of grants related to instruction.
6. Development of new courses or improvement of courses.
7. Reviewing, refereeing, or editing publications, grant proposals, or draft manuscripts of a pedagogical nature.