Bylaws (05/1/12)

These departmental Bylaws, policies or rules are subject to the current laws and actions of the Regents and to other University policies and procedures as described generally in the Faculty Handbook and as subsequently revised. Each Departmental by-law, policy or rule is intended to be interpreted and applied in a manner consistent with current Regents laws and actions and other University policies and procedures. In the event of a conflict, Regent laws and actions and other policies and procedures of the University shall control.

1.0     The Department

1.1    The Department is created by action of the Board of Regents.

1.2    The Chair of the Department is charged with the administration of the Department. He/She is also responsible for the preparation of the budget, salary recommendations, the arrangement of the teaching schedule, the assignment of duties to individual staff members, the recruitment of new staff members, and the business affairs of the Department. Department chairs will be subject to a comprehensive performance evaluation at least every four years. The evaluation will be conducted by the dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and the departmental Executive Committee as per the College’s Policy Statement on the Reappointment of Sitting Chairs. As part of the evaluation process, all faculty members in the unit and other departmental constituencies will be consulted.

1.3    The Chair will be initially appointed or reappointed as per the Laws of the Regents and other pertinent University regulations.  The length of each term will be four years and the Chair may serve only two terms consecutively.

1.4    In the case of an internal search for Chair, the Department as a whole will meet with the candidate(s) for the position and discuss with him/her/them issues germane to the unit. Subsequently, the faculty will vote on the candidate(s) in order to make a formal recommendation to the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. Sitting chairs wishing to stand for reappointment will have to undergo a comprehensive performance evaluation as outlined in 1.2 and in full compliance with other institutional policies.

1.5    The Chair will designate one person from among tenured and tenure track faculty to serve as Associate Chair of Undergraduate Studies and one person from among tenured and tenure track faculty to serve as Associate Chair of Graduate Studies. Length of terms will be at the discretion of the Chair.

1.5.1 The duties of the Associate Chair of Undergraduate Studies will be to coordinate the activities of all undergraduate advisors, chair the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee, give approval to Spanish majors for courses taken at CU and abroad, supervise the transfer of credits, manage enrollment, waitlists, and oversee pre-requisites, chair the department’s Grade-Appeal Committee, serve as the contact person for all academic inquiries regarding the undergraduate program, evaluate and approve incomplete grades, mediate in instructor/student conflicts, and interpret and advise on university and department regulations for undergraduate studies, and substitute for the Chair when required.

1.5.2 The duties of the Associate Chair of Graduate Studies will be to coordinate the activities of all graduate advisors, supervise the transfer of credits, interpret all rules and regulations pertaining to the graduate program, chair the Graduate Committee, oversee the graduate student admission process, supervise the drop and add period for graduate students, monitor the graduate students' progress, control and supervise enrollment in graduate seminars, carry out recruitment activities for the Graduate Program, serve as the contact person for all academic inquiries regarding the graduate program, serve as liaison between the Department and the Graduate School, supervise the fulfillment of all requirements for graduation, nominate candidates of University Fellowships when required, and substitute for the Chair when required.  

1.6      The department includes the following teaching ranks: Professors, Associate Professors, Assistant Professors, Senior Instructors, Full-Time Instructors (IBOR), Part-Time Instructors (also known as "Lecturers"), GPTIs, and TAs.

1.7      Department Documents

1.7.1 All Department documents regarding Department procedures and policies will be archived and made available through the Department website.

1.7.2 New policy documents and amendments to existing documents shall be proposed by ad-hoc committees designated by the Chair, including, when appropriate, Associate Chairs. Any such proposal or amendment will be subject to approval by the voting membership of the Faculty.

2.0    Voting

2.1        Voting Membership of the Department

The voting membership of the faculty shall consist of all full-time or part-time persons (exclusive of visiting faculty) at the rank of Senior Instructor and above in the Department of Spanish and Portuguese. Included are members holding the rank of Senior Instructor, who are not currently working for an advanced degree at the University of Colorado at Boulder, and who hold a full-time academic-year appointment. Retired professors are not voting members of the Department regardless of rank or designation. In the case of new tenure-track faculty who start ABD with the temporary rank of Instructor, they will not be able to vote before defending their dissertation and achieving the rank of Assistant Professor. Each voting member regardless of rank has one vote and the majority of votes always carries the motion.  

2.1.1 Full-time instructors who have held the position at this rank for a minimum of two years, have undergone the annual merit review process, and whose reappointment has been voted on by the voting faculty (Senior Instructor rank and above), will have one vote as a group in the election of the Chair.  The voting process will be as follows:

1) Each year these instructors will elect a representative from their rank to attend Full department faculty meetings (i.e. meetings with the Deans, meetings where general departmental announcements will be made that affect all ranks etc.) and report back to the other instructors.
2) When a new chair is elected, all instructors who meet the above requirements will attend presentations by the candidates for chair and vote amongst themselves by secret ballot. The instructor representative will then cast the one group instructor vote in the form of a secret ballot for the candidate who wins this preliminary vote. In the case of a tie in the preliminary instructor vote, the instructor vote will be split between the candidates.
3) A faculty member who has been hired for a tenure track position but arrives ABD and thus has their position redefined as an instructor, will be allowed to cast a vote for chair as part of this group during his or her first year but will not be allowed to vote on any other issues until he or she completes the Ph.D.

2.2    General voting procedures

2.2.1 All matters to be voted on at a meeting will be announced in the agenda circulated before the meeting at least 24 hours before the meeting.

2.2.2 Quorum is defined as two thirds of the voting members of the Department. Voting members of the Department who have sent absentee ballots will not be counted towards quorum. 

2.2.3 Secret ballots are always used when voting on personnel matters. For all other matters secret ballots will be used by all voting members if there is a seconded motion to use them.

2.2.4 Absentee ballots. The assembled members of the faculty will vote on whether to accept or reject an absentee ballot.

2.3    Voting Within Committees

2.3.1 Ex-officio members of committees shall not vote. Committee chairs shall vote as members of their respective committees.

2.3.2 Student members of committees shall participate and vote except on matters concerning faculty or student evaluation.

2.3.3 All voting committee members shall determine voting procedures.

3.0    Committees and Other Responsibilities

Constitution of committees and other responsibilities in the Department and in the University at large: Before announcing the make-up of committees, the Chair will ask all faculty members their preferences regarding participation in committees and other service responsibilities. The goal is to accommodate faculty’s interests and career development to the extent possible, and to guarantee rotation of responsibilities among the faculty. A departmental bulletin listing committee assignments will be distributed annually. Minutes can provide a valuable record of decisions made in committee; any committee meeting in which a vote is taken upon a matter of interest beyond the committee should record the result of the vote.

3.1      The Executive Committee will serve in an advisory role to the Chair.

3.1.1 Composition: The Chair is an ex-officio member and as such cannot vote. Four representatives, one each from the full professors, the associate professors, the assistant professors and the full-time senior instructors will be elected each spring by the voting members of each of those groups. Terms will begin with each academic year. A vacancy occurring during an academic year shall be filled by special election within the pertinent group. The departmental Chair will chair this committee.

3.1.2  Elections to Executive Committee shall be held by secret ballot: voting members will be asked to sign and seal the envelope in which the ballot is placed. Ballots in unsigned envelopes will not be counted.

3.1.3  In the case that no one candidate receive a majority vote, a runoff between the two highest vote recipients will be held. Tie runoff elections will be decided by the flip of a coin.

3.1.4 Functions:

a) Professorial position vacancies. The Executive Committee will advise the Chair on the priority and description of new or vacated positions.
b) Grievances. The Executive Committee is the primary internal channel for faculty grievances pertaining to annual merit review.  For any other grievances, faculty members may choose to follow the College of Arts and Sciences or University's procedures for grievances.
c) Personnel. The Executive Committee will advise the Chair on matters involving faculty and staff members and will perform the annual merit review for faculty, including tenure-track faculty, senior instructors, and full-time instructors.
d) Other. Additional duties may be assigned to the Executive Committee as required.

3.2       The Graduate Committee is established in accordance with existing Bylaws.

3.2.1 Composition: The Graduate Committee shall be composed of five graduate faculty members plus the Associate Chair for Graduate Studies.  Each graduate faculty member should serve on the committee for one year at least once every three years. This committee will be chaired by the Associate Chair for Graduate Studies. The Department Chair will be a permanent ex-officio member of the Graduate Committee. The Chair of the Department may function as Associate Chair of Graduate Studies. When this happens, this person will be the chair of the Graduate Committee, and will have a vote within this body. If a member is unable to complete his/her full term, or is on leave of absence, the Chair of the Department will appoint a temporary replacement for the remainder of that period.

3.2.2 Functions: The Graduate Committee will advise the Chair on the graduate program, including the admission and progress of graduate students, selection of TAs & GPTIs, and rotation of courses. Also, it will sanction faculty-created reading lists, advise the faculty on the format of comprehensive exams, and other regulations pertaining to graduate degrees, the careful maintenance of an advising system, the selection of graduate students for all exchange programs, and the nomination of graduate students for fellowships, etc.

Furthermore, the Committee will evaluate and make recommendations to the Department concerning proposals for new courses and changes in curriculum. Finally, it will consider and implement policies concerning the graduate program upon consultation with the Chair and all interested parties.

3.3       The Library Liaison is appointed by the Chair. Duties include requesting the purchase of books and periodicals. This individual should equitably apportion available funds.

3.4       The Undergraduate Curriculum Committee is appointed by the Chair. When dealing with matters beyond the expertise of the current membership, this committee will be expanded, on an ad hoc basis, to include appropriate representation (e.g., language coordinators). The Chair of the Department will be an ex-officio member of the Committee. The Associate Chair for Undergraduate Studies will function as the chair of the Committee.

3.4.1 Functions: The Committee will evaluate and make recommendations to the Department concerning proposals for new courses and changes in curriculum. It will also evaluate the results of such changes. It will administer the Outcomes Assessment process as well. Ad hoc committees dealing with curricular matters will report to the Curriculum Committee, which will then ask for departmental action when appropriate.

3.5       The Grade Appeals Committee. The Chair will appoint three faculty members and one graduate and one undergraduate student. The Committee will consider all grade appeals in accordance with existing University policies. The grade appeal must be filed no later than the end of the regular semester subsequent to the semester in which the grade was submitted.

3.6      Study Abroad Committee. The Chair will appoint a Study Abroad committee. Two Coordinators of Study Abroad will advise students. One coordinator will work with students in the Language and Literature and Spanish and Portuguese Languages and Cultures tracks. The Director of the International Spanish for the Professions track will serve as the other Coordinator and will advise students in that major. These Coordinators will advise students wishing to participate in the programs and will consider and approve for credit courses that students have taken abroad. The Coordinators will work with the Study Abroad office and any other pertinent offices within and outside the University. The Coordinators work as needed with the other members of the Study Abroad Committee.

3.7       Undergraduate Advising. The Associate Chair for Undergraduate Studies will develop policies concerning the advising of undergraduate students in consultation with the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee (this includes the assignment of advisees to other faculty members). All policies involving advising require the departmental Chair’s approval.

3.8       Course Coordinator. Course coordinators will be appointed by the Chair to supervise the teaching of multi-section courses. Those responsible for coordinating courses will discharge their duties according to the attached guidelines.  

3.9       Other Committees. The Chair will appoint other committees as required.

4.0       Departmental Meetings

Meetings are scheduled by the Chair during the academic year, as required. Tenured faculty, tenure-track faculty and senior instructors are invited to attend. A representative of instructors, and a representative of graduate students may be invited to attend. Voting constituency and procedures will be defined as stated in section 2.1 of the Bylaws. Minutes will be taken by the Department Program Assistant, approved by the assembly attending the meeting, and will be made available to voting members of the Department.

5.0      Vacant Faculty Positions

The Executive Committee will advise the Chair on the priority and description of new or vacated positions. The following procedures will be in place with regard to all searches:

5.1       A search committee appointed by the Chair will conduct the early stages of the search. The committee will work with the Chair in the development of a job announcement. Furthermore, it will review all credentials received, will advise the Chair on those colleagues to be interviewed off campus, and will make a preliminary recommendation to the Department concerning candidates who should be invited to the campus. The search committee advises the Chair and to the Department. If the Chair should reject the search committee’s recommendations, the Chair may void the search or ask the search committee to submit additional recommendations. The job description will be circulated among voting members of the faculty as defined in 2.1 and voted upon before it is published.

5.2       The faculty will vote on whether or not candidates should be invited to the campus.

5.3       Recommendations for new appointments will be voted on, by secret ballot, by voting members of the faculty. Said recommendations along with the Chair's assessment of the search will be conveyed to the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences by the Chair.

5.4       The Chair appoints temporary and part-time faculty members.

6.0       Promotions in Rank, Academic Tenure

6.1       A candidate for tenure will be evaluated by all tenured members of the faculty. Promotion and reappointment will be recommended by tenured faculty members whose current rank is superior to the candidate's. The Chair will transmit the recommendation of the tenured faculty of the Department to the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences with appropriate documentation. Criteria for promotion that have been established by the University of Colorado and adhered to by the Department are excellence in either research or teaching and at least meritorious in two other areas. Definitions of excellence and meritorious are included in section 8.5 of these by-laws and the Faculty Handbook.

6.2       A candidate for promotion to Full Professor will have a record that when taken as a whole is considered excellent and shows evidence of growth since tenure.

6.3       Instructors may request promotion to the rank of Senior Instructor if the Department has the need and has an open Senior Instructor line, if the Instructor has served for at least seven years in the role of Instructor, and if the Instructor has the experience, expertise, academic degree and/or certifications commensurate with the needs of the Department for the open Senior Instructor position.

6.4       Based on the needs of the Department, any Part-time Instructor (or “Lecturer”) who has taught at 50% or more for at least three years may be, as recommended by the Instructor’s Bill of Rights (IBOR), considered for promotion to the rank of Full-time Instructor.

7.0       Faculty Responsibilities

The faculty has the obligation to keep informed of Arts and Sciences, Graduate School, University, and Regents' Rules.

8.0       Spousal/Partner Hiring and Conflicts of Interest

8.1       The Department will follow university policy and its own partner hiring policy

(see "insert title") on spousal/partner hiring.

8.2       The Department will follow university policy on conflicts of interest. In particular a member of a spousal/partner/amorous couple may not take part in any personnel-related decision, discussion, or event involving the other member of the couple.

8.3       Both members of a spousal/partner/amorous couple may not serve together as voting members on any committee.

8.4       Both members of a spousal/partner/amorous couple may not serve concurrently in any two of the positions of Chair, Associate Chair for Graduate Studies or Associate Chair for Undergraduate Studies.

9.0        Retention Offers

Once a faculty member receives an outside written offer, s/he should notify the Chair of the Department immediately. After ascertaining the true nature of the outside offer, the Chair will convene a meeting with the Executive Committee to discuss the pros and cons of making a retention offer vis-a-vis the departmental needs. After a vote, the Chair will contact the Dean of the College to seek advice and consent. After having consulted with the Executive Committee and the Dean of the College as to the desirability and feasibility of making a retention offer, the Chair will notify the faculty member requesting a retention offer as to the outcome.

10.0    Evaluation of Faculty Members

Every year the faculty members of the Department of Spanish and Portuguese are evaluated by the Executive Committee and the Chair to determine merit. Furthermore, at other intervals, there are reappointment, tenure, post-tenure, and promotion evaluations involving the appropriate faculty members. All evaluations must comply with existing University policies (Faculty Handbook and the Laws of the Regents). Listed below are departmental policies relating to the above-mentioned evaluations. Other documents involving yearly and equity evaluation should be consulted for further information (these documents were approved by the departmental faculty).

10.1    Evaluation of Teaching

In addition to in-class performance, the following additional teaching activities will be considered as well:

At the undergraduate level: director of Honors Theses, director of Independent Study for Undergraduate Students, UROP advisor, new course development, as well as any other activity included under undergraduate teaching in FRPA.

At the graduate level: director of PhD Dissertations, advisor for PhD and MA students, member of a Dissertation Committee, member of the PhD or MA exam committee other than Director, as well as any other activity included under graduate teaching in FRPA. 

These activities will be taken into consideration at the time of the Annual Merit Evaluation, as well as at the time of the Comprehensive Review, Tenure, Promotion and Post Tenure Review.

10.1.1 General

a) All members of the teaching faculty must provide the opportunity for students to evaluate their in-class performance every semester. Each semester, members of the faculty will submit their student’s evaluations, in summary form, to the Chair, together with explanatory commentary if such is felt necessary by the faculty member, and, in the case of multi-sectioned courses, to the coordinator. The Chair may also request the evaluations themselves (that is, the data on which the summary is based).
b)  FCQs should be administered according to University rules. 

10.1.2 Review at the Time of Merit Consideration, Reappointment, Promotion and/or Tenure

a) The summaries of student evaluations of teaching and commentaries on them will be kept in a teaching portfolio as per the «Evaluation of Teaching» document approved by the departmental faculty in October 1994. The contents of said teaching portfolio will be read in conjunction with promotion or tenure, reappointment, and/or merit raises deliberations, by departmental committees considering such matters, the Dean and all other pertinent administrators.

b) Other evidence of teaching performance (to be included in the teaching portfolio as well) will be considered while evaluating the faculty member, provided the faculty member has had an opportunity to respond (with the exception of solicited letters from students in reappointment and tenure promotion processes, which should remain confidential). In the case of reappointment (including comprehensive review), promotion, tenure, and/or post-tenure review peer evaluation is required (faculty members will be assigned by the Chair to visit and evaluate the classes taught by those being reviewed over a period of at least two semesters).

10.2    Evaluation of Research and Creative Work

10.2.1 General

All faculty members are to be active in research within at least one bona fide academic subfield of their choosing within the discipline (that is, Spanish and/or Portuguese and/or Linguistics). To evaluate the research/creative work of a faculty member, it is necessary to have a copy of all publications published, accepted and/or awaiting the decision of editors within the time frame under consideration. Furthermore, correspondence on acceptances and other appropriate matters is needed. Finally, a faculty member is free to prepare a brief statement explaining his research efforts/creative work (such a document should be of help to those evaluating the research/creative work efforts of a given faculty member).

10.2.2 Evaluation at the Time of Comprehensive Review, Tenure, Promotion or Post-Tenure Review

All faculty members being evaluated for tenure, promotion and/or post-tenure review must submit a sample of their research/creative work to the Chair so as to permit experts inside and/or outside the University to evaluate their credentials. The purpose of this procedure is to enable the tenured faculty to make more informed objective judgments about the value of the candidate's research/creative work contribution.

The selection of the external referees will be conducted in the following manner: the candidate and the tenured faculty will each present a list of at least six names they wish to have considered as referees. In cases of promotion and/or tenure, the Chair (or the appropriate committee of tenured faculty members) will then select at least six persons to evaluate a candidate's research/creative work. If some of the external reviewers are unwilling to participate in this process, others will be contacted following the procedure discussed previously.

10.3    Evaluation of Service

The faculty member is free to suggest, in writing, how his/her service might best be evaluated.

10.4    Procedures and Standards: reappointment (including comprehensive review), promotion and/or tenure

10.4.1 Voting members on cases of tenure or reappointment will be all tenured members of the Department who hold continuous appointments. Voting members in cases of promotion shall be all tenured members in ranks above the current rank of the candidate. Only those members who have examined and initialed the file prior to the meeting may vote. Any voting member who is absent may express an opinion and vote in writing (said vote is to be forwarded to the Chair prior to the meeting concerning the person being evaluated).

10.4.2 If a voting member suggests additional information to be gathered, that member should do so in writing and reasonably in advance of the vote. 

10.4.3 Voting members will assemble to discuss and vote by secret written ballot on each case.

10.4.4 A report of the vote, together with a summary of discussion, including minority opinion, if any, will be written by the Chair and forwarded to the Dean. If considered appropriate by the Chair, he/she may write an independent letter reflecting his/her views. The Chair will inform the candidate of the outcome of the vote, and then distribute to the candidate copy(ies) of the transmittal letter(s) in a timely fashion, in order to permit the candidate to respond.

 

10.5    Standards for tenure and promotion according to the Faculty Handbook and the Laws of the Regents:

(1) Tenure requires demonstrated meritorious performance in each of the three areas of teaching, research or creative work, and service, and demonstrated excellence in either teaching, or research or creative work (Faculty Handbook, Principles & Policies Related to Appointment, Reappointment, Promotion and Tenure).
(2)  Promotion to full professor requires a record that, taken as a whole, is judged to be excellent, a record of significant contribution to both graduate and undergraduate education (unless individual or departmental circumstances can be shown to require a stronger emphasis, or singular focus on one or the other). In addition, the faculty member’s record since receiving tenure and promotion to associate professor must indicate substantial, significant, and continued growth, development, and accomplishment in teaching, research, and service.
(3) Promotion to associate professor requires considerable successful teaching experience, and promising accomplishment in both teaching and research (Faculty Handbook, Principles & Policies Related to Appointment, Reappointment, Promotion and Tenure).
(4)  Levels of performance correspond to professional expectations for the discipline interpreted by those officially involved in the evaluation process of each candidate.

Please refer to the Faculty Handbook for greater information on tenure and promotion standards and procedures.

10.6    Procedures: Post-tenure Review

10.6.1 General

The Laws of the Regents prescribe for all tenured faculty members to be evaluated periodically in order to ascertain their strengths and weaknesses in the areas of teaching, research and service. Furthermore, this process should be instrumental in the professional development of tenured faculty members.

10.6.2 Post-tenure review will be conducted after the awarding of tenure unless the departmental chair in consultation with the departmental Executive Committee ascertains that this is impossible in view of special and unusual circumstances affecting a given case (i.e., illness and/or absence from campus for a prolonged period of time). Institutional guidelines will determine the frequency of all post-tenure reviews.

10.6.3 A committee of tenured faculty members appointed by the Chair of the Department will conduct post-tenure reviews. The Committee will work in close consultation with each faculty member under review and the Chair. Only Committee members will participate in the post-tenure reviews unless both the Committee and the Chair feel they need additional expertise from others in the Department.

10.6.4 Post-tenure evaluations will require the consideration of evidence in the areas of teaching, research and service as outlined in sections 8.1, 8.2 and 8.3. The indicators to be used are the same as those in place for tenure reviews.

10.6.5 After concluding its review, the Post-Tenure Review Committee will submit its report to the Chair. The Committee and the Chair will then discuss the document with the faculty member under review. The faculty member under review may respond in writing within a month. Soon after, a final summary report (or faculty development plan) on the evaluation will be issued. When appropriate, said report will make recommendations to facilitate the professional development of the faculty member reviewed (including the possible assignment of resources to facilitate the aforementioned development). This report will be discussed by the Chair and the members of the Post-tenure Review Committee with the faculty member under review. At that time, the report will be sent to the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences for his or her action and transmittal to others in the administration that are required to have access to this information.

10.6.6 In conducting post-tenure reviews the Department will comply with all University and Arts and Sciences regulations.

10.6.7 Under normal circumstances, the Department will not conduct more than two post-tenure reviews per year (a master schedule will be kept listing the anticipated dates of all post-tenure reviews).

10.6.8 The yearly merit evaluations will be used by the Department to monitor progress between post-tenure reviews as prescribed by existing institutional policies.

11.0    Faculty Salary Guidelines

11.1    Merit Increase

Standard formula for distribution for TTT faculty: 40% research, 40% teaching, 20% service. In the case of Senior Instructors, these three categories will be present and the formula of percentages will be determined with the unanimous approval of the individual being evaluated, the Department Chair and the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. Standard formula for Full-time Instructors is 100% teaching. ABD Faculty with Instructor rank until they defend will be evaluated on 100% teaching.

The standard formula may be changed as outlined in the departmental Differentiated Workload Policy document.

Differentiated workloads are agreed upon by a given faculty member, the Chair of the Department, and the Dean of the College.

11.1.2

a) First, the Chair, in consultation with the executive committee, may allocate a portion of the total salary increase budget as a Cost of Living adjustment distributed equally among all rostered members of the faculty.
b) Second, there will be a portion reserved for promotions or retentions as needed each year. The rest of the salary increase budget may be for Regular Merit, to be distributed to all rostered faculty who meet or exceed expectations in all three assessment fields in proportion to each faculty member’s aggregate point score.

11.2    Guidelines for Evaluation

11.2.1 Distribution of merit increments:

Time span = a four-year period (greater emphasis will be placed on the most recent year as follows: 50% to be assigned to the most recent year and 16.7% to each of the previous 3 years). In the event that within any given four year cycle there has been a year with no budget for merit increase, the faculty member’s best year since the last merit increase should be counted once at 50%, in order to ensure that major accomplishments do not go under-rewarded as a consequence of budgetary fluctuations.  Adjustments to this formula will be made by the voting faculty. The faculty will be advised of these adjustments in advance.

The executive committee, upon request by a faculty member, will provide the faculty member with his/her rating in research, teaching and service along with information as to how he/she ranked relative to the faculty as a whole (anonymously).  

When providing each faculty member with his or her merit increment, the Chair will also provide the following information:  a) the department's total budget for salary increases, b) the portion of the total budget allocated to regular merit increase, and c) the formula used to calculate the merit increment.

12.0    Mentoring

Mentors are individuals that provide career development counseling, either formally or informally.  Primarily, mentors assist new faculty members, but experienced faculty members may work with mentors as well.

12.1   Mentoring for TTT Faculty. The Department shall initially offer all junior faculty a mentor; the mentor will be chosen in consultation with the junior faculty member. Mentors may change at the request of mentors and/or the mentored. Mentoring may come in a variety of forms, but mentoring responsibilities are generally divided between the Chair of the Department and senior faculty. Mentors have no legal liability for the outcome of promotion or review processes.

Either the Chair or a mentor designated by the Chair will meet annually with junior faculty to discuss progress toward reappointment and promotion/tenure. Junior faculty may request specific feedback on their progress. Either the Chair or the Associate Chair for Undergraduate Studies will develop course schedules with junior faculty members.  These schedules may be designed to allow for teaching-intensive semesters (new preparations, etc.) and others that permit more time for research and creative work.

The Chair or the appointed mentor will ensure that each junior faculty member has regular teaching observations (at least annually).

12.2    Mentoring for non-TTT Faculty.  Newly-appointed instructors will also be given the opportunity to work on professional development issues pertinent to their situation, with a Department mentor of senior instructor status, who will be chosen in consultation with the new instructor.

13.0    Amendments

The Departmental Bylaws may be amended if at least two-thirds of the faculty within the Department wishes to do so and during a special meeting of the faculty called for this purpose by the Chair.

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