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Section III. Regular Academic Appointments

1. Regular Academic Appointments: The titles of regular faculty include Acting Instructor, Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, and Professor. Faculty are appointed or promoted to these ranks only if they are employed for 50% or more time. Persons holding the rank of Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, or Professor hold voting privileges in the University Faculty and in the School of Dentistry. Faculty in these ranks may be eligible for tenure. The criteria for tenure are described in Vol. II, Chapter 25, Section 25-32, of the Handbook.

http://www.washington.edu/faculty/facsenate/handbook/Volume2.html

Appointments and promotions in the regular academic ranks are reviewed by the APT Committee, the Dean, the Provost, and the UW Board of Regents.

1. Acting Instructor (Handbook: Vol. II, Chapter 24, Section 24-34): Appointment to the rank of Acting Instructor normally requires completion of professional training (DDS, DMD, PhD, MS, or BS in Dental Hygiene or equivalent) and the promise of a successful career in teaching and research. Previous teaching experience and publications are not required. Evidence of potential development into an effective teacher, rank in class at the predoctoral dental or dental hygiene student level, and performance as a predoctoral student in the specific department in which the appointment is being made should be supplied. The length of stay permitted as Acting Instructor is four (4) years.

Note: The title of Instructor is no longer used for initial appointments at the University.

2. Assistant Professor (Handbook: Vol. II, Chapter 24, Section 24 34): Appointment to the rank of Assistant Professor requires a demonstration of teaching and research ability:
   • Successful completion of a post-professional degree program relevant to the appointment with completion of a thesis or paper prepared for publication; or
   • Successful completion of clinical specialty training in an officially certified program; or
   • Professional experience in the area of the proposed appointment, for example, medical or dental practice, part-time teaching, postdoctoral training with documented evidence of capability within the criteria for appointment or promotion discussed in Section X. of these Guidelines, pages 59-70.
   • One or more years at the rank of Acting Instructor with documented evidence of capability within the criteria for appointment or promotion discussed in Section X. of these
     Guidelines, pages 59-70.
   • A faculty member who is working on her/his M.S.D. or any graduate degree becomes ineligible for the awarding of the degree at the University of Washington if s/he holds a
     faculty appointment at the rank of Assistant Professor or above.

   Appointment at the Assistant Professor rank is for a maximum of six (6) year appointment is divided into two (2) three-year terms. A decision on re-appointment at the end of the first term must be made in Spring Quarter of the second year of the appointment. The voting faculty members of superior rank in the department must make a recommendation to the Dean on renewal, non-renewal, or postponement. If postponement is the decision made by the Dean, then another review must occur in Spring Quarter of the third year (first term) to reach a decision on renewal or non-renewal.

Time spent as Acting Instructor or Acting Assistant Professor does not count toward that six (6) years. Time spent as an Instructor or Assistant Professor at another institution does not count against the maximum of six (6) years permitted in these ranks at the University of Washington.

An Assistant Professor faces a mandatory promotion (and tenure) review in the sixth year of her/his appointment. Please note that the academic year runs from July 1st to June 30th. Faculty appointed at any time other than July 1 face a shortened first year (it will end on the next June 30th) which may have a negative impact on the candidate's ability to gain promotion and/or tenure; i.e. s/he will have less time to demonstrate scholarly activities and teaching skills.

No definite number of years’ experience is required at the Assistant Professor rank. It is unlikely that promotion would be considered with less than four (4) to five (5) years at the Assistant Professor level. Consideration must be made at the sixth year of appointment as an Assistant Professor or at the sixth year of appointment in combination of Instructor-Assistant Professor ranks. If a faculty member is considered for promotion to the rank of Associate Professor in advance of the sixth year and is denied the promotion, s/he is still eligible for reconsideration the next year.

The issue of the proper classification of faculty actively involved in a portion of the instructional program needs to be considered. Faculty in the regular professorial ranks, but designated as "without tenure for reasons of funding (WOT)”, are expected to be integrated into the instructional program. WOT faculty hold continuing appointments at the Associate Professor and Professor ranks and are voting members of the faculty, both within the department and the University as a whole. WOT faculty are supported primarily from grant and contr act funds, except when their time is supported from state budgets for instructional purposes. The fact that soft money-supported faculty are involved in teaching does not necessarily mean that they are to be classified as WOT rather than research. The critical differentiation factor between the two faculty categories is the expectation for WOT faculty to participate in departmental teaching and service functions on a regular and continuing basis. It remains a departmental faculty decision whether to appoint individuals primarily supported by soft money as either research or regular WOT faculty. Department Chairpersons must remember that WOT faculty are expected to assume a teaching load that is comparable to any regular faculty member and that excellence in teaching is an important consideration in promotion and merit pay raises.

Assistant Professors in a tenure track may request informal review of their credentials and records by the APT Committee twelve (12) months or more prior to recommendation by the Chairperson for formal consideration for promotion and/or tenure. The purpose of the informal review, which is entirely voluntary and can be exercised only once, is to provide guidance to the faculty member concerned relative to perceived strengths and deficiencies at such time that corrective action can be successfully undertaken. Requests for informal review are initiated by the individual concerned rather than by the Chairperson. Material submitted and the review process used parallels formal consideration for promotion and/or tenure with the exception that letters of recommendation are not needed. Materials for review should be submitted to the Dean's office by May 1st (internal School deadline). Informal reviews will be conducted once annually during the month of June. A written report will be provided directly and only to the faculty member reviewed to be distributed as s/he sees fit. Reports of informal reviews will not be made available to the APT Committee at the time of formal consideration for promotion and/or tenure, and the recommendations and judgments expressed in informal review reports will in no way commit the APT Committee to any future course of action upon a formal promotion request.

3. Associate Professor (Handbook: Vol. II, Chapter 24, Section 24-34): Appointment to the rank of Associate Professor requires a record of substantial success in both teaching and research except that in unusual cases, an outstanding record in one of these activities may be considered sufficient. Individuals appointed to this rank shall have served at the Assistant Professor level except in very unusual circumstances, as for example when they are recruited from foreign countries, the military, private practice, or allied fields. In these latter cases, credentials must be unique and compelling.

The basis for this guideline is to preclude the making of permanent commitments which are not in the best long-term interests of the institution. There should be documented evidence of capability following the criteria for appointment or promotion described elsewhere in these
Guidelines.

4. Professor (Handbook: Vol. II, Chapter 24, Section 24-34): Appointment to the rank of Professor requires outstanding, mature scholarship as evidenced by accomplishments in teaching and in research as evaluated in terms of national recognition. See the criteria in the University Handbook, Vol. II, Sections 24-34, 24-57, and Executive Order 45—Section 24 Footnote. Individuals appointed to this rank shall have served at the Associate Professor level except in unusual circumstances as noted under Associate Professor (#3 above). No definite number of years’ experience is required at the Associate Professor rank to be considered for the rank of Professor. It is unlikely that promotion would be considered with less than five (5) years at the Associate Professor level.

There shall be documentation of capabilities in the areas of criteria for promotion described in these Guidelines and the Handbook, as well as evidence of continuing development during the period of service at the rank of Associate Professor. National recognition can be demonstrated,
for example, by letters of assessment from nationally recognized professional organizations, appointments to an office or a major responsibility in important organizations, appointments to committees or boards of national significance.

5. Acting (Handbook: Vol. II, Chapter 24, Section 24-34): The acting title denotes a temporary appointment for properly qualified persons at the Instructor or Professorial ranks. It commonly is used for persons who will be on the faculty for a year or less, or for persons who have not yet completed the requirements for a regular appointment. An acting appointment at any level does not imply that an appointment at the comparable permanent level will be made.

An acting appointment may not exceed four (4) years in any single rank, or six (6) years in any combination of ranks.

For the voting and tenure status of acting members of the faculty, refer to Sections 21-32 and 25-32, Volume II of the Handbook. For restrictions placed on Acting appointments, see Section 24-34.

Acting positions do not require a national search. They do not require APT Committee review, but must be reviewed and approved by the Dean, the Provost, and the Board of Regents.

A faculty member whose appointment as Acting Instructor or Assistant Professor has not been renewed may not be given an acting appointment.

6. Part-Time (Handbook, Vol. II, Chapter 24, Section 24-45. Appointment of Part-Time Professors)

   1. The University may appoint faculty to professorial or research professorial ranks (see Section 24-34, Subsections A.2 through A.4 and Subsection B.3) on less than a full-time basis. The percentage of appointment at the time of hire shall be documented by the Department Chair (or Dean in an undepartmentalized school or college) and clearly communicated in writing to the faculty member.
   2. The first appointment of a part-time assistant professor at 50 percent or greater of full-time shall be for a basic period of three years, subject to earlier dismissal for cause. In Spring Quarter of the second year of appointment, the Dean of the assistant professor's college or school shall decide whether:
      1. the appointment is to be renewed;
      2. the appointment is not to be renewed beyond the three-year period, in which case the assistant professor will be notified that the appointment ceases at the end of the third year; or
      3. the decision concerning reappointment is postponed to the following year, in which case the assistant professor will be notified that the three-year appointment is extended to include a fourth year.
   3. Should the decision in Subsection B above result in a postponement, during Spring Quarter of the third year the Dean shall decide whether:
      1. the appointment is to be renewed for a further period consistent with Subsection D below; or
      2. the appointment is not to be renewed, in which case the assistant professor shall be notified that the appointment ceases at the end of the fourth year.
   4. Should the initial appointment of a part-time assistant professor be renewed pursuant to Subsection B or C above, the following renewal periods pertain to the second appointment:
      1. For part-time assistant professors who hold appointments of 90-percent time and above, the second appointment period shall be for three years.
      2. For part-time assistant professors who hold appointments between 70 percent and 89 percent, the second appointment shall be for four years.
      3. For part-time assistant professors who hold appointments between 60 percent and 69 percent, the second appointment shall be for five years.
      4. For part-time assistant professors who hold appointments between 50 percent and 59 percent, the second appointment shall be for six years.

   In all cases, a mandatory review for promotion and tenure (or in the case of WOT faculty, for promotion and continuous appointment) must occur no later than the end of the last year of appointment as specified in Subsections D.1 through D.4 above.

   5. At any time during the appointment, the faculty member may change his or her percentage of appointment with the written agreement of the Dean. In the event of a change, the time for mandatory review shall be stated in the agreement consistent with Section 24-45, Subsection D above.

   S-A 98, June 2, 1998: with Presidential approval

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