Peformance Review Guidelines

Revised May 3, 2023

Annual and Triennial Review

Per the recommendations of the Faculty Affairs Committee (September 2021), the School of Arts & Sciences has implemented a two-tiered performance review process. Department chairs and deans use this review process as a means of offering guidance and formative assessment in the professional development of faculty as teachers, scholars, and citizens of the university. Additionally, the process is used annually in the awarding of merit increases to faculty salary. According to the process:

  1. Tenure-track faculty, as well as directors with faculty status who have served less than 10 semesters in the School of Arts & Sciences, are evaluated annually.
  1. Tenured faculty with 3 or more continuous years of service and directors with faculty status who have completed 10 or more semesters of service in a continuing position in the School of Arts & Sciences are required to submit a triennial report every 3 years (in their so-called “A” year). The triennial report accounts for the previous 3 years of activity and accomplishments.

In the intervening years (“B” and “C”), when a full triennial report is not required, faculty submit a short report listing activities and accomplishments of the past year, along with an updated CV. In addition to the short report, faculty in their “B” and “C” years complete a formative evaluation in which they reflect upon their accomplishments over the course of the past year and set goals for the coming year and beyond. (This last document is shared with the chair but is not submitted to the Dean’s Office.)

  • Effective May 2023, all faculty are required to use the new Faculty Portfolio System (FPS) in generating reports that they will supply to their department chair or designated evaluator.

  • All faculty, with the exception of those in their “B” and “C” years, will also submit a narrative addendum corresponding to their current appointment. This addendum includes a section for formative evaluation.

Please use the following chart to determine the requirements appropriate to your current appointment:

Rank/Position

Include Narrative Addendum

Run Report in Faculty Portfolio System (FPS)

Include CV*

Submit Formative Evaluation

Tenure-Track

 Use addendum for tenure-stream faculty A&S Performance Review Report (Tenure Stream Faculty).

Capture activities corresponding to the past 12 months (June 1-May 31)		 Yes No

Directors < 10 semesters of service

Use addendum for directors with faculty status

 A&S Performance Review Report (Director)

Capture activities corresponding to the past 12 months (June 1-May 31)		 Yes No

“A” Year
Triennial Rotation

 Use relevant addendum for tenure-stream faculty or directors with faculty status A&S Performance Review Report (Tenure Stream Faculty) or (Directors)

Capture activities corresponding to the past 36 months (June 1-May 31)		 Yes No

“B” & “C” Years Triennial Rotation

 No A&S Performance Review Report (Tenure Stream Faculty) or (Directors)

Capture activities corresponding to the past 12 months (June 1-May 31)		 Yes Yes

Faculty hired with tenure in their first 3 years

 Use addendum for tenure-stream faculty A&S Performance Review Report (Tenure Stream Faculty)

Capture activities corresponding to the past 12 months (June 1-May 31)		 Yes No

*CV: Faculty may submit an FPS-generated CV or provide their own version.
†Submitted to chair but not to A&S Dean’s Office
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  • Components of FPS-Generated Reports

    An outline of the components of FPS-generated reports for faculty directors and tenure-stream faculty can be found here.

     

  • Process and Timeline

    July 1 (or a date stipulated by the department chair): All faculty should submit their performance review materials to the chair. The chair may request and review other evidence of the faculty member’s performance, such as teaching evaluations, but only the FPS report, the narrative addendum (when relevant), and the CV, together with the chair’s evaluation, will be submitted to the A&S Dean’s Office.

    July - November: The department chair (or designated evaluator) should complete a chair’s evaluation for each continuing faculty member under review in their department using the appropriate chair’s evaluation form for either tenure-stream or directors with faculty status. In the narrative section of the evaluation, the chair should contextualize the faculty member’s accomplishments and discuss goals for the coming year. For pre-tenure faculty members, the chair’s evaluation should offer recommendations for goals and priorities in preparation for the tenure review; however, the chair’s evaluation should not anticipate any recommendation by the Tenure & Promotion Committee.

    Fall semester: The chair should schedule a meeting with each faculty member to discuss their accomplishments and goals. The chair may request a meeting with the dean to discuss the department evaluations before submitting them to the A&S Dean’s Office.  

    Also, during the fall: Academic Council will dedicate one meeting to a discussion of the performance evaluation process and provide feedback to the dean.

    Early October: The A&S Dean’s office will provide chairs with instructions on how to upload files electronically.  

    First Monday in November: Chairs should submit the required performance review materials and chair’s evaluations to the A&S Dean’s Office.

    November - January: The A&S Dean’s Office will review the performance review materials and assign a merit category to each faculty member. If the dean’s evaluation of a specific performance category differs from that of the chair, the deviation will be documented and discussed with the chair. The chair’s evaluation and the dean’s revision, if any, will be shared with the faculty member. 

    Spring semester: The dean will develop a framework for distributing merit salary increases based on performance reviews. The dean will review the proposed merit increase for each faculty member with the provost for approval.

  • Triennial Performance Review

    Tenure-track faculty transition to the triennial review the same year in which they are awarded tenure. Directors with faculty status transition to the triennial review the same year in which they have achieved 10 semesters of service to the university in a continuing position. The triennial review is then based on performance during the previous three years. For example: if a faculty member is tenured in 2022, then a triennial report would include the previous three years: 2019-20, 2020-21, and 2021-22 (i.e., for achievements from June 1, 2019 through May 31, 2022). The merit ranking will affect salary for the next three years.

    Under the triennial review, the merit category assigned to faculty in their “A” year in the rotation will carry forward until their next triennial review. 

    Each department in the School of Arts & Sciences maintains a triennial schedule for continuing faculty that has been formalized in consultation with the Dean’s Office. Each May, divisional associate deans will confirm the current rotation with the department chairs. 

  • Components of the Formative Evaluation

    The formative evaluation form, provided here, is required of faculty in their “B” and “C” years; however, it is submitted to the department chair only. It does not move on to the Dean’s Office. 

    The formative evaluation should capture, in narrative or bulleted form, the faculty member’s accomplishments and goals in the areas of teaching, research/creative activity, professional development, and service, along with chair’s feedback. 

    The written evaluation should be followed by a conversation with the department chair or designated evaluator. Highlights of the conversation should be documented in a 250-word (maximum) response by the chair that offers feedback on accomplishments and goals for the coming year.

    The evaluation forms, which require signoffs on the part of faculty members and chairs/evaluators, should be maintained on file in the department.