The productivity of faculty members often figures prominently in annual evaluations, post-tenure reviews, and decisions about tenure, promotion, merit pay, release time, awards, and other kinds of recognition. Yet the procedures and instruments that institutions use to assess productivity and merit vary, leaving little that unifies the evaluation…

Presents recommendations of a faculty/administrator committee at Louisiana State University concerning faculty ranks and reviews, especially of nontenured full-time faculty who specialize in either teaching or research. It proposes rolling multiple-year contracts for instructors, new titles for non-teaching research scientists, university…

Results of a conference reviewing recommendations favoring post-tenure evaluation were that: current procedures for evaluating faculty are satisfactory; additional formal periodic evaluation would incur unacceptable costs and scant benefit; and results of any evaluation should not be used as grounds for dismissal. (MSE)

Asserts that for universities to avoid the growing possibility of lawsuits, tenure evaluation procedures must be clear and fair. Provides suggestions to reduce the likelihood of litigation and to increase the institution's chance of success in a lawsuit. (EV)

Suggests that tenure, rather than discriminating against minorities and women, benefits these groups by protecting their academic freedom in the classroom and by encouraging depth in scholarship, and also by adding to a democratic balance of power between faculty and administrators. Urges a more open tenure review process to eliminate elements of…

Most college and university administrators claim to care deeply about the quality of teaching at their institutions. But, too often, their actions belie their words. Consider, for example, the following questions. Which candidate for a faculty position is usually viewed as more attractive, the promising researcher or the promising teacher? Who…

The report, prepared by the American Association of University Professors' Committee A on Academic Freedom and Tenure, outlines new proposed policy on posttenure review of faculty. It presents arguments for and against the practice, discusses its use for dismissal purposes, offers guidelines for establishment of a system for periodic evaluation of…

A survey of 63 college provosts and academic vice presidents concerning evaluation of tenured faculty found that, although frequency and form of evaluation vary widely, the large majority of institutions do perform regular reviews of tenured faculty. Most respondents also felt that the tenure system works relatively well. (MSE)

Describes concerns within the academic community on the use of collegiality as a factor in decisions concerning faculty employment, promotion, tenure, and termination. Such concerns include discrimination and stifling of dissent. Discusses how courts have decided in favor of universities in almost every discrimination case in which collegiality…

Suggests that although the assault on tenure championed by the American Association for Higher Education's New Pathways Project has failed, there are more serious threats to tenure in the development of systems of "post-tenure review," and in the increased the use of "contingent," or part-time and non-tenure-track full-time,…

A junior faculty member reflects on the dilemma of that professional position, noting that its anxieties fall into two categories: "Is this all there is?" and "What if we lose it?" She examines problems with, and prohibitions against, speaking one's mind in that position, sees solutions as being institutional or individual, and examines how…

A discussion by endorsers of the American Association of University Professors' (AAUP) 1940 statement on academic freedom and tenure is summarized, including the topics of academic accuracy watchdogs, government constraints on academic freedom, irregular faculty appointments and periodic review, special issues at church-related colleges, and the…

A discussion of faculty tenure focuses on the system used at Colby College (Maine). Policies and practices are described, with attention given to the four evaluations made before tenure is awarded, efforts to ensure instructional quality and research productivity after the tenure decision, and the balance of teaching and scholarship in the faculty…

The trend toward extending nontenured faculty members' probationary periods beyond the traditional 6 years, is discussed, along with problems faced by faculty at the time of nonrenewal, implications for academic careers, and the issue of multiple standards for faculty evaluation within an institution. (MSE)