Edited – 10/01/2019
BYLAWS OF THE
DEPARTMENT OF ANTHROPOLOGY
FLORIDA STATE UNIVERSITY
These bylaws adhere to and are consistent with University policies found in the Florida State University Constitution, Board of Trustees-United Faculty of Florida Collective Bargaining Agreement (BOT-UFF), Faculty Handbook, and Vice President for Faculty Development and Advancement (FDA) memoranda.
Contents:
Section A. Membership
Section B. The Office of Chair
Section C. Executive Committee
Section D. Faculty Meetings
Section E. Voting
Section F. Faculty Merit Raise Recommendations
Section G. Committees and Appointments
Section H. Student Representation
Section I. Amendment of Bylaws
Appendix 1. Promotion, Tenure, and Evaluation Guidelines for Tenure Track Faculty
Appendix 2. Evaluation and Promotion of Specialized Faculty
Appendix 3. Graduate Faculty Status Policy
Appendix 4. Guidelines for Faculty Hiring Procedures
Section A. Membership
1. Members of the Department of Anthropology are tenured faculty, tenure-track faculty, specialized faculty, adjunct instructors, and post-doctoral fellows.
2. The voting members of the department include those who hold the rank of Professor, Associate Professor, or Assistant Professor. Specialized faculty are voting members of the department for all but tenure-track promotion and tenure votes.
3. Courtesy faculty and others may be invited to attend faculty meetings at the discretion of the Chair and faculty, and may serve as members of ad hoc committees at the request of the Chair and with their concurrence.
4. Tenured, tenure-track, and specialized faculty members who hold positions in another department may be appointed as Courtesy Faculty in the department. Such Courtesy Faculty members are not obligated to serve on committees or participate in departmental governance. Courtesy Faculty status may also be extended to professionals serving in the private-sector, in state or federal agencies, or retired faculty whose expertise will be of assistance to the department.
Section B. The Office of Chair
1. The Chair shall be appointed by, and serve, at the pleasure of the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.
2. The Chair will serve for a length of time determined by the Dean, which is normally three years, and is eligible for reappointment.
3. At the beginning of the third year of a Chair’s term, the department must decide whether to continue the serving Chair or request permission to search for a new Chair, either inside the department or outside. The faculty will elect an ad hoc chair selection committee. This committee will have four members, with one member of each rank (professor, associate, assistant, specialized); the dean will appoint a fifth faculty member from outside the department to serve on the committee. The departmental committee members will elect a chair for their committee. The duties of the committee include:
a. polling department members for nominations (including self- nominations);
b. making all candidate files available in a secure location;
c. arranging meetings between the candidate and the faculty, and the candidate and the
Dean;
d. scheduling a meeting of the faculty and staff (full-time A&P and USPS staff) two
weeks after the candidate pool is closed;
e. conducting an election by secret ballot within two weeks of the discussion meeting, to
include all of the eligible voting Faculty and Staff (see Section A.2 for eligibility
criteria for faculty; full-time A&P and USPS staff members are allowed one
combined vote). All secret ballots will be tabulated by the department Office Administrator. Results of the vote will be relayed to the faculty by the ad hoc committee chair; and
f. forwarding the name of the winning candidate to the Dean as the Department’s choice.
4. As chief administrator of the department, the Chair is responsible for:
- providing annual assignments of responsibilities (AORs) for all faculty members (tenured, tenure-track, and specialized faculty);
- providing an annual written evaluation of progress towards promotion and tenure to each faculty member who has not achieved the highest rank possible and/or tenure;
- the Evaluation of Performance (EOP) of each faculty member during the previous calendar year (January 1 through December 31) in accordance with the duties specified in the faculty member’s AOR and recommendations from the review of the faculty member (from their updated curriculum vitae and departmental worksheet for annual evaluation) by the Promotion, Tenure, and Evaluation Committee (PT&E); (The approved FSU rating scheme is to be used in this process (see Appendix 1).)
- making salary adjustment recommendations to the Dean, taking into consideration the formal review of the PT&E Committee. If the Chair’s and the PT&E Committee’s rankings differ, both rankings will be forwarded to the Dean. Ranking categories and descriptions can be found in Appendix 1; and
- other duties of the Chair as specified throughout this document.
5. If department faculty members wish to remove the Chair during his or her term, a request to this effect, stating causes, must be forwarded to the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences with the signatures of a majority of the voting faculty of the department. The Dean, or the Dean’s representative, shall convene a meeting of the faculty to consider the request. At least two weeks’ notice must be given in advance of the meeting. A final secret ballot vote by the voting members of the department shall be counted by an ad hoc elections committee and the vote reported to the faculty and the Dean.
Section C. Executive Committee
1. The Executive Committee consists of the Chair and two faculty members who are elected, one by one, by a majority vote of the faculty at the first faculty meeting of the fall semester. The Chair determines the precise responsibilities of the Executive Committee, but in general the Executive Committee serves as advisory to the Chair when the entire faculty cannot readily meet.
Section D. Faculty Meetings
1. At least one faculty meeting will be held during the fall and spring semesters, and more may be held at the discretion of the Chair.
2. Additional faculty meetings will be held at the request of three or more faculty members (excluding the chair). Such a request, along with the reason for the request, shall be made in writing to the Chair.
3. The Chair shall provide an agenda prior to each meeting, and faculty members may request in writing that items be included on agendas.
4. A quorum shall consist of two-thirds of the faculty who are eligible to vote. If a quorum is not present, the meeting may proceed, but no votes may be taken.
5. Minutes of departmental meetings are to be recorded by a faculty member, and this task shall rotate among faculty. If a faculty member does not volunteer to take minutes at a meeting, the Chair will appoint someone to do so. Within two days of a departmental meeting, the minute taker shall send minutes to the faculty. Minutes will be corrected and approved at the next meeting, and will become part of the departmental archives that are kept by the office manager.
Section E. Voting
1. A majority of those voting on an issue is required for its passage. The majority is to be based on the percentage of votes cast, not the percentage of eligible voters. Specialized faculty members may vote on all issues except promotion and tenure for tenure-track faculty.
2. Voting members of the department who are on leave, sabbatical, or release time may vote on departmental issues with the understanding that they make an effort to inform themselves of the issue at hand.
3. Voting faculty members may, if they wish, assign their vote on specific issues by proxy to another member of the voting faculty. Assignment of proxies must be in writing to the Chair.
4. Voting members who do not vote on an issue, either in person or by proxy (including votes in the form of approve, disapprove, or abstain) are considered to have removed themselves from voting status on the particular issue.
Section F. Faculty Merit Raise Recommendations
Annual evaluation and merit recommendations are to be based on evidence of quality of performance, consistent with the assigned duties of the individual. In particular, the basis on which recommendations for merit pay increases are to be based is exemplary performance in all aspects of the individual's assignment.
1. The annual activity report (evidence of performance -- EOP), provided to the Chair by each faculty by a given deadline during the spring semester, is used as the basis for merit raise decisions. The Chair will provide copies of the reports to the Promotion, Tenure, and Evaluation Committee (PT&E). Evaluations will be conducted in compliance with the current Collective Bargaining Agreement and the current Faculty Handbook. Merit distributions may not be awarded uniformly to all faculty members in the department.
2. Upon request, the Chair will provide the Dean of Arts and Sciences with recommendations regarding salary increases. In formulating recommendations, the Chair will take into account each faculty member’s annual report on teaching, research, and service activities weighted by their assigned percentages of efforts in these three areas, the PT&E Committee’s peer evaluation, and their advice regarding salary increases (see Section G.2 below).
3. If the PT&E Committee recommendations differ from the Chair’s, both are forwarded to the Dean.
4. Specialized Faculty will be evaluated using the same procedures as used for tenured or tenure-earning faculty and, as with tenure-track and tenured faculty, will be based on the EOP, Annual Assignment of Responsibility, the PT&E Committee evaluation, and other criteria identified in Appendix 2. All merit money generated based on Specialized faculty salaries for the department will be placed in a separate pool from tenure-track faculty and distributed in its entirety to that group.
5. Sustained Performance Evaluations: tenured faculty members will receive a sustained performance evaluation once every seven years following the award of tenure or their most recent promotion, whichever is more recent. This evaluation process will be conducted to comply with the requirements in the current Faculty Handbook and the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
Section G. Committees and Appointments
All regular and ad hoc committees stand in an advisory capacity to the Chair. At the discretion of the Chair, non-voting members of the faculty (courtesy faculty, post-doctoral fellows, and adjunct instructors) may serve on ad hoc committees and may vote on the committee’s decisions. The Chair, with the advice of the Graduate Program Director and Undergraduate Program Director as applicable, appoints all committees (except PT&E, which is elected) at the commencement of the fall semester, or as needed for ad hoc committees. The chair may appoint students or members of the departmental staff to appropriate committees.
1. Faculty Senator
One faculty senator is elected by the Department for a two-year term in accordance with Faculty Senate rules. He or she is responsible for attending Faculty Senate meetings and informing Department members of developments affecting the Department or its members.
2. The Promotion, Tenure, and Evaluation Committee (PT&E)
The Promotion, Tenure, and Evaluation Committee (PT&E) will consist of three tenured or tenure-track faculty members who are annually elected by the faculty. At least two of the members shall be tenured members of the voting faculty, and the Chair will appoint one of them as chair. When a specialized faculty member is being evaluated for promotion, a specialized faculty member will also be elected to the committee. Deliberations of this committee will be conducted within the framework of the departmental policy statement on promotion and tenure. The statement on promotion and tenure specifies the criteria for promotion and tenure of tenure-track (see Appendix 1) and specialized faculty (see Appendix 2), and current university policies. The PT&E Committee will participate annually in peer evaluation as follows:
- The committee will read and evaluate the annual EOP reports of all faculty members. The committee will provide the Chair with a written assessment for each faculty member that includes: the research, teaching, and service accomplishments and progress during the past year; and recommendations about what the faculty member should do to achieve promotion and/or tenure in the future.
- The PT&E Committee conducts the third-year review of tenure-track faculty, as required by the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
- The PT&E Committee votes on all tenure and promotion eBinders.
- Promotions to Full Professor are voted on separately by all Full Professors in the department, while promotions to Associate Professor are voted on by both Associate and Full Professors.
- For tenure decisions, all of the tenured faculty and none of the non-tenured faculty members vote after the PT&E Committee makes a recommendation to the Chair.
- All PT&E Committee members vote on the promotion of specialized faculty. Evaluations of specialized faculty will follow the same procedures as other evaluations taking into account their EOP and AOR.
The Chair will use the PT&E Committee’s recommendations and reports to help formulate annual evaluations of each faculty member’s performance. The Chair will provide annual letters of progress towards promotion to all faculty members who have not achieved the highest rank possible.
3. The Graduate Affairs Committee (GAC)
The Graduate Affairs Committee (GAC) will be chaired by the Anthropology Graduate Program Director, who is appointed by the Chair. The term of office will be up to three years, and may be renewed at the discretion of the Chair. The Academic Program Specialist (APS) will support the responsibilities of the GAC and work closely with the Graduate Program Director. The Chair will also appoint up to two additional faculty members to serve on the GAC. The GAC has the following functions:
a. Determining graduate admissions with the advice and consent of the voting faculty and
assistance of the APS.
b. Assigning graduate advisors to incoming graduate students with the concurrence of the
faculty members concerned.
c. Program review and preparation of the Anthropology Graduate Student Handbook,
updated annually.
d. Revising graduate requirements with the approval of the voting faculty members.
e. Advising the Chair on assignment of graduate assistantships.
f. Coordinating faculty preparation of annual graduate student evaluations.
g. Other tasks that the Chair may forward to the Graduate Director.
4. The Undergraduate Affairs Committee (UGA)
The Undergraduate Affairs Committee (UGA) will be chaired by an Undergraduate Program Director appointed by the Chair. The term of office will be at the discretion of the Chair. The Chair also will appoint up to two additional faculty members to serve on the UGA. The Academic Program Specialist (APS) will work to support the responsibilities of the UGA. The UGA has the following functions:
a. Coordination of the department’s undergraduate honors program.
b. Responding to questions of undergraduate students who are referred to them by the
department staff members or Chair.
c. Responding to requests from the administration, which are forwarded to the
Undergraduate Program Director by the Chair. The UGA will be assisted by the APS in gathering data for the department’s response.
d. The APS conducts undergraduate graduation checks for all undergraduate majors and
other tasks that the Chair may forward to the UGA.
5. The Curriculum Committee
The chair of the Curriculum Committee (CC) shall be appointed by the Chair. The committee will consist of the Undergraduate Affairs Committee Chair, the Graduate Affairs Committee Chair (Graduate Program Director) and one other member of the faculty. The CC will provide general advice to the Chair about overall undergraduate and graduate curricular needs of the department, and will have the following functions:
a. Help to formulate future curricular directions.
b. Facilitate preparation of curriculum requests for approval by the Humanities Area
Chairs Committee and other administrative levels.
c. Help with responses to requests from the administration for progress reports regarding
curricular activities.
d. Other tasks that the Chair may forward to the CC.
e. The voting members of the faculty will vote on the Curriculum Committee’s
recommendations.
6. Collections Management Coordinator
Given the extensive osteological (human and non-human), archaeological, and ethnological collections curated by the department, the Chair shall annually appoint faculty members to coordinate faculty, student, and other research activities in these collections and to ensure compliance with state and federal curatorial requirements.
7. Library Liaison and Instructional Media Coordinator
One member of the faculty will be appointed annually (and may be renewed) by the Chair to coordinate library and instructional media resource needs.
8. Ad Hoc Committees
At the Chair’s discretion, ad hoc committees may be formed and appointments made as necessary, and faculty members may be requested to perform various functions, e.g., service as it relates to the missions of the department, college, or university. Ad hoc committees may occasionally be formed to address grievances, issues or goals entailed in the department’s Memorandum of Understanding with the National Park Service (Southeast Archeological Center – SEAC), and other policies regarding use of department vehicles, space, and equipment.
9. Recruitment of New Faculty Members
The department’s voting faculty as a whole discusses, decides, and votes on the areas in which to recruit at one or more faculty meetings during the spring semester. The Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences formally requests information on the department’s recruitment needs. The Chair requests one or more lines in a letter to the Dean that reports the department’s deliberations on the matter. If the request is granted, one or more ad hoc committees will be formed to implement the search. The committees will consist of three tenured and tenure-track faculty members and the Chair will be an ex-officio member. The Search Committee shall follow the procedures outlined in Appendix 4.
10. Summer Teaching
When funds are provided for summer teaching, appointments will be based on programmatic needs, student demand, and budget availability. Appointments will be made no later than five weeks prior to the beginning of the first summer term. By February, requests for summer teaching will be solicited by email and by a printed posting in a prominent place in the department. An annually continuous teaching rotation will determine those who will teach the needed courses.
Section H. Student Representation
1. Graduate Student Representative
The Graduate Student Representative (GSR) acts as a liaison to the department faculty. The GSR is an elected position and serves for one academic year (fall and spring semesters).
a. One graduate student will be elected by the active (and in good standing) graduate
students in the department at the beginning of the fall semester. The elected student
must be in good standing during their year of service. If the GSR is no
longer in good standing during their term of service, the Graduate Program Director
may appoint an interim GSR to fill the remainder of the year of service.
b. The Graduate Student Representative (GSR) will represent graduate student concerns
to the faculty.
c. The GSR will attend and participate in all department faculty meetings, but will be
excluded from discussions that involve sensitive student matters, promotion and tenure
discussions and voting, and hiring discussions and voting. The GSR may not vote nor
be present for discussions regarding other students or prospective students.
d. At the Chair’s discretion, the GSR may be invited to serve as a non-voting member on a departmental committee.
2. The Student Advisory Committee
The Student Advisory Committee to the Chair shall be composed of one undergraduate Anthropology major and the GSR. The undergraduate major will be elected by the members of the Anthropological Society at Florida State University (ASFSU). It shall be the function of this committee to bring to the attention of the Chair any matters deemed significant to the pursuance of our shared educational goals.
Section I. Amendment of the Bylaws
Any voting member of the department may propose an amendment to these by-laws. To be adopted, a proposed amendment must receive an affirmative vote by two-thirds of eligible voters. The amendment must be made available to all voting members at least two weeks prior to a vote. All voting on proposed amendments shall be conducted by secret ballot. Approved amendments shall take effect immediately or as provided in the amendment itself.
Faculty and staff members are expected to be familiar with and follow the Florida State University Substantive Change Policy as found on the university web site (http://provost.fsu.edu/sacs).
APPENDIX I
DEPARTMENT OF ANTHROPOLOGY
POLICIES AND PROCEDURES FOR
PROMOTION, TENURE, AND EVALUATION
FOR TENURE-TRACK FACULTY
This document outlines how members of the Department of Anthropology measure productivity in teaching, scholarship, and service in meeting the University criteria for promotion and tenure (Faculty Handbook, Section 5). Faculty are expected to consult the FSU Faculty Handbook and the annual “Memo on Promotion and Tenure” issued by the Vice President for Faculty Development and Advancement for university policies and procedures regarding promotion and tenure. The following document reviews the FSU Department of Anthropology’s policies, procedures, and criteria for faculty promotion and tenure. This document is in addition to the college and university policies, procedures, and criteria for promotion and tenure.
By tradition, anthropology is divided into four fields (sub-disciplines): socio-cultural anthropology, physical anthropology (also called biological anthropology), archaeology, and linguistic anthropology. Although the historical strengths of the faculty and programs at Florida State University have been in archaeology, three fields (socio-cultural, physical, and archaeology) are currently represented by the faculty at FSU. Anthropology is a holistic discipline that considers a broad range of issues and time periods. Its analytical tools are applied within cultural, biological, evolutionary, and scientific frameworks. As such, anthropology is interdisciplinary, often incorporating perspectives or theoretical concepts from other disciplines. A critical factor in understanding anthropological research is the central position of fieldwork, which is broadly defined as an experience of immersion as a participant observer or analyst in another culture, in a natural setting where nonhuman primates may be observed, in archaeological excavation and/or laboratory projects, or in museums.
A. Productivity Measures
1. Teaching
Excellence in teaching is a high priority goal that all faculty members are expected to strive for and to expend significant efforts toward achieving. Faculty are expected to share in the responsibility of teaching at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Faculty are encouraged to become involved in teaching Liberal Studies for the Twenty-First Century classes, thereby gaining experience in interacting with a diverse group of undergraduate students as we fulfill our mission of contributing to a liberal arts education. New faculty members usually teach only one course during their first semester; other faculty are normally expected to teach two courses per semester. Candidates for tenure and promotion and for promotion at each level are expected to provide up-to-date and relevant lecturing in the classroom, excellent training for graduate students, and to set high standards in their scholarly activities as examples for their students. They are expected to advise master's degree students, and to have an established research program that includes participation by graduate students. Candidates for promotion to Full Professor are expected to have recruited and supervised graduate students.
Teaching shall be evaluated by a number of instruments including: student evaluations (from SPCI or other Evaluation Forms), in-class visitation(s) by members of the Promotion and Tenure and Evaluation Committee, and department chair, volunteered and solicited comments from students and former students, evaluations from colleagues who have direct knowledge of the candidate's teaching, and evaluations of syllabi and other class materials. In addition, the PT&E will evaluate lists of courses taught, graduate student committees served upon, and graduate students supervised during the relevant period. Mentoring activities will be evaluated including direction of projects resulting in publication by and with students, and placement of students in career positions. Publications of pedagogic books, articles, and receipt of teaching awards will also be taken into account.
2. Scholarship
Faculty members are expected to establish research programs that will bring national and international recognition to the department and to FSU. For promotion to Associate Professor and tenure, there must be clear evidence of a sustained research effort resulting in publication that has moved the candidate beyond their specific dissertation topic. For promotion to Associate Professor, the expectation is that the candidate clearly is becoming recognized nationally as a scholar in their discipline, and should be clearly poised for continuing to do so. For promotion to Full Professor, there must be clear evidence that the candidate has contributed significantly to the scholarship of their field, and the expectation is that the candidate has become recognized nationally and internationally.
The Anthropology PT&E Committee will evaluate the candidate’s scholarship by assessing a number of factors including the extent to which candidates have published research results in refereed professional journals, including those considered to be top-tiered. Scholarly articles should be submitted regularly, and are expected to appear relatively consistently over a number of years. For all subfields, sole or first/senior authorship is expected on a reasonable percentage of peer-reviewed papers. Books (authored, co-authored, edited, or co-edited) are desirable, and it is understood that book proposals and manuscripts (including those for edited volumes) are usually reviewed by peers at the request of editors. Although they do not carry the same weight as peer-reviewed articles in professional journals, articles or chapters that appear in edited works (and are subject to peer review) also count favorably in the evaluation of scholarship. Archaeologists and physical anthropologists are expected to participate in primary field or museum collections research, analysis, and publication of results in peer-reviewed journals and other outlets such as monographs or edited volumes published by university or professional presses. These publications (monographs, technical reports, and edited volumes) provide complete accounts of all phases of the research and constitute primary sources of data for the archaeological or physical anthropological profession. For cultural anthropologists, a book or monograph based on ethnographic fieldwork is desirable, especially if it is published by a university or professional press.
Other publications may include technical reports, museum exhibitions, book reviews, scholarly notes and letters, digital publications (including but not limited to websites, blog posts, data sets, etc.), documentary films, and the publication, performance, and exhibition of creative works. Candidates will also be evaluated on the extent to which they have volunteered to present results of their work at national or international professional meetings, symposia, workshops, etc., as well as the number of invitations they have received to present such scholarly reports at prestigious institutions and meetings. Candidates are also expected to demonstrate that they have received funding at a level adequate to support their research over a significant interval of time, preferably from at least some sources that involve competitive peer review. Finally, the department places strong emphasis on the opinions regarding a candidate's suitability for promotion and tenure that are provided by scholars from other institutions who are recognized as international experts in their fields.
3. Service
Faculty members are expected to be good departmental citizens and to share the load of committee assignments, academic advising, recruiting of graduate students and new faculty. Faculty should also be willing to represent the department on committees or assignments at the college or university level. Directing master’s theses and serving on thesis committees in the department is critical to our mission as a teaching department. Membership on thesis or dissertation committees outside the Department of Anthropology is also considered. Service to the profession is another key component of service that brings recognition to the department and to FSU. Such service may include journal editorships, serving on editorial boards, serving on review panels, holding office in professional organizations, and serving as peer reviewers for the evaluation of manuscripts, books, journal articles, and research proposals. Work in the community is also an important aspect of service, and may include membership and office in governmental or other advisory committees, and public relations activities such as presentations to civic and community organizations and public outreach through media. Service expected of assistant professors should be less than that of associate and full professors. Full professors are expected to have a broader role in service than associate professors (from international to university to college to department).
The PT&E Committee will evaluate candidates' service record as submitted as the annual EOP. The department will use the approved FSU rating scheme (see below) and are based on the EOPs and AORs:
Substantially Exceeds FSU's High Expectations: describes a faculty member who far exceeds performance expectations during the evaluation period and achieves an extraordinary accomplishment or recognition in teaching, research, and/or service, which may include several of the following: highly significant research or creative activities; securing significant external funding; demonstrated recognition of the individual by peers as an authority in their field; and/or attaining significant national or international achievements, awards, and recognition in one or more of the three areas.
Exceeds FSU's High Expectations: describes an individual who exceeds expectations during the evaluation period by virtue of demonstrating noted achievements in teaching, research, and/or service, which may include several of the following: high level of research/creative activity, professional obligations, willingness to accept additional responsibilities, high level of commitment to serving students and the overall mission of the Department, securing significant external funding for research, involvement and or leadership in professional associations, initiative in solving problems or developing new ideas. Examples of these criteria include, but are not limited to successful grant funding, high profile presentations or publications including books and monographs, substantial service to the Department, University or professional community, or an award for teaching, research, or service.
Meets FSU's High Expectations: describes an individual who demonstrates the requisite knowledge and skills in their field or specialty and completes assigned responsibilities in a manner that is both timely and consistent with the high expectations of the university.
Official Concern: describes an individual who demonstrates the requisite knowledge and skills in their fields of specialty but is not completing assigned responsibilities in a manner that is consistent with the high standards of the university.
Does Not Meet FSU's High Expectations: describes an individual who fails to demonstrate with consistency the knowledge, skills or abilities required in their field of specialty and/or in completing assigned responsibilities.
A Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) is required when a non-tenured faculty member receives a 'Does Not Meet FSU's High Expectations' ratings and a tenured faculty member may be placed on a PIP if they receive this rating on three or more of the previous six performance evaluations.
The PT&E Committee will rate each faculty member excepting themselves and spouses/partners. Ratings on a scale of 1 (low) to 10 (high) will be assigned separately to teaching, research and service. The Committee will complete its ratings of faculty in time for the ratings to be used by the Chair in completing Annual Evaluations and Assignments of Responsibilities (usually by March 15th).
The PT&E Committee will meet in March and use the evaluations to provide written input to the chair on each faculty member. Letters will be countersigned by the faculty members to whom they are issued.
The chair, upon recommendations and advice of the Promotion and Merit Committee will provide an annual letter of evaluation. The PT&E Committee (as per the Collective Bargaining Agreement and Faculty Handbook criteria) will also provide the chair a tenure review for Assistant Professors in their third year.
These evaluation procedures will be effective from January 1, 2019.
B. Promotion to Associate Professor with Tenure
The Department of Anthropology seeks to promote candidates who have evidenced excellence in research, teaching, and service. Most importantly, the prospect of future excellence is a critical factor in determining whether an Assistant Professor should become a permanent member of the faculty. The decision to promote and award tenure to an Assistant Professor represents a long-term commitment to the candidate. It is necessary, therefore, to evaluate the candidate’s academic promise as well as their academic achievements. The Department seeks to promote candidates whose research trajectory has moved into new areas of investigation that are reflected in publications and presentations at academic meetings. If the bulk of a candidate’s productivity derives directly from their dissertation, the Department must evaluate the extent to which new work has resulted in revisions. The Department does not desire to promote candidates for whom the most productive stage of their career will be concluded at the time of their promotion.
When they reach their sixth year of service in the Department of Anthropology, Assistant Professors generally become candidates for promotion to Associate Professor and for the award of tenure. Candidates are evaluated primarily on their record of research, teaching, and service that they achieved during their first five years of employment. Promotion to the rank of associate professor shall be based on recognition of demonstrated effectiveness in teaching, service, scholarly or creative accomplishments, and recognized standing in the discipline and profession, as attested to by at least three letters from outstanding scholars outside the University.
The promotion decision considers the following measures: 1) Annual Evaluation and Progress Toward Promotion letters; 2) third year tenure evaluations; 3) Annual Assignments of Responsibility forms; 4) the department’s written promotion criteria as they relate to the candidate’s assignments; and 5) the letters of outside referees who have evaluated the candidate’s materials. Student evaluations shall be considered but shall not be the primary basis for evaluating teaching.
1. Research
The evaluation of a candidate’s research must be holistic, taking into account both quantity and quality of the candidate’s publication and funding record. The Department of Anthropology seeks to promote candidates who display a vigorous and promising program of research. The quantity of publications is one factor in evaluating the candidate’s standing as a scholar and supports the candidate’s claim to excellence, particularly if they have published with highly regarded presses and journals including those considered to be top-tiered. A candidate’s stature as a researcher will also be measured by their activities in presenting papers at professional conferences, engagement in fieldwork, and success in obtaining grants to support research. Finally, the external evaluations by members of the candidate’s discipline, requested for the tenure and promotion process, will be taken into consideration.
No specific quota is a guarantee of promotion nor is there a prescribed list of presses and journals. Candidates are expected to be actively engaged in publication appropriate to their sub-discipline, including peer-reviewed journal articles, books, edited books and special journal volumes (in which the candidate is editor), chapters in edited works, and reports. The department recognizes that anthropological research is diverse. Some projects are brief and have publishable results available in a timely fashion. Some projects are lengthy and will have a series of publications before a longer monograph or book is produced. In the latter case, the candidate’s work should show a progression of shorter articles toward a more substantive presentation of results. In some sub-disciplines, edited books on specific topics are critical to current research. Book chapters are also considered to be evidence of scholarly contribution to the discipline. Some field or research projects require a final report. Because these manuscripts are now available through electronic means, they should be considered a part of the overall productivity of the candidate. Although they are not as important as peer-reviewed publications in journals, they represent analytical and interpretive production related to grant activity. In many instances they are required before additional permits, funding, or grant activity can proceed.
In some sub-disciplines, communicating public scholarship is tied to research requirements. This engagement, although time-consuming, is critical for the broader impact of Anthropology in the United States and abroad.
2. Teaching
Faculty members of the Department of Anthropology value excellence in teaching. Faculty members teach a broad range of courses from introductory to advanced and required to elective in various settings from lectures to labs to field sites. Some courses are taught to large numbers of students (e.g., introductory) and others to smaller numbers (e.g., fieldwork classes, lab analysis classes). The quality of an assistant professor’s teaching role is evaluated each year through student evaluations, in-class observations by a member(s) of the PT&E committee, and chair visits (the chair is required to observe the teaching of every assistant professor at least once during the academic year). Service on graduate Master’s thesis committees as chair or committee member and directing or serving on undergraduate Honor’s thesis committees will also be taken into consideration. The Department considers research and teaching to be important and to that end would be unlikely to recommend for promotion and/or tenure, an assistant professor whose classroom performance is average or less.
3. Service
Anthropologists recognize a variety of potential service areas. Service within the university begins at the departmental level and faculty members are encouraged to serve on departmental committees. Tenure-track faculty members should be cautious about the amount of service outside the department early in their careers. It is more important to earn recognition for excellence in research and teaching.
Outside the university, there is service to professional organizations. The Department encourages active involvement in professional organizations beyond conference attendance, but cautions about the degree of involvement in the early years of an academic career. Public communication and events tied to research projects is another kind of involvement that may not be separable from one’s research but the required degree of involvement should be approached with caution.
C. Promotion to Professor
The Department desires to promote, to the status of professor, those associate professors who have earned national and international recognition. The whole of a candidate’s career must be taken into account, but the greatest attention will be paid to productivity since their last promotion to the status of associate professor. Promotion to the rank of professor shall be based on recognition of superior teaching, service, scholarly or creative accomplishments of high quality and recognized standing in the discipline and profession, as attested to by at least three letters from outstanding scholars outside the University
1. Research
A candidate for promotion to professor will, since the time of their appointment to associate professor, have published (or had accepted for publication), additional evidence of scholarship including publication in top-tiered journals. The candidate will have established an international reputation in their sub-disciplinary area. They will have published articles in top journals in their field. Expectations of quantity are not as important as the quality of the work. A candidate’s research will be the single most important criterion in the departmental evaluation of their suitability for promotion to professor. The candidate must be viewed as making or having made significant and lasting contributions to Anthropology.
2. Teaching
Candidates must continue to meet the Department’s standards for excellence in teaching. Should the individual’s teaching quality deteriorate, as measured by chair visits and student evaluations of teaching, it will have an adverse effect on candidacy. Graduate student mentoring and involvement in research is expected. Candidates must have a strong record of chairing and serving as a member of thesis committees within the department. They also should provide evidence of membership on thesis or dissertation committees outside the department. The Department is unlikely to recommend for promotion to professor a candidate who has failed to keep their obligations for excellence in teaching.
3. Service
Senior faculty members are expected to take an increasingly strong leadership role in departmental, college, and university life. They are encouraged by the Department to take an active role in professional organizations as well as in public outreach where appropriate. Regardless of the amount of service assignment or service activity, promotion to professor will be based mainly on excellence in research and continued success in teaching.
D. Professor Emeritus or Emerita
The Department will recommend emeritus or emerita status in recognition of meritorious contributions to the University and to the Department in scholarship, teaching, and service. Any retiring faculty member can request that the Faculty of the Department of Anthropology consider recommending them to the Dean for emeritus or emerita status. The request will be discussed and voted on by the Promotion, Tenure, and Evaluation Committee. A simple majority will determine the Department’s recommendation. If the recommendation is positive, that recommendation will be sent to the Dean. If it is not positive, it will not be reported to the Dean and the matter will be considered concluded at the department level.
APPENDIX 2
EVALUATION AND PROMOTION OF SPECIALIZED FACULTY
This appendix outlines how Specialized Teaching faculty members of the Department of Anthropology are evaluated for promotion through the levels Teaching Faculty I, II, or III. Generally, there is a five-year service period between promotions, but faculty may submit binders for early consideration for exceptionally meritorious performance. Most Specialized Faculty members of the department are teaching faculty and have little to no research or service assignment. The department procedures and criteria for promotion of specialized faculty follow the Collective Bargaining Agreement (Article 9.10). Additional department-specific criteria for evaluation and for promotion are listed below.
A. Evaluation of Specialized Teaching Faculty Members for Promotion
1. Evaluation of Teaching
Faculty members of the Department of Anthropology value excellence in teaching and Specialized Teaching Faculty members contribute to that goal. Specialized Faculty members are expected to teach courses that range from introductory undergraduate to advanced graduate student topics. The credentials of Specialized Faculty members will be submitted to the Graduate School for Graduate Teaching Status, permitting the Specialized Faculty member to teach graduate courses. A full-time Specialized Faculty member is normally assigned not less than a 75 percent teaching assignment. In the Department of Anthropology, the teaching load for a Specialized Faculty member is four classes per semester for Fall and Spring. That number may be lessened if large sections of at least one hundred (100) students are taught. Specialized Faculty members usually teach two large course sections and one smaller required or skills class with generally less than fifty (50) students. For 12-month Specialized Faculty, the teaching load in Summer semesters is 2 courses total plus other duties as assigned by the department chair.
Teaching will be evaluated primarily through observational visits of the chair and at least one member of the PT&E committee each academic year (fall or spring semester). Two weeks notice must be given prior to the visits. In particular, efficacy of communication of key concepts and student interaction are the basis for observational evaluation. Student evaluations of the course are also considered. Nominations or awards for teaching effectiveness are also evidence of the quality of the faculty member’s teaching.
A full-time Specialized Teaching Faculty member may direct undergraduate honors theses and may co-direct master’s theses if granted Co-Master’s Directive Status (CMDS) by the Graduate School. To be submitted, an application for CMDS requires the positive vote of two-thirds of the tenure-track faculty of the department, approval by the department chair, approval by the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, and approval by the Dean of the Graduate School.
2. Evaluation of Research
A full-time Specialized Teaching Faculty member is normally assigned not more than a 5 percent research assignment. Some research is undertaken with students as part of Directed Individual Studies or Honors work. If approved for CMDS, the Specialized Faculty member will be involved in master’s level research as part of the graduate student’s thesis project. In the Department of Anthropology, a Specialized Teaching Faculty member may not be assigned to more than one graduate student from each incoming class (understood to be a fall semester admission). As the anticipated time from admission to completion of the master’s degree is two years, this would mean that the Specialized Faculty member could co-direct no more than one thesis per year.
Research performance will be evaluated on the basis of involvement in faculty or student-faculty research that leads to honors theses, master’s theses, and publication of research.
3. Evaluation of Service
A Specialized Teaching Faculty member may also be assigned to be the Undergraduate Student Advisor and work in concert with the Academic Program Specialist to assure the quality of undergraduate advising in the department. He or she may also serve as liaison to the Anthropology Society at Florida State University (ASFSU), the department’s student organization.
Evaluation of Service will take into account the Specialized Teaching Faculty member’s involvement in graduate teaching, completion of undergraduate honor’s work, advising, and outreach activities of the department. Membership on departmental committees is expected and may extend to college or university service.
The PT&E Committee will evaluate candidates' service record as submitted as the annual EOP. The department will use the approved FSU rating scheme for tenured and tenure track faculty, which is based on the EOPs and AORs. It is understood that the rating scheme descriptions are adjusted for specialized faculty to reflect only the areas in which the faculty member has assigned responsibilities. The rating scheme used, as specified by the CBA (descriptions are on page.:
Substantially exceeds FSU’s high expectations: describes a specialized faculty member who far exceeds performance expectations during the evaluation period and achieves an extraordinary accomplishment or recognition in teaching.
Exceeds FSU’s High Expectations: describes an individual who exceeds expectations during the evaluation period by virtue of demonstrating noted achievements in teaching.
Meets FSU’s High Expectations: describes an individual who demonstrates the requisite knowledge and skills in their field or specialty and completes assigned responsibilities in a manner that is both timely and consistent with the high expectations of the university.
Official Concern: describes an individual who demonstrates the requisite knowledge and skills in their fields of specialty but is not completing assigned responsibilities in a manner that is consistent with the high standards of the university.
Does Not Meet FSU's High Expectations: describes an individual who fails to demonstrate with consistency the knowledge, skills or abilities required in their field of specialty and/or in completing assigned responsibilities.
B. Criteria for Promotion of Specialized Teaching Faculty Members
Specialized Faculty members will prepare a binder in preparation for a promotion decision. The contents of this binder will reflect their assignment of responsibilities. If the Specialized Faculty member is on a 12-month contract, the summer term is included in all evaluations.
1. Teaching
The materials for promotion include AORs from the date of hire or the date of last promotion, a Teaching Statement, a Statement of Other Teaching Activities, Course Syllabi (up to three) for unique courses taught during the preceding three years, grade distributions of courses taught from the date of hire or from the last promotion, student evaluations, annual evaluation letters, annual letters of progress toward promotion, and other evidence in compliance with the Office of the Vice President for Faculty Development and Advancement’s current Specialized Faculty Promotion Process memorandum.
The candidate’s binder will be evaluated by the PT&E committee. A Specialized Faculty member will be elected to the PT&E committee to assist in the evaluation of the candidate’s binder. The Department of Anthropology highly values excellence in teaching and engagement with students in individual learning situations. Criteria will include evidence of well-planned and well-delivered lectures in multiple classes, positive summaries from student evaluations, and participation in course development that adds to the department’s curricular needs.
2. Research
Specialized Teaching Faculty members with research assignments on their AORs should show evidence of active participation in the regional and national organizations of their discipline through presentation of posters and papers at professional meetings and conferences. Further, they should show evidence of research activities (e.g., through publication of articles in peer-reviewed journals or book chapters). Given their reduced research assignments, they are not expected to perform at the same level as a tenure-track assistant professor.
3. Service
Specialized Teaching Faculty members should contribute to the effective management of the Department through membership on committees, through student advising or engagement in the student anthropological society, and articulation with governmental agencies and the public as is appropriate for their expertise.
C. Rank Promotions
Criteria for rank promotions for Specialized Teaching Faculty members (Teaching Faculty I, II, III):
In the Department of Anthropology, promotion to the second rank shall be based on recognition of demonstrated effectiveness in the areas of assigned duties. Promotion to the third rank shall be based on superior performance in the areas of assigned duties. Promotion decisions shall take into account the following:
a. annual evaluations
b. annual assignments
c. fulfillment of the department/unit written promotion criteria in relation to the assignment
d. evidence of sustained effectiveness relative to opportunity and according to their
assignment, e.g.:
i. evidence of well-planned and delivered courses
ii. summaries of data from Student Perceptions of Courses and Instructors (SPCI)
questionnaires
iii. letters from faculty members who have conducted peer evaluations of the
candidate’s teaching
iv. ability to teach multiple courses within a discipline/major
v. other teaching-related activities, such as instructional innovation, involvement in curriculum development, authorship of educational materials, and participation in professional organizations related to the area of instruction
APPENDIX 3
GRADUATE FACULTY STATUS POLICY
Definition of Graduate Faculty Status (GFS)
Membership in the Graduate Faculty of the Department of Anthropology authorizes faculty to teach all graduate level courses, to sit on all graduate level committees, to chair all graduate student master’s and doctoral committees, and to participate fully in all components of graduate education, research, and service. Limitation or removal of any of these authorizations from individual GFS faculty is delegated to the department, i.e., the unit that makes these assignments.
GFS Nomination Criteria
Tenured and tenure-earning faculty under consideration for nomination to Graduate Faculty Status, subject to consideration of special circumstances, must (1) hold the Ph.D. in Anthropology or a related discipline (e.g., a discipline related to the faculty member’s area of research), (2) have an active program of research, and (3) have proven expertise in the teaching area.
Specialized faculty may be considered for Co-Directive Master’s Status (CDMS) on a case-by-case basis. The individual must: (1) hold the Ph.D. in Anthropology or a related discipline, (2) have proven expertise in the teaching area, (3) demonstrate credentials equivalent to tenure-track faculty who have been granted GFS, and (4) meet departmental criteria for serving on supervisory committees and as major professor. Specialized faculty approved by the department and chair, academic dean and Dean of the Graduate School will be expected to fully participate in graduate education and have a role in all departmental decisions that affect graduate education in the department.
GFS Limitations / Restrictions
Faculty members holding GFS who are not actively involved in graduate training and who do not have an active program of research may be denied the right to participate in graduate education activities in the department, to chair master’s supervisory committees, to serve on graduate student committees, or to teach graduate courses. These decisions will be made by the Chair and Graduate Program Director, in consultation with the department’s Graduate Affairs Committee. The same process will be used to restore these rights when faculty whose rights have been restricted can show evidence of involvement in graduate training and an active program of research. Exceptions to these policies may be made in unusual circumstances by the Chair and Graduate Program Director, in consultation with the Graduate Affairs Committee. Any action taken by the Department to restrict or restore GFS rights will be consistent with University GFS policy.
APPENDIX 4
GUIDELINES FOR FACULTY HIRING PROCEDURES
Applicant folders will be kept in a location that can be accessed by all faculty members. The Search Committee (SC) will keep the faculty informed as it completes each phase of its review of applications.
- Upon authorization by the Dean to recruit for a faculty member in a particular area of the department, the Chair appoints a SC with a minimum of three faculty members representing at least two of the subfields of Anthropology.
- SC solicits feedback from the faculty on the position description.
- SC evaluates all applications and eliminates those that do not meet the minimum requirements for the position.
- SC rank orders applicants who meet the minimum requirements for the position; faculty meet and discuss who to invite for interviews.
- Following this discussion, the SC recommends to the Chair the top 3-4 candidates to be invited to visit the department.
- Following each candidate’s visit, the SC solicits feedback from faculty.
- Following the last candidate’s visit, the SC rank orders the candidates according to SC ratings based on evaluation of all materials including feedback provided by the faculty.
- SC summarizes its recommendations and presents these to the faculty. To facilitate discussion, it is recommended that a member of the SC provide a rationale for specific offers. This overview can include both strengths and any noted limitations. The CV should be distributed and highlights from this can be discussed along with other data including information from external referees. The floor is opened for discussion of each candidate. The faculty completes a secret ballot, the Department Chair tallies the ballots, and announces the results.
- A recommendation to the Chair that an offer be made to a candidate can be advanced with a majority positive vote.
- Chair recommends to the Dean that an offer be made to the selected candidate.