Faculty Tenure & Promotion Workshop

Navigating Contract Renewal and the Tenure & Promotion Process
March 3, 2025

Presented by: John Reisel, PhD., Secretary of the University

Divisional Committee Chairs/Representatives

Maria Seledad Gillespie, Division of Arts & Humanities
John Isbell, Division of Natural Sciences
Natasha Borges-Sugiyama, Division of Social Sciences
Janis Eells, Division of Professions

Training Resources

Where to find specific information in UWM Faculty Policies & Procedures

Contract renewal

	Section
Choose division in first semester	3.03
Divisional committees annually distribute criteria for tenure and promotion	3.03
Departmental Executive Committee functions	4.05
Personnel matters	4.05 (1)
Provide every faculty member with performance review	4.05 (2) 5.15-5.16
Probationary faculty – guidance and annual evaluation	4.05(2)(a)
Annually vote to delegate to subcommittee matters of salary increases, probationary faculty, university staff and graduate assistant appointments and reappointments	4.05 (3)
May delegate to tenured professors recommendations for promotions to full	4.05 (4)

Tenure

	Section
Calculating the probationary period	5.13
Extension of probationary period	5.135
Procedures of the Divisional Committee	3.13
Divisional Committee can ask Department Executive Committee for more information	3.12 (4)
Department Executive Committee presents case on behalf of the faculty member to Divisional Committee	3.12(5)
Faculty adhere to criteria – most current or at time of hiring	3.17

Negative vote leading to non-retention at Department Executive Committee

	Section
Year 6 negative vote or not heard in Year 6	5.136 (2)
Department Executive Committee hears the case and votes for non-retention. Reasons must be formulated in writing before adjourning meeting	5.173
Timeline for Department Executive Committee reconsideration	5.174
Faculty Appeals & Grievances Committee	5.181
Negative vote by Divisional Committee and Department Executive Committee reconsideration	5.177
Dean’s action on negative vote by Department Executive Committee –dean must accept decision	5.175

Promotion to Full

	Section
Request to be considered	4.05 (2)(c)
Delegation to a subcommittee	4.05 (4)

Augmentation

	Section
Exceptions	4.08

Some Roles of the Executive Committee (EC)

Review of untenured faculty yearly.
Review of tenured faculty – five-year schedule (Post tenure review)
Provide written criteria for tenure and promotion.
Can delegate specific matters to a subcommittee by annual vote.
If an associate professor asks to go up for promotion to full, EC must render a decision per P&P 4.05 (2)(c).
EC presents the case to the divisional committee (DC). The DC may request additional information.
Only material submitted by the EC is considered.

Review of Faculty Members

Procedures for review filed with dean. Keep a written record of review.

Extension of the Tenure Clock

Written request from the faculty member must be submitted in a timely manner. Requests must be submitted before the beginning of tenure or renewal review. In case of childbirth/adoption/chronic illness/disability request goes directly to the provost.
Other requests are forwarded from the EC to the dean and the provost.
For childbirth/adoption may be multiple requests.
Provost approves after review by EC, dean and consultation with University Committee (UC). If childbirth/adoption/chronic illness/disability, consult with UC and EC, notification of dean.
Denial of request shall be in writing to faculty member, EC, and dean. If request because of disability, will only go to faculty member.
Faculty member can appeal to Faculty Appeals & Grievances Committee (FAGC).

Tenure Considerations

Decision of tenure must be made 12 months before completion of probationary period unless right is waived. EC must initiate process in enough time for notice that last year is terminal year if negative decision.
EC may agree to review a case in terminal year, but is not required to do so.
First EC decides if they will hear the case-this is not a consideration of the case.
Thirty-day notice must be given to the candidate before case is heard. Meeting is held in closed session unless candidate requests open meeting. (Important to know the candidate’s preference in advance to ensure solicitation of external letters indicates if letters will be confidential. If letter writer was told letter would be confidential, cannot be used in open meeting).
No proxy votes are permitted. EC members can attend by phone or Teams but must be present for entire discussion. Written or electronic ballots must be used, and EC members must sign ballot.
If positive vote, dean asks DC to consider case. Dean does not have to accept DC recommendation but must transmit the case if EC forwarded a positive recommendation.
If negative vote, EC must develop written reasonsfor vote before leaving the meeting. (This is really important—the kind of procedural error that can lead to an ad hoc committee).
Candidate informed orally of decision and notified there are written reasons. Candidate may request written reasons within three working days.
Candidate may request reconsideration, five days after oral reasons are provided, two days after written reasons given. Meeting must be held within 15 working days of receipt of request (some considerations if at end of semester).
A written notice of reconsideration meeting date must be provided to the candidate at least seven days prior to the meeting.
Candidate can persuade EC by presenting new information of challenging reasons. The meeting is closed unless faculty requests open. Faculty can make presentation, have counsel, and ask for a recording of the meeting (therefore, the meeting must be recorded).
If reconsideration vote is still negative, the recommendation is forwarded to dean with written reason(s). Dean must accept the EC’s decision, but it is subject to appeal by the candidate.
A positive recommendation by the DC is transmitted to dean. If negative recommendation, within seven working days, EC chair is notified of vote and right to request reconsideration. EC shall request reconsideration within ten working days. Faculty member can ask EC to request reconsideration; however, EC is not required to do so. DC must reconsider within 15 working days of receipt of request but may be extended by mutual consent.
No appeal of negative DC decision, but a complaint can be filed with UC.

Appeal of an EC Decision

Filed with the UC for referral to FAGC within 20 working days of notice. FAGC reviews within 20 days – may be extended by mutual consent. Faculty member is notified at least ten working days of date of review. FAGC may move to de novo review.

Promotion to Full

Associate professors may request a consideration for promotion to full professor. If asked, The EC is obligated to render a decision as to whether they will consider a formal review of the faculty member as per procedures outlined in section 5.20 of UWM P and P. Request must be addressed.
The department EC may delegate to the tenured professors of the department the authority to make recommendations for promotions to the rank of professor.
Where the observance of these rules is impracticable because of smallness of staff or lack of tenured personnel, the departmental faculty is authorized to request augmentation of small Departmental ECs. The dean may initiate augmentation if the departmental faculty fails to exercise such responsibility. Augmented members are appointed annually by the dean of the school or college, on advice of the UC, from tenured faculty members holding the rank of professor or associate professor in other departments of non-departmentalized schools. The need for an augmented EC shall be reviewed annually by the department faculty and the dean.

Things that have caused problems

Being considered for tenure during Year 6 is a right. The candidate may opt out of consideration, but that is the candidate’s decision. If the candidate does not opt out, they must be considered using all material including research products, teaching evaluations, demonstrations of service and outside letters. The EC may not decide in Year 6 to not obtain letters of evaluation for the candidate unless the candidate opts out of consideration.
The EC may decide not to consider a candidate before Year 6. The EC does not need to obtain letters to make this decision.
The EC may decide not to consider a candidate in Year 7. The EC may make this determination without obtaining outside letters.
If a candidate does not want to be considered in Year 6, the EC may not in Year 6 agree to hear the case in Year 7. The EC in Year 7 must make that determination.
Letters obtained with the expectation of confidentiality and a closed meeting may not be used if a candidate decides to change to an open meeting.
An EC member must be present in order to vote on a case. Proxy votes are not allowed. However, the EC member may attend by phone or skype.
A recording is made of a reconsideration meeting.
The EC is the body presenting a case to the DC and they determine how the case will be presented.
If the EC refuses to hear a person wishing to go up for full there may be reasons for FAGC action.

Procedures for Considering Cases for Promotion in Closed Session of Divisional Executive Committees

The Divisional Executive Committees should adhere to the following procedures when considering cases for promotion to the rank of Associate Professor with Tenure and cases for promotion to the rank of Professor.

Entering Closed Session

Whenever the candidate for promotion has waived his/her right to an open meeting, the Committee begins by adopting a motion to enter Closed Session. The time at which the Committee enters Closed Session is noted in the minutes. The following steps must precede a closed session (s. 19.85 (1), Stats.):

The body must first convene in open session.
A member of the body must move that the body convene in closed session, stating the nature of the business to be considered in closed session.
The chairperson must reiterate the nature of the business to be considered in closed session and cite the relevant exemption under s. 19.85 (1), Stats. that provides authority for the closed session.
The contents of the announcement must be recorded in the minutes of the meeting. The motion must be passed by a majority vote of those present. The vote of each member on the motion to close the session must be ascertained and recorded in the meeting’s minutes, if the vote is not unanimous.

Guests

The Committee may admit guests from the candidate’s department during the closed session of the meeting. These guests may include the Chair of the Department seeking promotion of one of its members and other members of that Department that the Department Chair considers helpful in presenting information or answering questions about the case. An observer may also be present (see below). The candidate may also address the committee. Minutes of the meeting should indicate the names of the guests.

A closed session committee meeting has two parts—the evidentiary/discussion part and the deliberation part. If guests (other than the observer) are admitted for the identiary/discussion part of the meeting, they must leave during the deliberations and vote.

Motion

The Chair asks if any member wishes to propose a motion to recommend to the dean that the candidate be promoted (or appointed) and/or granted tenure. The Chair asks for a second to the motion.

Discussion

The Committee engages in discussion of the motion. During this discussion, the members of the Committee may ask the Guests questions about the case, including questions regarding the content of outside letters of evaluation and questions regarding the identities and qualifications of the evaluators. The committee must be in closed session to discuss letters that were solicited in a confidential manner.

Deliberation

When the Committee has completed its questioning of the guests, the Committee enters the deliberation stage. At this point, only the Observer designated by the candidate’s Department remains in the room. As soon as deliberations begin, the Observer is not to ask or answer questions. His/her role is to monitor the deliberations for any possible violations of policies and procedures.

Vote

At the conclusion of deliberations, the Committee takes a vote on the motion, using signed paper ballots. Ballots should be cast and collected in the closed session and placed in an envelope marked confidential. When the committee reconvenes in open session, the results of the vote should be announced.

Wisconsin Open Meetings Law (WOML) prohibits the use of secret ballots except for the election of officers to the government body (s. 19.88 (1), Stats.). In addition, WOML requires all motions and roll call votes to be recorded, preserved and open to public inspection to the extent allowed under the Wisconsin Public Records Law and any ballot, regardless of form, to be taken in such a way that members’ votes may be ascertained and
recorded if a member of the body makes such a request at the time the vote is taken (s. 19.88 (2) and (3), Stats.). Thus, the meeting’s minutes must record how each member voted on roll calls, and each paper ballot must identify the member voting, as well as that member’s vote.

Oral Report to the Candidate’s Department

The Committee may authorize its Chair, or another member, to inform the candidate’s Department Chair about the Committee’s deliberations. The purpose of this report is to convey the general tone of the deliberations, so that the Department understands any weaknesses that the Committee saw in the candidate’s record, along with any other information that may be helpful in advising the candidate regarding future professional activities. This oral report is distinct from the written, formal letter submitted to the candidate’s department regarding the outcome of the committee’s vote. The written letter should limit its description of a candidate’s weaknesses to state that “the candidate did not meet the criteria for scholarship/teaching/research.” The Committee may not authorize its Chair, or other representative, to forward specific information regarding the identities of Committee members that took particular positions on the case.

Observer

The Divisional Executive Committee shall invite the executive committee of the candidate’s department to designate one of its members who is not currently serving on the Divisional Executive Committee to observe the deliberation and voting on the committee’s advice. If an observer is present, they should be informed of their obligation to maintain all discussion during deliberations to be considered confidential and that the content of the deliberations shall not be reported to the observer’s executive committee or any member of the faculty.