Revised November, 2022
I. Statement of Purpose.
This document describes the procedures and criteria under which tenure-track faculty of the Department of Mathematics will be evaluated and considered for tenure and/or promotion. For information about College and University procedures and guidelines, see the following documents:
- University and College Tenure and Promotion Guidelines.
- University Constitution.
- Florida Administrative Code.
- University of Florida Faculty Handbook.
- Agreement between Board of Regents and the United Faculty of Florida.
II. Annual Evaluation and Mid-Term Review of Untenured Tenure-Accruing Faculty.
1. Annual Review.
Every untenured tenure track assistant professor will receive an annual review each spring semester prior to formal consideration for tenure.
(a) A review file shall be prepared for each untenured tenure-track
faculty member. It shall contain :
- all current and past annual activity reports;
- current curriculum vitae, including a complete list of publications;
- all teaching evaluations;
- all peer reviews of teaching;
- any supplementary information which the faculty member may wish to include.
(b) The tenured members of the department will meet with the chair during the Spring semester for consultation and assessment of the progress of
the candidate. The review file should be available to the tenured faculty members for at least three days before this meeting.
(c) Ballots for the annual review will be available no sooner than 24 hours after the meeting. Ballots will have the following form:
Overall performance in the areas of research, teaching and service in the profession has been (1) superior, (2) meeting department standards, (3) somewhat below expectations, (4) unsatisfactory.
(d) The result of the vote will be communicated in writing by the chair to the faculty member, either by letter or email, separate from the chair’s annual letter of evaluation. This communication will not be included in the faculty member’s personnel file.
2. Mid-Term Review of Untenured Tenure Accruing Faculty.
Each untenured tenure track faculty member (candidate) will receive a mid-term (third-year) review during the spring semester of their third year of tenure accruing service. This review is separate from and in addition to the annual review. Its purpose is to provide structured and constructive information to assist candidates in meeting department, college and university requirements for tenure and promotion.
(a) The candidate shall prepare an appraisal dossier containing the same kind of materials found in the tenure and promotion package, but without letters of recommendation. In the first two weeks of the semester the tenure and promotion committee shall provide the faculty member with details of the required materials and a deadline in the second half of the semester for finalizing the dossier.
(b) The tenured members of the department will meet with the chair for consultation and assessment of the progress of the candidate. The appraisal dossier should be available to the tenured members for at least one week before this meeting.
(c) The appraisal process shall be confidential to the extent permitted by law and internal to the department and the college office. In particular, the appraisal shall not be placed in the faculty member’s evaluation file nor be included in the faculty member’s tenure packet.
III. Consideration for promotion and/or tenure.
1. The department chair shall initiate the tenure and/or promotion process upon the written request of a faculty member made no later than July 1, though faculty are encouraged to make their request during the Spring term. The department chair shall provide the applicant with the URLs of the University’s Guidelines and Information Regarding the Tenure, Permanent Status and Promotion Process, the College Tenure and Promotion Guidelines, the Department’s written clarifications of the University criteria, and other materials, information, and forms that are used in the preparation of the dossier. The department chair shall inform the candidate of the deadlines in the review process.
University regulations require that a faculty member in the seventh year of tenure accrual must be either granted tenure or given a notice of non-renewal. Therefore, formal consideration will be automatic for a faculty member in the seventh year of tenure accrual unless he or she submits to the chair a letter of resignation, with an effective date no later than the end of the following academic year. University guidelines permit a one-year extension of the tenure probationary period under certain circumstances if requested by the faculty member no later than March 31st of the final year of the probationary period. If circumstances warrant, a candidate may be considered prior to this time. Under the policy of “Tenure when ready”, it is usual for faculty members with extensive postdoctoral experience to be considered for tenure and promotion before the seventh year of tenure accrual. Formal consideration will be automatic (with the consent of the nominee) if promise of this consideration was made in the letter of appointment.
2. The department chair will compile a list of references, who will later be requested to write letters of evaluation, no later than the first week of July. The candidate shall be informed of the names of all references before the letters are requested. As detailed in both the University and CLAS guidelines, care should be taken to avoid conflicts of interest in selecting evaluators.
3. In accordance with college guidelines the chair’s list will contain five or six qualified scholars in pertinent disciplines outside the university. College guidelines state that the candidate submits a list of at least seven names and the Department chooses other names so that at least half of the evaluators who agree to write letters come from the candidate’s list.
4. If the candidate wishes to waive the right to review the letters of recommendation, he or she must fill out the college waiver form before the letters are requested.
5. The department chair will write to each reference to request letters of recommendation. This should be done at least two months before completed packets are due in the College Office. The request will indicate whether the candidate has waived the right to review the letters of recommendation.
6. The faculty members at or above the rank sought by a nominee for promotion (the tenured faculty members, in the case of a nominee for tenure) will meet for a discussion and assessment. The promotion (tenure) dossier should be available to those faculty members at least one week prior to this meeting. The secret ballot of the unit faculty eligible to vote shall be distributed no earlier than one day following the meeting.
7. The ballot will allow the voter to vote for or against the promotion or tenure or to abstain from voting.
8. The department chair will transmit the file to the college for consideration, including the vote and the chair’s letter of recommendation. The chair’s letter should include a summary of the discussion and vote of the faculty.
9. The chair will communicate the vote and the letter of recommendation to the candidate. The candidate always has the right to withdraw from consideration at this time.
IV. Tenure upon Appointment
A new faculty member may be recommended for tenure upon appointment. University guidelines currently restrict tenure upon appointment to faculty at the rank of associate professor or above. A formal vote must be taken by the tenured faculty before such an offer is extended to the candidate.
V. Faculty Appointments with Promise of Early Consideration for Tenure and/or Promotion
The chair’s written offer of formal consideration for tenure and/or promotion in the first year of appointment should be preceded by a consultation with the tenured faculty or with the faculty at or above the rank sought.
VI. Distinguished Professor
Nominations for promotion to the rank of Distinguished Professor originate with the Dean and are given preliminary consideration at the University level. Formal consideration follows the same procedure as promotion from associate to full professor. In particular, faculty voting on the promotion are the Full Professors.
APPENDIX I. The College Promotion and Tenure Committee.
The department nominee for the College Promotion and Tenure Committee will be selected by a majority vote of the department faculty early in the spring semester. The vote will be preceded by a period of open nominations.
APPENDIX II. Criteria for Evaluation, Promotion and Tenure
The University criteria for promotion and tenure (Faculty Handbook, p. 19) recognize three broad categories of activity: (1) instruction, (2) research and (3) service. The Mathematics Department expects its candidates for tenure and promotion to have achieved excellence in at least two of three areas, and normally these are research and teaching. At the same time, performance is expected to be commendable in all areas. The following factors contribute to the recognition of excellence and promote the goals of the mathematics department and the University.
RESEARCH: The faculty member has demonstrated research activity of high professional standards which results in national or international recognition for the member, the department and the University. The work of a candidate for tenure or promotion will be evaluated by outside experts in the field.
Examples of factors which may be considered are published articles, invited talks and colloquia, receipt of grants and contracts, awards, conducting and participating in research seminars, supervision of doctoral students, development of advanced graduate curricula, consulting.
TEACHING: The faculty member has shown dedication to teaching. The member’s classes are conducted with high professional standards, and the member’s teaching enhances the teaching reputation of the department and the University. The review of teaching for a candidate for tenure and promotion will include evaluation by peers as well as by students.
Examples of factors which may be considered are: success of students taught, teaching awards, advising of students, instructional materials, published papers on the teaching of mathematics, the supervision of graduate students, conducting workshops for school teachers and teaching assistants, curriculum development, the level and range of classes taught, conducting and participating in seminars.
SERVICE: The faculty member has made a positive contribution to the life of the department, the university, the profession and/or society.
Examples of service which may be considered are: chairing and serving on departmental, college and university committees, councils and senates, service in appropriate professional organizations, refereeing papers and grant proposals, editorships of professional journals, service to public schools, reviewing papers, evaluating persons or programs within the University or for external groups, organization of meetings, coordinating courses, recruiting of students.
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