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Indiana University
DRAFT CHARGE of the IULFC Promotion & Tenure Review Committee

8/19/02

TO: IU Librarians

FROM: Suzanne Thorin
Ruth Lilly University Dean of University Libraries

SUBJECT: IULFC Promotion & Tenure Review Committee

Librarians from all campuses have asked a number of questions about promotion and tenure policies and procedures over the past five years. These questions include the strength and specificity of the criteria (especially when compared with faculty criteria); routing of dossiers; and criteria for becoming a full librarian from the perspective of regional campuses.

To the best of my knowledge the last review of promotion and tenure occurred in 1987/88 under Dean Elaine Sloan. Because the campuses have changed and grown and because faculty procedures have changed and grown with the campuses, this is an appropriate time for us to review our procedures. I am therefore charging a system-wide committee to review tenure and promotion procedures and to issue a report and recommendations in June 2003. Because concerns have been expressed both by librarians and directors, I am assembling a committee that includes both.

The committee will be active on all the campuses throughout the academic year and will seek feedback throughout the process. The committee's recommendations will be considered on each campus via its library faculty governance structure. After a period of discussion on the campuses and within the IULFC, the recommendations will be considered by the IULFC and voted upon by librarians system wide.

In addition to addressing the issues above, this exercise will also serve to confirm the strengths of our procedures.

In reviewing P&T the committee should:
  • Review the current P&T criteria for IU Librarians and determine if the current criteria meets the criteria in the Academic Handbook and the current policies and practices of the various campuses;
  • Assess the current documentation required for P&T, and insure that that new forms of documentation, i.e., electronic, are included as appropriate;
  • Review the criteria for full librarian; Assess the effectiveness of the P&T system-wide.

In the course of its work, committee members should contact as appropriate, tenured and untenured librarians, past P&T committee members, promotion and tenure candidates, and faculty, including faculty P&T committee members, deans of the faculties and their offices, and library directors.

Timeline: a draft document should be completed in February 2003 for discussion at the IULFC and the Council of Head Librarians meetings. The final report is due at the end of June 2003.

Membership: Erika Dowell (IUB), Linda Fisher (IUSB), Chris Long (IU Law Library, Indianapolis) from the IULFC Faculty Standards Committee 2002/03; B.J. Irvine (IUB and member of the 1988 review committee; Judy Violette (IPFW library director), Marty Rosen (IUSE library director), Andrea Singer (IUB), P&T Committee, Mary Stanley (IUPUI), Vania Goodwin (IUPUI), Gary Wiggins (IUB), Carol Rusinek (IUN), Richard Vaughn (IUB Law Library), Laura Baldwin (IUE), Diane Bever (Kokomo) and Yolanda Cooper-Birdine as ex-officio.

Resource Documents for the Committee:
  1. Promotion & Tenure Review Committee Report, January 27, 1988
  2. Promotion & Tenure Guidelines for Librarians
  3. Scholarship Reconsidered by Ernest Boyer
  4. Promotion and Tenure Guidelines for Faculty (all IU campuses)