Faculty Handbook - 3. Appointment Policies and Procedures
3.1. Appointment Policies
Appointments to the faculty are ordinarily made for the nine-month academic year (B-base). Twelve-month A-base appointments are reserved for administrative positions and for persons whose responsibilities require year-round service. As professionals, faculty members and administrators arrange their own work schedules during their appointment periods so as to carry out their on-going responsibilities to the university. Persons on A-base are on duty the entire fiscal year, during which they accrue twenty-four days of paid vacation. Persons on B-base are on duty during the academic year, and they receive no paid vacation (4.5.1. Vacations and Holidays). Persons on A-base part-time appointments are expected to maintain their responsibilities to the department, college, and university throughout the entire fiscal year. Persons on B-base part-time appointments are expected to maintain their responsibilities to the department, college, and university throughout the entire academic year.
B-base faculty members may be appointed for specific assignments in the summer, if warranted by the needs of the department. A B-base faculty member may ordinarily be employed by the university for no more than two months during the summer in addition to the academic year appointment. Exceptions may be made when necessary to carry out the provisions of a grant or contract, provided that the faculty member's support for that period is entirely from nonappropriated funds and the request for an exception is endorsed by the dean and approved by the provost. Summer salary, when paid from state appropriated funds, is based on the individual's B-base salary during the preceding academic year, prorated according to the length of the summer appointment. Summer appointments are ordinarily made on a year-by-year basis. Any commitments for summer appointments extending beyond one year are contrary to university policy and are, therefore, possible only with prior written approval of the dean of the college and the provost.
Departments will continue to advertise for full-time tenure-eligible or tenured positions and must have funding for a full-time hire. Advertisements will include information about university policies for flexible and part-time appointments. At the request of the faculty member, the department chair may appoint the new faculty member on a term or permanent part-time tenure-eligible or tenured basis. After an initial permanent part-time appointment, increases in the appointment are not guaranteed; however, they may be negotiated via request by the faculty and approval by the department chair. (See section 3.3.1.1)
Initial appointments may be made to any of the academic ranks - instructor, assistant professor, associate professor, or professor. Appointment to the rank of assistant professor may be for a period of four years or less, with option of renewal for a period up to three years. Initial appointment to the rank of associate professor and professor may be made either for a specified term or it may be continuous, thereby granting the individual academic tenure. Appointments to tenured positions are made only after consultation and special approval of the dean of the college and the provost. The provost must have an opportunity to meet candidates for a tenured position before approval is requested.
When the appointment will include the responsibility for teaching a course by a non-tenure-eligible person, departmental/program faculty consultation is required. The consultation procedures shall be specified in departmental/program governance documents. If circumstances prevent obtaining faculty consultation, the chair may make a one-year term appointment. Reappointment beyond one year requires faculty consultation as described in the pertinent governance document. The faculty of a department/program may delegate their consultation role to the department chair by a formal vote. Such delegation should be reviewed at the time of reappointment or appointment of a department chair.
3.2. Appointment Procedures
The chair initiates a proposal for a new appointment after consultation with the members of the department. Upon receipt of approval from the dean(s) and provost, the department follows university search procedures http://www.adp.iastate.edu/vpbf/prod/docs/opg/chap4.htm#4.1.1.
When a candidate has been identified for the appointment, the chair specifies the conditions of appointment on a form called the Letter of Intent and in a letter making the offer of appointment including the position responsibility statement.
The Letter of Intent form and the letter must be approved by the dean and, in the case of a tenured or tenure eligible appointment, by the provost. Approval must also be obtained from the Office of Equal Opportunity and Diversity confirming that the required search procedures have been followed in filling the position. The stipulated conditions include the academic rank, salary for the first year (in the case of new appointment), the ending date of the probationary period if one is established, the date by which a notification of intent not to renew is to be given if the appointment is renewable, and any special factors that apply to the appointment.
Subsequently, the person to whom the appointment is offered signs the form, indicating acceptance of the appointment and the specified conditions.
3.3. Types of Appointments
Faculty Appointments are made as tenured/tenure-eligible (with rank of assistant professor, associate professor, or professor) or as non-tenure-eligible (e.g. lecturer, clinician, senior lecturer, senior clinician, instructor, adjunct, affiliate, collaborator or visiting faculty). The type of appointment influences such considerations as fringe benefits, tenure status, and renewal procedures.
3.3.1. Tenured and Tenure-Eligible Appointments
Tenured and tenure-eligible appointments are regularly budgeted positions at any rank and account for most faculty appointments. Tenure-eligible faculty are appointed for a specified period of time (term appointment), and notice of intent not to renew shall be given according to the deadlines specified in the section 3.4 Nonrenewal or Termination of Appointment. A person on a tenure-eligible appointment for a specified term is considered to be in a probationary period of service leading to tenure. The length of this period is specified at the time of initial appointment, but it may not exceed seven years, except in cases of part-time tenure-eligible appointments and in cases of the approved extension of the tenure-clock. Recruitment for tenured and tenure-eligible faculty must follow university procedures.
3.3.1.1 Requests for conversion to part-time appointment
Requests for conversion from full-time to part-time appointments may only be initiated by the faculty member. Faculty with either A-base or B-base full-time appointments may request to convert their position to a part-time appointment (tenure-eligible faculty may make such a request only for reasons of balancing work and family for the arrival of a child, the care of a child with special needs, elder care, the care of a partner, or for personal circumstances related to the health of the faculty member). A new Position Responsibility Statement (PRS) will be negotiated by the faculty member and department chair. (See 5.1.1.5) Part-time appointments can be made for any fraction from 0.5 to 1.0 of a full appointment. Only in unusual circumstances and only for tenured faculty will appointments less than 0.5 FTE be considered. The length of term part-time appointments may be made in one-half year segments that may either be consecutive or non-consecutive for no more than a two calendar year term. During the duration of a part-time term appointment, terms of the appointment will only be changed via the agreement of the faculty member, the department chair and Dean. At the end of any term, the part-time appointment may be continued for subsequent terms by agreement of the faculty member, the department chair and Dean. Tenure-eligible faculty may request such continued part-time appointment only for reasons of personal or family care. Permanent conversion to a part-time appointment may be made subject to approval by the department chair and Dean.
The reasons for the request for a change in the percentage of appointment should be clearly stated and may include personal or professional issues, including work/life balance. The department chair should make a careful assessment of the needs of the department and work with the faculty member requesting the part-time appointment to facilitate this whenever possible. The period for which this part-time appointment is granted shall be clearly stated. Each agreement will specify the date on which the faculty member returns to full-time.
If the faculty member and the department chair do not reach agreement on a change in appointment, the faculty member may request assistance from the chair of the faculty senate appeals committee, the Ombuds Office, the dean, or the provost. Disagreements about changes in the PRS should be handled according to Section 5.1.1.5.
Service responsibilities for faculty on part-time appointments are generally seen as proportional to their appointments. Faculty on such appointments are not excused from regular institutional service and university commitments because of the part-time appointments.
Faculty on part-time tenure-eligible or tenured appointments of at least 50% remain eligible for benefits, including retirements and medical and dental benefits as provided by university benefit plans. Office and laboratory space may be adjusted with part-time appointments.
A faculty member's tenure is assumed to be full-time as long as the part-time appointment has a stated term. When a permanent conversion to part-time appointment takes place, the tenure is for a partial appointment.
3.3.1.2 Review of policy for part-time appointments for tenure-eligible and tenured faculty
The policy on part-time appointments for tenure-eligible and tenured faculty shall be reviewed six years after it is adopted. It will remain in effect unless explicitly amended by the Faculty Senate and university administration.
3.3.2. Non-Tenure-Eligible Appointments
(For evaluation, renewal, and advancement policies of non-tenure-eligible appointments, see section 5.5.1)
Faculty Senate approved this policy on December 11, 2001 and the university Administration approved this policy in April of 2002. Revisions were approved by the Faculty Senate and the Administration in 2003.
3.3.2.1. Appointment Policies for Lecturer, Senior Lecturer, Clinician, Senior Clinician, and Adjunct appointments
Non-tenure-eligible faculty positions are term appointments eligible for renewal based upon the quality of performance and the continuing need of the unit. They are subject to approval by the Dean and Provost. Individuals appointed to these positions will be evaluated for compensation and advancement using established criteria appropriate to their positions. Evaluations for renewal of appointment will be conducted by an appropriate faculty committee and recommended by the department chair.
The types of non-tenure-eligible appointments include the following:
- Lecturer and Clinician1: a limited term, full- or part-time renewable appointment of from one semester to three years and renewable for no more than a total of six years.
- Senior Lecturer and Senior Clinician1: a limited term, full- or part-time renewable appointment not to exceed five years, requiring a notice of one year of intent not to renew. To be eligible for appointment as Senior Lecturer or Senior Clinician, the individual shall have served as a Lecturer or Clinician or its equivalent for six years.
- Adjunct appointment: a limited-term, full- or part-time renewable appointment with possible titles as adjunct professor, adjunct associate professor, adjunct assistant professor, and adjunct instructor2. The Adjunct title signifies that the person, because of special personal or departmental circumstances of a clearly unusual nature or character, is neither tenured nor tenure-eligible. Adjunct appointments are not to exceed five years for each appointment, requiring a notice of one year of intent not to renew except when the appointment is for a year or less.
- Professional and Scientific (P&S) non-tenure-eligible appointment: employees on P&S status may be appointed to limited-term, renewable appointments, of from one to five years, to carry out faculty duties as specified in 3.3.2.5.
1 Colleges and other administrative units may substitute other descriptors in place of Clinician or Senior Clinician to reflect the usages and norms of their disciplines with approval of the Faculty Senate and the Provost.
2 As specified in 3.3.2.4, the title of "adjunct instructor" is reserved "for persons with DVMs or equivalent degrees, who perform faculty work as part of PhD or specialty training programs."
Short-term non-tenure-eligible teaching shall be limited to opportunities for utilizing outstanding master scholars and practitioners or to unanticipated pressures like funding shortages or unforeseen enrollment increases. Positions shall not be considered temporary when they are filled from year to year.
ISU subscribes to AAUP guidelines and standards for part-time and non-tenure-eligible faculty, in effect as of 10/09/01, including the AAUP recommendation that part-time and non-tenure-eligible faculty appointments be limited to no more than 15 percent of the total instruction within the university, and no more than 25 percent of the total instruction within any given department
Non-tenure-eligible faculty appointments should have equitable compensation and access to professional development opportunities.
Non-tenure-eligible faculty will be included in the departmental and institutional structures of faculty governance. In addition, non-tenure-eligible faculty can also serve in the Faculty Senate, with the exception of persons employed in a P&S position, their institutional representation being the P&S Council. Individuals who are degree candidates from ISU and teach as a part of their educational experience will not be given faculty rank nor counted as non-tenure-eligible faculty.
No changes to the status, title, and privileges of persons already holding continuous adjunct non-tenure-eligible faculty positions shall be made unless requested by such a person. See section 3.3.3. on continuous adjunct appointments for a definition of a continuous adjunct.
The Faculty Senate shall exercise oversight of compliance with these recommendations and will accept and review applications for exceptions to departmental appointment limitations described above from the Provost. Other related policy issues will be addressed by the FDAR Council with the Provost in attendance.
3.3.2.2. Appointment Procedures for Lecturer, Senior Lecturer, Clinician, Senior Clinician, and Adjunct appointments
In addition to the above principles established in conjunction with the Faculty Senate, the following practices and procedures shall apply:3
- Appointments as non-tenure eligible faculty are made using established university search processes.
- Appointment of Senior Lecturers and Senior Clinicians or adjunct appointments must be approved by the dean and the provost. Request for approval should include a summary of the review results and a statement regarding the continuing need of the unit.
- Appointments may be advertised and filled as either full- or part-time.
- Standard appointment is for nine months (B-base).
- Ordinarily a graduate or professional degree is required for appointment.
- Appointment to the Graduate Faculty for non-tenure eligible individuals is governed by Graduate College policy.
- Faculty members who have been denied tenure in a mandatory year review at Iowa State University are not eligible for appointment as non-tenure-eligible faculty.
3 For P&S employees, notice of intent not to renew is governed by the P&S appointment. Termination of the P&S appointment will also mean termination of the non-tenure-eligible appointment.
3.3.2.3. Adjunct Faculty Employed Elsewhere.
Adjunct titles may be used for persons who are employed elsewhere but have special or unique expertise to take on faculty responsibility at Iowa State. This would include persons currently funded or employed in businesses, government, and other organizations without direct connection to ISU. These appointments are normally part time, made to recognize the appropriate teaching, extension/professional practice, and/or research responsibilities of these individuals. Any temporary full-time appointments of these individuals would be for a special need and usually last no longer than one-year. Adjunct faculty should be individuals holding a terminal degree in an appropriate field. Under extraordinary circumstances, individuals without the terminal degree but with national or international reputations in their field might be considered for appointment in an adjunct position.
Individuals who are faculty members at another institution should be appointed as Visiting Professors (see Section 3.3.4).
3.3.2.4. Adjunct Faculty Employed by the University.
In the University's quest to hire and retain excellent faculty, including dual-career couples, as well as to carve out new areas of academic expertise, and attract experts on extra mural grants and contracts, certain individuals may be hired in full time positions as adjunct faculty. These should be persons with the terminal degree in their field. They will likely function as faculty with significant research or extension/professional practice responsibilities, usually funded by external grants and contracts. Whenever possible, these individuals when employed by the department should be considered for tenure-eligible positions. Adjunct faculty are not tenure-eligible faculty and have term appointments as specified in Section 3.3.2.1. The title of adjunct instructor is reserved for persons with DVMs or equivalent degrees, who perform faculty work as part of a PhD or specialty training program and b) persons with appropriate masters degrees in departments/programs where a limited number of PhD students in good standing come with previous relevant special experience (with the relevancy and specialness to be articulated and defended by the academic department/program). Each department/program proposing such use of Adjunct Instructor must receive approval by the Provost and Faculty Senate before beginning to use it in that way.
3.3.2.5. Professional and Scientific (P&S) Non-Tenure-Eligible Appointments.
A person employed in a Professional & Scientific (P&S) position may also be appointed to non-tenure-eligible positions by an academic department to carry out faculty responsibilities for that department. Individuals holding a full or part-time P&S position may have no more than 30% of their total work responsibilities in teaching.
A broad range of P&S employees are granted faculty rank so that they can conduct faculty duties, most often teaching. Previously these individuals were appointed as Adjunct Instructors, Adjunct Assistant Professors, Adjunct Associate Professors, and Adjunct Professors. The specific title reflected the employee's academic credentials and the title was usually for a term appointment.
The following system is now employed for P&S employees assuming faculty responsibility.
When the faculty work undertaken is similar to that of a department's Lecturers and Clinicians, the title of Lecturer and Clinician (or Senior Lecturer and Senior Clinician) is appropriate. These titles should only be given to employees with an advanced degree in an appropriate field. These titles can be given for terms not to exceed five years, when a department foresees a continuing need for the P&S employee's service in faculty roles.
When the faculty work undertaken is substantially different from the work of department Clinicians and Lecturers, which often occurs when the work is focused on research or extension/professional practice, the P&S employee may be given the title of Adjunct Assistant Professor, Adjunct Associate Professor, or Adjunct Professor. The qualifications for these titles should be similar to those required to hire at the Assistant, Associate or Full Professorial ranks under the tenure-eligible system. These titles should only be given to employees with the terminal degree in the field. The awarding of these titles must be approved by the department, the college, and the provost.
P&S employees who held adjunct rank at the Assistant, Associate or Full Professorial levels at the time of adoption of this policy (2/11/03) will retain these titles, with appropriate review and approval by the departments in which the title is held. The term of these appointments shall be as previously specified or for a renewable term not to exceed five years. Departments will need to review employees who held Adjunct Instructor rank at the time of adoption of this policy (2/11/03), and will need to recommend to the college and provost future classification for these individuals.
3.3.3. Continuous Adjunct Appointments
The title continuous adjunct was employed in the past to extend certain adjunct appointments beyond seven years and subject to termination only for cause. Cause includes not only inadequate performance but also factors such as discontinuation of financial support, lack of need for the role the person has been playing in the department, significant change in the nature of that role, or other circumstances related to the nature of the position within the department. No new appointments may be made using this title.
Salaries for continuous adjunct faculty should reflect equity with other faculty making similarly valuable contributions. (Faculty Senate Resolution 96-12, March, 1997)
3.3.4. Visiting Appointments
Visiting Appointments are ordinarily intended to provide special input into the teaching or research program of the department. A visitor is usually a member of the faculty of another institution and is appointed at the rank held at that institution. A visitor may, however, also come from business, industry, or government, in which case the appointment is at a rank consistent with the individual's professional experience. A visiting appointment is usually for one academic year, but may be for a shorter period of time. It is not subject to renewal, so no special notification of intent not to renew is necessary. The person is not considered to be tenured at Iowa State, nor is the visiting appointment considered to be service in a probationary period leading to tenure since renewal is not contemplated. If, however, the individual is subsequently given a regular appointment following an open recruitment process, continuous time up to one year served in a visiting status may be credited toward completion of the probationary period. Since visiting appointments are not renewable, the university's affirmative action procedures do not apply and the position need not be advertised. Visitors appointed for at least nine months may, at their option, participate in the university's benefits program.
3.3.5. Collaborators
Collaborators are persons not employed by the university who are appointed to the faculty with the understanding that they will receive no remuneration for services rendered to the university. Typically they are persons whose special expertise is deemed useful to the university in connection with a particular teaching or research program. A collaborator appointment may be made at any academic rank and remains in effect as long as it is mutually agreeable to both the department and the individual. A collaborator is not tenured, does not serve a probationary period leading toward tenure, and does not participate in the university's benefits program.
3.3.6. Affiliates
Affiliates are persons appointed to the faculty, without financial obligation on the part of the university, to carry out scholarly activities from which the individual as well as the department and the university will benefit. Faculty rank will reflect scholarly qualifications equivalent to those of similar rank in the department. Unlike collaborators, affiliates are not employed on a regular basis outside the university. Since affiliates are not recruited following university affirmative action procedures, they may not be assigned duties or responsibilities - such as teaching courses or providing research support for other faculty or staff - that would ordinarily be carried out by a person in a faculty or P&S position. If a department desires to assign such responsibilities to a person on an affiliate appointment, that person's appointment status may be converted to an appropriate status by following the university's procedure for filling a faculty or P&S position.
Appointments may be made for one to three years and may be renewed. The conditions of the appointment, including the extent to which the department will provide support services for the individual, are stated in a written agreement signed by both parties at the time of the appointment. If a person on an affiliate appointment obtains financial support from a grant or contract for which he or she is the principal investigator, he or she is paid through the university's payroll system and may participate in the university's benefits programs, provided that all salary and benefit costs are supported by the affiliate's grant or contract. An affiliate is not tenured, and time spent in affiliate status is not considered to be service in a probationary period leading toward tenure. Persons on affiliate appointments are, however, subject to university and faculty policies.
3.3.7. Joint Academic Appointments
A faculty member may hold an appointment in more than one academic department. Initiation of such an appointment - which may be made either coincidental with, or subsequent to, the individual's original appointment - requires a Letter of Intent signed by the chairs of both departments and the dean or deans of the college(s) involved and the provost. In approving the appointment, the second department should stipulate in writing the role the faculty member will play in that department, including the person's rights with respect to involvement in the governance of the department. One of the departments is designated as the individual's primary department, which is considered to be the faculty member's home department for purposes of evaluation, review and initiating personnel actions. Recommendations for promotion and tenure are initiated and submitted by the faculty member's primary department, with the advice of the secondary department. Ordinarily, the faculty member's tenure is assumed to reside in the primary department only. Joint appointments may involve joint budgeting, but the primary department may also fund the faculty member's entire salary. In the latter case, the appointment in the secondary department is sometimes referred to as a courtesy appointment. The Position Responsibility Statement should clarify the expectations in each department.
3.4. Nonrenewal or Termination of Appointment4
Written notice that a term-appointment is not to be renewed shall be given to the faculty member in advance of the expiration of the appointment, according to the following minimum periods of notice:
- not later than March 1 of the first academic year of service at Iowa State, if the appointment expires at the end of that year; or if a one-year appointment terminates during an academic year, at least three months in advance of its termination
- not later than December 15 of the second academic year of service at Iowa State, if the appointment expires at the end of that year; or if an initial two-year appointment terminates during an academic year, at least six months in advance of its termination
- at least twelve months before the expiration of an appointment after two or more years at this institution
In the event of extraordinary financial crisis leading to termination of faculty members with continuous appointment (tenured), notice of termination shall be given not less than twelve months prior to the effective date of termination.
A tenure-eligible faculty member being considered for reappointment shall be given the opportunity, well in advance of the final decision, to present to the departmental committee charged with making the recommendation any evidence he or she believes may be relevant and helpful to his or her case.
A tenure-eligible faculty member who is not recommended for reappointment shall be given an explanation of the action in an informal conference with the department chair and, if he or she requests it, shall be given a statement of reasons in writing. A faculty member who is denied reappointment or tenure can secure a review of the decision either through administrative channels or the Faculty Senate Appeals Committee if the faculty member believes that it results from improper procedure, or rests on grounds which violate academic freedom or constitutional rights, or is substantively arbitrary or capricious. In such appeal procedures, the burden of proof is on the faculty member.
4 Appointments of Lecturers and Clinicians is sometimes done on a year-to-year basis and do not require notice of intent not to renew.
