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HR policy - Guide to Instructional Academic Staff (IAS) promotion

The Guide to Instructional Academic Staff (IAS) Promotion is intended to be a practical resource to the University’s promotion policies and their implementation.
 Functional Owner Academic Departments
 Executive Sponsors Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs
 Policy Contact N/A

Who this policy applies to:
Instructional Academic Staff (IAS).

Rationale:
The Guide to Instructional Academic Staff (IAS) Promotion is intended to be a practical resource to the University's promotion policies and their implementation.

Policy Detail:
INTRODUCTION

  1. OVERVIEW
  2. IAS PROMOTION POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
  3. IAS PROMOTION CRITERIA: DESCRIPTIONS, EXPECTATIONS AND EVALUATION
  4. IAS PROMOTION REPORT FORMAT AND INSTRUCTIONS
    1. Candidate's Report
    2. Departmental Materials
    3. Dean's Materials
  5. Appendix A  FACULTY SENATE BY-LAW FOR IAS PROMOTION COMMITTEE
  6. Appendix B  TITLE SERIES, RANKS and PROMOTION GUIDELINES
  7. Appendix C  IAS PROMOTION COMMITTEE RULES AND PROCEDURES
  8. Appendix D  INSTRUCTIONS FOR PREPARING THE ELECTRONIC PORTFOLIO
  9. Appendix E  FORMS

The Guide to Instructional Academic Staff (IAS) Promotion is intended to be a practical resource to the University's promotion policies and their implementation. Promotion of IAS is an important matter for eligible IAS, their respective colleges, departments, and the University community as a whole.  Promotion is a significant career achievement and is an important way that academic departments, the colleges, and the University recognize and reward IAS accomplishments and contributions. To ensure fairness, much time and effort have been expended on devising the rules and procedures that govern promotion. Moreover, additional time and effort is expended by IAS in preparing their promotion files and by their departments, their deans, and the Promotion Committee (IASPC) in formulating promotion recommendations.


The IASPC realizes that it is not required that IAS excel equally in all areas of teaching, professional development/creative activity/scholarship (PD/CA/Sch) and Service. A successful candidate for promotion will have, along with evidence of good teaching, a solid record of PD/CA/Sch and/or service

  1. Promotion from  Assistant Teaching Professor to Associate Teaching Professor AND Clinical Assistant Professor to Clinical Associate Professor depends upon clear demonstration of strong teaching and a growing record of PD/CA/Sch and/or Service. At this level, the IASPC is looking for evidence of effective classroom instruction and a pattern of PD/CA/Sch and/or Service that lays a coherent basis for continued growth.
  2. Promotion from Associate Teaching Professor to Teaching Professor AND Clinical Associate Professor to Clinical Professor depends upon demonstrating a sustained record of accomplishment in teaching, a mature program of PD/CA/Sch and/or a leadership role in service within the university community.
As indicated in the Rules and Procedures of the IAS Promotion Committee, candidates are not deliberately compared to one another for purposes of evaluation. The IASPC, to the best of its ability, attempts to judge each candidate individually on the basis of the evidence provided in the promotion file and votes on whether or not to recommend that individual to the Provost for promotion. Therefore, the candidate must assume the responsibility for presenting the IASPC with the evidence and some criteria for interpreting that evidence.

Some IAS who are eligible for promotion may be unsure of whether their record of teaching, PD/CS/Sch, and/or service is sufficient to meet the criteria of the IASPC. Others may be confident that their efforts warrant a promotion, but may be unclear as to how to construct an effective promotion file. Such IAS members are advised to seek the counsel of department chairs, senior colleagues in their respective departments, IAS and/or faculty from other departments, and their respective deans. For the benefit of IAS who are beginning the task of preparing a promotion file, the Provost/Vice Chancellor's office has available for their review on their website a few promotion files from IAS who were recently promoted and faculty who were recently promoted https://www.uwlax.edu/academic-affairs/example-portfolios/.


Promotion policies and procedures are complex, and a thorough understanding of the policies requires an appreciation of the UW System's hierarchy of IAS personnel rules. All policies on the recruitment, appointment, evaluation, retention, promotion, layoff, and dismissal of IAS are contained in one or more of the following sources of rules, procedures, and bylaws.

  • The Rules of the Board of Regents (a part of the Wisconsin Administrative Code): The rules, which are approved solely by the Board, provide the legal basis for all personnel policies in the hierarchy. The rules are usually referred to as the UWS Personnel Rules and designated numerically by Chapter and Section.
  • UW System includes instructional academic staff as a group within the larger category of academic staff.  The major groupings of employees are represented by ranked faculty, academic staff (NIAS and IAS), and university staff.
  • The Supplementary UWL Personnel Rules: The supplementary rules, which augment the UWS Personnel Rules, are designated numerically to be consistent with the UWS. The supplementary rules may be revised by joint action of the Faculty Senate and the Chancellor. They require UW System Board of Regents' approval.
  • The Faculty Senate Bylaws: All IAS at UWL are subject to and represented by the Faculty Senate. The Senate Bylaws provide the basic organizational structure, rules, policies, and procedures that define the faculty's role in University governance. Bylaws seldom contain specific personnel rules, but the promotion policies are an exception. Amendments to the bylaws require a reading of the proposed amendment at a Senate meeting and approval by two- thirds of the Senate. According to the Articles of Faculty Organization, "faculty" or "faculty member" is understood to include Ranked Faculty, IAS, and Academic Librarians unless otherwise stated. 
  • Instructional Academic Staff Policies and Procedures: The academic staff personnel policies, which may be revised by majority action of the Faculty Senate, provide greater specificity regarding the implementation of UWL Personnel Rules.
  • Departmental Bylaws and Policies: The Academic Staff Personnel Policies and Procedures leave much specificity, especially evaluation criteria and standards, to individual departments.
Where do policies and procedures regarding promotion of IAS fit in this hierarchy?
  • Unclassified Personnel Guideline (UPG) 4.06 states “The title structure for academic staff in instructional, research and professional title categories is designed to offer career progression to academic staff commensurate with achievement of additional experience and satisfactory performance.”
  • At UWL, IAS are categorized as "Redbooked" when they have dedicated budget line (indicated by the title of Assistant Teaching Professor, Associate Teaching Professor, or Teaching Professor) or "non-Redbooked" when they do not have a dedicated budget line, (indicated by a title of Lecturer).  Redbooked IAS are able to seek promotion as explained in these guidelines, while non-Redbooked are not.
  • The Supplementary UWL Personnel Rules contain no specific policies regarding IAS promotion.
  • The Faculty Senate and the Chancellor therefore have primary responsibility for these policies.
The IAS Promotion Committee was created by Faculty Senate Bylaw I.P, which also specifies the composition and basic rules of operation (Appendix A contains the full text of the bylaw). In evaluating candidates for promotion, the members of the IAS Promotion Committee are required to use the general performance and achievement criteria specified in UW-L's IAS Personnel Policies and Procedures. (Appendix B contains the criteria). The criteria specify minimum standards of educational preparation and experience and describe levels and kinds of achievements expected of each of the series title ranks, as well as general University policies regarding notification and appeals. Each department, in consultation with the appropriate dean, is to have developed criteria for the evaluation of IAS for the purpose of promotion. The criteria must be stated in writing and address teaching, professional development/creative activity/scholarship and/or professional and public service, and contributions to the University. The degree of involvement in PD/CA/Sch and/or service activities varies among departments; therefore, each department, with the approval of the appropriate dean, shall formulate a definition of professional development/creative activity/scholarship and/or service activity that is to be included.

Faculty Senate Bylaw I.P also requires that the IAS Promotion Committee create guidelines for submission of departmental criteria and other data submitted on behalf of promotion candidates. The IASPC is also required to establish rules and procedures of operation and subsequently publicize the rules and procedures prior to the submission of candidate applications. (Appendix C contains the full text of the rules and procedures adopted for the next academic year.)


As required by the Instructional Academic Staff Personnel Policies and Procedures, all candidates for promotion will be judged on “teaching, professional development/creative activity/scholarship, and/or service.”
  • Commonly, professional and public service and contribution to the University are combined into a single category referred to as “service.”
  • The evaluation criteria employed for teaching, PD/CA/Sch and/or service and the relative weighting of each area vary, sometimes significantly, from department to department and may vary among members of the IASPC.
  • In general, activity conducted by the candidate prior to joining the teaching faculty at UW-L may be given less weight than activity conducted since becoming a UW-L IAS member. Candidates should provide evidence in relevant areas for their time at UW-L.
  • Any IAS member who is eligible for promotion and considering creating a promotion file should begin by obtaining his or her department's written criteria and seeking advice and counsel from department chair, senior IAS and faculty and Dean. Of course, a positive recommendation from a candidate's department is only the first step to achieving promotion.
  • Promotion is a privilege based upon qualifications exceeding established minimal criteria and is recommended by an informed collective peer judgment.
  • All candidates should understand clearly that eligibility status and departmental and college recommendation does not assure or imply that a promotion will be made.
  • Senate Bylaw I.P requires that members of the IASPC also judge each promotion candidate on his or her teaching and PD/CA/Sch and/or service.
The following sections are intended to be a guide to the factors that are likely to inform the collective judgment of the IASPC in each of the categories of teaching, PD/CA/Sch and/or service.


The IAS Promotion Report is the joint responsibility of the candidate and the IAS Promotion Committee in the candidate's department. Information included in both reports should come from the date of last promotion at UW-La Crosse or a previous institution. Candidates seeking a first promotion should clearly identify materials completed after appointment at UW-L. The candidate submits the report electronically to the department. The department submits the candidate's electronic report and the departmental electronic report to the college dean. The IASPC annually publishes a calendar that includes submission dates and decision dates.
 
The promotion report consists of three sections: one from the candidate, one from the department and one from the college dean. Appendix D provides detailed instructions regarding the steps involved in producing the electronic portfolio required for promotion.


Candidate's Narrative Statement 
The narrative statement describes the candidate's accomplishments in teaching, professional development/creative activity/scholarship (PD/CA/Sch) and/or service. The candidate may write up to 7 pages total in one narrative document for teaching PD/CA/Sch and/or service (singled-spaced, minimum 12 point font one side only). A general guideline is 3 pages for teaching, 2 pages for PD/CA/Sch, and 2 pages for service. The narrative should present information in descending order of importance, with dates, rather than chronological order. The most outstanding achievements should be highlighted. A special effort should be taken to emphasize the value and quality of the work, not merely the quantity. Do not duplicate items. If an activity could be included in more than one area, place it in the most appropriate area. Lists should be used rather than narrative paragraphs whenever that would be more efficient. There are numerous areas where both the Candidate's report and Department IAS Promotion Committee report may appropriately comment on the same information. In general the Candidate's report should present this information in the context of the candidate's goals and teaching standards.

The IAS member completes a Position Description and an annual Individual Development Plan (IDP) (or departmental equivalent) with his/her department chair. These documents serve to determine the percentage of time allotted for teaching, PD/CA/Sch and/or service, and the nature of the activities that will be conducted in that year. Only the most recent IDP will be included in the candidate's promotion report.  In the event that a candidate's responsibilities have changed significantly during the period being reviewed, the candidate should address this in the narrative statement.


Teaching includes a broad array of activities that take place both inside and outside the classroom, laboratory, and studio. There is no universally accepted definition of good teaching, but the primary aim of all teaching is to stimulate, promote, and advance student learning and educational development. The quality of teaching should be measured by the success of the instructor in securing the interest, effort, and progress of students toward this aim.

Expectations. UW-La Crosse enjoys a long and proud tradition of offering quality instruction throughout the institution. To maintain this tradition, the IASPC expects that candidates for promotion will be good teachers and will provide multiple sources of evidence about their teaching effectiveness. Evidence of quality teaching and clinical/laboratory or librarianship work is a necessary condition for promotion; poor teaching skills and lack of effectiveness cannot be offset by superior achievements in PD/CA/Sch and/or service. IAS members who have reduced classroom-teaching loads or whose primary responsibility is clinical/laboratory or librarianship work will be evaluated using the same criteria as that used for those whose primary responsibility is classroom teaching.

Evidence. The IASPC expects that candidates will present evidence of teaching quality from three distinct sources.
Self-assessment of teaching.
Peer evaluation of teaching.
Student evaluation of instruction.

The candidate should provide clear, concise, and specific material demonstrating high quality teaching. While there is no prescribed structure to this section of the report, the portfolio should present evidence from the sources listed below.

Teaching Evaluation. Provide information (other than SEI scores) about the effectiveness of your teaching or other instruction related activities. This will include
  • A discussion of teaching philosophy and personal growth.
  • A discussion of course expectations (what do you expect students to learn and do).
  • A description of your approach to grading and evaluation.
  • A description of methods you use to measure your teaching effectiveness.
  • Your responses to assessment outcomes.
Candidates must provide representative samples of course syllabi. Syllabi with student learning outcomes are highly encouraged. In addition, a candidate might provide in a linked appendix such items as reading lists, student assignments, and similar teaching materials. If included, this section should provide appropriate explanations. Without accompanying explanation, such materials are difficult for IASPC members to assess and may carry little weight in determining quality or effectiveness.

Teaching Development 
Include only the most important activities that have had a significant effect on your teaching. Examples of such activities might include:
Improvements in teaching techniques.
  • Participation in workshops, institutes, seminars, graduate courses, or participation in professional organizations or attendance at professional meetings.
  • Research as preparation for teaching.
  • Development of new course and units.
  • Preparation of curriculum materials such as workbooks and textbooks.
  • Visiting scholar or artist.

Teaching Assignment While statistical information will be included in another section, the candidate should also address:
  • Identification of any areas of unique expertise and their value to the department.
  • Details about your duties that are different from classroom teaching (coaching, directing, advising, administering, offering independent studies or other courses with individual instruction patterns, directing student research projects, etc.).
The IASPC takes into consideration students' overall evaluation of instructional performance. The IASPC has available the candidate's student evaluation of instruction (SEI) scores for the most recent six (6) semesters of instruction. Although additional student generated information is not necessary, some candidates choose to provide written comments from students on their teaching ability. If a candidate elects to provide additional evidence of students' opinion on teaching, a candidate should provide a typewritten transcript of all student comments that were received. Providing only selected student comments is likely to be viewed by the IASPC as potentially biased, and substantially discounted.

Professional development/creative activity/scholarship (PD/CA/Sch) is a broad category. The degree of involvement in professional development/creative activity/scholarship and/or Service activities differs significantly based on departmental expectation as indicated in the candidate's IDP. Professional Development includes those activities engaged in that improve the IAS knowledge, teaching, or service to the university. Although UW-La Crosse teaching faculty have not adopted a standardized definition, scholarship is generally viewed by the CPC as well-defined activities which use professional expertise to discover, apply, or use knowledge. Scholarly and creative activity may be further characterized as those activities having value to an academic discipline, using methods appropriate to one or more disciplines, and having been subjected to external peer review. Examples of scholarly activity include: basic and applied research, new applications of existing knowledge, integration of knowledge, creative endeavors and the development and/or analysis of pedagogical methods.

Expectations The IASPC expects that successful candidates for promotion have a record of ongoing Professional Development/Creative Activity/Scholarship and/or Service. The IASPC recognizes that the nature of PD/CA/Sch and/or Service activity varies considerably among disciplines, and so does not demand that all such activities fit the same mold. Although the IASPC will look to departmental definitions of PD/CA/Sch for guidance, there is an expectation that the evidence of a candidate's PD/CA/Sch program will meet the general description of PD/CA/Sch activity described above. Those who participate in scholarship are expected to provide evidence that external peer review has judged it to be of value. When scholarship is collaborative (with students or colleagues) the nature of the candidate's involvement should be indicated and its contribution to the candidate's on-going program of scholarship discussed. The IASPC focuses on the quality and not necessarily the quantity of PD/CA/Sch activity in an attempt to judge the PD/CA/Sch activity of a candidate's overall record.

Evidence The evidentiary material provided to the IASPC may vary considerably from candidate to candidate, even within the same discipline, depending to a large extent on the type of PD/CA/Sch and/or Service program that the candidate has chosen to pursue. The IASPC focuses on the quality and not the quantity of the professional development/creative activity/scholarship. The narrative description will include the activities in this category and their relationship to the IDP. Evidence of attendance at workshops, continuing education, and coursework, etc. is expected but it is not sufficient; therefore, the narrative description should indicate how these activities have furthered the IAS growth and the contributions made to the department.

Professional Development Professional development activities are required in order that an IAS member remains current in his/her discipline. These activities may also be required for certification and/or accreditation either for the individual instructor or for an entire program/department/college.

Professional development activities may include, but are not limited to those activities that can be shown to relate to the IAS teaching or service responsibilities:
Participation in workshops, institutes, seminars, graduate courses, or participation in professional organizations or attendance at professional meetings.
  • Literature review.
  • Formal coursework.
  • Participation in continuing education.
  • Mentoring.
  • In-service training.
  • Clinical and/or practitioner experience.
  • Professional certification.

Creative Activity Individuals in such disciplines as art, music, theatre, literature, and dance frequently engage in creative endeavors for their scholarly activities. Such creative activity may include:
  • Exhibitions of paintings.
  • Drawings.
  • Sculptures or ceramics.
  • Publication or performances of instrumental or vocal compositions.
  • Publication of novels, short stories, plays, essays, or poetry.
  • Interpretative recitals or performances.
  • Production of stage plays or dance choreography.
Evidence of the quality of creative works is usually indicated through appropriate publication. Published reviews by peers, critics, panels of judges, or other juries usually determine the quality of exhibitions and performances. In addition, quality is suggested when the professional offer of employment resulted from the quality of the IAS member's work.

Scholarship Scholarship refers to any creative endeavor that results in original contributions to one's discipline, is reviewed by one's peers and whose results are widely distributed. While scholarship is not required for the majority of IAS, it is a requirement in some departments. Scholarship activities may include, but are not limited to:
  • Basic and applied research.
  • New applications of existing knowledge.
  • Integration of knowledge.
  • Grant writing.
  • Presentations at professional conferences.
  • Publications in books, journals and reviews.
  • Translation and interpretation.
  • Pedagogical research or scholarship of teaching and learning (SoTL).
  • Creative endeavors.
  • Supervising student research projects.
The evidentiary material provided to the IASPC may vary considerably from candidate to candidate, even within the same discipline, depending to a large extent on the type of scholarship program that the candidate has chosen to pursue.

If a promotion candidate has elected to pursue a scholarly program of original research, in which the activities are intended to advance basic knowledge (or the application of knowledge) within a discipline, the primary evidence of success would consist of articles published in scholarly-refereed journals, monographs published by recognized academic publishers and presentations at national or regional professional conferences. In this situation, the candidate should prove as much evidence as possible regarding the selection process used for publications or presentations, such as acceptance percentages, impact factors, and the refereeing or judging process. In the cases of multiple authorship, the candidate should provide evidence of the role he or she played in the creation of the work.

In contrast, some scholarship has a more integrative function within a discipline. In this case, evidence would consist of textbooks, publications and presentations that overview recent research, published book reviews or abstracts for periodicals, funded grants as well as compiling and editing anthologies. Although such activities are not subject to external peer review in the same manner as original research, a board  of editors or a similar panel of judges verifies the value of these activities and the candidate should provide appropriate information about the review process.

Other activities of an ongoing program of original research that are likely to strengthen the candidate's file include grant writing activities, receipt of funding to support research programs and giving invited addresses at professional conferences.

In general, articles submitted for publication, but not yet accepted; monographs published at the author's expense; and presentations before on-campus or general audiences are not considered evidence of successful external peer review of original research.

Some individuals' scholarly work focuses on using their professional expertise to solve problems. For inclusion in the Scholarship category, the applied research should result in a finished product that has been externally reviewed

Applied research or applied scholarship may include:
  • Writing software that makes existing knowledge and procedures available to colleagues.
  • Conducting a program assessment for an external organization.
  • Conducting an oral history project for the community.
As with a program of original research, one source of evidence about the quality of this work may be refereed journal articles, scholarly monographs, and conference presentations. It may also be possible to demonstrate the quality of the work through some form of review by the primary audience or beneficiaries of the work as well as external peer review by experts in the field.

Pedagogical research or the scholarship of teaching is another form of scholarly activity. Given the teaching emphasis of UW-La Crosse, some IAS may focus on studying or experimenting with ways to improve students' learning. A candidate for promotion who submits this kind of work as part of the record of scholarship should provide the IASPC with evidence that the methods are well defined and documented, that the student learning outcomes have been properly assessed, that the results have been analyzed and compared to those using standard teaching methods of the discipline when that is feasible, and that the methods have been subjected to appropriate external peer review. Publication of articles on innovative teaching methods in journals and presentations at national or regional conferences frequently provides the evidence of external peer review.

Other examples of pedagogical scholarship include assessment activities to measure and improve student learning in academic programs. The product of the assessment should be a report or article that can be reviewed by external peers.

Pedagogical scholarship is not to be confused with normal elements of good teaching such as course preparation, revision, or development unless the additional elements of documentation, assessment, analysis, and external peer reviews are also present.

Service by a candidate for promotion is the fulfillment of his or her professional responsibilities, including educational responsibilities outside the classroom, active participation in professional organizations, committee work or other assignments within his or her department and/or the University, and activities that benefit the community at large. Each department defines service activities appropriate to the particular discipline. The degree of involvement in professional development/creative activity/scholarship and/or Service activities differs significantly based on departmental expectation as indicated in the candidate's IDP.

Expectations The IASPC expects that any candidate recommended for promotion by a department has satisfied his or her educational responsibilities within that department. The IASPC also expects that a successful candidate for promotion will provide evidence of any additional service activities for the department, college, University, discipline, or community. The IASPC expects that successful candidates for promotion have a record of ongoing Professional Development/Creative Activity/Scholarship and/or Service. The CPC recognizes that the nature of PD/CA/Sch and/or Service activity varies considerably among disciplines, and so does not demand that all such activities fit the same mold.

Evidence. The list of service activities that a candidate might include in his/her promotion report is almost endless. Service activities tend to fall into three categories Professional Service, University Service and Community Service. Professional service involves the use of professional expertise in a service activity that may be internal or external to the University. Examples of professional service include:
  • Advising students.
  • Making an active contribution to a professional society.
  • Organization of lecture series, institutes, workshops etc.
  • Administration of grants.
  • Provision of in-service training.
  • Consulting and advising.
  • Providing lectures or workshops.
  • Assisting colleagues with research design and statistical analysis.
  • Serving as a peer reviewer for articles or grant proposals.
  • Evaluating a program for an external agency.
The candidate should explain how professional expertise is essential to the success and quality of the activity and outcome. For example, an individual who organizes a professional conference may be involved in the development of the topics and themes, selection of presentation proposals, and reviewing and editing a collection of conference proceedings. Work of this kind depends upon professional expertise, makes a contribution to the field and can be judged by peers.

Similarly, consulting with governmental, charitable, or health agencies or area business groups or corporations and analyzing public policy or proposed legislation for the media are other examples of professional service. The candidate should present a clear case that the activity depends upon professional expertise and demonstrate the success or quality of the work through some type of agency assessment and external peer review..

University service includes activities such as doing department, college, and University committee work; serving as a Faculty Senator; advising student organizations; and graduate student research committees.
 
Evidence that service activities have been particularly valuable to the discipline, University or the community serves to strengthen a promotion recommendation. Performance of community services unrelated to the candidate's discipline is certainly worthwhile and reflects well on the University, but such community service is usually not given as much weight by the IASPC in making promotion recommendations.

Following the instructions provided in Appendix D, candidate's activities report will be extracted from the material entered into the electronic portfolio system.

5.1.3 Appendices Each candidate may provide appendices (links) regarding evidence of teaching, professional development/creative activity/scholarship, and/or service. Candidates should be aware that IASPC members rely on the department and experts in the field to provide judgment regarding the quality of the materials included. Although evidence of teaching, PD/CA/Sch and/or service is reviewed, they are not the primary source of information for IASPC members. The primary role of the linked appendices is to provide the department and dean with the information needed to make their determinations. IASPC members vary in their review of linked appendices.  IASPC members tend to refer to appendices for clarification or verification of arguments made by the candidate or the department. Appendices should be referenced in the primary materials and IASPC members should be guided by the candidate in terms of the importance and/or intent of an appendix. Candidates are not to exceed 10 links of evidence appropriate to each area (teaching, PD/CA/Sch, and service). For teaching, the 10 links are in addition to links to syllabi. Links to appendices/evidence should be ordered according to importance and follow the guidelines provided in Appendix D.

5.1.3.1 Instructional Academic Staff with reassigned time for which the IAS member has received reassigned time, an IAS member with reassigned time to fulfill a position outside the expectations of a standard IAS member (e.g., director of a center or program. Laboratory coordinator, etc.) must provide two related documents in their promotion report:
  • One or more letters from their supervisor(s) (e.g., department chair, Dean, etc.) that outlines their job description with respect to each reassigned time appoint
  • Documentation that illustrates their level of success in the role fulfilled by the appointment, such as performance reviews or other data that show how the aims of the appointment are being met. The candidate is responsible for uploading these documents in their promotion report.
5.2 Departmental Materials

5.2.1 Department IAS Promotion Committee Report This section of the report justifies the departmental promotion committee's decision that, in the context of the department's policy and the recognized standards of the discipline, the candidate's record warrants promotion. This section consists of separate statements on teaching, PD/CA/Sch and/or service. The vote of the committee is reported on the transmittal and signature form, signed by all members of the committee,. The scanned PDF of the transmittal and signature form is uploaded and appended to the departmental promotion committee report. The transmittal and signature form template is available on the Human Resources Promotion webpage and a sample can be found in Appendix E. Once the deadline for the transmittal of the portfolio to the Dean's office has passed, the portfolio is closed and cannot be modified.
5.2.1.1 Teaching A candidate's departmental colleagues are in the best position to make accurate judgments as to the quality of instruction in that discipline. The IASPC assumes that a candidate recommended for promotion by a department is regarded as a good teacher within that department. Nonetheless, the IASPC asks the department to evaluate the quality of teaching both in terms of content and method and to provide specific evidence in support of the candidate's success in securing student interest, effort, and progress.
 
Examples of such evidence include reports of classroom observation by tenured faculty or senior IAS, comparative results on common or standardized tests, outcomes of departmental assessment activities, and performances or exhibitions by the candidate's students. Simple testimony that a candidate is believed to be a good teacher, whether from the department chair, chair of the department's IAS promotion committee, or a mentor, is likely to be greatly discounted without specific corroborating evidence. Classroom visit reports on their own carry less weight than an analysis of the reports that places the observations in context and draws appropriate conclusions. Reports or letters, resulting from classroom visits, may be included by the candidate as part of their portfolio.
This section should put SEI information into context by including, for example: (1) an explanation of how the candidate's SEI scores compare to others in the department, (2) a comparison of SEI scores for a course with those of department members who teach the same course, (3) an interpretation of the candidate's SEI scores in general and for specific courses, and (4) an explanation of any trends in those scores.
5.2.1.2 Professional Development, Creative Activity and/or Scholarship This section should include a statement on the significance of the professional development, creative activity or scholarship within the discipline and the department. The statement should put this contribution in context of the amount of time devoted to professional development, creative activity and/or scholarship on the IAS Individual Development Plan (or departmental equivalent).
If the IAS has participated in professional development activities, this section should describe the quality of these activities and how these activities have made a contribution to the advancing the IAS' program and/or department. The committee should discuss how the IAS professional development activities were evaluated.
If the IAS produced creative activity, the committee should discuss how these creative activities are evaluated by the discipline as well as accepted standards for documenting and reporting the results of creative efforts
If the IAS produced scholarship, this section should discuss the contributions this scholarship has made to the discipline, program, and/or department in relationship to the department's definition of scholarship. Acceptance rates for publications should be discussed where this bears on the quality of the scholarship. In cases of multiple authorship, the promotion committee should address the candidate's role in the performance and reporting of the scholarship.
5.2.1.3 Service This section of the report should address the quality of service activities and their value to the department, college, university, and profession. Where service is external to the university this section should discuss the role of the candidate's professional expertise in the success of the service activity.
5.2.2 OPTIONAL: Department Chair's Recommendation Letter
This letter is optional. However, in departments whose bylaws do not include a process for IAS promotion, it shall be the responsibility of the department chair to provide the required letter of support. If provided it should summarize the candidate's major accomplishments and include additional comments the department chair may wish to make, i.e., beyond what is contained in the IAS promotion committee report.
5.2.3 Statistical Information
This section reflects statistical information on the candidate and is conveyed via the department chair. This includes SEI and merit information. Sample forms are included at the end of this document.
5.2.3.1 SEI Information. The department provides the SEI average (across sections) and ranking for the candidate along with departmental data (such as ranges and averages) for each of the past six semesters.
5.2.3.2 Merit Information. The department provides the merit ranking (or categorization) for the candidate along with departmental data (such as ranges and averages). In addition, the department briefly describes the merit evaluation procedure used by the department. If applicable, the relative weighting of teaching, PD/CA/Sch and/or service used in the merit process are included. Any weighting for determining merit scores is explained. If the department does not conduct merit review of IAS, then the method that the department uses for annual review of IAS should be included in this section.
5.2.4 Department's Statement on IAS Professional Development/Creative Activity/Scholarly Activity
5.2.5 Transmittal and Signature Form from the Department (scanned with original sent to the Dean)

5.3 Dean's Materials

5.3.1 Dean's Letter
The dean submits a document with a signed declarative statement such as “I agree with the recommendation of the department.” If the Dean's recommendation is at variance with the department recommendation, the document should explain the reasons for the Dean's dissenting opinion.

Revision history:
Updates made in June of 2022 to modify the approved language changes from the "Lecturer" series to the "Teaching Professor Series".  Grammatical changes made.  Outdated references omitted.  
Reviewed July 2020

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Keywords:
IAS promotion, instructional academic staff 
Doc ID:
104056
Owned by:
Carri O. in UW-La Crosse
Created:
2020-07-16
Updated:
2022-10-17
Sites:
UW-La Crosse