Professor Anthony C. Masi Provost 28 January 2010 10:00 am – 12:00 pm 232 Leacock Building

1. Information session regarding tenure at McGill, 2010: Professor Anthony C. Masi Provost 28 January 2010 10:00 am – 12:00 pm 232 Leacock Building General considerations

2. Tenure and Evaluation • meaning of tenure • questions about tenure • tenure decisions Tenure Information Session

3. Meaning of Tenure • tenure is important • we work very hard to get it • once we have it, tenure is something we spend a lot of time awarding or denying • once someone ‘has’ tenure”: • what does it mean? • what entitlements are responsibilities • does a tenured faculty member at • McGill have? Tenure Information Session

4. AAUP 1940 Statement of Principles on Academic Freedom and Tenure • tenure grounded in need for: • academic freedom in teaching and research • “a sufficient degree of economic security to make the profession attractive to men and women of ability” • once a faculty member has permanent or continuous tenure, his or her service should be terminated only for ‘cause’ after following fair and proper procedures, or in narrow circumstances for demonstrably • bona fide financial exigency Tenure Information Session

5. Privileges of Tenure: Academic Freedom • AF is essential to good teaching and research, which is the basic work of the University • good teaching and research deserve protection from intrusion of extramural authority and unwarranted interference • AF is not a “license” to exploit teaching and research opportunities to expound political views rather than scholarship • AF must be used in a manner consistent with • the scholarly obligation to base research • and teaching on an honest search for • knowledge Tenure Information Session

6. Privileges of Tenure: Secure Employment • continued employment until retirement, resignation, or termination with just cause through appropriate procedures Tenure Information Session

7. Privileges of Tenure: Economic Security • tenured professors are assured: • an adequate salary • adequate benefits • such assurances cannot be compromised based on writings or teachings that fall within the sometimes controversial limits of academic freedom Tenure Information Session

8. Privileges of Tenure: Institutional Support • institutional support for teaching and research • Tangible support for new faculty to engage in research and teaching • continued Faculty and central support throughout tenure career Tenure Information Session

9. Privileges of Tenure: Involvement in University Life • continued involvement in the academic mission of the University and the unit in which the faculty member serves • Participation in Faculty decisions on hiring and some promotion and tenure decisions for others, curriculum, etc. Tenure Information Session

10. Responsibilities of Tenure: Teaching • prepare adequately for each class • teach classes carefully and competently • strive consistently to improve performance in the classroom • keep abreast of new scholarly work and teaching materials • where appropriate, update • teaching to reflect development Tenure Information Session

11. Responsibilities of Tenure: Research • endeavour to produce high quality scholarly research and writing • quality and quantity of research should be consistent or beyond the level for which tenure was granted Tenure Information Session

12. Responsibilities of Tenure: Service • serve their departments, institutes, centres, Schools or Faculties, the University, and the public through service activities, including Faculty governance, administration, and participation in the life of the academic community, the University and the public Tenure Information Session

13. Responsibilities of Tenure: In a Nutshell • “A member of the academic staff who is granted tenure shall maintain the high standards for which it was granted” • [5.59 /3.59, Regulations Relating to the Employment of Academic/Librarian Staff] Tenure Information Session

14. How the Tenure Process Works: Initial Steps • solid hiring and re-appointment procedures as first-line quality assurance measures • statement of expectations re: teaching, research and service • written criteria • a timetable • several levels of internal review Tenure Information Session

15. How the Tenure Process Works: Evaluation • candid evaluation, willingness to take hard decisions, personal investment in a sound institutional process • sense of fairness and justice to both individual and institutional interests • denial of tenure as a last resort (but could reflect on inadequate quality assurance measures) Tenure Information Session

16. Questions for Reflection • Does this person’s teaching, scholarship, and service reflect the established criteria on the three dimensions of academic duties for the Department, the Faculty, and the University? • Can this person and his/her work be taken as “representative” of the high standards of McGill University? • Will this tenure decision be good for • the Department, the Faculty, and • the University? Tenure Information Session

17. Conclusions: Tenure System and Evaluative Process • the health of the tenure system rests on sound evaluations of tenure-track faculty • sound evaluations also leads to the fairest and most defensible outcomes • by engaging in constructive dialogue during faculty-evaluation sessions we can avoid problems Tenure Information Session

18. Conclusions: Read the Fine Print • be careful about the wording of policies AND their implementation • work hard to avoid the likelihood of grievances and/or litigation Tenure Information Session

19. Conclusions: Striving for Excellence • there is always room for improvements to the tenure process • we are constantly working to strengthen evaluation procedures and the nature of deliberations at all stages Tenure Information Session

20. The Bottom Line • granting tenure is the most important decision we make at McGill • tenure decisions define the Faculty • the Faculty defines the University • Department Tenure Committees (DTC) must resist any tendency to defer hard judgements to the campus-wide University Tenure Committee (UTC) or administrative authority (the Provost and/or the • Principal) or to governance • procedures (Appeals Committee) Tenure Information Session

21. Sources • McGill customs and traditions “in transition” • MAUT • AAUP • AAU • Various G-13 and AAU University regulations via their websites • Web-based articles, blogs, presentations • Conversations with colleagues Tenure Information Session

22. This presentation can be found at: • http://www.mcgill.ca/provost/documents Tenure Information Session