Forum on Action Item #1 in advance of

1. Forum on Action Item #1in advance of the 4/28/11 General Faculty Meeting

2. Context for Action Item #1- Amendment to II.2 and II.3 (NTT/DPC issue) • Ongoing 5 year discussion about voting, DPCs, craft models, etc. • Dissatisfaction with “all or nothing” approach to voting privileges; this unlinks Non-Tenure Track (NTT) voting privileges from DPC privileges • Problem of excessive use of the “adjunct” prefix just to prevent NTT eligibility for DPCs and NTT voting • ASU is not in line with Promotion & Tenure practices at peer institutions and all other tenure-granting UNC schools

3. Faculty and administrators should together determine the appropriate modes and levels of participation in governance for [NTTs], considering issues such as voting rights, representation, and inclusion in committees and governance bodies. --AAUPBackground Facts on Contingent Faculty Nationwide best practices are to provide voting privileges appropriate to rank

4. Nationwide best practices are to provide voting privileges appropriate to rank--but what are ASU’s ranks? • Lecturer: contract faculty teaching 3 to 12 hours/semester; reappointed contingent upon departmental need; primary duty is teaching; no research expectation; service expectations vary widely with courseload and by department; terminal degree not required. About 130 without “adjunct” at ASU, of which most are 3/4 or full time. At ASU, most do not possess terminal degree. • Instructor: use of term should be rare; this is a temporary rank, used for TT hire with terminal degree in progress; faculty will move up to Assistant Professor when degree is completed. (Has been misapplied here, historically; but has been more appropriately applied in past two years). Currently 12 without “adjunct.” • Assistant, Associate and Full Professor: Tenure track line, required duties are teaching, research and service, terminal degree (or equivalent) required. About 785 at ASU.

5. Section 2 changes nothing--just moves the underlined phrase up to improve clarity. The real change is in Section 3---to delete “Lecturer.” For implications, see next slide.

6. YES FT Professors, Assoc. Professors, Assistant Professors & Instructors will be eligible to serve on DPCs FT Professors, Assoc. Professors, Assistant Professors & Instructors will be eligible to elect the membership of DPCs Don’t want FT Lecturers on DPCs? No need to do anything. Thus, the prefix “adjunct” need not be applied to limit DPC service. If “adjunct” not applied, FT Lecturers will have voting and committee privileges No change to the voting status of any faculty other than full-time Lecturers. NO FT Professors, Assoc. Professors, Assistant Professors, Instructors & Lecturers will be eligible to serve on DPCs FT Professors, Assoc. Professors, Assistant Professors, Instructors, and Lecturers will be eligible to elect the membership of DPCs Don’t want FT Lecturers on DPCs? Lecturers must get “adjunct” prefix, which removes all voting and committee privileges No change to the voting status of any faculty and no change to current policy. What does my vote mean?

7. Contextual facts: In the UNC system, who is eligible to be on committees that make Promotion & Tenure decisions? Tenure-track only TT and NTT High Schools-No tenure Eastern Carolina Appalachian School of Science and Math Elizabeth City School of the Arts Fayetteville NC Central NC State NC-AT&T UNC-Asheville* UNC-Chapel Hill UNC-Charlotte UNC-Greensboro UNC-Pembroke UNC-Wilmington Western Carolina* Winston Salem State Data gathered by survey, phone calls and reading Faculty Handbooks. Committees vary: some craft models, some include all TT ranks, some elected, some appointed, about half only do Promotion & Tenure, about half do NTT appointment and other hires as well. At most places NTT voting privileges on non-P&T items vary by department and at many place are reserved only for Full-time NTTs. *UNC-A permits Full Time NTTs to elect DPC membership. At WCU, this varies by department.

8. Contextual facts: At our peer institutions, who is eligible to be on committees that make Promotion & Tenure decisions? Tenure-track only TT and NTT Bowling Green Appalachian Cal State-Chico Cal State-Fresno College of Charleston Eastern Illinois George Mason Georgia Southern James Madison Miami University Ohio Northern Iowa Sam Houston State Stephen F. Austin Towson U Wisconsin-La Crosse West Chester Pennsylvania Western Illinois Western Washington Data gathered by survey, phone calls and reading Faculty Handbooks. Committees vary: some craft models, some include all TT ranks, some elected, some appointed, about half only do Promotion &Tenure, about half do NTT appointment and other hires as well. At most places NTT voting privileges on non-P&T items vary by department and at many place are reserved only for Full Time NTTs.

9. #1 Question at forum: Q: If the vote passes and Full-time Lecturers are no longer eligible to serve on DPCs, how can NTTs be assured DPCs will reappoint NTTs fairly? A: (1) Strong departmental policy documents with clear reappointment criteria should make NTTs (and everyone) more confident in DPC decision making; (2) Those departments that wish to do so can create “search committees” to handle NTT reappointment--these committees could report either to DPC or directly to chair, as per the Faculty Handbook.

10. Summary-Why Senate recommended that faculty consider this amendment to the Constitution: • Culmination of 5 year discussion • Revises “all or nothing” approach to voting by unlinking NTT voting privileges from DPC eligibility • Adopts best practices nationwide of voting privileges appropriate to rank: • Better for NTTs: • protects most vulnerable category of faculty from contentious P&T decision making • Does not increase service expectation with high DPC workload; • Reduces motivation to use the vote-canceling prefix “adjunct” just to prevent Lecturer eligibility for DPCs • Better for TTs. Having only TTs on DPCs is in line with: • P&T practices fitting with ASU’s mission as stated in the strategic plan • ASU’s growing reputation/brand, • Reputable credentialing

11. Appalachian aspires to be a model 21st-century, nationally recognized university combining the best characteristics of liberal arts and research institutions by resourcefully blending teaching and scholarship. To achieve this, Appalachian is committed to attracting, educating, and graduating the best students and to producing the highest levels of scholarship. --Strategic Plan