Chapter 3335-6 Rules Of the University Faculty Concerning Faculty Appointments, Reappointments, Promotion and Tenure

3335-6-01 General considerations.

(A) Peer review provides the foundation for decisions regarding faculty appointment, reappointment, and promotion and tenure (except when the provisions of paragraph (H) of rule 3335-6-03 of the Administrative Code are invoked.) Peers are those faculty who can be expected to be most knowledgeable regarding an individual's qualifications and performance--normally tenure initiating unit colleagues. Because of the centrality of peer review to these review processes, faculty vested with responsibility for providing peer review have an obligation to participate fully and knowledgeably in review processes, to exercise the standards established in faculty rule 3335-6-02 of the Administrative Code and other standards specific to the academic unit and discipline, and to make negative recommendations when these are warranted to maintain and improve the quality of the faculty. Recommendations by the faculty vested with the responsibility for providing peer review will be accepted unless they are not supported by the evidence presented regarding how the candidate meets the standards established in faculty rule 3335-6-02 of the administrative code and other standards specific to the academic unit and discipline. When, for the reasons just stated, a decision regarding faculty appointment, reappointment, or promotion and tenure differs from the recommendation of the faculty, the administrator or body making that decision will communicate in writing to the faculty body that made the recommendation the reasons that the recommendation was judged not to be supported by the evidence.

(B) In accordance with a policy of equality of opportunity, decisions concerning appointment, reappointment, and promotion and tenure shall be free of discrimination as to age, ancestry, color, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity or expression, genetic information, HIV/AIDS status, military status, national origin, pregnancy, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, veteran status, or any other bases covered under the law.

(Board approval dates: 10/5/1984, 4/8/1988, 11/2/1990, 5/3/1996, 7/9/2004, 6/5/2009)

3335-6-02 Criteria for appointment, reappointment, and promotion and tenure of tenure-track faculty.

(A) The Ohio state university will be recognized worldwide for the quality and impact of its research, teaching, and service. For purposes of faculty performance reviews under these rules:

Research is broadly defined to include discovery, scholarly and creative work, applied research, commercialization, and the scholarship of pedagogy.
Teaching is broadly defined to include didactic classroom, non-classroom and distance instruction, extension and continuing education, advising, and supervising or mentoring students or postdoctoral scholars.
Service is broadly defined to include providing administrative service to the university, professional service to the faculty member’s discipline, and disciplinary expertise to public or private entities beyond the university.
Each tenure initiating unit is responsible for establishing criteria for appointment, reappointment, and promotion and tenure that are consistent with this mission and for ensuring that every faculty appointment, reappointment, and promotion and tenure recommendation is consistent with this mission.
Appointment decisions for tenure-track faculty positions, as defined in rule 3335-5-19 of the Administrative Code, must be based on criteria that reflect strong potential to attain tenure and advance through the faculty ranks. A minimum requirement for appointment at or promotion to the rank of assistant professor or a higher rank is an earned doctorate or other terminal degree in the relevant field of study or possession of equivalent experience. Appointments at the rank of instructor should normally only be made when the offered appointment is that of assistant professor but the appointee has not completed the required terminal degree at the onset of the appointment. Appointments of tenure-track faculty should occur only after a national search.

(B) No faculty member attains tenure automatically. Tenure may be acquired either in the original appointment to the tenure-track faculty rank of associate professor or professor or upon promotion from within the university to the rank of associate professor, or following a successful probationary period at the rank of associate professor or professor as specified in rule 3335-6-03 of the Administrative Code. Tenure will not be awarded below the rank of associate professor.

(C) The awarding of tenure and promotion to the rank of associate professor must be based on convincing evidence that the faculty member has achieved excellence as a teacher, as a scholar, and as one who provides effective service; and can be expected to continue a program of high quality teaching, scholarship, and service relevant to the mission of the academic unit(s) to which the faculty member is assigned and to the university. Promotion to the rank of professor must be based on convincing evidence that the faculty member has a sustained record of excellence in teaching; has produced a significant body of scholarship that is recognized nationally or internationally; and has demonstrated leadership in service.

(D) In evaluating the candidate's qualifications in teaching, scholarship, and service, reasonable flexibility shall be exercised, balancing, where the case requires, heavier commitments and responsibilities in one area against lighter commitments and responsibilities in another. In addition, as the university enters new fields of endeavor, including interdisciplinary endeavors, and places new emphases on its continuing activities, instances will arise in which the proper work of faculty members may depart from established academic patterns. In such cases care must be taken to apply the criteria with sufficient flexibility. In all instances superior intellectual attainment, in accordance with the criteria set forth in these rules, is an essential qualification for promotion to tenured positions. Clearly, insistence upon this standard for continuing members of the faculty is necessary for maintenance and enhancement of the quality of the university as an institution dedicated to the discovery and transmission of knowledge.

(E) Each tenure initiating unit shall have an appointments, promotion, and tenure document. The document shall describe, in qualitative terms, the unit's criteria for appointments, promotion, and tenure and evidence to be provided to support a case within the context of the unit's mission and the standards set forth in this rule as well as the mission and standards of the college. The document should indicate with some specificity how the quality and effectiveness of teaching, the quality and significance of scholarship, and the quality and effectiveness of service are to be documented and assessed. The document of a tenure initiating unit with regional campus faculty must establish criteria for appointments, promotion, and tenure for these faculty within the context of the regional campuses' mission as well as that of the tenure initiating unit. The document shall also describe the unit's procedures for conducting annual performance reviews of probationary faculty and reviews for promotion and tenure.

The document must be drawn up or amended through broad faculty consultation with all voting members of the tenure initiating unit according to the principles articulated in paragraph (C)(3) of rule 3335-3-35 of the Administrative Code and must be approved by the dean of the college and the executive vice president and provost.

(F) Each college shall have an appointments, promotion, and tenure document. The document shall describe, in qualitative terms, the college's criteria for appointments, promotion, and tenure within the context of the college's mission and the standards set forth in this rule. The document shall also describe the college's procedures for conducting college level reviews for promotion and tenure.

The document must be drawn up through broad faculty consultation and must be approved by the executive vice president and provost.

(Board approval dates: 10/5/1984, 7/7/1989, 5/3/1996, 4/4/1997, 12/4/1998, 7/12/2002, 6/4/2004, 6/7/2005, 4/6/2012, 6/6/2014, 6/8/2018)

3335-6-03 Probationary service, and duration of appointments for tenure-track faculty.

(A) Probationary periods are established for tenure-track faculty members. During a probationary period a faculty member does not have tenure and is considered for reappointment annually.

(B) Length of probationary period.

An appointment as professor or associate professor will generally entail tenure. However, a probationary period not to exceed four years may be granted by the office of academic affairs upon petition of the tenure initiating unit and college. For the petition to be approved, a compelling rationale must be provided regarding why appointment at a senior rank is appropriate but tenure is not. All appointments to the rank of associate professor or professor require prior approval of the executive vice president and provost.

An appointment to the rank of instructor is always probationary and may not exceed three years. An instructor must be approved for promotion to assistant professor by the beginning of the third year of appointment or the appointment will not be renewed beyond the end of the third year. When an instructor is promoted to the rank of assistant professor, prior service credit may be granted for time spent as an instructor if the faculty member requests such credit in writing at the time of the promotion. This request must be approved by the tenure-initiating unit’s eligible faculty, the tenure-initiating unit head, the dean of the college, and the office of academic affairs.

An appointment to the rank of assistant professor is always probationary and may not exceed six years, including prior service credit. An assistant professor is reviewed for promotion and tenure no later than the sixth year of appointment as an assistant professor and informed by the end of the sixth year as to whether promotion and tenure will be granted at the beginning of the seventh year.
Promotion and tenure may be granted at any time during the probationary period when the faculty member's record of achievement merits tenure and promotion. Similarly, a probationary appointment may be terminated at any time subject to the notice provisions of rule 3335-6-08 of the Administrative Code and the provisions of paragraphs (G) and (H) of this rule.
Probationary tenure-track faculty members will be informed no later than the end of the year in which their mandatory review for tenure takes place as to whether tenure will be granted by the beginning of the following year. If tenure is not granted, a one year terminal year of employment is offered.

At the time of appointment, probationary tenure-track faculty members shall be provided with all pertinent documents detailing tenure initiating unit, college, and university promotion and tenure policies and criteria. If these documents are revised during the probationary period, probationary tenure-track faculty members shall be provided with copies of the revised documents.
During a probationary period a tenure-track faculty member shall be reviewed annually in accordance with this rule and with policies of the tenure initiating unit, college and university. The annual review should encompass the faculty member's performance in teaching, in scholarship, and in service; as well as evidence of continuing development. The involvement of tenure initiating unit faculty in annual reviews is strongly encouraged. External evaluations of the faculty member's work, required for tenure and promotion reviews, may be obtained for any annual review if judged appropriate by the faculty review body or tenure initiating unit chair. The tenure initiating unit chair shall inform probationary faculty members at the time of initial appointment, and in a timely fashion each year thereafter, when the annual review will take place and provide a copy of the office of academic affairs dossier outline to be completed by the faculty member in reporting accomplishments to date. At the completion of the review the tenure initiating unit chair shall provide the faculty member and the dean of the college with a written assessment of the faculty member's performance and professional development. The assessment should include both strengths and weaknesses, as appropriate. If the chair's recommendation is to reappoint the faculty member to another probationary year of service, that recommendation shall be final. A recommendation from the chair to not reappoint the faculty member to another probationary year requires a review that follows fourth year review procedures (see paragraph (G) of this rule) and the dean shall make the final decision in the matter. All annual review letters to date shall become a part of a faculty member's dossier for subsequent annual reviews during the probationary period, including the review for promotion and tenure.
When probationary tenure-track faculty receive their annual review, the tenure initiating unit chair shall inform them of their right to review their primary personnel file maintained by their tenure initiating unit and to place in that file a response to any evaluation, comment or other material contained in the file (see paragraph (C)(8) of rule 3335-3-35 of the Administrative Code).
The fourth year review of probationary tenure-track faculty shall follow the same process as the review for tenure and promotion at the tenure initiating unit and college levels with two exceptions: Solicitation of external letters of evaluation may or may not be required by the tenure initiating unit and review by the college promotion and tenure committee shall be optional in all cases where both the tenure initiating unit and the dean approve the renewal of the appointment. Renewal of the appointment of a probationary assistant professor for the fifth year requires the approval of the dean of the college. Before reaching a negative decision or a decision contrary to the tenure initiating unit's recommendation, the dean must consult with the college promotion and tenure committee.

(D) Exclusion of time from probationary periods.

There are three circumstances under which probationary tenure-track faculty may obtain an exclusion of time from probationary periods, also known as extending the tenure clock. These exclusions recognize factors that impact the ability to meet the criteria for tenure within the probationary period outlined in paragraph (B) of this rule. A request to exclude time from the probationary period for any of the reasons listed in paragraphs (D)(1)(a) to (D)(1)(c) of this rule must be made prior to April first of the year in which the mandatory review for tenure is scheduled.
1. A probationary tenure-track faculty member will have one year excluded from the probationary period for the birth or the adoption of a child. The maximum time that can be excluded per birth or adoption is one year. This exclusion is guaranteed provided the faculty member informs the TIU head in writing within one year of the birth or adoption, unless the exclusion is prohibited in paragraph (D)(3) of this rule. It is the responsibility of the TIU head to inform the college dean and office of academic affairs of the birth or adoption. The probationary faculty member may decline the one-year exclusion by informing the TIU head in writing before April first of the original mandatory review year.
2. A probationary tenure-track faculty member may apply to exclude time from the probationary period in increments of one year because of personal illness, care of a seriously ill or injured person, an unpaid leave of absence, or factors beyond the faculty member's control that hinder the performance of the duties associated with being a successful faculty member, i.e., teaching, scholarship, and service. For faculty members requesting an exclusion due to personal illness or care of a seriously ill or injured person, requests shall be made in writing to human resources which will work with the TIU head to determine the necessary documentation. Requests to exclude time from the probationary period due to unpaid leave or factors beyond the faculty member’s control must be submitted in writing to the TIU head within one year of the unpaid leave or the extenuating factors. Such requests shall be reviewed by the TIU promotion and tenure committee, which will advise the TIU head on the appropriateness of the request. In units that do not have a promotion and tenure committee, the eligible faculty shall review the request. All requests require approval by the TIU head, dean, and executive vice president and provost. The extent to which the event leading to the request was beyond the faculty member's control and the extent to which it interfered with the faculty member's ability to be productive will be considered in granting or denying the request.
3. Probationary tenure-track faculty members on less than full-time service for part or all of their probationary period may request an exclusion of time. Such requests require approval of the TIU head, dean, and executive vice president and provost. The exclusion shall be for an integer number of years based on the principle that the usual probationary period represents full-time service. The maximum exclusion of a probationary period for less than full-time service is one year for a probationary instructor, three years for a probationary assistant professor and two years for a probationary associate professor or professor.
A request to exclude time from the probationary period for any reason will not be granted after a nonrenewal notice has been issued nor will previously approved requests to exclude time from the probationary period in any way limit the university's right not to renew a probationary appointment.
Except in extraordinary circumstances, a maximum of three years can be excluded from the probationary period for tenure track faculty for any reason or combination of reasons covered in the provisions in paragraphs (D)(1)(a) and (D)(1)(b) of this rule. For probationary faculty who are on appointments of less than full time, the maximum is four years for an instructor, six years for an assistant professor, and five years for an associate professor or professor for any reason or combination of reasons covered in the provisions in paragraphs (D)(1)(a),(D)(1)(b), and (D)(1)(c) of this rule. Exceptions require the approval of the tenure initiating unit chair, dean, and executive vice president and provost.
Tenure-track faculty members will be reviewed annually during their probationary periods regardless of whether time is excluded from that period for any of the above reasons unless their absence from campus during an excluded period makes conduct of such a review impractical.
For purposes of performance reviews of probationary faculty, the length of the probationary period is the actual number of years of employment at this university less any years of service excluded from the probationary period under the terms of this rule. Expectations for productivity during the probationary period cannot be increased as a consequence of exclusions of time granted under the terms of this rule. Probationary faculty who are on part-time appointments should be reviewed in the context of their reduced duties.
The exclusion of time granted under for reasons specified in this rule in no way limits the award of promotion and tenure prior to the mandatory review year.

(E) Service credit of up to three years may be granted for prior work experience at the time of the initial appointment and requires the approval of the tenure initiating unit chair, dean, and executive vice president and provost. Prior service credit shortens a probationary period by the amount of the credit and once granted cannot be revoked except through an approved request to exclude time from the probationary period.

(F) Probationary appointments may be terminated during any probationary year because of inadequate performance or inadequate professional development. At any time other than the fourth year review or mandatory review for tenure, a nonrenewal decision must be based on the results of a formal performance review conducted in accord with fourth year review procedures as set forth in paragraph (C)(3) of this rule. Notification of nonrenewal must be consistent with the standards of notice set forth in rule 3335-6-08 of the Administrative Code.

(G) Probationary appointments may be terminated for fiscal or programmatic reasons. When nonrenewal is based on fiscal or programmatic reasons, the faculty member should be advised that such nonrenewal is a possibility and formal notice of nonrenewal should be provided as soon as possible after the need for nonrenewal is established. Nonrenewal of a probationary appointment for fiscal or programmatic reasons does not entail a performance review and requires the prior approval of the executive vice president and provost. Because hiring decisions should be based on informed assumptions regarding the future availability of resources and of programmatic needs, approval of such nonrenewals will be based on the extent to which convincing evidence is provided that the fiscal or programmatic reasons for the nonrenewal could not be anticipated when the appointment was made and are expected to be long lasting.

(H) Decisions affecting the nonrenewal of a probationary appointment may not be arbitrary or capricious or carried out in violation of a faculty member's right to academic freedom. Faculty rule 3335-5-05 of the Administrative Code provides a procedural mechanism under which an aggrieved probationary faculty member can challenge a nonrenewal decision believed to have been improper. In that instance, however, the burden of proof is on the probationary faculty member to establish that the nonrenewal decision was improper. (See also rule 3335-6-05 of the Administrative Code).

(Board approval dates: 10/5/1984, 7/10/1987, 11/2/1990, 4/8/1994, 7/7/1995, 5/3/1996, 4/4/1997, 2/6/1998, 6/5/1998, 12/4/1998, 7/12/2002, 6/4/2004, 6/7/2005, 3/2/2007, 6/18/2010, 2/11/2011, 4/4/2014, 6/6/2014, 6/3/2020)

3335-6-04 Promotion and tenure review procedures for tenure-track faculty.

(A) General considerations.

In consultation with the rules committee or its designee, the office of academic affairs shall develop and promulgate procedural guidelines for promotion and tenure reviews to supplement Chapter 3335-6 of the Administrative Code. These guidelines shall include a dossier outline to be used for the documentation of accomplishments by all candidates to be reviewed for promotion and tenure and by all probationary tenure-track faculty for annual reviews. The guidelines shall also include general information about the review process at the college and university level, information about any legal considerations affecting promotion and tenure evaluations, examples of criteria by which candidates for promotion and tenure are evaluated, and other information intended to assist academic units in carrying out reviews.
All candidates for promotion and tenure are reviewed by the eligible faculty and by the chair of their tenure initiating unit. Candidates will also be reviewed at the college and university levels. The tenure initiating unit chair is responsible for informing the candidate in writing of the provost's final decision (if negative) or recommendation to the board of trustees (if positive).
The review for tenure during the final year of a probationary period is mandatory and must take place.

A probationary faculty member may ask to be considered for nonmandatory promotion and tenure review any time. However, the tenure initiating unit promotion and tenure committee may deny a probationary nonmandatory review every year up to the candidate’s mandatory year. If a probationary nonmandatory review is allowed and the outcome is negative, the candidate continues at the rank they held at the start of the review. If a probationary mandatory review outcome is negative, the candidate’s employment ends. Exclusions of time from a probationary period are allowed under 3335-6-03(D) and the expectations for productivity must be independent of the duration of the probationary period. A tenured faculty member may request a promotion review at any time. However, the tenure initiating unit promotion and tenure committee may deny this request if the tenured faculty member’s accomplishments are judged not to warrant such review. The promotion and tenure committee may deny a tenured faculty member’s request for promotion review only once. If the review is allowed and the outcome is negative, the tenured faculty member continues at the rank they held at the start of the review. This faculty member may continue at that rank indefinitely or request subsequent reviews that may not be denied.
Only the candidate may stop any review for promotion and tenure once external letters of evaluation have been sought. The candidate may withdraw from review at any stage of the process by so informing the tenure initiating unit chair in writing. If the review process has moved beyond the tenure initiating unit, the tenure initiating unit chair shall inform the dean or the executive vice president and provost, as relevant, of the candidate's withdrawal. Withdrawal from the mandatory tenure review during the final probationary year means that tenure will not be granted.

(B) Review procedures at the tenure initiating unit level.

Each tenure initiating unit shall establish a mechanism such as a promotion and tenure committee, for presenting the case of a candidate for promotion and tenure to the eligible faculty for consideration and for preparing a report for the tenure initiating unit chair providing the eligible faculty's assessment of quality and effectiveness of teaching, quality and significance of scholarship, and quality and effectiveness of service. With the exception noted below, eligible faculty are tenured faculty of higher rank than the candidate excluding the tenure initiating unit chair, the dean and assistant and associate deans of the college, the executive vice president and provost, and the president. For tenure reviews of probationary professors, eligible faculty are tenured professors excluding the tenure initiating unit chair, the dean and assistant and associate deans of the college, the executive vice president and provost, and the president.
The candidate shall have primary responsibility for preparing, according to office of academic affairs guidelines, a dossier documenting their accomplishments.
The tenure initiating unit chair or chair of the promotion and tenure committee shall be responsible for gathering internal evidence of the quality and effectiveness of teaching, quality and significance of scholarship, and quality and effectiveness of service from students and peers, as appropriate, within the tenure initiating unit. The tenure initiating unit chair or chair of the promotion and tenure committee shall also be responsible for obtaining letters from external evaluators and from other units at this university in which the candidate has appointment or substantial professional involvement, whether compensated or not. Some of the external evaluators should be suggested by the candidate and some by the department chair or promotion and tenure committee; no more than one-half of the letters contained in the final dossier should be from persons suggested by the candidate. All solicited letters that are received must be included in the dossier. Unsolicited letters of evaluation or letters of evaluation solicited by anyone other than the above authorized persons may not be included in the dossier.
The eligible faculty shall review the candidate's dossier describing accomplishments in teaching, scholarship, and service and shall vote on the candidate. A report of the faculty assessment, including both strengths and weaknesses, and the numerical vote of the faculty shall be forwarded to the tenure initiating unit chair for inclusion in the dossier.
The chair shall prepare a separate written assessment of the case and recommendation for the dean for inclusion in the dossier. As soon as the faculty report and chair's letter have been completed, the candidate should be notified in writing of the completion of the tenure initiating unit review and of the availability of these reports. The candidate may request a copy of these reports. The candidate may provide the tenure initiating unit chair with written comments on the tenure initiating unit review for inclusion in the dossier within ten calendar days of notification of the completion of the review. The promotion and tenure committee and/or chair may provide written responses to the candidate's comments for inclusion in the dossier. Only one iteration of comments on the departmental level review is permitted.
The tenure initiating unit chair shall forward the dossier with all internal and external evaluations, candidate comments on the tenure initiating unit review and promotion and tenure committee and/or chair responses to those comments, if any, to the dean of the college.

The purposes of promotion and tenure reviews beyond the tenure initiating unit shall be:
1. To determine whether the tenure initiating unit has conducted its review and reached a recommendation consistent with university, college, and tenure initiating unit standards, criteria, policies, and rules. A faculty review body or administrator at the college or university level may make a recommendation that is contrary to that of the tenure initiating unit if, in its judgment, the tenure initiating unit recommendation is not consistent with those standards, criteria, policies, and rules.
2. To determine where the weight of the evidence lies in cases in which there is not a clear or consistent recommendation from lower levels of review.
The dean of a college shall have a standing faculty promotion and tenure committee which is advisory to the dean. Members shall not participate in the review of cases from their own departments. The college promotion and tenure committee shall prepare a written report of its assessment and vote for inclusion in the dossier. The dean shall prepare a separate written assessment of the case and recommendation for the provost for inclusion in the dossier. As soon as the college promotion and tenure committee report and dean's letter have been completed, the candidate should be notified in writing of the completion of the college level review and of the availability of these reports. The candidate may request a copy of these reports. The candidate may provide the dean with written comments on the college review for inclusion in the dossier within ten calendar days of notification of the completion of the review. The college promotion and tenure committee and/or dean may provide written responses to the candidate's comments for inclusion in the dossier. Only one iteration of comments on the college level review is permitted. The dean shall forward the dossier, along with all evaluations and reports, to the provost.
The executive vice president and provost shall have a standing faculty promotion and tenure committee which is advisory to the provost. Members shall not participate in the review of cases from their own departments. Normally, the provost shall refer cases to this committee for advice only when there is concern regarding the appropriateness of lower level recommendations, when there are unclear or inconsistent recommendations from previous levels of review, or when all previous recommendations are negative. The university promotion and tenure committee shall prepare a written report of its assessment and vote for inclusion in the dossier.

(D) Modification of review processes for alternative administrative structures.

Regional campus faculty shall be reviewed by the faculty and dean and director on the appropriate campus using procedures established on each campus. This review shall focus primarily on the faculty member's contributions in teaching and service. The dean and director shall forward the report of the regional campus faculty and their recommendation to the chair of the faculty member's tenure initiating unit and inform the candidate of their recommendation. The review shall proceed as described in paragraphs (A) through (C) of this rule with the understanding that the relative weight of teaching and service is ordinarily greater on regional campuses.
If the college is the unit responsible for initiating tenure and promotion recommendations, it should follow the annual review and promotion and tenure procedures described for tenure initiating units. The dean shall forward the annual review letter or promotion and tenure dossier to the executive vice president and provost.
Schools follow the procedures established for tenure initiating unit reviews unless they contain departments that are tenure initiating units. In the latter case, the tenure initiating unit chair shall forward dossiers to the school director. The director shall forward the dossier, with their recommendation, to the dean of the college.
A subdivision within a tenure initiating unit may contribute to the evaluation of faculty members as provided for in the tenure initiating unit's appointments, promotion, and tenure document, but this review may not substitute for a review by the tenure initiating unit eligible faculty and chair.

(Board approval dates: 10/5/1984, 11/2/1990, 5/3/1996, 4/4/1997, 6/5/1998, 12/4/1998, 7/12/2002, 6/4/2004, 6/7/2005, 9/9/2011, 5/20/2021)

3335-6-05 Criteria and procedures for appeals of negative promotion and tenure decisions and reappointment nonrenewals and for seventh year reviews for tenure-track faculty.

(A) Appeals. It is the policy of the Ohio state university to make decisions regarding the renewal of probationary appointments and promotion and tenure in accordance with the standards, criteria, policies, and procedures stated in these rules, supplemented by additional written standards, criteria, policies, and procedures established by tenure initiating units and colleges. If a candidate believes that a nonrenewal decision or negative promotion and tenure decision has been made in violation of this policy and therefore alleges that it was made improperly, the candidate may appeal that decision. Procedures for appealing a decision based on an allegation of improper evaluation are described in rule 3335-5-05 of the Administrative Code.

(B) Seventh year reviews. Every effort should be made to consider new information about a candidate's performance before a final decision is made if the new information becomes available before a decision is rendered. In rare instances, a tenure initiating unit may petition the dean to conduct a seventh year review for an assistant professor who has been denied promotion and tenure. Both the eligible faculty of the unit and the chair must approve proceeding with a petition for a seventh year review. The petition must provide documentation of substantial new information regarding the candidate's performance that is germane to the reasons for the original negative decision. Petitions for seventh year reviews must be initiated before the beginning of the last year of employment because the seventh year review, if approved, would take place during the regular university review cycle of the assistant professor's seventh and last year of employment.

If the dean concurs with the tenure initiating unit's petition, the dean shall in turn petition the provost for permission to conduct a seventh year review. If the provost approves the request, a new review will be conducted equivalent to the one that resulted in the nonrenewal of the appointment. The conduct of a seventh year review does not presume a positive outcome. In addition, should the new review result in a negative decision, the faculty member's last day of employment is that stated in the letter of nonrenewal issued following the original negative decision.

A tenure-track faculty member may not request a seventh year review, appeal the denial of a seventh year review petition initiated by their tenure initiating unit, or appeal a negative decision following a seventh year review, since the faculty member has already been notified that tenure has been denied at the conclusion of the sixth year review.

(Board approval dates: 10/5/1984, 11/2/1990, 5/3/1996, 7/12/2002, 6/4/2004, 6/7/2005)

3335-6-06 Tenure initiating unit.

(A) A tenure initiating unit is a division, department, school, or college approved by the council on academic affairs, the university senate, and the board of trustees. A tenure initiating unit has the following responsibilities for all faculty members assigned to it: to assist in professional development; to evaluate; to maintain official personnel records; and to initiate promotion, tenure, reappointment, and nonrenewal recommendations. The office of academic affairs shall be responsible for maintaining the official list of tenure initiating units.

(B) A single division, department, school, or college must serve as the tenure initiating unit for each tenure-track faculty member, including individuals with multiple appointments. Multiple appointments to the tenure-track faculty totaling fifty per cent or more of service to the university shall be considered to be the same as a single appointment of fifty per cent or more for the purpose of determining eligibility for tenure.

(C) A tenure-track faculty member may change from one tenure initiating unit to another voluntarily; or as a result of the restructuring of academic units, including consolidation, reorganization, or abolishment; or as a result of the abolishment of a tenure initiating unit during conditions of financial exigency. The following provisions govern such changes:

A faculty member may voluntarily move from one tenure initiating unit to another upon approval of a simple majority of all tenured faculty members in the receiving tenure initiating unit and, following consultation with the appropriate dean(s), the executive vice president and provost. Administrative approval will be dependent on whether satisfactory fiscal arrangements for the change have been made.
A faculty member's tenure initiating unit may be changed as a result of structural changes in academic units, including consolidation or reorganization of units, or abolishment of units, that are approved by the university senate and board of trustees.
1. When academic units are to be consolidated or reorganized, resulting in the creation of one or more new tenure initiating units, the plan for relocating faculty to the new tenure initiating units shall be part of the approved restructuring proposal. Change in tenure initiating unit resulting from the consolidation or reorganization of academic units shall not require the consent of individual faculty members whose tenure initiating unit is changed. In addition, since a receiving unit does not exist when new units are being created, no vote of such a unit will be required in relocating faculty.
2. When a tenure initiating unit is to be abolished and is not part of a plan to consolidate or reorganize two or more units into new tenure initiating units, every effort shall be made by the executive vice president and provost to transfer each tenure-track faculty member in that tenure initiating unit to another tenure initiating unit, in accordance with the provisions of paragraph (C) of this rule. Should such agreement be impossible, the person's tenure responsibility shall reside with the executive vice president and provost. The executive vice president and provost shall assign the faculty member appropriate duties. If the faculty member's previous assignment has been at a regional campus, the executive vice president and provost shall consult with the dean and director of the regional campus regarding an appropriate assignment.
A tenure-track faculty member whose tenure initiating unit is abolished during conditions of financial exigency, as described in rule 3335-5-02.1 of the Administrative Code, may be reassigned to a new tenure initiating unit under the terms of paragraph (C)(1) of rule 3335-5-02.2 of the Administrative Code.

(D) When tenure-track faculty members change tenure initiating units under paragraphs (C)(2) and (C)(3) of this rule, the new tenure initiating units shall make reasonable efforts to assist faculty members in adjusting to the expectations of the new unit. Faculty members who believe that some other unit may be more appropriate than their new tenure initiating unit may also explore the possibility of further relocation under the terms of paragraph (C)(1) of this rule.

(Board approval dates: 10/5/1984, 11/2/1990, 2/1/1991, 2/4/1994, 5/3/1996, 4/4/1997, 3/6/1998, 12/4/1998, 7/12/2002, 6/4/2004, 6/7/2005, 6/6/2014)

3335-6-07 Campus assignment.

(A) Every member of the faculty shall be assigned to serve on one of the university's campuses: the central campus in Columbus, the regional campuses in Lima, Mansfield, Marion, and Newark, or the agricultural technical institute in Wooster.

(B) Decisions regarding the selection, assignment, responsibilities, salary, assessment, and promotion of a regional campus faculty member should involve full cooperation between the tenure initiating unit and the regional campus administration. All formal personnel recommendations must bear the signatures of the chair of the tenure initiating unit, the dean of the college of the tenure initiating unit, the dean and director of the regional campus, and the executive vice president and provost or designee.

(C) Campus reassignment may occur only with the voluntary consent of the faculty member, and with the approval of the executive vice president and provost and that of a simple majority of all tenured faculty members in the transferee's tenure initiating unit when the reassignment is from a regional campus to the Columbus campus or all tenured faculty members on the receiving regional campus when the transfer is to a regional campus. Administrative approval will be dependent on whether satisfactory fiscal arrangements for the change have been made.

(Board approval dates: 10/5/1984, 10/4/1985, 2/6/1987, 11/2/1990, 2/1/1991, 5/3/1996, 4/4/1997, 12/4/1998, 7/9/2004)

3335-6-08 Standards of notice.

(A) In cases of nonrenewal of an appointment to a tenure-track faculty rank, the university will, insofar as possible, observe the following standards of notice:

Not later than March first of the first academic year of probationary service, if the appointment expires at the end of that year; or if a one-year appointment expires during an academic year, at least three months in advance of its expiration;
Not later than December fifteenth of the second academic year of probationary service, if the appointment expires at the end of that year; or if an appointment expires during the second academic year, at least six months in advance of its expiration; and
At least twelve months before the expiration of an appointment after two or more years in the institution.

(B) These standards of notice need not apply in cases of termination for cause.

(C) In the event of a decision resulting in nonrenewal, the chair shall notify the faculty member in writing of that decision and the reasons for it.

(D) Decisions regarding renewal of members of the associated faculty (adjunct, clinical practice, visiting titles, or lecturers) are made annually in accordance with criteria and procedures of the appointing instructional unit and in accordance with university policies relative to associated faculty positions.

(Board approval dates: 10/5/1984, 7/10/1987, 5/3/1996, 6/4/2004, 6/7/2005, 6/6/2014)

3335-6-09 Exceptions.

Any unit which believes that there is a reason for it to have policies and procedures differing from those set out in this chapter may request an exception. The request must be approved by the procedures established in the unit’s pattern of administration and by the dean of the college, after broad and meaningful consultation with the unit’s tenure-track faculty. The request will then be submitted to the executive vice president and provost and, if approved, to the university senate for approval.

(Board approval dates: 10/5/1984, 5/4/1989, 7/6/1990, 11/2/1990, 3/6/1992, 4/8/1994, 5/3/1996, 4/4/1997, 12/4/1998, 7/12/2002, 7/9/2004)