Executive Vice President & Provost

Early Tenure Procedures and Guidelines (Fall 2022)

• As provided for in Article 15.B., faculty are able to request to count time spent in a temporary or regular part-time, temporary full-time or regular full-time position at any university or any other regionally accredited or internationally acclaimed four year institution of higher education towards the probationary period at WCU.
• Generally speaking, requests for credit more than one year will only be approved in those instances where individuals have exceptional records supported by a substantial body of professional accomplishments.
• Departments are not authorized via the Collective Bargaining Agreement to guarantee tenure credit during the hiring process or at any time during the probationary period. The Department’s role is limited to making a recommendation to the Provost as the President’s designee. Departments are urged to carefully consider each request and are reminded that the process will be monitored to ensure that such requests have not created a de facto situation where the time spent in the probationary period is less than the five years as required by the Collective Bargaining Agreement for most faculty.
• The process may be initiated by either the faculty member or the department. If requested by the faculty member, they will initiate the procedure by submitting a written request to the department chair and Dean. The department chair will bring the request to the department, which will submit a written recommendation to the Dean within 4 weeks (of the academic calendar) of receiving the request, who will share this recommendation with the Provost as the President’s designee. The department is encouraged to use its normal process for decision making. As part of the review and approval process, the Provost may consult with the appropriate dean, consider the department recommendation and make a determination on the request. The faculty member and department chair will be informed in writing of the decision within 4 weeks of receiving the department's recommendation.
• Should the Provost, as the President’s designee, receive and approve a request for early tenure consideration before the successful completion (meaning the candidate did not receive ratings of needs improvement or does not meets professional standards in any area of evaluation in either year one or two) of the second year tenure track evaluation (which includes pre-employment i.e. during hiring process), the approval will stipulate that such credit will be applied to years three and later of the probationary period upon being renewed after the second year.
• Individuals approved to apply for early tenure may submit their materials at the next appropriate deadline following approval (i.e. November 1 for tenure & promotion or January 20 for tenure only) OR the applicant may choose not to apply for early tenure. Tenure applications and materials will be considered using the regular tenure and promotion process. 
• A copy of the Provost's letter, as the President’s designee, granting early tenure application will be attached to the tenure application in the tenure dossier materials.
• Any semester a probationary faculty member is on a full leave from the University (with or without pay) will not be counted toward the required probationary period (Article 15.B).

On behalf of the Sabbatical Leave Committee:

As a reminder to faculty, all sabbatical proposals will be submitted and reviewed in the fall of each academic year. Applications will be reviewed in the fall semester only. To prepare please read the deadlines below.

The Sabbatical Leave Committee invites all tenured faculty members to apply for next year’s round of sabbatical leaves. The deadline is 4 p.m. on Thursday, September 15, 2022.

All documents related to sabbaticals may be found by going to the Office of the Provost website. You will find the Sabbaticals tab on the left margin and there you will be able to access the sabbatical overview, policy, forms, and examples of successful applications from past years.

Review of proposals will occur only during the fall semester. A proposal submitted in Fall 2022 can apply for a sabbatical in Fall 2023 or Spring 2024. Because sabbatical applications must be submitted at least two semesters in advance, faculty members cannot apply in the fall semester for a sabbatical to be taken in the spring semester immediately following submission of the application.

ELECTRONIC SUBMISSION PROCESS

The faculty member is responsible for obtaining Chairperson's and Dean's comments and signatures for the completed proposal in order to submit to the Provost office. ALL sabbaticals will be submitted electronically and therefore e-signatures will be accepted. All completed applications will be submitted via email to Provost@wcupa.edu. Please put “Sabbatical Application” in the subject line. All emails are due by 4 p.m. on Thursday, September 15, 2022. All applications must be complete, including the cover checklist, all pages of the form, and all required signatures. Incomplete applications or applications received after the published deadline will not be reviewed by the SaLe Committee.

Sabbatical leave applications are reviewed using the following rating scale:

1. Up to 70 points for the quality of the project
2. Up to 20 points for meritorious service
3. Up to 10 points for years of service

The SaLe Committee requests that applicants:

1. Adhere to word limits listed on the application form in every section of the application.
2. Include letters of support for collaborative projects with another individual, group, or university.
3. Offer a detailed description of service activities in Section 11 of the application form.

By December 15th, the President or his/her designee notifies the faculty of sabbatical leaves granted.

Members of the 2022 SaLe Committee who can help answer questions about the application process include: Rachel McMullin and Jacqueline Van Schooneveld