Faculty Ranks

Normally the initial appointment to the rank of assistant professor is for a term of two years. After three semesters of the initial appointment as Assistant Professor, in January of the second year, the Faculty Member shall be reviewed for reappointment and shall be given written notice of reappointment at the same or non-reappointment.

An Assistant Professor who is reappointed at the same rank shall receive a reappointment of two or four years to commence at the end of the first three year contract. Two-year reappointments can be used in cases where the department is still not convinced of a person’s performance but not willing to end the contract after two years. The two-year reappointment will give the department two additional years to observe thus making a decision as to whether the individual should remain until the tenure decision. Faculty who are not reappointed to Assistant Professor following their initial review will be given a one year terminal contract. Those reappointed on a two-year contract shall be reviewed in the first year of the new contract. If reappointed they will be granted another two-year contract to commence at the end of the first 2-year reappointment contract. If not reappointed they will be given a one year terminal contract. During or before the end of the first year on the second 2-year appointment as Assistant Professor, he or she shall be reviewed and given written notice of promotion to Associate Professor with the conferral of Permanent Tenure or of non-reappointment. If not reappointed they will be given a one year terminal contract.

An Assistant Professor who is reappointed on a four year contract can apply for Permanent Tenure as early as the second year and no later than the third year of the four-year reappointment contract as Assistant Professor, he or she shall be reviewed and given written notice of promotion to Associate Professor with the conferral of Permanent Tenure or of non-reappointment. If a faculty member applies for initial Tenure and Promotion in the fifth year of the tenure-track and is denied, he/she will be able to apply again in the sixth year. This provision will remain in effect until reviewed by the general faculty in Academic Year 2015-16, at which time it may be retained or modified. Any changes to this provision must be approved by a majority vote of the general faculty.

Permanent Tenure may not be awarded to a faculty Member at the rank of Assistant Professor.

A Faculty Member may be appointed to the rank of associate professor with or without Permanent Tenure. When a Faculty Member’s initial appointment is to the rank of Associate Professor without Permanent Tenure, the appointment is to a term of three to five years which is determined at the time of hire and based upon the collective experience of the Faculty Member. During and before the end of the penultimate year of the appointment as Associate Professor, the Faculty Member shall be reviewed for Permanent Tenure and given written notice from the Provost that he or she will be appointed with Permanent Tenure at the same or of non- reappointment.

A Faculty member promoted to the rank of Associate Professor must also be awarded Permanent Tenure.

Appointments with Permanent Tenure at the rank of associate professor can be made for selected senior academic and administrative officers such as deans and other administrators who hold both faculty and administrative appointments. When this happens, the recommendation for appointment with tenure will be referred to the senior faculty, the department chair and the Dean who will evaluate whether the applicant has the appropriate credentials. These recommendations will be forwarded to the faculty promotion and tenure committee. This committee will forward its recommendation to the provost and the provost will forward his or her recommendation to the Personnel and Tenure Committee of the Board of Trustees at the quarterly meeting following the appointment.

In exceptional cases, an academic unit might hire a candidate with exemplary credentials to associate professor rank with tenure. In such a case, the candidate’s credentials must be reviewed pursuant to the University’s tenure policy and the process must result in a positive recommendation before an offer of permanent tenure can be made to the candidate. The candidate will be asked to prepare a package of his/her credentials and apply for tenure. The provost will call upon the senior faculty and the dean to expedite the process and reach a positive or negative recommendation in a timely fashion. The decision of the tenure process will be communicated to the candidate and it may result in an offer for hire with or without tenure.

An Associate Professor with Permanent Tenure is required to undergo a comprehensive review every five years pursuant to the Post Tenure Review Policy. If a review of a tenured Faculty Member for promotion to Full Professor is conducted at the time at which a Post Tenure Review is mandated, review for promotion fulfills the requirement. Normally, an Associate Professor with Permanent Tenure may not elect to postpone periodic reviews except under special circumstances as outlined on the policy.

A Faculty Member may be appointed to the rank of professor with Permanent Tenure or without Permanent Tenure.

When a Faculty Member’s initial appointment by the institution is to the rank of professor without Permanent Tenure, the appointment is to a term of three years. Before the end of the second year of the three-year term, the Faculty Member must apply for Permanent Tenure and must be granted Permanent Tenure to be reappointed; concomitantly, the professor shall be given Formal Notice that he or she must be approved for Permanent Tenure to be reappointed.

A Faculty Member who is promoted to the rank of Professor shall have Permanent Tenure.

Appointments with Permanent Tenure at the rank of professor can be made for qualified faculty, and selected senior academic and administrative officers such as deans and other administrators who hold both faculty and administrative appointments. Additionally, the appointment of an endowed chair must be at the rank of professor with Permanent Tenure. When this happens, for the three categories of employees, the recommendation for appointment with tenure will be referred to the senior faculty, the department chair and the Dean who will evaluate whether the applicant has the appropriate credentials. These recommendations will be forwarded to the faculty promotion and tenure committee. This committee will forward its recommendation to the provost and the provost will forward his or her recommendation to the Personnel and Tenure Committee of the Board of Trustees at the quarterly meeting following the appointment.

All Professors will be subject to periodic reviews as required under the Post Tenure Review Policy.

The rank of instructor is appropriate for one who is expected, upon appointment, to progress through to a professorial rank in this or any other institution but who lacks, when appointed, one or more qualifications expected by the department or division for appointment to a higher rank. Upon meeting all those qualifications, the instructor is eligible to be appointed to assistant professor or offered a terminal appointment of one academic year. The initial appointment to the rank of instructor is for a fixed term of two years. The instructor may be given an additional fixed term of one year. If appointed at any time from instructor to the rank of assistant professor or associate professor, said appointment constitutes an initial tenure track appointment with the incidents described in Section III.B.2 of this document.

Non-tenure track appointments may be made to fixed-term faculty ranks with title designations “instructor,” visiting faculty, “lecturer,” “artist-in-residence,” “writer-in- residence” and any faculty rank designated in III.B.1 – III.B.4 of this subsection with the prefix-qualifier “adjunct,” visiting or “research” under the conditions and with incidents herein provided. Special faculty members may be paid or unpaid. Such an appointment, using any one of the foregoing title designations, is appropriate for one who has unusual qualifications for teaching, academic administration, or public service, but for whom the professorial rank is not appropriate because of the limited duration of the mission for which appointed, or because of concern for continued availability of special funding for the position, or for other valid institutional reasons.

Special faculty members who are paid shall be appointed for a specified term of service, as
set out in writing in the letter of appointment. The term of appointment of any paid special faculty member concludes a the end of the specified period set forth in the letter of appointment, and the letter of appointment constitutes full and timely notice that a new term will not be granted when that term expires. Initial appointments may be for a fixed term of one to three years. Each appointment is considered an initial appointment. Winston-Salem State University shall not be obliged to give any notice before a current term expires as to whether appointment will be offered for a succeeding term. Thus, the specification of the length of the appointment shall be deemed to constitute full and timely notice of non-reappointment when that term expires.

Special faculty members who are not paid may be appointed for a specified tem of service or at will. Their pay and appointment status should be set out in the letter of appointment.

During the term of their employment, special faculty members are entitled to seek recourse under Section 607 of The Code and Section XI herein (relating to faculty grievance).

Special faculty members, whether paid or unpaid, are not covered by Section 604 of The Code and that section does not accord them rights to additional review of a decision not to grant a new appointment at the end of a specified fixed term.

The definition of Clinical Faculty at Winston-Salem State University will be defined as faculty operating in demonstration capacities and in clinical supervision and/or practical application of the discipline. From this point forward, these duties and responsibilities as defined by the hiring department will be referred to as clinical practice. These appointments, non-tenure contract positions, can occur in health sciences, social sciences, and education. The initial appointment of clinical faculty will be to one of four ranks that mirror those of tenure track faculty: Clinical Instructor, Clinical Assistant Professor, Clinical Associate Professor, and Clinical Professor. A change in Clinical Faculty rank can only be applied for as the current contract is ending and thus is not viewed as a promotion, but a new contract. Appointment to any rank requires as follows: (a) evidence of instructional or supervisory competence; (b) current licensure in the area of clinical assignment, as required; and (c) a graduate degree commensurate with accreditation of the academic program. For example, in order to teach in a doctoral degree program, a doctorate degree is required. Because national specialty certification is not common and is an indicator of the excellence of the faculty member and lends esteem to the program, school and university, additional consideration will be given to those documenting national certification as a clinical specialist, as applicable.

1. Clinical Instructor: Appointments at the rank of Clinical Instructor require a master’s degree and demonstration of beginning level of teaching or relevant experience appropriate to the assignment. An agreement between the faculty member and the department will specify the clinical practice skills and certifications that must be maintained throughout the contract.
2. Clinical Assistant Professor: For appointment to the rank of Clinical Assistant Professor a minimum of a master’s degree and minimum of two (2) years of relevant clinical experience appropriate to the assignment is required. The faculty member must show evidence of at least one of the following: a) university or clinical teaching experience; b) effort to incorporate evidence-based processes in teaching and/or clinical practice; c) involvement in professional, community-based, or advisory organization(s); d) present evidence of collaboration on presentations at the local or regional level in the area of clinical expertise or teaching assignment. An agreement between the faculty member and the department will specify the clinical practice skills and certifications that must be maintained throughout the contract.
3. Clinical Associate Professor:  Appointments at the rank of Clinical Associate Professor require a doctoral degree and minimum of five (5) years of teaching or relevant clinical experience appropriate to the assignment is required. The faculty member must show evidence of at least two of the following: a) mastery of classroom or clinical teaching as defined by the hiring department; b) consistently incorporates evidence-based processes in all teaching and clinical practice; c) leadership in local or regional professional, community- based, or advisory organization(s); d) present evidence of collaboration in seeking local or regional funding for development of facilities, community service, or technological enhancements in the clinical specialty area; e) present evidence of investigation of problems relevant to specialty and/or teaching area; f) provide evidence of presentations and publications or disseminations at local or regional level in area of clinical assignment. An agreement between the faculty member and the department will specify the clinical practice skills and certifications that must be maintained throughout the contract.
4. Clinical Professor: Appointments at the rank of Clinical Professor require a doctoral degree and minimum of ten (10) years of teaching or relevant clinical experience appropriate to the assignment. The faculty member must show evidence of at least three of the following: (a) mastery of classroom or clinical teaching as defined by the hiring department; (b) mastery of a clinical specialty area as defined by the hiring department; (c) consistent incorporation of evidence-based processes in all teaching or clinical practice; (d) leadership in curriculum development and program and/or clinical evaluation; (e) leadership in local, regional or national professional, community-based, or advisory organization(s); (f) presentations and publications or disseminations at local, regional, national, or international level(s) in area of clinical assignment; (g) collaboration in seeking local, regional or national funding for development of facilities, community service, or technological enhancements in the clinical specialty area. An agreement between the faculty member and the department will specify the clinical practice skills and certifications that must be maintained throughout the contract.

The chair shall provide each tenure track Faculty member in the department’s Professorial Ranks a letter each year that offers an evaluation of the faculty member’s accomplishments during the previous year and discusses the Faculty Member’s progress towards achieving reappointment, promotion or the conferral of Permanent Tenure, as appropriate. The letter should clearly and specifically address strengths and weaknesses in the performance of the Faculty Member, providing for a clear plan and timetable for improvement of any deficiencies in performance. While ultimate decisions on reappointment, promotion, and the conferral of Permanent Tenure take into account many factors, not all of which are related to the Faculty Member’s performance, effective annual evaluations are intended to help to eliminate unexpected results in the comprehensive reviews supporting decisions on reappointment, promotion, and the conferral of Permanent Tenure. Guidelines for the annual performance review are detailed in the Winston-Salem State Faculty Evaluation Handbook.

Clinical track faculty members will be evaluated annually by the department/ program supervisor in accordance with the current human resources directives and the provisions of the employment contract. Evaluation will be based on satisfactory progress toward, or effective attainment of, all the criteria for initial appointment at clinical faculty rank set forth in the employment contract. Each Department or Program will establish at the outset responsibilities and ratio of teaching, service, and research. To allow for the unique professional requirements of each program, the particular departments or programs will establish additional performance criteria for appointment, reappointment, advancement in rank, and salary increases, as appropriate (see section 6 above).