NON TENURE-TRACK FACULTY APPOINTMENTS
(Proposal 4-95)
(Proposal 4-07)
(Proposal 35-15)
(Proposal 36-15)
(Proposal 46-19)
Senate Policy 701.2
Adjunct (Professor, Associate Professor, Assistant Professor):
An appointment at this rank is offered to persons not regularly or primarily employed
within the academic unit at the University. Such individuals--because of training,
experience, credentials, and interest--are invited to participate in the teaching,
research, and/or instructional programs of academic departments. Remuneration may
be provided for teaching and/or research activities. Appointments shall be for no
more than three years with the possibility of subsequent reappointments.
Affiliated Faculty Appointment (Professor, Associate Professor, Assistant Professor):
Affiliated faculty appointments are used to acknowledge and support the scholarly
contributions that faculty may make in more than one discipline.
All faculty members holding affiliated appointments must have a primary appointment within an academic department or school. The primary department or school will be responsible for annual reviews for the faculty member’s reappointment, tenure, promotion, and salary consideration. The primary department/school will seek and consider written input from the chair of the department(s) and/or dean of the school(s) hosting the faculty member’s affiliated appointments.
Affiliated faculty appointments are at the same rank (i.e., professor, associate professor, or assistant professor) as a faculty member’s primary appointment.
Affiliated faculty will not be evaluated in any way for tenure and/or promotion by a unit in which they hold an affiliated appointment.
Affiliated faculty appointments are possible with non-departmental and interdisciplinary programs as well as with departments or departmental programs.
All requests for affiliated appointments must be approved by the provost and President. Requests for affiliated appointments also need approval from the:
- faculty member’s primary academic department chair or school dean,
- dean of their primary college (if in a college),
- approval from the affiliated-appointment discipline’s department or school (for disciplinary appointments) or the appropriate executive group or director and graduate dean (for interdisciplinary appointments)
- dean of the faculty member’s affiliated-appointment college (if the affiliated-appointment discipline is housed in a college.
Emeritus (Professor, Associate Professor, or Assistant Professor):
An honorary rank awarded to retirees who have tenure in the professorial ranks and
have
served the University with distinction. Recommendations for emeritus status shall
be made by
the members of the retiree's academic department through administrative channels to
the
President for presentation to the Board of Control (Board of Control Policy 16.8).
Emeritus
faculty shall be invited to participate in commencement processions and similar ceremonies
and
be entitled to certain other privileges within the University such as parking and
library access.
Instructor:
There are many instances where a Department/School may need to hire someone on a
temporary basis to fill unmet teaching needs when a regular faculty member is on sabbatical
or
family leave. These temporary needs will continue into the future and will sometimes
occur on a
semester-by-semester basis. The title of “Instructor” will be reserved for cases such
as these.
Instructors will have no expectations placed on them other than teaching (and associated
duties
such as office hours) and their appointment could be for full-time or part-time work
with
contracts of no more than one year. Minimum qualifications for an Instructor are a
master’s
degree, or a bachelor’s degree and professional qualifications.
Lecturer:
There are many cases where NTTF serve in a continuing basis and/or where NTTF lines
may
be an established part of the general fund budget. For NTTF in these positions, a
career path
should be established so that their contributions are recognized and appropriately
rewarded.
The three proposed titles for NTTF in this category are 1) Lecturer, 2) Senior Lecturer,
and 3)
Principal Lecturer. Lecturers of all ranks must be appointed for a minimum of 75%
effort and will
receive regular university benefits—appointments of less than this will be made at
the Instructor
rank. Minimum qualifications include a master’s degree or equivalent professional
qualifications.
Lecturers of all ranks may be expected to advise students, serve on committees, participate
actively in professional societies, and conduct research. In each case, yearly teaching
loads for
Lecturers will be negotiated with the Department Chair/School Dean taking into account
the
non-teaching or scholarly activities.
Lecturers will be appointed for 2-year rolling terms, i.e., they will automatically receive a 2year contract at the end of each year unless they are informed that their appointment is terminated. Effectively this means they will have a one-year notification period for non-reappointment.
Lecturers will be eligible for promotion to the rank of Senior Lecturer based on criteria established within the academic units and the recommendations of relevant committees and administrators at the university. Likewise, Senior Lecturers will be eligible for promotion to Principal Lecturer. Both Senior and Principal Lecturers will serve in continuing appointments with a one-year notification of termination. A salary increment for promotion through the ranks will be awarded to the affected faculty.
Librarian/Archivist:
This is a beginning professional rank. The base qualification for entry is educational
training or experience appropriate to the professional requirements of the position.
Professionals at this level are doing journey-level work to build competence within
their field. Their work requires guidance and mentoring by supervisors and more experienced
colleagues. At this level, individuals exhibit evidence of a beginning record of professional
excellence. Librarians and Archivists will have two-year (rolling) renewable appointments.
Notice of termination must be given at least one year in advance of the appointment
expiration.
Senior Librarian/Senior Archivist:
The basic qualification for this rank is the demonstrated ability to competently fulfill
the range of library functions applicable to the individual’s primary assigned area
of responsibility. The individual should demonstrate evidence of a continuing record
of professional excellence. An individual at this level should demonstrate the ability
to work productively independently, make sound decisions, and be an active and productive
participant in the betterment of the library and the University. They should accept
responsibility for their continued professional growth and development without dependence
on a supervisor. Senior Librarians and Senior Archivists will have continuing appointments.
Notice of termination must be given at least one year in advance of the appointment
expiration.
Principal Librarian/Principal Archivist:
An individual promoted to this rank is one who has received recognition within the
University, as well as at regional, state, and national levels as a result of excellence
in job performance, professional achievement/scholarship and service. Excellence in
job performance must be at the highest level with evidence of leadership and a broad
understanding of overall library operations beyond the primary assignment. Principal
Librarians and Principal Archivists will have continuing appointments. Notice of termination
must be given at least one year in advance of the appointment expiration.
Professor of Practice:
In certain cases, especially where an individual has significant industrial or professional
experience, a new NTTF category will be established—Professor of Practice. Professors
of Practice will be NTTF and will be appointed on a continuing basis, similar to Senior
and Principal Lecturer appointments. Faculty in the Lecturer ranks will generally
not be eligible for promotion to this category, with the exception being current (AY2006-07)
Lecturers whose qualifications are in keeping with appointment to this rank and for
special cases where a person has achieved significant professional experience while
serving as a Lecturer. Minimum qualifications for Professor of Practice will be a
BS degree with significant professional experience.
ROTC Faculty Appointments:
An appointment conferred upon ROTC officers assigned to duty with the Army or Air
Force Reserve Officers Training Corps units at the University. The senior commissioned
officer of the Army or Air Force units shall be appointed Professor of Military Science
or Professor of Aerospace Studies, respectively. Commissioned officers or other warrant
officers shall be appointed Assistant Professor of Military Science/Assistant Professor
of Aerospace Studies or Instructor of Military Science/Instructor of Aerospace Studies.
Non-commissioned officers shall be appointed Instructor of Military Science/Instructor
of Aerospace Studies. These appointments involve no compensation from the University
and terminate when the duty assignment ends.
Visiting (Professor, Associate Professor, or Assistant Professor):
A guest appointment normally offered to a faculty member from another institution
and
appointed at the rank of that institution. Responsibilities will normally be similar
to those of
tenure-track faculty in the department to which the appointment is made. Visiting
appointments
shall normally be for one year or less.
Employment Issues:
Individuals appointed to the Lecturer and Professor of Practice ranks are eligible
for merit increases according to established university procedures. Regional searches
(at a minimum) will be conducted for NTTF in the Lecturer and Professor of Practice
ranks; no search is required for Instructors, since the expectation is that they will
be serving on a limited, temporary basis. All policies in place for faculty searches,
including Affirmative Action practices, will apply to Lecturer and Professor of Practice
searches. In some cases, a search for a Lecturer could yield a candidate who is better
qualified to serve as a Professor of Practice or vice versa. Adjustments to rank title
are permitted in these cases without a new search.
Promotion Process for Lecturers:
Each academic unit will establish provisions for the promotion process through the
Lecturer ranks, including promotion criteria and unit-level review procedures. Provisions
will include the establishment of a unit-level committee, with committee membership
parameters determined by the unit. NTTF faculty in the rank of Lecturer or Senior
Lecturer who wish to be considered for promotion will submit documentation similar
to that contained on the F-Form for TTF in February of a given year. The promotion
process will be:
- The Department/School committee makes a written recommendation and forwards with the documentation to the Chair/Dean.
- The Department Chair/School Dean makes a written recommendation and forwards with the documentation to the College Dean or Provost as appropriate.
- The College Dean (as applicable) makes a written recommendation and forwards all documentation to the Provost.
- The Provost reviews the documentation and makes a recommendation to the President.
- The President makes the final promotion decision.
The Provost will oversee the implementation, including timing, of this proposal. Issues in implementation will include: 1) unit level development of promotion provisions for NTTF, 2) adjustment of rank definitions so that they are in compliance with this proposal, 3) establishment of the appropriate salary increments for promotions within the NTTF ranks, and 4) review of cases of current faculty in the Lecturer rank to make changes to appointments as necessary.
Termination:
Termination policies currently in place for Michigan Tech contractual employees (e.g.,
coaches) will be in effect for NTTF in all categories described previously. The termination
policy currently in effect is found in the following paragraphs.
Termination Policy for Contractual Employees
The Employee is employed at the will of the University and this Agreement can be terminated at any time with or without cause by the University.
- If the University terminates the employment other than for substantial failure as set forth below, or cause, it shall pay the Employee a post termination stipend in an amount equal to the Employee’s salary for the remainder of the term of the agreement. The Employee shall not be entitled to any fringe or other employment benefits after notice of termination. As determined by the Dean of the School/Chair of the Department, the employee may or may not be required to continue to serve, with a continuation of benefits, in the same capacity as originally hired during the notice period.
- In the event that the University terminates this Agreement due to cause or the substantial failure on the part of the Employee to comply with the obligations which determination shall be made solely by the University in its good faith discretion, the University shall have no further obligation to the Employee hereunder. In such event the Employee will be immediately terminated and will not be entitled to any further compensation, wages, stipends, post termination payments, fringe benefits or damages of any nature with the exception of wages actually earned prior to the date of termination.
Proposal 4-95:
Adopted by Senate: January 25, 1995
Approved by President (with modifications): March 15, 1995
Modifications Adopted by Senate: March 22, 1995
Approved by Board of Control: November 17, 1995
Proposal 4-07:
Introduced in Senate: 11 October 2006
Slightly revised and Adopted by Senate: 25 October 2006
Approved by Administration: 11 December 2006 with NOTE: The Provost will be working
with Academic Human Resources on implementation.
Replaced MTU with Michigan Tech per university policies: 28 January 2014
Proposal 35-15:
Introduced to Senate: 01 April 2015
Approved by Senate: 15 April 2015
Approved by Administration: 22 April 2015
Proposal 36-15:
Introduced to Senate: 01 April 2015
Approved by Senate: 15 April 2015
Approved by Administration with Editorial Amendment: 22 April 2015
Senate introduced the editorial amendment: 09 September 2015
Senate approved the editorial amendment: 23 September 2015
Proposal 46-19:
Introduced to Senate: 27 March 2019
Approved by Senate: 10 April 2019
Approved by Administration: 12 April 2019