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Section 4.04.01: Tenure

SUBJECT: Faculty Tenure
SOURCE: Board Policy Manual 803.09 & 803.0901, 6/22/81; Memorandum from Executive Vice Chancellor to Presidents, 10/19/90; Annual Memorandum of Instruction from Vice Chancellor for Academic and Fiscal Affairs

POLICY

803.09 TENURE

  1. Each institution in the University System shall establish clearly stated tenure criteria and procedures that emphasize excellence in teaching for all teaching faculty. Such policies shall conform to the requirements listed below and shall be reviewed and approved by the Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs. The requirements listed below shall be the minimum standard for award of tenure, but they are to be sufficiently flexible to permit an institution to make individual adjustments to its own peculiar problems or circumstances. These policies are to be considered a statement of general requirements which are capable of application throughout the System and are not a limitation upon any additional standards and requirements which a particular institution may wish to adopt for its own improvement. Such additional standards and requirements, which must be consistent with the Regents' policies and approved by the Board of Regents, shall be incorporated into the statutes of an institution.

  2. Tenure resides at the institutional level. Institutional responsibility for employment of a tenured individual is to the extent of  continued employment on a 100% workload basis for two out of every three consecutive academic terms until retirement, dismissal  for cause, or release because of financial exigency, or program modification as determined by the Board.

  3. Normally, only assistant professors, associate professors, and professors who are employed full-time (as defined by Regents'  policies) by an institution are eligible for tenure. However, faculty members holding these professorial ranks who are employed by or on the staff of the Medical College of Georgia (MCG) on less than a full-time basis, and who also hold an appointment at the Veterans Administration Medical Center-Augusta, shall be eligible for promotion and/or the award of tenure by the Board of Regents (BR Minutes, 1979-80, p. 73; 1980-81, p. 303; 1990-91, pp. 369- 70). The term "full-time" is used in these tenure regulations to denote service on a 100% work load basis for at least two out of three consecutive academic terms. Faculty members with adjunct appointments shall not acquire tenure. The award of tenure is limited to the above academic ranks and shall not be construed to include honorific appointments (BR Minutes, 1990-91, pp. 369-70).

  4. Tenure may be awarded, upon recommendation by the President and approval by the Board of Regents, upon completion of a probationary period of at least five years of full-time service at the rank of assistant professor or higher. The five-year period must  be continuous except that a maximum of two years interruption because of a leave of absence or part-time service may be  permitted, provided, however that an award of credit for the probationary period of an interruption shall be at the discretion of the President. In all cases in which a leave of absence, approved by the President, is based on birth or adoption of a child, or serious  disability or prolonged illness of the employee or immediate family member, the five-year probationary period may be suspended during the leave of absence. A maximum of three years credit toward the minimum probationary period may be allowed for service in tenure track positions at other institutions or for full-time service at the rank of instructor or lecturer at the same institution. Such credit for prior service shall be defined in writing by the President and approved by the Board of Regents at the time of the initial appointment at the rank of assistant professor or higher. Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this Policy Manual, in exceptional cases an institution may recommend to the Board of Regents that an outstanding distinguished senior faculty member be awarded tenure upon the faculty member's initial appointment. Each such recommendation shall be considered by the Board  individually and shall be granted only in cases in which the faculty member, at a minimum, is appointed as an associate or full  professor, was already tenured at his or her prior institution, and brings a demonstrably national reputation to the institution (BR Minutes, 1983-84, p. 94; May, 1996, p. 52; April 2000, pp. 31-32).

  5. Anything in this policy manual to the contrary notwithstanding, faculty members employed by the Medical College of Georgia (MCG) who hold a professorial rank in a tenure track position of assistant professor or above and who also hold a part-time or full-time appointment at the Veterans Administration Medical Center-Augusta (VA), shall as stated above (Section 803.09-C) be eligible for the award of tenure at MCG upon completion of at least five years of full-time or part-time service at the rank of assistant professor or higher. Such faculty members shall otherwise meet the same probationary periods, criteria for promotion, procedures and other requirements set forth in the Bylaws and Policy Manual of the Board of Regents and Statutes of MCG for the award of tenure to full-time faculty, provided, however, that such faculty members who have been employed previously by MCG for five consecutive years or more shall be eligible to apply for tenure. The tenure of a faculty member who also holds a VA appointment shall apply only to that portion of a faculty member's salary and benefits which are provided directly by MCG. In no event shall the award of tenure to faculty members holding such joint appointments obligate MCG to assume any portion of the salary or other benefits provided by the VA. In the event a faculty member who has been awarded tenure at MCG under the provisions of this section shall for any reason cease to be employed by the VA, the Medical College shall have the right, at its sole discretion, to revoke the tenure, employment or other affiliation of the faculty member by MCG without a hearing or other due process procedures or requirements set forth in the Bylaws and Policy Manual of the Board of Regents and the Statutes of MCG for other full-time tenured faculty. After termination of employment or revocation of tenure, MCG shall not be obligated to provide such faculty members with any further salary, benefits or other financial support.

  6. Except for the approved suspension of the probationary period due to a leave of absence, the maximum time that may be served at the rank of assistant professor or above without the award of tenure shall be seven years, provided, however, that a terminal contract for an eighth year may be proffered if a recommendation for tenure is not approved by the Board of Regents. The maximum time that may be served in combination of full-time instructional appointments (instructor or professorial ranks) without the award of tenure shall be 10 years, provided, however, that a terminal contract for the 11th year may be proffered if a recommendation for tenure is not approved by the Board of Regents (BR Minutes, 1992 - 93, p. 188; April 2000, pp. 31-32).

  7. Except for the approved suspension of the probationary period due to a leave of absence, the maximum period of time that may be served at the rank of full-time instructor shall be seven years (BR Minutes, April 2000, pp. 31-32).

  8. Tenure or probationary credit towards tenure is lost upon resignation from an institution, or written resignation from a tenured position in order to take a non-tenured position, or written resignation from a position for which probationary credit toward tenure is given in order to take a position for which no probationary credit is given. In the event such an individual is again employed as a candidate for tenure, probationary credit for the prior service may be awarded in the same manner as for service at another institution.

  9. Upon approval of the award of tenure to an individual by the Board of Regents, that individual shall be notified in writing by the  president of his/her institution, with a copy of the notification forwarded to the Chancellor or his/her designee.

  10. Each institution shall provide data annually to the Senior Vice Chancellor for Academics and Fiscal Affairs showing the institution' s tenure rates by gender and race.

803.0901 PROGRAM MODIFICATION

As part of its broad constitutional authority to manage the University System of Georgia, the Board of Regents may exercise its authority to modify programs offered by the System generally or at various institutions of the System. Such modification may be a part of a change of institutional mission and may result in discontinuation of programs or reduction in size thereof. A program modification of such magnitude that requires the termination of tenured faculty members will be implemented only after completion of a study, with institutional administrative and faculty participation, by the Chancellor's staff. The Chancellor will report the results of that study to the Board along with recommended guidelines under which program modification will be effected (BR Minutes, 1982-83, p. 254).

PROCEDURES

Tenure decisions for faculty for the coming year are considered only at the May meeting of the Board of Regents. Recommendations for tenure should be submitted no later than mid-February (the specific deadline will be established in the Annual Memorandum of Instruction.)

Information is to be submitted electronically, and all submittals will be reviewed by System Office staff for compliance with Board policies and Academic Affairs procedures.

A letter from the President to the Chancellor should provide the number of individuals who were initially (at the first level of the institutional review) considered for tenure, the total number recommended Board approval, the gender distribution, and racial distribution as shown in the following example:

Rank Initially
Considered 		Recommended F M White Black Hispanic American/Ind
Alaskan Nat 		Asian/
Pacific Islander

Assistant

 10 2 1 0 0 1 1 0 0

Associate

 8 4 2 2 2 0 0 1 1

Professor

 5 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0

For each award of tenure recommended, the following should be submitted:

  1. A cover sheet which provides the following information:

    • Name of Institution
    • Name of Individual
    • Social Security Number
    • Current Rank and Title (Please note if this individual is being simultaneously recommended for promotion)
    • Total Number of Years at the Institution at rank of Assistant Professor or higher
    • Total Number of Years at the Institution
    • Years of Probationary Credit Granted upon appointment to rank of Assistant Professor or Higher for (a) Prior Full-time Service at this Institution at the Rank of Instructor or Lecturer or (b) Tenure Track Positions at Other Institutions.
    • List of Degrees and Dates They were Awarded
    • Summary of the Actions of Tenure Review Committee(s) and/or the Recommendations Submitted at the Various Levels Within the Institution (Pertaining to the Individual Recommended for Tenure)
  2. A brief description of the academic accomplishments of the faculty member.

Last Updated: 04/15/02


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