Tenure

Tenure is the decision on the part of the University's Board of Trustees to enter a long-term professional relationship with an eligible tenure-track faculty member who meets the standards for tenure set forth in Section 3.9.4.6 of the Faculty Handbook. The granting of tenure at Ohio Wesleyan is not automatic; it is the result of a considered judgment that the faculty member will make a significant, long-term contribution to the fulfillment of the University's mission and aims and is awarded affirmatively by the Board of Trustees. To help you understand what to expect and to help you prepare your tenure file, Academic Affairs provides this information. Tenure evaluation procedures are described in detail in Section 3.9.4.7 of the Faculty Handbook. 

Timeline

  • Late April: Candidates informed of materials required for tenure review.
  • Early June: Provost's office sends request for list of 25 graduated students to evaluate the tenure candidate.
  • Late July: Each candidate submits list of 25 graduated students to Provost's Office.
  • Mid August: Tenure narrative, Faculty Personnel Information (FPI) Sheet (formerly Self­-Report), and CV are requested; Candidates are invited to submit suggestions for peer evaluators.
  • Mid September: Each candidate submits Faculty Personnel Information (FPI) Sheet (Self­-Report), tenure narrative, and CV; Request to complete evaluations are sent to peer evaluators.
  • Mid October: Evaluations by peer evaluators are due.
  • Early November: FPC begins discussion of tenure candidates.
  • Early January: FPC makes tenure recommendations to Provost and President.
  • Mid February: Provost and President make tenure recommendation to Board of Trustees; Board of Trustees votes on tenure recommendations.
  • Late February: Provost informs each tenure candidate of tenure decision. 

Materials Used in Review for Tenure

Section 3.9.4.7 of the Faculty Handbook calls for the following materials to be collected and used in your review for tenure and in all personnel decisions that may apply to you for the academic year. Please do not submit any items until asked to do so. Items marked with an asterisk (*) are provided by you, the candidate.

    1. Faculty Personnel Information Sheet (Self-Report)*
    2. Tenure narrative*
    3. Curriculum vitae (C.V.)*
    4. Course syllabi*
    5. Products of scholarly or creative work*
    6. Student Course Evaluations
    7. Peer evaluations
    8. Student Board Evaluations 
    9. Alumni Evaluations
    10. Peer Teaching Observation Reviews
    11. External review letters (optional)

Tenure Narrative

The Tenure Narrative is a narrative overview of and reflection on your years at Ohio Wesleyan. The Faculty Personnel Committee (FPC) solicits this additional document from you in order to gain a better perspective on your contributions here during your entire probationary period. In particular, it will note evidence of past professional growth and promise of continued growth. You are invited to submit any information you believe to be relevant to your teaching and other activities, your scholarly development, and your university and community service. You are especially encouraged to emphasize important trends (e.g., in teaching competence, research), to explain special relationships (e.g., between teaching and research, and university service), and to describe your goals for the future at Ohio Wesleyan.

We recommend that you do not simply repeat what is already contained in your Faculty Personnel Information (FPI) Sheet (Self­-Report). We read that document as well and prefer that the tenure narrative contain something more. We suggest that you connect the dots in your academic career. Tell us about any shifts in your teaching or scholarship and why you made those shifts. Show the line that connects the start of your career at Ohio Wesleyan to where you are now. Project that line into the future and tell us what you plan to accomplish in the next five or ten years. We also recommend that you comment on how your teaching, scholarship, and service connect. Do they support and reinforce each other?

Above all, you should make the case for the awarding of tenure. This is a one­time decision that is not presumed to be positive. The FPC does not seek reasons for the denying of tenure but rather must be convinced that sufficient evidence exists for the granting of tenure. The tenure narrative is where you have the most freedom to make the case for tenure most strongly.

The tenure narrative is made available to your peer evaluators, members of the FPC, the Provost, the Provost's assistant, and the President. The tenure narrative is not provided to student boards. 

Submitting a Tenure Narrative

All Tenure Narratives are collected electronically through the Tenure Narrative form, a web-based form that allows you to provide your completed tenure narrative. This link will not be active until you are specifically invited to submit your tenure narrative sometime in mid-August. 

The online Tenure Narrative form is self-explanatory; instructions on the form itself will walk you through the submission process. The instructions here simply provide an overview of the process.

  1. When you are invited to fill in the electronic form, go to the Tenure Narrative form, sign in to the web site using your OWU email username and password.
  2. Copy and paste from the word-processing version of your Tenure Narrative into the space provided on the electronic form. Note that the formatting (e.g., italics, bold, paragraph indentation) will not transfer and may need to be adjusted. Long URLs should be shortened as they can cause text to run off the page.
  3. Click the Preview button to proof your Tenure Narrative as it will appear to members of the FPC. If the paragraphs are not separated by a blank line, please insert a blank link between paragraphs to improve readability. 
  4. When you are satisfied with its content and appearance, click Finish.
  5. Sign your name by typing it in the signature box provided and then click Submit.

Be certain to preview your tenure narrative before submission. If you have questions or need assistance, please contact the Provost's assistant, Leigh Ann Emmons at x3102 or laemmons@owu.edu before submitting your tenure narrative. 

Curriculum Vitae

The CV should be a resume of your entire professional career, including years spent at other institutions. It should be presented in a manner of a curriculum vitae. Your CV should be submitted electronically as a supplemental document when you submit your Faculty Personnel Information (FPI) Sheet (Self-Report). Only PDF documents can be accepted. Please identify the document type as a CV when uploading the file. The CV you upload as part of your FPI Sheet (Self-Report) will be visible to your peer evaluators, members of the FPC, the Provost, the Provost's administrative assistant, and the President. According to current policy, the CV is not considered confidential, but they are not provided to student boards. 

If you have difficulty producing a PDF version of your CV, you can contact the Information Service Helpdesk at x3120 or review Information Services' online help titled PDF Documents. 

Products of Scholarly or Creative Work

Faculty may add to their tenure file the products or links to products of scholarly or creative work. Electronic files may be uploaded with the Faculty Personnel Information (FPI) Sheet (Self-Report). Alternatively, links to products of scholarly or creative works may be provided in the FPI Sheet (Self-Report). If the work is not available in an electronic format, faculty may submit a physical copy to Academic Affairs for distribution to the Faculty Personnel Committee. 

Alumni Evaluations

The Faculty Personnel Committee (FPC) uses feedback from Ohio Wesleyan alumni in evaluating faculty for tenure. Former students are queried in the belief that the opinions of graduates, who have had time to reflect on their college experiences, should be taken into account. These evaluations are provided only to members of the FPC. To facilitate this process, you will provide the Office of the Provost with a list of 25 Ohio Wesleyan graduates who have taken one or more of your courses. Online questionnaires will be sent to 20 of these (the last five names will be used as alternates in case some addresses cannot be found) and to a like number of former students selected by the Provost. The Provost's office will request this information from you in June, and your submission will be due in July. Please do not submit names until requested to do so. 

Some candidates for tenure ask if they should contact alumni prior to submitting their name as a potential evaluator. There is no requirement to contact potential alumni evaluators, but you are not prohibited from doing so. Contacting them ahead of time may increase the likelihood that they will respond to the request for an evaluation. 

The alumni evaluation form asks alumni evaluators to rate tenure candidates on seven (7) qualities and to provide responses for two (2) free-response prompts. Alumni complete the evaluation form online. 

Additional Information

Members of the FPC have access to all your previous self-reports and counseling letters. They read these documents in tenure evaluations.