NSU Faculty Handbook
Material appearing in this Handbook in bold italics is quoted from the Regional University System of Oklahoma's Policy Manual. (see General Information)
3.0 HIRING, RANK AND TENURE (3.6 - 3.8)
3.6 Review Procedures and Rights of Tenured Faculty
3.61 Review of Tenured Faculty
The academic and professional performances of each tenured faculty member at each institution must be reviewed at least every three (3) years.>Each review will be conducted by the appropriate dean and/or Vice President for Academic Affairs. When the review results in a finding that a tenured faculty member's academic and professional performance is unsatisfactory, the faculty member shall be notified of the deficiencies in performance and must be reviewed again within one (1) year. The results of each review will be placed in the personnel record of the tenured faculty member. The tenured faculty member should be given a copy of the review and an opportunity to respond. Two consecutive unsatisfactory post- tenure performance evaluations may be grounds for dismissal or suspension.
3.62 Causes for Dismissal or Suspension of Tenured Faculty
No tenured member of the faculty shall have his or her appointment terminated in violation of the principles of tenure adopted by the Board except for one or more causes which may include but are not limited to, the following:
- Committing a felony or other serious violation of law that is admitted or proved before a competent court, preventing the faculty member from satisfactory fulfillment of professional duties or responsibilities, or violation of a court order which relates to the faculty member's proper performance of professional responsibilities.
- Moral turpitude
- Insubordination
- Professional incompetence or dishonesty
- Substantial or repeated failure to fulfill professional duties or responsibilities or substantial or repeated failure to adhere to Board or university policies.
- Personal behavior preventing the faculty member from satisfactory fulfillment of professional duties or responsibilities
- An act or acts which demonstrate unfitness to be a member of the faculty
- Falsification of academic credentials
- Two consecutive unsatisfactory post-tenure performance evaluations.
- Bona fide lack of need for one's services in the university
- Bona fide necessity for financial retrenchment
The president of the university shall have the authority to suspend any faculty member formally accused of: a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, or l (listed above). The president shall notify the Board of the terms and conditions of the suspension. A faculty member should be suspended only if harm to the faculty or students is possible or disruption of proper conditions for teaching and learning are threatened by the faculty member's continuance. During the suspension period, compensation for the suspended person should be continued. If during the suspension period the faculty member is convicted of or admits to the commission of a felony or a crime involving moral turpitude or other serious violation of law referenced above, the institution shall not continue compensation.
3.63 Procedures for Dismissal of Tenured Faculty for Cause
Proceedings for the termination of the appointment and employment of a faculty member for cause shall be initiated by the appropriate dean. All such recommendations shall be submitted to the Vice President for Academic Affairs. If the Vice President concurs with the dean's recommendation he/she will forward a recommendation to the President of the University. It is also understood that the President may initiate such proceedings.
Dismissal proceedings shall begin with a conference between the faculty member and the appropriate academic officer. This conference may result in agreement that the dismissal proceedings should be discontinued or that the best interest of the tenured faculty member and the university would be served by the faculty member's resignation. If this conference does not result in mutual agreement, the academic officer will submit a recommendation in writing with rationale to the faculty member and to the vice president for academic affairs. Within fourteen (14) days, the vice president for academic affairs should have a conference with the faculty member.
If this conference does not result in mutual agreement, the vice president for academic affairs will submit a recommendation in writing with rationale to the faculty member and to the president. If the president concurs with the recommendations for dismissal, the president shall send written notification to the faculty member and to the vice president for academic affairs. Every reasonable effort must be made by the president to insure that the communication of this action is received by such faculty members without delay. Communication will be made by personal delivery, or registered or certified mail (with return receipt requested).
3.64 Disciplinary Action Other Than Dismissal or Suspension
Disciplinary action affecting the terms of employment taken by the university against a tenured faculty member must be based upon causes stated . . . above in paragraph 3.62, or any other adequate cause which related directly and substantially to the fitness of the tenured faculty member to perform professional duties. Disciplinary action shall begin with a conference between the tenured faculty member and the appropriate academic officer. If as a result of the conference, the academic officer finds that disciplinary action is warranted, a written recommendation for action should be forwarded to the appropriate dean . . . . If, after review, the dean . . . decides not to proceed with further disciplinary action, both parties should be notified in writing.
If the dean . . . determines that additional action is warranted, then a conference with the tenured faculty member should be arranged. The dean . . . may determine that no further action is necessary. If, however, additional action is warranted, the faculty member and the vice president for academic affairs shall be notified in writing within fourteen (14) days. The vice president for academic affairs should arrange for a conference with the faculty member. The vice president may then determine that no additional action is necessary. However, the vice president for academic affairs should notify the faculty member in writing if an additional plan of disciplinary action is made. A copy of the disciplinary action should be placed in the faculty member's personnel file.
3.65 Dismissal of Tenured Faculty for Program Discontinuance or Financial Retrenchment
A faculty member with tenure whose position is terminated based on genuine financial retrenchment, bona fide discontinuance of a program or a lack of need for one's services, will be given five (5) months' written notice unless an emergency arises.
Before terminating an appointment because of discontinuance of a program or department, or because of other lack of need of services, the university will make reasonable efforts to place affected members in other suitable positions.
If an appointment is terminated because of financial retrenchment, or because of discontinuance of a program, the released faculty member's position will not be filled by a replacement within a period of two years, unless the released faculty member has been offered reappointment at the previous status.
3.66 Appellate Committee on Dismissal of Tenured Faculty Members
A faculty member who receives notice of pending dismissal may request and shall be afforded a hearing before the Appellate Committee on Dismissal of Tenured Faculty Members. Failure to make a request in writing to the president within fourteen (14) days after receipt of notification shall constitute a waiver by such faculty member of his right to a hearing before the Appellate Committee on Dismissal of Tenured Faculty Members.
The committee shall not exceed nine (9) tenured faculty members, eight (8) of whom shall be nominated or elected by secret ballot by the tenured faculty of the faculty governing body of the university (Faculty Association), and one member appointed by the president of the university. A quorum shall be five (5) members or a majority of qualified members of the committee.
Initially, one-half (2) of the elected members shall be elected for twelve (12) months and one-half for twenty-four (24) months; thereafter, one-half shall be elected each year. No member may serve more than two consecutive terms. One (1) or more alternate members of the committee shall be elected to serve in the event a regular member is unable to serve. At the election each year, the four (4) nominees receiving the highest number of votes shall be declared elected to the committee and the nominee receiving the next highest number of votes shall be named as junior alternate. The term of office shall be for two years beginning in August of each year. At the end of the first year, the junior alternate becomes the senior alternate. If any member of the committee is an interested party in a case which comes before the Appellate Committee on Dismissal of Tenured Faculty Members, said committee member shall not serve on that case.
The incumbent committee shall serve until the completion of any case pending at the time their term of service expires.
The decision of the committee will be based on the majority vote. The committee will elect its own chair who will have the right to vote.
3.67 Appeal Procedures for Tenured Faculty
3.671 After a faculty member has requested a hearing before the Appellate Committee on Dismissal of Tenured Faculty Members, service of notice of hearing with specific charges in writing will be made at least twenty (20) days prior to the hearing. The faculty member may respond by waiving the hearing and filing a written brief or the matter may proceed to a hearing. If the faculty member waives a hearing but denies the charge or asserts the charges do not support a finding of adequate cause, the Appellate Committee on Dismissal of Tenured Faculty Members will evaluate all available evidence, including testimony and documentary evidence presented by the university, and make its recommendation upon the evidence in the record.
3.672 If the faculty member requests a hearing, the Appellate Committee on Dismissal of Tenured Faculty Members shall, with due diligence, and in keeping with the Administrative Procedures Act, considering the interests of both the university and the faculty member affected, hold a hearing and report its findings and recommendations to the university president and to the involved faculty member.
3.673 At hearings before the Appellate Committee on Dismissal of Tenured Faculty Members, faculty members and the university shall be permitted academic advisors and/or counsel of their choice. A court reporter will be retained by the university to record the proceedings. Parties will pay the cost of a copy of the transcript. The committee will determine whether the hearing should be public or private.
3.674 The faculty member will be afforded an opportunity to obtain necessary witnesses and documentary or other evidence, and the administration of the university will attempt to secure the cooperation of such witnesses and make available necessary documents and other evidence within its control. No employee of the institution, regardless of position, should be excluded or excused from appearing before the committee, if available.
3.675 The faculty member and the University will have the right to cross examine all witnesses present. Depositions are admissible whenever a witness cannot appear.
3.676 The committee may conclude:
- that adequate cause for dismissal has been established by the evidence;
- that adequate cause for dismissal has not been established by the evidence, or
- that adequate cause for dismissal has been established, but an academic penalty less than dismissal, including removal of tenure would be more appropriate. The committee may make any other recommendations it determines are appropriate. The committee's findings and recommendations shall be made to the university president. The committee shall send a copy of its findings and recommendations to the affected faculty member.
3.677 The president shall notify the affected faculty member of the president's recommendation to the Board. The faculty member shall have the right to request the Board to review adverse findings and recommendations of the president. The request must be in writing and filed within fifteen (15) days after final notification by the president of the university at the office of the Board of Regents of the Regional University System of Oklahoma. If the affected faculty member does not timely request that the Board review the president's findings and recommendations, the president's determinations become final and binding.
3.678 In the event the faculty member submits a timely request to the Board to review adverse findings and recommendations of the president, the faculty member must indicate whether he /she desires a hearing of all of the evidence of the case, otherwise the review will be a review of the record of the case. The Board has the discretion to determine whether the review will be a de novo hearing or a review of the record.
3.679 Public statements and publicity about the case by the university will be avoided until the proceedings, including consideration by the Regents, have been concluded.
3.7 Grievance Procedures
To aid in protecting faculty rights, a committee is established to investigate specific charges alleging the violation of faculty rights and to make recommendations to the administration regarding the disposition of these specific cases. The committee shall be a standing committee and shall conduct its business only during the fall and spring semesters of the academic year.
3.72 Grievance Committee Membership
Grievance Committee members shall be full-time teaching faculty. Faculty Council representatives will not be eligible for membership. Grievance Committee members will be elected by secret ballot. Each academic unit, as specified in the Faculty Association By-Laws (See Appendix B), will elect two members to serve a term of office (two years) simultaneously with its Faculty Council representative. Elections for Faculty Council representatives and Grievance Committee members/alternates will be held at the times specified for the election of Faculty Council representatives in the Association By-Laws. Following the election, the administrator of each academic unit will report the results of Grievance Committee elections to the Vice President for Academic Affairs and the President of the Faculty Association.
After each fall semester has started, and the committee membership has been filled, the Faculty Association President will appoint a temporary chair from the committee membership. The temporary chair will call an organizational meeting of the committee by the end of the second week in September. At this meeting, the members of the committee shall elect a chair, vice chair, and secretary for the Grievance Committee for that academic year.
The chair shall be the primary liaison between the Committee and faculty, the Faculty Council, and the Vice President for Academic Affairs. The chair will see that the Committee responds objectively to formal grievances. The vice chair shall assume the duties of the chair when the latter is unavailable. The secretary shall keep minutes of procedural meetings and preliminary hearings and will compile an accurate transcript of each hearing. Copies of each hearing will be filed in the office of the Vice President for Academic Affairs. The secretary shall provide the Faculty Council with names of members and officers for inclusion in the Council minutes. Investigations will be conducted only after the Grievance Committee chair is presented with a formal written grievance (See 3.74).
3.73 Grievance Committee Responsibility
Acting in response to formal grievances filed by individual faculty, the Grievance Committee shall conduct hearings, make hearing transcripts and, at the timely conclusion of investigations, present both a transcript of the meeting and recommendations to the President of the University. Such concerns as academic freedom, individual rights, benefits, working conditions, procedural details of tenure evaluation, promotion, salary inequities, and termination with cause of non-tenured faculty or academic administrators shall be matters within the purview of this Committee. In no event shall the Committee involve itself in an overall view of an area of concern better considered by another University standing committee or the Faculty Council itself. The Grievance Committee shall not consider issues previously considered by, or better suited to, the Appellate Committee on Dismissal of Tenured Faculty Members.
3.74 Grievance Petition Procedures
A faculty grievance must be stated in writing and initiated within six (6) months from the date of the primary incident in question. The Grievance Committee reserves the right to examine issues related to the incident that may extend prior to or after this six month time frame.
A written grievance will be given to the dean first. The dean is responsible for assuring that the grievance has been pursued with relevant individuals. Within ten (10) working days after receipt of a written grievance, the dean will review the grievance, collect data and written responses to the charges made and render a written response to the aggrieved party. If the problem cannot be solved at the department or college level, the aggrieved party may forward the written grievance to the Vice President for Academic Affairs who shall consider the grievance, and solicit information from the dean and from others as necessary. Within ten (10) working days after receipt of the written grievance, the Vice President shall provide the aggrieved faculty member with a written response stating his/her findings in the matter.
If the findings of the Vice President for Academic Affairs are contrary to the aggrieved faculty member's interpretation of the facts, or if during a regular semester no written response is forthcoming within the time frame stated above, the Grievance Committee may be petitioned in writing to review the complaint. This action requires an individual faculty member to: (1) document when the written grievance was presented to each administrator; (2) provide a notarized complaint stating the facts and alleged policy violations amenable to investigation by the Grievance Committee; and (3) file a $100 cash bond or personal check with the University, to be held by the Department of Human Resources.
A petition fulfilling (1) and (2) above, and documentation of the bond /check filing will be transmitted to the chair of the Grievance Committee. The bond /check shall be forfeited and applied to the University's general fund if the aggrieved faculty member abandons the appeal; otherwise, it shall be returned.
A formal grievance shall receive prompt attention. A preliminary hearing will be held within ten (10) working days after the chair receives the grievance. If a formal hearing is held, it will start within ten (10) working days of the conclusion of the preliminary hearing. The hearing, and report of the hearing panel sitting as the representatives of the Grievance Committee, shall be completed within forty-five (45) calendar days of the grievance filing. In any case in which these time schedules prove inadequate, the chair of the Grievance Committee will notify the parties involved, in writing, of the amended time schedule. Hearings that impact on a tenure evaluation matter shall be concluded at least ninety (90) calendar days prior to the end of the semester. Other cases in a given academic year will be completed by May 20 of that year.
The preliminary hearing is an academic review/hearing of a grievance filed by a member of the faculty, therefore no other persons, including legal representatives, are permitted at the preliminary hearing. Along with the announcement of the time, date and place of the preliminary hearing, the committee chair will provide the following:
- the names of the committee membership to both the faculty member submitting the grievance and involved administrators; and
- will invite written challenges about committee member saving conflicts of interest be submitted prior to the meeting date. The chair will rule on such challenges. During the Preliminary Hearing, the Director of Human Resources will serve as resource for the Committee to assure that procedures are understood and followed.
The preliminary hearing will be held on the main campus and attended by at least six (6) and not more than ten (10) committee members who do not have conflicts of interest, the Grievance Committee chair, the party submitting the grievance, involved administrators and no others. The panel will review the written grievance and the responses to the grievance. It will hear statements from and question those involved as desired, in order to obtain a clear understanding of the issues. Only documents previously submitted and available to all parties, and/or requested by the panel will be considered. In the spirit of constructive interaction, all relevant aspects of an issue will be discussed to insure that a misunderstanding has not occurred. Prior to adjourning the meeting, the panel shall decide if the issue warrants a formal hearing. If so, the chair will advise the faculty member filing the grievance of the permissibility to have counsel present at that time to serve in an advisory capacity, and that the formal hearing will be set at a later date.
For the formal hearing, the University's General Counsel may provide advisement and consultation upon the request of the Director of Human Resources.
On the day and time of the hearing, the faculty member who filed the grievance (and advisory counsel if he/she so chooses), involved administrators (with counsel if appropriate), witnesses and all other involved persons shall convene. The chair will address possible conflict of interest issues involving committee members. Acting with input from both parties, a hearing panel of six (6) members who do not have conflicts of interest, plus the Grievance Committee Chair, will be seated. Faculty seated as members of the hearing panel will be required to attend all sessions of the hearing. The committee chair will make every effort to schedule sessions at times when the principal parties and panel have no classes. No session of the hearing will be started without all members of the seated hearing panel being present. A repeated, unexcused failure of a seated panel member to attend scheduled hearings, is cause for reprimand and restarting of the hearing. Regardless of membership on the hearing panel, all members of the Grievance Committee who have not been dismissed due to conflict of interest should attend all hearings if at all possible. Once a hearing panel has been seated, the panel, committee chair, the faculty member who filed the grievance, and the Vice President for Academic Affairs shall consult about having an open or closed hearing. The hearing panel then will exercise its judgment as to whether or not the hearing should be open to the public.
The Grievance Committee, sitting as the hearing panel, shall hear the case in an orderly fashion. The chair of the Grievance Committee will read the charges as set forth in the formal written complaint. The panel will systematically review the specifics of the complaint and the responses to the charges. The hearing panel may call and question those involved in the complaint, and question witnesses. The Grievance Committee chair, assisted by the Director of Human Resources, shall maintain decorum and will ensure that the process proceeds in an orderly and responsible manner. Since statements, questions and answers will be recorded, and written evidence held, libelous and perjurious acts can be subject to further investigation.
In making its decision, the hearing panel shall consider as evidence only the formal written grievance and responses to the complaint, and relevant documents, including testimony, presented at the preliminary hearing, and to which all parties to the grievance have been afforded access. The recommendations of the hearing panel shall be decided by a majority vote. In the event of a tied vote, the Grievance Committee chair will cast the deciding vote. The chair can sit on the hearing panel and will vote while so doing. At any point in the proceedings prior to the time when the hearing panel retires to consider its recommendations, the aggrieved party may, with the consent of the chair withdraw his/her grievance. A written report of proceedings up to the time of withdrawal will be made available to all parties.
3.78 Committee ReportFor each grievance hearing conducted, the chair of the committee shall present an organized, written findings of facts to the University President. The report shall accurately present the findings and recommendation of the hearing panel. Copies of this report shall be given also to the aggrieved party and to administrators involved in the hearing.
The President shall review the information provided, consider the matters presented and render notice of his/her judgment on the case within twenty (20) working days. The President's judgment on the matter shall be the final campus review of a specific grievance. The matter cannot be resubmitted, even if altered, to the chair of the Grievance Committee.
3.8 Employment of Part-Time Faculty and Graduate Assistants
Part-Time Appointments. Part-time faculty are generally employed only for the purpose of teaching classes. The assigned responsibilities are to provide instruction, evaluate students pertaining to that instruction, and to meet with those students who require assistance in their classes. The load of a part-time faculty member who does not have additional duties will be determined by dividing his teaching load by eighteen (18). For example, a nine (9) hour teaching load would equal one-half time.
Part-time faculty are employed on a semester-by-semester basis as "at-will" employees. The University has no obligation to part-time faculty beyond the payment of salary for an existing contract. Salaries for temporary faculty are set by the Vice President. Part-time faculty will be covered by the Academic Freedom Guidelines (See 3.4).
Graduate Assistants. Graduate assistants are graduate students at the institution who hold appointments as teaching, research, or administrative assistants. Graduate assistants must be enrolled in a minimum of three (3) semester hours. Teaching assistants shall not teach more than six (6) credit hours per semester.
Part-time faculty and graduate assistants are recommended to the Vice President for Academic Affairs by the dean based upon the individual=s ability to perform the desired teaching duties and upon educational qualifications. Temporary or part-time faculty will be evaluated for performance of assigned duties. Deans shall monitor the conduct and performance of part-time faculty. Unacceptable conduct or performance will lead to a failure to rehire or, in severe cases, dismissal with two (2) weeks notice.© Northeastern State University
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