1. File Construction
General Tips and Advice for Navigating Policies and Procedures in Your First and Second Years at Stockton

2. Workshop Outline General approach to thinking about file construction
Faculty Plan
Year 1
Year 2
Executive summary
Required background materials

3. Workshop Objectives
After attending today’s session, participants will:
Understand each of the components required of a complete review file
Understand the relationship between the faculty plan and the “self-evaluation” portion of the review file
Develop a beginning strategy for writing an Executive Summary and a teaching philosophy
Make a preliminary plan for conceptualizing their teaching, research, and service as an integrated, cohesive whole.

4. FIRST Familiarize yourself with the Procedures
Familiarize yourself with your school and program standards
Familiarize yourself with the Faculty Evaluation Policy (sections 5 & 6)

5. First Year – Feedback Review
No decision about reappointment is made in the first year. Instead, first year faculty receive a feedback review based on an abbreviated first-year file, and write a draft Faculty Plan for tenure and promotion.
Review should be scheduled early during the Spring term.

6. First Year – Feedback Review
PRC Meeting: Program Review Committee made up of colleagues from your program. The Feedback Review is an opportunity for the candidate to reflect on his/her first semester at Stockton, and to receive constructive feedback from Program Faculty.
engage in a serious conversation regarding progress toward reappointment and tenure.
encourage the candidate in his/her professional development, to offer honest feedback and constructive advice, and to provide structure to the Program’s responsibility to mentor its untenured faculty members.
This conversation is then summarized in the form of a letter to the candidate from the PRC.

7. First Year – Feedback Review
The discussion should be a meaningful one and the PRC letter (about 1-2 pages) should characterize the conversation and address the faculty member’s strengths and weaknesses.
You have the right to respond formally to this letter. The response will be included in your file.

8. First Year – Feedback Review
The Dean reviews the PRC letter and the faculty member’s file and writes a short letter providing his/her assessment of the faculty member’s strengths and weaknesses.
This letter becomes part of the file and is forwarded to the candidate and the Provost.
You have the right to respond formally to this letter. The response will be included in your file.

9. Overall mindset/approach toward file construction
Treat process as an opportunity for serious self-reflection about your professional responsibilities.
Beware “checklist” approach.
Demonstrate that you are more than the sum of your professional parts.
Consider your audience (but not too much).
Disparate backgrounds, roles.
Make their job as easy as possible.
Clarity
Brevity (where possible)
Precision

10. File Focus (Procedures, p. 4)
Clarity and brevity
Evidence to support the candidate’s own testimony
Accurate representations of one’s achievements

11. Year 1 “file” Background materials Reflection File cover page
Position description, responsibilities CV
Reflection
One (1) page recommended in Procedures
Assessment of adjustment
Preliminary assessment of performance
Could refer to Faculty Plan goals, but not required

12. The Evaluation File (II in Procedures)
IIA: Required Background Materials, provided by candidate
Common mistakes and advice
Current CV
Faculty Plan (not required 1st year)
1st year, one page reflection; 2nd year, 5 page narrative;
Syllabi (first year, all syllabi; representative syllabi year 2)
Peer observations (2 per academic year; none required in first year)
Not updating CV
Not including dates in CV
Not including CV subsections aligned with teaching, scholarly, and service portfolios.
Failing to differentiate between conference, article, chapter, peer-reviewed scholarly vehicles
Failing to indicate order of authorship or provide full reference for scholarly works
Failing to differentiate between college, local community, national, and international service.

13. The Evaluation File (II in Procedures)
Common mistakes
IIB3a: Self-evaluation
Listing achievements without explaining them.
Being too wordy, disorganized, difficult to follow.
Failing to reference documentation in support of claims or forgetting to include the documentation that is referenced.
Failing to directly address concerns from previous PRC, Dean, FRC, Provost letters.
Not referencing the program/university standards when explaining how you meet the standards for tenure and promotion.
Organization is key. Teaching, scholarship, and service should be discussed in roughly 5 pages. Also, discuss any integration of teaching, scholarship, and service.
Reflect upon the quality and quantity of teaching, scholarly, and service achievements, in the context of the Faculty Plan and include every additional achievement.
Reference the location of supporting documentation in the file (electronic “containers”).
Attention should be paid to any pattern of concern in the previous evaluation(s).
Carefully craft Exec Summary.
Be clear and concise.

14. Role of Faculty Plan in review file
Probationary faculty should include as part of their Self-Evaluations, reflections on their success in achieving the goals and objectives set forth in their Faculty Plans.
For each of the three sections of the Faculty Plan it is suggested that you follow this format:
Objective 1:
Methods of accomplishing objective:
Methods for measuring accomplishment of objective:
General date by which objective will be accomplished:
Objective 2:

15. Role of Executive Summary
Persuasive argument for your excellence
Link directly to:
Your Program standards aligned with College Procedures
Your faculty plan
Possible structure
Intro (purpose of exec summary—highlight key achievements)
Teaching
Primary accomplishments with reference to goals of FP
Scholarship
Service
Conclusion (e.g., based on these accomplishments…)

16. Constructing Files (II in Procedures)
Part IIB3b: Teaching
A self-evaluation of teaching
As Documentation of Teaching:
Student evaluations of teaching and preceptorial teaching
Peer evaluations of teaching
Other evidence of effectiveness in teaching
Syllabi
Assignments
Student work

17. Advice for Part IIB3b: Teaching philosophy
Identify principles that define you as a teacher AND that you can demonstrate with evidence of practice.
Example from Social Work (dialogue, modeling, respect/dignity and worth of person)
Others?
Consider aspects of IDEA, other evaluations that can provide evidence of principles in action.
Item: Displayed personal interest…
Item: Asked students to help each other understand ideas or concepts.
Throughout your teaching narrative make reference to strategies, methods, interactions that represent enactment of those principles.

18. Advice for Part IIB3b: Teaching (continued)
Show that you are introspective, conscientious, serious about learning, and dedicated to teaching excellence.
What makes you an excellent and effective teacher? How do you strive for high quality learning? Do you do anything different? Noteworthy?
What matters most to you?
What are the goals in your courses and how do you meet those goals?
What are your shining moments?
Demonstrate your progress/evolution as a teacher
How has your teaching grown or changed?
What have you learned about teaching?
How have you incorporated feedback about teaching?
IDEA
Peer observer

19. Advice for Part IIB3b: Teaching (continued)
Include representative syllabi, handouts, assignments, samples of graded work, peer reviews, assessments that show student learning.
Provide evidence of the quality of independent study work.
Reference the program/college standards & faculty plan when explaining how you meet the standards for tenure and promotion.
Differentiate between independent studies, tutorials and small classes versus fully capped classes and modes of instruction.

20. Advice for Part IIB3b: Teaching (continued)
IDEA
Create tables that includes the most essential IDEA scores. Explain:
How the IDEA scores indicate teaching excellence for you.
How they fail to capture your teaching excellence.
Anomalies?
Create graphs to show improvements or stability.
Use IDEA report to give depth and nuance to your self-evaluation of teaching.

21. Common Mistakes for Part IIB3b: Teaching
Relying too much on IDEA scores
Failing to include other evidence of effective teaching
Blaming course or students for sub-par IDEA scores
Arbitrary choice of peer observers
Ignoring precepting.

22. Constructing Files (IIB3c in Procedures)
Part IIB3c: Scholarship Portfolio
Common Mistakes
A short statement of your overall program of scholarship and/or creative activity, a self-assessment of your progress, and evidence to support your assessment.
Include all scholarly works (re-prints, pre-prints, grant applications, conference submissions).
Indicate whether the work was juried, adjudicated, invited, competitive, refuted or otherwise professionally reviewed and acknowledged.
Also include: copies of reviews by others, copies of articles where work was cited, reviewer feedback.
Waiting for criticism from PRC or Dean before including missing documentation or evidence.
Failing to indicate/explain the importance/impact/difficulty of one’s work.
Failing to indicate type of work (i.e. - refereed pubs, non-refereed pubs, international/national conference presentations, state/local conference presentations, print material versus online, radio, TV, film, etc.).
Stating “glowing reviews,” but not including them.
Omitting rejected articles, conference submissions, and grant applications.
Failure to reference the program/college standards & faculty plan when explaining how you meet the standards for tenure and promotion.

23. Constructing Files (IIB3d in Procedures)
Part IIB3dd: Service Portfolio
Common Mistakes and Advice
Self-evaluation includes goals and achievements.
Evidence of effectiveness of service should demonstrate the significance of the contribution and the impact of such service on the College, and its students, or on the communities, the professions or the disciplines for which such service was provided. Testimony from internal or external sources should focus on the impact and results of the service.
Part III: Other items
The faculty member may include other items, at her or his discretion, which demonstrate achievement in activities related to the evaluation criteria. This may include items that become available after the closing of files.
Failing to indicate how service is related to one’s expertise or interest or goals.
Failing to indicate contribution to service and providing evidence (reports, letters, thank you notes).
Failing to indicate the specific tasks, time involved, difficulty, impact.
Reference the program/college standards & faculty plan when explaining how you meet the standards for tenure and promotion.

24. College Standards for Teaching Faculty(6.0 in Policies)
Teaching carries the greatest weight (6.1.1)
All aspects of teaching are evaluated (6.1.1)
Broad terms of teaching excellence (6.1.2) includes:
command of the subject matter
sound course design and delivery
course organization (syllabus that includes expectations, grading, and attendance)
effective response to student questions and timely feedback.

25. College Standards for Teaching Faculty (6.0 in Policies)
Scholarly and Creative Activity ( )
Serious and continued commitment to scholarship
Publications and creative works during probationary period or since last promotion/range adjustment
Scholarly activity may take many forms
Time and effort vary markedly
It is the burden of the candidate to document excellence. See on how to document
See for college definitions of scholarly excellence.

26. College Standards for Teaching Faculty (6.0 in Policies)
College and Community Service ( )
Capacity to work collaboratively with other members of the college community
Contribute to college’s mission through service in community, region, state, nation.
Tenured and senior faculty are expected to have more substantial records than probationary/junior faculty.
Evaluation focuses on significance and effectiveness of participation, impact of service, scope of responsibilities.
Documentation and reflection of contributions.

27. Conferring Tenure (in Policies, 9.3)
Clear evidence of ability and willingness to make significant and continuing contributions to the college
Presentation of evidence of excellence in achievement of college, program, school standards.
Demonstrated ability to fulfill professional responsibilities as member of faculty and employee of college
No tenure quota.
Existing minimum qualifications for appointment or promotion are necessary but not sufficient for tenure
Assistant Professors normally receive promotion to Assoc Prof with tenure, unless there are unusual circumstances.
Expectations for Rank can be found in 10.0 of Policies. Expectations for the next higher rank are used to judge readiness for promotion to that rank.

28. Responsibilities in Review Process (Part II in Procedures)
It is the responsibility of faculty member under review to demonstrate extent and quality of performance relative to ALL applicable standards.
External Reviewers are required for promotion to Professor or Distinguished Professor. It is recommended for those seeking promotion to Associate Professor.
PRC letter becomes part of evaluation file. Members who disagree with majority vote can write letter of explanation to be included in file.
Candidate may provide letter of rebuttal to program or any dissenting letters to PRC within 3 days after PRC letter due date, and/or Dean within 3 days after Dean’s letter due date.

29. Important Links
MOA for Faculty Evaluation – know this, it is your friend!
When in doubt about interpretation of policy or procedures at any level, contact SFT.
Personnel Actions Calendar
Know the dates for your file closing and the reviews.