Skip to Search Skip to Global Navigation Skip to Local Navigation Skip to Content
Handbook of Operating Procedures
Chapter 2 - Faculty and Academics
Previous Publication Date: January 26, 2011
Publication Date: June 2, 2023
Policy Reviewed Date: June 2, 2023
Policy Owner: VP for Academic Affairs

2.24 Third-Year Review


I. POLICY STATEMENT


It is the policy of The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) to retain talented scholars to advance UTSA’s goals of providing high-quality, transformational academic experiences for students and expanding areas of transdisciplinary research excellence. To that end, UTSA requires a comprehensive review of all non-tenured faculty members with tenure track appointments during the spring semester in their third year of full-time service to the university.


II. RATIONALE


  1. The third-year review will be conducted with the following objectives:
    1. To assess overall performance and provide the basis for a fair evaluation which may be used in the decision regarding reappointment; and
    2. To afford faculty the opportunity to practice preparing their files for review, document their achievements, and understand how they will be judged for tenure and promotion at UTSA.

III. SCOPE


This policy applies to all untenured faculty with tenure-track appointments, their respective Department Faculty Review and Advisory Committees (DFRAC), their Department Chair/School Director, and the Dean of the College in which they are appointed and have responsibilities in the third-year review.


IV. WEBSITE ADDRESS FOR THIS POLICY


http://www.utsa.edu/hop/chapter2/2.24.html


V. RELATED STATUTES, POLICIES, REQUIREMENTS OR STANDARDS


  1. University of Texas System Policies or the Board of Regents’ Rules & Regulations
    1. UT System Board of Regents' Rule 31002: Notice of Nonrenewal to Nontenured Faculty Members
    2. UT System Board of Regents' Rule 31001: Faculty Appointments and Titles
  2. State Statutes
    1. Texas Education Code, Section 51.943: Renewal of Faculty Employment Contracts
  3. UTSA HOP Policies
    1. UTSA HOP Policy 2.10, Faculty Reappointment, Promotion, and Tenure
    2. UTSA HOP Policy 2.13, Termination and Non-reappointment of a Faculty Member
  4. Other Policies & Standards
    1. Academic Affairs Faculty Resources Link: Evaluation, Promotion and Compensation: Third-Year Review Guidelines

VI. CONTACTS


If you have any questions about HOP policy 2.24, Third Year Review, contact the following office:

Academic Affairs
210-458-4110


VII. DEFINITIONS


  1. Untenured Tenure-Track Faculty Member
    1. A person holding the title of tenure-track Associate Professor or Assistant Professor who is eligible to be granted tenure.

VIII. RESPONSIBILITIES


  1. Faculty Member
    1. Submits third-year review material for review in the order described in Section IX.B.1.1.
    2. May respond to Third-Year Review Report. (See Section IX.B.3.7)
  2. Department Faculty Review and Advisory Committee (DFRAC) or Third-Year Review Committee
    1. Performs the third-year review(s) as a whole or elects a third-year review subcommittee as described in Section IX.B.2.1 below.
    2. Elects a Third-Year Review Committee Chair (Committee Chair). (See Section IX.B.2.2)
    3. Elects a committee member to record salient information from the proceedings. (See Section IX.B.2.2)
    4. Reviews and signs off on the Committee Chair’s Third-Year Review Report. (See Section IX.B.2.4)
    5. Provides Third-Year Review Report recommendation to the Department Chair/School Director. (See Section IX.B.3.5)
  3. Third-Year Review Committee Chair (Committee Chair) or DFRAC
    1. Ensures a fair and uniform review for each candidate. (See Section IX.B.2.3)
    2. Produces a written Third-Year Review Report (Report) providing a fair and uniform assessment of the faculty member’s strengths and areas needing improvement. (See Section IX.B.2.3)
    3. With the Department Chair/School Director, provides the faculty member a copy of the Report in advance and meets with the faculty member to discuss the review. (See Section IX.B.3.6)
  4. Department Chair/School Director
    1. With the College Dean, provides internal deadlines commensurate with Academic Affairs’ guidelines. (See Section IX.B.3.3)
    2. Receives and reviews the Report. (See Section IX.B.3.5)
    3. With the Committee Chair, provides the faculty member a copy of the Report in advance and meets with the faculty member to discuss the review. (Section IX.B.3.6)
    4. Writes a summarizing report and recommendation and forwards all supporting materials to the College Dean. (See Section IX.B.3.8)
  5. College Dean
    1. With the Department Chair/School Director, provides internal deadlines commensurate with Academic Affairs’ guidelines. (See Section IX.B.3.3)
    2. Determines if faculty member's performance has been satisfactory or unsatisfactory and communicates that to Academic Affairs as set out below. (See Section IX.B, 3.9.1 and 3.9.2)
    3. Discusses President’s decision regarding nonrenewal of appointment with faculty member if applicable. (See Section IX.B.3.12)
  6. Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs
    1. Reviews all materials and provides a recommendation to the President concerning reappointment of the faculty member. (See Section IX.B.3.9 and 3.10.)
  7. President
    1. Reviews all materials and makes a final decision concerning reappointment of the faculty member. (See Section IX.B.3.11 and 3.12.)
    2. If the appointment is not renewed, notifies the faculty member (through transmittal to the Dean) in accordance with HOP Policy 2.13, Termination and Nonreappointment of a Faculty Member, and Regents’ Rule 31002.

IX. PROCEDURES


  1. Evaluation and the Third-Year Review
    1. Categories of Faculty Performance
      1. Faculty shall be reviewed in each of the three categories of performance as outlined in HOP Policy 2.10, Faculty Reappointment, Promotion, and Tenure, Section IX.C.2: Teaching, Research/Scholarship/Creative Activities, and Service.
    2. Evaluation
      1. The review, where appropriate, should include constructive comments to assist the faculty member to assess progress toward tenure and promotion at UTSA.
      2. The review will focus on teaching effectiveness and the creation and dissemination of new knowledge or of other creative works and activities. Service to the department, college, university, discipline and community-at-large will also be reviewed in this process – with expected levels of service commensurate with the tenure-track status.
      3. The review will be conducted in light of their College’s specific workload policy and will include:
        1. an assessment of the stage in the faculty member’s development;
        2. the faculty member’s promise for achieving promotion and tenure;
        3. the faculty member’s role in the department; and
        4. the faculty member’s potential for contributions to the field of study or in other viable communities of practice.
  2. Procedure
    1. Review Materials
      1. In support of the third-year review, tenure-track faculty members shall submit
        a corpus of materials arranged in files outlined in the Third-Year Review Guidelines posted on Academic Affairs’ web site. In general, the materials are a curriculum vitae, a statement of professional goals, objectives, and accomplishments during the evaluation period, documentation of teaching effectiveness, research/creative activities, and service contributions. In addition, supplementary materials can be submitted.
    2. Third-Year Review Committee
      1. The DFRAC will elect a third-year review subcommittee of no fewer than three tenured faculty members or it may elect to operate as a committee of the whole. If fewer than three tenured faculty are available to serve on the committee, the dean shall appoint additional members from the tenured college faculty until there are three members. Committee selection should follow department and college by-laws.
      2. The committee will elect a member to serve as chair, and a member of the committee shall be selected to record salient information from the proceedings.
      3. The Committee Chair is charged with:
        1. ensuring a fair and uniform review for each candidate, and
        2. producing a written report that provides a fair and uniform assessment of the faculty member’s strengths and areas of needed improvement.
      4. Each committee member must sign off on the chair's report. The subcommittee's report will be made available to the DFRAC for final review and approval.
    3. Process and Timeline for Third-Year Review
      1. Third-year reviews shall be conducted during a faculty member's third year of full-time service on the tenure-track.
      2. Academic Affairs establishes deadlines for submission of review files for the completion of review processes. Colleges and departments shall establish internal deadlines commensurate with the Provost’s guidelines.
      3. With the College Dean, the Department Chair/School Director shall inform faculty of all important deadlines no later than May 31 of the second year of full-time service. At this time, faculty will be provided with guidelines regarding the third-year review process.
      4. Faculty members should submit third-year review files no later than the deadline specified by Academic Affairs’ guidelines in the third year.
      5. The DFRAC, or its elected subcommittee, shall submit a written report to the Department Chair/School Director.
      6. The Department Chair/School Director and Chair of the Third-Year Review Committee shall arrange to meet with the faculty member to discuss the reports. The faculty member under review should receive a copy of the reports from the DFRAC and Department Chair/School Director at least three (3) work days (or three “business” days) in advance of the meeting.
      7. After discussing the review, the faculty member will have the opportunity to respond to the reports from the DFRAC and the Department Chair/School Director. Candidates who choose to respond are invited to comment on the reports in terms of clarification, the likelihood of accomplishing the necessary steps to be awarded tenure, neglected or additional information that came in after the review process was initiated, and explain any extenuating circumstances that may warrant further consideration before a decision will be rendered about contract renewal. The candidate may elect not to respond to the report without penalty.
      8. If the candidate does not respond to the reports, the Department Chair/School Director shall forward the reports and all supporting materials to the Dean. If the candidate does respond, the Department Chair/School Director shall write a summarizing response and forward the reports, candidate’s response, and all supporting materials to the Dean.
      9. The Dean will then determine if the faculty member’s performance has been satisfactory or unsatisfactory.
        1. In the case of satisfactory performance, the Dean may notify Academic Affairs of a recommendation to reappoint the faculty member.
        2. In the case of unsatisfactory performance, the Dean shall submit a report to Academic Affairs along with the written reports from the DFRAC and the Department Chair/School Director. The Dean’s report shall either recommend corrective action to be taken by the faculty member, or non-reappointment of the faculty member.
      10. After discussing an unsatisfactory review with the Dean, the Provost will make a recommendation to the President concerning the reappointment of the faculty member.
      11. The President shall review all recommendations for reappointment of faculty and make final decisions concerning reappointment. If the faculty member’s appointment is not being renewed, the President shall notify the faculty member in accordance with the provisions of HOP Policy 2.13, Termination and Non-reappointment of a Faculty Member.
      12. The President’s decision will be transmitted to the Dean who will then discuss the results with the faculty member.

X. SPECIAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR IMPLEMENTATION


None


XI. FORMS AND TOOLS/ONLINE PROCESSES


Academic Affairs Faculty Resources Link: Evaluation, Promotion and Tenure, Third-Year Review - Third-Year Review


XII. APPENDIX


None


XIII. Dates Approved/Amended


06-02-2023
01-26-2011