*This does not constitute an employment contract

Department of Justice, Law and Criminology
Procedures and Standards for Reappointment and Promotion of Term Faculty

Updated: April 2019
Adopted by JLC faculty on April 10, 2019
(Approved by Provost July 2019)

The Department follows the general standards, timetables, and procedures for appointments, reappointments, and promotion laid forth in the Faculty Manual (FM) and supplemented by instructions from the Dean of the College, the Dean of Faculty, and/or the Committee on Faculty Actions (CFA). This document provides the departmental standards governing appointment, reappointment and promotion of Term Faculty. Those standards subject to review and approval by the CFA are specified below and any subsequent changes to the language in those sections must be approved by the CFA.

I. Qualifications for Term Faculty

Appointments and reappointments of all term faculty are contingent on the relevant qualifications and performance of the faculty member, varying student enrollments, the immediate and long-term needs of the teaching or academic unit, and the instructional resources of the university.

The Department of Justice, Law and Criminology is committed to a diverse faculty and relies on term faculty for subject matter expertise, program continuity and to maintain flexibility in allocation of departmental resources. The Department seeks to hire and retain excellent members who meet the standards of excellence set forth in this document with respect to teaching, service, and currency in the field. As such, it recognizes the value of hiring term faculty from diverse educational and practical backgrounds, consisting of both academics and practitioners, scholars and experts with terminal degrees and professional experience in justice, law, criminology, government, security, law enforcement, and non-profit sectors (FM, 43-44).

II. Purpose of Term Faculty Appointments

According to the Faculty Manual the purposes of making term faculty appointments are:

• To retain a cadre of excellent and committed teachers who can provide instructional continuity, particularly in multi-section courses;
• to maintain flexibility in allocating its resources for all faculty positions;
• to bring in outstanding individuals who will enrich the learning experience through their professional qualifications and experiences from careers outside academia;
• to provide additional time for scholarly pursuits of the tenure-line faculty; and
• to deal with exigent circumstances, such as replacing faculty on leave, filling vacancies that occur too late to conduct an appropriate search for a tenure-track faculty appointment, filling a vacancy resulting from an unsuccessful search for a tenure-track or continuing-appointment track faculty member, or staffing an experimental program (FM, 43- 44).

III. Workload and Expectations for Term Faculty

The Faculty Manual requires that term faculty members have a workload that consists primarily of teaching or primary responsibilities developed at the teaching or academic unit level and recommended to the dean for approval (FM, 44). The term faculty member’s workload should also include an appropriate level of service. As part of teaching, service, and in some instances, research, term faculty must demonstrate currency in the field (FM, 50).

In some instances, such as for faculty in the term professor ranks, scholarship or professional contributions will be considered in establishing and reviewing the expected workload. The expectations for service and, in some instances, scholarship will differ on an individual basis, depending in large part on sequence and rank, years of service, and areas of subject matter expertise.

Teaching, service, and in some instances, scholarship, should be clarified by the chair in discussion with each term faculty member at the beginning of each new contract so that expectations are clear to the Department and the faculty member. Expectations as to teaching and service are not intended to be rigid so that term faculty members and the department can maintain flexibility with respect to opportunities and changing needs of the department and the University pursuant to mutual agreement between the chair and the term faculty member. Specialized academic and advising programs may alter the teaching or service workload pursuant to individual contracts with the dean or accepting special assignments in the duration of a contract.

a.Teaching

Excellent teaching is the cornerstone of term faculty appointments. The Faculty Manual defines excellent teaching in section 15.a and requires that departments utilize additional forms of teaching evaluation beyond student assessments (FM, 49).

In assessing the quality of teaching, the Department will consider:

• Course content and design, engagement with students outside the classroom, student perceptions of classroom teaching and evidence of growth, development and innovation.
• Course content and design may be evidenced by a review of syllabi to demonstrate adherence to university and department guidelines, including clear objectives that are informed by the goals of the department or program, and rigor in substance and assignments that foster student learning and achievement, and inclusion of up-to-date course content consistent with the FM requirements in maintaining currency in the field. 
• Engagement with students outside the classroom might include writing letters of recommendation, participation in student-focused or student-organized campus events, advising student-led campus groups, supervision of senior theses, serving as a capstone advisor, advising undergraduate or graduate research projects and independent studies, sponsorship of student research presentations and publications, working with the Office of Merit Awards on student award applications, serving on Ph.D. dissertation committees, developing or evaluating graduate level comprehensive exams, or other forms of mentoring.
• Student perceptions of classroom teaching, as indicated by standardized Student Evaluations of Teaching (SETs) and other forms of student assessment, should not be considered in isolation but rather in the context of the type of course (e.g., required/elective) taught, size and level of the course, response rate, and trends across multiple courses. The Department recognizes that no professor is likely to be able to satisfy all students, biases pervade student assessments, and the professor with the highest teaching evaluations may not be the best teacher. The Department values intellectually rigorous and engaging courses, even if they do not necessarily achieve popularity as measured by SETs.

Development, innovation, and mastery in teaching will be assessed on the basis of a variety of evidence, including: adapting new teaching methods; teaching new subjects or courses; incorporating new material (including new scholarship) into existing courses; using technology as appropriate; and participation and leadership in the Department, the School, the University, within the academic field; and relevant activities aimed at enhancing teaching, such as teaching conferences, seminars, and workshops.

Term faculty may request peer assessment for teaching for any reason. This may be as part of file for promotion or in instances where a term faculty member believes that their teaching evaluations deviate significantly from the quality of teaching and student service delivered. The term faculty member may request or be asked to have and participate in a peer assessment of both the syllabi construction and teaching methodology. 

Most term faculty members teach six courses per academic year; however, this may vary by teaching unit. The actual course assignments per individual faculty member will in some instances vary based upon the teaching or academic unit and mutually agreed upon service and scholarship contributions and substitutions on a case by case basis. When recommending a term faculty member’s workload assignment to the dean for an academic year, the chair and merit and course load evaluators may consider, but are not limited to, the following: the scope and intensity of course preparation; supervision of student scholarship and internships; credit hours taught; size of classes; teaching-related activities, such as contact hours, advising, and fieldwork; contributions to internal and external service; major committee assignments; and the maintenance of currency in the field and scholarship where it is specifically applicable (FM, 45).

Final determination of all course loads rests with the dean in consultation with the teaching unit chair, with final approval by the Dean of Faculty. Increases to any course loads beyond the standard load applied across term faculty ranks in SPA or a contractually specified reduced base course load, to meet the needs of the Department, must be voluntary and remunerated (FM, 44).  

Term professors are appointed to single year terms or multi-year lines pursuant to the Faculty Manual. When base-funded multi-year lines become available they will be filled based upon the strategic needs of the department and school considering budgetary constraints. Teaching and service are considered as important, yet secondary factors to budgeting in making multi-year appointments.

b. Service

As part of their teaching and service responsibilities or primary responsibilities, term faculty members should maintain a campus presence that reflects a commitment to connecting with students, the Department, the School, and the University community. 

The term faculty member’s contractual workload will also include an appropriate level of service which in some instances may be substituted with scholarship or contributions outside the University if applicable to the position and approved by the chair, the academic unit and the dean. In these instances, service and scholarship will be considered with greater weight in the reappointment and promotion process. 

Any academic institution flourishes by blending a variety of abilities, interests, and commitments. The Faculty Manual states, “Engagement at American University is an essential component of faculty responsibility. Term faculty members must demonstrate engagement in the university community, including a meaningful level of teaching unit, academic unit, or university service, as well as participation in major campus-wide events, such as commencement” (FM, 52).

The Department welcomes the participation of term faculty in other academic and professional events and functions. The Department also recognizes the importance of administrative duties involved in directing specialized academic and advising programs and the assistance term faculty, particularly those from professional backgrounds provide in helping students seek internships and employment while at American University and after graduation consistent with the mission of the Career Center. The department recognizes the writing of recommendation letters to support students in internships, employment, graduate school and law school as well as letters that support student access to grants and study abroad opportunities as service.

The Department does not require, but highly values, voluntary service and engagement with the community outside the University. Faculty often provide service to local, national, and/or international communities and governments as well as hold leadership positions in scholarly associations, such service demonstrates an individual’s acceptance of the responsibilities that come with being a faculty member in a university deeply committed to service to a wider community. To be credited, such service must be clearly related to the teaching and scholarly interests of the faculty member and/or advance the academic reputation of the academic unit or university (FM, 38).

c. Currency in the Field

The Faculty Manual also states that all term faculty must demonstrate currency in their field. Currency typically means remaining current and up-to-date in one’s professional life (FM, 50). The purpose of demonstrating currency is for term faculty to highlight, and be recognized for, their individual contributions to the intellectual life of the school. It is not intended to be an undue burden requiring term faculty to complete additional work, but instead, to report how they remain engaged in their subjects of expertise. 

Currency typically consists of professional development in the areas of teaching, research, practice, professional engagement, and/or creative activities. In addition, term faculty members may conduct research, publish, contribute to the scholarly profile of the school, innovate pedagogically, or practice professionally. Participation in these activities and their translation to teaching, service and advising may be used to meet the requirements of currency in the field. 

The Department acknowledges that many of its term faculty come from professional careers in government and law and that maintaining currency in the field is related to their individual areas of expertise.

Examples of maintaining currency in the field may be, but are not limited to, the following activities: innovation in teaching evidenced by changing syllabi to account for new developments, scholarship and current events that relate to the area of subject matter expertise; pedagogical innovation; service that contributes to the mission of the teaching unit, the Department, the School or the University; service that contributes to the academic field outside of the University; engagement within the field that includes guest professorships at other universities; invited lectures; manuscript review; professional practice (where applicable); professional and academic panel and conference participation; grant development and fundraising that raises the profile of or brings benefit to the Department, the School or the University; providing briefings, training or substantial engagement with outside organizations related to the areas of subject matter expertise in the public and private sector; public outreach and education; consulting and contract work for government or public interest organizations; media appearances; and other activities undertaken by term faculty that can be directly related to maintaining currency in the field. There is no hierarchy among these listed activities that should be considered in each individual case when weighing currency in the field.

d. Scholarship

The criteria for evaluation for appointment or reappointment within the professorial lecturer sequence are based on excellence in teaching, service, and maintaining currency in the field. However, evaluation for reappointment and promotion within the professorial lecturer sequence should positively account for any scholarly accomplishments, including research and publications, that contribute to currency in the field as described above in section III.c. Only term faculty in the “professor sequence” are required to conduct research or have a research agenda, as detailed in section IV.b. below. Candidates’ research records will be evaluated in their entirety, including research productivity while at American University and plans for continued research productivity.  

IV. Rank-specific Reappointment and Promotion Criteria

The designated ranks for full-time faculty members with term appointments fall into two promotion sequences: lecturer and professor. As shown in Table 1. the ranks for the lecturer promotion sequence are: instructor, professorial lecturer, senior professorial lecturer, and Hurst senior professorial lecturer. The ranks for the professor promotion sequence are: assistant professor, associate professor, and professor.

In general, a move from term assistant professor to professorial lecturer can be approved at the academic unit level with review by the dean of faculty. A move from term assistant professor to senior professorial lecturer involves a promotion, and therefore must proceed according to the promotion review procedures outlined in the Faculty Manual and relevant departmental by-laws and guidelines (FM, 49). Movement from the professorial lecturer sequence to term associate or above requires a full review with external letters equivalent to promotion to associate within the tenure-line. Requests for moving between term faculty sequences that involve a promotion to a higher rank as detailed in Table 1 will proceed according to the process for term faculty promotion described in section V.

 The following subsections detail specific performance expectations for each of the four ranks in the professorial lecturer sequence and the three ranks of the term professor sequence.

Table 1. Academic Ranks for Full-Time Faculty

Rank	Lecturer-Sequence Term	Professor-Sequence Term	Tenure-Line
1	Instructor
2	Professorial Lecturer	Assistant Professor	Assistant Professor
3	Senior Professorial Lecturer	Associate Professor	Associate Professor
4	Hurst Senior Professorial Lecturer	Professor	Professor

 

a. Lecturer Sequence

Instructor

The rank of instructor is reserved for those term faculty members who do not hold a terminal degree, in which case the rank is normally a temporary one-semester or one-year appointment, or for temporary appointments of faculty in certain skill areas or professional fields where the terminal degree is not deemed necessary (FM, 46). Reappointments at the rank of instructor are typically subject to annual review. Instructors will be evaluated primarily on their teaching and secondarily on their service to their department or college, in accordance with the general principles outlined above. 

Candidates for reappointment in the rank of instructor should be successful teachers who have built well-thought-out courses that foster student learning and achievement and that reflect the current state of their academic field(s). Their course materials will state clear objectives that are informed by the goals of the department or program. Their professionalism will be displayed through their syllabi, assignments, evaluation of student work, advising or mentorship, and student evaluation of teaching assessments. Candidates for reappointment as instructor will also provide service to the Department, the School and the University, commensurate with the general expectations listed above. 

The criteria for evaluation for appointment or reappointment within the lecturer sequence are primarily based on excellence in teaching and service. However, evaluation for reappointment to the rank of lecturer sequence may positively account for scholarly accomplishments, including scholarly research and publications, that contribute to “currency in the field” as described in section III above.

All term faculty may be reappointed in the absence of a promotion and should an application for promotion prove unsuccessful may be reappointed and seek promotion at a later date.

Professorial Lecturer

The Faculty Manual states that term faculty members are “customarily awarded the initial rank of professorial lecturer if they hold the terminal degree in the field or have professional experience and achievement equivalent to a terminal degree” (FM, 46). Candidates who were hired as instructors and do not hold the terminal degree in their field may apply for promotion to professorial lecturer, typically after a period of three years. 

Instructors applying for reappointment at the rank of professorial lecturer should be successful teachers who have built well-thought-out courses that foster student learning and achievement and that reflect the current state of their academic field(s). Their course materials will state clear objectives that are informed by the goals of the department or program. Their professionalism will be displayed through their syllabi, assignments, evaluation of student work, advising or mentorship, and student evaluation of teaching assessments. Candidates for professorial lecturer will also provide service to the Department, the School, and the University, with the expectation that their service profile will both broaden and deepen over time. Service will be measured by both quality and quantity. The JLC department chair and SPA dean will work to provide service opportunities to term faculty based on subject matter expertise and interest as well as accounting for the needs of the teaching units, the Department, the School, and the University.

The criteria for evaluation for appointment or reappointment within the lecturer sequence are primarily based on excellence in teaching and service. However, evaluation for reappointment and promotion to the rank of professorial lecturer should positively account for any scholarly accomplishments, including scholarly research and publications, that contribute to “currency in the field” as described in section III above.

All term faculty may be reappointed in the absence of a promotion and should an application for promotion prove unsuccessful may be reappointed and seek promotion at a later date.

Senior Professorial Lecturer

After five years of service, professorial lecturers are customarily eligible for promotion to the rank of senior professorial lecturer. The Faculty Manual describes senior professorial lecturer appointees as demonstrating “excellence as a teacher and strong engagement with the university community” over and beyond the criteria for appointment as a professorial lecturer. Appointments at the senior professorial lecturer rank are also possible for candidates with “extensive professional experience but little direct teaching experience” (FM, 46).

Candidates for promotion to senior professorial lecturer should be expert teachers whose courses foster, in challenging and motivating ways, student learning and achievement. Their course materials will promote the goals of the department or program and demonstrate currency in their academic field(s). Their professionalism and expertise will be displayed through their course and curriculum development, syllabi, assignments, evaluation of student work, advising or mentorship, and student evaluation of teaching assessments. They will provide significant service and contribute to professional development, which might include leadership activities such as faculty mentoring, faculty training, assessment work, and in some instances, scholarly research in their field, in addition to significant service to the Department, the School and the University.

The criteria for evaluation for appointment or reappointment within the lecturer sequence are based on excellence in teaching, service and maintaining currency in the field. Evaluation for reappointment and promotion to the rank of senior professorial lecturer should positively account for any scholarly accomplishments if the candidate for promotion has been research active, including scholarly research and publications that may be attributed to the requirement of maintaining “currency in the field” as described in section III above. 

All term faculty, including term assistant professors, may be reappointed in the absence of a promotion and should an application for promotion prove unsuccessful, they may be reappointed and seek promotion at a later date.

Hurst Senior Professorial Lecturer

The Faculty Manual describes appointees at this rank as having demonstrated “meritorious performance through sustained excellence in teaching and in service internally to the university and/or externally in their profession or field of scholarship” (FM 46). 

Senior professorial lecturers who are candidates for promotion to Hurst senior professorial lecturer should be master teachers, demonstrating a consistent record of marked teaching excellence. Their professionalism and expertise will be displayed through their course and curriculum development, syllabi, assignments, evaluation of student work, advising or mentorship, and student evaluation of teaching assessments. Their application portfolios will show that they have significantly refined their teaching, including (but not limited to) broadening the curricular offerings of their academic unit, participating in or developing curricular initiatives at the department, school, and/or university levels [e.g. AUCore, Honors Programs], adapting to new student populations as necessary, and attending to innovations in their field(s). These candidates will also have demonstrated strong service or leadership in the Department, the School, the University, and/or field, including contributing to professional development initiatives, teaching or curriculum assessment, or robust and sustained student engagement outside the classroom.

The criteria for evaluation for appointment or reappointment within the lecturer sequence are based on excellence in teaching, service and maintaining currency in the field. Evaluation for reappointment and promotion to the rank of Hurst senior professorial lecturer should positively account for any scholarly accomplishments if the candidate for promotion has been research active, including scholarly research and publications that may be attributed to the requirement of maintaining “currency in the field” as described in section III.c above. 

All term faculty may be reappointed in the absence of a promotion and should an application for promotion prove unsuccessful may be reappointed and seek promotion at a later date.

b. Term Professor Sequence

The Faculty Manual states that new appointments at the term assistant professor rank will be made “only under extraordinary circumstances and with approval of the provost” (FM, 47). Faculty at this rank who meet the criteria for promotion to term associate professor normally may apply for promotion after six years of full-time service.

Promotion within the term professor ranks will be based in part on scholarly accomplishments, in a manner equivalent to tenure-line professor ranks. The Faculty Manual states that promotion to term Associate Professor will depend, in part, on “significant scholarly accomplishments appropriate to the field; professional recognition and growth; and potential for a career of sustained scholarly distinction and/or prominent accomplishments” (47). Promotion to term Professor will depend, in part, on “continuing excellent scholarship and/or prominent accomplishments in the field… and evidence of the potential to sustain excellence in…these areas” (47).

The standards for promotion to the ranks of term associate professor and term professor in the area of scholarship are functionally similar to those for their tenure-line equivalents, as detailed in the department’s tenure-line faculty by-laws and guidelines. There are, however, several notable differences. There is no “clock” for promotion within the term professor sequence. Term assistant professors are not required to apply for promotion to term associate at the end of six years of service but may instead apply whenever the standards for the rank of associate professor are thought to be met. All term faculty, including term assistant professors, may be reappointed in the absence of a promotion and should an application for promotion prove unsuccessful may be reappointed and seek promotion at a later date.

Candidates’ research records will be evaluated in their entirety, including research productivity while at American University and plans for continued research productivity.  

V. Post-doctoral Appointments and Reappointments

As set forth in the Faculty Manual, postdoctoral appointments are made on an annual basis and may be renewed as long as funding is available, but customarily not [for] more than five years (FM, 52). In some cases, however, “longer-term appointments are permissible based on the individual’s research trajectory and productivity” (FM, 52). Postdoctoral fellows are “expected to be actively engaged in research and [to] produce scholarly publications, conference papers, or grants during the[ir] appointment” (FM, 52). This engagement is to be measured based on the same requirements set forth for research active assistant professors without the same "clock". In addition, “[t]eaching undergraduate or graduate courses may…be required as part of the appointment depending on the source of funds and obligations” (FM, 52).