This does not constitute an employment contract.

Department of Government Guidelines for Reappointment and Promotion of Term and Continuing Appointment Faculty

Updated: October 2024¹
Approved by the Office of the Provost, November 2024

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

The Department recognizes the importance of diversity, equity and inclusion. It supports efforts to include them as aspects of each faculty member’s contribution to the work of the Department, the School of Public Affairs, and the University, within the context of our shared commitment to faculty freedom of expression in the classroom as well as to study a wide range of topics and to communicate the results of those studies.

I Teaching

Excellent teaching is the cornerstone of term and continuing appointment faculty appointments. The Faculty Manual defines excellent teaching in Section 16.a and requires that Departments utilize additional forms of teaching evaluation beyond student assessments (FM, Section 16.a.). In assessing the quality of teaching, the Department may consider course content and design, engagement with students outside the classroom, student perceptions of classroom teaching, teaching a variety of courses to meet departmental needs, evidence of growth, development, innovation, or mastery in teaching, and development of new courses including those that facilitate different perspectives on diversity, equity, and inclusion, balancing these as appropriate.

• Course content and design will be evidenced by a review of syllabi and associated written course materials to demonstrate adherence to university and department guidelines, including clear objectives that are informed by the goals of the department or program, considered organization and rigor in substance and assignments that foster student learning and achievement, and inclusion of up-todate course content. Courses should impart, reiterate, and advance knowledge, skills, and abilities that prepare students for subsequent steps in their intellectual, personal, and professional development in a diverse, plural world.
• 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, advising undergraduate or graduate capstone and 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, how many times the faculty member has taught the course, the grade distribution and trends across multiple courses. The Department recognizes that no professor is likely to be able to satisfy all students; biases pervade in students’ assessments, and the professor with the highest teaching evaluations may not be the best teacher. SETs are primarily to be used to assess improvement over time by faculty on the same course, not to compare faculty to one another individually. The Department values intellectually rigorous and engaging courses, even if they do not necessarily achieve popularity as measured by SETs.
• The Department provides instruction across multiple majors and certificate programs at the undergraduate and graduate levels as well as numerous SPA and university-wide programs. The Department values faculty willingness and skill in teaching to departmental or university needs, including teaching courses of varying sizes, at different levels (introductory, upper-division undergraduate, and graduate), and in different modalities (intensive short courses, online courses, and hybrid courses).
• Growth, development, innovation, and mastery in teaching will be assessed on the basis of a variety of evidence, including testing 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 department, school, university, and academic field activities aimed at enhancing teaching such as teaching conferences, seminars, and workshops.
• The Department values teaching activities, including among others those that advance diversity, equity and inclusion. This could include, for example, creating inclusive classrooms, including pedagogical practices that are sensitive to biases and encourage diverse viewpoints, updating syllabi to address new developments in the field and/or incorporate new scholarship, including diverse authors and perspectives, developing pedagogical innovations that include new courses and new instructional modalities that encourage broader student access and engagement and/or more effectively address different needs of students. Beyond the classroom, faculty might also address diversity, equity and inclusion on campus by supporting initiatives to help underserved or under-resourced students overcome barriers of participation such as mentoring and advising, helping students with navigating AU, scholarships, internship and job opportunities and helping them otherwise increase educational equity and access.

II Currency in the Field/Scholarship

The Faculty Manual states that all term and continuing appointment faculty must demonstrate currency in their field as part of their teaching expectations (FM, Section 16 and 16.a). Currency typically means remaining up-to-date in one’s professional life. “Achieving currency in the field may include a wide range of activities depending on the academic unit and the individual appointment” [ref: Omnibus Guidelines, 6/30/2023].

The purpose of demonstrating currency is for term and continuing appointment faculty to highlight and be recognized and rewarded for their contributions to the intellectual life of the school and to report how they remain engaged in their subjects of expertise. Faculty may demonstrate their currency in a number of ways, including (but not limited to) any of the sample activities listed below. For the purpose of reappointment, there is no hierarchy between the listed sample of activities.

Currency typically consists of professional development in the areas of teaching, research and scholarship, practice, professional engagement, and/or creative activities. The Government Department recognizes that many term and continuing appointment faculty members conduct research, publish, contribute to the scholarly profile of the school, innovate pedagogically, and practice professionally. Participation in these activities is evidence of currency.

Other examples of evidence of currency include, but are not limited to, the following categories and activities:

Research and Scholarship activities:

• Scholarship, research, and publications
• Engagement with the academic field (e.g., manuscript review, editorial work, panel participation, conference participation)
• Grant development

Practice:

• Giving briefings, conducting trainings, and engagement with external organizations in the public, private, and non-profit sector
• Public outreach and education (e.g., talks, lectures, panels, etc.)

Professional and Public Engagement:

• Consulting and contract work
• Media publications and appearances (e.g., op-eds, blogs, interviews, podcasts)

Teaching:

• Up-to-date syllabi that incorporate new scholarship and/or address new developments in the field as appropriate
• Pedagogical innovation (including, but not limited to, new course development) and new instructional modalities
• Participation in training in the field of teaching, including attendance at teachingfocused conferences
• Publication or presentation of teaching materials and pedagogy

The Department does not require but highly values faculty engagement in currency or scholarship activities that advance diversity, equity and inclusion. Examples of such activities include publishing in open-access electronic outlets and news media outlets that enable wide dissemination and use of findings, presenting research in public-facing venues, developing or applying methods that increase diversity, equity, and inclusion in the field of study or creative practice, including methods that expand opportunities for participation and agency by groups that are the subjects of research and those whose lives may be affected by research results, producing research and scholarly activity with demonstrated public impact, giving briefings, conducting trainings, and engaging with external organizations in the public, private, and non-profit sectors, with attention to reaching diverse audiences, engaging in public outreach and education (e.g., talks, lectures, panels, etc.), with attention to reaching these audiences.

III Service

As part of their primary responsibilities, full-time term and continuing appointment 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 and continuing appointment faculty member’s contractual workload will also include an appropriate level of service, which, in some instances, may be substituted for teaching, 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 will be considered with greater weight in the reappointment and promotion process. While the Department expects term and continuing appointment faculty in all ranks and all contract lengths to perform service, and faculty on 3-year contracts and with Continuing Appointment to have greater involvement in service than 1-year faculty, it recognizes that high-quality teaching should be their priority.

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. 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, Section 16 and 16.b). The Department welcomes the participation of term and continuing appointment 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.

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 activities demonstrate an individual’s acceptance of the responsibilities that come with being a member of the faculty in a university deeply committed to service to a wider community. 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, Section 10.a.iv, from the FM section on tenure and tenure track evaluation.)

The Department values service to the institution and the profession in its many forms, including among others faculty engagement that advances diversity, equity and inclusion when faculty conduct service. Activities related to diversity, equity and inclusion in service could include advising and mentoring, participating in initiatives to recruit and mentor faculty, staff, and students from diverse groups, working on processes, policies, and tools that promote equitable and inclusive practices within the Department, within SPA or across AU, including revising search committee criteria, job descriptions, and evaluative criteria and evaluating proposed curricula changes, etc., working on events to promote a diversity of perspectives and ideas, and participating in workshops aimed at facilitating community discussions about DEI issues such as at CTRL events, including the annual Ann Ferren Conference.

IV. Rank-specific Reappointment and Promotion Criteria

The designated ranks for full-time faculty members with term or continuing appointments fall into two promotion sequences: lecturer and professor. 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.

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 within the lecturer sequence should positively account for any scholarly accomplishments, including research and publications, that contribute to “currency in the field” as described in section II above. Only term or continuing appointment faculty in the professor sequence are expected 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.

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.

a. Lecturer Sequence

Instructor

The rank of the instructor is reserved for those term faculty members who have not yet been granted their 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, Section 14.a.i).

Reappointments at the rank of the 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 the 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 an instructor will also provide service to the department, college, and/or 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 the lecturer sequence should positively account for any scholarly accomplishments, including research and publications, that contribute to “currency in the field” as described in section II above.

All term and continuing appointment 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, Section 14.a.ii). 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 the 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, college, and/or university, with the expectation that their service profile will both broaden and deepen over time.

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 the professorial lecturer should positively account for any scholarly accomplishments, including research and publications, that contribute to “currency in the field” as described in section II above.

All term and continuing appointment 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, Section 14.a.iii).

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, assessment work, and research in their field, in addition to significant service to their department, college, and/or 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 senior professorial lecturer should positively account for any scholarly accomplishments, including research and publications, that contribute to “currency in the field” as described in section II above.

All term and continuing appointment 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.

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, Section 14.a.iv).

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 their department, school, 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 primarily based on excellence in teaching and service. However, evaluation for reappointment and promotion to the rank of the Hurst senior professorial lecturer should positively account for any scholarly accomplishments, including research and publications, that contribute to “currency in the field” as described in section II above.

All term and continuing appointment 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. 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, section 14.b.i). 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 or continuing appointment 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 or continuing appointment 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” (FM, Section 14.b.ii). Promotion to term or continuing appointment 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” (FM, section 14.b.iii).

The standards for promotion to the ranks of term or continuing appointment Associate Professor and term or continuing appointment Professor in the area of scholarship are functionally similar to those for their tenure-track equivalents, as detailed in the department’s tenure-line faculty bylaws and guidelines. There are, however, several notable differences. There is no “clock” for promotion within the term or continuing appointment Professor sequence. Term or continuing appointment Assistant Professors are not required to apply for promotion to term or continuing appointment 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 or continuing appointment faculty, including 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. Consistent with the Faculty Manual’s provision that academic units utilize forms of teaching evaluation beyond student assessments (FM, Section 10.a.i) and the Faculty Senate’s directive to utilize teaching portfolios, candidates for promotion should produce a teaching portfolio as outlined in the separate document adopted by the Department.

V. Process for Term Faculty Reappointments and Continuing Appointments²

a. One-Year Appointments and Reappointments

The Government Department will conduct full and careful national searches for all initial term faculty appointments according to university and unit guidelines for such searches, except in unusually urgent circumstances, as approved by the dean of the school. When hiring committees are formed for an initial term faculty appointment, GOVT term and continuing appointment faculty members are encouraged to participate as voting members when requested to do so by the chair.

The department chair will inform term faculty in writing of the procedures to apply for reappointment to one-year position. Term faculty reappointments are contingent upon sufficient budget and enrollments, and on the faculty member’s fit with other needs of the teaching or academic unit (FM, Section 12).

Applicants for one-year reappointments will submit a file for action traditionally early in the spring semester by the date set by the Dean of Faculty, demonstrating:

• Excellence in teaching, as described in section I above, with the understanding that in some cases available information may be limited to their initial semester
• Evidence of continuing currency in the candidate’s field of specialization, as described in section II above
• Excellence in service as described in section III above, judged primarily, though not exclusively, as maintaining an active campus presence and engagement in the life of the department

b. Three-Year and Continuing Appointments

The department chair will inform term faculty in writing of the procedures to apply for three-year, or continuing appointments as appropriate, any necessary or recommended elements to the file for action, and any relevant deadlines for term faculty action necessary to that process. Term faculty reappointments are contingent upon sufficient budget and enrollments, and on the faculty member’s fit with other needs of the teaching or academic unit (Faculty Manual, section 15.a).

Applicants for three-year appointments will submit a file for action traditionally in the fall of their third year of teaching full-time by the date set by the Dean of Faculty, demonstrating:

• Excellence in teaching, as described in section I above
• Evidence of continuing currency in the candidate’s field of specialization, as described in section II above
• Excellence in service as described in section III above, judged primarily, though not exclusively, as maintaining an active campus presence and engagement in the life of the department

Applicants for continuing appointments will traditionally submit a file for action in the fall of their sixth year of teaching full-time by the date set by the Dean of Faculty, demonstrating:

• Consistent excellence in teaching, as described in section I above, including evidence of ongoing efforts to improve their teaching craft, and a willingness and ability to teach a variety of offerings if requested
• Evidence of continuing currency in the candidate’s field of specialization, as described in section II above.
• Excellence in service as described in section III above, judged primarily, though not exclusively, as maintaining an active campus presence, along with sustained and significant service contributions to the department, School of Public Affairs, and University

In addition to fulfilling criteria specified by academic or teaching units, term and continuing appointment faculty must meet specific requirements for each rank to be appointed or promoted to that rank, including demonstrated excellence in teaching and engagement with university, scholarly, or professional communities as provided by sections III and IV above and the Faculty Manual (FM, Sections 14.a and 14.b). Term or continuing appointment faculty seeking appointment or promotion to or within the professor sequence must meet the specific research and publication standards for the equivalent tenure-line rank (FM, Section 14.b), however, there is no “clock” for meeting those criteria and if a promotion is unsuccessful, the faculty member may be reappointed and seek promotion at a later date. Term faculty are not required to seek promotion.

1 These guidelines are intended to be used in conjunction with the Government Department’s Bylaws for Term and Continuing Appointment Faculty.

2 For a full description of what is involved in the process, including what the candidate should include in the File for Action and who participates in each level of review, see the Government Department’s By-laws for Term and Continuing Appointment Faculty.