UTFA has been hearing from Librarians and from Teaching Stream and Tenure Stream faculty members about barriers to research in general and during the COVID pandemic in particular. In November, the ad hoc Barriers to Research Working Group was formed with the mandate to gain a deeper understanding of these issues. It is currently developing a survey for the UTFA membership.
UTFA is currently engaged in an Association grievance that questions the (un)reliability, (in)validity, and discrimination in the use of SCEs/SETs in high stakes contexts such as promotions. The Appointments Committee is supporting this grievance process. UTFA has been highlighting the systemic bias and general limitations of the current practice of focusing on SCEs/SETs in evaluating teaching at the University. The Appointments Committee created an ad hoc working group to identify the issues arising from SCEs/SETs and to advocate for and support our members in relation to these issues. This group is currently compiling a list of resources, including links to policies, research, and reports on SETs, to help members prepare their promotion dossiers and PTR reports.
The Appointments Committee continues to develop communications plans to advise our members on policies, guidelines, and practices related to promotions of faculty and librarians. The Committee is also supporting workshops designed to help members learn more about the procedures for promotion to Full Professor in the Teaching and Tenure Streams. The chairs of the Appointments and Teaching Stream Committees have been working together to determine how to support Teaching Stream faculty in their decisions to be considered for promotion to full professor.
Many thanks to all who have engaged with me and UTFA this year—those who have participated deeply in committee work, who have mentored me in my first year in this role, and whom I have invited to join the work. I am thankful for the collegial inspiration of our membership as we do this critical, creative, and important work together.
Leslie Stewart Rose
Chair, Appointments Committee