Promotion and Tenure (Policy FP-10)

Download a Printable Version of Policy FP-10

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Effective Date

Spring 2007

Last Revision Date

4/1/2022

Responsible Party

SON Administrative Team, SON tenure/tenure-track faculty, and SON Promotion and Tenure Policy Committee

Scope and Audience

All School of Nursing (SON) tenure-track or tenured faculty.

Additional Authority

BSU: Faculty Tenure and Promotion Guidelines (Policy 4340), Periodic Review of Tenured Faculty (Policy 4380), CHS: Revised College Promotion and Tenure Guidelines (Policy 210)

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1. Policy Purpose

To establish a policy on promotion and tenure for the tenured/tenure track faculty in the School of Nursing.

2. Policy Statement

Professional Preparation for Rank Determination:

1. Assistant Professor: An earned academic doctorate (PhD, EdD, DNSc) or clinical doctorate (DNP) from an accredited nursing institution of higher learning, plus additional appropriate coursework or full-time college teaching experience.
2. Associate Professor: An earned academic doctorate (PhD, EdD, DNSc) or clinical doctorate (DNP) plus five (5) years of full time experience in an academic rank.
3. Professor: An earned academic doctorate (PhD, EdD, DNSc) or clinical doctorate (DNP) plus a minimum of five (5) full years of service as Associate Professor at an accredited institution of higher learning.

Tenure and Promotion Eligibility

Tenure Conferral

Faculty members are expected to apply for tenure during his or her 6th year of employment at the University. Application for tenure may also be made as early as in the 5th year of service should the faculty member’s record support the action.

For individuals holding the rank of Assistant Professor, review for tenure conferral as well as promotion to Associate Professor will occur simultaneously.

Promotion Eligibility

Candidates pursuing promotion in academic rank (see definition above) shall be advanced for promotion only when their record clearly demonstrates significant contributions and commitment to teaching and scholarly activity. Service, although expected of every candidate, cannot be considered in place of or substituting for teaching and scholarly activity. Criteria for promotion to the rank of professor include all of the criteria for tenure and promotion to associate professor, as well as five (5) full years of service as Associate Professor at an accredited institution of higher learning. (Note that promotion to professor is not assumed to be automatic after any time period.) A faculty member may apply for promotion no earlier than during their third full year of employment at Boise State University, except under extraordinary circumstances.

Criteria for Tenure and Promotion

There are three main areas of faculty involvement pertinent to tenure and promotion.

Teaching

Teaching, as demonstrated by teaching effectiveness and professional commitment to teaching, is an important role of the faculty at the University. Effective and outstanding teaching should be recognized as an important criterion for tenure.

Scholarly and Research Activities

The SON faculties define scholarship as those activities that systematically advance the teaching, research, and practice of nursing through rigorous inquiry that 1) is significant to the profession, 2) is creative, 3) can be documented, 4) can be replicated or elaborated, 5) can be translated into practice, and 6) can be peer-reviewed through various methods. It includes the scholarship of discovery, the scholarship of teaching, the scholarship of application (engagement and evidence-based practice), and the scholarship of integration as outlined by Boyer 4 and the American Association of Colleges of Nursing 7. Each candidate for tenure must possess a demonstrably high level of achievement in his or her discipline through scholarly, creative, and research activities. Research is defined as a systematic investigation, including research development, testing and evaluation, designed to develop or contribute to generalizable or transferable knowledge. As described by Polit & Beck, research is a “systematic inquiry that uses orderly, disciplined methods to answer questions or solve problems. The ultimate goal of research is to develop, refine and expand knowledge” (p 3).

• Evidence-based practice (EBP) means “using the best evidence in making patient care decisions, and such evidence typically comes from research conducted by nurses and other healthcare professionals” (p 3). Nursing authors of the Iowa model (Titler et al, 2001) defined evidence-based practice as “the conscientious and judicious use of current best evidence to guide health care decisions”.
• Translational science and translational research are used interchangeably in the literature. Translational science or research involves moving knowledge gained from the basic sciences to its application in clinical and community settings. As the concept of translational health research has evolved with practice and time, it is clear that translational research encompasses a bidirectional continuum”.

Service

It is expected that each candidate for tenure will have demonstrated a commitment of service to Boise State University, to the College of Health Sciences, to the School of Nursing, to the community and to the profession. Participation and leadership in school, college, or university committees, Faculty Senate, professional organizations, and/or affairs of the local, state, or national community normally demonstrate this type of commitment.

External Reviews

All faculty review actions, with the exception of the developmental review, require blinded external review by three reviewers of the same or higher rank as the rank the faculty candidate is seeking (e. g. if associate, reviewer must hold an associate or professor rank). Faculty are to submit the names of three to five external reviewers in the Spring to the SON Divisional Dean or Chief Nurse Administrator, who will oversee this process and provide information as to the selection of the reviewers, submission of materials to be sent to reviewers and mandatory deadlines.

School of Nursing Promotion and Tenure Committee

The SON Promotion and Tenure Committee consists of three (3) tenured faculty members and two (2) clinical faculty members. This committee reviews actions for both the tenure- tenure track faculty and for the clinical track. Only tenured committee members can vote on actions affecting tenured and tenure-track faculty members. Clinical track actions are voted on by the committee as a whole. Members are appointed by the Administrative Team which consists of the School of Nursing Divisional Dean, Chief Nurse Administrator, Undergraduate Pre- licensure Program Director, RN-BS Program Director, AGNP Program Director, DNP Program Director, Simulation and Learning Lab Coordinator, Faculty Development and Education Coordinator, Business Project Manager, and the Executive Management Assistant.

Evidence in Support of an Application for Tenure and Promotion

Evidence regarding teaching, scholarly/research activities and service should be included in the portfolio/dossier.

Evidence of an effective teaching record includes the following:

Associate Professor

• Receives above average to outstanding ratings by students and peers on classroom and/or clinical teaching
• Provides leadership for student advising/mentoring
• Provides leadership in development of effective and innovative classroom teaching strategies
• Provides leadership in development, currency, and relevance of course curricular content
• Demonstrates ongoing growth and leadership as a content expert

Professor

• Receives outstanding student and peer evaluations of effective instructional strategies
• Is recognized as expert for student advising/mentoring
• Is recognized as expert in development of effective and innovative classroom teaching strategies
• Is recognized as expert for the development of current and relevant content
• Is recognized as a content expert

Evidence of an effective scholarly and research activities record includes the following:

Associate Professor

• Demonstrates productivity and leadership within a focused area of nursing or health sciences research or translational science
• Demonstrates productivity and leadership to pursue or receive funding in an area related to nursing or health sciences research or translational science
• Demonstrates productivity and leadership in disseminating research findings through presentations at local, regional, or national conferences or meetings
• Publishes a co-authored article (average 1 per year) to a peer reviewed journal
• Demonstrates progress in selected area of research

Professor

• Assumes a leadership role within a focused area of nursing or health sciences research or translational science
• Demonstrates productivity and excellence over time to pursue and receive funding for nursing or health sciences research or translational science
• Demonstrates productivity and excellence over time disseminating research findings through presentations at local, regional, national, or international conferences or meetings
• Publishes an article (average 1 per year) to peer reviewed journals
• Demonstrates a sustained program of research

Evidence of an effective service record includes the following:

Associate Professor

• Participates as an active member in professional organizations
• Participates in SON and/or COHS or university committees
• Engages in service activities at the community, state, regional, and national level

Professor

• Seeks or holds office in professional organizations
• Takes an active role in SON and university committees
• Engages in service activities at the community, state, regional, national, and international level

School of Nursing Notifications and Deadlines:

*2-year and 4 year developmental reviews are conducted during the Spring of the second and fourth years of service.

** For individuals holding the rank of Assistant Professor, review for tenure conferral as well as promotion to Associate Professor will occur simultaneously. Associate Professors hired without tenure will follow this schedule.

3. Definitions

Tenure

Academic tenure is a condition of presumed continuous employment that ensures an intellectual atmosphere that is free and open. This encourages superior faculty to remain at the University, thus strengthening the excellence of the institution. Granting tenure implies a commitment by the institution to defend the academic member’s intellectual endeavors. Likewise, the faculty member who is awarded tenure makes an equally strong commitment to serve the students, the profession, and the institution in a manner befitting an academician.

Promotion

Academic promotion refers to an elevation in academic rank either from Assistant Professor to Associate Professor or Associate Professor to Professor.

Developmental Review

All University tenure track faculty are evaluated in the Spring of their second and fourth years of service as to their progress toward tenure. This is a formal, internal evaluation requiring the submission of a portfolio, and should not be confused with the annual faculty evaluation process. The Developmental Review does not result in advancement in rank or salary level.

4. References

1. University Policy 4340. (2015). Faculty Tenure and Promotion Guidelines.
2. COHS Policy 210. (2015). Promotion and Tenure Guidelines.
3. SON Policy FP-10 (2015). Promotion and Tenure Policy.
4. Boyer, E.L. (1990, 1997). Scholarship reconsidered: priorities of the professoriate. Princeton, NJ: The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.
5. American Association of Nursing (1999). Position statement on defining scholarship for the discipline of nursing.
6. NIH (2005). Title 45 CFR, Part 46.102,d.
7. Polit, D.F., & Beck, C.T., (2012). Nursing research: generating and assessing evidence for nursing practice (9th ed.). Wolters Kluwer/LWW.
8. LoBiondo-Wood, G., & Haber, J. (2010). Nursing research: methods and critical appraisal for evidence-based practice (7th ed.). NY: Mosby.
9. ITHS. (2012). Translational Research.
10. University Policy 4380. (2015). Periodic Review of Tenured Faculty.

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Related Information

BSU: Faculty Tenure and Promotion Guidelines (Policy 4340), Periodic Review of Tenured Faculty (Policy 4380)

CHS: Revised College Promotion and Tenure Guidelines (Policy 210)

SON: Faculty and Staff Expectations (Policy FSP-02)

Last Review Date

4/1/2022

Revision History

Fall 2007 (as F- II-402), Fall 2008 (as F-II-402), Spring 2010 (as F-II-402), Spring 2011 (as F-II-402), Fall 2012 (as FP-36), Fall 2015, Spring 2016, July 2020, April 2021, 4/1/2022