OM 2.4.1 Appointment and Tenure of Department Chairs and Academic Program Directors Policy Statement

Policy Statement

Appointment. Departmental chairs and academic program directors or equivalent are appointed by the Dean/Institute Director, after substantive consultation with all department faculty members and staff, with approval of the Provost or equivalent.

Initial appointments are to three-year terms and are eligible for re-appointment by the Dean upon evaluation of their performance. Terms normally start at the beginning of the Clarkson fiscal year. Department Chairs and academic program directors or equivalent will receive annual performance evaluations, with a comprehensive review at the end of a three-year term prior to renewal. The Dean/Institute Director may initiate additional review at any time during the term of service.

Standard Appointment Process

Chairs and academic program directors or equivalent may be recruited by the Dean/Institute Director from within the unit, from affiliate units, or through an external search approved by the Provost or equivalent. Appointment processes must follow the procedures below:

(1) Candidate statements: The Dean shall solicit statements from candidates outlining their qualifications, motivations, and vision for the future direction of the department or program. Preferably, these statements should be written (email, memo, or similar) but may be given verbally in a meeting and recorded in the minutes.

(2) Opportunity for Confidential Input: All faculty and staff in the department or program shall have the opportunity to submit confidential personal comments to the Dean.

(3) Advisory Ballot: A faculty ballot may be conducted by the current department executive officer or a designee. Results shall be shared with the department faculty and staff, the Dean, and the Office of the Provost or equivalent.

a. The ballot advisory to the Dean/Institute Director and Provost or equivalent.

b. Any faculty member may request that the ballot be conducted by secret vote.

c. Faculty may include anonymous comments regarding their vote or concerns about the process, submitted to the Dean/Institute Director or Provost or equivalent. 

d. Candidate statements must be shared with department faculty at least one week prior to any ballot unless the faculty votes otherwise. 

Provisional Appointments for New or Interdisciplinary Programs

In instances where a new academic program is being launched and no faculty currently exist within the program, or an academic program is jointly administered across multiple departments, then the Dean/Institute Director may make a provisional appointment of a department Chair or academic Program Director or equivalent of no more than 12 months while abiding by Standard Appointment Process outlines above. A provisional appointment will remain in effect until all program applications have been approved. This is intended to ensure that the program can adhere to requirements associated with launching new programs (ex - NYSED).

A provisional appointment is intended to quickly supply support to a newly launched program. A provisional appointment shall last no longer than 12 months. At that point, or at any point prior, there must be a mandatory formal search process for the new position of Chair/Program Director or equivalent conducted in accordance with OM 3.1.17 Recruitment and Selection Process. 

Mandatory Formal Search Requirements Following Provisional Appointment

When a required formal search is triggered (including following a provisional appointment), the process shall include:

1) A formal posting of the position.

2) A documented search process, conducted by the Dean/Institute Director or a designated search committee and substantive consultation with all faculty and staff impacted by the program. Following best practices, the search committee should be composed of constituents (e.g., faculty and staff) who will be within the program, individuals from units impacted by the program, as well as individuals outside of the program, including somebody outside of the home School (or equivalent unit if the program is not started in a school).

3) Advertising of the position, which must exceed a PeopleSoft posting and include at minimum distribution through internal Announcements and other appropriate internal or external venues consistent with OM 3.1.17.

These requirements apply to all searches, including internal, affiliate, and external recruitment processes.

Term of Office:Office

Department chairs and academic program directors or equivalent (facultyas administratorsdefined who oversee degree-granting programs, seein OM 2.4.0.B) shall beare appointed for three-year terms and are eligible for reappointment. InGenerally, general,no amore maximum ofthan two additional 3-year terms is typical, though in exceptional cases, a chair/academic program director mayshould be appointedserved, bythough the Dean/Institute Director formay appoint a Chair/Program Director or equivalent to additional terms.terms in exceptional circumstances. 

Before such reappointments, reviews and evaluations of their performance willshall be obtained from the department/academicprogram programor department faculty and staff, as well as from appropriaterelevant administrative officers and faculty members.

The department chair/academicChair/Program programDirector directoror canequivalent may resign prior to the end of the term. ShouldIf the Dean/Institute Director desireseeks toremoval removeof the chair,Chair/Program Director or equivalent, the case shallmust be referencedreferred to a representative faculty review committee before takingaction action.is Suchtaken. aThe committee's written findings willshall be reported in writingprovided to the Dean/Institute Director and the Provost toor arriveequivalent. at a decision, with theThe Provost holdingor equivalent holds ultimate authority.authority over removal decisions. 

Period of Duty.Duty

The department chair/academicChair/Program programDirector directoror willequivalent beis appointed based on the academic year asschedule, consistent with any other full time faculty member.appointments. TheResponsibilities department chair/academic program director is responsible forof the performanceposition ofare department/academicdefined programin duties (OM 2.4.0)0, unless other arrangementsalternatives are madedocumented in writing withby the appropriate dean.Dean.

Department chairs are permitted tomay undertake summer assignments with or without additional remunerationremuneration, withinconsistent with established University policies. 

History

November 1986

Revised February 1972

December 1986

July 1987

July 1996

Revised December 2019

February 2021

November 2023