Changes to the Rank and Tenure Process

Dear Colleagues,
 
We write to share with you that earlier this week, several recommendations from the Report of the Presidential Task Force to Examine Tenure and Promotion Policies and Processes were approved by the Board of Directors. 
 
Faculty Handbook Section III.D.4 has been revised to provide that applications for tenure and/or promotion will be granted by the President when a case has the support of at least 75% of the University Committee on Rank and Tenure (UCRT) and the candidate’s Executive Vice President.  These cases will no longer receive further review by the President. 
 
Faculty Handbook Sections III.D.6 and III.D.7 have been revised to provide that when an application for tenure and/or promotion will receive the President’s review, the candidate’s EVP will inform the candidate, provide the candidate with written information regarding the strengths and weaknesses of the case and/or procedural lapses, and give the candidate an opportunity to submit a letter addressing any concerns about the case prior to the President’s consideration and decision.  This opportunity will replace the current opportunity to seek reconsideration of the President’s decision after it has been made. 
 
These revisions take effect immediately.   
 
For applications that are currently under review by the UCRT, EVP, or President, and for applications for tenure and/or lateral appointment that are submitted to UCRT between now and June 30, 2019:  

For those cases that meet the threshold (at least 75% UCRT support + EVP approval), the application will be granted without further review; 
For those cases that do not meet the threshold, the candidate will be informed by the EVP that they did not meet the threshold, and given a choice of either:

Receiving information about the case from the EVP under the new rules with the option of submitting a supplementary letter, foregoing reconsideration; or
Proceeding with Presidential review under the old rules, preserving the option to seek reconsideration after the President has made a decision if notified of a denial by the EVP, and at that time receiving information about the case.  

For applications for promotion to full professor submitted to UCRT after February 15, 2019, and all applications submitted to UCRT after July 1, 2019, only the new rules will apply. 

For further information about submitting applications on the Main Campus, please contact Reena Aggarwal, Vice Provost for Faculty, reena.aggarwal@georgetown.edu.  At the Medical Center, please contact Elliott Crooke, Senior Associate Dean of Faculty and Academic Affairs, crooke@georgetown.edu.  At the Law Center, please contact John Mikhail, Associate Dean for Research and Academic Programs, jm455@georgetown.edu.

Learn more here.