Procedures for Reappointment and Tenure
for Tenure-Track Librarians

University Libraries, UNC Greensboro

March 2011

  1. Initial Appointment
  1. As per the Regulations on Academic Freedom, Tenure and Due Process the initial appointment for Professional Librarians is four years. If the appointment begins after Sept. 30, in most cases the librarian will maintain visiting status until July 1.
  1. Soon after the initial appointment, in separate meetings, the supervisor, and theDean of University Libraries, will meet with the new librarian to discuss job responsibilities, goals for the coming year, and expectations for reappointment and tenure.
  1. Annual Reviews for All Library Faculty
    The calendar, review forms, and review policies are available on
  1. Planning Calendar

The Peer Evaluation and Tenure (PE&T) Committee, in cooperation with the Dean of University Libraries,in January developsthe ALFA (Annual LibraryFaculty Accomplishments) and the Annual Review Planning Calendar. It includes due dates for ALFAs, peer reviews, and annual reviews.It is distributed to all tenured and tenure track librarians.

  1. Annual Library Faculty Accomplishments (ALFA)
  1. All tenure track and tenured librarians complete an ALFA, a self-report listing goals and accomplishments, based on thetime frame established by the Dean (normally fiscal year, July 1st to June 30th).Sedona is the reporting tool used to generate the ALFA.
  2. Section I is a copy of the goals listed in Section VI of the previous year’s report.
  3. Section II is a descriptive list of accomplishments for the year.
  4. Sections III-Vare formatted by the Sedona system.
  5. Section VI, goals for the coming year, should be completed with the understanding that these may change after consultation with the supervisor.

Sections 1-V of the ALFAs and a current statement of responsibilities*are sent as a Word document to the Human ResourcesLibrarian who will convert the files to PDF and post the files on Blackboard (* to be phased in over two year period of time)

  1. Peer Performance Reviews (PPR)
  1. All tenured librarians are requested to review all untenured librarians. If a tenured librarian has insufficient contact to provide a review for an untenured librarian, that should be stated on a peer review form.Reviews of other tenured librarians are encouraged.
  2. Tenure track librarians may review any tenured or tenure track librarian.
  3. Librarians may use the Peer Performance Review form on the website or submit a letter.
  4. Before writing any reviews, librarians are expected to examine the ALFAs that are posted in Blackboard (path is: Groups, ALFAs, file exchange).Reviews should be based on actual experience with the librarian, not on hearsay. Negative comments should be accompanied by suggestions on means of improvement.
  5. Completed review forms and letters are given to the Human Resources Librarian. Packets of peer reviews are given to immediate supervisors. The Human ResourcesLibrarian notes if no peer reviews or letters have been submitted for a particular librarian and lets the supervisor know.
  1. Annual Performance Review by the Supervisor
  1. Based upon the University calendar and in conjunction with the Dean of University Libraries, the PE&T Committee determines the date by which meetings with the supervisor must be completed and the written annual reviews submitted to the Dean of University Libraries.(Usually June 30th)
  2. The supervisor must meet privately with each librarian by the date specified on the Planning Calendar.
  3. Prior to this meeting each librarian should provide his/her supervisor with a copy of the tentative goals specified in Section VI of the ALFA.
  4. Prior to the meeting the supervisor should read any Peer Performance Reviews that are available. Based on his or her knowledge of the librarian, on the contents of the ALFA, and on any PPRs, thesupervisor prepares a written evaluation of the librarian which must include a summation of any PPRs. Also, the supervisor assigns the librarian one of five ratings as specified in Section II of the UNCG Report Form. Both the written review and the rating are provided to the librarian prior to the meeting.
  5. The supervisor meets with the librarian to discuss the written review, to convey any strengths and weaknesses noted in the PPRs, to suggestways to maximize strengths and reduce weaknesses for the next annualreview, to finalize goals for the coming year, and if necessary, to tweakthe librarian’s statement of responsibilities. As an additional step forany meeting with an untenured librarian, the supervisor points out areasof strength or weakness in regard to the three areas that will beevaluated for reappointment and tenure, i.e. librarianship, research andcreative activities, and service.
  6. In the course of the meeting both the supervisor and the librarian may agree to make changes to the written review. The librarian should read andinitial each page of the final copy of the review and both parties shouldsign and date the last page of the review, the goals statement, and theUNCG Report Form.
  7. The written review, the UNCG Report Form, the ALFA, the final statement of responsibilities (if changed), and the PPRs and any lettersaresubmitted tothe Dean. All paperwork is filed in the personnel folders by the HumanResources Librarian.

IIIReappointment

All calendars, review forms, and review policies are available on

  1. Basic Information
  1. The calendar is developed by the Chair of the PE&T Committee in early July and later modified once the Provost’s official calendar is received in early September.
  2. The Dean and the Chair of the PE&T Committee meet in late summer with any librarians eligible to seek reappointment that year. They provide information about the process and answer questions. The reappointment review schedule is given to candidates, to their supervisor, and posted on the University Libraries PE&T website.
  3. The reappointment process is similar to that for tenure, not only because it is designed to be evaluative, but also because it is an early indicator of progress towards tenure. The UNCG Promotion and Tenure Form is used as the template for the reappointment file.
  4. External reviewers are not utilized for reappointment.
  5. All components of the reappointment process are considered confidential.
  1. Role of the Peer Evaluation and Tenure Committee
  1. The Chair, in consultation with the Dean, creates various calendars: Reappointment, Tenure, Post Tenure and the spring Planning Calendar.
  2. The Committee makes suggestions for changes in this document and the Criteria document. Small procedural changes may be made without consulting the Library Faculty; major changes must be brought before a vote of the Library Faculty.
  3. The Committee acts in an advisory and mentoring capacity for the initial submission of the portfolio. The members meet to discuss the portfolio’s strengths, weaknesses, and any problems with organization, writing style, clarity, or the supporting documentation.
  4. One or two members meet with the candidate to give him/her suggestions. It is emphasized that the candidate is free to accept or ignore any or all of the suggestions. Making the suggested changes will not necessarily lead to reappointment.
  5. Once this meeting has occurred, the Committee refrains from further advising. Candidates are encouraged to solicit help from other tenured librarians, especially with proofreading.
  1. Preparation of the Reappointment Materials
  1. The UNCG Promotion and Tenure Form is used to organize the reappointment portfolio.
  2. Sections I-III each should have approximately three narrative paragraphs providing an overall context for the contents of that section.Statements should be written in the first person, be factual, and beobjective. Subjective or evaluative statements should not be included.
  3. Descriptions should be as free as possible of library jargon, initialisms, etc. so that someone outside of the profession could understand theinformation.
  4. Preferably lists of activities should be in reverse chronological order.
  5. When applicable include relevant dates and locations.
  6. Collaborative efforts should be acknowledged although detailed lists of names and titles are unnecessary.
  7. The name of the supervisor who wrote each of the evaluative sections should be written at the beginning of that section.
  8. Information on publications and presentations completed prior to the appointment at UNCG may be included, but must be noted as such.
  9. Supporting material may be placed in Appendices at the end of the appropriate sections of the portfolio or collected in a single Appendix at the back of the entire portfolio.
  10. The candidate gives the completed portfolio to the department head or supervisor and notifies the Chair of the PE&T Committee that this has been done.
  1. Role of the Department
  1. Review of the candidate must be consistent with the clear and specific unit and departmental criteria for promotion and tenure, and reflect the feedback that the candidate has received in his or her annual reviews.
  2. Tenured Librarians in the candidate’s department have access to the candidate’s portfolio.
  3. The Departmental Review Committee will have a minimum of three tenured librarians.If the department does not have a minimum of three tenured librarians (excluding the department head), the Dean shall confer with the department headand the candidate to determine the composition of the review committee. Following the consultation specified above, if the Dean determines that agreement on the members cannot be reached, the Dean, with the approval of the Provost, will specify the composition of the committee. A memorandum of agreement between the candidate, the department head, and the Dean will specify the final membership.
  4. The department head assembles and consults with Departmental Review Committee. The Dean is also invited to this meeting which is presided over by a Chair (not the department head). The Chair assures that themeeting is divided into evidence-gathering and deliberative phases, conducts a secret ballot, counts the votes, prepares a written summary of the results of the deliberative phase (including a summary of any dissenting opinion), and forwards the summary and the result of the voteto the department head. The department head and Dean may not be presentduring the deliberative phase and vote of the faculty members.
  5. Upon receiving the materials from the Chair as shown above, the department head prepares his or her independent recommendation and forwards it along with the Department Review Committee’s recommended action, a summary of the committee’s deliberations with their votes both for and against the nomination, and the candidate’scurrent CV to the Dean.
  6. Decisions:
  7. Dept level decides to reappoint:
    When the department’s recommended action is to reappointto a further term of three years, review by the unit anduniversity promotion and tenure committees is notrequired. Instead, the recommendation of thedepartmentalfaculty, including a record of their vote, and theindependent recommendation of the department head shallbe conveyed,along with a copy of the faculty member’scurrent CV, to the Dean forreview. The Dean shall send hisor her recommendation, along with acopy of thedepartmental reviews and a copy of the faculty member’sCV, to the provost. The provost shall send his or her recommendation, along with copies of all lower-levelreviews, and a copy of the facultymember’s CV, to thechancellor for a final decision on reappointment.The role ofthe chancellor is laid out in section 4.D of the University Regulations
  8. Dept Level decides not to reappoint:
    When the department recommends not to reappoint (Departmental recommendations not to reappoint only occur when the majority of the voting faculty and the head concur in this decision based on their independent reviews. In all other cases the recommendation of the department must be to reappoint, See 4.B.i.b) all provisions of sections 4.B.ii. and 4.B.iii. (unit and university reviews) shall be followed, except that the documentation forwarded from the department need only consist of the recommendation of the departmental faculty, including a record of their vote, the independent recommendation of the department head, and a copy of the candidate’s current CV. The candidate may submit additional documents that support his or her reappointment. These documents are submitted to the Dean, and are for consideration by the unit and university committees on promotion and tenure, the Dean, and the provost.
  9. The department head, after sending information to the Dean notifies the Candidate of the department’s recommendation (4.B,i.a)
  1. Unit Review if Negative Review from Departmental Level
  1. If the Departmental Review Committee’s recommended action is not to reappoint the librarian to an additional term of three years, review proceeds to the unit level. The Unit Review Committee is comprised of all of the tenured librarians except for the Dean.
  2. The Chair of the PE&T Committee adds departmental documents, including the department head’s independent recommendations, tothe portfolio and any additional documents given to the Dean. The Chairthen notifies the tenured faculty when the departmental review has been completed and that the candidate’s portfolio is ready for review, and also sets the time and place for thefaculty to meet.
  3. Tenured Librarians should review all materials prior to the scheduled meeting. The portfolio is kept in the Administrative Office. Each librarian must indicate he/she has viewed the materials by checking off his/her name on the list provided with the materials. Any librarianwho fails to read the materials before the meeting will not be allowed to vote on the candidate.
  4. On the designated date and time the tenured Library Faculty will assemble to deliberate and vote on their recommendation. If there are extenuatingcircumstances that prevent a particular tenured faculty member from being physically present, then that faculty member may participate by real-time electronic means, such as speaker phone or video conference, with prior approval of the Dean. The Chair of the PE&T Committeeshould bring the candidate’s portfolio and paper ballots to the meeting.The meeting will be divided into an evidence-gathering phase and a finaldeliberative phase. These phases will be presided over by a temporarychair elected by the assembled members) eligible to vote.Those not eligible to vote are the candidate’s department head and the DepartmentalReview Committee. No tenured faculty member may vote more than once. When the first phase of the meeting is determined to be over by a majority vote, the Dean and those not eligible to vote will leave themeeting and the final deliberations will proceed.
  5. A written ballot will be taken with the temporary chair counting the ballots and reporting the vote to the Dean. Additionally, the temporary chair must write a summary of the views of the assembled faculty, including any dissenting opinions, and give it to the Dean.
  6. Followingthe completion of his or her own review, the Dean shall make the text of that evaluation available in a secure location for the perusal of the candidate and the tenured librarians.
  1. Dean’s review
  1. The Dean will forward to the Provosthis or her recommendation and, the independent summary and recommendation of:
  1. TheDepartmental Review Committee including the number of votesfor and against a nomination.
  2. department head review
  3. the Unit Review Committee (if necessary)including the number of faculty votes for and against a nomination
  4. a copy of the candidate’s current CV. (3.D.ii.a (2 and 3)
  1. When the Departmental Review Committeeor the Unit Review Committee recommend reappointment for a candidate but have concerns about the person’s ability to achieve tenure in three years, awritten statement is given to the candidate’s supervisor to discuss with that person after she/he has been notified of the recommendation for reappointment by the Dean.
  2. When majority of negative votes from the Departmental ReviewCommitteeand the Unit ReviewCommitteealongwithnegative evaluations by the department head and the Dean, would constitute a negative recommendation that will notbe reviewed further except as may occur in accordance withSection4 of the Regulations on Academic Freedom, Tenure, and DueProcess. The Dean sends a letter to the candidate, with a copyto theProvost, indicatingnon-reappointment. The unsuccessfulcandidateas twelve months from July 1st of the year of thereappointmentdecision to vacate his/her position.
  3. Mixed recommendations: When the Departmental Review Committee, the Unit Review Committee, the department head,and the Dean disagree on reappointment, the final decision rests with the Dean.
  4. The Dean also notifies the candidate of the Unit’s recommendation.

G.Announcement of the Decision

  1. Usually sometime in February the Provost and the Chancellor will review the reappointment letter sent by the Dean of University Libraries. The Provost’s Office will notify the Deanwhen they are submitting a recommendation for reappointment to the Board of Trustees at which time the Dean may inform the candidate verbally of the recommendation. The candidate will receive a letter from the Provost and subsequently from the Board of Trustees after the recommendation has been formally approved.
  1. Tenure

All calendars, review forms, and review policies are available on