AUB - Initiatives - Empowering Departments

Empowering Departments

A university is a community of scholars, and one of the primary responsibilities of administrators is to find ways to strengthen collegiality and cooperation, two of the essential components of successful university governance, within and across departments and faculties.

Starting at the departmental level, the Provost’s Office worked with faculty deans to devise a manual to clarify the role of the chair (or equivalent) as a leader, mentor, and spokesperson who communicates departmental concerns and recommendations to the faculty dean and discusses new and existing policies and initiatives with departmental faculty. The draft Chairs Manual was first disseminated in Fall 2009, and feedback from its intended users, as well as deans, is now being collected by a staff member in the Provost's Office. Their input will inform a final version scheduled for completion after the end of the Spring 2012 semester.

A complementary policy for the Recruitment, Compensation, and Evaluation of Chairs was approved by the Board of Deans for implementation effective October 1, 2010.

Faculty Employment Policies

The role of departmental faculty in governance has been strengthened by new guidelines for faculty appointments, reappointments and promotions, which encourage faculty members to participate fully in decision-making. Job security has also been enhanced now that seven-year contracts are the norm for new recruits and for existing faculty as they are reappointed or promoted. The current transition between old and new processes is expected to be completed in 2012-13, after which the policies and procedures will undergo final review and revision.

For more information on academic policies affecting faculty members click here.

Information on faculty research grants and leaves appears under Faculty Development.

“The chair should strive to be an effective leader with a strong commitment to shared governance and to such key values as academic freedom, integrity and transparency, and collegiality and mutual respect. One of the chair’s primary responsibilities is to promote and support the department’s academic programs and the achievements of its faculty members. To do this effectively, the chair consults frequently with departmental faculty, particularly before endorsing candidates for appointment to the department, completing performance reviews for junior faculty members and recommending the reappointment or promotion of eligible faculty. Faculty input is also vital when modifying or developing curricula and programs and preparing annual capital and operating budget proposals. The chair monitors relations between the department’s students, faculty and staff, and plays a special role in advising students and mentoring junior faculty. He or she oversees the implementation and use of annual course and program assessments, periodic program reviews and self-study processes (when the latter are required by professional accreditation bodies or by the University). The chair also encourages and supports faculty in the achievement of their academic and research agendas.”

From Introduction to the Chairs Manual, Version 4.0