Brief Explanation of Motions
July 25, 2001
MOTION #1 (already passed)
To create an additional
category of non-tenure track faculty for those who would normally qualify for a
tenure track appointment.
Motion 1 is
an expansion of non-tenure track faculty to enable us to hire terminally
qualified people as assistant, associate or full professors and to enable us to
hire faculty jointly with Olin College on term contracts. Due to the changes in the faculty
marketplace and with the advent of Olin, this motion allows an increased
flexibility to meet the new market dynamics. The decision to hire a non-tenure track person still rests
with the divisions.
ěTo create an additional category of
non-tenure-track faculty for joint appointments with F.W. Olin College of
Engineering.î
Our strategic alliance with the Olin College of Engineering
is an important component of Babsonís Vision 2010. Approval of this motion will create a non-tenure track
faculty category for use in making joint faculty appointments with Olin
College, which does not have tenure.
Approval of this motion, combined with approval of Motion #4 (below),
will enable us to offer joint appointments that match the contractual terms
offered by Olin College. The
intent of this motion is to allow Babson to expand strategically in the areas
of science and technology entrepreneurship. John Bourne, Professor of Technology Entrepreneurship and
Steve Holt, Director of Science are good examples of how we plan to use these
appointments.
MOTION 3
ěTo increase the maximum
allowable percentage of non-tenure track faculty per academic division to 20
percent (rounded down).î
Approval of this motion will increase the flexibility
available to division chairpersons when hiring new full-time faculty. The effect of this motion (based on
current faculty levels) would be to increase the maximum number of possible
non-tenure track faculty in categories I2a and I2b from 19 to 27, college-wide. There are currently only 12 individuals
in this category under contract for the 2001/02 academic year (62% of the 10%
cap). The real value of approving
this motion will be for those divisions where our needs for non-tenure track
faculty are greatest due to scarcity of faculty candidates. Management, Math/Science and Finance
are currently at their 10% limit and face difficult faculty markets. The locus of hiring decisions remains
with the divisions. This motion is
designed to increase the flexibility for divisions in staffing teaching
schedules. Note: A friendly amendment may be needed to specify that this motion
applies specifically to non-tenure track faculty categories I2a & I2b.
MOTION 4
ěTo provide the ability
to offer initial multi-year (up to 5-years) contracts for non-
tenure track faculty.î
Experienced professors and executives hesitate to move to
Babson with an initial contract length of one year, which is the only
term we can currently offer.
Approval of this motion will provide division chairs and the AVP the
ability to offer multi-year contracts to attract new non-tenure track faculty
to Babson (within the limits determined by the outcome of Motion 3). The Appointments DMB must approve all
multi-year contracts. As mentioned
under Motion 2 (above), approval of this motion will also provide Babson with
the ability to match contract terms offered by Olin College.
MOTION 5 (Linked to Motion 2)
ěTo set the time frame
for promotion of Olin College joint appointments to Associate Professor to be
consistent with that of Babson tenure track faculty.î
This motion is designed to ensure that every Olin/Babson
jointly appointed Assistant Professor will be reviewed by the Appointments
Committee for promotion to Associate Professor according to the same time frame
and criteria required of Babson tenure track faculty even though they are not
being considered for tenure. As
such, a jointly appointed Olin/Babson Assistant Professor would not be able to
remain an Assistant Professor longer than 6 years.
MOTION 6 (Linked to Motion 1)
ěTo add scholarship as a
possible criterion in the evaluation of non-tenure track faculty.î
This motion is tied to Motion #1 (i.e., creation of
additional non-tenure track for individuals with academic credentials) and
applies to categories of non-tenured track faculty I2a and I2b. This motion is desirable because
non-tenure track appointments at the associate and full professor levels (as
opposed to lecturer positions) must be evaluated on intellectual vitality,
which includes scholarship.
Note: A friendly amendment may
be necessary to specify that this motion applies specifically to non-tenure
track faculty categories I2a & I2b.
MOTION 7
ěTo provide criteria for
appointment / promotion to Senior Lecturer.î
Approval of this motion will provide guidance, which the Appointments
DMB has requested, when reviewing promotion cases from Lecturer to Senior
Lecturer. Currently, ěPolicies and
Proceduresî is silent on this point.
This motion will also distinguish the titles of the three categories of
non-tenure track faculty, I2a, I2b and I2c.
MOTION 8
ěTo provide a window of
time during which a faculty member may have his/her tenure case reviewed.î
Approval of this motion would provide experienced faculty
with easy-to implement control of the time in which to be considered for tenure
without appearing to come up ěearly.î
For example, if a new faculty member is granted 3 years of pre-tenure
credit, she would be eligible for tenure consideration from the spring of her 3rd
year at Babson until the spring of her 6th year. Each May, she can decide whether or not
to be considered for tenure during the following academic year. (As is the case with all of our tenure
procedures and practices, the primary interest is to allow each candidate to
present the best possible case for tenure considerations.)
MOTION 9
ěTo enhance the criteria
for promotion to Full Professor.î
ěLeadershipî is a criterion used by recent Appointments DMBs
when considering promotions to Full Professor. Approval of this motion would explicitly include ěleadershipî
(meant to contrast with just doing the minimal requirements) in the criteria to
be considered by the Appointments DMB in its deliberations. Further, this
motion will encourage and enhance the chairpersonís and AVPís abilities to
mentor faculty in the various aspects of leadership. The proposed wording in policies and procedures is designed
to allow trade-offs in the locus of leadership and the expectation of
scholarship. For example, if an
individual is acknowledged for significant leadership at Babson, the
Appointments DMB may weigh this more heavily than (scholarly) leadership
outside of Babson. On the other
hand, if an individual is an acknowledged leader in his or her area of
expertise, the Appointments DMB may weigh leadership outside Babson more
heavily than inside Babson.