PLEASE READ CAREFULLY AS THERE HAVE BEEN
CHANGES MADE TO THESE PROCEDURES AS OF APRIL 2008
SEARCH
PROCEDURES
FOR FULL-TIME FACULTY
POSITIONS
·
·
Vision - To
be a prominent private university recognized for our global perspective, our
diverse and supportive learning community, our commitment to research and
creative discovery, and our emphasis on leadership development.
·
Core Values
- TCU values academic achievement, personal freedom and integrity, the dignity
and respect of the individual, and a heritage of inclusiveness, tolerance and
service.
With these
tenets as a foundation, Texas Christian University (TCU) affirms that all
individuals must be treated with equity in the hiring, retention and promotion
process. TCU insists that each person be
evaluated on his or her individual merits and not on a stereotypic conception
of any group classification practices.
TCU rejects any and all barriers that artificially limit the
professional and personal development of individuals.
TCU seeks
candidates dedicated to excellence in teaching, scholarship, service and
professional development. The following
procedures are designed to guide all units engaged in searches for full-time
faculty positions. These procedures and
guidelines will assist units in making hiring decisions consistent with the
campus commitment to our mission, vision and core values. Use of these procedures should 1) facilitate
the development of excellent candidate pools, 2) help to eliminate potential
sources of bias in the search and screening process, 3) lead to appointments
that will bring more academic recognition to the University and support our
work to create a more diverse and inclusive campus community. The foundational premise of our commitment to
this process does not require a lessening of our commitment to our mission,
vision and core values statement; rather, it is essential to the successful
accomplishment of stated goals.
Under
federal law and executive order, TCU and other institutions of higher education
are required to comply with certain standards in their recruitment and hiring
of faculty members. These policies and
procedures are detailed in various publications of the Office for Civil Rights,
the Department of Labor, and of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Pertinent documents are available from the
TCU Affirmative Action Officer or from the office of the Provost. EEO/Affirmative Action requirements for
full-time faculty positions are incorporated in the following procedures.
1.
A
Faculty Search Authorization form, accompanied by a copy of the proposed
advertisement or position announcement, must be processed by the
school/department in which a vacancy occurs.
Final authorization rests with the Provost. Upon approval by the Provost, the original
Faculty Search Authorization form, search guidelines, and appropriate forms are
sent to the school/department. The Provost’s office will notify the Deputy
Affirmative Action Officer that a search will begin.
2.
Most
searches for tenure-track faculty appointments involve the formation of a
search committee. Ideally, the committee
should be appointed before a position description has been finalized and
members should have the opportunity to review it before it is submitted for
approval, in order to ensure a range of input and perspectives.
3.
TCU
is committed to national advertising of full-time faculty positions. Any deviation from this policy must be
approved by the Dean of the school/college in which the vacancy occurs and the
Provost. The Provost’s office covers the
cost of advertising for faculty positions; the specific allocation amount is
set annually. Departments may choose to
place ads in The Chronicle of Higher
Education, professional journals/ newsletters, or post position announcements
on appropriate Web sites. At a minimum, (budgeted) full-time
tenure-track or nontenure-track positions must be advertised in one national site
(i.e. Chronicle), one minority site and one women’s site. At a
minimum, Lecturer positions must be posted on one minority site and one women’s
site. All advertisements and
postings must contain the statement; “TCU is an EEO/AA employer.” Ads
will be posted for a minimum of five days.
Payments for advertisements should be processed through the office of
the Provost.
4.
If there is any possibility that your department may wish to hire an
international (nonimmigrant) candidate for this position, be sure to advertise
the position in a (printed) national professional journal or other appropriate
publication and obtain a tear sheet of the advertisement. A
printed ad is needed in addition to any online advertisements placed. When the newly
hired international faculty member initiates the "green
card" application process, this tear sheet may be required to document
(to the Department of Labor) that a national search was conducted for
the position.
5.
The
position must be posted with the TCU Human Resources Office. The Provost’s office will forward a copy of
the approved Faculty Search Authorization form and position announcement to the
Human Resources office. Position
announcements will be posted automatically on the TCU web site for a minimum of five days.
6.
Letters
or announcements must be sent to minority, women’s and professional
organizations notifying them of faculty vacancies and requesting names of
qualified female and minority applicants.
The office of the Provost will provide assistance in identifying such
organizations as well as information from women’s and minority doctoral
candidate directories and prospective faculty vita banks as appropriate. At a
minimum, positions must be posted on the National Minority Faculty
Identification Program and the American Association of University Women. A copy of both postings is to accompany the
EEO I form. ADDITIONALLY, FACULTY IN
THE HIRING UNIT SHOULD CONTACT COLLEAGUES FOR ASSISTANCE IN IDENTIFYING WOMEN
AND MINORITES WHO MAY BE POTENTIAL APPLICANTS.
6. Recruitment for all faculty vacancies must be
undertaken without designation by race, color, religion, gender, national
origin, age, veteran or disability status.
Although it is a violation of federal standards for a position to be
identified as open only to members of a particular minority group or gender, it
is acceptable to state; “women and minorities are encouraged to apply.” FURTHERMORE, FACULTY IN THE HIRING UNIT
SHOULD USE ALL AVAILABLE MEANS TO ENSURE THAT WOMEN AND MINORITIES ARE
REPRESENTED IN THE APPLICANT POOL.
7. Job requirements must be applied uniformly to
applicants without regard to race, color, religion, gender, national origin,
age, veteran or disability status. It is
as inappropriate to relax standards in order to hire women or minority group
members as to raise standards artificially to prohibit their employment. Indeed, lowering standards preferentially for
women and minority group members is discrimination against others.
8. A requirement for employment, which results in
a disproportionate impact upon minorities or women, can be maintained only if
such requirement is clearly related to the job in question. Translated, this
means that we must be certain that the credentials and levels of experience,
which we require for any position, are actually necessary for proper
performance of the job.
9. The University is required to obtain
information on the race, gender, and ethnic identity of all applicants
for employment. TCU will gather this information from Voluntary EEO/AA reply
cards, which are sent to all applicants for faculty positions,
whether or not they are receiving serious consideration. Departments will furnish pre-printed envelopes for each applicant to
the Provost’s Office for the mailing of the EEO/AA reply cards. Include (with the envelopes) a list of
candidates and mailing addresses the cards have been sent to for the search
file. The reply cards are returned
to the office of the Provost/Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs. The
information obtained is used to compile statistics for AA/EEO reports and to
improve opportunities for employment of women and minorities in accordance with
the University’s affirmative action goals.
10. Before candidates are invited to the
campus for interviews:
The EEO/Affirmative Action
procedures employed in the search must be approved. In practice, the school/department completes and forwards
the EEO/AA Form I and the Faculty Search Applicant Summary form to the dean of
the college for review and approval. The
Dean’s office forwards the documents to the Provost’s office for review and
approval.
After
the search procedures have been approved, the Provost’s office notifies the
school/department that a candidate may be scheduled for a campus visit.
11. Schools/departments are expected to
make every effort to economize on travel and entertainment expenses by limiting
the number of campus visits whenever possible. Funds are budgeted in the office
of the Provost for bringing candidates to campus for formal interviews (i.e.,
airfare, mileage, lodging, meals, etc.), as well as entertainment expenses incurred
by the school/department. The Dean should be contacted concerning the
departmental allocation for candidate expenses. Paperwork for candidate travel
expenses and reimbursement for entertainment expenses should be processed
through the dean to the Provost’s office.
1. A criminal background check must be
conducted for the top candidate prior to submission of a recommendation letter.
The school/department is
responsible for sending the candidate’s name, email information and position
number applied for to the Provost’s Office.
An electronic invitation will be sent to the candidate requesting online
submission of the background release information. The Provost’s Office will transmit results to
the Dean and Department Chair.
2. All recommended appointees are
expected to meet the Southern Association criteria for faculty (i.e., have
completed at least 18 graduate semester hours in the teaching field and hold at
least a master’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university). In
exceptional cases, outstanding professional experience and demonstrated
contributions to the teaching discipline may be presented in lieu of formal
academic preparation. Such exceptions must be justified in writing by the
chair/dean to the Provost/Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs.
2. When the department chair (or the
dean in a non-departmentalized school) is ready to recommend the appointment of
a new faculty member, he/she shall transmit a recommendation that includes the
following:
a) Name and address of candidate. Position number for the position to be
filled.
b) Action to be taken (proposed rank,
salary, number of years credit to be granted toward the tenure probationary
period, and any special conditions of employment.)
c) Evaluation of the candidate. Explain
why the candidate was chosen over others interviewed for the position. Include
an estimate of the candidate’s background and qualifications as reflected in
the vita.
d) Conclusion. Explain how the
candidate will fit into the teaching and research efforts of the
school/department. For example, if the candidate will fill a qualitative gap in
the school/department, designate the area and explain how the candidate’s
qualifications will fit the school/department’s needs.
e) A completed EEO/Affirmative
Action Form II* containing information on the candidates interviewed.
f)
The
candidate’s vita.
The
recommendation for appointment (prepared by the department chair) is forwarded
to the dean. The dean shall then forward the recommendation to the Provost by
way of a cover letter, which may confirm the information contained in the
department’s recommendation or provide additional information as appropriate.
3. The Provost issues an official
letter of appointment and contract to the candidate.
4. Once a candidate has accepted an
offer, the following documents must be forwarded to the office of the Provost
within two weeks of acceptance.
a) Completed EEO/Affirmative Action Form
III* containing information on others
extended.
b) Completed Faculty Search
Applicant Summary containing reasons why each applicant was rejected/hired.
c) All vitae, letters of
recommendation, and correspondence relating to all applicants for the
position. Each
applicant’s materials should be in a separate letter-size folder with the
applicant’s name on the tab.
Please sign below
upon completion of all search procedures and return this form to the Provost’s
Office.
I verify
that all search procedures have been followed and all required documentation
has been submitted to the Provost’s Office.
Department
or Search Committee Chair Date
*EEO/AA
Forms I, II and III, the Faculty Search Applicant Summary format, and other
required forms are available in the offices of the Academic Dean and the
Provost or in the Academic Affairs Handbook online.
Provost 11/2005
Revised 10/2006
Revised 11/2007
Revised 03/2008
Revised 04/2008