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Modification to Tenure Committee Meeting Protocols for Academic Year 2023-2024 (PDAD&C #15)

From: Randy Boyagoda, Acting Vice-Provost, Faculty & Academic Life
Date: November 10, 2023
Re: Modification to Tenure Committee Meeting Protocols for Academic Year 2023-2024 (PDAD&C #15)

Further to PDAD&C #45 (dated February 12, 2021) and PDAD&C #24 (dated November 19, 2020), and PDAD&C#12 (dated October 28, 2022) the University and the University of Toronto Faculty Association (UTFA) have agreed that  tenure committees may continue to convene virtually, and that the decision about whether or not to hold a Tenure Committee meeting in person or virtually is a decision that should be made by the Tenure Committee Chair in conversation with Committee members.

If Tenure Committees convene virtually

  • Academic units should schedule meetings using online tools that allow secure ‘face to face’ meetings in a virtual space including ‘Teams’ or ‘Zoom’.
  • It remains the rule that all members must participate in the tenure committee meeting throughout the meeting. The Tenure Committee Chair should be firm in clarifying, at the outset of the meeting, the expectation that if one member leaves the meeting, the conversation will be suspended and will only resume when all members are present.  In terms of practical advice for the meetings themselves:
    • Suggest all members remain on camera during the meeting;
    • Have a plan (and communicate the plan) for what to do if a call is dropped.
  • It continues to be the rule that only tenure committee members should be present.
  • It is recommended that all tenure committee members participate virtually or all members participate in-person and that hybrid meetings (with some members participating virtually and some participating in person) be avoided.

Circulation of tenure dossiers as soft copies

  • Over the past number of years, we have allowed academic units to share the tenure dossier as soft copy files via OneDrive or on an approved memory stick.
  • Academic units may continue to share soft copies of tenure materials via OneDrive..
  •  Please refer to the updated guidelines on circulating tenure dossiers for more information.

Voting

  • The Policy and Procedures on Academic Appointments (PPAA) states: “Voting is to be by private ballot. When the voting is concluded, the chair of the tenure committee will announce to the committee how each member of the committee voted, and the total number of votes for and against the granting of tenure.”
  • Where members are attending virtually, they submit their formal ballot individually to the Tenure Committee chair via email.
  • Otherwise, the committee should conform to all normal processes.

Submission of tenure dossiers as soft copies to the Office of the Vice-Provost, Faculty & Academic Life (VPFAL)