F.3.1 Faculty Evaluation.
The faculty evaluation process represents a comprehensive, individualized approach to reviewing and evaluating faculty. It gives power to faculty members to define their own collective professional image.
Every faculty member will enter into an evaluation agreement with their dean prior to the evaluation cycle. This agreement gives the faculty member an opportunity to frame their evaluation - within predetermined ranges - around those roles in which the faculty member will be most heavily involved during any particular evaluation cycle.
The process provides a structure for evaluating three faculty roles: (1) teaching/learning; (2) scholarly/creative/professional development activities; and (3) service to the university, the communities it serves, and the profession.
F.3.1.1 Promotions.
All faculty, including adjunct, visiting and other non-ranked faculty, are subject to some level of evaluation. Only full-time ranked faculty are eligible for promotion.
F.3.1.2 Ranks and Appointment Definitions.
UAFS recognizes differences in the professional responsibilities and credentials for faculty members who teach in traditional academic programs from those teaching in select technical programs leading to applied associate degrees and/or certificates. As a result faculty rank tracks have been developed to include the following academic ranks: professor, associate professor, assistant professor, senior instructor, and instructor. Library faculty have the following academic ranks: librarian, associate librarian, and assistant librarian. Faculty in non-ranked positions may also have working titles of any of the titles listed above preceded by visiting (e.g., visiting professor).
| UNIVERSITY RANK |
LIBRARY |
| Assistant Professor |
Assistant Librarian |
| Associate Professor |
Associate Librarian |
| Professor |
Librarian |
The complete Faculty Evaluation and Promotion System Policy document, including timelines, forms, the University Promotions Committee list, and information and tips for portfolio preparation are available online at My.UAFS.
Faculty Evaluation and Promotion System Policy questions should be referred to the Office of the Provost.
F.3.1 Updated January 2021
F.3.2 Guidelines for Evaluation of Academic Administrators.
Disclaimer: This policy is currently under development. The faculty and staff will be updated by university email when these changes have been completed and given a copy of the added section. For questions please contact the Office of the Provost.
F.3.3 Faculty Recognition and Awards.
F.3.3.1 Faculty Senate Awards.
Each year UAFS selects four (4) outstanding faculty for special recognition of their achievements. Faculty must be nominated for each award, and they can accept or decline a nomination. The three (3) awards for full-time faculty are:
- Lucille Speakman Master Teacher Award
- Excellence in Research, Scholarship, and Creative Activities Award
- Excellence in Service Award
Full-time faculty members who have completed five (5) years of teaching prior to nomination and who have not received the award in the last 10 years are eligible. Any full-time staff member at UAFS such as deans, administrators, advisors, and classified staff may nominate someone for this award.
The award for adjunct faculty is the Luella M. Krehbiel Adjunct Teaching Excellence Award. Adjunct faculty who have taught at UAFS for at least six (6) years (including summer sessions) and who have not received the award in the last five (5) years are eligible. Any full-time faculty member, dean, and adjunct faculty member can nominate someone for this award.
F.3.3.2 Lucille Speakman Legacy Endowment.
In 2010 Fort Smith Junior College alumnus Randy Wewers (‘58) established an endowment to honor Miss Lucille Speakman, arguably the most renowned professor in our school’s history. This endowment is separate from other campus awards named in honor of Miss Speakman.
Much of Miss Speakman’s success stemmed from her self-funded travels, visiting the places she taught about in Europe, Africa, and even behind the now-fallen Iron Curtain. In dedicating the 1963 yearbook to Miss Speakman, the editors wrote, “Her name, Fort Smith Junior College, and education have become synonymous.”
The Lucille Speakman Legacy Endowment was established so that UAFS faculty members may apply for a grant to fund self-guided travel, international study, curricula development, and research with the demonstrated goal of improving their classroom teaching.
Faculty may apply for this award by filling out the Speakman Endowment Grant application which is available from the Office of the Provost.
F.3.4 Institutional Review Board.
The UAFS Institutional Review Board (IRB) is responsible for the regulation and monitoring of all university research on or involving human subjects. The IRB must ensure that all federal and state regulatory requirements are met by the university.
The UAFS IRB is guided by the ethical principles regarding research involving human subjects set forth in the U.S. Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Title 45 Part 46 (45 CFR 46), Protection of Human Subjects, Subparts A through D. Those who need human subjects research certification must obtain it before applying to the IRB. There are several companies that offer this certification.
For more information and forms, see the Institutional Review Board (uafs.edu).
F.3.4 Reorganized January 2021
F.3.5 Professional Development and Travel.
F.3.5.1 Professional Development.
The university recognizes the importance of providing opportunities for growth and change at both individual and organizational levels. Professional development funds are available to support full-time faculty development and pursuit of scholarly and research activities. Colleges and departments have their own internal procedures for allocating funds for professional development. Allocation of monetary support is contingent on the availability of funds for the academic year.
F.3.5.2 Faculty Senate Professional Development Funds.
The Faculty Development Committee identifies faculty development needs; recommends faculty development activities to the senate, including but not limited to in-service; develops opportunities for faculty to share or present development activity results; recommends to the senate policies, standards, and procedures concerning learning resources, facilities, improvement of instruction, and support services related to instruction; reviews and recommends policies for faculty evaluation when requested by the administration; provides input on administrative and support function performance evaluations; carries out the evaluation process for faculty development activities; and serves as members of the campus-wide Professional Development Committee on issues of development that affect all employees. Applications for funds should be made using the Request for Professional Development Financial Support Form, which can be found on My.UAFS under Faculty Senate.
F.3.5.3 Travel Guidelines.
Travelers should plan travel in the manner that is most economical to the university. Travel expenses must be reasonable, necessary to accomplish the university’s mission, and demonstrate a benefit to UAFS. All travel must be approved prior to travel commencing. See the UAFS Travel Procedures Guide for Travel Authorization Form and more information.
F.3.5 Reorganized January 2021
F.3.6 Off-Campus Duty Assignment or Sabbatical Leave.
(System Policy 435.4)
F.3.6.1 Rationale.
Off-campus duty assignment, formerly sabbatical leave, is recognized as a means by which faculty and administrators may pursue activities which will result in professional growth and development. Because scholarly and creative endeavors are essential complements to excellence in teaching, the university encourages and supports such efforts on the part of both its faculty and its students. Such activities include research, scholarly writing, artistic projects, professional travel, improving teaching skills, or other professional experiences which will enhance professional skills and abilities that allow a faculty member or administrator to more effectively address the goals and mission of the university.
F.3.6.2 Eligibility.
Any full-time faculty member with a regular appointment who has completed six (6) consecutive years (12 semesters) of full-time service at the university or has completed six (6) consecutive years of service since completion of that faculty member’s most recent off-campus duty assignment leave is eligible to submit a proposal for off-campus duty assignment leave. The university will endeavor to approve proposals that are recommended by the provost. Decisions must include consideration of the impact on the academic programs and budgetary constraints in a given year. If the university postpones or defers an approved leave, the recipient need not reapply in order to receive off-campus duty assignment support the following year. If the off-campus duty assignment is postponed at the request of the university, the six-year period for qualification of a subsequent off-campus duty assignment will be considered as if the off-campus duty assignment had been taken in the year it was approved.
F.3.6.3 Compensation.
An off-campus duty assignment proposal may request one (1) semester of leave at full compensation or two (2) semesters of leave at 50 percent compensation. Acceptance of external grants, scholarships, or fellowships should not jeopardize an applicant’s eligibility for off-campus duty assignment leave or compensation, should be encouraged, and must comply with any applicable state laws, policies, and procedures governing concurrent employment. During the period of the off-campus duty assignment, recipients shall not engage in salaried work for another employer without approval (written consent) of the provost. The university is not responsible for providing travel or other living expenses incurred by the leave recipient.
F.3.6.4 Proposal Guidelines.
The off-campus duty assignment proposal should include a brief curriculum vita, an abstract, supporting documents (i.e., references, letters of support), and a narrative statement (five to eight pages). The narrative should be non-technical and describe the nature of the activity, the applicant’s previous preparation, and the expected outcome. It should be clear that the applicant has a reasonable likelihood of attaining the expected outcomes and that the activity will contribute to the professional development of the applicant and enhance their professional capabilities at the university.
F.3.6.5 Conditions and Responsibilities.
A recipient of a paid off-campus duty assignment will be expected to return and continue to work for the university for a period of time as statutorily required or, in the absence of a specific law, at least twice the length of the off-campus duty assignment. If an employee does not fulfill these obligations by remaining with the university for the agreed-upon period, the employee will be required to pay the university the total cost or a proportionate share of the cost of any compensation paid during the off-campus duty assignment.
F.3.6.6 Benefits and Credited Service.
Time spent on off-campus duty assignment will be considered a part of university service. While on off-campus duty assignment, recipients will continue to receive any benefits they would be otherwise entitled to receive, including consideration for salary increases, credit for years of service at the university, and leave accrual.
F.3.6.7 Reporting.
Within 60 days after returning to the campus following an off-campus duty assignment, the faculty member shall submit to their dean and the provost a report summarizing what they accomplished on the leave. A copy of the report will be placed in the faculty member’s personnel file. Within one (1) academic year of a recipient’s return, they will provide an opportunity for others in the university community to learn about the nature of the activities and results. There are a number of acceptable vehicles for this activity, including but not limited to formal and informal presentations, a public show or performance, or the dissemination of written information.
F.3.6.8 Application for Off-Campus Duty Assignment.
Application for off-campus duty assignment must be submitted in writing to the appropriate department head/director/executive director/coordinator and/or dean, provost, and chancellor. Once approved by the dean, the provost will make a recommendation to the chancellor based on a review of resources necessary to approve the request. Upon approval of the chancellor, the provost will submit the off-campus duty assignment for approval to the University of Arkansas Board of Trustees. Off-campus duty assignment requests for the coming summer, fall, and/or spring semester must be received by the provost no later than Feb. 1. Once approved by the UA Board of Trustees, faculty must complete a leave form to include beginning and end dates and type of leave.
F.3.6 Updated January 2021
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