In accordance with directives from the Provost's Office, the College goal is to come as close as possible to a distribution of faculty salaries that is equitable based on the cumulative professional standing and performance of each faculty member. There is no cost-of-living or other automatic across-the-board component of salary increases. In addition, the basis for salary increases is not limited to the incremental performance of the immediately preceding year. Inequities should be corrected as they become visible, to the extent that this can be achieved along with other College goals. With these things in mind, the College Faculty Merit and Salary Review Procedures consist of the following steps.

1. Submission of Annual Activities Report

Every year, each faculty member submits copies of the completed Annual Activities Report and a current Curriculum Vitae to the department Chair. The due date is usually late November or early December. In the report, the faculty member summarizes activities in the categories of teaching, research, academic advising and service.

As noted later, Assistant Professors are reviewed annually. Associate and Full Professors must be reviewed every third year, though they may choose to be reviewed more often. At the same time that they turn in the completed Annual Activities Report, each Associate and Full Professor who is not scheduled for mandatory review will indicate whether the faculty member wishes to be reviewed at this time.

2. Departmental Merit Review Committee and Evaluation

Each department, school or unit elects or otherwise establishes a Merit Review Committee, normally including representation from each of the professorial ranks. The department chair or director designates the committee's chair.

The Merit Review Committee assess the cumulative professional performance and standing of each faculty member who is being evaluated during a given year, in accordance with the criteria specified on the faculty evaluation form, taking into account both the person's total career and any recent changes in performance. These criteria are to be interpreted relative to rank and experience. (In the case of a junior faculty member, for instance, a prediction that he or she will produce original scholarship and publish with major presses or in major journals in due course is taken into account.) In addition, the evaluations of the Merit Review Committee should reflect the faculty member's Faculty Load Profile.

According to the Faculty Evaluation Report, the Merit Review Committee places each faculty member into one of three categories: Outstanding Merit, Meritorious, Needs Improvement. If the faculty member is placed into either the Outstanding Merit or Needs Improvement category, a clear demonstration of the appropriateness of this classification is required. Although most departments and units within the College use this classification scheme, some have substituted a detailed narrative of the performance of each faculty member.

Assistant Professors are reviewed annually. Associate and Full Professors need not have major reviews each year. They must be reviewed at least every third year, although they may choose to be reviewed more often. In years when Associate and Full Professors are not reviewed, the last merit review evaluation will be used until a new evaluation is done. It is within a department's discretion to decide whether or not a first-year Assistant Professor will be reviewed. New appointees at the Associate and Full Professor levels may elect not to be reviewed in their first year at the University, but should normally be reviewed in their second year.

Because merit reviews are governed by a different set of procedures and produce different end results than other sets of reviews, they are conducted separate from and in addition to other sorts of reviews. For Assistant Professors, annual merit reviews are conducted in addition to any annual reappointment reviews the department may deem necessary as well as the mandatory "major" reviews of third-year probationary faculty and the promotional review of sixth-year faculty. For Associate Professors, if the mandatory review year happens to coincide with a consideration for promotion, the merit review must be conducted in addition to the promotional review.

The results of the Merit Review Committee's evaluation are indicated on the Faculty Evaluation Report form, which is signed by the committee chair.

3. Review by the Department Chair

The department Chair reviews the Merit Review Committee evaluation, adds his or her own comments (if any), and signs the Faculty Evaluation Report form.

4. Response by the Faculty Member

The department Chair provides a copy of the Faculty Evaluation Report form to the faculty member. The faculty member adds his or her own comments, if any, signs the form and returns it to the Chair.

5. Submission of Materials to the Dean's Office

The completed reviews, along with all other supporting materials and a transmittal sheet are submitted to the Office of the Dean of Faculty. The deadline for this is approximately February 1.

6. Appeal of Merit Evaluation

Any faculty member who believes that the merit evaluation is inappropriate may appeal to the deans. Appeals are submitted through the department Chair and must reach the Office of the Dean of Faculty within ten days of the date on which the merit evaluation notifications were first made. An appointed, College-wide Merit Evaluation Appeals Committee will review appeals and advise the deans, who will respond to all appeals.

7. Salary Setting, Notification and Appeals

As soon as possible after the merit review process is completed, the deans of the College consult with department chairs concerning proposed salaries for the following year. The schedule for doing this depends, of course, on the Provost's establishing a College budget and approving specific salary recommendations. When this process is completed, the deans of the College inform each faculty member in writing of his or her salary for the forthcoming year.

Any faculty member who believes that the salary established for the next year is inappropriate may appeal to the deans. Appeals are submitted through the department Chair and must reach the Office of the Dean of Faculty within ten days of the date on which salary notifications are first made. The College deans review and respond to all appeals. Appeals beyond this level are made through established grievance procedures.

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