FACULTY EMPLOYMENT
APPOINTMENT

Definitions

Regular Faculty: Individuals holding tenured or tenure-track appointments as professor, associate professor, assistant professor, and instructor. Appointees to these ranks shall commit fifty percent or more of their time to the educational and scholarly endeavors of the University and shall have all the privileges and responsibilities of faculty members. They are appointed by the Chancellor upon recommendation of the appropriate dean or campus director. Appointees to these positions are eligible for consideration for promotion, award of tenure, and sabbatical leaves. Regular faculty members may be appointed to joint appointment positions. These individuals receive compensation from two or more cost centers within the University system. Their academic rank and evaluations for retention, promotion, and tenure purposes are controlled by the cost center that has the greatest proportion of the faculty member’s time or effort, usually more than fifty percent.

Administrators with Academic Rank: Individuals whose primary responsibilities are administrative may be appointed with academic rank to positions within the University upon consultation with and recommendation of the appropriate UAS program faculty. Individuals appointed to administrative positions with academic rank will have academic/professional credentials comparable to those held by regular faculty. Administrators with academic rank are not required to stand for promotion or award of tenure; however, if they choose to apply for consideration based on their faculty activities and contributions to their discipline, they must undergo the full faculty evaluation process. Administrators with academic rank are not eligible to apply for regular sabbatical leave or to serve on faculty committees related to faculty appointments, retention, promotion, tenure, or sabbatical leave.

Graduate Faculty: Regular or special faculty may apply to the Graduate Faculty for graduate faculty status. Graduate faculty have two categories of membership: full and associate. Full membership requires: (1) a continuing contract; (2) a doctorate in the field appropriate to the area of graduate teaching assignment; (3) participation in the University’s graduate program through teaching or supervision of graduate students; (4) evidence of a commitment to research. Associate membership is available to those faculty members who do not qualify for full membership. Associate membership is available on a one-year basis and must be applied for annually.

Adjunct Faculty:  For purposes of the United Academics-Adjuncts Collective Bargaining Agreement, "adjunct faculty" are faculty who are employed by the University of Alaska whose exclusive professional appointment is to teach one or more courses of up to and including 15 credit hours (as defined in Board of Regents Policy P04.04.030) or other academic assignment of less than 50 percent of a full-time appointment in an academic year or whose exclusive professional appointment is at least 10 but no more than 19 hours per week of instructional activity in a traditional classroom program for periods at least a semester or equivalent in length. They are appointed by the Chancellor upon recommendation by Faculty Chairs or by discipline-related, tenure-track faculty to the Dean. Adjunct faculty members will have academic/professional credentials comparable to those held by regular faculty. Recommendations for adjunct faculty status are due to the Dean by February 15.

Affiliate Faculty perform services for the University but may or may not receive compensation from the University, may be appointed as affiliate professor, affiliate associate professor, affiliate assistant professor, or affiliate instructor. They are appointed by the Chancellor upon recommendation by Faculty Chairs to a Campus Director. Affiliate faculty members will have academic/professional credentials comparable to those held by regular faculty. Recommendations for affiliate faculty status are due to the Dean by February 15.

Non-tenure track and Visiting Term Facultymay replace regular faculty members who are on leave for a semester or a full academic year, or in instances where time constraints prevent adequate recruitment. Individuals with the appropriate credentials and experience may be appointed for a specific period as a non-tenure-track faculty member with the rank of professor, associate professor, assistant professor, or instructor. Individuals who have faculty rank from another institution may be appointed for a specific period as a visiting professor, visiting associate professor, visiting assistant professor, or visiting instructor. Both categories are appointed by the Chancellor upon recommendation by Faculty Chairs to the Dean or by discipline-related, tenure-track faculty to a Campus Director. Non-tenure-track and visiting faculty will have academic/professional credentials comparable to those held by tenure-track faculty. Unless otherwise stated in the letter of appointment, all nontenure- track and visiting appointments end automatically on June 30 of each year unless an appointment of more than one year has been approved by the appropriate University program faculty. Nontenure-track and Visiting faculty appointments may be offered for periods of up to three years and may be renewed.

Research Faculty participate in the University’s academic program, but their primary professional efforts are devoted to grant-funded research projects, may be appointed to the rank of research professor, research associate professor, or research assistant professor. They are appointed by the Chancellor upon recommendation by Faculty Chairs to the Dean or by discipline-related, tenure-track faculty to a Campus Director. The term of appointment for research faculty will not exceed the term of a funding grant. Unless otherwise stated in the letter of appointment, all research appointments end automatically June 30. To be appointed as a research faculty member, an individual must have a record of excellence as a researcher. Excellence is defined in its usual sense; that is, as demonstrated by evidence and in the opinion of those qualified to judge, the performance in this area is “superior, surpassing goodness.”

08/07