BRYN MAWR COLLEGE

1. The Faculties of the College
   According to the Plan of Governance for Bryn Mawr College (henceforth Plan of Governance), Bryn Mawr has consists of three schools and has three faculties. The Faculty of Arts and Sciences has authority over academic matters connected with the Undergraduate College and the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. The Faculty of Social Work and Social Research has authority over academic matters connected with the Graduate School of Social Work and Social Research. The General Faculty has authority over all academic matters not specifically delegated to the Faculty of Arts and Sciences or the Faculty of Social Work and Social Research. Membership in the General Faculty is described in Plan of Governance III.

   The Plan of Governance, the By-Laws of the General Faculty, adopted in 2006, and various other sets of by-laws and rules provide detailed information on the functions, procedures, and rules of the respective faculties of the College.

2. Faculty meetings
   The Faculty of Arts and Sciences, the Faculty of Social Work and Social Research, and the General Faculty each meet regularly throughout the academic year. Meeting times are established in their respective by-laws and circulated in a mailing from the Provost's Office each academic year and are posted. Special meetings may be called as specified in the respective by-laws.

3. Faculty committees
   Each member of the faculty is expected to share and participate in the administration of the department and the College. One of the ways in which this community service is rendered is through participation in faculty meetings and in faculty committees. Depending on the nature of the committees, faculty may either be appointed or elected to serve.

   The committee system is structured so that members' terms are staggered; election of only a few new members at a given time ensures continuity of function. Faculty members do not normally serve on committees during years in which they are on leave for one or more semesters; their replacements are selected by the appropriate process described above. Information about the composition and charge of standing committees is available in the by-laws of the respective faculties. The current membership of College committees is posted.

4. Departmental and program organization
   As provided for in the Plan of Governance III.6.a, "Each department or program shall select or elect a Chair from among its members, subject to approval by the Provost in consultation with the President. In extraordinary circumstances, the Provost, in consultation with the President and with the members of the department or program, and, to the extent the Provost deems it appropriate, with other members of the Faculty, may remove the Chair so selected or elected. If a department or program does not have a Chair for more than 3 months, the Provost will appoint a Chair for that department or program. A Chair of a department or program will be appointed for a term that normally shall be 3 years, which term may be renewed only in accordance with the procedures set forth." The responsibilities of the Department Chairs are described elsewhere.

Appointments, Reappointments, and Promotion

1. Academic ranks and titles
   • Instructor
     An appointment to the faculty at this rank is normally reserved for an individual having an excellent prior academic record and limited teaching experience. Instructors normally do not hold the Ph.D. degree.
   • Lecturer, including Senior Lecturer
     An appointment to the faculty at this rank is normally limited to individuals who have completed the standard commonly expected of specialists in the field (for example, the degree of Ph.D. or other terminal degree) or who have had extensive prior teaching experience.
   • Assistant Professor
     Appointment or promotion to this rank is limited to those whose training in their discipline has been completed to the standard commonly expected of specialists (for example the Ph.D. or other comparable terminal degree). Reappointment to this rank is limited to those members of the faculty who demonstrate and/or promise excellence in teaching and scholarly achievement and who serve the College well. In general, Assistant Professors are ranked faculty in tenure track positions. In some rare cases, faculty members may be appointed to non-tenure-track visiting assistant professorships with multi-year terms.
   • Associate Professor
     In addition to the requirements for Assistant Professor, an appointment or promotion to the rank of Associate Professor is granted to individuals showing excellence and maturity in teaching; substantial scholarly activity (including a corpus of publications; research; and, where appropriate, professional activity beyond the campus, e.g. participation in professional societies); and service to the College community.
   • Professor
     Distinguished scholarly activity, excellent teaching, departmental and College leadership and community service are usually required for promotion to or appointment at this rank.

2. Terms of Appointment
   Terms of appointment are officially stated in the Plan of Governance III.8. Offer letters, written by the Provost and confirmed in subsequent letters of appointment, specify the term of the initial appointment. Reappointment depends on authorization, in turn, by the department, the Committee on Appointments, the President and the Board of Trustees. Initial appointments may be made for terms of one semester (in the case of an Instructor or Lecturer) to four years (Assistant Professor), after which they may lapse or be renewed.

3. Types of Appointment
   
   • Continuing Non-Tenure Track
     The College makes continuing non-tenure track appointments in a number of departments and programs, principally in the Arts, in the sciences and in the foreign languages, as described elsewhere. These appointments may be full- or part-time, and are at the rank of Instructor, Lecturer, or Senior Lecturer. Terms range from one year to six years, depending on rank.

   • Tenure and Tenure Track Appointments
     Tenure track appointments are explicitly stated to be such in the Provost's offer letters. Faculty members hold their positions with tenure once they have completed the full-time equivalent number of years of service to the College specified for each rank in the Plan of Governance III.8.a. Both full-time and part-time members of the tenure track faculty may acquire tenure.

     Initial reappointment to a tenure track position does not imply that tenure will be awarded. A number of factors are important to a tenure decision. These include but are not limited to: 1) programmatic and curricular considerations; 2) financial and enrollment factors; 3) the College's performance standards for faculty; and 4) changes in the College's missions, policies, or priorities. Satisfactory performance by a tenure track candidate does not guarantee granting of tenure.

   • Interim Appointments
     The term "interim faculty members" covers those positions previously referred to as "temporary," or "adjunct," or "visiting." It covers all faculty who are not in tenured, tenure track or continuing non-tenure track positions. Interim faculty are typically appointed at the rank or Instructor (those with the degree of B.A. or M.A.) or Lecturer (Ph.D., MFA). Interim positions are term appointments, typically for a semester or a year, and occasionally for several years, as specified in the offer letters. Apppointments on an interim basis cannot exceed six years, according to the Plan of Governance III.8.f
   Back to the top.

4. Procedures for the Review of Faculty
   
   • Reappointment, Tenure, and Promotion
     The Committee on Appointments has adopted a detailed set of guidelines for the review of faculty members employed at the College. The Procedures for Review of Candidates for Reappointment and Promotion identifies the participants in each of the various appointments processes, describes their individual responsibilities, and sets the steps and timetables for these appointments decisions. It is important that each member of the faculty be familiar with these guidelines, both as they pertain to the individual's own career at the College and to his/her responsibilities towards colleagues in the department and allied disciplines.

   • Appeals of Decisions on Reappointment and Tenure
     The College has established processes for procedural reviews for a member of the faculty who, having by action of the Board of Trustees been denied either an initial reappointment or a reappointment with tenure, believes that a serious procedural error has occurred in the appointment review process which may have affected the deliberations of the Committee on Appointments and consequently its recommendation to the President.
     • To Guidelines for the Review of Claims of Procedural Error in Reappointment
     • To Guidelines for Review of Claims of Procedural Error in Tenure Decisions

   • Termination of Appointments
     A tenured member of the faculty may removed for physical or mental incapacity, evident incompetence in the performance of his or he academic duties, or gross conduct. The procedures for review with the purpose of termination of tenure are found in the Plan of Governance III.9.
   Back to the top.

1. Salary payment
   Bryn Mawr College operates on a fiscal year that begins on June 1. Appointments to the faculty are generally made for a nine-month year (or a fraction thereof for semester-long appointments). For faculty on continuing appointment, salaries are paid out over a twelve-month period. As of summer 2003, the twelve-month period for incoming full-time faculty members on continuing appointment is July 1 though June 30. The twelve-month period for members of the faculty on continuing appointment who were appointed before 2003 is September 1 through August 31. Faculty are paid at the end of the month. Members of the faculty are required to contact Human Resources to complete and sign W-4 and I-9 forms and to review the benefits for which they are eligible. Human Resources also asks new employees to complete personnel record cards. New members of the faculty members are required to have their monthly salary payments deposited directly into their bank accounts. Forms for this service are available in the Payroll department of the Comptroller's Office. For a description of faculty benefits, go here. Salary increases are determined annually by the President in consultation with the Provost, within guidelines established by the Board of Trustees. The Chair of the Committee on Appointments participates in the determination of full professorial merit and the Committee on Faculty Salaries and Benefits is consulted on the overall pattern of salary increases. Information on salary scales and increases is distributed each year with the letters that inform ranked and CNTT faculty members of their salaries for the coming year.
   Back to the top.

2. Summer employment
   Summer employment at Bryn Mawr College in the Summer School, on special assignment, or on research grants administered by or through the College is generally compensated at a monthly rate not to exceed one-ninth of the faculty member's base annual salary for the preceding academic year. Normally, summer annual salary will not exceed two-ninths of the base salary for two months of summer effort. Exceptions for summer salary on grants may be made in consultation with the Provost.

3. Outside employment
   Full-time members of the faculty are considered to be on full-time service to Bryn Mawr College. Normal parts of this service include writing, researching, consulting, lecturing and/or performing, public service involvement, and working with professional societies and associations. None of these is expected, however, to infringe upon the individual's teaching or other responsibilities at the College. Permission to take on additional teaching responsibilities at other institutions must be requested in writing and must be approved by the department chair and by the Provost or the President. Such requests, with approval of the department chair, should be addressed to the Office of the Provost. In those disciplines where consulting is a characteristic professional involvement, it is understood that faculty members will limit their consulting to the equivalent of one day per week or less.
   Back to the top.

4. On- and Off-Campus Consulting
   Private counseling or consultation is defined as services provided for a fee that are beyond the scope of academic employment at Bryn Mawr. It would include, but not be limited to, providing individual or group counseling to clients, providing workshops to paying clients, and other than incidental use of campus equipment or facilities to sustain a consulting relationship with third parties. Prior permission for private counseling or consulting must be obtained in writing from the Provost or the President. Even when such written permission is obtained, that permission shall not be construed as institutional sponsorship of the private counseling or consultation.

5. Foreign Nationals
   Foreign nationals are responsible for securing their own visas; meeting other requirements of the Immigration and Naturalization Service, including proof of employment eligibility under the Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986; and keeping abreast of any changes in the rules and regulations which affect them. The College does not provide financial assistance for those needing visas. Questions about visa status may be addressed to the Office of International Programs.

6. Retirement
   The College may offer financial incentive packages to tenured faculty member who wish to retire or leave the institution. There are, however, no guarantees of such packages or of their specifics. Any member of the faculty interested in considering plans for retirement should contact the Provost.

In order to discourage such relationships, in acting on complaints that come to the College's attention, it will be presumed that any complaint of sexual harassment by a student against a faculty member or teaching assistant is valid if sexual relations have occurred between them. This presumption is not irrebuttable, but will be difficult to overcome. In short, any faculty member or teaching assistant enters at his or her peril into sexual relationships with a student. Complaints of sexual harassment are governed by the Policy on Sexual and other Forms of Harassment and Discrimination.

Back to the top, to the Handbook's Table of Contents, to the Provost's website.

Maintained by the Office of the Provost.
Posted Summer 2001.
Updated Summer 2006.