[For a statute relating to tenure, see RCW 28B.20.130 (1)(2).]
[See Board of Regents Governance, Regent Polices, No. 2.]
Tenure is the right of a faculty member to hold his or her position without discriminatory reduction of salary, and not to suffer loss of such position, or discriminatory reduction of salary, except for the reasons and in the manner provided in the Faculty Code.
Section 25-31, April 16, 1956; S-A 73, May 24, 1985: both with Presidential approval.
| A. | Unless he or she is disqualified under any other provision of this section, a
full-time member of the faculty has tenure if: |
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| 1. | He or she is a professor or associate professor; or |
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| 2. | He or she has held full-time rank as assistant professor in the University for seven or more years and has not had his or her term of appointment extended by the Provost or received notice terminating his or her appointment. |
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| B. | Generally, recommendation for tenure (Section
25-41) is made concurrently
with recommendation for promotion to the rank of associate professor (except in the circumstances
listed in the subsequent paragraphs of this section.) |
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| C. | A faculty member does not acquire tenure under: |
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| 1. | An acting appointment, or |
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| 2. | A visiting appointment, or |
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| 3. | Any appointment as lecturer, artist in residence, senior lecturer, senior artist in
residence, principal lecturer, or |
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| 4. | An appointment as teaching associate, or |
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| 5. | Any appointment specified to be without tenure, or |
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| 6. | An adjunct appointment, or |
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| 7. | A research appointment, or |
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| 8. | A clinical appointment, or |
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| 9. | An affiliate appointment, or |
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| 10. | Any other appointment for which the University does not provide the salary from its
regularly appropriated funds, unless the President notifies the appointee in writing that tenure
may be acquired under such appointment. |
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| D. | Appointments to the rank of associate professor
or professor "without
tenure," as specified in Subsection
C.5 above,
are limited to not more than two consecutive appointments, each of three years' duration. The first appointment is for a basic period of three years, subject to earlier dismissal for cause.
During the second year of the initial appointment, the appointment will be considered for renewal consistent
with the provisions of Chapter 24, Section 24-41, Subsection A for assistant professors. If the associate
professor or professor is reappointed, the three-year period of reappointment must include a tenure decision
and terminal year in the event that tenure is not granted. To meet this expectation, the tenure review must be
conducted no later than the second year of the second three-year appointment; during this second term of
appointment, postponement of the tenure decision is not an option. In the case where tenure is not granted in
the mandatory fifth year, the sixth year will be the terminal year of appointment. The part-time renewal periods
provided for assistant professors in Chapter 24, Section 24-45, Subsection D do not apply to associate
professors and professors without tenure. Appointments to the rank of associate professor or professor "without tenure by reason of funding," as specified in Subsection C.10 above, are continuing appointments governed by Chapter 24, Section 24-40. |
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| E. | A faculty member with tenure may resign a portion of his or her appointment with the
agreement of his or her department chair, dean, and the President, while retaining tenure in his or
her part-time appointment. |
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| F. | A part-time assistant professor appointed pursuant to Chapter 24, Section 24-45 accumulates
eligibility for tenure under Subsection A of this section. |
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| G. | Time spent on leaves of absence from the University does not count in the accumulation of time toward tenure. | |
Section 13–31, April 16, 1956; S–A 22, April 18, 1958; S–A 25, October 29, 1959; S–A 26, December 19, 1960; S–A 32, May 8, 1967; S–A 37, February 8, 1971; S–A 41, April 3, 1972; S–A 61, February 22, 1980; S–A 67, December 5, 1983; S–A 78, December 14, 1988; S–A 81, January 30, 1990; S–A 98, June 2, 1998; S–A 124, July 5, 2011; S–A 129, April 16, 2013: all with Presidential approval.
The tenure of a faculty member who holds an administrative position, such as that of dean or department chair, extends only to the faculty position which she or he holds conjointly with such administrative position.
Section 13-31, April 16, 1956 with Presidential approval.
[For "Documentation for Recommendations for Promotions, Tenure, or Merit Increases," see Executive Order No. 45]
| A. | Tenure should be granted to faculty members of such
scholarly and professional character and qualifications that the
University, so far as its resources permit, can justifiably undertake to
employ them for the rest of their academic careers. Such a policy requires
that the granting of tenure be considered carefully. It should be a
specific act, even more significant than promotion in academic rank,
which is exercised only after careful consideration of the candidate's
scholarly and professional character and qualifications. |
| B. | Consistent
with the timelines set in Section 25-32, Subsection A.2 for full-time assistant professors and Chapter 24, Section 24-45 for part-time assistant professors, and Section 25-32, Subsection D for associate professors or
professors "without tenure," a decision shall be made in the following manner: A recommendation that the faculty member be granted or denied tenure shall be sent to the dean of the school or college. This recommendation shall be based upon a majority vote of the eligible professors and associate professors of the department, or of the school or college if it is not departmentalized. If the chair does not concur in the recommendation she or he may also submit his or her own recommendation. The dean, advised as prescribed in Chapter 24, Section 24-54, Subsection C shall then make his or her recommendation to the Provost, and if tenure is to be granted it shall be conferred by the President acting for the Board of Regents. If the faculty member's tenure is granted, the President shall so notify him or her in writing. If tenure is denied, the dean shall notify the individual in writing that the appointment will terminate at the end of the succeeding academic year. A faculty member whose tenure is denied may engage in the administrative and conciliatory proceedings described in Chapter 27, and may file a petition for review as provided in Section 25-64. If a tenure decision is postponed for reconsideration, the assistant professor's dean shall cause him or her to be notified in writing that the appointment will terminate at the end of the second succeeding academic year unless reconsideration in the meantime shall have resulted in the granting of tenure. |
| C. | If it is desired to appoint to a position with tenure other faculty members referred to in Section 25-32, the procedures for recommendation and granting described in Subsection B above shall be followed, except that a denial of tenure shall not of itself lead to termination of appointment. |
Section 13-31, April 16, 1956; S-A 59, April 23, 1979; S-A 73, May 24, 1985; S-A 83, April 30, 1991; S-A 98, May 12, 1998; S–A 129, April 16, 2013; S-A 130, June 14, 2013: all with Presidential approval.
A faculty member having tenure under the provisions of this chapter may be removed for cause from his or her position or subjected to reduction of salary only for one or more of the following reasons:
| A. | Incompetence. |
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| B. | Neglect of duty. |
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| C. | Physical or mental incapacity
to perform academic duties. |
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| D. | Unlawful discrimination or sexual harassment (see Executive
Order No. 31). |
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| E. | Scientific and scholarly misconduct, consisting of intentional
misrepresentation of credentials, falsification of data,
plagiarism, abuse of confidentiality, or deliberate violation
of regulations applicable to research (see Executive
Order No. 61). |
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| F. | Conviction of a felony. |
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| G. | Intentional and malicious interference with the scientific, scholarly, and academic activities of others. To warrant a removal for cause or reduction of salary, conduct falling within these categories must in a substantial way adversely affect the faculty member's or the victim's academic, scholarly, or professional ability to carry out his or her University responsibilities. |
Section 13-31, April 16, 1956; S-A 41, April 3, 1972; S-A 49, December 4, 1975; S-A 73, May 24, 1985: all with Presidential approval; RC, December 16, 2011.
| A. | The removal of tenured faculty, or the removal of non-tenured faculty prior to the
end of a specified term of appointment, may be effected upon program elimination within the
University. Such removals shall be termed "Removal for Reasons of Program Elimination." |
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| B. | Removal for reasons of program elimination may be effected only in conformance
with procedures set forth in Chapter 26, Section 26-41, Procedures for Reorganization, Consolidation, and
Elimination of Programs, and the provisions of this section. |
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| C. | Notification |
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| 1. | Each faculty member proposed by the dean
for removal for reasons of program elimination shall be
so notified in writing by the dean pursuant to Chapter 26, Section 26-41, Subsection B.2.f. |
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| 2. | When the President's decision to eliminate a program
becomes final pursuant to Chapter 26, Section 26-41, Subsection B.6,
and the subsequent decision is made as to which faculty
members notified under this subsection are to be
removed, each faculty member to be removed for reason of
program elimination shall be notified in writing by the
dean and the effective date of such removal shall be stated.
The dean shall deliver a copy of this notification contemporaneously
to the chair of the Adjudication Panel (Chapter 28.)
No faculty member shall be removed for reason of program
elimination prior to the end of the academic year following
the one in which a final decision is transmitted to the
faculty member. |
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| D. | Appeal Each faculty member notified of removal for reason of program elimination may engage in the administrative and conciliatory proceedings of Chapter 27. He or she may deliver an appeal to the chair of the Adjudication Panel and to the Secretary of the Faculty as provided in Chapter 28, in which case a Hearing Committee shall determine whether the faculty member was properly identified as a member of the program eliminated; whether the procedures in this section were followed; whether the decision to remove the faculty member was reasonable; and, if the faculty member so alleges, whether he or she was unlawfully discriminated against because of race, religion, color, sex, national origin, age, handicap, sexual orientation, or status as a disabled or Vietnam era veteran. |
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| E. | Placement in Another Unit The University shall make every reasonable effort to place faculty members notified of removal for reason of program elimination in other University employment for which they are qualified with comparable terms of employment. Priority in such employment shall be given to the faculty member in accordance with University and state employment procedures. In addition to the required notification period, special assignments with pay may be provided to enable the faculty member to prepare for changed employment responsibilities. |
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| F. | Reinstatement In the event that the academic program which has been eliminated is reinstated within a period of five years, new positions shall not be filled through normal appointment search procedures until removed faculty members qualified for the position have been offered reappointment on terms at least comparable to terms which applied to the position previously held. Such removed faculty members shall be given 30 calendar days to accept or decline an offer of reinstatement. |
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S-A 49, December 4, 1975; S-A 67, December 5, 1983; S-A 73, May 24, 1985; S-A 95, June 17, 1996: all with Presidential approval.
No faculty member having tenure as defined in this chapter shall be removed from his or her position or subjected to discriminatory reduction of salary until she or he has been given opportunity for a full review and hearing as provided in Sections 25-62, 25-71, or Chapter 26, Section 26-31 as applicable to the case, and in Chapter 28.
Section 13-31, April 16, 1956; S-A 73, May 24, 1985: both with Presidential approval.
[The former Sections 25-54, Financial Emergency, and 25-55, Procedures for Elimination of an Academic Program, have been renumbered and now appear as Chapter 26, Sections 26-31 and 26-41 respectively. The former Sections 25-61, Tenure Committee, 25-65, Grievance Committee, and 25-72 through 25-76, Faculty Conduct Committee, have been replaced by Chapters 27 and 28. S-A 73, May 24, 1985: all with Presidential approval.]
The policies and procedures detailed in Chapters 24, 25, and 26 are intended to ensure academic freedom and to protect the rights of the individual to careful consideration of his or her merits, and also to enhance the ability of the University and its academic units to select and maintain a faculty of the highest quality possible. Occasions may arise in which a faculty member may state that his or her academic freedom or employment rights were or will be impaired if some action or inaction of his or her academic unit or of the University as a whole is permitted, as well as occasions where the University may proceed against a faculty member. A faculty member facing such action or inaction may wish to contest the administrative behavior in question. Such a person is entitled to use the following proceedings: administrative (Chapter 27, Section 27-31), conciliatory (Chapter 27, Section 27-41), and adjudicative (Chapter 28). The University Ombud is available for consultation and advice. Cases subject to these proceedings may include allegations of unlawful discrimination because of race, religion, color, sex, national origin, age, handicap, sexual orientation, or status as a disabled or Vietnam era veteran. These proceedings serve to protect the rights both of the individual concerned and the University. In a larger sense they fulfill an important role in protecting the academic profession from infringement of the prerogatives necessary for its proper functioning; and by the same token they protect these rights and the status of the academic profession in our society by assuring that the prerogatives are not demeaned through misuse as a shelter for incompetence or neglect of duty.
S-A 73, May 24, 1985 with Presidential approval; RC, March 3, 2013.
A nontenured faculty member may be dismissed prior to the expiration of the period for which she or he was appointed for the grounds stated in Section 25-51, and in such cases the procedure described in Section 25-71 shall be followed, or for reasons of program elimination, and in such cases the procedure described in Section 25-52 shall be followed; or for reasons of financial emergency, in which cases the procedure described in Chapter 26, Section 26-31 shall be followed.
S-A 39, June 8, 1971; S-A 67, December 5, 1983; S-A 73, May 24, 1985: all with Presidential approval.
| A. | In a case in which a tenured or non-tenured faculty member alleges that he or
she has suffered discriminatory reduction in pay, or in which a non-tenured faculty member
alleges violation of the Faculty Code in connection with his or her non-reappointment,
including denial of tenure, the faculty member making the allegation may engage in the
administrative and conciliatory proceedings of Chapter 27. He or she may file a petition
for review with the Chair of the Adjudication Panel and the Secretary of the Faculty, in which
case the procedures set forth in Chapter 28 shall be followed. The petition for review may
include allegations of unlawful discrimination because of race, religion, color, sex, national
origin, age, handicap, sexual orientation, or status as a disabled or Vietnam era veteran. |
| B. | The procedures set forth in Section 25-62 shall be followed. The burden of proof shall rest with the faculty member making the allegation. |
S-A 39, June 8, 1971; S-A 55, May 25, 1977; S-A 73, May 24, 1985: all with Presidential approval.
| A. | The University is an institution having special public responsibility for
providing instruction in higher education, for advancing knowledge through scholarship and research,
and for providing related services to the community. As a center of learning, the University also
has the obligation to maintain conditions which are conducive to freedom of inquiry and expression
in the maximum degree compatible with the orderly conduct of its functions. For these purposes the
University is governed by rules and regulations which safeguard its functions, and which, at the
same time, protect the rights and freedoms of all members of the academic community. All members of
the academic community, including members of the faculty, have an obligation to comply with the rules
and regulations of the University and its schools, colleges, and departments. |
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| B. | If a member of the faculty is alleged to have violated a rule or regulation of
the University, its schools, colleges, or departments, the department chair or the dean in a
non-departmentalized school or college shall fully inform the faculty member of the nature and
specific content of the alleged violation and shall offer to discuss the alleged violation with
the faculty member and with the party raising the issue. The faculty member and the party raising
the issue may each be accompanied by one person. The matter may be concluded at this point by the
mutual consent of all parties. |
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| C. | If he or she so wishes, the department chair, the dean, or the faculty member may
initiate conciliatory proceedings at any time by contacting the University Ombud as
provided in Chapter 27, Section 27-41. |
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| D. | If a mutually agreeable resolution is not achieved under Subsections B or C of this section, and if the dean (after consultation in the case of a departmentalized school or
college with the department chair and the faculty member) determines that the alleged violation is
of sufficient seriousness to justify consideration of the filing of a formal statement of charges
that might lead to dismissal, reduction of salary, or suspension for more than one quarter, he or
she shall follow one of the following procedures: |
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| 1. | In cases concerning allegations of unlawful
discrimination or sexual harassment, the dean shall request
an investigation by the University Complaint Investigation
and Resolution Office (UCIRO) as provided in Administrative
Policy Statement 46.3. |
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| 2. | In cases concerning allegations of scientific and scholarly
misconduct as defined in Section 25-51, the dean
shall proceed as provided in Executive Order No. 61,
"Policy for Addressing Allegations of Scientific
and Scholarly Misconduct." |
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| 3. | In all other kinds of cases the dean shall appoint a
special investigating committee of three faculty members
who are not directly involved in the matter being considered.
The committee shall assist the dean in the informal and
confidential gathering of information and documentation
and shall advise the dean in its interpretation. If as
a result of the foregoing investigation the dean concludes
that further action is not merited, then the matter shall
be dropped (although a faculty member aggrieved as a result
of these activities has recourse to the conciliatory proceedings
of Chapter 27 and to the
adjudicative proceedings described in Chapter 28, Section 28-32, Subsection A). |
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| E. | If, after engaging in the procedures specified in Subsection D.2 or D.3 above, the dean concludes that further action is warranted, he or she shall deliver to the Provost a written record stating that reasonable cause exists to adjudicate charges of wrongdoing brought against the faculty member, with enough of the underlying facts to inform the Provost of the reasons for this conclusion. Upon filing of the written report with the Provost, the case shall be decided in the manner prescribed in Chapter 28. | |
S-A 36, June 17, 1970; S-A 73, May 24, 1985; S-A 86, December 8, 1992; S-A 91, July 11, 1994: all with Presidential approval; RC, June 28, 2010; RC, March 3, 2013.
For related information, see: