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UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN COLLEGES DEPARTMENT OF COMPUTER SCIENCE, ENGINEERING, PHYSICS AND ASTRONOMY (CSEPA) BYLAWS Adopted by department: Apr 6, 2002 Approved by Executive Committee: Jan 23, 2004 Preface…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….2 Department Membership and Voting Rights…………………………………………………………………………...2 Departmental Structure and Operation…………………………………………………………………………………..2 Teaching and Evaluations……………………………………………………………………………………………………………..4 Criteria for Appointments, Merit Increases, Tenure, and Promotions……………………………..5 Emeritus Status Policy………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….8 CSEP Bylaws Page 1 of 8 UW COLLEGES — CSEPA DEPARTMENTAL BYLAWS PREFACE These bylaws, upon adoption by two-thirds of the voting members present, will become the operating rules for the department, within the framework of the UW Colleges’ policies (especially Senate #501), UW System policies, Board of Regents regulations, and state laws. The bylaws are normally amended through the same process. They may also be temporarily amended by a two-thirds vote of the Executive Committee of the department, at which point they will become the operating bylaws of the department, within the framework of the UW Colleges’ policies, until the next meeting of the full department. I. DEPARTMENT MEMBERSHIP AND VOTING RIGHTS A. Any person with an appointment of more than half-time (50% for faculty, 40% for IAS) in this department is considered a member of the department and will have full voting privileges. B. Any person with an appointment of exactly half-time in the department will be granted such privileges upon a request that CSEP alone be his/her "home" department. The acceptance of a transfer person (who has prior service in another department) may exclude seniority, tenure, or other acquired benefits. C. Persons with appointments of less than half-time are welcome at department meetings and training opportunities. They can enter into discussions and may be granted full voting privileges by majority vote at a department meeting. D. Department business may be conducted at a distance by electronic or other means. However, binding votes by the department or committees must reach a majority of all eligible members, not all voting members. For example, a committee with 9 members may not pass or fail an action with 3 positive and 2 negative email votes, but could pass an action with 5 positive and 0 negative e-mail votes. II. DEPARTMENTAL STRUCTURE AND OPERATION A. Eligibility With the exception of the Department Chair, Vice Chair and Executive Committee as noted below, all departmental committees and offices are open to any member of the department. Participation in departmental administration by IAS department members is entirely voluntary and no such member should feel pressured to serve on committees. If no IAS is willing to serve on a committee in a given year, the position should be filled by a faculty member. B. Department Chair The Department Chair must be a tenured faculty member of the department. Election of the Department Chair will normally be for a three-year period. Normally the Vice Chair will take over the office of Department Chair after two transitional years (see below). In the event that a Department Chair unexpectedly leaves office before the end of their three-year term, a new Department Chair will be elected in the same manner as the Vice Chair. The Department Chair is responsible for setting up and conducting meetings, recruiting for vacancies, coordinating visits, etc. as set forth in other policies. CSEP Bylaws Page 2 of 8 C. Vice Chair The Vice Chair must be a tenured faculty member. Election of a Vice Chair will normally take place at the Spring department meeting in the Department Chair's first year in office. The Vice Chair will normally succeed the Department Chair after a two-year transitional period, at which point the Department Chair will normally become the Vice Chair for one year. In this way a transition is made at both the beginning and the ending years of a Department Chair's term and there is always a Vice Chair in office. The Vice Chair is elected by signed ballot vote by all departmental members present. Nominations for the Vice Chair are accepted from the floor. The responsibilities of an incoming Vice Chair during the two-year transitional period include becoming familiar with all matters of the department, including procedures, curriculum and personnel issues. The Vice Chair may also assist the Department Chair in an official capacity in any mutually agreed upon manner. The responsibilities of an outgoing Vice Chair are consultative only, assisting the new Department Chair as they exercise the duties of their office. D. Executive Committee The members of the Executive Committee are appointed by the Department Chair from among the tenured faculty members of the department. This Committee will consist of nine (9) members, generally following a rotation from the roster, one of which must be the Department Chair. The Department Chair will be the ex-officio committee chair. The Executive Committee is responsible for retention, promotion, and tenure considerations. A member may not participate in matters in which he/she is the subject. E. Evaluation Committee The members of the Evaluation Committee are appointed by the Department Chair. This Committee will consist of six (6) members, one of which must be the Department Chair. Whenever possible, the Committee should include at least one member from each of the three disciplines, and one member of the IAS and one member of the previous Evaluation Committee for carryover. The Evaluation Committee will arrange for student input and do the merit exercise when requested or required. IAS members may participate in the evaluation of faculty and IAS and may vote in the evaluation of other IAS, but will not have a vote in the evaluation of faculty. F. Professional Development Committee The members of the Professional Development Committee are appointed by the Department Chair. This Committee will consist of four (4) members, one of which must be the Department Chair. Whenever possible, the Committee should include at least one member from each of the three disciplines, and one member of the IAS. The Professional Development Committee will issue calls for proposals and oversee disbursal of departmental professional development funds, according to departmental procedures. The committee chair will maintain a record of professional development awards made during the fiscal year and assist the Department Chair in assuring that the budget is spent appropriately. G. Disciplinary Committees There shall be three disciplinary committees: the Computer Science Committee, the Engineering Committee and the Physics and Astronomy Committee. The members of each committee are appointed by the Department Chair. Whenever possible, each committee will consist of three (3) tenure-track faculty members who are teaching at least half-time in the discipline, augmented with an additional member of the IAS, bringing the membership to four (4). CSEP Bylaws Page 3 of 8 The disciplinary committees will review curricular matters such as new course offerings, articulations, and catalog descriptions, recommending changes to the chair or the department as appropriate. All distance education (DE) matters relative to the disciplines are considered by these committees. The committees will assist the chair in reviewing the credentials of potential IAS instructors and participate in the search for tenure-track faculty hires in their discipline. H. Other The Department Chair or, by motion, the membership can establish other special committees as needed. III. TEACHING AND EVALUATIONS A. Workload 1. A full teaching load will be twelve (12) contact hours per semester, for all disciplines of the department, in accordance with Senate #601 sections II.C.1 and II.A.1. When circumstances warrant, exceptions may be made with the approval of the Department Chair and the instructor. 2. Where course credits and/or split appointments make it impossible to meet these exact values, good faith efforts will be made to even things out over a year or more. 3. IAS members may teach up to, but not more than fifteen (15) contact hours per semester without the permission of the Department Chair. 4. No department member may teach more than five (5) contact hours via distance education per semester without the permission of the Department Chair. B. Class Sizes 1. Computer Science programming classes will be limited to 25 students; non-programming classes will be limited to 35 students. 2. Engineering classes will be limited to 25 students. 3. Physics and Astronomy lecture sections will be limited to 35 students. 4. Lecture or lab sections in any discipline requiring instruction in a laboratory will also be limited by the number of apparatuses or stations. 5. Exceptions to these enrollment limits must be approved by the Department Chair in consultation with the instructor. C. Visitations 1. The Department Chair will arrange visits to all faculty during their probationary period as required, and otherwise as circumstances may warrant. The Department Chair will arrange visits to all new IAS and all new Distance Education instructors (faculty or IAS) during their first semester of teaching and otherwise as required by policy. 2. In addition to visiting a class or classes, the visitor is expected to looking over class materials, talking over strengths and weaknesses, etc. 3. The actual date of the visit will be arranged between the visitor and visitee, with the Dean and Department Chair being advised of the decision. During the in-class observation, the visitor may not take part in any way. CSEP Bylaws Page 4 of 8 4. The visitor will report his/her observations in writing within two weeks to the Department Chair, the faculty member visited, the Campus Dean, and the chair of the appropriate Campus Committee. D. Student Input 1. In cases of tenure or promotion, the Department Chair will arrange for a survey of former students. This survey will be used by the Executive Committee. 2. For the mandatory Colleges' evaluation, all members are expected to comply, IAS included. Each year, the department will decide whether or not to include its own survey form. 3. In the semesters when the Colleges' form is not used, a department instrument may be required. 4. Distance education courses must be included in the standard evaluation process, and may be evaluated by an additional mechanism as well. IV. CRITERIA FOR APPOINTMENTS, MERIT INCREASES, TENURE, AND PROMOTIONS Criteria for appointments, merit increases, tenure, and promotions are established by the department within the Colleges' guidelines, especially Senate #501. A. Criteria for Appointment of Probationary Tenure-Track Faculty 1. Instructor. Probationary appointments at the rank of Instructor may be made for those individuals who have not completed a master's degree with a major in the subject of their major teaching responsibility. The letter of appointment should clearly state the academic credentials accepted for initial appointment and additional academic expectations to be met for retention, tenure, and promotion in rank. Progress toward degree completion shall be included in the third-year tenure-progress review and shall be considered in annual retention considerations. 2. Assistant Professor. Applicants must possess at least a master's degree with a major in the subject of their major teaching responsibility. Understandings regarding terminal degree completion shall be included in the letter of appointment. At times when there is the need to waive this standard (e.g., a limited employment pool) the letter of appointment should clearly state the academic credentials accepted for initial appointment and additional academic expectations to be met for retention, tenure, and promotion in rank. Applicants should also show promise of fulfilling the functions of the University of Wisconsin Colleges. 3. Associate Professor. Appointments at the rank of Associate Professor may be made in exceptional circumstances with the approval of the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs for individuals who have achieved at least that rank at another accredited college or university. B. Criteria for Merit Increases 1. Evaluation of faculty and IAS members for the purposes of determining merit shall be based primarily upon the materials submitted in the appropriate institutional report. Merit increase recommendations should be based only on performance during the previous two years. 2. Concerning Teaching. Account will be taken of a faculty member's activity in curriculum development and innovation; experimentation in and development of new classroom techniques for more effective teaching; participation in conferences, seminars, institutes, etc. concerned with both content and technique for the improvement of instruction. These criteria among others will be used to judge effective teaching. CSEP Bylaws Page 5 of 8 3. University and Community Service. The department will consider all university service and disciplinerelated community service and evaluate them based on criteria developed by each year's Evaluation Committee. Community service could include teaching courses and other activities provided through Continuing Education/Extension. University service could include advising of students. 4. Professional Growth. The following are examples of activities which illustrate ongoing professional development: research and publication of results; participation in professional projects, institutes, seminars, and symposia (particularly directing such efforts); additional coursework; papers read at meetings; consulting; acting as referee for professional journals; significant work in course improvement; and development of new courses. C. Criteria for Tenure The Executive Committee shall recommend tenure for any nominated member of the teaching faculty meeting the following requirements: 1. Consistently Effective Teaching. The candidate has compiled a record of teaching effectiveness and has skillfully fulfilled teaching responsibilities. The department's evaluation shall be based on the following: a. Surveys of present and former students. b. Classroom visit reports. c. The candidate's teaching philosophy statement. This should include but not be limited to the candidate's strengths and weaknesses as well as teaching goals and the methodology used to achieve the goals. d. Other documentation as may be provided by the candidate or other sources. Examples of documentation deemed useful by the department are: sample course syllabi, quizzes and exams; student portfolio or project materials; receipts of special recognition for outstanding teaching ability and/or teaching awards; student evaluations; and participation in teaching-related activities described under the section on merit increases. 2. Professional Growth. In addition to effective teaching, the candidate has presented evidence of professional development through any of the activities described below: a. Research (including research on teaching methods) and publication of results. b. Active participation in teaching organizations, and in committees which promote interest in, or understanding of, discipline related activities, on a local, departmental, or university-wide level. c. Active participation beyond attendance in professional projects, institutes, seminars, and symposia (particularly directing such efforts). d. Papers read at state, regional, or national meetings of professional associations. e. Consulting. f. Acting as referee for professional journals. g. Other contributions recognized by one's professional peers external to the UW Colleges. The Executive Committee's evaluation shall be based on documentation provided by the candidate or other sources. CSEP Bylaws Page 6 of 8 3. Professional Service. The candidate has demonstrated significant achievement in one or both of the following. a. University Service. (As described in B.3.) The Executive Committee's evaluation shall be based on documentation provided by the candidate and/or other sources. b. Community Service. Same as 3.a above. 4. The candidate has received the terminal degree or the academic preparation as indicated in the letter of appointment. In case of outstanding professional accomplishment widely recognized in the discipline, or in case where, at the time of hiring, it was not specified as a requirement for promotion, this requirement may be waived. 5. Before o positive recommendation for tenure can be made, the candidate must have a substantive presentation at a departmental meeting within the previous 2 years. D. Criteria for Promotion in Rank 1. Assistant Professorship. Barring substantive evidence which would make the recommendation inadvisable, the department shall recommend Assistant Professor rank for any member of the teaching faculty below that rank who meets anyone of the following requirements: a. has tenure; b. holds a terminal degree in the field where the bulk of teaching is done, or completed the academic preparation indicated in the letter of appointment and demonstrated satisfactory progress toward the tenure criteria for teaching; c. has made an extraordinary contribution to the Colleges. 2. Associate Professorship. The Executive Committee shall recommend the rank of Associate Professor for any member of the teaching faculty at the rank of Assistant Professor who meets all criteria for tenure. 3. Professorship. The Executive Committee shall recommend the rank of Professor for any member of the teaching faculty at the rank of Associate Professor who meets the following requirements: a. The candidate possesses a terminal degree in his/her discipline. In a case of outstanding accomplishment widely recognized in the discipline, or in case where, at the time of hiring, it was not specified as a requirement for promotion, this requirement may be waived. b. The candidate has shown sustained effectiveness in teaching, as described in the criteria for tenure. c. The candidate continued his/her professional activities since promotion to Associate Professor, accumulating a record of outstanding contributions in one or both of the following: (i) Research or significant expository publications (which may include research on teaching methods). (ii) Other professional contributions in his/her discipline which are recognized by his/her professional peers external to the UW Colleges (e.g., publication of a textbook, significant positions and active participation in professional organizations, presentations to professional groups). d. The candidate demonstrated outstanding achievement in one or both of the following: (i) Effective leadership within the campus and department, or at a Colleges-wide or System level. CSEP Bylaws Page 7 of 8 (ii) Extensive public service within the community in areas related to his/her academic expertise or professional competence. This could include courses and other professional community service activities provided through Continuing Education Extension. V. EMERITUS STATUS POLICY Criteria for granting Emeritus status to retiring faculty are established by the department in conjunction with Colleges' guidelines listed in Senate #507. The following criteria complement the minimum criteria listed in Senate #507 and are intended to allow distinguished retiring faculty to remain active contributors to their discipline and the University as well as recognize significant past contributions to the department. The criteria listed below shall be reviewed periodically but will remain in force unless modified by action of the department's Executive Committee; any changes shall be communicated by the Department Chair to the Emeritus faculty member in writing. A. Criteria and Procedures for Emeritus Status Any member of the department may nominate a retiring faculty for Emeritus status. This may be granted by the Executive Committee of the department with a simple -majority vote. The department's positive recommendation will then be forwarded to the appropriate College's Dean and Steering Committee for further deliberations. A negative departmental recommendation shall also be sent to the appropriate College's Dean and Steering Committee and the Vice-Chancellor, and no further action shall be taken. In determining Emeritus status, the existing procedures and timetable used for promotion recommendations (as listed in Senate #501) will be followed. The Executive Committee shall grant Emeritus status to a retiring faculty meeting the following requirements. 1. The candidate has at least ten (10) years of service in the department. 2. The candidate has compiled an overall record of distinguished service, and shows interest in continuing his/her contributions to the discipline or the University. B. Rights and Responsibilities of Emeritus Faculty 1. Emeritus faculty shall have no voting rights in the department, unless by virtue of an IAS position, as outlined elsewhere. 2. Emeritus faculty shall not hold any elected departmental position. However, they may be appointed to a position, with no voting privileges, by the Department Chair. 3. Emeritus faculty may participate in department activities by securing the permission of the Department Chair. 4. Emeritus faculty who want to continue work on a project or start a new one related to their discipline shall be supported by the department on an equal basis as other faculty. The departmental structure shall also be available to them in their pursuit of professional development related to their discipline. The only requirement for such support is that they present the results of their work during department meetings. 5. Emeritus faculty must follow all appropriate rules applicable to other faculty. CSEP Bylaws Page 8 of 8