A Note to Dossier Preparers
Academic Personnel Dossier Preparers:
- Never use staples or paper clips within the dossier.
- The faculty member must initial pages 3-7 of the data summary and
the entire bibliography only as well as sign and date the "before"
and "after" certification pages.
The vote page, letters of evaluation, and student letters are confidential
and may not be viewed by the individual faculty member. A faculty member
should receive redacted copies of evaluation letters when they are part
of a case.
- Please review your Departmental Assessment Letter (Chair’s
Letter) for the following important details:
The opening paragraph should clearly state the following information:
- candidate’s name
- present title and step
- proposed title and step
*if it is, an acceleration or deceleration the number of
years at present step
- effective date of action
Individuals who have written evaluations should not be named in the
letter of assessment.
For all actions, the letter should be divided into four sections addressing
the following criteria:
| 1. |
Teaching |
| 2. |
Research and other creative work |
| 3. |
Professional activity, and |
| 4. |
University and public service |
Obvious problems and/or weaknesses should be addressed in the letter.
There may be a simple explanation for the problem (i.e., a
negative outside letter, low teaching evaluations or research productivity),
and it is recommended that these issues be addressed in the chair's
letter. It will save time by eliminating the need for reviewing agencies
requesting further clarification or information during the review process.
Accelerated Actions:
Justification for an accelerated advancement must be clearly documented
in the recommending letter. There must be a significant burst of activity
or major accomplishments that have taken place since the last review
to justify an acceleration.
Decelerated Actions:
Decelerated actions must also be clearly defended in the recommending
letter. There should be a specific reason given for the deceleration.
- Check for Adequate Extramural Referees
Referees should be of appropriate rank with research credentials and
from quality institutions. It is essential that there be a balance between
nominees suggested by the candidate and those named independently by
the chair or the departmental review committee. A list that is comprised
of persons named by the candidate and persons named jointly by the chair
and the
candidate is not adequate.
Note that requesting letters from within UCLA can have its downside,
as the Council on Academic Personnel will typically not appoint people
with letters in the file as members of the ad hoc review committee.
IMPORTANT NOTES REGARDING JOINT APPOINTMENTS
Joint appointment dossiers should be given priority in terms of completion
so that the required deadlines can be met. When preparing a dossier for
an individual who holds a joint appointment the following procedures should
be followed:
If SPH is the primary department:
In the "Department" section on the cover sheet list both the
SPH Department and the other Department.
As the primary department, you are responsible for obtaining the secondary
department’s vote, department assessment, and signed "after"
certification page. These documents must be included in the original dossier
when forwarded to the Dean.
If SPH is the secondary department:
Dossiers for faculty who have secondary appointments in SPH should be
obtained from the primary department. SPH department should complete a
vote page, SPH department assessment letter, and signed "after"
certification page. The SPH review documents as well as any relevant teaching
material should be forwarded to the primary department for inclusion in
their dossier. Dossiers must include signed after certification pages
from both departments.
Joint Appointment Waiver
See Appendix
15, of the CALL for policies and procedures on joint appointments.
A faculty member holding a "without salary" joint appointment
in a secondary department may request in writing that the secondary department
consider waiving participation in her/her personnel actions. This request,
addressed to the Chair of the secondary department will be considered
and voted on by the full faculty. By way of this waiver, the faculty member
also gives up the right to vote on all departmental personnel actions.
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