VIMS

Policy, Procedures, and Criteria for Appointment of Named Professorships

PPD-1305

Policy

 These procedures apply only to appointment of existing faculty members to named or endowed professorships.  Appointment of newly recruited faculty members to named professorships is part of the recruitment process and is covered under separate policies and procedures.

The Dean and Director will inform the Faculty Council of the status of all named or endowed professorships as of July 1 each year and will also inform the Council of the acquisition of new named or endowed professorships as they occur.  Appointment procedures for named professorships can be initiated by the Dean and Director or by the Faculty Council with the approval of the Dean and Director.  Search committees will be established for all named professorship appointments.

Procedures

 The Dean and Director will identify any resections associated with the appointment.  The Faculty Council will appoint a search committee to recommend faculty members for the appointment.

A. For named professorships specified within a particular discipline or department, the search committee will be established as follows. The appropriate department will elect two members, the Faculty Council will appoint one member from another department. The Faculty Council will appoint an additional member as the committee chair from the department where the appointment will reside.

B. For named professorships available for the faculty at large, including Chancellor Professor, the search committee will be established as follows. Each department will elect one member.  The Faculty Council will appoint one additional member and will also appoint the committee chair.

  1. The search committee will solicit nominations for the appointment from the faculty.
  2. The search committee will review the nominees qualifications and seek internal and external references.
  3. The search committee will recommend no more than three individuals to the Dean and Director for final selection.

  4. The FS&TR Committee will review the final selection and make a recommendation to the Dean and Director. 

  5.  The Dean and Director will forward the final recommendation to the Provost, President, and Board of Visitors for approval.

Criteria
  1. Named professorships might stipulate the discipline or subdiscipline or the rank of the individual who is to be selected. In such cases, that definition is one determining criterion.
  2. Each candidate should be tenured, unless tenure specifically is not a requirement of the particular named professorship, and of appropriate rank in the VIMS faculty.
  3. A candidate should be eminent. This term is construed to mean standing out above others; prominent; outstanding in performance or attainments; distinguished.  This eminence shall mean outstanding in terms of (a) scholarship (e.g., production of a reasonable number of significant papers as appropriate for the candidate’s field, recognition for scholarship by his/her peers at other institutions, in government, in industry, and in professional societies, (b) teaching (e.g., production of graduate students of recognized quality; meritorious instructional activity; recognized mentoring of students other than those for whom the candidate serves as major professor), and (c) governance (e.g., consistent and meritorious service to the academic community in a leadership role; consistent and meritorious service to the larger community in a leadership role).

A candidate need not be equally outstanding in all areas, but clearly should be above average in all areas.  The eminence of a candidate should be recognized outside the institute and the university and this status should be documented.

Date:   July 1, 2009

last page update: March 11, 2024 by LCS