Part Two: Guidelines for Faculty

210.05 Promotion

February 1 – Faculty self-recommendations due to Department Personnel Committee.
Note: In the case of promotion from the rank of associate professor to full professor, external reviews are required for faculty hired after 2009.

February 15 – Department Personnel Committee’s recommendations due to department chair.

March 1 – Department chair’s recommendations due to School Personnel Committee (Lecturer Review Committee).

April 1 – School Personnel Committee’s (Lecturer Review Committee’s) recommendations due to dean.

April 15 – Dean’s recommendations due to provost.

May 1 – Provost’s recommendations due to president.

May 15 – Faculty notification letters from president; copies to provost, dean, chair of School Personnel Committee (Lecturer Review Committee), department chair, and chair of Department Personnel Committee.

June 1 – Department decides promotions procedures for next year.

The promotion timeline allows for the following options:

Applicants can choose to submit one portfolio to be considered for both reappointment/continuing appointment and promotion.
Faculty are not required to apply for promotion at the time they are going up for continuing appointment.
In their portfolios, candidates who are going up for reappointment or continuing appointment must be clear in identifying whether or not they want to be considered for promotion at the same time.
Reviewers can review one portfolio and make recommendations for both reappointment or continuing appointment and promotion. The recommendations can be different. For example, a personnel committee can recommend a candidate for continuing appointment, but not recommend for promotion.

210.06 Employment Separation Policy

Purpose

The purpose of this policy is to define employee separation procedures when an employee leaves SUNY Cortland. This policy also serves to safeguard the interests of the university and the employee upon separation from employment.

Definition

This policy includes all resigning full-time and part-time employees, excluding adjunct/contingent faculty. Adjunct staff will be included in a separate policy.

Notice Requirements

All employees whose intent is to resign, including the intent to resign for retirement purposes, must provide written notice* as follows:

Classified Staff — provide at least a two-week notice addressed to Mary Saracene, Assistant Director for Benefits and Classified Employment, Human Resources, Miller Building, Room 301 and a copy to the immediate supervisor.
If an employee resigns without giving a two-week written notice prior to the last day of work, it is within the discretion of the president or designee to withhold payment for accrued and unused vacation leave in accordance with Section 23.1 of the NYS Department of Civil Service Attendance and Leave Manual.
Unclassified Faculty and Staff — provide a minimum of 30 days' written notice for resignations, including resignations for the purpose of retirement, addressed to Erik Bitterbaum, President, Miller Building, Room 408, and a copy to the immediate supervisor.
If an employee resigns without giving the full 30 days' notice, it is within the discretion of the president or designee to withhold from such employee's final check an amount equal to the employee's daily rate of pay for each day less than the required 30 days.

All resignations from employment are irrevocable. Please be sure to carefully consider all relevant facts and dates surrounding your resignation prior to submitting your notice.

* Hard copy written notice is preferred, but an email is also acceptable. Under certain situations a verbal resignation will be accepted and confirmed.

Work Obligation and Use of Accruals During Notice Period

SUNY Cortland expects that a resigning employee will continue to work through their notice period to ensure a smooth transition out of their office/department and the university. In preparing for resignation, the employee should discuss any planned use of accruals prior to formally submitting the notice of resignation.
An employee may request to use accumulated accruals during their notice period; however, accruals should not be used to cover the full notice period or major fraction thereof, and the use of accruals is subject to prior approval by management.

Lump-sum Payment of Accruals

Upon separation from state service, employees may be reimbursed for up to a maximum of 30 days, or equivalent number of hours for classified staff, of unused accrued vacation credits and part-time employees have a pro-rated maximum amount that may be reimbursed. Unused sick leave, holidays and personal leave balances are forfeited upon separation but are re-instated if the employee returns to state employment within one year.

Liquidation of Accruals During Notice Period

SUNY Cortland will not routinely approve the use of accrued leave credits during an employee's notice period, or to extend an employee's last day in pay status beyond the number of days/hours of leave accruals that would be forfeited if not used. Exceptions may be made under certain circumstances subject to the review and approval of human resources.

Example

If an employee who is resigning has 35 days of vacation accruals, subject to operational need, the university will not routinely deny the request for use of the five days needed to get the balance down to 30, which will then be paid out upon separation.

Employee Responsibilities

When an employee leaves SUNY Cortland, there will be much to address in concluding the employment relationship. This includes the employee's obligation to return all university and/or grant-sponsored supplies/property assigned to them.

The Employee Separation Checklist will guide employees through the SUNY Cortland separation process. Upon completion, this form should be signed and forwarded accordingly. Items on the checklist may not apply to all employees.

Employees should keep a copy of all documents for their records.

SUNY Cortland is not responsible for personal belongings left behind by an employee who has separated from university employment.

Supervisor/Chair Responsibilities

When an employee leaves employment with SUNY Cortland, it is the responsibility of the supervisor to help guide employee's leaving their office/department to ensure a smooth end-of-employment transition.

The Supervisor Employee Separation Checklist should be completed and will provide guidance to the supervisor for managing the employee's separation from employment with the university. Items on the checklist may not apply to all employees.

Employees should keep a copy of all documents for their records.

This policy serves as a comprehensive guide for employees separating from SUNY Cortland. An individual whose employment with the university ends, but who does not follow the employment separation process and/or return university or grant sponsored property in accordance with this policy may be subject to the following:

The university may discontinue retiree or emeritus privileges until any discrepancies have been resolved.
The university reserves the ability to cancel an employee's direct deposit and issue a check, with the purpose of communicating with the employee the obligation to return any outstanding university/grant sponsored property when the employee picks up their last paycheck.
The university has always reserved the right and will continue to commence the collection process in the event an employee who has left employment neglects to return assigned university/grant sponsored assets to their respective office/department that they are obligated to return.

210.07 Sabbatical Leaves

October

First week — Faculty member makes application for sabbatical leave to department chair.

Third week — Department chair makes recommendation to respective dean, along with explanation of how applicant's courses will be covered. If the courses will not be taught, the chair must state how students who need those courses will make timely progress toward the degree.

November

Second week — Dean makes recommendation to provost.

December

First week — Provost makes recommendation to president.

January

First week — President notifies faculty member.

Article XIII, Title E, of the Policies of the Board of Trustees makes it clear that "The objective of [a sabbatical leave] is to increase an employee's value to the University and thereby improve and enrich its program. Such leave shall not be regarded as a reward for service nor as a vacation or rest period occurring automatically at stated intervals." Article XIII, Title E also states that "the applicant will continue as a member of the professional staff for a minimum of one year upon return" from the sabbatical leave.

"It is important that chairs and other academic officers be convinced that the project proposed for a leave is of sufficient value to justify the investment which the institution makes. In my view, faculty and staff should be encouraged to seek outside funding for half salary which would then allow a full year's leave which is more beneficial than a half-year to the institution and to the individual. I note in passing that the impact on the department's workload and on the College budget is lessened, since a temporary replacement can usually be employed for the half salary remaining to the College."

(Approved by President Clark, Oct. 14, 1980)

Back to Chapter 210

210.08 Summer/Winter Session

July

Third week — The Extended Learning Office canvasses department chairs regarding course proposals for winter session offerings and summer session intent listing. Request is also made regarding necessary staffing, including visiting instructors.

October

Third week — The Extended Learning Office canvasses department chairs regarding course proposals for summer session offerings. Request is also made regarding necessary staffing, including visiting instructors.

210.09 Term and Continuing Appointments: Steps

Steps	First-year appointment	Second-year appointment	Third-year appointment	Promotion
Portfolios due to Department Personal Committee	Nov. 1	Sept. 15	Feb. 1	Feb. 1
Department Personnel Committee to department chair	Nov. 15	Oct. 1	Feb. 15	Feb. 15
Department chair to School Personnel Committee	Dec. 1	Oct. 15	March 1	March 1
School Personnel Committee to school dean	Dec. 15	Nov. 1	April 1	April 1
School dean to provost	Jan. 15	Nov. 15	April 15	April 15
Provost to president	Feb. 15	Dec. 1	May 1	May 1
President to faculty member	March 1	Dec. 15	May 15	May 15
Reply to president	10 days	10 days	10 days	10 days

If a date falls on a Saturday or Sunday, the deadline will be the following Monday.

Back to Chapter 210

CHAPTER 220: Academic Personnel Procedures

220.01 Academic Freedom
220.02 Responsibility of Faculty
220.03 Recruitment of Faculty (Selection and Appointment)
220.04 Immigration and Visa Status
220.05 Appointment of Faculty
220.06 Policies and Procedures of the Academic Faculty for Renewal of Term Appointment, Granting of Continuing Appointment and Promotion
220.07 Criteria for the Continuing Appointment and Promotion of Academic Faculty
220.08 Personnel Policies and Procedures for Full-Time Lecturers
220.09 Resignation from a University Position
220.10 Emeritus Faculty and Professional Staff
220.11 Code of Ethics
220.12 Public Officers Law, Conflict of Interest
220.13 Gifts
220.14 Plan For Discretionary Performance-Based Adjustments to Basic Annual Salary of Academic Faculty
220.15 Plan For Discretionary Performance-Based Adjustments to Basic Annual Salary of Professional Employees

220.01 Academic Freedom

"It is the policy of the University to maintain and encourage full freedom, within the law, of inquiry, teaching and research. In the exercise of this freedom faculty members may, without limitation, discuss their own subject in the classroom; they may not however, claim as their right the privilege of discussing in the classroom controversial matter which has no relation to their subject. The principle of academic freedom shall be accompanied by a corresponding principle of responsibility. In their role as citizens, employees have the same freedoms as other citizens. However, in their extramural utterances employees have an obligation to indicate that they are not institutional spokespersons." Article XI, Title I, Policies, 2001.

The [AAUP] 1990 Statement of Principles asserts the right of faculty members to speak or write as citizens, free from institutional censorship or discipline. At the same time it calls attention to the special obligations of faculty members arising from their position in the community: to be accurate, to exercise appropriate restraint, to show respect for the opinions of others, and to make every effort to indicate that they are not speaking for the institution.

The Middle States Association states that: "A sound educational environment requires a secure framework of academic freedom. Academic freedom and job security are not synonymous and should not be contingent on each other. Regardless of whether faculty members hold probational initial appointments or are on extended contract or permanent tenure, the same principles of academic freedom must apply to all. Academic freedom protects the methods of inquiry and gives one the right and the obligation as a scholar to examine all data and to question any assumption. It debars one from preconceived conclusions. It obliges a teacher to present all information fairly because it asserts the student's right to know the facts. Academic freedom does not require neutrality on the part of either an individual or an institution. It is consistent with earnest and declared efforts to advance a particular point of view if it is insisted that complete access to the facts underlies the argument and that the argument can be plainly distinguished from the inquiry. To restrict the availability or limit the presentation of data or opinions is to deny academic freedom."

220.02 Responsibility of Faculty

As used in this section, “faculty” shall mean instructor(s) of record.

Office Hours

Within the first two weeks of classes faculty should post their office hours for students and submit them to their department chair who will send a copy to the dean of the school. Many faculty also list their office hours on course syllabi. As a part of its strong commitment to undergraduate teaching, Cortland prides itself on the availability of faculty to meet with students. To ensure this student access, faculty with a full teaching obligation should be available in their office for at least five hours per week to meet with students. Preferably, the hours should be spread through the week and at different times of the day. Those with part-time teaching assignments should hold proportionate office hours. Department chairs and deans will address any variations in these expectations.

(Approved by President Clark, Sept. 29, 1994)

Class Schedule

Faculty are required to meet with their classes at the times described in the official Cortland course schedules. Faculty should note the following attendance policies and expectations:

Faculty are obligated to meet their classes during each scheduled class period, including those classes scheduled two business days before and after each break and holiday.
Faculty, with the approval of the department chair, may reschedule a particular class session for special purposes such as testing, attendance at special programs, seminars, and field trips.
Faculty who cannot hold class for any reason including illness, absence from campus, unforeseen emergency, or another professional obligation, shall make a reasonable effort to arrange coverage of the course with another qualified person for the duration of the absence, unless, by mutual agreement between the chair and the instructor, other educational arrangements are warranted.

Deviations from the posted schedule must be approved by the dean of the school, following consultation with the department chair and with the Registrar. To change a course meeting time faculty must ensure that:

All students enrolled in the course have no conflicts with any other scheduled course including laboratory or performance type courses, and
No student would be subjected to extreme inconvenience by the time change.

Advising

Advising is a critical component of student success at SUNY Cortland. All tenure-track/tenured faculty are expected to advise students in their academic programs. In departments where the advising load is below the university average, faculty may be assigned advisees from other programs/departments.

Advisors recognize that students come to SUNY Cortland with a range of backgrounds, experiences, strengths, and potential for growth.

Advisors collaborate with their advisees to assist in understanding and navigating:

degree and major requirements and academic policy and procedures (e.g., registration)
development of an academic plan and monitoring of degree progress
exploration of academic and career goals relevant to their degree
academic challenges and strategies, tools, and support resources,
opportunities that supplement the curriculum (e.g., undergraduate research, internships, study abroad)

Advisors should be available during office hours and by appointment to meet with advisees, and provide sufficient time and availability during critical periods such as registration and drop/add. Additional information on SUNY Cortland’s Advisement Philosophy and Guidelines is available in section A.02 of the Policy section of the Undergraduate Catalog.

Syllabus Requirements

During the first week of classes (preferably at the first class) a syllabus should be distributed and discussed with all students. The syllabus must include all items listed in these five categories:

General Information

Name of the institution (SUNY Cortland)
Name of the department (lead department if cross-listed)
Term and year of the course

Instructor Information

Name of instructor(s)
Office location and hours
Instructor’s SUNY Cortland email address
Campus telephone number

Course Information

Course prefix, number, title, and credit hours
Catalog course description/course objectives
Student learning outcomes
Required course materials (eg. Textbooks, journal articles, library and/or online resources)
Class meeting times
Description of assignments and approximate dates
Assessment method and grading policy
Attendance policy

Approved Course Attribute Designation

General Education (GE) category
Writing Intensive (WI)
Presentation (PRES)
Liberal Arts (LASR)
Department specific course requirements are needed for some programs. Faculty should consult with their respective department guidelines for additional requirements.

Required Statements
The statements listed below must be included either as full text in the syllabus, or a link may be provided within the syllabus that directs students to the section of the SUNY Cortland Handbook, in which the statements are provided.

Academic Integrity Statement
Disability Statement
Diversity Statement
Inclusive Learning Environment Statement
Title IX Statement

Academic Integrity Statement: Faculty must include in all syllabi a reference to upholding academic integrity and intolerance of academic dishonesty. Suggested wording: All students are expected to uphold academic integrity standards. Plagiarism is defined as taking the ideas of others and using them as one's own without due credit. Students who cheat in examinations, course assignments, or plagiarize in this course may be disciplined in accordance with university rules and regulations. (SUNY Cortland Handbook, Chapter 340)

Disability Statement: Required wording: “As part of SUNY Cortland’s commitment to a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment, we strive to provide students with equal access to all courses. If you believe you will require accommodations in this course, please place a request with the Disability Resources Office at disability.resources@cortland.edu or call 607-753-2967. Please note that accommodations are generally not provided retroactively so timely contact with the Disability Resources Office is important. All students should consider meeting with their course instructor who may be helpful in other ways.” (SUNY Cortland Handbook, Chapter 745)

Diversity Statement: Required wording: “SUNY Cortland is dedicated to the premise that every individual is important in a unique way and contributes to the overall quality of the institution. We define diversity broadly to include all aspects of human difference. The university is committed to inclusion, equity, and access and thus committed to creating and sustaining a climate that is equitable, respectful and free from prejudice for students, faculty and staff. We value diversity in the learning environment and know that it enhances our ability to inspire students to learn, lead and serve in a changing world. We are committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive campus through the recruitment and retention of faculty, staff and students. As a community, we hold important the democracy of ideas, tempered by a commitment to free speech and the standards of inquiry and debate. To this end, we are dedicated to developing and sustaining a learning environment where it is safe to explore our differences and celebrate the richness inherent in our pluralistic society.” (SUNY Cortland Handbook, Chapter 130)

Inclusive Learning Environment Statement: Required wording: "SUNY Cortland is committed to a diverse, equitable and inclusive environment. The course instructor honors this commitment and respects and values differences. All students enrolled in this course are expected to be considerate of others, promote a collaborative and supportive educational environment, and demonstrate respect for individuals with regard to ability or disability, age, ethnicity, gender, gender identity/expression, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, socio-economic status or other aspects of identity. In an environment that fosters inclusion, students have the opportunity to bring their various identities into conversation as they find helpful, but are not expected to represent or speak for an entire group of people who share aspects of an identity. If you have any questions or concerns about this statement, contact the Institutional Equity and Inclusion Office at 607-753-2263."

Title IX Statement: Required wording: “Title IX, when combined with New York Human Rights Law and the New York Education Law 129-B, prohibits discrimination, harassment and violence based on sex, gender, gender identity/expression, and/or sexual orientation in the education setting. The federal Clery Act and NY Education Law 129-B provide certain rights and responsibilities after an incident of sexual or interpersonal violence. When a violation occurs, victims and survivors are eligible for campus and community resources. Where the university has jurisdiction, it may investigate and take action in accordance with university policy. If you or someone you know wishes to report discrimination based in sex, gender, gender identity/expression, and/or sexual orientation, or wishes to report sexual harassment, sexual violence, stalking or relationship violence, please contact the Title IX Coordinator at 607-753-4550, or visit cortland.edu/titleix to learn about all reporting options and resources. (Updated by SUNY Legal Feb. 1, 2018).”

Additional syllabus components (e.g. faculty course description, contract for engagement, faculty cell number, reference to student support services) can be added at the discretion of the faculty member while maintaining program guidelines and department compliance.

Instructional Delivery Policy

Purpose

As part of its strong commitment to teaching, Cortland prides itself on traditional classroom face-to-face instruction, faculty availability and student success. Full-time faculty are expected to maintain a routine presence on campus to support our campus values of focusing on the students, integrity and intellectual life and serve our campus priorities of academic excellence, transformational education, well-being and the maximization of resources. The purpose of this policy is to reaffirm its expectations of full-time faculty presence and accessibility on campus while supporting opportunities for diverse teaching methods, such as online, blended and hybrid courses.

Definitions

The definitions for course types are based on SUNYs for Open SUNY:

Web: 100% online, no in-class meetings at all.
Hybrid: Classes which meet in a regular weekly pattern. (At Cortland, generally two days per week, but feature sections online generally one per week.)
Blended: Sections which are largely online, and have only occasional face-to-face meetings that do not occur in a regular pattern (e.g. once per month, or once per term).

Policy

Full-time, tenured, tenure-track faculty, or a full-time lecturer, is a full obligation which minimally includes a five-day-a-week obligation to meet our class scheduling and delivery needs. Class scheduling is at the discretion of the university dependent upon operational and student needs. When not delivering classroom-based instruction or meeting other on-site obligations, faculty are free to work part of the time at off-campus locations which may facilitate classroom preparation, research and/or scholarship or other creative activities.

Web, Hybrid and/or Blended (WHB) Class Limits for Full-Time Faculty

All specific teaching assignments and responsibilities are subject to the operational needs of the university and subject to approval of the respective dean. This includes the academic year, winter and summer sessions.
As part of their primary obligation, a faculty member is limited to teaching no more than 50% of their assigned academic year teaching load, inclusive of course release assignments, as WHB. (This limitation does not apply to overload or extra service obligations; overload is based on operational need and approval by the dean.)
At no time may a faculty member teach more than two courses in a semester as WHB.
- Illustrative example: A faculty with a 3:3 teaching load for the academic year would be eligible, subject to approval by the respective dean, to teach up to two (2) classes as WHB in the fall semester, and one (1) class in the spring semester as WHB. The remaining one and two classes must be taught as traditional classroom-based instruction.
A faculty member who is in phased retirement may be eligible to deliver all courses as WHB. This will be determined by the respective dean and provost on a case-by-case basis.

220.03 Recruitment of Faculty (Selection and Appointment)

Positions, new or replacement, are assigned to departments by the president of the university on the recommendation of the provost.

Advertisements and recruitment contacts should be made for all anticipated vacancies new and/or replacements as early as possible each new academic year. A job posting which includes a detailed job description should be prepared and submitted to the school dean for review of responsibilities, salary range, if stated, and rank. Notices of vacancies must be submitted to the Affirmative Action Office.
Recruitment for actually assigned positions should begin as early as possible following the authorization of the new position by the provost and approval for advertising by the Affirmative Action Office.
When the department committee and the department chair have decided on their top candidate or candidates (up to three) a complete vita, including unofficial transcripts, reference check results and letters of recommendation or reports of telephone recommendations for each candidate should be forwarded to the appropriate dean, to the provost and to the affirmative action officer. After these approvals, the chair should request from the dean and the affirmative action officer permission to invite the candidate to the campus. Whenever possible, the chair or other designated members of the department should actively interview candidates at national and regional professional meetings to screen the field before inviting serious candidates for on-campus interviews. On-campus interviews should be arranged, whenever possible, for the top candidate or candidates.
All tenure-track candidates brought to the campus should be interviewed by the dean and provost in addition to other appropriate administrators.
Transportation charges and room and board may be reimbursed in accordance with campus policy. All such charges must be verified with appropriate receipts. Candidates staying overnight during their visit should be housed in university facilities when possible, and will be fed at university expense. To expedite the reimbursement of the candidate's travel expenses, responsible persons should obtain the candidate's signature, home address, and social security number on the State of New York Standard Travel Voucher, which is form AC 132-REV, 4-75 while the candidate is on campus. (See Guest Room Use Policy 380.08.)
Travel expenses incurred by the department chair or his/her designated representative for recruitment at regional or national or professional meetings may be paid by the provost or by the school dean subject to state travel regulations. Approval must be obtained from the provost or school dean in advance of such travel.
Rank and salary for each position must be cleared with the appropriate dean, provost and human resources/affirmative action officer. Except in extraordinary cases, initial appointment to SUNY Cortland will not be made with continuing appointment.
The chair should discuss each appointment with the appropriate dean in advance of any oral or written statement to the candidate. Under no circumstances should the chair make an oral or written commitment to the candidate without the prior approval of the dean and the provost. It is the primary responsibility of the department chair to define for the candidate terms for employment.
Once the selected candidate accepts the verbal offer of inquiry and the terms indicated, the department chair shall complete the hiring proposal in the Applicant Tracking System.
All recruitment efforts must conform to the campus Affirmative Action policies.

220.04 Immigration and Visa Status

The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) does not permit employment of noncitizens holding certain types of visas. Employment of individuals who are not citizens or permanent residents requires the review and approval of the Human Resources Office.
SUNY Cortland provides legal support to tenure-track academic faculty for immigration petitions and applications filed on behalf of prospective and current employees. Legal services in connection with such petitions and applications shall be performed only by attorneys retained through the Office of University Counsel. Contact the Human Resources Office for additional information.
The Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986 requires all employees hired after May 31, 1987 to complete the Employment Eligibility Verification (Form I-9). Forms and information are available in the Human Resources Office.

220.05 Appointment of Faculty

Following consultation with the appropriate dean and vice president, the department chair should communicate to the candidate the conditions of employment as they will be recommended through channels to the president. These include:
- salary
- term (semester, 10-months, 12-months, years)
- title or rank
- in tenure-track or temporary
- if full or part time
- general responsibilities
- Any communication must make clear that only the president can offer an appointment and that after the recommendation has been considered by reviewing authorities such as the dean, provost, business officer, and affirmative action officer, a formal offer will be sent from the President's Office or designee. The appointment is not official until after the offer has been signed and returned to the President's Office.
Do not release publicity regarding any prospective appointment until the candidate has been officially offered appointment by the president of the university and the candidate has accepted the offer. The Communications Office normally handles publicity for appointments.
Generally, the doctorate (or terminal degree) is required for appointment except at the level of instructor or lecturer, where the master's degree is required. (February 1972)

220.06 Policies and Procedures of the Academic Faculty for Renewal of Term Appointment, Granting of Continuing Appointment and Promotion

A. Preface

These policies and procedures seek
1. to provide maximum departmental autonomy in the development of policies and criteria on personnel matters,
2. to guarantee that the standards established by the Board of Trustees are upheld and
3. that candidates are treated fairly.
These policies and procedures are in accordance with
1. the current Policies of the Board of Trustees;
2. the current Agreement between UUP and the State of New York; and
3. the current Compilation of Codes, Rules and Regulations, State of New York.
These policies and procedures guarantee the essential right of due process: a system of clear, orderly, procedures in which the full disclosure of basic decisions and the specific reasons for those decisions are made at every stage of the process.
These policies and procedures are intended to serve the best interest of the University by providing the president with the maximum amount of information with which to make decisions while at the same time protecting the basic rights of the individual faculty member by assuring a fair hearing on those matters relating to professional life.
Faculty should provide specific reasons why a colleague should be reappointed, given continuing appointment, or promoted, rather than merely asking if reasons exist why s/he should not be reappointed, given continuing appointment, or promoted.
The university expects that faculty and administrators be candid, objective, and fair in the performance of their responsibilities.
These policies and procedures supersede all other faculty policies and procedures dealing with renewal of term appointment, granting of continuing appointment and promotion. If a conflict occurs between these polices and the Policies of the Board of Trustees and Agreement, the Board of Trustees Policies and Agreement take precedence.

B. General Guidelines for Academic Due Process

Definitions
1. In this document the following applies:
2. "Criteria" means the standards established for evaluating cases of renewal of term appointment, continuing appointment, or promotion.
3. "Official file" refers to each faculty member’s file maintained in the Provost's Office. (The official file shall be maintained in accordance with Art. 31 of the Agreement between UUP and the State of New York.) Copies of this file (except confidential materials, such as counseling memos) may be maintained in the dean's office and the faculty member’s department.
4. "Portfolio" refers to the compilation of work assembled by the faculty member and used in the personnel process.
5. "Policies" means the rules governing the principles and structures of the decision-making process.
6. "Procedures" means the process by which action is taken.
7. "Recommendation" refers to a written statement conveying (a) recommended decision concerning a personnel matter; (b) the evidence and other pertinent data supporting the decision or recommended decision.
8. "Recommender" is that person or committee obliged by these procedures to provide a personnel recommendation.
1. Recommendations on personnel matters, including continuing appointment, renewal of term appointment, and promotion shall be based on:
  1. The overall record of the candidate's training, teaching, and other relevant experiences and achievement in his or her academic field and related areas. (Note: Activities that are consistent with the SUNY Cortland's mission and strategic plan are legitimate activities within the scope of professional obligations. They should be evaluated and entered under whichever categories on the personnel action form are appropriate for the specific activities.)
  2. Scholarly ability, as demonstrated by such things as success in developing and carrying out significant research work in the subject matter field, contribution to the arts, publications and reputation among colleagues.
  3. Service to the university, the community and to the profession while at Cortland.
  4. Criteria for librarian personnel procedures appear in the Library Personnel Committee Policies and Procedures.
2. Evidence of the candidate’s record will be submitted as a portfolio of evidence (hard copy or electronic) and will be used at all levels of review. This portfolio is distinct from the official personnel file maintained in the Provost’s Office, as well as the copies of the personnel file which may be maintained in the dean’s and departmental offices. The contents of the official file may include confidential materials (such as counseling memos) not necessarily contained in the portfolio, and they may be used for review only at the levels of the dean, provost and president.
3. A personnel committee operates under a rule of secrecy.
  1. Committee members, except for the chair, shall not discuss outside of a committee meeting, a candidate or their case with anyone not serving on the committee.
  2. During committee deliberations the committee chair may discuss a candidate’s case with the Academic Faculty Affairs Committee at the specific direction of the committee and in accordance with these policies and procedures.
  3. Once a committee has voted on a candidate, committee members may testify about a candidate and their case before the Academic Faculty Affairs Committee, an administrator, or a grievance official. However, they shall not later discuss a candidate’s case with anyone not involved in the personnel process.
4. Department chairs and members of all personnel committees shall function as independent evaluators. They shall make their decisions in accordance with the highest professional and academic principles, free from departmental, personal, or administrative pressures.
5. Department chairs and members of personnel committees shall only use material from the portfolio, and shall make no use of private, secret files, in the personnel process.
6. Documents recommending for or against continuing appointment, renewal of term appointment, or promotion should be clear as to the outcome being recommended. For promotions and continuing appointment, voting shall be to recommend or to not recommend. For renewal of appointment, voting shall be to recommend a term of one or two years, or to not recommend.
7. A recommendation against continuing appointment, renewal of term appointment, or promotion shall be based mainly on grounds that bear on the candidate's service to the university during their time at Cortland.
8. The deans, the director of libraries, the associate vice provost for information resources, the provost and the president shall make all personnel decisions in accordance with the principles of “due process.”
9. At each level of review from the dean upward, solicited or unsolicited documents may be used in the personnel review process, as specified in section K. below.
10. The candidate shall be notified in writing (by the personnel committee chair, department chair, or school or sub-school chair) at least five working days before their qualifications are to be reviewed and given an opportunity to appear before the committee, or department chair, or to send a campus colleague to speak for them.

C. Departmental Policies, Procedures and Criteria on Renewal of Term Appointment, Continuing Appointment, and Promotion

1. Formulation of Policy

Each department has the responsibility to develop personnel policies, procedures and criteria on personnel matters consistent with the policies of the Board of Trustees, with the UUP Agreement, and with the SUNY Cortland Handbook. The department chair shall submit such policies, with any revisions, to the Academic Faculty Affairs Committee for approval. This determination shall be by majority vote of the Academic Faculty Affairs Committee. The chair of the Academic Faculty Affairs Committee shall inform the department chair of the committee's decision and shall keep on file all records pertaining to the matter.
Alternate Departmental Promotion Criteria
If in the judgment of the department the criteria adopted by the Faculty Senate for rank-to-rank promotion (see Section 220.07.E) do not meet the unique needs of the department, the department may follow this procedure:
1. Submit its own set of criteria to the Academic Faculty Affairs Committee as an exception to the faculty criteria, taking care to provide documentation and justification warranting the granting of an exception.
2. The Academic Faculty Affairs Committee shall consider the criteria as an exception to the faculty criteria (Section 220.07.E) and shall submit the alternate criteria to the Senate for consideration.
3. By majority vote the Senate may recommend that the president consider accepting the department's criteria as a necessary and comparable substitute for the faculty criteria for rank-to-rank promotion.
4. The president will meet with representatives of the department in question (as well as anyone else they deem necessary) and discuss the reasons for the alternate criteria. If the president should decide to accept the department's alternate criteria for promotion, they should so inform the Senate and these would become the basis for all recommendations on rank-to-rank promotions for that department, by the department committee, department chair, school or committee, school dean and provost.
If the Academic Faculty Affairs Committee finds a department's personnel policies to be in violation of the SUNY Cortland Handbook, the Policies of the Board of Trustees, or the Agreement between the State and the bargaining agent, the Academic Faculty Affairs Committee shall indicate the specific points of violation after which the department shall revise its personnel policies and resubmit them to the Academic Faculty Affairs Committee for approval.
Department personnel policies are kept on file in the office of the appropriate dean and of the provost.

D. Departmental Personnel Policies and Procedures

Departmental personnel policies and procedures shall be clear as to the basic procedures the department observes in making personnel decisions.
The specific criteria developed by the department shall include some definition of those matters which the department principally considers in making its recommendations.
The policies, procedures and criteria shall reflect due regard for the character and needs of the university and department and shall be offered as indicative and descriptive rather than narrowly binding.
These policies, procedures and criteria shall be approved by the respective department by the department approved voting procedures of the faculty of academic rank.
These policies, procedures, and criteria shall be reaffirmed or revised at least once every three years by the department approved voting procedures. After revision of the policies, procedures, and criteria, the department chair shall submit such revisions to the Academic Faculty Affairs Committee for its approval.
If the Academic Faculty Affairs Committee determines that a department’s policies are not in compliance, they may refer the matter to the Senate.
Copies of these policies, procedures, and criteria when reaffirmed or revised, shall be issued to all members of the department, the school personnel committee, the dean, the provost and the president.
A faculty member may have the option to use the policies in effect at the time of their hire, or they may elect to use the most current version, so long as those policies are not in violation. A copy of the department policies shall be provided to each faculty member at the time of appointment. If the faculty member chooses to be evaluated under a previous set of policies, the burden is on them to provide those policies to reviewers at the beginning of the process.

E. Steps in the Personnel Review Process

The personnel review process for teaching faculty follows these steps:
1. Candidate prepares portfolio and Personnel Action Form
2. Review by Department Personnel Committee
3. Review by Department Chair
4. Review by the School or Sub-School Personnel Committee
5. Review by the Dean
6. Review by the Provost
7. Review by the President
The personnel review process for librarians follows these steps:
1. Candidate prepares portfolio and Personnel Action Form
2. Review by Department Personnel Committee
3. Review by the Director
4. Review by the Associate Vice Provost for Information Resources
5. Review by the Provost
6. Review by the President

F. Procedures for Continuing Appointment and Renewal of Term Appointment

Renewal of term appointments and continuing appointment follow the timeline set by the Human Resources Office Faculty members shall compile and submit a portfolio of work and Personnel Action Form and submit the same to the department personnel committee by the appropriate deadline.
Once the department personnel committee has reviewed the portfolio, it shall forward its recommendations and specific reasons for them to the chair of the department or library director. A copy of the committee's recommendation, along with the specific reasons for the recommendation, shall be sent to the candidate for renewal or continuing appointment.
The chair of the department or library director shall submit the recommendation of the department personnel committee and their recommendation on continuing appointment or renewal of term appointment and the specific reasons for it in writing to the chair of the school personnel committee (or, in the case of librarians, the associate vice provost for information resources). At the same time they shall submit copies of their recommendation and the specific reasons for it to the candidate and the chair of the department personnel committee.
The chair of the school committee shall submit to the candidate's portfolio their recommendation, the specific reasons for the recommendation, the voting procedures, and the record of the vote and forward the material to the dean. For librarians, the associate vice provost for information resources shall submit their recommendation and the specific reasons for the recommendation and forward the material to the provost. At the same time, the chair of the committee or associate vice provost for information resources shall send the same information provided to the dean or provost to the candidate, the department chair or library director, and the chair of the departmental personnel committee.

G. Procedures for Promotion

All promotions are based upon self-recommendations. Faculty members who wish to nominate themselves to be considered for promotion shall compile and submit a portfolio of work and Personnel Action Form and submit the same to the department personnel committee by the appropriate deadline.
A faculty member may choose to apply for both continuing appointment and promotion with the same portfolio. In this case, evaluators’ letters should differentiate and provide reasons for the two decisions.
Once the department personnel committee has reviewed the portfolio, it shall forward its recommendations and specific reasons for them to the chair of the department or library director. A copy of the committee's recommendation, along with the specific reasons for the recommendation, shall be sent to the candidate for renewal or continuing appointment.
The chair of the department or library director shall submit the recommendation of the department personnel committee and their recommendation on promotion and the specific reasons for it in writing to the chair of the school personnel committee (or, in the case of librarians, the associate vice provost for information resources). At the same time they shall submit copies of their recommendation and the specific reasons for it to the candidate and the chair of the department personnel committee.
The chair of the school committee shall submit to the candidate's portfolio their recommendation, the specific reasons for the recommendation, the voting procedures, and the record of the vote and forward the material to the dean. For librarians, the associate vice provost for information resources shall submit their recommendation and the specific reasons for the recommendation and forward the material to the provost. At the same time, the chair of the committee or associate vice provost for information resources shall send the same information provided to the dean or provost to the candidate, the department chair or library director, and the chair of the departmental personnel committee.

H. Rights and Responsibilities of Candidates for Continuing Appointment, Renewal of Term Appointment, and Promotion

Candidates are responsible for compiling a portfolio of material to be considered in the review process.
Only the candidate may add to their portfolio any material they wish to have considered in the decision-making process. In listing activities and scholarly accomplishments in the portfolio, the candidate shall adhere to the Code of Ethics (Section 220.11) and give credit where it is due.
The candidate shall be provided with a copy of all recommendations and decisions at each formal stage of the decision-making process.
Candidates shall refrain from exerting pressure on department chairs and personnel committee members. Similarly, faculty members shall not exert pressure on department chairs and personnel committee members regarding the personnel process.
Any faculty member having questions regarding the review process or problems deriving from it shall take them to the appropriate department chair and or personnel committee chair for resolution. Should those questions or problems remain unresolved, the faculty member may request assistance from the Academic Faculty Affairs Committee and the UUP Grievance Chair.
If a candidate adds to their portfolio at any time once the portfolio has been submitted, the addition must be documented in a dated memo (to be placed at the front of the portfolio) with reasons given for the addition. Once submitted, no documents can be taken from the portfolio.
The candidate has the right to respond in writing to letters of recommendation. Such responses are sent to the next higher level in the review process.
According to Article 31 of the UUP Agreement candidates with three or more consecutive years of service may request in writing a meeting with the author of any review letter.

I. Departmental Review and Responsibilities

Personnel Committee
1. By September 8 each department shall establish a standing personnel committee on renewal of term appointment, continuing appointment, and promotion.
2. By vote of the department, a department with seven or fewer full-time members has the option of operating as a personnel committee consisting of all the members of the department, without the department chair. When a department chooses to act in this manner, those departmental members may serve on the school or sub-school personnel committees.
3. By unanimous vote of the full-time members of the department with academic rank, a larger department has the option of operating as a personnel committee consisting of all the full-time faculty members with academic rank. This vote shall be taken annually in September for departments with more than seven full-time members. In this case, neither the department chair nor the departmental representative to the school personnel committee shall have a vote on the committee of the whole.
4. In departments with eight or more faculty members, the chair will not serve on the departmental personnel committee.
5. Membership on departmental personnel committees is limited to full-time academic faculty members with academic rank.
6. Each department shall establish in its policies the procedures for selecting a chair of its personnel committee.
General Procedures
1. The chair of the departmental committee and the chair of the department, or in the library, the director of libraries, shall apprise the candidate for continuing appointment, renewal of term contract or promotion of the impending deliberations and need for decisions by September 1 in the academic year in which the review process takes place
2. Members of the departmental personnel committee, the department chair, and the school or sub-school personnel committee will limit their evaluation to the materials included in the portfolio submitted by the candidate and will use no other materials in their evaluation of the candidate.
3. Academic departments are encouraged to include a list of recommended materials to be included in a candidate’s portfolio, enabling the candidate the opportunity to submit materials that would be expected by the departmental committee.
4. Academic departments are encouraged to ensure adequate mentoring of junior faculty in the preparation of the portfolio
5. Committee decisions on recommendations shall be made by secret ballot and majority vote with a reasonable interval of at least one day but not to exceed one week allowed between the close of committee discussion and the deadline for balloting to permit each committee member judicious consideration of all factors pertinent to their decision.
6. In the event that the candidate is a member of the committee, they shall abstain from deliberation and voting on their own case.
7. Following committee action, the chair of the committee shall prepare a written statement that states the recommendation, the specific reasons for it, the voting procedures and the record of the vote. Copies of this statement shall be submitted to the candidate and to the department chair.

J. School Review and Responsibilities

Membership of the School Personnel Committee
1. Members of the school personnel committees shall serve as representatives of the interest of their departments, schools, and the university as a whole.
2. The Personnel Committee of the School of Professional Studies shall consist of one representative from each department within the school.
3. The Personnel Committee of the School of Education shall consist of one representative from each department within the school.
4. The Sub-School Personnel Committees of the School of Arts and Sciences (grouped according to department alignment in 150.03, Article VI, Section A, No. 2, a., b., and c. and No. 3, a. and b.) shall consist of one member from each department.
5. Membership on school personnel committees shall be limited to full-time, tenured, academic faculty members with unqualified academic rank.
6. School and sub-school committee members shall take office by Oct. 15.
7. Members of the school and sub-school personnel committees shall serve staggered two-year terms. They may not serve two consecutive terms, unless no alternative is available.
8. Department chairs, acting department chairs, deans, assistant deans, and associate deans shall not be eligible for election or appointment to the school or sub-school personnel committees. In departments of eight or more members, department personnel committee members shall not be eligible for election or appointment to the school or sub-school personnel committees.
School Review Process
1. In the matter of promotion, continuing appointment and reappointment, the school committee shall weigh the evidence in the candidate's portfolio, in accordance with the candidate’s department’s personnel policies, and make its own independent recommendation accordingly.
2. The school personnel committee will use the letters of recommendation from the departmental personnel committee and chair, and material contained in the portfolio only for the purposes of evaluation. This committee will make use of no other materials during its evaluation.
3. Decisions on recommendations shall be made finally by secret ballot and majority vote with a reasonable interval of at least one day but not to exceed one week allowed between the close of committee discussion and the deadline for balloting to permit each committee member judicious consideration of all factors pertinent to their own decision.
4. In the event that the candidate is a member of the committee they shall be replaced by their alternate.

K. Administrative Reviews and Responsibilities

Following the school review (when applicable), the dean (or director of libraries), associate vice provost of information resources (in the case of librarians), provost, and president, in turn, shall make a recommendation on the candidate and provide reasons for the recommendation. Copies of the recommendation letter will be sent to the candidate, the department chair, the chair of the department personnel committee, and the chair of the school personnel committee.
Should the dean, director of libraries, associate vice provost of information resources, provost, or president make use of a solicited document not used at a previous level of evaluation they shall inform the candidate of any new information contained in that document and allow the candidate reasonable time to reply to it, when feasible, before making a recommendation. The dean, director of libraries, associate vice provost of information resources, provost, or president may choose whether or not to reveal the names of authors of solicited documents.
Should the dean, director of libraries, associate vice provost of information resources, provost, or president make use of an unsolicited document, not used at a previous level of evaluation, they shall inform the candidate of any new information contained in that document and allow the candidate reasonable time to reply to it, when feasible, before making a recommendation. The dean, director of libraries, associate vice provost of information resources, provost, or president must reveal the names of authors of unsolicited documents.
The dean or director of libraries, associate vice provost for information resources, provost, and president shall in all cases act in accordance with Article 31 of the Agreement between UUP and the State of New York.

220.07 Criteria for the Continuing Appointment and Promotion of Academic Faculty

A. Continuing Appointment and Promotions

Continuing appointment is necessary for the defense of academic freedom, the foundation of success in both teaching and scholarship. Continuing appointments at SUNY Cortland is taken seriously as the university’s investment in highly talented faculty members who have engaged in exemplary work over time, and who continue to make an ongoing commitment to the mission of the university.
Promotion to any rank above that of instructor serves as a form of recognition of individual merit and thereby strengthens individual departments, SUNY Cortland and SUNY. With respect to individual merit, promotion should be regarded both as recognition that an individual has achieved and maintained an ongoing level and quality of professional excellence in teaching, scholarship, and service appropriate to the rank sought and as a judgment that the individual is capable of maintaining and improving that level of work in each of the three areas in the future. Recommendations for promotion should, therefore, provide specific reasons why a colleague should be promoted rather than merely ask if reasons exist why they should not be promoted. Considering that, not all faculty members should expect to receive promotion to senior ranks during their career at SUNY Cortland.

B. Educational Qualifications for Promotion

A faculty member must possess a doctoral degree or its equivalent as defined below, in order to be eligible for promotion beyond the rank of instructor, except as provided in Section C, below.
As used in this document, the term “appropriate degree” shall refer to:
1. the conventionally defined Ph.D., Ed.D., D.P.E., or similar academic degree
2. foreign degrees ruled equivalent by the appropriate SUNY agency
3. degrees widely recognized as terminal in each profession (e.g. J.D., M.F.A., M.L.S., M.B.A.)
4. degrees or other educational qualifications defined by the Academic Faculty Affairs Committee as suitable for the purpose of rank-to-rank promotion
Degree granting institutions should be recognized by the appropriate accrediting bodies or a SUNY agency.
Under exceptional circumstances a faculty member lacking an appropriate degree may offer an equivalent body of independent scholarship or creative work in order to demonstrate a mastery of subject matter sufficient to be considered for promotion. Such a body of scholarship would ordinarily include a published monographic work or a series of articles or papers in scholarly journals. A faculty member in the performing or fine arts, or in a comparable discipline, may offer a body of creative work that has received independent College Guidelines for Faculty professional recognition. In all cases, the burden of proof that the body of work is truly equivalent rests with the faculty member and with the recommending department.
The educational qualifications set forth in paragraphs B.1-3 may be waived only for those faculty members who satisfy the requirements set forth in B.4.

C. Evaluation of Academic Faculty for Reappointment, Continuing Appointment and Promotion

An academic faculty member’s professional obligation includes work in the areas of teaching, scholarship, and service. Candidates for reappointment, continuing appointment and promotion must submit for review portfolios providing appropriate and sufficient evidence of work and accomplishments in these categories.
For evaluation purposes, candidates should use the following definitions and work examples in each of the three categories described below. While these should be considered all-university guidelines, there may be areas where a specific academic department’s disciplinary practices would deviate from these guidelines. In those cases, it is the responsibility of the candidate and the recommending department to identify and explain such deviations for the benefit of subsequent levels of review. To assist academic faculty undergoing personnel review, departments that engage in academic advising should specify in their personnel policies and procedures how they account for advisement activities.
The guidelines should not be taken to exclude any relevant work not specifically mentioned. However, the work a candidate includes as part of their personnel review should be related to or arising from their professional obligations and disciplinary expertise.
For the purposes of evaluation, evidence for the effectiveness in TEACHING may include the following:
1. colleague observations of teaching
2. course development proposals (including new courses or substantial revisions to existing courses)
3. course syllabi and teaching materials
4. curriculum development materials (including new, or substantial revisions to, existing programs
5. teaching awards and honors
6. supervision of independent student research and scholarship activities
7. the integration into courses of undergraduate research opportunities (including community-based research activities by students)
8. teaching innovation and development awards and grants
9. learning community participation and development (including interdisciplinary teaching)
10. student evaluations of teaching
11. unsolicited student recommendations and commendations
For the purposes of evaluation, evidence for the effectiveness in SCHOLARSHIP may include the following:
1. published peer-reviewed books, monographs, and journal articles
2. artistic achievements as demonstrated in recitals, shows, performances and exhibitions as appropriate to the discipline
3. edited books
4. chapters in peer-reviewed books
5. completion of unpublished work
6. peer-reviewed journals for which the candidate is editor
7. peer-reviewed book series for which the candidate is editor
8. editorial work for professional journals, including review of manuscripts
9. encyclopedia entries
10. grant awards and fellowships
11. presentations of research at academic conferences
12. invited presentations/publications of research and expertise (e.g. book chapters, forwards, keynote addresses)
13. opinion pieces/interviews, book blurbs reflecting one’s scholarly expertise
14. research/technical reports, expert testimony, and other forms of scholarship contributed to professional organizations, public or government agencies, courts, regulatory bodies, etc.
15. published reviews of books in the discipline
16. scholarly work that involves developing students as scholars (e.g. undergraduate research, grants, publications, conference presentations, etc.)
For the purposes of evaluation, evidence for the effectiveness in SERVICE may include the following:
1. academic advising
2. administrative work (such as serving as department chair, graduate coordinator, program coordinator)
3. work as either chair or member of a department, school, university, or SUNY committee
4. external reviews (such as external department reviews and reviews of colleagues for promotion and tenure at other universities)
5. campus level faculty governance (including membership on Faculty Senate, Steering and other committees)
6. SUNY level faculty governance (including University Faculty Senate, University Faculty Senate Executive Committee, standing committees, ad hoc committees, campus governance leadership)
7. service related to one’s areas of expertise to off-campus populations
8. service to professional associations and organizations (which may include, for example, serving on conference organizing committees, prize, policy, or scholarship committees, and other activities not explicitly related to a candidate’s inquiry, research, or scholarship)
9. union service, including work at the campus and state levels
10. outreach activities related to one’s professional responsibilities and obligations (including speeches, workshops, and presentations not more appropriately included under Scholarship, for example, to community groups, general campus audiences [university ceremonies, student groups and clubs, alumni events, etc.)
11. activities in support of the university’s mission, including recruitment and retention activities (open houses, e.g.), participation in university events and ceremonies (convocation, commencement, e.g.)
12. advisor and participation to student clubs and organizations

D. Criteria for Continuing Appointment

As a comprehensive college, SUNY Cortland values good teaching, scholarship, and service. Candidates for continuing appointment shall meet the following minimum expectations:

A demonstrated and continuing ability (i) to develop areas of instruction in a manner that is intellectually sound and effective in terms of students learning, and (ii) to discharge in an effective manner a broad range of professional responsibilities for the development of students. Good teaching is enhanced by currency in the discipline.
A demonstrated and continuing ability to undertake and successfully carry out a productive program of intellectual inquiry, research or creative work and to do so with a degree of intellectual or creative excellence. Candidates for continuing appointment are expected to maintain an active scholarly agenda. While recognizing that different disciplines have different expectations regarding scholarly activity, the minimum institutional expectation across all disciplines is that three peer-reviewed works of scholarship or creative activity, or their equivalent, are required for an affirmative recommendation for continuing appointment, for the ranks of assistant professor, senior assistant librarian, or those higher. It is incumbent upon the academic department to define equivalency for their discipline.
A demonstrated and continuing service to the department and the university, SUNY or community in a manner that makes a significant contribution to the overall excellence of the institution and to the community of which it is a part.
For faculty members receiving prior service credit, reviewers shall evaluate evidence in the portfolio documenting the candidate’s teaching, scholarship, and service activities completed during the period covered by their prior service. Evaluators should expect to see continuing accomplishments across these three areas, including production of peer-reviewed work, from a candidate’s initial appointment at SUNY Cortland.

E. Application of Promotion Criteria

Evidence of accomplishments in scholarship, teaching and service, since the time of initial appointment or since the last promotion, whichever is more recent, shall be given primary consideration in all recommendations.
For disciplines whose activities cannot reasonably adapt to the above criteria, equivalent criteria shall be determined by the discipline or
department in question and approved by the Academic Faculty Affairs Committee. In all cases, the burden of proof that the criteria are equivalent shall rest with the discipline or department in question.
A person who does not meet the criteria described above may be eligible for promotion if circumstances are judged to warrant advancement. Such circumstances could include an outstanding record of achievement in the areas of teaching and service, combined with evidence of a satisfactory record of scholarly activity. The burden of proof rests with the faculty member and with the recommending department.

F. External Review Promotion Process

Definitions and Statement of General Philosophy
1. “External Review” refers to the solicitation of an evaluation of the scholarly, intellectual and creative achievement as outlined in Section 220.07.E by qualified professionals from outside SUNY Cortland. Unless otherwise indicated, the term professor or librarian will refer to the rank beyond associate professor or associate librarian, that is, the rank of full professor or full librarian.
The External Review Promotion Process applies only to those individuals who have begun their tenure-track academic appointment at SUNY Cortland after August 15, 2009, and are applying for promotion from associate professor or associate librarian to professor or librarian. This external review process will be evaluated by the Faculty Senate within six years of its first application.
Individuals in the review process are expected to bear in mind the broad mission of SUNY Cortland, the definition of professional obligation contained in the Policies of the Board of Trustees, the diversity of disciplines and of departmental practices, and the weight significance of past practices when including external review in their processes. Recommending bodies (i.e., departmental personnel committees, school personnel committees) and individuals (i.e., chairs of departments, the director of libraries, deans, provost and president) shall take care that undue weight is not given to letters from external reviewers. They shall not be regarded as determinative, but as providing additional data for the candidate's promotion application. The goal of the External Review Promotion Process is to provide another perspective on the candidate's promotion application for the benefit of the candidate, personnel review committees, and recommending individuals at the university.
External Review Promotion Process Requirements
1. Each department is required to develop its own external review policies to include in their personnel policies. The department policies will conform to these parameters:
2. The external review policies are required only for individuals applying for promotion from associate professor or associate librarian to professor or librarian.
3. The candidate will have the responsibility for selecting the reviewers and soliciting and receiving the external letter(s) of review, ability to review those letter(s), and responsibility for including them with the promotion application.
4. To provide context for their review, external evaluators shall be provided with a copy of Chapter 220.07: Criteria for Promotion and Continuing Appointment of Academic Faculty (inclusive of sections 230.01-230.05).
5. No more than three letters shall be required under the provisions of this External Review policy. Departments may stipulate as few as one letter be required in their promotion policies.

220.08 Personnel Policies and Procedures for Full-Time Lecturers

This document supplants the original Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) dated May 4, 2000, which describes an agreement between the State University of New York College at Cortland and the Cortland Chapter of United University Professions to establish the academic position of Full-Time Lecturer (FTL). Since that time, two additional documents were established to articulate the policies and procedures for the evaluation of FTL's and the advancement of FTL's. This document creates one MOU inclusive of all three previously established agreements in the following format:

Section I: Establishment and Filling of FTL Positions
Section II: Evaluation of FTL Positions
Section III: Advancement of FTL Positions

Section I: Establishment and Filling of FTL Positions

The purpose of this section is to specify the principles, conditions, criteria, and procedures for converting part-time positions to Full-Time Lectureships.

Principles

Full-Time Lectureships are primarily designed to strengthen the faculty by converting part-time positions into full-time positions.
No provision of this memorandum shall be construed as a precedent for determining the professional obligations of the tenure-track faculty.

Conditions

All conversions of part-time faculty to Full-Time Lectureships shall be to the budget title of Lecturer. These Full-time Lecturers will be paid on an annual basis.
All such conversions shall be understood as term appointments as defined in the SUNY Policies of the Board of Trustees.
The starting salary of each FTL shall be whichever is highest: the salary that the individual made in a part-time position, the minimum salary for Lecturers established in the Agreement between United University Professions and the State of New York, or a salary that the university shall determine.
The responsibilities assigned to lecturers may vary among departments as specified in the job posting, provided they are limited to:
1. teaching 12 credit hours per semester or the equivalent consistent with the kind of work that the Lecturer used to perform or would have had to perform in a part-time capacity, such as student-teacher supervision, lab instruction, etc.
2. holding appropriate office hours, and
3. participating in appropriate committees within the department and consistent with the department's personnel policies.
Scholarship, committee work, and other forms of service outside the department shall not be expected of Lecturers. These activities may be considered for reappointment and advancement decisions, but only at each Lecturer's discretion and, as stipulated in the relevant section of this Memorandum of Understanding, when they have made a demonstrable contribution to the Lecturer's teaching.
The university may offer a Lecturer extra-service pay for advising, additional supervision or activities not specified in #4 above. The Lecturer may decline such offers without adversely affecting his or her retention or advancement in the university.
Appointments of this nature shall occur subject to these conditions and upon agreement between the State University of New York College at Cortland and the Cortland Chapter of United University Professions. UUP will endorse all requests for Full-Time Lecturer positions when a departmental structural need is established and when the position is not more appropriately filled as a tenure-track position.
Typically, the total number of Full-Time Lecturer positions in each School will not be allowed to exceed 20% of the total full- time academic faculty (full-time lecturers and tenured/tenure track faculty) in that School on the projected start date for the FTL position being requested. The 20% cap may be exceeded only with appropriate justification by the department and with UUP's approval.
In the event that a Full-Time Lectureship becomes vacant, the department may request/apply for an FTL position. The request must contain the following three documents:
1. Request for Full-Time Lecturer (FTL) Position Form (PDF)
2. Statement of justification for the FTL
3. A description of the duties, responsibilities, and qualifications for the position
In the event that a tenure-eligible position is accorded to the department in which a FullTime Lecturer(s) exists, Lecturers may apply, and their applications shall be considered without prejudice.

Criteria and Procedure

Full-Time Lectureships shall be granted to departments that have demonstrated a structural need for them by a long-established pattern of hiring part-time faculty.
Full-Time Lectureships shall ordinarily be awarded to current members of the faculty who have been serving SUNY Cortland in part-time positions. If more than one part-time faculty member is eligible for a Full-Time Lectureship within a department, seniority within the department shall be a strong consideration. The university has, in the past, created a few FTL positions where those hired were not drawn from the ranks of currently serving part-time employees. While the university itself wishes the number of such appointments to remain as small as possible, it wishes to retain the flexibility to do so again in the future. It will always solicit UUP's endorsement/approval when and if it does so again, subject to the following:
1. such appointments will never be used to supplant tenure-track hiring for that position where that is feasible.
2. such hiring will occur only when no current part-time employee exists who has effectively performed the job, such as having taught the same or similar courses being requested of the FTL. Effectiveness shall be demonstrated by such things as judgment of colleagues, development of teaching materials, and/or student reaction, as determined by surveys, interviews, and classroom observation.
All FTL positions will be advertised as indicated by Human Resources (HR) on the FTL Request Form:
1. Internally only, internal hire expected - a departmental only posting shall be prepared by HR and provided to the department. The department chair shall ensure dissemination to all adjuncts within the department by posting the position for a period of 10 calendar days, similar to The Cortland Plan. The posting shall minimally be in the form of an email to all departmental adjuncts.
2. Concurrent internal and external - upon request to HR when there is no likely current departmental applicant, a departmental posting shall still be posted for a period of 10 calendar days but HR will also post externally consistent with its Affirmative Action Plan.
A search committee shall be established by the department to review, interview, and make recommendations on any applicants consistent with existing Affirmative Action Plan requirements.
Recommendations are made to the department chair for hire. In an instance where there are multiple internal candidates and the most senior candidate is not selected, a specific reason for the non-selection must be provided in writing to the candidate by the department hiring manager.

Section II: Evaluation of Full-Time Lecturers

The purpose of this section is to specify the principles, conditions, criteria, and procedures for evaluating FTL's and was initially articulated in the Memorandum of Understanding, Evaluation of Full-Time Lecturers, dated July 6, 2001, and revised July 29, 2004, between SUNY Cortland and UUP.

1. Criteria

The necessary and sufficient criterion is instruction (teaching, student-teacher supervision, clinical supervision) suitable to discipline.
Scholarship is not expected. It may be considered for reappointment only at the lecturer's request and as a form of faculty development appropriate to instruction
and/or performance in the subject area.
Committee work/service outside the department is not expected. It may be considered for reappointment only at the lecturer's request and as a form of faculty development appropriate to instruction and/or performance in the subject area. An instance of this is the work of the Lecturer Review Committee.
Committee work/service within the department may be expected and may be considered for reappointment when it is consistent with departmental personnel policies.

2. Process

Evaluation of Full-Time Lecturers follows the same cycle as the evaluation of tenure-track faculty, on the schedule published in the SUNY Cortland Handbook.
A lecturer who is eligible for reappointment applies to the department personnel committee.
The department personnel committee makes an independent recommendation on the lecturer's application and forwards it, along with the application, to the department chair.
The department chair makes an independent recommendation on the lecturer's application and forwards it, along with the application and the department personnel committee's recommendation, to the school's dean.
At the level of the dean and subsequently, the process follows the same steps as with tenure-track faculty.
With the same rights of due process as other full-time faculty, the lecturer shall be provided with a copy of every recommendation and decision at each stage of this review. The lecturer's chair shall also be provided with such copies.

Section III: Advancement of Full-Time Lecturers

1. Introduction

To support Full-Time Lectureships, the university has established opportunities for promotion and a corresponding set of salary increases:

the rank of Lecturer I
the rank of Lecturer II, with a $1,000 increase in salary from Lecturer I
the rank of Lecturer Ill, with a $1,200 increase in salary from Lecturer II
and the rank of Lecturer IV, with a $1,400 increase in salary from Lecturer Ill

The university has provided that a candidate is eligible for promotion one rank at a time.

A Lecturer Review Committee has developed criteria for these promotions and a process for awarding them. It oversees the process, and it has a role in making recommendations. The Full Time Lecturers elect the members of the committee to terms of three years. Places are allocated per school, and they are to be reviewed by the university and by United University Professions (UUP), with assistance from the committee, as numbers change within schools.

2. General Principles

The criteria for advancement are based on the quality of instruction and on activities related to instruction.
The process does not require a minimum number of activities or accomplishments. Lecturer 'A' may apply for promotion on the basis of three, and lecturer 'B' may apply for promotion on the basis of one.
The process is continuing. The criteria for promotion are identical at every level, as standards of teaching excellence. Lecturers who continue to meet these standards will continue to advance professionally.
The process is non-competitive. Each application represents work unique to the lecturer, work that will be judged on its own merit and not in comparison with, or in contrast to, the work of other lecturers.
The process is collegial. In meetings with the Lecturer Review Committee and in roundtable discussions under its sponsorship, lecturers may help one another to generate, develop, implement and assess applications for advancement. The Lecturer Review Committee represents this mutual commitment across the university.
The criteria for promotion describe teaching. Lecturers demonstrate their abilities as teachers on the basis of discipline-appropriate work. As this memorandum states, the main responsibility of full-time lecturers is "instruction ... suitable to discipline," which includes teaching in the classroom, student teacher supervision and clinical supervision. Lecturers in some departments are expected to participate in certain committees and to serve other departmental functions, and such work may also be evaluated for advancement provided that the applicant demonstrates its relevance to teaching. The memorandum also stipulates that scholarship and "committee work/service outside the department ... is not expected" and that "it may be considered for reappointment only at the lecturer's request and as a form of faculty development appropriate to instruction and/or performance in the subject area." In keeping with the memorandum, the process described below allows the applicant to demonstrate the relevance of any faculty development activities that have contributed to advancements in teaching, even if that work might otherwise be considered outside the criteria for evaluating Full-Time Lecturers.
The process is nonprescriptive. It does not establish a set of conventions for lecturers to observe in demonstrating their effectiveness, because success in teaching often involves innovation and nontraditional forms
The process is inclusive. Lecturers may include in their first application any relevant work within a three-year limit, whether they were teaching at SUNY Cortland part-time or full-time. Under special circumstances, to be negotiated with the department by the Lecturer Review Committee, an applicant may include exceptional work performed between four and five years previously.
The process is distinct from OSI. A lecturer who applies for promotion may also apply for OSI.

3. Application Process and Criteria

A lecturer may apply for promotion during his/her current term appointment, in accordance with the schedule for applications published in the SUNY Cortland Handbook.

A lecturer who wishes to apply for promotion self-recommends to the department Personnel committee. An application has three parts:
1. A brief cover letter summarizes
  1. the lecturer's current status
  2. the courses taught since the previous application, and
  3. the principal reason that promotion is now appropriate.
2. A reflective essay, one or two pages long, explores the lecturer's accomplishments as a teacher. It draws specifically on the semesters under review, and it focuses on the quality of the lecturer's engagement with students and vice versa. Any activities that define excellent teaching, in or out of the classroom, are relevant here provided that the lecturer demonstrates their significance for students. Such activities may include one or more of the following, but are not limited to them:
  1. accessibility
  2. collaboration
  3. contribution to professional organizations
  4. curriculum development
  5. expertise or scholarship
  6. innovative teaching strategies
  7. mentoring or supervision
  8. promotion of diversity
  9. uses of technology
3. The lecturer presents documentation that he or she finds relevant to the application, either as evidence of continued excellence in teaching or as evidence of a significant innovation: for example,
  1. abstracts of presentations or articles
  2. assignments
  3. classroom observations
  4. course-teacher evaluations
  5. diskettes that show computer-mediated communications, such as PowerPoint presentations or exchanges on the internet
  6. lesson plans
  7. recordings, audiotape and/or videotape
  8. references by colleagues
  9. reviews of publications or displays
  10. special recognitions or honors
  11. student work, with or without the lecturer's comments
  12. syllabi
  13. unsolicited letters or notes from students.
  A reviewer may request additional materials but not of a specific type.
The department personnel committee makes an independent recommendation on the lecturer's application and forwards it, along with the application, to the department chair.
The department chair makes an independent recommendation on the lecturer's application and forwards it, along with the application and the department personnel committee's recommendation, to the Lecturer Review Committee.
The Lecturer Review Committee makes an independent recommendation on the lecturer's application and forwards it, along with the application and the preceding recommendations, to the appropriate dean. Since the Lecturer Review Committee is charged with helping to develop the institution of Full-Time Lectureships, it has a particular interest in activities that demonstrate a commitment to professional growth. A Lecturer Review Committee member from the lecturer's school presents the specific merits of the application to the committee. Having completed its review, the Lecturer Review Committee votes to support or not to support an application. In the event of a tie vote, an application is not supported. The committee's decision, not the vote by which it was established, is reported to the appropriate dean. A Lecturer Review Committee member who is also a member of the personnel committee in the lecturer's department and who has voted at the department level of the promotion process is recused from the Lecturer Review Committee's vote.
The dean makes an independent recommendation on the lecturer's application and forwards it, along with the application and all preceding recommendations, to the provost.
The provost makes an independent recommendation on the lecturer's application and forwards it, along with the application and all preceding recommendations, to the president.
The president decides on the lecturer's application for promotion and notifies the lecturer that the application has been approved or declined, with copies to the department personnel committee, the department chair, the Lecturer Review Committee, the dean, and the provost.
With the same rights of due process as other full-time faculty, the lecturer shall be provided with a copy of every recommendation and decision at each stage of this review. The lecturer's chair shall also be provided with such copies.

(Approved by President Bitterbaum Aug. 12, 2004)

It is agreed that the contents of this memorandum will be re-evaluated by the parties at least every four years. As part of this review, input shall be solicited from the Lecturer Review Committee.

220.09 Resignation from a University Position

Faculty members are expected to abide by the following policy:

Negotiations for the possible reappointment for the following fall of faculty members in active service or on leave-of-absence and not on terminal appointment should be begun and completed as early as possible in the academic year. A faculty member who has been approached with regard to another position should inform the appropriate officers of his/her institution when such negotiations are in progress. The conclusion of a binding agreement for the faculty member to accept an appointment elsewhere should always be followed by prompt notice to his/her present employer.
The university's Employment Separation Policy is outlined in Chapter 210.06.
Should a faculty member fail to follow the policy stated above, the administration of the university may be expected to express its concern in appropriate ways both to the hiring institution and to the faculty member involved.

220.10 Emeritus Faculty and Professional Staff

Members of the University faculty who retire in good standing in accordance with the provisions of Title B or C of this Article, and upon review and approval of the president, shall be designated emeritus or emerita. This term will be appended to the title of their academic or administrative post after the time of retirement (Policies of the Board of Trustees, 2006, XV, Title D).

A. Titles

Academic titles will be written as follows: Professor Emeritus of English, Lecturer IV Emerita of Economics.

Administrative titles will be written as follows: Vice President for Student Affairs Emeritus, Director of Facilities Emerita.

The title should be capitalized when written before the person's name, lowercased when written after the name or by itself.

An employee's current title will be used when they are going through phased retirement and then the emeritus title once they have completed their service to SUNY Cortland.

For employees who have retired and then return to the university for service in the same position, the emeritus title will be used.

B. Privileges for Retirees

Upon retiring, all retirees, including faculty, professionals and classified staff continue to enjoy the following benefits and privileges:

Priority for teaching on a part-time basis for emeriti faculty depending on departmental needs and academic preparation;
Participation in emeriti social functions hosted by the president;
Participation in Commencement, Honors Convocation, Transformations, the President's Opening Meeting, and other special events;
Continued use of the SUNY ID card;
Access to all facilities that are free to full-time employees;
Access to campus email, myRedDragon and the library;
Membership in fee-based facilities (e.g., fitness centers), for the same amount paid by full-time employees;
Purchase of a campus parking permit for the same fee paid by full-time employees;
Participation in special travel programs available to the university;
Campus workspace for emeriti faculty in an office, laboratory, or the library, as available;
Eligibility to apply for research grants;
Participation in computer and technology workshops as well as other faculty development workshops, on a space-available basis; and,
Eligibility to audit courses at the university.

220.11 Code of Ethics

The faculty member recognizes the special responsibilities which derive from a commitment to the advancement of knowledge and realizes that one's primary responsibility is to seek and state the truth as one sees it. To this end the faculty member devotes the energy to develop and improve scholarly competence and accepts the obligation to exercise critical self-discipline and judgment in using, extending, and transmitting knowledge. The faculty member practices intellectual honesty and works for an environment conducive to intellectual honesty. Although the faculty member may follow subsidiary interests, these interests must never hamper or compromise freedom of inquiry.
As a teacher, the faculty member encourages students to pursue learning freely, holding before them the best scholarly standards of the discipline. The faculty member demonstrates respect for the student as an individual and adheres to the proper role as intellectual guide and counselor. The faculty member makes every reasonable effort to foster honest academic conduct and to evaluate students' performance fairly and equitably. The faculty member respects the nature of the relationship between educator and student. One avoids exploiting students for private advantage and freely acknowledges assistance from them. The faculty member works to promote and to protect the academic freedom of students.
As a colleague, the faculty member has obligations that derive from common membership in the community of scholars and educators. One respects and defends the free inquiry of those associates and works for an environment which stimulates free inquiry. In the exchange of criticism and ideas the faculty member shows due respect for the opinions of others, acknowledging academic debts and striving to be just in the professional judgment of colleagues. One accepts responsibility for the governance of the university.
As a member of the university faculty, the faculty member seeks above all to be an effective teacher and scholar. One works to make SUNY Cortland a community of learning. As a citizen engaged in a profession that depends upon freedom for its health and integrity, the faculty member works to promote conditions of free inquiry and to further public understanding of academic freedom.
(Approved by President Clark, Sept. 30, 1981)

Anti-Nepotism/Family Relationships Policy

SUNY Cortland upholds the standards set forth in New York Public Officers Law. Under no circumstances will the university allow an employee or student to report to another employee who is to be considered a relative. Family relationships between a faculty member and a student, or between members of the university community other than students, can present a conflict of interest in violation of the New York Public Officers Law. There can be a conflict of interest whenever one party has any position of power over the other, or when a perception of favoritism can occur. These relationships can undermine the trust upon which professional and educational relationships are built. Ethical principles preclude individuals from evaluating the work or academic performance of those with whom they have these relationships. The party with the power or status advantage may not officially approve, recommend, or vote on such approval or recommendation of, the appointment, reappointment, promotion, or salary adjustment of the other, nor may that party evaluate the performance of the other. In situations involving a student, the faculty member is expected to notify their direct supervisor so that arrangements can be made to eliminate the conflict.

Definitions:

Nepotism: Favoritism in the workplace based on kinship, which ordinarily consists of making employment or other business decisions based on a family relationship.
Relative: The spouse, domestic partner, anyone in a romantic relationship and, whether by blood, adoption, marriage or domestic partnership, the child, parent, grandparent, sibling, grandchild, aunt or uncle, niece or nephew, or any person residing in the immediate household (or the household of the spouse or domestic partner of any of these relatives) of the University employee, or his or her spouse or domestic partner, or person in a romantic relationship.

NYS Joint Commission on Public Ethics

Giving preferential treatment to a relative in the workplace may be considered nepotism. Public Officers Law § 73 prohibits State employees from:

Participating in any decision to hire, promote, discipline, or discharge a relative.
Awarding contracts to a relative or investing public funds in any security in which a relative has a financial interest.

Procedures

Questions regarding nepotism or family relationships should be brought to the Human Resources Office.

Consensual Relationship Policy

SUNY Cortland has adopted SUNY’s Model Consensual Relationships Policy issued to campuses on Aug. 12, 2019 by Chancellor Kristina M. Johnson, PhD. Only Cortland-specific details have been modified.

I. Policy Statement

The State University of New York is committed to ensuring that our students, faculty, and staff can learn and work in an environment that is free from nepotism, harassment, exploitation, and conflicts of interest. SUNY is also committed to promoting fairness in grading, evaluation, and career opportunities. In order to achieve this, it is vital that all personnel maintain professional boundaries with students, and with employees over whom there is or will be a supervisory relationship.

SUNY professional staff and other university personnel exercise power and authority over SUNY students and employees for whom they have current supervisory, instructional, or other professional responsibility, which creates a power imbalance. This makes consent within any romantic relationship between a supervisor and employee or between a professional staff or other university personnel and a student problematic and may impede the real or perceived freedom of the student or employee to terminate or alter the relationship. Further, it may cause individuals outside of that relationship to believe that they are treated in an unequal manner during such a relationship or after it terminates, or it may cause individuals to feel that entering such a relationship is necessary or assistive in attaining their academic or career goals. Such a relationship may damage the credibility or reputation of the student, employee, the department or unit, the campus and University as a whole and may expose individuals or the institution to legal action and liability.

In the academic context, romantic relationships that might be appropriate in other circumstances have inherent dangers when they occur between professional staff or other university personnel and students. Implicit in the idea of professionalism is the recognition by those in positions of authority that in their relationships with students and employees there is an element of power.

Because inherent power differentials exist, professional staff or other university personnel are prohibited from entering romantic relationships with students for whom such staff or personnel have current supervisory, instructional or other professional responsibility.

Consensual romantic relationships between professional staff or other university personnel and any students for whom such staff or personnel have no current supervisory, instructional or other professional responsibility are strongly discouraged. It is understood that any intimate activity between SUNY professional staff/other university personnel and another employee or a student/graduate student shall never take place while the SUNY professional staff/other university personnel is on duty or on campus. In regard to SUNY Police, such relations shall also never occur while the officer is in uniform.

In the case of pre-existing relationships, professional staff or other university personnel shall be required to recuse themselves from any evaluation of the student and from any activity or decision which may appear to reward, penalize, or otherwise affect the student or student employee and to otherwise take appropriate action to minimize any potential preferential or adverse consequences to the student or other members of the SUNY Cortland community.

In the employment context, there is a presumption against romantic relationships between employees where there is a current supervisory or authority imbalance. In cases where there is or has been a consensual romantic relationship between two individuals employed by the university, it is important that any sphere of influence or authority by one such employee over another be removed. Where one person is in the direct line of supervision over the other, the supervisor must notify administration so that alternative arrangements for supervision can be made.

Where neither individual is in the direct line of supervision over the other, but authority exists wherein one individual could impact any employment-related decision regarding the other, such as participating in decisions regarding hiring, termination, appointment, reappointment, promotion, assignment of duties, evaluation or changes in compensation or benefits for the other individual, such person must either recuse themselves from the decision-making process or, in the alternative, notify administration so that they can be removed from the decision-making process.

Non-consensual relationships are always prohibited and may implicate other policies or laws.

II. Definitions

Department or Unit: An academic department or unit or a professional department or unit.
Academic Department or Unit: Department or unit devoted to a particular academic discipline or operational area.
Professional Department or Unit: Department or unit devoted to providing professional services to students. This includes, but is not limited to, dining services, facilities services, student life/activities, financial aid, registrar, bursar, career services, library services, residential life, athletics, academic advisement, disability services, counseling services, health center, information technology, and safety, security and Police.
Other University Personnel: Any person with an employment relationship with the university that is not covered by the definition of professional staff. This would include all employees in the classified service pursuant to New York State Civil Service laws, rules and regulations as well as student and graduate student employees on the state payroll.
Professional Responsibility: For the purposes of this policy only, professional staff and other university personnel shall be deemed to have professional responsibility to an undergraduate student or graduate student when that person has a job related duty that can impact the student’s educational or professional career; specifically, where they have decision-making authority that may impact student learning, student life or student welfare, they have professional responsibility.
In addition, a University Police Officer shall be deemed to have a professional responsibility at any time that they are on duty, or when the member is directly involved in an ongoing investigation in which the student is a target, witness, person of interest or subject of an investigation, criminal matter, inquiry, or campus administrative action, or when the member is involved in an open case or action in which the student or other staff is either the plaintiff/complainant/defendant or potential plaintiff/complainant/defendant.
A health care professional working in a campus student health services/wellness center shall not commence a romantic relationship with a student for whom they are providing direct patient medical care. In addition, such health care provider shall not provide direct patient medical care to a student with whom they have had or are having a consensual romantic relationship (unless it is an emergency and no other health care provider is available on campus).
Professional Staff: All persons occupying positions designated by the Chancellor as being in the unclassified service. This includes academic employees, professional employees, and management/confidential employees. See Policies of the Board of Trustees, Article II, Definitions.
Romantic Relationship: An intimate, sexual and/or any other type of amorous encounter or relationship, whether casual or serious, short-term or long-term. Such a relationship exists in a marriage, a domestic partnership, or outside of marriage or domestic partnership between two persons who have a sexual union or who engage in a romantic partnering or courtship that may or may not have been consummated sexually.
Student: An individual who is either an undergraduate or graduate student.
Undergraduate Student: An individual whose primary relationship to the campus is in their role as a matriculated or non-matriculated student in an Associate or Bachelor level program, including certificates and other traditional and non-traditional academic programs. This definition does not include employees who are taking a non-matriculated course that is not part of an academic program. Status begins at payment of deposit to enroll or equivalent and continues through completion of all academic requirements and graduation. This applies regardless of the age of the Undergraduate Student and age of the faculty or staff member.
Graduate or Professional Student: An individual whose primary relationship to the campus is in their role as an enrolled or non-matriculated student in a Masters, Doctoral, post Bachelor Certificate or Professional level program. It also includes such individuals in the status of academically-required employment, such as residency, internship, practicum, fellowship and equivalent. Depending on employment status, this group of students may also be covered employees as professional staff or other university personnel.
Supervisory Relationship: A relationship in which an employee has the authority to make, recommend, or impact decisions regarding hiring, termination, appointment, reappointment, promotion, assignment of duties, evaluation, or changes in compensation or benefits for another individual.

III. Employee Applicability

This policy governs professional staff or other university personnel, whether employed full- time, part-time, or in volunteer status, whether or not they receive monetary compensation. This policy does not apply to undergraduate or graduate student employees on the student assistant or Work-Study payroll; it does apply to graduate students with appointments as graduate assistants or teaching assistants. Conflicts of interest and limitations on supervisory relationships by student employees may be covered separately by the Code of Conduct or other policy.

IV. Policy

Undergraduate Students:

SUNY professional staff or other university personnel, are prohibited from entering romantic relationships with any undergraduate students for whom such staff or personnel have current supervisory, instructional, or other professional responsibility.

Graduate or Professional Students:

SUNY professional staff or other university personnel are prohibited from entering romantic relationships with any graduate or professional student in their academic department or unit or over whom they have current supervisory, instructional or other professional responsibility.

Employees in a Supervisory Role:

SUNY professional staff or other university personnel are prohibited from supervising any employee with whom they are currently engaged or in the past have been engaged in a romantic relationship. Professional staff or other university personnel who enter a romantic relationship with any employee for whom they provide direct line supervision must notify their direct supervisor or department/unit head, and the Assistant Vice President or Associate Director of Human Resources (607-753-2302), or designee. The employee’s supervisor or department/unit head, in concert with the Human Resources representative, or designee, shall determine whether an alternative supervisory structure is possible and, if so, shall direct the employees to the alternative supervisory structure. The conclusion of the relationship (whether amicably or not), does not change the prohibition stated herein.

There is no prohibition or reporting requirement for SUNY professional staff or other university personnel who enter, are currently engaged in, or in the past have been engaged in romantic relationships with other faculty and staff where there is no direct line supervisory relationship. However, where a romantic relationship exists or has existed, professional staff or other university personnel shall recuse themselves from any personnel decisions regarding the other individual including hiring, termination, appointment, reappointment, promotion, assignment of duties, evaluation or changes in compensation or benefits for the other individual or, in the alternative, notify administration so that they can be removed from the decision-making process.

There are no prohibitions or reporting requirements for consensual social interactions between SUNY professional staff or other university personnel, regardless of supervisory relationships, that are not romantic in nature.

Pre-Existing Relationships:

Relationships between professional staff or other university personnel and an undergraduate, graduate/professional student, or employee for whom the employee will have supervisory, instructional, or other professional responsibility that pre-date enrollment as a student, the existence of a supervisory, instructional or professional responsibility, or hire as staff are permissible provided that employee notifies their direct supervisor or department/unit head and the Assistant Vice President or Associate Director of Human Resources (607-753-2302), or designee. The supervisor or department/unit head and the Human Resources representative or designee will work with the covered individuals to ensure that they are not in a direct supervisory or instructional relationship (and, if so, will develop a management plan for the employee), but there is no prohibition on maintaining the relationship. Individuals with hiring or admission authority may not be directly responsible for hiring or admitting an employee or student of any level, with whom they are currently engaged or have in the past been engaged in a romantic, intimate, and/or sexual relationship.

V. Reports and Investigation

While the primary reporting office for violations of this policy is the Human Resources Office, reports of violations of this policy may be brought to the campus Title IX Coordinator, the Assistant Vice President of Human Resources, Associate Director of Human Resources, or designee, or the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Office.

Monitoring the status of alternative supervision is the responsibility of the Assistant Vice President of Human Resources, Associate Director of Human Resources, or designee. All documentation under this policy shall be maintained in the Human Resources Office.

Retaliation for making a report or participating in a process under this policy is prohibited. The University prohibits an individual from knowingly filing a false complaint or making misrepresentations of sexual misconduct. A complaint made in good faith is not considered false merely because the evidence does not ultimately support the allegation of sexual misconduct. If an investigation results in a finding that a person who has accused another of sexual misconduct has acted maliciously or has recklessly made false accusations, the reporting party will be subject to appropriate sanctions. It is important to note that due process considerations may limit the ability to investigate or resolve anonymous complaints.

VI. Discipline

Violations of this policy may result in disciplinary charges up to and including termination. Any disciplinary action shall be taken pursuant to the applicable collective bargaining agreement.

SUNY Cortland Resource Contact Information:

Human Resources Office
Miller Building, Room 301
607-753-2302
Human Resources Website

Title IX Office
Miller Building, Room 404
607-753-2263
Title IX Website

Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Office
Miller Building, Room 408-B
607-753-2207
Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Office Website

220.12 Public Officers Law, Conflict of Interest

An officer or employee of a state agency, member of the legislature or legislative employee should not by his conduct give reasonable basis for the impression that any person can improperly influence him or unduly enjoy his favor in the performance of his official duties, or that he is affected by the kinship, rank, position or influence of any party or person.

(Public Officers Law, Section 74, 3g)

220.13 Gifts

A. Gifts to Individuals

No state officer or employee shall, directly or indirectly, solicit, accept or receive any gift having a value of $15 or more whether in the form of money, service, loan, travel, entertainment, hospitality, thing or promise, or in any other form, under circumstances in which it could reasonably be inferred that the gift was intended to influence, or could reasonably be expected to influence the employee, in the performance of official duties or was intended as a reward for any official action. No person shall, directly or indirectly, offer or make any such gift. . . .

(NYS Ethics Commission Opinion, August 1994)

B. Gifts to SUNY Cortland

Gifts to SUNY Cortland valued at up to $1,000,000 will be reviewed by the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Finance and Business, State University Plaza, Albany, NY 12246. The office of University Counsel will notify the campus when the gift acceptance has been approved. Acceptance of gifts in excess of $1,000,000 require Board of Trustees approval and will be processed at the next available Board of Trustees’ meeting. (Anslow memorandum, Feb. 15, 1994; updated August 2024, Coyne).

220.14 Plan for Discretionary Performance-Based Adjustments to Basic Annual Salary of Academic Faculty

Nothing in this document shall conflict with the current Policies of the Board of Trustees, the current Agreement between the State of New York and UUP, the current Compilation of Codes, Rules, and Regulations of the State of New York, and current SUNY System guidelines and regulations.

I. General Statement of Philosophy

The Employee
The basic premise of this document is that monetary recognition shall be awarded in the form of adjustments to the basic annual salary of academic faculty members consistent with an appropriate and objective appraisal of the extent and direction in which each academic employee has met his/her professional obligation as evaluated primarily by academic administration.
SUNY Cortland
The administration of SUNY Cortland shall take the opportunity to exercise its leadership through the rewarding of monetary recognition in the form of Discretionary Salary Increases (DSI) to the basic annual salary of academic faculty members in a manner that will reflect both their individual professional accomplishments and their contributions toward fulfilling the stated educational mission of SUNY Cortland.

II. Assumptions

Regarding Responsibility for DSI Decisions
1. Given the fact that the DSI plan is a management discretionary instrument, the task of decision making should rest primarily with those having administrative responsibility and accountability.
2. The initial DSI evaluation responsibility will rest with academic department chairs recommending to academic deans.
Regarding Criteria for DSI Decisions
1. Criteria to be employed as the foundation for DSI recommendations university-wide must be stated as precisely as possible by the president.
2. Elaborations of criteria to receive special attention in other administrators' yearly evaluations should be known by concerned faculty.
3. The distribution scheme should not assume that professional excellence is equally distributed among departments at all times.
4. The scheme should not discriminate between smaller and larger departments, nor among departments with varying average faculty salaries.
5. DSI awards should not necessarily discriminate against long-term meritorious service in favor of yearlong activity, nor vice versa. Ordinarily, DSI nominations and recommendations for an individual should be based upon professional service in the last year (June 1-May 31). The date of eligibility for DSI shall not be determined by the date of any other discretionary salary increase such as inequity, disparity, or that which might accompany promotion.
Regarding Procedures
1. DSI is a form of evaluation and should be subject to Article XII of the Policies of the Board of Trustees and to the relevant provisions of the Agreement.
2. The president will initiate the process for determining discretionary salary assignments sufficiently early so that adequate time is given at each level for deliberations.
3. Recommendations and principal reasons offered for them by chairs and deans shall be made available to the individual faculty member in a timely manner.
4. All discretionary money will be held in the President's Office pending final recommendations.
5. The president should inform the faculty of any prior allocation of funds from the pool of discretionary monies for inequity correction, affirmative action, or other special purpose.
6. Deans and the provost will recommend DSI awards with minimum attention to departmental quotas.
7. At the time the discretionary salary adjustment process is initiated, the president shall announce the categories to be used to classify candidates for different levels of DSI. These categories shall be used for ratings at each stage in the evaluation process.
8. Any elaborations of the weighing of criteria to receive special attention by administrators other than the president in yearly DSI evaluations will be published to concerned faculty a year in advance of the DSI decision process. The criteria that will be used in the forthcoming year shall be distributed by the department chair or director of libraries at the beginning of each academic year.

III. Criteria

In conducting an evaluation pursuant to DSI salary adjustment, evaluators shall consider, but shall not be limited to, the following criteria:

Mastery of Subject Matter — as demonstrated by such things as advanced degrees, licenses, honors, awards, and reputation in the subject matter field.
Effectiveness in Teaching or Librarianship — as demonstrated by such things as judgment of colleagues, development of teaching materials or new courses, including materials and courses promoting pluralism and increasing sensitivity toward under-represented groups, and student reaction, as determined from surveys, interviews and classroom observation data from departmental course teacher evaluations (CTE's) and course dossier evaluations (CDE's).
Scholarly Ability — as demonstrated by such things as success in developing and carrying out significant research work in the subject matter field, contribution to the arts, publications and reputation among colleagues.
Effectiveness of University Service — as demonstrated by such things as university and SUNY committee work, administrative work, quality contributions in the promotion of ethnic and gender issues and work with students or community in addition to formal teacher-student relationships.
Continuing Growth — as demonstrated by such things as reading, research or other activities to keep abreast of current developments in his/her fields and being able to handle successfully increased responsibility.
Academic Aid — as demonstrated by such things as the quality of advisement in assisting students in their development of educational, personal, and career goals, with appropriate course scheduling and post graduate directions and, increasing student awareness with regard to ethnic and gender issues.

IV. Procedures

Persons who wish to be considered for DSI shall nominate themselves, providing appropriate supporting materials to their department chair. These materials may not exceed two typed pages. Librarians shall nominate themselves to the director of the university library. Faculty members whose responsibilities extend beyond the departmental or school level shall submit appropriate supporting material to, and receive due consideration at, the lowest administrative review level which encompasses both levels of their responsibilities.
Chairs, following consultation as agreed within their departments, will rate nominees according to the categories announced by the president. They will then forward all application materials and ratings to their dean together with a summary recommendation not exceeding one page for each nominee. The director of the university library, shall follow analogous procedures, submitting application materials, ratings, and summary recommendations to the associate provost for information resources. The summary recommendation shall include specific reference(s) to the candidate's performance that is deemed meritorious. Chairs and the director of the university library will forward a copy of the summary recommendation and rating to the candidate at the same time they submit these materials to the dean or to the associate provost for information resources.
Chairs who wish to be considered for DSI shall nominate themselves, providing appropriate supporting materials, to their school dean.
Each dean, following consultation with the Provost's Cabinet, prepares recommendations of faculty (including chairs) across the school using the categories announced by the president, and submits these recommendations to the provost. A copy of the dean's decision will be forwarded in writing to the candidate and chairs at the same time it is submitted to the provost. The associate provost for information resources does likewise for library faculty.
The faculty member shall have the opportunity to appeal the decision made by the dean or the associate provost for information resources. This appeal must be made in writing to the provost during the ten calendar days following receipt of the dean or associate provost for information resources' notification. Following this time period, the provost notifies each candidate for DSI in writing of the tentative DSI decision.
The president designates final DSI award recipients and amounts.
The president shall publish names of all academic faculty members who have received a DSI salary adjustment through these procedures, distinguishing between those who receive performance-based DSI and those who receive increases based on other factors (e.g., inequity corrections).
(Approved by President Taylor, May 26, 1998)

V. Initiation and Review of Plan

Initiation
These procedures shall become effective upon approval by the president. The procedures shall remain in effect until reviewed and revised as described immediately below.
Review
During the 2004-05 academic year, the Cortland Faculty Senate shall establish an ad hoc committee to evaluate the effectiveness of the adopted plan and to recommend necessary modifications or termination.

The procedures shall remain in effect until reviewed and revised.

220.15 Plan for Discretionary Performance-Based Adjustments to Basic Annual Salary of Professional Employees

Nothing in this document shall conflict with the current Policies of the Board of Trustees, the current Agreement between the State of New York and UUP, the current Compilation of Codes, Rules and Regulations of the state of New York, and current SUNY System guidelines and regulations.

I. General Statement of Philosophy

The Employee
The premise of this document is that monetary recognition shall be awarded in the form of adjustments to the basic annual salary of professional staff members. This should be consistent with an appropriate and objective appraisal of the extent and direction in which each professional employee has met his/her professional obligation.
SUNY Cortland
The administration shall take the opportunity to exercise its leadership by rewarding monetary recognition in the form of Discretionary Salary Increases (DSI) to the basic annual salary of professional staff members. DSI funding is designed to promote excellence in professional service by recognizing and rewarding exceptional performance in individuals who have performed at the highest level within their identified duties and who have gone above and beyond those duties. It is understood that there is an institutional expectation that all employees will demonstrate excellence in the daily performance of their duties and responsibilities.

II. Assumptions

Regarding Responsibility for DSI Decisions
1. Given the fact that the DSI plan is a management discretionary instrument, the task of decision making should rest primarily with those having administrative responsibility and accountability.
2. The initial DSI evaluation responsibility will rest with direct supervisors recommending to the next level of supervision up through the appropriate vice president.
Regarding Criteria for DSI Decisions
1. Criteria to be employed as the foundation for DSI recommendations is the performance of duties weighted by the immediate supervisor on the individual’s performance program to account for the relative importance that the university places on these responsibilities.
2. Individual vice presidents will be able to determine the number and monetary amount of awards granted for their division.
3. The plan will not assume that professional excellence is equally distributed among centers, departments or divisions. Additionally, the plan should neither discriminate between smaller and larger professional units, nor among professional units with varying average salaries.
4. Nominations and recommendations for an individual shall be based upon professional service from July 1 to June 30 of the designated year. The date of eligibility shall not be determined by the date of any other discretionary salary increase such as inequity, disparity, or one that may accompany promotion. Adjustments may favor both annual and long-term activity.
Regarding Procedures
1. DSI is a form of evaluation and shall be subject to Article XII of the Policies of the Board of Trustees and to the relevant provisions of the Agreement with the United University Professions.
2. The president will initiate and announce the process and timetable for determining DSI in a timely fashion so that adequate time is available at each level for deliberations.
3. All discretionary funds will be held in the President’s Office pending final recommendations.
4. The president will inform the professional staff of any prior allocation of funds from the pool of discretionary funds for inequity correction, affirmative action, or other special purpose. 5. At the time the DSI process is initiated, the president shall reiterate the criteria that will be used to rate candidates for DSI.

III. Criteria

In conducting an evaluation pursuant to DSI salary adjustment, evaluators shall consider, but shall not be limited to the following criteria:

Effectiveness in Performance - As demonstrated by success in carrying out assigned duties and responsibilities, efficiency, productivity, and relationship with colleagues.
Professional Ability - As demonstrated by invention or innovation in professional, scientific, administrative, or technical areas.
Effectiveness in University Service and Continuing Growth – As demonstrated by such things as successful committee work, participation in local campus and university governance, and involvement in campus or university-related student or community activities, continuing education, participation in professional organizations, enrollment in training programs, and research. Also as demonstrated by degrees, licenses, honors, awards, and reputation in professional field.

IV. Procedures

Specific procedures to be followed for each DSI round will be published and disseminated by the President's Office or designee prior to the end of the spring semester in which DSI is to be awarded.

CHAPTER 235: Guidelines for Promotion of Professional Employees

235.01 Promotion Defined
235.02 Procedures
235.03 College Review Panel
235.04 Appeals to the College Review Panel

235.01 Promotion Defined

"Promotion" shall mean an increase in a professional employee's basic annual salary with a change in title and movement to a higher salary rank, resulting from a permanent significant increase or change in his or her duties and responsibilities as a consequence of movement from one position to another of greater scope and complexity of function at the same or different college." (Policies of the Board of Trustees, Article XII, Title C 2.a.)

235.02 Procedures

The systems for promotion and for certain salary increases for professional employees are outlined in the Memoranda of Understanding (MOU), between State University of New York and UUP, Revised 1989.

SUNY Cortland has adopted a local procedure and timeline for the acceptance and processing of salary and/or promotion requests by professional employees. This process and timeline is published online.

235.03 College Review Panel

"Each college president shall continue the procedure by which the professional employees shall elect a College Review Panel. Such panel shall consist of not less than five (5) nor more than seven (7) members elected at large by all professional employees in the negotiating unit." (MOU, 1989)

235.04 Appeals to the College Review Panel

An employee who has met the criteria for promotion as defined in the MOU "provided that the employee first has requested a recommendation for such a promotion from the employee's immediate supervisor and the request has been denied at an organizational level below that of the college president" may appeal to the College Review Panel in accord with the procedure outlined in the MOU, Section III.

Chapter 236: Permanent Appointment Process for UUP Professional Employees

236.01 Eligibility for Initial Permanent Appointment
236.02 Procedure for Renewal and Initial Permanent Appointment
236.03 Consideration for Earlier Permanent Appointment
236.04 Procedure for Subsequent Permanent Appointment Following a Change in Professional Title

The Policies of the Board of Trustees of the State University of New York offer to professional employees, eligibility for permanent appointment (see Policies of the Board of Trustees, Article XI, Title C).A professional employee who has completed seven consecutive years of full-time service as a professional employee at SUNY Cortland, where the last two years of employment have been in that professional title, must be on the basis of permanent appointment. Such appointment shall not be effective until made so by the Chancellor.

236.01 Eligibility for Initial Permanent Appointment

Seven consecutive years of full-time service in an eligible professional title.
Last two years must be in same eligible professional title.
Leave of absence at full salary counts toward years of eligibility.
Consecutive full-time service in temporary and probationary appointments are included unless the position title has been designated “special.”
Leave of absence at less than full salary does not count but is not considered an interruption of consecutive services.
Part-time service does not count but is not considered an interruption of consecutive services.
Time served in academic title does not count toward years of eligibility.
Appendix A, B and C titles are not eligible for permanent appointment.
Prior service credit up to a maximum of three years of service in a professional title at any one college of SUNY can be requested to be included.(A statement of the employee’s right to request prior service credit and a request form is provided to the employee by human resources when they start employment; prior service credit must be requested within the first six (6) months of employment.)

236.02 Procedure for Renewal and Initial Permanent Appointment

Recommendations for renewal accompany a supervisor’s written evaluation of the employee.
Evaluations of UUP professional employees occur at least annually based on each individual’s appointment dates and consistent with the notice of non-renewal requirements contained under Article XI, Title D, Section 5 (a)(b)(c)(d)(e) of the Policies of the Board of Trustees.
The supervisor upon recommending renewal at the professional employee’s sixth-year evaluation cycle will prepare a recommendation for permanency. A recommendation memo template is available on the human resources website. This recommendation should be sent to the next-level supervisor for review and approval up through to the president.
A Form UP-3 will be prepared by human resources and sent to the Chancellor’s Office at SUNY System Administration requesting permanent appointment. The Chancellor grants permanent appointment in a letter directly to the employee with a copy to Human Resources.
An employee will only become a permanent employee once a letter from the Chancellor confirming that permanency has been granted has been received. Policies of the Board of Trustees, Article XI, Title C, Section 4(a)(1) and (2).

236.03 Consideration for Earlier Permanent Appointment

A professional employee does have the right to request consideration for early permanent appointment consistent with the subsections below. If an employee is interested in seeking early consideration, it is highly recommended that the employee consult with human resources and the UUP chapter president or vice president for professionals prior to making such request to assist the employee in making a fully informed decision and to assist in the process of making such a request.

Upon completion of three consecutive years of full-time service as a professional employee at that college, the last year of which has been in that professional title, a professional employee in a title eligible for permanent appointment may initiate early consideration for permanent appointment through notification to the chief administrative officer of the college. To be effective, such notification must be in writing and received by the chief administrative officer of the college no later than nine months prior to the date upon which such employee would otherwise receive written notice that a term appointment is not to be renewed upon expiration. In the event the chief administrative officer of the college grants the employee's request for such early consideration, any further employment of that employee after completion of five consecutive years of full-time service as a professional employee at that college, the last two years of which have been in that professional title, must be on the basis of permanent appointment; provided, however, that such appointment shall not be effective until made so by the Chancellor Policies of the Board of Trustees, Article XI, Title C, Section 4(1)(a).
Upon completion of four consecutive years of full-time service as a professional employee at that college, the last year of which has been in that professional title, a professional employee in a title eligible for permanent appointment may initiate early consideration for permanent appointment through notification to the chief administrative officer of the college. To be effective, such notification must be in writing and received by the chief administrative officer of the college no later than nine months prior to the date upon which such employee would otherwise receive written notice that a term appointment is not to be renewed upon expiration. In the event the chief administrative officer of the college grants the employee's request for such early consideration, any further employment of that employee after completion of six consecutive years of full-time service as a professional employee at that college, the last two years of which have been in that professional title, must be on the basis of permanent appointment; provided, however, that such appointment shall not be effective until made so by the Chancellor. Policies of the Board of Trustees, Article XI, Title C, Section 4(1)(b).

236.04 Procedure for Subsequent Permanent Appointment Following a Change in Professional Title

A professional employee holding a permanent appointment in a professional title who is appointed to a different professional title at the same college, e.g. a promotion or change in jobs across the college, shall be given a one year probationary appointment in the new title.
At the successful completion of the probationary appointment, a new Form UP-3 will be prepared by human resources and sent to the Chancellor’s Office at SUNY System Administration requesting permanent appointment. The Chancellor grants permanent appointment in a letter directly to the employee with a copy to Human Resources.
An employee will only become a permanent in the new professional title once a letter from the Chancellor confirming that permanency has been granted has been received. Policies of the Board of Trustees, Article XI, Title C, Section 4(a)(1) and (2).

(Approved by President Bitterbaum Sept. 6, 2018.)

CHAPTER 240: Faculty Consultation for Filling Administrative Positions

240.01 Policies Statement
240.02 Structure of Consultative Committees
240.03 Process for Election and General Duties and Operating Procedures of Consultative Committees
240.04 Department Chairs
240.05 Guidelines for the Evaluation of Campus Presidents

240.01 Policies Statement

The 2001 edition of the Policies of the Board of Trustees (see Article IX) specifies the following:

(a) "There shall be a chief administrative officer of each state-operated institution of the university who shall be designated president. Presidents shall be appointed by the board of trustees after receipt of recommendations of the campus councils (or of the trustees of the College of Environmental Science and Forestry) and of the chancellor and shall serve at the pleasure of the board of trustees. Before making its recommendations the campus council shall consult with a presidential search committee designated for such purposes by the chair of the council and comprised of members of the various campus constituencies, including faculty, students, professional employees, administration, alumni and members of the council. Reflecting the significance of the role that faculty are expected to play in academic governance, the faculty should predominate among the non-council constituencies on the search committee. The chancellor, or designated representative, before making recommendations to the trustees, shall consult with the chair or other designated representative of the College Council."

(b) "At any time during the period of appointment, the board of trustees and the chancellor may evaluate the services of the chief administrative officer."

(c) "A chief administrative officer, upon appointment, shall be appointed by the chancellor to the faculty of the University in a position of academic rank with continuing appointment."

The faculty of SUNY Cortland believe that they should play a significant role in the selection of those filling administrative positions. Below are the guidelines for faculty consultation in this very important area.

240.02 Structure of Consultative Committees

A. For the President of the University

Legal Authority for Nomination and for Appointment

The legal authority to appoint the president or chief administrative officer of a State-operated institution of the State University is vested in the University Board of Trustees by Section 355(2)(g) and Section 6004(c) of the Education Law. The College Council of each such institution is given responsibility for recommending a candidate or candidates to the Board by Section 356(3)(a). The SUNY Board of Trustees may also appoint a president or chief administrative officer in the event that no council recommendation is made, or where a council recommendation fails to comply with the trustees' standards and procedures.

The SUNY Trustees considers the selection of campus presidents to be one of the most important of its duties. The procedures below are intended to assist the College Councils of State-operated institutions in the search for, and nomination of, individuals to fill the position of president. It should be noted that the term “College Council” in the following is intended to refer equally to the Board of Trustees of the State University College of Environmental Science and Forestry.

This procedure is intended to provide a set of guidelines that should be utilized to conduct presidential searches. Recognizing the great diversity of size, scope and mission of the campuses in the SUNY system, the specific search process at an individual campus may be modified as described in this document by the SUNY Chancellor in consultation with the campus Council Chair.

Process

Campus Presidential Search

Preliminary Steps in the Search Process
- As soon as practical after it is known that a presidential vacancy will occur, the Chancellor (or the Chancellor’s representative) shall reach out to the Council Chair to provide advice and instructions in planning the search and the criteria to be used in the selection of a new president.
- The Council Chair should consult with campus constituency groups, including the campus governance leader, regarding the search plans and the development of the search committee.
- The committee should, in accordance with generally accepted presidential search procedures, be diverse and have representatives from principal campus constituencies.
- Unless otherwise agreed upon by the Chancellor (or Chancellor’s representative) and the Council Chair, the search committee shall consist of:
  - Four members of the council (including the chair);
  - Six members of the full-time teaching faculty of the campus;
  - One student;
  - One alumni representative;
  - One campus-related foundation representative;
  - One academic dean;
  - One professional or support staff member;
  - One incumbent or retired SUNY president from another campus or a member of the Chancellor’s senior staff designated by the Chancellor; and
  - The Chancellor’s liaison representative (non-voting).  
- In the case of campuses larger than 10,000 student FTE, the Council Chair may choose, after discussion with the campus governance leader and authorization by the Chancellor (or the Chancellor’s representative), to increase the size of the search committee to include an additional member of the teaching faculty, a graduate student, and an additional representative from the campus foundation board.
- The Council Chair shall appoint a chair of the search committee. Generally, the Council Chair also serves as the chair of the search committee. If the Council Chair is unwilling or unable to serve as chair of the search committee, the Council Chair shall appoint another member of the council to serve as chair of the search committee.
- The Council Chair shall appoint a chair of the search committee. Generally, the Council Chair also serves as the chair of the search committee. If the Council Chair is unwilling or unable to serve as chair of the search committee, the Council Chair shall appoint another member of the council to serve as chair of the search committee.
- Taking care to assure that faculty representation on the search committee speaks for a broad spectrum of faculty opinion, the campus faculty governance leader will work with the Search Committee Chair and the Chancellor’s representative to devise a nomination and election process to select the faculty representatives to the search committee by secret ballot. The voting process must be widely publicized with sufficient notice to allow any interested faculty to participate in the nomination and voting process. The Council Chair shall invite the appropriate campus and community groups, including the campus governance leader, to submit recommendations for all other positions on the search committee, and shall make the appointments to the remaining positions on the search committee from the recommendations submitted. The committee itself should represent a broad diversity of opinion among the primary campus constituencies.
- The Chancellor shall designate a liaison representative to serve as a non-voting member of the search committee. That representative shall have full access to the files of the committee, and shall be responsible for reporting at regular intervals to the Chancellor and the Trustees regarding the progress of the search and the work of the search committee. The representative shall provide general assistance to the search committee as needed for each step in the process.
- The Council Chair and the Chancellor (or the Chancellor’s representative) shall agree on an expected timetable for the search and nomination process.
- The Chancellor (or the Chancellor’s representative) shall provide a list of nationally recognized organizations (e.g., search firms) with established expertise in academic recruitment and screening, as well as a commitment to developing diverse candidate pools, from which the council shall select one to assist in their search. The campus may elect to use a search firm not on this list with approval from the Chancellor (or the Chancellor’s representative). In compliance with SUNY Board of Trustees Resolution regarding the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Policy, adopted on September 10, 2015, campuses shall, during the search firm selection process, inquire with search firms about their success in assuring diverse candidate pools.[1]  The campus must follow all appropriate procurement policies in the selection of the search firm.[2]
- A campus staff liaison shall be appointed to assist the search committee and to coordinate the clerical work of the committee. This person shall be held to the same confidentiality agreements as the search committee.
- A budget for the search should be determined in conjunction with the chief financial officer of the campus, and arrangements made for a search office and support staff. The campus is responsible for the full cost of the presidential search and the budget should be sufficient to cover the cost of hiring a professional search firm; advertising the position; travel of candidates to all interviews, including those with the Chancellor and the Board of Trustees; as well as the usual telephone, postage, duplicating, and other administrative expenses associated with a search.  
The Search Process
- At the first search committee meeting, the search chair, along with the Chancellor’s representative, shall acquaint the committee members with the search procedures in general and with any specific instructions from the college council, the Chancellor, and the Trustees. The search committee shall be advised that the council is required to send a list of no fewer than three names of acceptable candidates to the Chancellor for consideration, and that the council may submit its opinion on the relative strengths and weaknesses of each candidate whose name is forwarded for consideration by the Chancellor. The timetable for the search shall be presented to all committee members and a commitment obtained from each member to attend all meetings and all interviews.
- Only approved members of the search committee and those staffing the committee are allowed to participate in the confidential work of the committee. Search committee member designees or representatives are not permitted to participate in search committee meetings or review confidential materials.
- Only approved members of the search committee and those staffing the committee are allowed to participate in the confidential work of the committee. Search committee member designees or representatives are not permitted to participate in search committee meetings or review confidential materials.
- The Chancellor (or the Chancellor’s designee) will give the search committee its charge at the first meeting.
- At the first search committee meeting, the importance of confidentiality shall be discussed. All members of the committee must agree to preserve the confidentiality of the search and the names of all candidates.
- The chair may ask the Chancellor to dismiss any committee member if there is evidence that a member of the committee has breached the confidentiality of the search or a committee member is believed to be unduly biased, a non-participant or otherwise unable to fulfill his/her responsibilities in the search process. The decision of whether or not to dismiss the member as well as whether or not to replace the dismissed member will be in the sole discretion of the Chancellor in consultation with the chair of the search committee. If a representative of the faculty is dismissed, the Chancellor (or Chancellor’s representative) shall also consult with the campus’s faculty governance leader as to whether and how the individual shall be replaced.
- At one of the meetings of the search committee, prior to the review of candidates, the chair will invite the campus’s Chief Diversity Officer and Human Resources Director (or designees) to address issues related to the recruitment of diverse candidates as well as discuss general legal protocols and campus and system policies related to hiring of staff.[3]
- In consultation with the Chancellor’s representative and the search consultant, the committee should assess the needs of the institution and the type and style of leadership desired in a new president. Combining the results of this assessment and the required criteria set forth by the Chancellor, the search committee shall develop, and submit to the Chancellor (or the Chancellor’s representative) for approval, the material to be used in the advertisement of the vacancy and the recruitment of candidates for the position.
- The campus prospectus and job description for the position of president should be developed in consultation with the search firm and the Chancellor’s representative, and reflect the future leadership needs of the college. The material should contain at least the following:
  - The general description of the college, including its current strengths, opportunities, and relevant challenges;
  - The required and preferred qualifications for the position;
    Information about the SUNY system, provided by the Chancellor’s representative;
  - Gender neutral language; and
  - The following passage: “The Institution is an affirmative action, equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, creed, age, disability, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, familial status, pregnancy, predisposing genetic characteristics, military status, domestic violence victim status, criminal conviction, or retaliation.”
- The vacancy shall be advertised nationally and in a way intended to generate a diverse pool of candidates. The campus and/or SUNY Chief Diversity Officer shall be consulted in the development of the advertising plan. In order to reach an array of potential candidates, the vacancy shall be broadly advertised in recruitment sources that target the higher education sector and/or are determined to be Equal Opportunity recruitment outlets such as:
  - The Chronicle of Higher Education
  - Inside Higher Education
  - Higheredjobs.com
  - Diverse Issues in Higher Education (formerly Black Issues in Higher Education)
  - Hispanic Outlook
  - The Insight into Diversity
  - Military Hire
- The following can be additional sources of information on creating effective recruitment strategies for diverse candidate pools:
  - National Association for Equal Opportunity in Higher Education
  - American Council on Education’s Women’s Network
  - American Association of University Women
  - U.S Department of Veterans Affairs
  - Joining Forces
- Prior to commencing a review of the candidates, the committee should:
  - Establish evaluation criteria and interview questions based on the qualifications described in the advertisement;
  - Become familiar with requirements of the position and the required and preferred qualifications of the position;
  - Designate a diversity advocate(s) with the role of advocating for diversity as a core component of the search process;
  - Discuss the role of the search committee members in representing first the best interest of the institution, and second the constituencies that they represent; and
  - Consider the need to develop and abide by a fair and just selection process.
- In consultation with the search firm, the committee will develop an initial application screening method and identify those candidates who meet the minimum qualifications. Letters should be sent to those who do not meet the minimum qualifications for the position as soon as practical.
- From the pool of candidates who meet the minimum qualifications, the committee shall use the agreed upon evaluation criteria to select a group of approximately 20 names whom they judge to be the strongest applicants. Additional information may be collected on this group by the search consultant and committee members. Additional information may include reference checking (but only from references named by the candidate in order to preserve the candidate’s confidentiality and only after permission from the candidate to contact those references has been obtained), and appropriate internet searches.
- When additional information is collected and reference checking, if done, has been completed, the committee shall meet to review the applications of all candidates and to discuss the additional information obtained. The committee will then select a group of approximately 8-12 candidates to be interviewed at a site convenient to the committee and to the candidates, subject to the approval by the Chancellor (or the Chancellor’s representative). The site selected for the interviews must be designed to assure that the confidentiality of the names of the candidates to be interviewed will be maintained. Prior to the interviews, the search consultant will conduct a thorough review of each candidate’s credentials and check references supplied by each candidate, and provide the search committee with the results of that review. (Please see Appendix A for additional guidance on the appropriate methods, including legal limitations, for collecting additional information).
- All members of the search committee should attend the personal interviews. The Chancellor’s representative (or designee) will also attend these interviews. Each interview will typically last at least one hour, using a list of questions to be asked of all candidates. Time should also be allotted during this interview to allow each candidate to ask questions of the committee.
- Following these interviews, the committee should meet to discuss and review the qualifications of the candidates interviewed and to select a small group of five or more candidates as semi-finalists. At this point, most searches will proceed with publicly announced campus visits by semi-finalists, subject to the approval by the Chancellor (or the Chancellor’s representative). Other searches, as described below, may proceed as a representational search. Where appropriate during campus visits, the candidate’s spouse/partner, or other family members or associates, may also be invited to visit the campus. At this stage, candidates will be asked to allow the search committee to check references, other than those names provided by the candidates. Candidates other than the semi-finalists should be notified prior to the release to the public of the names of candidates to be invited to the campus.
- Up to this point in the search process, the names of the candidates have been kept confidential by the committee. When the semi-finalists are scheduled to visit campus, their names are released to the public, along with general information about their background and qualifications. It is recommended that the name of each semi-finalist be made public at least 48 hours prior to their scheduled campus visit. The names may be released at the same time or the release staggered throughout the process.
- Campus visits shall be designed to allow a large number of campus and community members to meet and hear from each candidate. In planning these visits, the committee should remember that at this stage of the process they are recruiting the candidates as well as evaluating them.
- All members of the council should actively participate in the interviews of the semi-finalist candidates who visit the campus.
- The SUNY Board of Trustees and the Chancellor may – in confidence – request access to search committee documents, including candidates’ curriculum vitae, at any point in the process. However, all information regarding the reference checks, committee discussion and voting on the various applicants is confidential, and may not be divulged at any time.
Representational Searches
- When deemed necessary by the Chancellor and the State University Board of Trustees, or when initiated by the Council Chair and agreed upon by the Chancellor and State University Board of Trustees, the search will be deemed a representational search where the search committee will be the representatives of the campus in lieu of campus visits and where the semi-finalists’ names are not publicized to the community.
- The sole criterion upon which this decision rests is a determination as to whether a traditional search process with public campus meetings would inhibit the generation of a suitable pool of excellent candidates.
- During a representational search, members of the college council and other designated members of the college community will be invited to meet with the semi-finalist candidates under strict rules of confidentiality.
- The decision whether to hold campus visits will be discussed with the college council and search committee, but it is in the sole discretion of the Chancellor and Board of Trustees of the State University of New York.
Selection Process
- The search committee shall meet and deliberate on the merits of each semi-finalist candidate. It is recommended that all council members be invited to join the search committee at this meeting to hear the search committee’s discussions regarding the relative merits of each candidate.
- The search committee shall forward to the council the list of all acceptable candidates, along with a short (one page) synopsis of the relative strengths and weaknesses of each candidate. The committee shall determine the appropriate process by which a candidate may be determined to be acceptable. The search committee is strongly urged to forward as many acceptable names as possible to the council for consideration.
- The council then shall meet and deliberate on the relative merits of each of the candidates whose names have been forwarded to them by the search committee. While the recommendation of candidates to the Chancellor and the State University Board of Trustees is the prerogative of the council alone, consensus between the council and the search committee should be sought and encouraged. Serious disagreement about the final candidates recommended by the council, particularly any disagreement that clearly follows major constituency lines, suggests a potentially serious problem with the search process.
- The council shall recommend three acceptable finalist candidates to the Chancellor for consideration. The recommendations shall be unranked, though the council may submit its opinion in written form on the relative strengths and weaknesses of each finalist candidate whose name is forwarded for consideration by the Chancellor.
- In most searches, the Chancellor shall then invite the three candidates to meet with him/her and, as appropriate, members of his/her senior staff prior to the Chancellor making a final recommendation to the Board.
- In most searches, the three candidates will be required to provide a presentation to an invited audience including SUNY senior staff and members of the SUNY Board of Trustees about their vision for the campus, how they will advance that vision, and how they will work with system to achieve that vision. The materials (e.g., C.V. and cover letter) shall be provided to the invited audience in advance of the presentations. Those in attendance shall provide feedback to the Chancellor for his/her consideration in selecting a nominee to forward to the Trustees for their approval.
Board of Trustees Approval
- The Chancellor shall provide the name of her recommendation as well as related background materials to the Board of Trustees. Except when approved by the Board Chair, the Chancellor shall provide such information no less than one week prior to the Trustees’ interview of the candidate.
- For each search, a sub-committee of at least three members of the Trustees shall be constituted to serve as the primary liaisons of the Board to the search. Responsibilities of the sub-committee shall include:
  - Reviewing the materials provided by the three candidates forwarded to the Chancellor and attending the required presentation to be given by the three finalists advanced to the Chancellor;
  - Interviewing, in person, the candidate recommended by the Chancellor, at a time and place arranged by the Secretary of the Board of Trustees;
  - Receive from the Chancellor a proposed annual compensation package with background compensation data as well as a summary of the search process.
  - Making a full report of the process and forwarding its recommendations on both the candidate and the compensation package to the full Board of Trustees.
- It is anticipated that a recommended candidate approved by the sub-committee of the Board of Trustees will be invited to attend the next scheduled meeting of the Board of Trustees for consideration of final appointment. The Board of Trustees may meet with the candidate in executive session before a final presentation and vote.
- Interviews done by the full Board will occur on the first day of a scheduled meeting in executive session. At the meeting (or prior to the meeting) with the candidate, the Chancellor will provide to the Board of Trustees a proposed annual compensation package with background compensation data as well as a summary of the search process. It is anticipated that a recommended candidate interviewed during executive session will be invited to attend the next scheduled meeting of the Board of Trustees for consideration of final appointment.
Post-Search Evaluation
Once a search has been completed, it is recommended that the SUNY Office of Presidential Searches and Leadership, in consultation with the College Council, administer an evaluation to the search committee, all candidates that were invited to the off-site interviews, and the selected candidate. The evaluation should be considered a tool for the System and College Council to understand how the process went, review of the search firm and consultant used, and what they should learn from the search that should be remembered for future searches.
Reopened Searches
Should the Chancellor or the Board of Trustees decide that the circumstances warrant the reopening of a search, it is within their discretion to require that the Council Chair appoint, in accordance with these guidelines, a new search committee.
Internal Candidates
Should anyone from within the campus community wish to apply for the presidency, that individual must do so by way of a formal application prior to the closing date for the receipt of nominations. Any such internal candidate who does not formally apply for the position and participate in the entire search process will not be considered for the position. Interim Presidents may not be candidates for the presidency unless they have received the written permission of the Chancellor to participate as candidates.

Footnotes:

The SUNY Office of Presidential Searches and Leadership shall track the efforts of search firms in developing of diverse candidate pools to fill presidential vacancies and share this information, as appropriate, with campuses. The Office will also provide each selected search firm with a copy of the Board Resolution policy on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion as well as the system and campus diversity plans. 
The search committee should consult with the campus purchasing office to ensure that all state and SUNY rules and regulations are followed regarding the contracting of the search firm.
Per the SUNY Board of Trustees Resolution policy on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, adopted on September 10, 2015, each SUNY campus is required to appoint a Chief Diversity Officer (CDO) no later than August 15, 2017. In the event of a position vacancy or this position has not yet been filled, the SUNY CDO (or designee) shall be invited to meet with the search committee.

(Approved by the State University of New York Board of Trustees, June 22, 2016)

B. For the Provost

The eight-member consultative committee shall be composed as follows:

Three members of the academic faculty, one member each elected by and from each of the three schools
One member elected by and from the library
One member elected by and from the professional staff reporting within the area of academic affairs
One member elected by and from management/confidential
One member elected by and from the classified staff reporting within the area of academic affairs
One student member.

The Human Resources Office shall conduct all faculty elections.

C. For the Vice President for Student Affairs

The seven-member consultative committee shall be composed as follows:

Two members elected by and from the professional staff reporting within the area of student affairs
Two members elected by and from the academic faculty, including librarians
One member elected by and from management/confidential
One member elected by and from the classified staff reporting within the area student affairs
One student member.

The Human Resources Office shall conduct all faculty elections.

D. For the Vice President for Finance and Management

The eight-member consultative committee shall be composed as follows:

Two members elected by and from the professional staff reporting within the area of finance and management
Two members elected by and from the academic faculty, including librarians
One member elected by and from management/confidential
Two members elected by and from the classified staff reporting within the area of finance and management
One student member.

The Human Resources Office shall conduct all faculty elections.

E. For the Vice President for Institutional Advancement

The eight-member consultative committee shall be composed as follows:

One member elected by and from the professional staff reporting within the area of institutional advancement
Two members elected by and from the academic faculty, including librarians
One member elected by and from management/confidential
One member elected by and from the classified staff reporting within the area of institutional advancement
One member selected by and from the Alumni Association
One member selected by and from the Cortland College Foundation
One student member.

The Human Resources Office shall conduct all faculty elections.

F. For the Deans of Schools

The eight-member committee shall be composed as follows:

Four members elected by and from the academic faculty within the school
One member elected by and from the academic faculty outside the school, including librarians
One member elected by and from the professional staff reporting within the area of academic affairs
One member elected by and from the classified staff reporting within the area of academic affairs
One student member of the school.

The Human Resources Office shall conduct all faculty elections.

G. For the Director of Libraries

The eight-member committee shall be composed as follows:

Two members elected by and from the librarians
One professional member elected from the library professionals
Three members elected by and from the academic faculty (schools)
One member elected by and from the classified staff reporting within the library
One student member.

The Human Resources Office shall conduct all faculty elections.

H. For the Associate Provost for Information Resources

The seven-member committee shall be composed as follows:

Two members elected by and from the academic faculty (schools)
One member elected by and from the librarians
Two members elected by and from the professional staff reporting within the area
One member elected by and from the classified staff reporting within the area
One student member.

The Human Resources Office shall conduct all faculty elections.

I. For Associate and Assistant Vice Presidents, Associate Provosts, Deans (other than deans of schools) and Directors

The six-member committee shall be composed as follows:

a. Four members elected by and from the faculty/professional staff (any combination of academic faculty including librarians, and/or professional staff including management/confidential)
One member elected by and from the classified staff reporting within the area
One student member
In addition, the Senate shall appoint two additional members, with special consideration of the areas with a direct reporting relationship. The appointments are recommended to the Senate by the appropriate vice president.

The Human Resources Office may conduct all faculty elections.

J. For Associate Deans

The six-member committee shall be composed as follows:

Three members elected by and from the faculty within the school
One member elected by and from the professional staff reporting within the area of academic affairs and/or librarians
One member elected by and from the classified staff reporting within the area of academic affairs
One student member.

The Human Resources Office shall conduct all faculty elections.

K. Additional Membership to all Consultative Committees

The campus president shall have the prerogative to appoint one or two members to the consultative committee in order to satisfy affirmative action goals.

The campus president shall appoint a human resources representative to search committees as he or she deems appropriate.

Such action shall be reported to the Faculty Senate.

(Structures for B-K were approved by the Faculty Senate and President Bitterbaum on Feb. 14, 2006.)

240.03 Process for Election and General Duties and Operating Procedures of Consultative Committees

The following material integrates processes approved by the Faculty Senate on Feb. 14, 2006, and President Bitterbaum on Feb. 14, 2006.

The president or appropriate vice president will notify the Faculty Senate that a search is beginning for a director-level or above vacancy. This notification will be directed to the Faculty Senate chair, or vice chair in his/her absence. It is presumed that the Faculty Senate will participate.

The Human Resources Office will issue an electronic call for nominations to the voting academic and professional faculty.

The call will include the position title, the composition of the committee, and a deadline by which nominees must respond. The call will also include the following statements: “Those seeking and accepting membership on a search committee must make the search committee a top priority and agree to an aggressive time line. The process must move forward expeditiously, and not be limited to times when classes are in session.” The deadline for response will be three work days.

The Human Resources Office will send out ballots for any contested seats as soon as possible after the nomination deadline. The ballot deadline will be seven work days. A tie will be broken by random selection.

In the event there are insufficient nominees received by the published deadline, individuals will be appointed by the president or the appropriate vice president (or his/her designee) to fill the vacancies in accordance with the established committee composition.

The Human Resources Office will announce electronically to the campus the full slate of nominees, election results and any appointments that were made.

A consultative committee shall elect its own chair from among its members.

The search committee shall participate in search committee training and conform to the training and policies/procedures provided by the affirmative action officer. In accordance with SUNY Cortland’s commitment to creating a more diversified campus, search committees, and the supervisors to whom they report, should take into consideration the added value candidates from a protected class bring to a position by contributing to intellectual and cultural diversity. Both faculty and students benefit from the richness inherent in difference. Specific questions of definition of protected classes and about hiring practices should be referred to the affirmative action officer, who is an ex officio member of all search committees.

Minutes of all meetings should be kept. Discussion of a candidate’s file, however, is confidential and should not be reported in the minutes. The affirmative action officer will provide information on what the minutes should contain.

At the first meeting of the search committee, the affirmative action officer shall advise all committee members that confidentiality is to be maintained throughout the search process.

Committee chairs shall regularly report back to their constituencies on their committee’s activities.

The supervisor, with final approval by the affirmative action officer, is responsible for preparing the vacancy announcement and a carefully detailed job description and for sending the advertisement to all pertinent publications and other job outlets. The supervisor’s final charge to the search committee will expand on the job description by outlining in more detail that can be provided in the advertisement or job description a set of criteria and expectations.

The chair of the search committee shall maintain a record of member attendance.

The committee shall conduct a thorough search and shall receive and screen all candidates. The committee shall present all candidates who visit this campus to appropriate faculty and student groups.

Supervisors may request progress reports from the search committee chair and may also meet with the committee to provide or seek information. Once the committee has identified candidates for telephone or on-campus interviews, supervisors have the option of contacting identified candidates, in consultation with the search committee chair and the affirmative action officer. Supervisors must give permission for the candidates to be invited to campus. Supervisors may, at that time, with rationale, veto one or more candidates and ask that the committee review the pool and present a modified slate. (The affirmative action officer’s review at this point of invitation is for the purpose of verifying that the qualifications of the candidates are consistent with those that were advertised.) Supervisors should not expect to participate in search committee meetings except for the instances noted above. Supervisors may choose to meet with search committees at the end of the process for a final debriefing.
(Approved by President Bitterbaum, Spring 2004.)

The committee should only formulate recommendations when a quorum is present. Candidates shall be deemed acceptable by the committee by majority vote. The committee may, if it chooses, vote by secret ballot (by majority vote). The balloting method shall be determined early in the committee deliberations process and before any voting begins. The recommendation is submitted to the affirmative action officer. Upon approval by the affirmative action officer, the committee forwards the recommendation to the hiring manager. The committee should normally present the supervisor with two or three names. Candidates may be presented in the order in which they were interviewed or in alphabetical order. The recommendation should indicate whether or not each candidate is acceptable and outline the candidates’ strengths and weaknesses. The committee should also include additional pertinent information about its deliberations or other explanations of its actions. Such statements shall be reviewed and approved by the committee before they are forwarded. The committee may meet with the supervisor at its request if it so decides.
(Approved by President Bitterbaum Fall 2005.)

All members of the campus community are urged to provide as receptive and cordial a welcome as possible to candidates interviewing for positions at SUNY Cortland.

240.04 Department Chairs

The department and the school dean shall meet well in advance of appointment or reappointment of a chair to discuss the department's needs and problems.

All full-time members of a department shall participate in the establishment of procedures for the selection of chair. Final procedures shall be consistent with the Policies of the Board of Trustees and shall be adopted by a majority vote of all full-time members. All departments shall obtain administrative approval of their procedures. Copies of such procedures shall be placed on file in the administrative offices concerned.

A department may consider candidates from outside the university as well as candidates within the university. The possibility of a candidate from outside the university is dependent upon the availability of a line.

The members of the department shall be kept informed of important stages in decision making and shall be involved in interviews with candidates.

A recommendation shall list all acceptable candidates and the department's preferences in priority order.

The recommendation of the department should be a major factor in the final decision. If there is disagreement between the department and members of the administration over the final decision, department members and members of the administration shall meet together and resolve their differences. At the time the candidate for department chair is officially offered the position, there should be substantial agreement between the administration and the department that the candidate is acceptable to both. When the department officially makes its recommendation known to the school dean, the dean will forward it with his or her recommendation for or against to the provost, who will forward it with his or her recommendation for or against to the president.

Candidates shall be informed of the statement in Article IX, Title C: Paragraph 2, Term, of the Policies of the Board of Trustees:
"Chairs of departments or divisions of colleges shall be designated and redesignated by the college chief administrative officer after consultation with appropriate faculty including the department or division concerned. Such designation shall be for any period up to three years and renewable; provided, however, that the college chief administrative officer may relieve a designee of duties as chair at any time."
(Endorsed by Faculty Senate, April 3, 1979; approved by Acting President Gordon, April 24, 1979)

240.05 Guidelines for the Evaluation of Campus Presidents

Purposes of Presidential Evaluation

The basic purpose of presidential evaluations is to strengthen the role of the president and to offer to each president a more flexible approach to his or her duties, while emphasizing accountability in the leadership role. The presidents are responsible primarily to the chancellor and the trustees. Therefore, a continuing review process, as provided for in Article IX, Title A, Section 1b, of the Policies of the Trustees requires the full involvement of the chancellor who has responsibility for the review and evaluation of campus presidents. The process shall include two parts: (1) a short annual review of each president; and, (2) a full-scale formal evaluation on a periodic basis.

Because it is difficult to separate an assessment of a president from an assessment of his/her campus, each review conducted under these guidelines will look both at the overall health of the institution and the quality of the president's stewardship. Usually, the annual review will focus on issues and concerns earlier established by the president and the chancellor. Thus, each annual review format will reflect factors unique to a particular president and campus. The more formal periodic evaluation will focus on the performance of the president in advancing the mission of the campus within the framework established by the State University. The reviews will be performed throughout the year. Formal evaluations will be conducted according to a schedule that will be developed and announced in advance. All yearly reviews and periodic formal evaluations will be conducted as personnel matters and will be confidential.

Procedures for a Presidential Evaluation - Annual Review

Every year each president of a state-operated campus shall send a short (three to five pages) report to the chancellor, with a copy to the chair of the local College Council for distribution to the Council assessing:
a. The overall academic quality of the institution;
b. The financial health of the institution;
c. Progress made in achieving previously set goals;
d. Any institutional or personal problems the president has encountered during the year; and,
e. The president's goals for the coming year.

The chancellor shall review the president's report and he/she, or a senior staff member designated by the chancellor, shall consult with the College Council Chair, College Council, vice chancellors, or other sources as appropriate.

The president will meet with the chancellor to review his/her report and other relevant information regarding the president or the campus. The chancellor and the president will discuss the overall health of the campus and set appropriate goals for the institution and the president for the coming year.

The chancellor will report, in executive session, to the board of trustees on the overall health of the institution and on the progress the president has made in achieving institutional goals.

The yearly review will conclude with a short confidential letter from the chancellor to the president, outlining the chancellor's assessment of progress in achieving prior goals and reiterating the goals set for the coming year. A copy of this letter will be given only to the board of trustees and the chair of the College Council for distribution to the council.

Procedures for a Presidential Evaluation - Formal Review

Each president of a state-operated campus will be formally evaluated at regular intervals during his/her service. New presidents will be evaluated during their third year of service. It is anticipated that continuing presidents will be formally evaluated every five years, although the chancellor may institute such an evaluation at a different interval if circumstances deem it appropriate. The purpose of this periodic evaluation will be to assess the president's performance. A broad range of individuals who work closely with the president both on and off campus will be invited by the chancellor to participate in this evaluation.

The president shall submit a self-evaluation report to the chancellor assessing the state of the institution and his/her stewardship thereof. This report should address the following issues:
a. The overall academic quality of the institution
b. The financial health of the institution
c. The institution's record of service to its local area and to the state
d. The president's record representing the institution and articulating its goals to a variety of external constituencies and to internal constituencies
e. The president's record of service to SUNY, the community in which the campus is located, and to regional and/or national educational associations
f. The condition of the physical plant and plans for future building and/or renovations
g. Special challenges that the institution or the president have faced since the last performance review
h. Overall campus morale

The chancellor will appoint a team to conduct the formal evaluation and to make a confidential assessment of the president's performance. This team will consist of one external peer evaluator (a current or former president of a non-SUNY institution of similar size and character, or another recognized leader in public higher education), and may also include a senior academic administrator or senior faculty member, and a senior member of the System Administration. In appointing the team, the chancellor will consult with the president about potential evaluators in order to avoid any bias or conflicts of interest.

The chancellor will invite members of the College Council, the College Foundation Board, faculty governance leaders, student government leaders, as well as representatives of the alumni association and the professional and support staffs to submit written comments on the quality of the President's stewardship. These comments shall be considered confidential.

The chancellor may request comment from other interested parties, including the public, concerning the institution and their knowledge of matters concerning the institution.

After reviewing the president's report, background information about the institution and the written comments solicited from the individuals and groups described above, the evaluation team will visit the campus to meet the president. The team may also meet with representatives of appropriate constituency groups, including members of the College Council, the campus Foundation, senior administrators, faculty, students and staff. At the end of their visit, the team will meet privately with the president to share their views on the overall health of the institution and the quality of the president's leadership.

After visiting the campus, the team will consult with the chancellor regarding its findings and prepare and submit a written report on the quality of the president's stewardship. The report may include suggested future goals for the president. This report is considered to be intra agency material, non-final and prepared to assist the chancellor and the board of trustees in its deliberative process of evaluating the job performance of the president. The report is considered a confidential, personnel matter, to be shared only with the board of trustees in executive session.

After consulting with the president regarding the contents of the report, the chancellor will report, in executive session, to the board of trustees on the conclusions of the evaluation team and offer his own assessment of the president's performance.

The evaluation will conclude with a short confidential letter of report from the chancellor to the president outlining the chancellor's assessment of the president's performance. A copy will be shared with the board of trustees and the College Council chair for distribution to the council.

CHAPTER 250: Course and Curricular Change Policy

250.01 Change Policy
250.02 College Curriculum Review Committee
250.03 Levels of Curricular Change
250.04 Changes in the Mission of the Department or University
250.05 Course Retirement Policy

250.01 Change Policy

Procedures have been established for the development and approval of courses and curricula and the appropriate notification of all offices concerned. All changes, additions and deletions in courses and curricula should follow the prescribed pattern. Such changes, once approved, become effective with the new catalog or as directed. The changes are processed throughout the academic year, and everyone concerned should be informed as they occur.

Courses that have not been offered over the last five years (full academic-year period) will be reviewed by each department on an annual basis. The department will then respond with a decision to: 1) maintain the course(s) in the course inventory with justification; or 2) retire and remove the course(s) from the active curriculum and College Catalogs.

(Approved by President Bitterbaum on Nov. 20, 2006)

250.02 College Curriculum Review Committee

Duties: It is the responsibility of the Curriculum Review Committee and the Graduate Faculty Executive Committee to consider curriculum changes that affect all schools of the university and to make recommendations to the provost in a timely and efficient manner. This committee also will make recommendations to the Educational Policy Committee on policy changes that may be necessary.

250.03 Levels of Curricular Change

Level I Curricular Change

This is a curricular change at the department level, that does not affect a named requirement or an elective in another department or program. Level I changes do not require approval by the School Curriculum Committee, the College Curriculum Review Committee (CCRC), or the Graduate Faculty Executive Committee (GFEC) unless submitted as part of a Level II change (e.g. altering an existing program), in which case the path for change for the entire packet shall be that of Level II.

Examples of Level I change include:

change to frequency code of course that is not part of a program (major, minor, concentration) from another department
change to a course description that clarifies, but does not change the primary content of the course
change in course title
deletion of course prerequisite that does not affect another department
adding or deleting an existing course to a group of acceptable elective courses within a program that does not affect another department
change in course number at the same number level (e.g. 425 to 432)*

* The proposed course number cannot be an already existing number or a number used in the past. The executive director, student registration and records services, should be contacted for course/number history.

Note: Errors of an editorial nature that appear in the College Catalogs do not need to be corrected through the curricular process. However, documentation that the errors are, indeed, editorial in nature is necessary. To correct the error, a department chair or coordinator only has to inform the appropriate associate dean. All proposal forms must be signed by a department chair, unless the program is outside the purview of an academic department, in which case all forms must be signed by the identified program coordinator. Examples of documentation are:

a previous catalog showing the correct statement, or
a copy of the provost-approved course or program.

Level II Curricular Change

This is a substantial curricular change that impacts the originating department or area, and/or affects other programs, but does not require off-campus approval. Level II changes will be any curricular change that is not described in a Level I or Level III change.

Examples of Level II change include:

1. Alterations to the catalog listing of a course

change that includes and affects named requirements or electives in other departments or programs
change in course prefix
change in course number to a different level,* e.g., number with different level (100 to 200, 400 to 300), from graduate to undergraduate, or vice versa
change in frequency code of course that is part of a program (major, minor, concentration) from another department. This change requires a memo from the department chair or coordinator whose program is affected.
change in course description that alters the primary content of the course
change in course prerequisite, or corequisite beyond a Level I change
change in course restriction statement
change in course grade mode
change in course credit hours
new course proposal initiating "shared resources" courses
new course proposal not related to teacher education

2. New courses – use Form 1

3. Deletion of an existing course – use Form 3

4. Alterations to an existing program (major, minor, concentration) – use Form 5

adding courses to or deleting courses from a program
adding or deleting an existing course to a group of acceptable elective courses within a program that does affect another department
developing a new minor or concentration

5. Approval of Changes to Academic Standards in Academic Programs

A proposed change to the academic standards of a program is a Level 2 curricular change and requires review of the department chair, school curricular committee, dean, College Curriculum Committee and the provost. These changes include, but are not limited to, minimum overall or major GPA for good standing in a major, continued process and entrance into upper division coursework, fieldwork, internship or student teaching.

* The proposed course number cannot be a previously used number. The executive director, student registration and records services, should be contacted for course and number history.

Level III Curricular Change

This is comprised of alterations that will require off-campus approval. To ensure timely consideration, these changes should follow the timelines established for Level II Curricular Change. External review and approval from SUNY and NYSED may generally take anywhere from three months to a year for confirmation.

Examples of Level III change include:

change of more than 15 hours of core courses in an existing major
new majors
new degree programs

(Approved by President Bitterbaum Oct. 21, 2009)

250.04 Changes in the Mission of the Department or University

Where a "letter of intent" is required, proposals should be carefully reviewed by school committees and the Deans' Leadership Group whose recommendations will be forwarded to the provost for consideration. The provost prepares a recommendation to the president before the "letter of intent" is submitted to Albany.

When a "letter of intent" is approved in Albany, proposed changes should be submitted by the school to the Educational Policy Committee which will then submit its recommendations to the Faculty Senate. The Faculty Senate forwards its recommendations to the provost who will discuss the proposal with the Provost's Cabinet and forward their recommendation along with his or hers to the president for transmission to the appropriate authorities in Albany.

The following excerpt from Section 52.1, subsection a, of the Regulations of the Commissioner of Education is pertinent: "New programs must be registered and major changes in existing programs must be approved by the department before being offered."

250.05 Course Retirement Policy

Courses that have not been offered over the last five full academic-year periods will be reviewed by each department on an annual basis. The department will then respond with a decision to: 1) maintain the course(s) in the course inventory with justification, or 2) retire and remove the course(s) from the active curriculum and the College Catalogs.
(Approved by President Bitterbaum July 30, 2007)

Back to Chapter 250

CHAPTER 260: Work-Related References

260.01 Faculty Research
260.02 Comprehensive Teaching Evaluation System
260.03 Patent and Copyright Policy
260.04 Salary of Faculty
260.05 Outside Activities of Faculty
260.06 Vacation Leaves for Faculty
260.07 Sick Leaves for Faculty
260.08 Sabbatical Leaves
260.09 Military Leaves
260.10 Volunteer Status
260.11 Liability of the University

260.01 Faculty Research

Faculty are encouraged to engage in research and publication or similar scholarly activity. SUNY Cortland supports, upon occasion, the granting by a department of a reduced teaching load for significant research projects. The Research Foundation of State University offers limited funds for research. The director of research and sponsored programs coordinates all research activities and advises faculty in applying for grants from federal and state agencies.

The Faculty Research Committee was established by the Faculty Senate in September 1974, to encourage, promote, and facilitate research activities of the faculty; to recommend policies to the Faculty Senate; to implement policies affecting research; and to be responsible for the Faculty Research Program.

260.02 Comprehensive Teaching Evaluation System

Policies and Procedures (Approved by President Clark, Jan. 10, 1983)

The following sections I, III, and IV are from the complete manual published in Fall 1987 and updated in 2002, available in the Provost's Office.

I. General Recommendations

1. All faculty and administrators should be evaluated on a regular basis. Part of the evaluation of faculty should be the regular systematic collection of information from colleagues and students as the basis for judgments about their teaching effectiveness. Part of the evaluation of administrators should include the regular, systematic collection of information from faculty and students as the basis for judgments about their administrative effectiveness. Information sought about administrators should concern their effectiveness of administration, leadership ability, responsiveness to relevant constituencies, innovative programs, competency and soundness of judgment.

2. The teaching evaluation system will consist of two components: (a) the administration of a Course Teacher Evaluation (CTE) form, and (b) materials and information submitted by the teacher. Note: If a teacher does not wish to use a CTE form, an alternate procedure of visitation is possible.

3. Teachers will be evaluated, at a minimum, at least once every third time they teach a particular course. In addition, courses taught during the winter and summer terms are also subject to the minimum requirement for the evaluation of teaching. Departments will be responsible for establishing a time schedule for evaluating teaching. (Under exceptional circumstances, the recommended time schedule may be inappropriate. In such cases the department in question should submit to the Teaching Effectiveness Committee for approval an alternative in keeping with the principle of regular, systematic, longitudinal evaluation of faculty.)

III. CTE Component of the Teaching Evaluation System

1. There will be a standard CTE form approved by the Committee on Teaching Effectiveness and available for use by any department that so chooses. At present, the committee recommends the use of the Purdue Cafeteria System (Committee on Teaching Effectiveness, 1994-97).

2. The standard CTE form should not be excessively long. The items will include, at a minimum, the following topics:

definition of and adherence to the announced course requirements and coverage of content;
the teacher's effectiveness in presenting the course material (e.g., organization, structure, clarity, communication, teaching style, or lecturing ability);
the teacher's availability to meet with students outside of class;
workload or course difficulty;
fairness in evaluating students;
teacher-student interaction or rapport;
impact on students or students' sense of accomplishment; and
global, overall rating of the teacher.

3. The final decision on what CTE form is to be used by faculty members in a given department will be made by the department, with the following stipulations:

All members of the department will use a common form agreed upon by the department; and

The form used by the department must include the following statements from the Purdue Cafeteria System:

The stated goals of this course are consistently pursued.
My instructor has an effective style of presentation.
My instructor is readily available for consultation.
Complexity and length of course assignments are reasonable.
Grades are assigned fairly and impartially.
My instructor readily maintains rapport with this class.
I am satisfied with my accomplishments in this course.
Overall, this instructor has been effective.
(Approved by President Taylor, May 28, 2002)
ix. This course has effectively challenged me to think.
(Approved by President Bitterbaum, June 10, 2013)

Departments are free to add questions to those listed above.

4. In addition to the required statements found above, at least four of the following seven statements from the Purdue Cafeteria System must be chosen by the teaching faculty of courses on campus that require a lab portion either on-campus or as a part of a field experience:

Lab procedures are clearly explained to me.
Assistance is always available throughout lab sessions.
The lab sessions are well organized.
The content of the lab is a worthwhile part of this course.
Lab assignments are reasonable in length and complexity.
Lab assignments have instructional value.
My lab assignments are promptly returned to me.

5. The detailed procedures for collection of CTE data will be determined by each department, approved by the "Committee on Teaching Effectiveness," and subject to the following guidelines:

Student CTE forms will be administered by someone other than the course teacher (e.g., a student proctor, department secretary, or other colleague).

The form will be administered sometime during the last three weeks of scheduled classes in a term.

All questionnaires using the Purdue items, including the required core items, will be processed by the Institutional Research and Assessment Office (approved by President Taylor, May 28, 2002). There must be adequate safeguards against misuse or tampering with whatever CTE data the department collects.

IV. Course Materials

1. The course materials to be submitted for evaluation should include the following:

course syllabus, including either a course outline or a list of course objectives;
assignments, examinations, and other materials that are provided for the students; and
any other materials the teacher wishes to submit (e.g., information on advisement, the teacher's role in involving students in research, attendance at professional meetings, the teacher's role in assisting students with career plans, or examples of graded papers and exams).

2. Optionally, the teacher may provide a written description of the course including observations about the students in the course. Such a description might include: a general description of the level of the course, the student composition in terms of class year and major, information as to whether the course is required or not, and a general comment on the teacher's perceptions of the motivation and general intellectual level of the students in the course.

260.03 Patent and Copyright Policy

See Board of Trustees Policies, Article XI, Title J-2 for a complete discussion of patents, inventions and copyright policy.

SUNY Cortland Guidelines on Fair Use of Copyrighted Works for Education and Research

SUNY Cortland views both liberal and professional education as integral to its mission and believes that all study teaches students to think critically and prepares them for earning a living. As an institution dedicated to the discovery, creation and dissemination of knowledge, SUNY Cortland is committed to complying with all the laws regarding intellectual property. That commitment includes the full exercise of the rights accorded to users of copyrighted materials under the “fair use” provisions of federal copyright laws, 17 U.S.C. Section 107. This includes the duplication of audio, video, photographs, illustrations, computer software and all other works used in the pursuit of teaching, learning and scholarship. Copyrighted material stored, viewed and transported using SUNY Cortland information technology resources must comply with campus copyright policies and appropriate state and federal laws.

SUNY Cortland intends to facilitate the knowledgeable and good faith exercise of full fair-use rights by students, faculty, librarians and staff in order to achieve its mission and strategic goals of academic excellence and transformational education, including teaching, research, education and related activities. In its vision of education for the common good, the exercise of fair use not only assists students, faculty and staff in learning, teaching and research but also creates new knowledge and contributes to bodies of knowledge throughout all the disciplines, satisfying the purpose and intent of U.S. copyright laws in fostering, creating and disseminating of intellectual works for the welfare of the public.

In this good faith exercise of fair use, balancing the four factors of fair use is an ongoing and often case-by-case effort: The factors enacted by Congress and applied by the courts to evaluate whether a use qualifies as fair use are:

nature and purpose of use
the nature of the copyrighted work being used
the amount and substantiality of the work being used
the effect of the use on the market for or value of the original.

260.04 Salary of Faculty

See latest negotiated agreement.

260.05 Outside Activities of Faculty

See 435.03 - Extramural Activities.

260.06 Vacation Leaves for Faculty

See Policies, Article XIII, Title A; B.

260.07 Sick Leaves for Faculty

See Policies, Article XIII, Title C.

260.08 Sabbatical Leaves

(See 210.08 for procedures)

Article XIII, Title E, of the Policies of the Board of Trustees makes it clear that "The objective of (a sabbatical leave) is to increase an employee's value to the University and thereby improve and enrich its program. Such leave shall not be regarded as a reward for service nor as a vacation or rest period occurring automatically at stated intervals." See Policies Article XIII Title E for details.

(Approved by President Clark, Oct. 14, 1980)

260.09 Military Leaves

Campus personnel officers shall grant military leave according to the guidelines below:

A maximum of 22 work days or 30 calendar days (whichever is more) with pay may be granted annually.
A minimum of one day must be charged for a whole day or any fraction thereof.
All days served on military duty are to be charged to military leave including Saturdays and Sundays which may occur during the assignment.
Annual leave credits may be used for military leave beyond the paid days, subject to prior approval of the campus president.
The privileges granted under the military law must be protected from abuse at all times. It is the responsibility of each college to see that the law is uniformly applied. (Section 242 of the Military Law)

260.10 Volunteer Status

Persons providing a service to the University on a non-pay basis may be given workers' compensation and limited legal indemnification under the Public Officers Law if they are enrolled as "volunteers." Generally, these volunteers must be supervised by a state employee and provide services for a function that is supported by state purpose funds. Campus departments may enroll these service providers by writing to the Human Resources Office.

260.11 Liability of the University

SUNY Cortland is an institution of the State of New York. The State of New York is protected against claims of civil liability under a self-insurance program. This program requires that any person or corporation that feels they have a legal claim against New York State must entertain a lawsuit through the New York State Court of Claims. The Office of the New York State Attorney General is responsible for representing New York State in these matters. If you have questions regarding this process, you should contact your attorney at law or call the Syracuse Office of the New York State Attorney General, located at 615 Erie Boulevard, West; Syracuse, N.Y.

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CHAPTER 270: Work-Related Policies and Procedures

270.01 Hiring Policy - Student Employment
270.02 Policy on Environmental Health and Safety and Required Training
270.03 Ergonomics Policy
270.05 Recycling Policy
270.06 False Alarms of Fire
270.07 Tampering with the Fire Alarm System
270.08 Fire Drills
270.09 Firearms Policy
270.10 Policy on Loitering on Campus
270.11 Complaints and Grievances Initiated on Cortland Campus

270.01 Hiring Policy — Student Employment

It is the policy of SUNY Cortland to hire students as federal Work-Study employees (through the Financial Aid Office), as temporary service student assistants, or as casual labor workers under Civil Service noncompetitive classifications. These students are normally hired on an hourly, part-time basis in university offices and academic departments.

Federal Work-Study employees and temporary service employees may work up to 20 hours per week while school is in session and work up to 29 hours per week during vacation periods. All hiring for Work-Study jobs must be arranged through the Financial Aid Office.

Non-Work-Study student assistant positions are established for the purpose of giving financial support to college students while at the same time accomplishing necessary work for the campus. Student assistants remain first and foremost students. All appointments of this type are made to the title of "student assistant" and are appointed through Student Employment Services.

Appointment Eligibility

Must be a regularly enrolled SUNY (including community college) student equating to at least half time
- During the academic year, students must be actively enrolled (minimum of six (6) undergraduate credit hours or four and a half (4.5) graduate credit hours) during the full course of their employment.
- During the summer session or winter session, students must be accepted by the university and eligible/anticipated to enroll, as defined above, for summer classes or for the upcoming term.
- If a student cannot register for classes due to a hold on their account, they are not eligible for student employment until the hold is cleared.
- As soon as a student graduates, or otherwise loses student status, they are no longer eligible to be appointed, or to remain on student assistant payroll.
The hiring of SUNY students will be based on the following priority:
1. SUNY Cortland students
2. All other SUNY units including community colleges
  (Students who do NOT attend a SUNY or NYS community college are NOT eligible for student employment.)

A student holding a graduate assistantship is not eligible for appointment as a student assistant (see related Graduate Assistant Policy).

General Appointment Policies

All initial student assistant job opportunities must be advertised/posted with Student Employment Services (SES) for a minimum of three (3) business days.
- No new appointments shall be made without having had the position advertised/posted. Failure to follow this process may result in the student being ineligible to continue working in that department or the department will lose funding for the position for one semester.
- A re-hire or appointment extension into the same job does not require advertising.
Student assistants must be paid at least the federal minimum wage.
The appointed student must complete a Form I-9 within three (3) calendar days of their start date, preferably prior, otherwise they will be required to stop engaging in work activities immediately until the Form I-9 is complete. Notification of this will be made to the supervisor and must be complied with. No exceptions.

Work Hour Limitations

During the academic year, student assistant employees should not exceed 20 hours per week. This maximum for international students is strictly enforced, as it is a term and condition of their Visa status.
During breaks, intercession and over the summer, student assistant employment shall not exceed 29 hours per week.
ALL hours worked on campus, excluding Cortland Auxiliary employment, are included in the student assistant work hour maximums. These include, but are not limited to, work-study positions, resident assistant responsibilities, assistant coaching, adjunct teaching, summer sport camps, Research Foundation of SUNY positions, etc.
If a student has multiple positions on campus and collectively the positions would result in working above the limits of this policy, the student shall be required to choose which position to forfeit.

Student Assistant Employment Policies

Benefits

Student assistants do not qualify for benefits except as follows:

Student assistants are eligible to enroll in the New York State Employees' Retirement System. Enrollment currently requires a 3% contribution to the retirement system for students. The equivalent of 10 years of full-time service is needed to become eligible for pension benefits.
Student assistants injured during the performance of their duties are covered by New York State's Workers' Compensation Law.

Family Members and Consensual Relationships

The university strongly prohibits its student employees from being placed under the supervision of a member of their family or in the same office/department as a member of their family, regardless of a supervisory/evaluative relationship.

Jury Duty

If a student assistant is required to participate in jury duty on a day that they are normally scheduled to work, they are entitled to their normal pay for that day up to $40.00 per day for the first three days of jury duty which conflict with the employee's regular work schedule. Proof that such absences are required must be submitted.

Military Leave

Student assistants are eligible for military leave under Section 242 of the New York State Military Law.

Meal Breaks

A meal break of a minimum of 30 minutes of unpaid time must be taken when a student assistant works more than six consecutive hours. This unpaid break must be recorded on the timesheet.

Student Time and Attendance (TAS)

Student assistants are required to complete an online biweekly timesheet through SUNY's Time and Attendance System (TAS) for each job (commitment) they are working. The student should submit and certify their time record to the supervisor for final approval on the last Wednesday of each two-week pay period. For example, if a payroll period ends on Wednesday, July 13, then all time worked during that payroll period should be submitted no later than Wednesday, July 13. Please refer to the Student Payroll Schedule for current dates and deadlines.

Supervisor Approval in Time and Attendance (TAS)

Supervisors will receive daily notification until the student time record is approved. This time record must be approved no later than Friday following the end of a payroll period. For example, if a payroll period ends on Wednesday, July 13, approval of a student's submitted time record should be completed by Friday, July 15. Please refer to the Student Payroll Schedule for current dates and deadlines.

Important Note

When a student's submitted time record is not approved within two days, the supervisor's supervisor will receive notification for approval or the time record. If unforeseen delays do occur, the final day for any approvals submitted by supervisors will be on the Monday immediately following the due date. using the example above, this would be Monday, July 18.

If payroll deadlines are not met, delays in receiving paycheck on a timely basis may occur.

The full policy and procedures for the appointment and employment of student assistants is published online. Questions regarding these policies should be forwarded to the Financial Aid Office (for Federal Work-Study), Student Employment Services (for Temporary Service), or the Human Resources Office (for casual labor, noncompetitive Civil Service)

270.02 Policy on Environmental Health and Safety and Required Training

A. Policy

SUNY Cortland is committed to providing a safe and healthful environment for its students, faculty, staff and visitors. Applicable environmental, health, and safety regulations promulgated by federal, state, and local regulatory agencies are observed in establishing safety programs and policies. Appropriate standards of nationally recognized professional organizations also serve as guidelines for establishing programs and policies. To promote the achievement of excellence, the SUNY Cortland safety program emphasizes continual improvement.

B. Responsibilities

Safety excellence is the result of good management and sound program development. While safety is everyone's responsibility, the SUNY Cortland president is responsible for establishing a safe and healthful environment at the campus. The authority and responsibility for achieving health and safety objectives are delegated to the appropriate levels of management by the president.

Each department head is responsible for the health and safety of students, faculty, staff, and visitors in their area. The department head should become familiar with established safety policies and programs, and any unsafe conditions should be identified and corrected.

Supervisors are responsible for implementing effective safety programs within the department. Employees should be well trained and work areas should be free of hazards. Any unsafe conditions should be identified and corrected. Moreover, supervisors must make sure that work-related injuries and illnesses are reported promptly.

All employees must become familiar with campus safety policies and standards. Additionally, employees must observe safe work practices, and reasonable precautions should be taken to prevent accidents and injuries. Unsafe conditions should be brought to the attention of supervisors, and work-related injuries and illnesses should be reported promptly.

The Environmental Health and Safety Office is responsible for providing counsel, guidance and services to the campus in order to attain policy objectives. These responsibilities include:

Keeping current with environmental, health and safety regulatory developments and changes.
Acting as a liaison with regulatory agencies for environmental, health and safety compliance.
Developing and implementing effective programs for safety both on and off the job.
Providing timely training.
Performing regular safety inspections and timely incident/accident investigations.

270.03 Ergonomics Policy

SUNY Cortland is committed to health and safety in the workplace. As part of that commitment, ergonomic evaluations are available from the Environmental Health and Safety Office. Recommendations from ergonomic evaluations will be provided to both the employee and the employee's supervisor. Changes made based on the recommendations should be considered at the department level, and minor costs should come from department budgets. If resources are needed for changes, a request should be made through the appropriate vice president for funding consideration.

(Approved by President's Cabinet, Jan. 16, 2001)

270.04 Smoking Regulations

This policy is now covered by Chapter 496: Tobacco- and Nicotine-Free Campus policy.

270.05 Recycling Policy

As an important part of SUNY Cortland's commitment to good environmental citizenship, all faculty and staff have the responsibility to recycle when working in their offices and to empty their recycle bin at the appropriate location in the building in which they work. Faculty also should encourage students to recycle as much as possible in their on-campus activities.

270.06 False Alarms of Fire

A. See State Penal Law Section 240.55.

270.07 Tampering With the Fire Alarm System

Anyone found tampering with the fire alarm system is subject to disciplinary action by the university, as well as the penalty in accordance with the State Penal Law regarding false alarms.

270.08 Fire Drills

See the Education Law 807, “Fire Drills,” Sections 3 and 4.

270.09 Firearms Policy

Possession of Firearms on Campus:
The possession of firearms, explosives and other dangerous weapons is expressly forbidden.
(Code of Student Conduct)

See Section 265.01 (3), (4), (5), (6) of the Penal Law of the State of New York.

Persons using firearms or other dangerous instruments for hunting or other recreational purposes must register and store them at the University Police Department. Pistols and revolvers will not be accepted for storage. They should not be brought to campus.

270.10 Policy on Loitering on Campus

See the NYS Penal Law Section 240.35(5))

270.11 Complaints and Grievances Initiated on Cortland Campus

I. General employee complaints and grievances

Complaints that a person makes concerning any conditions of employment or administrative procedures may be taken through the usual campus administrative channels, with ultimate decision, should it reach that far, by the president.

Formal grievances against violations of the union agreement may be directed through the employee's union.

See the appropriate union agreement for procedures.

II. Employee grievance procedures for discrimination

SUNY Grievance Procedure; Grievance Procedures for Review of Allegations of Discrimination

Other Agencies
1. Department of Education, Office of Civil Rights
2. U.S. Department of Labor, Division of Wage and Hours
3. State of New York, Division of Human Rights
4. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission

Information and assistance are available in the Affirmative Action Office.

III. Student academic complaints and grievances

Procedures shall follow the Academic Grievance System as outlined in 350.01. When there are complaints concerning alleged discrimination in awarding grades, the affirmative action officer shall be notified. That officer shall be present at all meetings of the Academic Grievance Tribunal in cases involving alleged discrimination and at the departmental and school levels should the complainant desire (see Complaint Procedure for the Review of Allegations of Discrimination, Chapter 850).

Details on processing many of these procedures may be obtained from the affirmative action officer.

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