Professional Development Committee Charge and Standing Rules

The Professional Development Committee Charge

The Professional Development Committee conducts performance evaluations of faculty members voluntarily seeking peer feedback or a change in career focus, and reviews faculty members receiving overall evaluations of unsatisfactory in two successive years.

According to SLA bylaws, the Professional Development Committee shall:

1. help faculty anticipate and plan for promotion and career advancement.
2. provide individualized guidance, counsel, and performance evaluation to help faculty develop a fulfilling career or a change in work focus.
3. conduct required enhancement reviews of faculty members receiving evaluations of less than satisfactory (below 1 on the SLA Faculty Annual Review Form) in one or more areas of faculty work (teaching, research, or service) twice in any four-year period.
4. prepare slates of candidates:

• for Executive Committee, for elected positions, and for all relevant campus-level councils, for presentation no later than second spring semester meeting of the Faculty Assembly;
• to fill vacancies on the Executive Committee or elected positions between regular elections, slates of candidates for School representatives to the IU Indianapolis Faculty Council and IU Indianapolis Graduate Faculty Council (those individuals serving in IFC roles can also serve as the school’s nominees for the University Faculty Council); and
• for other elections that may from time to time become necessary.

Standing Rules

 When performing required enhancement reviews:

1. The Committee shall conduct a thorough evaluation of the faculty member and shall specify at the end of their review whether the faculty professional productivity is rated within one of the following categories:
   • some strengths, no deficiencies,
   • some strengths, some deficiencies (but deficiencies are not substantial or chronic), and
   • substantial chronic deficiencies.
2. If substantial chronic deficiencies are found, the Committee and the faculty member shall work together to create a development plan. The plan becomes final once the faculty member, the Dean, and the department chair have signed the document. The plan should:
   • identify specific strengths that should be enhanced;
   • identify the specific deficiencies to be addressed;
   • define specific goals or outcomes that are needed to remedy the deficiencies;
   • outline the specific activities and programs that should be completed to achieve these goals and outcomes;
   • set appropriate timelines for the completion of these activities;
   • indicate appropriate benchmarks to be used in monitoring progress;
   • indicate the criteria for annual progress reviews; and
   • identify the source of any funding or institutional support, such as assigned time or new research equipment, based on discussions with the Dean, the Associate Dean for Research and/or the School’s Grant Specialist.