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Altoona Faculty Senate Committee on Faculty Affairs
Replacement Procedure on Selection of Division Heads
(Advisory and Consultative)
Implementation: Upon approval by the Chancellor and Dean
Background and Rationale
Division Heads hold key faculty leadership positions in the Altoona College, responsible for allocating resources in support of academic priorities, implementing University- and College-wide policies as well as Division-specific programs, and assessing the performance of faculty in the day-to-day conduct of their jobs. Each Division Head is broadly empowered to make and enforce decisions regarding the workings of the Division, while at the same time each Division Head relies on the expertise and knowledge of the faculty to make the Division run smoothly. Effective leadership in this complex role requires that Division Heads have both the confidence of the Administrators who appoint them and the support of their Division’s faculty, for whom Division Heads are both first-line supervisors and representatives to the Administration.
Appointments to these mixed academic/administrative positions, while made at the discretion of the Dean and on the advice and recommendation of the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, should balance administrative concerns with faculty concerns. Faculty input in the appointment process is essential, and should be multidimensional, should take account of faculty experience with candidates, and should be as comprehensive as possible for each candidate. It may also recognize issues and needs specific to particular Divisions. Further, as the College has developed a comprehensive set of assessment procedures for evaluating the performance of Division Heads, the search process should incorporate criteria that Division faculty will use to evaluate an appointee’s performance. The Candidate Leadership Assessment, approved by Senate in April 2006, will provide such input. It is appended for reference.
One important aim of the appointment process should be to encourage qualified faculty members to stand as candidates. A large candidate pool increases the likelihood of a satisfactory appointment, both from the Division’s and the appointing Dean’s perspectives; further, since it is envisioned that Division Heads will be drawn from Division faculty and serve for limited periods, it is desirable that potential academic leaders at the College should step forward for consideration. In this context, the selection process itself should be, as much as possible, respectful of candidates as well as a professional development experience for them.
Another vital element of the appointment process is implementing the College faculty’s decision to retain a central feature of the current method of selecting Division Heads; it must incorporate a balloting of full-time divisional faculty on their support for each candidate, with the stipulation that in order to be eligible for appointment, candidates must be supported by two-thirds or more of their full-time divisional colleagues. The process should therefore incorporate mechanisms to definitively assure divisional faculty, as well as the Dean, that appointees have met this threshold.
In sum, then, the Division Head appointment procedure must provide for balloting of the full-time faculty within the Division on their support for each candidate and must provide for assurance that any appointee has the support of two-thirds of the Division’s full-time faculty, while it should also provide the maximum amount of relevant information to the appointing Dean, in part by providing divisional faculty with a structured opportunity to evaluate candidates and in part through soliciting other information from faculty. It should also encourage eligible candidates to stand for consideration.
With these considerations in mind the Committee recommends a procedure that includes a structured informational survey form to be completed by the full-time divisional faculty (the Candidate Leadership Assessment, referred to as the “survey” below), and a separate ballot asking each full-time faculty member to assess each candidate’s acceptability as a potential Division Head (the “ballot”). These ballots will be sent, received, and tabulated by an elected committee of Division faculty (the “Nomination Committee”), which each Division will designate according to its own procedures. Each Division will decide whether or not to maintain the confidentiality of the balloting, and each Division will have the option of including additional questions in the survey. The Committee recommends that these procedures be used for each regular Division Head appointment, including those in which an incumbent wishes to stand for re-appointment.
Upon approval, these recommended procedures would replace Section II. C) of the governing document defining the responsibilities of Division Heads and eligibility for the position, headed “Position Responsibilities/Procedures, Penn State Altoona, Division Head.” The balance of the document remains as it is.
Appointment Procedures
Selection
- The selection process will begin when the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs so notifies all Division faculty members. The Division will designate a committee of at least three full-time faculty members, elected by the full-time faculty members of the Division, to act as the Nomination Committee.
- The Nomination Committee will first conduct a vote of the full-time faculty to determine whether the names of those candidates who receive support from at least two-thirds of the full-time faculty should be publicly released before the interview stage (step 11 or 16) or should remain confidential throughout the process and afterward. The Nomination Committee will announce the results of this vote to the Division. Different procedures will follow step 8, depending on the results of this vote.
- The Nomination Committee will solicit candidates for the Division Head position. At the close of the designated nomination period, it will forward to the Dean and the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs the names of those faculty members who wish to be considered.
- Acting through appropriate divisional mechanisms, the Nomination Committee will prepare such additional items for the Candidate Leadership Assessment form as may be desired by the Division. It will provide these items to the Associate Dean of Academic Affairs for inclusion on the survey form.
- The Nomination Committee will conduct such informational sessions, forums, and other public opportunities for discussion between candidates and faculty members as may be appropriate for the benefit of Division faculty and candidates. The Nomination Committee may also distribute written information about the candidates to the Division faculty, such as Curriculum Vitae or written candidate statements.
- At the conclusion of the informational stage, the Associate Dean will distribute to each full-time faculty member a Candidate Leadership Assessment form for each candidate, with any additional items the Division may have decided on. These survey forms will be returned to the Associate Dean for tabulation.
- At the same time, the Nomination Committee will conduct a secret, written ballot asking each full-time faculty member whether or not each individual candidate has that faculty member’s support to serve as Division Head. These ballots will be returned to the chair of the Nomination Committee.
- The Nomination Committee will tabulate the ballots. At this point the process will follow one of two paths, depending on the results of the vote in step 2 above (confidentiality of the ballot results). If the Division has voted in step 2 that the results of balloting in step 7 should remain confidential:
- All results of the balloting in step 2 will be kept in the strictest confidence by the members of the Nomination Committee and will remain confidential, except as provided in steps 12 and 13.
- The Dean will solicit Division faculty for informational questions to be asked of all candidates in their formal interviews, and may solicit written or email comments about each candidate from the full-time Division faculty.
- All candidates will interview with the Dean and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs.
- At the conclusion of these interviews, the Dean and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs will meet with the divisional Nomination Committee to verify that the desired appointee has received the support of at least two-thirds of the Division’s full-time faculty. Upon being so assured, the Dean and Associate Dean will announce the appointee. No regular full-term Division Head will be appointed who has not received the support of at least two-thirds of all full-time faculty in the Division. Returned survey forms will be destroyed.
- The Nomination Committee may confirm in writing to Division faculty that the announced appointee has received the support of at least two-thirds of the Division’s fulltime faculty.
If the Division has voted in step 2 that the results of balloting in step 7 should be released: - The Nomination Committee will announce to Division faculty the names of those candidates who received support from at least two-thirds of all full-time faculty in the
Division. - The Dean will solicit Division faculty for informational questions to be asked of all candidates in their formal interviews, and may solicit written or email comments about each candidate from the full-time Division faculty.
- Those candidates who received support from at least two-thirds of all full-time Division faculty will interview with the Dean and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs.
- The Dean and Associate Dean will announce the appointee. Returned survey forms will be destroyed.
FACULTY AFFAIRS COMMITTEE
Victor Brunsden
Marc Harris, Chair
David Hurtubise
Meg Powers Livingston
Christine McCombie
Cynthia Wood
Appendix: Candidate Leadership Assessment
Candidate Name Goes Here:
Indicate the extent to which you agree or disagree with the following statements about the candidate for Division Head by circling the appropriate number.
5=Strongly Agree
4=Agree
3=Neutral
2=Disagree
1=Strongly Disagree
N=No Opinion
Leadership
- This candidate has a positive vision of where the Division should be headed.
1 2 3 4 5 N - This candidate will look out for my program as Division Head.
1 2 3 4 5 N - This candidate has the right temperament to be Division Head.
1 2 3 4 5 N
How would you describe the candidate’s personality?
Can you think of a specific incident or example that demonstrates the candidate’s leadership potential?
Management and Communications
- This candidate knows how to run a meeting.
1 2 3 4 5 N - This candidate can follow and enforce administrative policies and procedures.
1 2 3 4 5 N - This candidate has good working relationships with my colleagues.
1 2 3 4 5 N - This candidate communicates in a timely and clear fashion
1 2 3 4 5 N - This candidate promotes and fosters an environment of fairness and inclusiveness.
1 2 3 4 5 N
What kind of climate do you think this candidate would promote in the division?
Can you think of a specific incident or example that demonstrates the candidate’s organizational, administrative or communication skills?
General
- This candidate has my support to be Division Head.
1 2 3 4 5 N
How well do you know the candidate?
Can you think of a specific incident or example that demonstrates the candidate’s relationship with or knowledge of Altoona College?
How long have you been at Altoona College?
What is the nature of your appointment (tenured, tenure track, standing or fixed term)?