The College of Arts and Sciences has a large number of interdisciplinary programs that are central to our teaching and research missions, and an increasing number of CAS faculty are associated with more than one department, either as full joint or secondary appointments. All faculty appointments – primary or secondary – to departments and programs require a formal process of appointment both for the sake of the faculty involved and the units of which they are a part. This process must clearly define the rights, obligations, and term length of these appointments.
This document details the types of joint appointments and affiliations that are possible in CAS departments and programs. The categories apply to appointments in CAS regardless of whether the faculty member’s primary department is in CAS or at another Boston University school or college. The labels, “full joint appointment,” “joint governance appointment,” and “joint programmatic appointment” are terms used internally to define rights, obligations, and administrative processes; they are not appropriate terms for public documents. The terms “joint governance” and “joint programmatic” are terms of convenience used to clarify different conditions under which faculty hold secondary appointments as faculty in CAS departments and programs.
All CAS departments and programs should define their current secondary faculty appointments using these categories, review the status of secondary appointments annually, and submit paperwork for new appointments or reappointments by July 1 annually to ensure that the faculty roster is accurate in time for the fall semester. The college has defined the rights and obligations for full joint and joint governance appointments, as detailed below. Departments and programs determine, and must apply consistently, the specific governance rights and term lengths for joint programmatic appointments, following the broad guidelines described below. Appointment paperwork is not required for affiliated faculty; however, it is important to confirm with these faculty annually their continued affiliation and to update websites and other media accordingly.
Faculty with full joint appointments are full members of both academic communities in all senses. If a department and faculty member decide to pursue a full joint appointment, the faculty member will undergo a complete tenure review in the secondary department, even if he/she already holds tenure in another department. A faculty member who is a tenure-track assistant professor in one department who is interested in seeking a full joint appointment in two departments can undergo integrated, simultaneous consideration by both departments. Please contact the Tenure and Promotion Coordinator, Gina Halabi, to discuss the tenure process.
Chairs/Directors and faculty interested in formalizing a secondary faculty appointment should meet together to discuss the specific rights and obligations associated with the different types of secondary appointments and determine what form of appointment would be most appropriate. Chairs/Directors of the proposed secondary unit must consult with the faculty member’s home chair/director in advance to ensure that the joint appointment is compatible with the needs and goals of the home unit. Once a secondary academic appointment is deemed appropriate, an appointment form, including a supporting memo from the chair/director of the home department/program, and a cv, should be routed to the Office of Faculty Actions for approval.
For more information, or for help with any joint appointment, please contact Alex Bellen.
Full Joint Appointments
Rights and Obligations
Tenure track or tenured in both units, with all rights and obligations appropriate to rank and tenure status in both units, and teaching/mentoring obligations in both units. The faculty member is a full member of both academic communities in all senses.
Public Listing
In any list of the faculty of the unit, they are listed as core members of the unit.
Title
Has the right to title in both units (“Professor of ….”)
Workload and FTE Fraction
Appointment may be specified at any fractional division for the purposes of workload, but is most likely to be 50-50.
Personnel Reviews
Reappointment, midtenure review, tenure and promotion reviews, etc. are done in both units. The faculty member is reviewed in both departments as part of the annual merit review, although at this time the full salary appears in the base of only one department; thus the assessment of the faculty member is agreed in a consultation between the two chairs although the merit recommendation appears in the calculations from only one of the departments.
Tenure Basis
Both units have joint and full responsibility for the faculty member. If one unit recommends tenure and promotion and the other does not, a full tenured appointment could be approved for just the one department. If the faculty member’s scholarly focus ultimately shifts away from one of the appointment units, that person’s appointment may be shifted fully to one of the departments.
Joint Governance Appointments
Rights and Obligations
Although not tenured or tenure track in both departments, the faculty member possesses full governance rights and obligations in a second department or program (a secondary appointment) including, in the case of tenured faculty, voting on faculty personnel issues even though the individual’s own tenure is not lodged there. This right implies the obligation to participate in governance committees and meetings. The faculty member is expected to participate in the academic community and work with students as appropriate, for example, on undergraduate and graduate thesis committees.
Public Listing
In any list of the faculty of the unit, they are listed as core members of the unit.
Title
Has the right to title in both units (“Professor of ….”)
Workload and FTE Fraction
These appointments do not have a particular ongoing FTE fraction attached to them, and the faculty member is not necessarily expected to teach timetabled courses in the secondary unit, although arrangements may be made, as appropriate, for teaching in agreement with both departments. The faculty member is likely to teach courses that are cross-listed in the two departments where that is appropriate.
Personnel Reviews
Although reappointment, annual merit exercise, midtenure review, promotion, etc. are not fully executed in both units, the secondary unit should advise the tenure home on these matters through an appropriate process.
Appointment and Renewal
Joint governance appointments require a vote by faculty of appropriate rank and recommendation to the Dean. They should be made for a limited period of time, e.g., 3 or 5 years. They may be renewed on mutual agreement of the individual and the unit on recommendation to the Dean.
Joint Programmatic Appointments
Rights and Obligations
The faculty member has been accorded defined governance rights and obligations in a second unit over specifically defined programmatic matters such as curriculum, student supervision, and research-related matters but in tenure-granting units a joint programmatic appointment does not have governance rights in faculty personnel matters. The faculty member is expected to participate in the academic community, participate in the governance activities in which rights have been accorded, and work with students.
Public Listing
In tenure-granting units, the unit determines whether joint programmatic appointments, as a group, are listed as core members of the unit or are listed in another fashion. In non-tenure-granting units, joint programmatic appointments are listed as core members of the unit.
Title
In tenure-granting units, the unit determines whether joint programmatic appointments, as a group, have a right to title (“Professor of….”). In non-tenure-granting units, joint programmatic appointments have the right to title.
Workload and FTE Fraction
These appointments do not have a particular ongoing FTE fraction attached to them, and the faculty member is not necessarily expected to teach timetabled courses in the secondary unit, although arrangements may be made, as appropriate, for teaching in agreement with both departments. The faculty member is likely to teach courses that are cross-listed in the two departments where that is appropriate or that otherwise fulfill requirements of degree programs offered by the second unit.
Personnel Review
Although the faculty member’s reappointment, annual merit exercise, midtenure review, promotion, etc. are not fully executed in both units, the secondary unit should advise the tenure home on these matters through an appropriate process.
Appointment and Renewal
Joint programmatic appointments require a vote by faculty of appropriate rank and recommendation to the Dean. They should be made for a limited period of time, e.g., 3 or 5 years. They may be renewed on mutual agreement of the individual and the unit on recommendation to the Dean.
Affiliated Faculty
Faculty may be publicly listed as affiliated with a unit at the discretion of a department or program for the purpose of recognizing the closeness of the faculty member’s academic specialization and expertise to the field of that unit, and the willingness of the faculty member to work with students pursuing degrees in that unit or to make other occasional contributions. Such a listing is not an “appointment.” The function of listing these faculty members is to help students and other people identify a wider range of faculty with expertise in the subject. These affiliations carry no other specific rights or obligations on the part of the unit or the faculty member. They should be kept refreshed and up to date by the unit, preferably for specific renewable time periods such as 3 or 5 years, but do not involve a formal appointment process or involvement of the Dean.