Faculty Organization and Procedures

Article V: Physical Education

SECTION 1: THE COMMITTEE ON PERSONNEL FOR PHYSICAL EDUCATION

a) Composition and Selection

The Committee on Personnel for Physical Education makes recommendations to the President in matters of reappointments, four-year contracts, and promotion for members of the Department of Physical Education. The Committee is composed of the President as Chair and the Dean of the Faculty, ex officio, and three elected members of the academic Faculty of the College. The Faculty elects these three members for three-year, overlapping terms at its April meeting. The Committee on Committees presents nominees to the Faculty according to the following conditions: (1) all candidates must be tenured; (2) at least one of the elected members must be a full professor. Additional nominations may be made from the floor at the April meeting of the Faculty, but such nominations must conform to the above conditions.

b) Article I, Sections 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, and 8 apply also to the Committee on Personnel for Physical Education and to all Faculty members serving in the Department of Physical Education. The yearly calendar of decisions stated in Article I, Section 3 shall be supplemented by the following dates: November 30 for notification of decisions on the renewal of a four-year contract except when involving an in-depth review, when notification of decision is February 10.

SECTION 2: CONDITIONS AND SCHEDULES OF APPOINTMENT, REAPPOINTMENT, AND PROMOTION

a) Article II, Sections 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11, 12, and 14 apply also to members of the Faculty serving in the Department of Physical Education. Article II, Sections 2, 8, and 13 apply also, but in regard to four-year contracts, not tenure.

b) Four-Year Contracts

Four-year contracts are executed only with Faculty members in the Department of Physical Education. Individuals are considered for four-year contracts in the sixth year of service according to the schedule of reappointments and notification in Article II, Sections 4 and 5. Once granted in the sixth year of service to take effect at the end of the seventh year, four-year contracts are renewed every year for a further four years unless and until the College decides to terminate employment, in which case a terminal three-year contract is executed. Faculty members of the Department already on tenure will continue to hold tenure, but no other member of the Department is eligible for tenure.

c) In-depth Review of Four-Year Contracts

For those colleagues holding four-year contracts there shall be an in-depth review every sixth year. This review shall include the solicitation of letters from students, colleagues, and outside evaluators, as indicated below in Section 4. In the intervening years the Dean of the Faculty shall solicit letters of evaluation from the department Chair, the director of athletics, and the associate or assistant director of athletics, which, if positive, shall be sufficient grounds for the Committee to recommend a renewal of contract. Any negative recommendation from the department Chair shall initiate an in-depth review prior to the February 15 contract renewal. The Committee or the Dean of the Faculty may call for an in-depth review at any time, if there are grounds for concern about a colleague's professional work.

SECTION 3: CRITERIA FOR REAPPOINTMENT, FOUR-YEAR CONTRACT, AND PROMOTION

a) Degrees

The basic professional qualification for service beyond the seventh year normally consists of completing requirements for a master's degree in physical education, health, or recreation. A doctorate is neither a necessary nor a sufficient qualification for promotion.

b) Other Criteria

Needs of the College as finally determined by the President and the Board of Trustees must govern all decisions on appointments, reappointments, and four-year contracts. Excellence as a coach is the normal condition for appointment, reappointment, and promotion. The expected combination of coaching and teaching strengths for members of the Department of Physical Education is roughly comparable to the expected combination of teaching and scholarship for members of other departments and programs. At a small and selective liberal arts college, coaching is not measured exclusively by records of wins and losses. It also involves encouraging the development in individual students of such qualities as self-confidence, self-control, persistence, discipline, cooperation, and teamwork. Candidates should demonstrate the will and the capacity to maintain professional competence and to serve the College and the community.

c) Article III, Sections 5 and 6 apply also to members of the Faculty serving in the Department of Physical Education.

SECTION 4: EVALUATIVE PROCEDURES

Article IV applies also to the Committee on Personnel for Physical Education and to all Faculty members serving in the Department of Physical Education, unless otherwise noted below.

a) Students' Letters
On behalf of the Committee, the Dean of the Faculty requests evaluative letters from at least twenty students or former students, selected according to procedures approved by the Committee concerning candidates for the initial four-year contract, for the in-depth review of four-year contract holders, and at first consideration for promotion to full professor.

b) Colleagues' Letters
The evaluation of candidates for reappointment, for the initial four-year contract, and for in-depth review of the four-year contract includes the solicitation of letters from all members of the Department holding tenurial or four-year contracts. Evaluation of candidates for promotion includes letters from all senior-ranking members of the Department. The director and associate or assistant director of athletics offer evaluative letters on all candidates for reappointment, including four-year contracts, and for promotion.

c) Evaluations from Qualified Professionals Elsewhere
For candidates for the initial four-year contract, the in-depth review of four-year contracts, and promotion, four outside evaluators shall be selected in the same manner as prescribed in Article IV, Section 3c. These judges should evaluate the candidate's coaching and other professional activity on the basis of observation in intercollegiate athletic competition or through association with the candidate in professional activities.

Article VI: Appeals

Necessarily, decisions on appointment, reappointment, tenure, and promotion are in some degree comparative and prospective, and it is not possible to specify in advance the full range of considerations that may be relevant to particular cases. Nevertheless, it is possible to specify necessary considerations, those specified above in the Rules and Procedures. Furthermore, it is possible to specify impermissible considerations, namely, any that would violate recognized principles of academic freedom or nondiscrimination.

SECTION 1: TIME LIMITATION FOR APPEALS

Any appeal by a Faculty member who was denied reappointment, tenure, or promotion must be made in writing to the Dean of the Faculty within 60 days after notification according to the provisions of Article II, Section 5. This appeal must state as fully and as factually as possible the basis for alleging violation of process. The appeal document, including any supporting material submitted by the appellant or any statements submitted by others, but excluding the minutes of the Faculty Committee on Personnel, shall be checked for completeness and correctness by the examiner of the appellant's dossier prior to its submission to the Trustee Review Committee.

SECTION 2: GROUND FOR REVIEW

The only ground for review is violation of process. Violations of process are defined by an alleged violation of the Rules and Procedures stated above in Article I through V, or are defined by an alleged violation of academic freedom or of the equal opportunity guarantees from Article III, Sections 5 and 6. "Academic freedom" is defined by the 1940 "Statement of Principles" and the 1970 "Interpretive Comments" of the American Association of University Professors.

SECTION 3: PROCEDURES FOR INITIATING A TRUSTEE REVIEW COMMITTEE

After receiving from the Faculty member who was denied reappointment, tenure, or promotion a written appeal which alleges violation of process, the Dean of the Faculty shall submit it to the President. The President shall request the Chair of The Board of Fellows to convene the Trustee Review Committee, which shall report its findings to the President and to the appellant within 75 days of the time the appeal is delivered to the Dean of the Faculty. This report should respond to the substance of the allegations made in the appeal submitted by the Faculty member.

SECTION 4: COMPOSITION OF THE TRUSTEE REVIEW COMMITTEE

The Review Committee shall be composed of three members of the Board of Trustees, but not including the President or College Counsel, who shall serve three-year terms according to a schedule which assures some continuity of membership. Whenever possible, at least one of the members shall have direct professional experience of academic life. No member of the Board of Trustees who has previously reviewed the dossier of the appellant prepared for consideration by the Committee on Personnel in connection with the decision from which the appeal has been claimed may serve on the Review Committee. The Review Committee may elect its own Chair.

SECTION 5: PROCEDURE IN CASES ALLEGING VIOLATION OF PROCESS OF THE RULES AND PROCEDURES

In cases alleging a violation of process defined as violation of the Rules and Procedures stated above in Articles I through V, the function of the Review Committee is limited to a determination of whether or not the Faculty Committee on Personnel followed the Rules and Procedures on Faculty Appointment, Reappointment, Tenure, and Promotion. The Review Committee should be governed by the criteria specified above in Article III and should have access to materials specified in Article IV. The Review Committee shall also consider all materials submitted as part of the candidate's appeal, and material concerning the appeal submitted by others. The rule regarding the confidentiality of the deliberations of the Committee on Personnel (Article I, Section 5c) shall not prevent submissions by individual members of the Committee on Personnel to the Trustee Review Committee. If the Review Committee finds substantive evidence that the Faculty Committee on Personnel may not have met these standards, it shall return the case to the same Committee, specifying in writing the inadequacy of the original consideration. This written response is also delivered to the appellant, but the appellant has no rights of access to confidential materials. This same Faculty Committee on Personnel must then formally reconsider the case, including in its reconsideration material submitted to the Trustee Review Committee, and make a fresh recommendation to the President which either upholds or reverses the Committee's original recommendation. The President, in turn, shall make a fresh recommendation to the Board of Trustees.

SECTION 6: PROCEDURES IN CASES ALLEGING VIOLATION OF PROCESS THAT RESULTS IN VIOLATION OF ACADEMIC FREEDOM OR OF EQUAL OPPORTUNITY

a) Function of the Trustee Review Committee

In cases alleging violation of process which result in violation of academic freedom or of equal opportunity as stated in Article III, Sections 5 or 6, the Review Committee has two functions. First, it must make preliminary inquiry into the allegation. The Review Committee shall also consider all materials submitted as part of the candidate's appeal, and material concerning the appeal submitted by others. The rule regarding the confidentiality of the deliberations of the Committee on Personnel (Article I, Section 5c) shall not prevent submissions by individual members of the Committee on Personnel to the Trustee Review Committee. If neither the written appeal nor this preliminary inquiry discloses evidence sufficient to suggest that violation of academic freedom or of equal opportunity may in fact have occurred, the appeal shall be denied and the decision made by the Board of Trustees upheld. The appellant shall be so informed. Second, if the Review Committee does find such evidence either in the written appeal or in its own inquiry and if such violation was made by the Faculty Committee on Personnel, then it shall instruct the President to convene the Faculty Review Board, and inform the appellant of such finding. If there is evidence of violation of academic freedom or of equal opportunity solely by the President or the Board of Trustees, then the Review Committee shall report it to the Chair of the Board of Fellows for further Trustee consideration.

b) Composition, Selection, and Function of the Faculty Review Board and of its Hearing Committee

The Board shall consist of nine tenured members elected by the Faculty for five-year terms. If a member is elected to the Committee on Personnel or the Committee on Personnel for Physical Education, that member ceases to serve on the Board, and a new election is held. When a specific appeal comes to the Board, five of its members are selected at random to serve as the Hearing Committee. This random selection shall be conducted by the Board. This Hearing Committee may not include members of the departments or programs in which the appellant holds full or part-time appointments or the appellant's division Chair or Chair of Interdisciplinary Programs. In cases alleging violation of academic freedom or of equal opportunity on promotion to full professor, all members of the Hearing Committee must be full professors. Each Hearing Committee elects its own Chair.

The Hearing Committee selected for the appeal shall begin consideration within ten days of the President's informing the Faculty Review Board that an appeal has been directed to it. Such consideration shall be governed by the criteria specified above in Article III and shall involve access to all material specified in Article IV. The Hearing Committee may also conduct further inquiries relevant to the alleged violation. Upon completion of its consideration, the Hearing Committee shall make a fresh recommendation to the President which either upholds or reverses the original recommendation of the Faculty Committee on Personnel. The President, in turn, shall make a fresh recommendation to the Board of Trustees.

c) Rights of Appellant

In any consideration of an appeal by a Hearing Committee, the appellant is guaranteed the following rights. First, the Hearing Committee must give at least seven days' advance notice of the date, time, and place of the consideration. Second, the individual, with or without the assistance of an advocate chosen from among colleagues on the Faculty, shall have prior access to all written materials considered by the Faculty Committee on Personnel and disclosed by further inquiries of either the Trustee Review Committee or the Hearing Committee. Third, the individual, with or without the chosen advocate, shall have the right to attend the consideration of the appeal by the Hearing Committee with an opportunity to question either written materials or spoken testimony and to present the appellant's case. After the presentation and examination of all evidence and of the case on behalf of the appellant, the Hearing Committee shall retain the right to continue consideration and to vote in confidence without the presence of either the appellant or advocate.

d) Rights of the Faculty Committee on Personnel

The President and the Dean of the Faculty, representing the Faculty Committee on Personnel, have the same rights granted to the appellant, as specified above in Article VI, Section 6c. The Hearing Committee may invite other members of the Faculty Committee on Personnel to testify, or such members may request and be granted an opportunity to testify.

SECTION 7: PHYSICAL EDUCATION

Members of the Faculty in the Department of Physical Education shall have the same rights of appeal, except that the Hearing Committee shall be governed by the criteria specified in Article V and shall have access to materials specified in Article V.

Article VII: Termination for Cause

SECTION 1: DEFINITION

Termination of the appointment of a Faculty member on contract without limit of tenure or within the specified term shall be effected only in cases of adequate cause as defined in the following statements.

a) Gross neglect of duty resulting in a clearly inadequate performance as a teacher and as a member of the Faculty.

b) Physical or mental disability of such serious nature as to preclude acceptable performance as a teacher and as a member of the Faculty.

c) Personal conduct in flagrant conflict with the purposes of teaching and of scholarship and seriously detrimental to the College.

d) Bona fide financial exigency of the College.

SECTION 2: PROCEDURES

Procedures to be followed in case of termination of a Faculty contract for cause are detailed in the Appendix which follows and is incorporated herein by reference.

Appendix to the Rules and Procedures Governing Faculty Appointment, Reappointment, Tenure, and Promotion

PROCEDURES FOR TERMINATION OF FACULTY CONTRACT FOR CAUSE

a) Preliminary Proceedings Concerning the Fitness of a Faculty Colleague

When reason arises to question the fitness of a faculty colleague who has tenure or whose term of appointment has not expired, the President should ordinarily discuss the matter with the colleague in personal conference. The matter at this point may be terminated by mutual consent of the President and the colleague. If the matter is not terminated, the President and the President's Institutional Planning and Advisory Committee shall begin preliminary proceedings. During these proceedings the role of the President is to represent the College as it brings possible charges against the colleague; the role of the Committee is to represent the interests of the Faculty at large and to assist the parties in finding a resolution.

If the President believes that there are reasonable grounds to pursue the procedures of dismissal for cause, the preliminary proceedings begin with the President convening the President's Institutional Planning and Advisory Committee and presenting a written summary of the College's reasons, such summary having been previously given to the colleague. The Committee then undertakes an inquiry consisting of an informal meeting with the appropriate administrative officer, an informal meeting (without the presence of College administrative officers) with the colleague unless he or she declines, and informal meetings with any others the Committee deems necessary. The Chair of the Committee Chairs this informal inquiry. Any member of the Committee who is a member of the same department or program as the faculty colleague may not participate in this hearing. The completion of the informal inquiry must occur within five working days of the date the President presented the summary to the Committee and will result in a resolution of the matter agreeable to all parties or, failing a resolution, recommendations to the President of ways to resolve the situation. These recommendations may include suggesting other College procedures.

Within three working days of receiving the Committee's recommendations, the President must either notify in writing the colleague that no formal charges will be brought, or communicate those charges to the colleague as described in (b) below. The President may seek the assistance of the Committee in formulating a statement of the charges. Any formal charges shall refer to one or more of the causes for termination given in Article VII, Sections 1a, 1b, and 1c.

b) Commencement of Formal Proceedings

The President will commence the formal proceedings by informing in writing the colleague of the charges formulated and stating that a Faculty Committee, duly constituted as provided in (d) below, will conduct a hearing to determine whether he or she should be removed from the Faculty on the grounds stated. This hearing shall begin no sooner than 20 calendar days after the President presents the formal charges to the colleague. If during this period there is a mutually agreed upon resolution, these proceedings shall be terminated and the charges dropped. The President shall inform the Faculty colleague, in detail or by reference to published regulations, of his or her procedural rights, through delivery to the colleague of the most recent updated Faculty Handbook of Bates College. The Faculty colleague may give to the President a written response to the charges at any time prior to the hearing.

c) Suspension of the Faculty Member
Suspension of the Faculty colleague during the proceedings is justified only if immediate harm to self or others is threatened by continuation in service. Unless legal considerations forbid, any such suspension shall be with pay. The President, representing the Corporation, shall determine whether suspension (as a temporary alteration of contract) is necessary during the proceedings.

d) Composition of the Hearing Committee

An ad hoc committee of the Faculty is named for each occasion when informal proceedings do not succeed. Its voting members shall be seven tenured members of the Faculty, two named by the President, two named by the faculty colleague, and three named by these four meeting together. These seven members elect their Chair from among themselves and vote by simple majority. No member of the President's Institutional Planning and Advisory Committee may serve on a hearing committee. The Board of Trustees shall provide one of their number to be a nonvoting member of the Committee. The hearing committee makes recommendations to the President and the Board of Trustees.

e) Committee Proceeding

The Committee shall proceed by considering the statement of grounds for dismissal already formulated, as well as any written response from the Faculty colleague. The colleague has the right to be heard, as described below in (f). If the colleague declines to participate in the hearing, the Committee shall consider the case on the basis of the obtainable information and decide whether he or she should be removed. The Committee, in consultation with the President and the colleague, shall exercise its judgment as to whether the hearing should be public or private. If any facts are in dispute, the testimony of witnesses and other evidence concerning the charges set forth in the President's letter to the colleague shall be considered by the Committee.

The President shall have the option of attendance during the hearing. The President may designate an appropriate representative to assist in developing the case; but the Committee should determine the order of proof, should normally conduct the questioning of witnesses, and, if necessary, should secure the presentation of evidence important to the case.

The Faculty colleague shall have the option of assistance by counsel, whose functions shall be similar to those of the representative chosen by the President. The colleague shall have the additional procedural rights set forth in the 1940 American Association of University Professors Statement of Principles on Academic Freedom and Tenure, and shall have the aid of the Committee, when needed, in securing the attendance of witnesses. The colleague or counsel, and the representative designated by the President, shall have the right, within reasonable limits, to question all witnesses who testify orally. The colleague shall have the opportunity to be confronted by all witnesses adverse to him or her. Where unusual and urgent reasons move the Hearing Committee to withhold this right, or where the witness cannot appear, the identity of the witness, as well as the witness's statements, shall nevertheless be disclosed to the colleague. Subject to these safeguards, statements may when necessary be taken outside the hearing and reported to it. All of the evidence shall be duly recorded. Unless special circumstances warrant, it shall not be necessary to follow formal rules of court procedure.

f) Consideration by Hearing Committee

The Committee shall reach its decision in conference, on the basis of the hearing. Before doing so, it shall give an opportunity to the Faculty colleague or the colleague's counsel and the representative designated by the President to argue orally before it. If written briefs would be helpful, the Committee may request them. The Committee may proceed to decision promptly, without having the record of the hearing transcribed, where it feels that a just decision can be reached by this means; or it may await the availability of a transcript of the hearing if its decision would be aided thereby. It shall make explicit findings with respect to each of the grounds of removal presented, and a reasoned opinion may be desirable.

Publicity concerning the Committee's decision may properly be withheld until consideration has been given to the case by the Board of Trustees. The President and the colleague shall be notified of the decision in writing and should be given a copy of the record of the hearing. Any release to the public shall be made through the President's Office.

g) Consideration by the Governing Board

The President shall transmit to the Trustees the full report of the Hearing Committee, stating its action. On the assumption that the board has accepted the principle of the Faculty Hearing Committee, acceptance of the Committee's decision would normally be expected. If the governing board chooses to review the case, its review shall be based on the record of the previous hearing, accompanied by opportunity for argument, oral or written or both, by the principals at the hearing or their representatives. The decision of the Hearing Committee shall either be sustained or the proceeding be returned to the Committee with objections specified. In such a case the Committee shall reconsider, taking account of the stated objections and receiving new evidence if necessary. It shall frame its decision and communicate it in the same manner as before. Only after study of the Committee's reconsideration shall the governing board make a final decision overruling the Committee.

h) Publicity

Except for such simple announcements as may be required, covering the time of the hearing and similar matters, public statements about the case by either the Faculty colleague or administrative officers shall be avoided so far as possible until the proceedings have been completed. Announcement of the final decision shall include a statement of the Hearing Committee's original action, if this has not previously been made known.

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Last Modified 8/19/99 by Ngan Dinh