Monthly Action Guide: August 2024
This email contains reminders of key deadlines and administrative tasks related to academic HR. Please share with faculty or staff who would find this information relevant.
Contact vpfal.prof.dev@utoronto.ca to be added to the distribution list or with any questions.
In case you missed it: July 2024 Action Guide
Save the Date: New Faculty & Librarian Orientation
- The New Faculty & Librarian Orientation will take place on August 12 & 13, 2024 at the Faculty Club (41 Wilcocks Street)
- Faculty members who are appointed to the tenured/tenure stream, those appointed in the continuing stream teaching stream, and permanent status stream librarians should have received an invitation
- If any newly appointed faculty members or librarians in the streams listed above in your unit have not received an invitation, please direct them to vpfal.prof.dev@utoronto.ca.
Recruitment: Sample Job Ads
Ask your Dean’s Office for a copy of relevant updated sample job ad. Basing your faculty ad on an approved model will help ensure your ad conforms with immigration, institutional, and best practice requirements, increasing the speed with which your ad can be approved and posted.
PTR Process for the 2024-25 Academic Year
“at the beginning of the academic year (i.e., July 1)”, unit heads “shall communicate, in writing, to each faculty member of their unit”:
- Internal policies and procedures for assessment of PTR
- The format to be used for activity reports
- The relative weight of teaching, research and service (PDAD&C #53).
“A separate weighting of teaching, pedagogical/professional development and service should be made for teaching-stream faculty. Teaching stream faculty members shall be evaluated on their pedagogical and/or discipline-based scholarship in relation to the field in which they teach and/or creative/professional activity[1] that allows the faculty member to maintain a mastery of their subject area and this evaluation will be appropriately weighted in the PTR assessment. (PDAD&C #53).
Part-Time Faculty Renewals
Part-time faculty members who have been renewed for a sixth year, must be reviewed in the fall before December 31. (PtP, 7b)
Interim Review
Tenure stream faculty members should have their performance “reviewed no earlier than May 1 of the third year of [their] contract … Normally no later than 30th June, the appointee should be asked to submit an account of research or creative professional activity which has been completed or undertaken since the time of initial appointment … The appointee will not normally be required to complete the submission prior to August 31.” (PPAA, II.8)
Tenure Review
In units with faculty members coming forward for tenure review:
- Candidate informed of membership of Tenure Committee: “This notification will normally happen in the fall.” [This correspondence and acknowledgement should be included in the tenure file.] (PPAA, Part II, 14 iii)
September Programming for Academic Administrators
Advancement Process for Sessional Lecturers for AAAs and Staff (Online)
September 19, 1-3pm
This session, offered by Labour Relations, will provide Chairs, Directors, Associate Chairs Vice/Associate Deans, and Administrative Staff responsible for the administration of CUPE 3902 Unit 3 appointments with the necessary information to manage and conduct the processes for advancement to Sessional Lecturer II, and advancement to Sessional Lecturer III.
Managing Teaching Assistants and Sessional Lecturers for AAAs and Staff (Online)
September 24, 1-3pm
This session, offered by Labour Relations, will provide Chairs, Directors, Associate Chairs, Vice/Associate Deans, TA Coordinators, and Administrative Staff responsible for the administration of CUPE 3902 appointments the tools and information necessary for managing employees under the CUPE 3902 Unit 1 and Unit 3 Collective Agreements. Topics will include performance management, accommodation, workload, leaves, and all other relevant processes under the Collective Agreements for the duration of an employee’s contract.
Resources for Faculty
U of T Libraries Support for Faculty
Please encourage both new and current faculty members to reach out to their University of Toronto Libraries (UTL) Faculty Liaison Librarian. Each liaison librarian can provide valuable research and teaching assistance. This includes research consultations on a wide variety of topics such as research impact, research data management, digital scholarship and open access. Additionally, they can provide instructional sessions to your students that are tailored to your course content. UTL also provides a Syllabus Service to support you with the management of course readings and reserves in a manner that respects Canadian copyright law and existing U of T licensing agreements and policies. Library Staff will retrieve, scan, license, and acquire eBooks where necessary to support instruction.
Webinars from NCFDD
NCFDD offers on-demand access to programs and resources designed to help faculty members “achieve extraordinary writing and research productivity while maintaining a full and healthy life off campus”