Monthly Action Guide: August 2025

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. 

Save the Date: New Faculty & Librarian Orientation

  • The New Faculty & Librarian Orientation takes place on August 11 & 12, 2025 at the Faculty Club (41 Wilcocks Street)
  • Faculty members who are appointed to the tenure stream, faculty members appointed to the continuing stream teaching stream, and librarians who are appointed in the permanent status stream with start dates between September 2, 2024 and September 1, 2025 will be sent an invitation in July
  • 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 VPFAL’s updated sample job ad. Basing your faculty ad on VPFAL sample ads 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 & Retroactive Salary Increases

PTR Process for the 2025-26 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”:

  1. Internal policies and procedures for assessment of PTR
  2. The format to be used for activity reports
  3. 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, PPAA)

  • 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)
  • See the AAPM Section on Interim Review

Tenure Review (tenure stream faculty, PPAA)

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)
  • See the AAPM Section on Tenure Review

Reminder: 2025 Part-Time Data Collection

A reminder for Dean’s Offices to submit their 2025 information with respect to part-time continuing appointments, e.g. part-time faculty members who were considered for a continuing appointment during the previous academic year (July 1 2024 to June 30 2025). Please use the same template as last year and submit the spreadsheet with data for the period July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025 to jamie.ryckman@utoronto.ca by Oct 10, 2025. 

September Programming for Academic Administrators

Advancement Process for Sessional Lecturers for AAAs and Staff (Online)

September 18, 2025, 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.

Register Now

Managing Teaching Assistants and Sessional Lecturers for AAAs and Staff (Online)

October 20, 2025, 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.

Register Now

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 collaborate with you on Systematic and Scoping Reviews and provide instructional sessions to your students that are tailored to your course content. With AI tools proliferating, librarians can play a key role supporting students’ AI literacy. 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.

U of T Bookstore Support for Faculty

  • As you prepare for the upcoming academic term, we encourage all new faculty members to connect with the University of Toronto Bookstore for support with sourcing course materials. The Bookstore works closely with instructors to identify the most suitable resources for each course, offering both print and digital formats to meet diverse teaching needs.
  • For courses that draw on multiple sources, the Bookstore collaborates with a licensed Access Copyright copy shop to help you create and distribute custom course packs tailored to your syllabus.
  • To ensure materials are available for students at the start of the Fall term, we kindly ask that all course material orders be submitted as soon as possible. Orders can be placed through Verba Collect, or by contacting your designated textbook buyer directly for assistance.
  • If you prefer to email your order or have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out to one of our knowledgeable Bookstore buyers. You can find contact information here.

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”

Activate your NCFDD membership to access webinars