3.5.C - Post-Tenure Review (PTR)

In April 1996 the Board of Regents (BoR Policy Manual 8.3.5.4 and USG Academic & Student Affairs Handbook 4.6) developed a policy statement requiring that all institutions conduct post tenure reviews of all tenured faculty members every five years (beginning in the sixth year, five full years after the faculty member’s most recent promotion or personnel action (e.g., post-tenure review, conversion from administrative to instructional faculty).

In 2021, the Board of Regents modified its post-tenure review policy to include a five point scale to evaluate each of the three areas during annual reviews, which at KSU has also been adopted for post-tenure review; a performance improvement plan for faculty who score a 1 or a 2 during their post-tenure review; and a corrective post-tenure review leading to a performance improvement plan for faculty who score a 1 or a 2 in any performance area during two consecutive annual reviews (BoR Policy Manual 8.3.5.4, BoR Faculty and Student Affairs Handbook 4.7).

The primary purpose of post-tenure review is to examine, recognize, and enhance the performance of all tenured faculty members, thereby strengthening the quality and significance of faculty work. Post-tenure review serves to highlight constructive and positive opportunities for all tenured faculty to realize their full potential of contributions to Kennesaw State University and the University System of Georgia. It also serves to identify deficiencies in performance and provide a structure for addressing such concerns.

Post-tenure review is not a reconsideration of the faculty member’s tenure status. Instead, it is a comprehensive five-year performance review that occurs after an individual is tenured. This post-tenure performance review is more comprehensive and concerns a longer time perspective (at least five years) than the annual performance reviews; post-tenure review feedback also comes from multiple peer and administrative perspectives, rather than from the perspective of one administrative head as is the case in annual reviews.

Post-tenure review provides both retrospective and prospective examination of performance, taking into account that a faculty member probably will have different emphases and assignments at different points in his or her career. It is directed toward career development and a multi-year perspective of accomplishments and plans for professional development.

The primary evidence to be considered by review committees/administrators for post-tenure review consists of the five most recent annual evaluations and a current curriculum vitae (see KSU Faculty Handbook Section 3.12 for the review process and portfolio instructions). Post-tenure review also considers the broader peer and administrator perspectives provided by members of the College Promotion and Tenure Committee and by administrative levels of review.

Post-tenure review will result in an assessment of the strengths and weaknesses in the quality and significance of a faculty member’s performance in the context of individual roles and responsibilities. The overall outcome of the performance will be assessed on a five-point scale:

5 - Exemplary

4 - Exceeds Expectations

3 - Meets Expectations

2 - Needs Improvement

1 - Does Not Meet Expectations

Successful Post-Tenure Review

A successful post-tenure review results from a faculty member who receives a 3 or higher on their overall post-tenure review score. 

In cases where the faculty member receives a score of 3 or higher, no formal faculty improvement plan is required. The results of the post-tenure review are likely to reveal that the faculty member is performing well, and any development activity would focus on further enhancing the faculty member’s performance.

If a faculty member receives a 4 or 5 on a traditional five-year post-tenure review, they will be entitled to a one-time monetary award.  Faculty will then be eligible for the same award in five years (and no sooner than five years) at their next post-tenure review.  Faculty who undergo a corrective or elective post-tenure review, on the other hand, are not eligible for this one-time award.

Unsuccessful Post-Tenure Review

A faculty member who receives a 1 or 2 in the context of a post-tenure review is one whose post-tenure review is deemed unsuccessful. In this case, a formal performance improvement plan (PIP) must be written. (See KSU Faculty Handbook Section 3.12.)

Time Considerations for All Required Post-Tenure Review Documentation

KSU’s policy on post-tenure review affects all faculty who are tenured who have primarily teaching responsibilities at Kennesaw State University. A tenured faculty member will be expected to have a required post-tenure review, five full years after the award of tenure and at five-year intervals (occurring in the sixth year) thereafter, unless one of several intervening circumstances occurs. Such intervening circumstances may substitute for, defer, or waive the next scheduled post-tenure review as follows:

• A successful review for promotion in professorial rank is considered comprehensive and comparable to post-tenure review; the successful promotion will restart the individual’s five-year “clock” for the next post-tenure review.
• A successful selection and appointment to a different KSU position as a result of a competitive national search and screening process is considered comprehensive and comparable to post-tenure review; the appointment will restart the individual’s five-year clock for the next post-tenure review.
• As is presently the case in eligibility for tenure or promotion consideration, a leave of absence taken during one or more terms of the nine-month academic year may exclude that year from being counted on the five-year clock for post-tenure review, deferring the next scheduled review accordingly by a year.
• The Provost may waive a scheduled post-tenure review for a faculty member whose written notification of retirement is formally accepted and is effective within the two-year period immediately following the next scheduled post-tenure review. 
• Faculty members serving in administrative positions, including interim administrative positions, will have their post-tenure review clock reset at the end of the administrative appointment.