Policy for Nominations for Promotion to Distinguished Professor
The Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost shall appoint five faculty members who hold the rank of distinguished professor to serve on the Distinguished Professor Advisory Committee. Of the five initial appointments, two shall be for three years, two for two years, and one for one year. Subsequently, all distinguished professors appointed to replace members whose term have ended will be appointed to three-year terms. Each year, the committee will select one of its members to serve as chair.
Each September, the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost shall distribute to the campus a call for nominations for promotion to the rank of distinguished professor, criteria for promotion, and a timetable for completion of nominations. Nominations shall consist of the nominee's curriculum vitae and a letter from the person making the nomination explaining how the nominee meets the criteria for promotion to the rank of distinguished professor. The Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost shall submit the nomination to the Distinguished Professor Advisory Committee for its review. If a majority agrees that the case should move forward, the chair will notify the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost, the dean, the department chair, the department's senior personnel committee, and the person making the nomination.
After consultation with the department chair, the department's senior personnel committee, and the person making the nomination, the dean will appoint a special IPC to assemble the promotion dossier. The chair of the Distinguished Professor Nominating Committee, the President's designee, and the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost's designee will meet with the chair of the special IPC to provide guidance in assembling the dossier, which will consist of a current curriculum vitae, a substantive report detailing how the candidate meets the criteria for promotion to distinguished professor, eight letters from distinguished external reviewers, and full curriculum vitae for all external reviewers. The completed dossier will be forwarded to the dean for her/his review. The dean will complete a letter evaluating the case and forward it, along with the dossier, to the Distinguished Professor Advisory Committee.
After reviewing the dossier, the Distinguished Professor Advisory Committee will forward it to the Provost with a positive recommendation, return it to the special IPC with instructions to address questions and/or concerns it may have about the case, or, if it finds the case lacking in merit, reject the case. If the Distinguished Professor Advisory Committee rejects the case, it shall inform the Provost, who will communicate to the nominee, nominator, dean, and president. A nominee whose candidacy is rejected by the committee shall not be considered for promotion for distinguished professor for at least three years.
In cases in which the Distinguished Professor Advisory Committee makes a positive recommendation, it will forward the dossier and letter evaluating the case to the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost for her/his recommendation.
The Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost will forward the dossier to the President for her/his evaluation and letter. When the President has completed her/his letter, the dossier will be submitted to the SUNY Provost.