Departmental Statements Required by Section 7.12 of
Regulations Concerning Faculty Tenure
Department of Primary Dental Care
I. Introductory Statement
The primary measure of excellence of an educational institution is the quality of its faculty. Therefore, the degree of foresight and wisdom employed in making faculty appointments and promotions and the granting of tenure will be the primary determinants of the distinction which a school achieves.
Within the School of Dentistry, the ultimate responsibility for recommending faculty members for appointment, promotion or indefinite tenure rests with the Dean. To discharge responsibility, the Dean should have the counsel of the department chairpersons and tenured faculty of the School. It is the responsibility of the faculty to participate in this process, to identify and reward scholars who demonstrate a commitment to the advancement and communication of knowledge and who show promise of pursuing productive academic careers.
Well-defined policies and procedures are essential to provide equity in this process. The following framework is provided for the systematic evaluation of candidates for indefinite tenure and promotion.
The specific mission of the School of Dentistry is consistent with the objectives of a land grant University and includes teaching, research and scholarly activities and discipline-related professional service as defined in Section 7.11 of the University of Minnesota Regulations Concerning Faculty Tenure and this department document. It is a major goal of the School of Dentistry to establish and maintain itself as an academic center of national and international excellence. The objectives the faculty has set to address its goals and mission include the following:
A. to educate dentists, dental specialists and dental hygienists who
will provide the highest standard of care.
B. to provide a program of training and instruction for educators and
researchers who will provide future leadership in the academic and corporate
C. to develop new knowledge and understanding in both basic and applied
dental and socio-behavioral sciences.
D. to serve patients by providing optimal care including preventive
care, improved modes of health care delivery, patient counseling
and education, and the best possible diagnostic and treatment
services, particularly for those with unusual or difficult problems.
E. to serve the public by providing outreach programs of care,
prevention and health education for special groups, and consultative
and educational programs for the public, health practitioners and
agencies in Minnesota, the United States and the international
F. to foster, promote, and/or participate in interdisciplinary teaching, research and service within the health care, University and other related professional communities.
The Department of Primary Dental Care addresses the above goals utilizing a multidisciplinary approach with emphasis on professional practice issues, public health and policy topics, and comprehensive general dental and dental hygiene care for diverse adult patient populations.
To be awarded indefinite tenure and to be considered for promotion, a faculty member will be expected to have demonstrated effectiveness in accomplishing these objectives. In some instances, discipline-related service will be considered as part of the basis for awarding of indefinite tenure as described in Section III.
The specific categorical missions of the School of Dentistry include teaching, research and discipline-related professional service as defined in Section 7.1.1 of the Regulations Concerning Faculty Tenure. Discipline-related professional services are an integral part of the mission of the School of Dentistry. Consulting includes appointments at health care institutions and agencies, establishment of special referral, treatment and diagnostic services, and applications of known methodologies to interdisciplinary collaborative research and education.
The general methods and criteria for tenure are found in the University of Minnesota Regulations Concerning Faculty Tenure. New faculty should carefully read and understand this document, particularly Sections 5, 6 and 7. The General Rule Section 5.1 concerns those with probationary appointments and states that "the maximum period of probationary service of a faculty member is six academic years, whether consecutive or not. At the end of this six-year period, the faculty member must either be given a regular appointment with indefinite tenure or a one-year terminal appointment." However, because of the time required for processing the applications for tenure, the actual decision to award indefinite tenure is made during the sixth year. Granting of indefinite tenure may be made prior to the expiration of the maximum period of probationary service.
The basis for awarding indefinite tenure is the determination that the achievements of an individual have demonstrated the individual's potential to continue to contribute significantly to the mission of the Department, the School of Dentistry and the University and to its programs of teaching, research and service over the course of the faculty member's academic career (see Section 7.11 of the University of Minnesota Regulations Concerning Faculty Tenure). The primary criteria for demonstrating this potential are effectiveness in teaching and distinction in research. Outstanding discipline-related service contributions will also be taken into account where appropriate (see Section III.C.1.) as they are an integral part of the mission of the School of Dentistry. However, for all candidates the major criteria for granting of tenure will be accomplishments in teaching and research. Although the relative importance of the teaching and research criteria may vary within different departments of the School of Dentistry, each criterion must be considered in every decision.
Teaching includes group and individual instruction in classrooms, clinics and laboratories with dental hygiene, predoctoral, postdoctoral and/or graduate students, and instruction in continuing education programs. Credit is given for all educational effort, including efforts to upgrade the curriculum and provide unique educational opportunities. Our teaching role extends throughout Minnesota, the region and beyond. Tenure is reserved for candidates who demonstrate effectiveness in teaching. Effectiveness in teaching will be reviewed and evaluated with respect to the following:
1. Content - Information presented should be current and accurate, as determined by peers and the scientific information available. It should be pertinent to the discipline and complete so as to conform to the objectives of the overall curriculum.
2. Organization - Information should be presented in a logical sequence that is understandable to the student. The actual teaching methods are at the discretion of the faculty member. Multidisciplinary subject matter should be effectively coordinated.
3. Examinations - Examinations should measure student competency and be graded in a timely manner.
4. Communication Skills - The ability to successfully convey information depends on verbal and written communication skills. These include, but are not limited to, proper and comprehensible use of language, enthusiasm and the pace of presentations.
All candidates for promotion and tenure in the Department of Primary Dental Care are expected to demonstrate competence in teaching. Competence and the pursuit of excellence in teaching can be demonstrated by providing:
A thorough description of major teaching efforts as documented in written programs of study, course syllabi, curricula, etc.
Best evidence and substantiation for the achievement of excellence in major educational activities, including outcomes of learning (e.g., student knowledge and performance, peer review, student evaluation), funding, and dissemination.
B. Research and Scholarly Activities
Each faculty member will be expected to develop and demonstrate his/her ability as an investigator in ongoing projects (e.g. clinical, laboratory, behavioral or educational investigations). The research and scholarly accomplishments of each candidate for promotion and/or tenure will be reviewed annually by his/her departmental chairperson. A continuum of distinction in research and scholarly productivity must be apparent. For promotion and tenure, a candidate's research and scholarly accomplishments will be reviewed by peers from the Department, University, and other institutions.
The research efforts of a candidate will be assessed by evaluation of the publications resulting from the research work. Publication of research results in recognized refereed journals provides clear evidence of scholarly activity. In multi-authored articles, collaborative programs, projects, or grants, the contribution of the individual under review should be specifically described and evaluated. While each faculty member will be expected to contribute to the literature in an ongoing manner, quality rather than quantity of publications will take precedence in promotion and/or tenure decisions. Widely used textbook chapters, review articles and instructional materials are examples of scholarly activity which may be evidence of national and international recognition of the author's expertise in a field and will be given appropriate consideration when they are part, but not the total, of an individual's scholarly productivity. Similarly, case reports are complementary to an individual's scholarly activities but may not comprise the major extent of his/her scholarly endeavors.
Submission of grant applications demonstrates a willingness and determination to succeed in research and scholarly activity, and is expected of all regular faculty for tenure. Further evidence of research and scholarly accomplishments is also demonstrated by the ability to support these activities by obtaining competitive funding.
1. Discipline-related patient service
Faculty in the Department may be called upon to provide professional service as part of their role in fulfilling the mission of the Department. This service may be in addition to their clinical teaching responsibilities and paramount to maintaining a sound teaching and research program. Outstanding discipline-related patient service will be recognized as an important contribution in promotion and tenure decisions, but alone will not be sufficient for granting of promotion and/or tenure. Outstanding discipline-related patient service will be peer evaluated for its impact in raising the quality and standards of care within the profession.
Discipline-related patient service must be clearly outstanding, demonstrably effective and offer skills not usually available in the local community of clinicians. National recognition as a clinician is expected of candidates primarily involved in discipline-related service activities. Documentation will include appraisal solicited from local peers and nationally recognized clinicians of the skills and the national impact of the candidate's work in patient treatment.
2. Professional/Community Service
Service functions such as participation in the governance of the School of Dentistry and the University, participation in professional organizations, service to state and federal agencies, community health care projects, and other forms of civic service and engagement are taken into consideration in assessing overall quality of a candidate, but are not in themselves a basis for awarding tenure.
IV. Promotion of Regular Faculty
Promotion to Associate Professor is associated with a decision concerning tenure. Granting of tenure commits the University to the faculty member in a contractual arrangement for a lengthy period, and should be based on clear evidence of the capacity to contribute to the missions of the Department and the School of Dentistry in an original fashion throughout that career.
Promotion to Associate Professor with tenure is reserved for individuals who have demonstrated:
1. effectiveness in teaching (see Section III.A.).
2. distinction in independent research (see Section III.B.).
3. outstanding discipline-related service (patient/community)
where appropriate (see Section III.C.).
Professor is the highest academic rank attainable and is reserved for those individuals who demonstrate superior achievement in their field. Promotion to Professor will be based on evidence of advanced academic scholarship and maturity in teaching, distinction in research, outstanding discipline-related service where appropriate, and other service to the University, local and national/international community.
In addition to the standards for promotion to Associate Professor with tenure, the following criteria also must be met:
1. growth in teaching skills and integration of teaching and
2. national/international distinction in research.
3. a continuum of externally funded research activity.
4. professional/community service activities and/or active
participation in governance activities of the Department,
School or University are expected of all candidates (see
Section III.C.2.). In contrast to lower ranks, candidates for
promotion to Professor are expected to demonstrate outstanding,
nationally recognized professional community service offering
unique skills and knowledge not usually available.
5. discipline-related patient service (where appropriate) must be
clearly outstanding, nationally recognized, demonstrably
effective and offer skills not usually available in the local
community of clinicians. The quality of service in Department,
School and University governance activities will be assessed by
solicitation of written evaluations from Department and
committee chairs. Professional/community service will be
assessed by solicitation of written evaluations from
The School of Dentistry complies with Procedures for Reviewing the Performance of Probationary Faculty as provided by Sections 16.3., 7.4, and 7.61 of the Regulations Concerning Faculty Tenure and distributed annually by the Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs.
Regulations Concerning Faculty Tenure
Department of Primary Dental Care
