Department Chair Policy - Appointment, Roles, Evaluation, and Compensation
Department chairs are faculty members who are provided an administrative appointment by the Chief Academic Officer, based upon a recommendation from the dean, to serve as the senior academic administrator for the academic department. Department chair appointments include specific characteristics and responsibilities as outlined in the procedures.
Department chair appointment, roles and responsibilities, evaluation, and compensation
| Policy Number: | 2.2.08 |
| Effective Date: | 07/01/2024 |
| Date Reviewed: | 03/27/2024 |
| Last Review Date: | Oct 1 2009 12:00AM; 04/15/2021 |
| Responsible Official: | Chief Academic Officer |
| Responsible Office: | Office of the Provost |
| Contact Information: |
Academic Affairs 115 Tillman Hall Rock Hill, SC 29733 803/323-2220 academicaffairs@winthrop.edu |
Department chairs are faculty members who are provided an administrative appointment by the Chief Academic Officer, based upon a recommendation from the dean, to serve as the senior academic administrator for the academic department. Department chair appointments include specific characteristics and responsibilities as outlined in the Procedures section.
Appointment Characteristics
The department chair appointment is a 12-month administrative assignment appointed by the chief academic officer, based upon recommendation from the dean. As an addition to the regular 9-month faculty appointment (August 16 – May 15), department chairs are expected be available as necessary during the summer (May 16 – August 15) for summer orientations, advising, overrides, enrollment monitoring, and other key activities related to department leadership.
Chair appointments are renewable annually upon satisfactory evaluation of performance for up to five years. At every five-year interval, assuming the chair wants to continue in the role, a more thorough review and evaluation by the dean will occur, with faculty input. Upon recommendation by the dean, and approval by the chief academic officer, the chair will continue renewable annual appointments for an additional five years.
Chair Compensation, Teaching Load, and Summer Pay
The 9-month faculty base salary for the department chair will remain intact and continue to be paid based on the 9-month faculty role (August 16 through May 15). The department chair will receive a supplemental stipend for the 12-month administrative assignment and the stipend will be provided as a temporary salary adjustment (July 1 through June 30). Typically, department chairs are not required to teach summer sessions, but if they do, they will receive additional summer pay for teaching a summer session. If the faculty member will continue to be employed at Winthrop at the time the department chair appointment ends, the supplemental stipend will end on June 30 in the year the faculty member’s department chair appointment ends. If the employment of a department chair ends for any reason, pay associated with the department chair role will end on the last day of employment.
Department chairs typically teach six credit or contact hours a semester (fall and spring), with six credits/contact hours of reassigned time a semester. The complexity of the department will guide the dean’s decision as to whether the teaching load should be more or less than six credits or contact hours a semester. Factors considered in determining reassigned time for department chairs include a combination of the following: number of faculty and staff; multiple degree programs; high enrollment degree programs; accreditation demands; number of centers, institutes, or other academic ventures such as major grants; exceptional recruitment responsibilities; responsibility for equipment and/or physical plant, and budget complexity.
If the department has few programs and there are no other extenuating circumstances, the chair will assume other responsibilities such as academic program director, director of a minor, or assessment coordinator. Teaching loads and associated reassigned time will be adjusted for department chairs as circumstances change (e.g., changes in number of faculty and staff, when grants expire). For additional details, see the Faculty Reassigned Time Policy.
During the time outside their 9-month faculty appointment (May 16 through August 15), deans should work with chairs to coordinate the necessary summer work in a manner that can ensure chairs, like all faculty, have the opportunity for relaxation, renewal, and scholarly and creative activities between terms.
Roles and Responsibilities
The primary role of the department chair is to foster a quality educational program for students by creating a climate in which the faculty member can teach, engage in scholarly and creative activities, and perform effectively. Like all faculty members, department chairs are expected to maintain professional and current competence in their academic disciplines through on-going development and by pursuing continued learning, scholarship, consulting, and public service. Expectations that are specific to different disciplines are articulated in college faculty manuals, the links for which are provided in the Guides section of this policy. Responsibilities assigned to department chairs include:
Chair Appointment Procedures:
1. At the onset of a vacancy and prior to the beginning of the selection process, the dean and chief academic officer, in consultation with the department faculty, shall determine whether to solicit nominations for a new chair from among the current department faculty (internal appointment), or to advertise the position nationally.
2. Dependent on circumstances, an interim chair may be appointed by the chief academic officer, in consultation with the dean, during a vacancy.
3. All tenured faculty members at the rank of associate professor or higher in the department are eligible to be considered for an internal appointment or external search. Exceptions may be considered when circumstances warrant.
4. For internal searches, the dean in consultation with the chief academic officer leads an application and review process which shall include the input of the department’s faculty and staff.
5. For external searches, all candidates will be reviewed by a search committee. The search committee will provide a list of finalists (unranked) for the dean’s consideration after screening candidates.
6. The dean will gain approval from the chief academic officer prior to making an offer.
Chair evaluation
Department chairs must submit annual reports as the basis for annual performance evaluation by the dean. The timeframe and deadlines for chairs to submit their annual reports are established by each college. The annual report documents the chair’s activities and achievements in the four categories of faculty role for which they are accountable as faculty—Student Intellectual Development, Scholarly Activity, Professional Stewardship, and Academic Responsibility—as well as in their performance meeting the responsibilities articulated in their unit and college-level job descriptions as chairs. Deans review chair annual reports and provide a written evaluative response that addresses each of the four categories as well as performance in meeting chair responsibilities.
Deans’ offices also request survey feedback on department chair performance from faculty. This feedback shall be requested annually from faculty. The dean conferences with each chair to discuss the previous year’s performance, faculty feedback, and the chair’s goals for the next year and provides written evaluative feedback to the chair.
University wide: Academic Affairs - Policies & Procedures | Winthrop University
College of Arts and Sciences:
College of Arts and Sciences - Handbooks - Chair | Winthrop University
College of Arts and Sciences - Handbooks - Faculty | Winthrop University
College of Business and Technology:
CBT Faculty Manual | Winthrop University
Richard W. Riley College of Education, Sport and Human Sciences:
College of Education, Sport, and Human Sciences - Faculty Manuals | Winthrop University
College of Visual and Performing Arts:
College of Visual and Performing Arts: Faculty Resources | Winthrop University
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