Provost

Before your committee begins its work each cycle:

• Review your CBA section — UFA CBA §10.240 or MCFA CBA §10.230 — for your committee's specific responsibilities and deadlines.
• Review your unit standards for the evaluation criteria your committee will apply.

The FEC's written recommendation is due to the Department Chairperson/Director and Dean by November 15.

If a faculty member submits a written appeal within ten (10) working days of receiving the FEC's recommendation, the FEC has ten (10) working days to either grant or deny the requested remedial action. The FEC must notify the faculty member of its decision and make the decision part of the evaluation record.

This is separate from the FEC's initial review responsibility — it applies specifically when a candidate appeals the committee's recommendation.

UFA CBA §10.240  |  MCFA CBA §10.230

The Faculty Evaluation Committee (FEC) must include at least three (3) tenured or tenure-track members of the unit. The department chairperson may not serve on the FEC. The committee elects its own chairperson from among its membership.

Student observer: The FEC Chair appoints one student observer from among the unit's majors and/or graduate students. The observer has full participation rights except voting.

If a unit cannot field three tenured or tenure-track members, the FEC may include members from related fields or units, subject to the dean's approval.

Voting: Only tenured or tenure-track members of the FEC may vote on tenure and promotion decisions.

Your unit standards may include additional composition requirements beyond this CBA minimum — review them alongside this section.

UFA CBA §10.240  |  MCFA CBA §10.230

Individual units may opt to solicit external peer review to assist the FEC in promotion and tenure decisions. These details are set at the unit level.

Check your unit standards for whether your unit uses external review, and if so:

• Who in the unit is responsible for soliciting the letters
• How the letters will be treated with respect to anonymity or confidentiality

UFA CBA §10.240

What the CBA requires: No one may participate in evaluating themselves; a person to whom they are related by blood, marriage, or cohabitation; someone with whom they are engaged in adversarial litigation; or someone with whom they have a business relationship that would reasonably be presumed to preclude objective professional judgment. Allegations of a conflict of interest must be filed with the UFA-Administration Committee (or FA-Administration Committee for MCFA) within ten (10) working days of discovering the conflict. The Administration determines whether a conflict exists.

Additional guidance: A perceived conflict of interest should be treated with the same weight as an actual one. If you're uncertain whether a conflict exists, consult your FEC Chair, Department Chair/Director, or Dean before proceeding rather than deciding on your own.

In practice: If a candidate under review sits on their own unit's FEC, they should be recused from that candidate's case — not removed from the committee generally.

UFA CBA §10.310  |  MCFA CBA §10.310

• October 15 — Candidate's Individual Performance Record (IPR) submitted to the Faculty Evaluation Committee (FEC)
• November 15 — FEC's written recommendation due to the Department Chairperson/Director and Dean
• 10 working days after notification — window for a candidate to appeal the FEC's recommendation, if any

Visit the full Faculty Evaluation Timelines page for the complete evaluation cycle.

• FEC Chair Training Slide Deck — presented 11 September 2026
• FEC Chair Training Audio Recording - presented 11 September 2026
• EXAMPLE FEC Letter TT Faculty
• EXAMPLE FEC Letter NTT Faculty

These example letters are intended as references, not templates. The Office of the Provost does not prescribe a particular format or writing style. Rather, these examples illustrate the key elements an effective FEC letter should include.

UM's Student Evaluation Committee (SEC) process occurs outside the Interfolio system. As such, there are specific instructions for Uploading SEC Recommendations. These instructions only apply to this step. FEC, Chairperson, and Dean recommendations follow the steps outlined in the Uploading Required Committee Documents section.

1. Navigate to the Cases page from the navigation menu on the left. 
2. Click the hyperlinked Name of the desired candidate to navigate to the candidate's case. 
3. On the Case Materials tab, scroll down to SEC Recommendation under Internal Sections. 
4. Select Add File, in the SEC Recommendation internal section.  
5. Drag and Drop or Browse to Upload the file you wish to upload and click Save to complete.

If a Unit Administrator or Case Manager has set document requirements for a case review step, all required documents must be met before the case can move forward to the next step. A committee document requirement can only be satisfied by the committee manager. Committees can see all documents added to the case at their step or below unless visibility settings are changed. Therefore, committees at the same step can view each other's documents. 

1. Navigate to the Cases page from the navigation menu on the left. 
2. Click the hyperlinked Name of the desired candidate to navigate to the candidate’s case. 
3. On the Case Details tab, select + Add in the Required Items section next to the corresponding required document. 
4. Drag or drop the file into the Upload a new file section or select Browse to Upload.
5. Click + Add to complete.

Troubleshooting Required Committee Documents

1. If a document was first uploaded to an Internal Section under the Case Materials tab, you can search for the file under Select file from case. 
   • If a name does not appear, type the Name of the document in the search bar.
2. Click + Add to complete. 
3. Once successfully uploaded, all required items should say Complete and the case is ready to advance to the next step.

Note: If you encounter any issues while uploading, you may need to compress files if you receive an error message. Ensure that the file types you upload are compatible.

Committee Managers can fill out and submit a form as part of a case and, if necessary, resubmit a form they have previously submitted. A form can be saved before all required questions are completed and can be made editable again by the original respondent. 

1. Navigate to the Cases page from the navigation menu on the left. 
2. Click the hyperlinked Name of the desired candidate to navigate to the candidate’s case. 
3. On the Case Details tab, select Fill Out Form in the Required Items section. 
4. Answer all the questions in the form and click Submit Form when finished. 
5. Once completed, the form requirement will be labeled Complete. A green check mark indicates completion, while a red exclamation mark indicates an incomplete form. You must address any forms with red exclamations or no marks. 

Note: The Required Items will say Complete when the required document has been uploaded, even though the required form has not been satisfied. 

If responses require management, click Manage Respondents next to the desired form to view responses. If necessary, assigned Committee Managers can make changes using the Edit Submission button.

• Uploading Required Committee Documents

• Satisfying Required Committee Forms

Implicit bias can influence faculty evaluation outcomes. The Office of the Provost strongly encourages FEC members, FEC Chairs, Department Chairs/Directors, and Deans to explore the resources below and actively work to create awareness about implicit bias in the context of faculty evaluation. 

• LinkedIn Learning Course on Unconscious Bias

• Unpacking Unconscious Bias in the Workplace, Coursera

• View Case Materials 

• View the Results of Committee’s Vote 

• Complete and Submit Committee Forms 

• Request, Add, and Manage External Evaluations for a Case 

• Upload Documents to Satisfy the Committee Document Requirement 

• Interfolio Review, Promotion & Tenure Committee Member Training