About Us - College of Business

BYLAWS

College of Business
Northern Michigan University
September 2021

 

ARTICLE 1.  MEETINGS, MEMBERSHIP AND VOTING

1.1        College meetings will be held monthly or more often as necessary for the purpose of discussing and resolving problems and issues, and to provide intra program communications and coordination.  Special meetings may be called by the Executive Committee at the request of the Dean or any participating member  (Faculty who are employed by the school and teach on a regular basis will be classified as Participating Faculty if they meet the following criteria: They participate in the life of the School through advising, faculty development, and extra-curricular activities of the college). The Executive Committee shall have the responsibility for preparing agendas, calling meetings and conducting the meetings.  Whenever possible, written notification of the meetings, including an agenda, should be communicated to faculty one workweek in advance.

Adjunct (Support) faculty and others may be invited to meetings. These attendees have non-voting status. 

The Dean may attend the meetings with non-voting status.  The Dean should, if at all possible, attend the meetings whenever possible so as to provide necessary information and reports to the faculty.

1.2        The voting membership of the college is defined as participating faculty members with appointments in the College of Business at the rank of instructor or above. Faculty members on sabbatical or leave of absence shall be eligible to vote (voting is in person, digitally or by proxy).  All votes shall be of equal weight.

1.3     Votes on action items may only take place with at least two-thirds of participating members.  Faculty members who are on sabbatical or leave of absence do not count as part of the voting membership. If a member is unable to attend a scheduled meeting in person, attendance via digital means is acceptable.

1.4        Matters relating to approval or alteration of the Bylaws will require a two-thirds majority of the voting members of the college, subject to the Master Agreement.

1.5        Meetings shall be governed by The Standard Code of Parliamentary Procedure by Sturgis.  Faculty present at a meeting will approve the agenda before any other business is conducted.

ARTICLE 2.  COMMITTEES AND REPRESENTATIVES

2.1        The Academic Senate Representatives and the Faculty Council Representative will be elected by a simple majority of the voting membership of the College.  Only dues-paying members of the AAUP may vote for the Faculty Council Representative.

2.2        The standing committees of the college are:

2.2.1     Executive Committee

2.2.2     Evaluation Committee

2.2.3     Assurance of Learning and Curriculum Committee

2.2.4     Association To Advance Collegiate Schools Of Business Compliance/Student Scholarships and Awards Committee

2.2.5     Strategic Planning Committee

2.3        Each standing committee will be composed of at least three participating faculty members unless otherwise stated in these Bylaws.  Unless otherwise stated, committee members will serve staggered two-year terms, when possible.  Each committee, with the exception of the Executive Committee, will be responsible for electing a chairperson and establishing its own operating procedures, with the provision that such procedures comply with these Bylaws and the Master Agreement. All committees will make reports and recommendations to the faculty.  Each discipline may form ad hoc committees to review curriculum and other matters pertinent to the discipline.

2.4        Executive Committee

2.4.1     Membership.  The membership of the Executive Committee will consist of at least five members including the following:  Academic Senate Representatives, Faculty Council Representative, and at-large representatives. The Dean and the Assistant Department Heads or equivalent are invited to attend Executive Committee meetings in a non-voting status.  However, the Executive Committee shall have the option of excusing the Dean if appropriate.

2.4.1.1 Term of Membership.  Academic Senate representatives shall be elected according to the Bylaws of the Academic Senate.  The Faculty Council representative shall serve a one-year term.  Other members shall serve staggered two-year terms, terms starting July 1.

2.4.1.2 Selection.  The Executive Committee shall take nominations from the faculty for vacancies caused by the expiring terms.  This committee will prepare a slate and conduct an election. Then the Chair of the Executive Committee will be elected by the faculty from the Executive Committee members.  This is to be done before the end of the winter semester.

2.4.1.3 Recall.  Any member of the Executive Committee, including Academic Senator and Faculty Council Representative, can be recalled by a two-thirds vote of the faculty.

2.4.1.4 Special elections will be called to fill vacancies, temporary or permanent, on the Executive Committee that would exist for longer than two months.  If the vacancy is temporary, the replacement will serve for the temporary replacement period.

2.4.2     Functions

2.4.2.1 The Executive Committee will serve as an advisory committee to the Dean and will address matters referred to by them collectively or individually.  The function of the Executive Committee is to serve as representative of the faculty, and will not limit its concerns merely to those matters referred by the Dean, but will address matters of interest to the College faculty, especially concerns communicated to the members of the Executive Committee.

2.4.2.2 The Executive Committee shall solicit nominations for membership on standing committees and present a slate to the faculty prior to conclusion of the Winter term with committee membership to begin at the start of the academic year.  Faculty preference will be considered in making assignments.

2.4.2.3 The Executive Committee shall schedule and conduct the faculty meetings, and record and post minutes of the meetings.  The Chair of the Executive Committee will preside over the meetings.

2.4.2.4 The Executive Committee shall have the right to request information of, and provide suggestions to, the Dean related to the operations of the College of Business.

2.5        College Evaluation Committee

2.5.1     Membership: The College Evaluation Committee will consist of five (5) tenured faculty at the professor or associate professor levels (with the exception of the Dean). At least two (2) members must be full professors. The length of each term is two years, with new members of the committee being appointed every year according to a rotation list maintained by the Executive Committee.  All eligible faculty must serve on the Evaluation Committee.

2.5.2     Functions

2.5.2.1 The College Evaluation Committee is the Department Evaluation Committee as per the Master Agreement.

2.5.2.2 The Evaluation Committee shall make an evaluation of each faculty member of the College as specified in the Master Agreement. Activities evaluated shall include assigned professional responsibilities, scholarship and/or professional development, and service.  The secondary emphasis of scholarship and/or professional development and service shall be agreed upon in a statement of objectives developed by the faculty member and the Evaluation Committee and shall be consistent with such statements in past evaluations and with the initial letter of appointment subject to the approval of the Dean and Provost.  Change of emphasis can be modified through agreement of the same parties.

2.5.2.3 The Evaluation Committee shall verify that an annual classroom peer review visit for each full-time faculty member has been conducted and a report be written, shared with the faculty member and included in the faculty member’s evaluation.

2.5.2.4 The Committee shall make recommendations for promotion, tenure and termination and forward them in accordance and compliance with the Master Agreement and these Bylaws.  In this regard, it is acting as the Master Agreement's Departmental Evaluation Committee.

2.5.2.5 The Committee shall monitor and promote improvement of the evaluation process.

2.5.2.6 The Evaluation Committee will evaluate and rank order sabbatical applications per the Master Agreement.  The Dean has the right to submit a separate judgment and/or ranking.

2.6        Assurance of Learning and Curriculum Committee

2.6.1     The Assurance of Learning and Curriculum Committee is charged with the responsibility for the review of course and program changes, and new program and course proposals. Recommended changes can be submitted by program areas, committees or individual faculty members.  Changes should follow Committee on Undergraduate Programs, Graduate Programs Committee, General Education Committee, or other relevant committees that evaluate curriculum proposals.  The committee shall submit its recommendations to the Executive Committee for faculty approval.  If approved, the recommendations will be reviewed by the Dean before forwarding and then forwarded to the Committee on Undergraduate Programs or Graduate Programs Committee, as appropriate.

2.6.2     The Assurance of Learning and Curriculum Committee is also responsible for determining appropriate strategies to assess, compile cyclic reports for learning and program outcomes of College of Business students and will prepare cyclic reports in compliance with university and accreditation objectives and standards.

2.7        Association To Advance Collegiate Schools Of Business Compliance/Student Scholarships and Awards Committee

2.7.1     Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business Compliance/Student Scholarships and Awards Committee will solicit and review applications for the various scholarships that are available through the College of Business and for selecting the recipients of such scholarships.  The committee shall also facilitate the selection of the recipients of the Outstanding Scholar awards by soliciting nominations from the faculty and/or other criteria such as GPA.

2.7.2  Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business Compliance/Student Scholarships and Awards Committee is also responsible for the continuous and systematic oversight of Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business Standards.

2.8 The Strategic Planning Committee

2.8.1 The Strategic Planning Committee shall be responsible for the annual development, communication, and implementation of the strategic plan.

ARTICLE 3.  COURSE SCHEDULING

3.1        Faculty Qualifications List

3.1.1     Organized by individual courses, The Faculty Qualifications List identifies all faculty members and the courses within the college they are qualified to teach.  Faculty desirous of teaching outside of their discipline must provide evidence of qualifications to teach the course. For a faculty member to be placed on the qualifications list for a course outside of their discipline area, they may be asked to provide evidence of qualifications to teach that course.  Evidence may include courses taken, professional examinations (e.g. CPA), work experience, seminars attended, or research undertaken (books, articles read, etc.).  If a faculty member's qualifications are questioned, the program area faculty may be asked to assist the Executive Committee and Dean for a determination.  Faculty members may request an update to the listing if their qualifications change as necessary; the Executive Committee shall review each faculty member's preference along with their competencies and recommend to the Dean those who are qualified to teach a specific course.  As new courses and faculty are added, or faculty acquire new competencies, the list will be updated by the Dean.  The Dean is responsible for maintaining the Faculty Qualifications List.

3.1.2     Course assignments shall be determined by the Dean, subject to the Faculty Qualifications List and Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business Standards. Faculty will be given the opportunity to make course-scheduling suggestions.

ARTICLE 4.    STAFFING ASSIGNMENTS BEYOND THE NORMAL LOAD

4.1        Staffing assignments for courses beyond the normal load shall be made according to the Faculty Qualifications List, Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business Standards, and the Master Agreement.

4.2         Additional assignments (i.e. overload, summer, etc.) are contingent upon maintaining Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business faculty qualifications requirements.

ARTICLE 5.  ACADEMIC APPOINTMENTS

5.1        Minimum Requirements for New Academic Appointments

5.1.1     All faculty must be in compliance with the Master Agreement, Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business Standards, and Higher Learning Commission accreditation standards.

5.1.2     Instructor.  An appropriate Master's degree, plus appropriate experience and/or specialized certification in the teaching area.

5.1.3     Assistant Professor. An earned doctorate from an accredited institution.

5.1.4     Associate Professor. The candidate must have an earned doctorate from an accredited institution, must demonstrate evidence of teaching excellence and significant scholarship and/or professional development and normally have six (6) years of full-time higher education experience at the rank of Instructor or above.  Exceptions may be made because of unusual scholarly and/or professional achievement.

5.1.5     Professor. The candidate must have an earned doctorate from an accredited institution, must demonstrate evidence of distinguished educational and scholarly, or creative, professional achievement and normally have twelve (12) years of full-time higher education experience at the rank of Instructor or above.  Exceptions may be made because of unusual scholarly and/or professional achievement.

5.2        Procedures for Making Recommendations on Academic Appointments (except for Board-initiated appointments)

5.2.1     The performance of academic functions is a shared responsibility of faculty and academic administrative colleagues. The quality of our academic programs is inarguably influenced by the quality of our faculty members. Thus, the recruitment and selection processes for new faculty must be faculty driven. Throughout all of these activities, and at all stages, clear and open communication is essential between and among faculty and administrative staff, information and reports must be handled in a timely fashion.

5.2.2     Search Committee Selection. All faculty members in the program area have the right to serve on the search committee.  Normally, there will be a minimum of three (3) faculty members on a search committee. The Dean will sit ex officio on the search committee.

5.2.3     Procedures for advertising, screening, interviews, and appointments will be in compliance with NMU Academic Affairs and Human Resources guidelines.

ARTICLE 6.  EVALUATION, PROMOTION, AND TENURE

6.1      Evaluation, Promotion, and Tenure

Faculty shall follow the procedures and processes outlined in the Master Agreement, for evaluation, promotion and/or tenure.

6.2        Judgmental Criteria for Annual Evaluation

6.2.1     The Evaluation Committee will evaluate each faculty member in each of the three areas: Teaching and Assigned Responsibilities, Scholarship and/or Professional Development and Service. The following evaluation scale will be used to assess each of the three categories:

·           Highly Effective – performs significantly above minimum requirements

·           Effective – meets minimum requirements

·           Needs Improvement – does not meet minimum requirements

6.2.2     College of Business participating faculty will declare the secondary emphasis of Scholarship and/or Professional Development or Service in annual evaluation materials in consultation with the Evaluation Committee and subject to approval by the Dean.

6.2.3     Teaching and Assigned Responsibilities. For faculty at all ranks, teaching should be their primary focus. Each annual evaluation must include a statement of goals for the future and a review of accomplishments relative to prior goals. The faculty member bears the responsibility for providing evidence of achievement of goals in assigned responsibilities. Specifically, faculty will be evaluated on how effectively they have fulfilled their assigned responsibilities based upon the following:

a.          Mastery of the subject matter, currency and ongoing growth in one’s discipline       

b.         Effectiveness enabling students to achieve learning objectives

c.          Achieves learning objectives through exercising the appropriate preparation, organization and use of pedagogy

d.         Engages in and reports direct learning outcomes assessments for their classes and/or for the curriculum as a whole

e.          Creates positive learning environment and develops effective rapport with students

f.          Continuously works toward improvement in existing courses, modifying the course content with their own original contributions, and enhancing pedagogy, including the utilization of student feedback

g.         Demonstrates respect for and fair treatment of students as individuals

h.         Timely and professional in meeting classes and evaluating student work

i.          Demonstrates rigor and transparency in evaluating student work

j.          Receives generally positive student ratings (4.0 or greater)

k.         Receives positive evaluations by peers; one classroom peer evaluation conducted during each academic year

l.          Adheres to academic and ethical standards in assessing students and dealing with students and colleagues

m.        Available to students for consultation outside of class

n.         Serves as an effective academic and career planning advisor

o.         Works cooperatively to assess and develop curriculum

p.         The most important criterion for promotion, tenure and continuing contract status, is effectiveness in the area of teaching (see the Master Agreement).

6.2.4     Scholarship and/or Professional Development. Each annual/quintennial evaluation must include a statement of goals for the future and a review of accomplishments or prior goals and in consideration with accreditation standards.

a.          Faculty must maintain appropriate Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business faculty qualification status and provide evidence of how they are meeting these standards.

b.         Faculty are strongly encouraged to maintain a public profile on ResearchGate and Google Scholar as well as a current Sedona profile.

6.2.5     Service. Faculty are expected to serve and actively participate on at least one University, College and discipline area committees. In completing their annual/quintennial reports, faculty shall indicate how they met the standards for minimum acceptable contributions to service. Faculty should provide a brief analysis of their specific activities and accomplishments in each service capacity. Simply listing appointments to positions and memberships on committees is generally not adequate documentation of service contribution for purposes of annual/quintennial evaluation. Specifically, faculty shall indicate their individual responsibility, participation, and outcome.

Faculty should also detail contributions to community and professional service, including an assessment of how the activities are relevant to the faculty member’s teaching, scholarship, specific College initiatives or to the central mission of the University.

Examples of service include, but are not limited to:

a.          Serving on discipline area committee

b.         Serving on College committees

c.          Serving on University committees

d.         Serving as a major officer or staff person contributing to the vitality of one or more committees or in writing significant reports, proposals, etc., for those committees

e.          Serving as an officer of a professional organization either local, regional or national or performing other noteworthy service for such an organization

f.          Directing or organizing workshops, symposia and seminars

g.         Participating in programs with elementary or secondary schools or other elements of the community, related to their work at the university

h.         Serving in a mentoring capacity with new faculty

i.          Serving as an advisor of student organizations, student activity projects and/or other service to the student body

j.          Serving as a support person in the recruitment and retention of students (i.e., campus visits, Presidential Scholars Competition interviews, etc.)

k.         Service to the community, state or nation involving professional contributions to the public, service and/or non-profit organizations

l.          Serving as a reviewer or editor for a professional journal related to their discipline

6.2.5.1 Minimum Levels of Effective Performance. The following are representative of minimum levels of performance considered for a rating of “effective,” at a faculty member’s current rank. However, the Evaluation Committee will also consider the quality and extent of work involved based on the evidence provided by the faculty member in their evaluation report.

 Instructor

·           Discipline area committee

Assistant Professor

·           University committee

·           College committee

·           Discipline area committee

·           One (1) additional Service activity (could be met by multiple committee assignments)

Associate Professor

·           University committee

·           College committee

·           Discipline area committee

·           Two (2) additional Service activities (could be met by multiple committee assignments)

Professor (quintennial  evaluation)

·           University committee

·           College committee

·           Discipline area committee

·           Two (2) additional Service activities per year (could be met by multiple committee assignments)

6.3        Judgmental Criteria for Promotion

6.3.1     The demonstration of achievements for promotion is understood to be cumulative since appointment at NMU or since application for promotion to the preceding rank at NMU (or since the beginning of the prior service period when prior service credit has been granted at the time of appointment).

6.3.2     Collectively, the Master Agreement, the College of Business Bylaws, and Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business accreditation standards outlines the judgmental criteria for promotion and tenure.

6.3.2.1 Meeting the minimum guidelines does not guarantee promotion, because the committee will consider the quantity, quality and contribution to the business disciplines of the publication or presentation outlet. Publication in a prestigious journal could reduce the total quantity of scholarly works required.

6.3.3     Promotion to Assistant Professor

6.3.3.1 Minimum Qualifications

a.   An earned doctorate from an accredited institution.

6.3.3.2 Evaluative Standards

a.   Sustained performance in the area of Assigned Responsibilities as evidenced by the items listed in Section 6.2.2. There must be evidence that the quality of performance in some of these activities is greater than one would expect at the level of instructor.

b.   One (1) peer-reviewed journal article plus any three (3) intellectual contributions in identified in the list below. This list is not exhaustive and other intellectual contributions will be considered. Multiple instances of any in the following list are acceptable. Most forms of scholarship will be peer reviewed and the faculty member is responsible for demonstrating how this occurred.

·           Refereed conference proceedings

·           Published book review or article summary

·           Published textbook chapter

·           Published textbook (each chapter of published textbook is counted separately)

·           Published textbook ancillary

·           Published instructional materials

·           Published case

·           Refereed conference presentation

·           Submitting grant proposal to support scholarly activity

·           Consulting in the area related to professional discipline

·           Additional journal article

·           Sharing of knowledge with colleagues or students through seminars or other activities, or via speeches and other avenues outside the university community

c.   Evidence of effective academic service from the list of activities in Section 6.2.5 of these Bylaws.

d.   History and promise of strong contributions to the College, University and academic discipline.

e.   Evidence of a history of predominantly positive annual evaluations.

f.   Extent to which minimum qualifications are exceeded commensurate with their area of emphasis. If the area of emphasis is Scholarship and/or Professional Development, at least two (2) peer-reviewed journal articles are required. If the area of emphasis is Service, multiple instances of service are required including evidence of active involvement in these activities.

6.4.       Promotion to Associate Professor

6.4.1      Minimum Qualifications

a.   An earned doctorate from an accredited institution and normally five (5) years of full-time higher education experience at the rank of Instructor or above prior to applying for promotion. Exceptions may be made because of unusual scholarly achievements or unusual professional service achievements.

6.4.2     Evaluative Standards

a.   Sustained performance in the area of Teaching and Assigned Responsibilities as evidenced by the items listed in Section 6.3.2. There must be evidence that the quality of performance in some of these activities is greater than one would expect at the level of assistant professor.

b.   Two (2) peer-reviewed journal articles plus any four (4) intellectual contributions in the list below. This list is not exhaustive and other intellectual contributions will be considered. Multiple instances of any in the following list are acceptable. Most forms of scholarship will be peer reviewed and the faculty member is responsible for demonstrating how this occurred.

·           Refereed conference proceedings

·           Published book review or article summary

·           Published textbook chapter

·           Published textbook (each chapter of published textbook is counted separately)

·           Published textbook ancillary

·           Published instructional materials

·           Published case

·           Refereed conference presentation

·           Submitting grant proposal to support scholarly activity

·           Consulting in the area related to professional discipline

·           Additional journal article

·           Sharing of knowledge with colleagues or students through seminars or other activities, or via speeches and other avenues outside the university community

c.   Evidence of effective academic service from the list of activities in Section 6.2.5 of these Bylaws.

d.   History and promise of strong contributions to the college, university and academic discipline.

e.   Evidence of a history of predominantly positive annual evaluations.

f.   Extent to which minimum qualifications are exceeded commensurate with their area of emphasis. If the area of emphasis is Scholarship and/or Professional Development, at least three (3) peer-reviewed journal articles are required. If the area of emphasis is Service, multiple instances of service are required including evidence of active involvement in these activities and leadership in a major university committee or as an officer of a professional organization.

6.5        Promotion to Professor

6.5.1      Minimum Qualifications

a.   An earned doctorate from an accredited institution and normally eleven (11) years of full-time higher education experience at the rank of Instructor or above prior to applying for promotion. Exceptions may be made because of unusual scholarly achievements or unusual professional service achievements.

6.5.2     Evaluative Standards

a.   Sustained “effective” ranking of performance as quantified in 6.2.1 in the area of Teaching and Assigned Responsibilities as evidenced by the items listed in Section 6.3.2. There must be evidence that the quality of performance in some of these activities is greater than one would expect at the level of associate professor.

b.   Three (3) peer-reviewed journal articles plus any four (4) of the following intellectual contributions in the list below. This list is not exhaustive and other intellectual contributions will be considered. Multiple instances of any in the following list are acceptable. Most forms of scholarship will be peer reviewed and the faculty member is responsible for demonstrating how this occurred.

·           Refereed conference proceedings

·           Published book review or article summary

·           Published textbook chapter

·           Published textbook (each chapter of published textbook is counted separately)

·           Published textbook ancillary

·           Published instructional materials

·           Published case

·           Refereed conference presentation

·           Submitting grant proposal to support scholarly activity

·           Consulting in the area related to professional discipline

·           Additional journal article

·           Sharing of knowledge with colleagues or students through seminars or other activities, or via speeches and other avenues outside the university community

c.   Sustained evidence of leadership and high achievement in academic service.

d.   History and promise of strong contributions to the college, university and academic discipline.

e.   Evidence of a history of predominantly positive evaluations.

f.   Extent to which minimum qualifications are exceeded commensurate with their area of emphasis. If the area of emphasis is Scholarship and/or Professional Development, at least four (4) peer-reviewed journal articles are required. If the area of emphasis is Service, multiple instances of service are required including evidence of active involvement in these activities and leadership in a major university committee or as an officer of a professional organization.

6.6        Judgmental Criteria for Tenure. Evaluative criteria for tenure are the same as those for promotion to Associate Professor.

6.7        Judgmental Criteria for Continuing Contract Status. Evaluative criteria for Continuing Contract Status and promotion to Assistant Professor are the same.

ARTICLE 7.  AMENDMENTS

7.1        The Bylaws are subject to change based on the Master Agreement, Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business standards, Higher Learning Commission accreditation standards, U.S. Department of Education or other regulatory organizations.

7.2         Proposals for Bylaw changes may come from any member of the participating faculty eligible to vote.

7.3        These Bylaws may be changed by two-thirds vote of the participating faculty members eligible to vote subject to the approval process as stated in the Master Agreement.