Cortland Plan for Career Opportunities and Other Conversions

Cortland Plan for Career Opportunities and Other Conversions
January 22, 2024
(Previously revised July 2, 2004, Jan. 7, 2009, June 25, 2013, May 15, 2017, and January 22, 2024)

This document consolidates three separate policy statements related to professional growth and career mobility options for the unclassified professional staff employees at SUNY Cortland which includes full and part-time UUP professionals and academics, and management/ confidential (MC) employees. Section I: The Cortland Plan for Career Opportunities (UUP Professionals and MC’s) Policy Section II: Part-time to Full-time Conversion (UUP academics, professionals, and MC’s) Policy Section III: Full-time Lecturer to Instructor Conversion Policy

Section I
Cortland Plan for Career Opportunities (UUP Professionals and MC’s) Policy

Statement of Purpose

Management and the UUP bargaining unit at SUNY Cortland recognize the benefits of retaining a strong workforce. One aspect of retention is providing employees with opportunities for career growth. The Cortland Plan for Internal Promotion of Professionals was developed in 1989 to foster professional growth and provide career opportunities for professionals. The Cortland Plan for Career Opportunities and Other Conversions is not solely a promotional program, but one that includes other (e.g., lateral) opportunities.

Policy Statement

In consideration of its responsibility to employees, SUNY Cortland understands that building and maintaining an excellent workforce is, in part, achieved by providing equal opportunity to all persons in employment. The College also recognizes the need to balance affirmative action commitments with the concept of internal promotion and lateral opportunities. As a means of balancing these needs, SUNY Cortland will give its employees first consideration for professional positions at the SL-1 through SL-6 levels and for management confidential positions that are to be recruited in accordance with the eligibility requirements and procedures outlined below.

These opportunities will be consistent with employee development, qualification, and job performance.

Certain management confidential positions will not be filled through this internal program including the positions of dean, assistant vice president, associate vice president, assistant provost, associate provost, vice president and president. Positions not filled through this internal program, or vacancies resulting from the use of this program will be filled consistent with the campus Affirmative Action Program, Policies and Procedures.

Eligibility criteria

1. Current full- or part-time professional employees represented by UUP must meet the following criteria to be eligible to apply for opportunities under this program:
   1. Must have a minimum of one year of consecutive service at SUNY Cortland leading up to the date the position is posted. The one year service requirement is a college year for people holding college year appointments or calendar year for employees holding calendar year appointments.
   2. Must have been appointed to SUNY Cortland as the result of an approved affirmative action search. Approved affirmative action search includes national, regional, and/or local searches for part-time or full-time positions (temporary, term, or permanent)
      
      Professional employees are defined in the Policies of the Board of Trustees, Article II, §1(n) as “employee in the Professional Services Negotiating Unit, other than an employee with academic or qualified academic rank.”
      
      
2. Current full or part-time academic, management confidential, and Research Foundation employees, and those represented by CSEA, PBANYS, and PEF are also eligible to apply for professional SL1 – SL6 level positions, but will only be considered after a determination has been made regarding the applications of eligible UUP professional employees. Employees in these groups must meet the following criteria to be eligible to apply for opportunities under this program: a.
   1. Must have a minimum of one year of consecutive service at SUNY Cortland, leading up to the date the position is posted. The one year service requirement is a college year for people holding college year appointments or calendar year for employees holding calendar year appointments.
   2. Must have been appointed to SUNY Cortland as the result of an approved affirmative action search or through a NYS Civil Service Eligibility list or otherwise appointed in accordance with the appropriate collective bargaining agreement. An approved affirmative action search includes national, regional, and/or local searches for part-time or full-time positions (temporary, term, or permanent).
3. Current full or part-time management confidential and Research Foundation employees or those represented by UUP, CSEA, PBANYS, and PEF are eligible to apply for management confidential positions. Employees in these groups must meet the following criteria to be eligible to apply for opportunities under this program:
   1. Must have a minimum of one year of consecutive service at SUNY Cortland, leading up to the date the position is posted. The one year service requirement is a college year for people holding college year appointments or calendar year for employees holding calendar year appointments.
   2. Must have been appointed to SUNY Cortland as the result of an approved affirmative action search or through a NYS Civil Service Eligibility list or otherwise appointed in accordance with the appropriate collective bargaining agreement. Approved affirmative action search includes national, regional, and/or local searches for parttime or full-time positions (temporary, term, or permanent).

Procedure

1. When the requirements of Article 35 (Retrenchment) of the Agreement between the State of New York and the United University Professions have been met and a professional vacancy has not been filled by a retrenched employee and the position has been cleared by the Human Resources Office for recruitment under this program, the Human Resources Office will post the vacancy to email using Campus Communicator and the Human Resources category. The posting will include the position’s budget title, campus title, rank, salary, position summary, major responsibilities, qualifications and the deadline for receipt of applications. The internal posting period is ten (10) work days.
2. External advertising may be done simultaneously with internal posting at the request of the hiring manager and approval of the manager of faculty and professional recruitment; however, internal applications must be considered before external applications.
3. At the conclusion of the posting period, all applications will be reviewed by the manager of faculty and professional recruitment to determine if they meet the criteria for internal consideration. If ineligible, applicants will be notified in writing by the manager of faculty and professional recruitment.
4. The application materials of applicants who meet the minimum qualifications will be forwarded to the search committee in accordance with numbers 5 and 6 below.
5. For professional positions, eligible applications will be sorted by first priority (UUP professionals as identified in number one of the eligibility section) and second priority. First priority applications only will be sent to the search committee for consideration. The search committee will make one of the following three decisions on each first priority application:
   1. The applicant is qualified and the search committee chooses to conduct an interview and reference checking. When the search committee interviews a Priority 1 applicant, a decision regarding the applicant’s candidacy must be made consistent with the subsections below.
      1. The search committee completes a Search Committee Applicant Evaluation Report and submits it to the manager of faculty and professional recruitment for review and approval.
      2. The manager of faculty and professional recruitment will review the report with the hiring manager.
      3. The hiring manager may choose to hire the applicant, choose not to hire the applicant, or consider the applicant as part of the larger pool. Under the guidance of the manager of faculty and professional recruitment, the hiring manager shall notify the applicant of the decision.
      4. After the Search Committee Applicant Evaluation Report has been issued by the search committee and the hiring manager has consulted with the manager of faculty and professional recruitment, if there are Priority 2 applicants, the hiring manager may choose to consider the Priority 1 applicant(s) and the Priority 2 applicants as one pool.
   2. The applicant is qualified, but the search committee decides that the applicant will be included as part of the larger applicant pool for further consideration.
   3. The applicant is not qualified and therefore not selected to move forward in the process.
   4. Under the guidance of the manager of faculty and professional recruitment, the search committee will notify applicants of its decisions.
6. Second priority applications (defined under number two of the eligibility section) will be sent to the search committee for consideration after first priority applications have been processed in accordance with number 5 above. The search committee will make one of the following three decisions:
   1. The applicant is qualified and the committee chooses to conduct an interview and reference checking. When the search committee interviews a Priority 2 applicant, a decision regarding the applicant’s candidacy must be made consistent with the subsections below.
      1. The search committee completes the Search Committee Applicant Evaluation Report and submits it to the manager of faculty and professional recruitment for review and approval.
      2. The manager of faculty and professional recruitment will review the report with the hiring manager.
      3. The hiring manager may choose to hire the applicant, choose not to hire the applicant, or consider the applicant as part of the larger pool. Under the guidance of the manager of faculty and professional recruitment, the hiring manager shall notify the applicant of the decision.
   2. The applicant is qualified, but the search committee decides that the applicant will be included as part of the larger applicant pool for further consideration.
   3. The applicant is not qualified and therefore not selected to move forward in the process.
   4. Under the guidance of the manager of faculty and professional recruitment, the search committee will notify applicants of its decisions.
7. For management confidential positions, all eligible applicants will be considered at the same time without consideration of the applicant’s position or bargaining unit. The search committee will make one of the following three decisions:
   1. The applicant is qualified, and the search committee chooses to conduct an interview and reference checking. When the search committee interviews applicants for the management confidential position, a decision regarding the applicant’s candidacy must be made consistent with the subsections below.
      1. The search committee completes the Search Committee Applicant Evaluation Report and submits it to the manager of faculty and professional recruitment for review and approval.
      2. The manager of faculty and professional recruitment will review the report with the hiring manager.
   2. The hiring manager may choose to hire the applicant, choose not to hire the applicant or consider the applicant as part of the larger pool. Under the guidance of the manager of faculty and professional recruitment, the hiring manager shall notify the applicant of the decision.
   3. The applicant is qualified, but the search committee decides that the applicant will be included as part of the larger candidate pool for further consideration.
   4. The applicant is not qualified and therefore not selected to move forward in the process.
   5. Under the guidance of the manager of faculty and professional recruitment, the search committee will notify internal applicants of its decisions.
8. If the internal process has no successful applicants, the search will proceed in accordance with campus search procedures and the affirmative action program.

Section II
Part-time to Full-time Conversion (UUP academics, professionals, and MC’s) Policy

A policy was approved by President Taylor in 2002 which allows a part-time professional or academic employee to be converted to full-time without a search under specific circumstances. That policy follows:

Conversion of Part-time Faculty and Professional Staff to Full-time Employment
November 12, 2002 (Approved by President Taylor)
Eligibility revised February 7, 2014 (removed reference to “term” appointment)

Proposal

Allow part-time faculty and professional staff to be appointed to the position they currently hold on a full-time basis when specific eligibility criteria are met.

Purpose

To provide opportunities for part-time employees to secure full-time employment. This plan rewards employees who have already dedicated time to the institution. The campus benefits as well through the elimination of costly and time-consuming searches when a fully qualified employee is already performing the duties of the position. From a public relations perspective, the campus will not be seen as simply going through the motions to reach a pre- determined result.

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible for appointment to the full-time position, the employee must have been hired as the result of an affirmative action search. This includes national, regional, and/or local searches for parttime and/or full-time temporary positions. Additionally, the employee must have served in the same capacity (same job responsibilities within the same department) for six consecutive semesters (three years), because it is at this point in time that an employee is seen as having more than a temporary relationship with the campus.  

Section III
Full-time Lecturer to Instructor Conversion Policy

Purpose

To allow for retention of Full-time Lecturers who have engaged in research activities, such as the pursuit of a doctorate in their discipline, as a means of advancing their career in academia. Instructor positions are tenure-track lines which require candidates to meet specified expectations in teaching, scholarship, and service to earn tenure as an Instructor.

Rationale

This plan helps retain faculty who have dedicated time to the institution and who have already engaged in research and other activities that demonstrate their intention to advance professionally in academia. The expectation is that only a very small number of Full-time Lecturers will be interested in and eligible for this type of advancement. However, even if a policy such as this only applies to a small number of employees, the department benefits through the elimination of costly and time-consuming searches for tenure-track faculty when a fully qualified employee has already demonstrated the ability to undertake the duties of the position.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for conversion from a Full-time Lecturer to an Instructor, the employee must have been hired as the result of an affirmative action search. This includes national, regional, and/or local searches for part-time and/or full-time temporary positions. Additionally, the employee must have served as a Full-time Lecturer within the same department for at least six consecutive semesters (three years), because it is at this point in time that an employee is seen as having more than a temporary relationship with the campus. The employee must also have demonstrated a strong record of teaching and teaching related service by advancing to the level of Lecturer II. In addition, the employee must provide evidence that he/she has the potential to earn tenure, such as through previous work towards or completion of a doctoral degree and/or completion of research projects, presentations and/or papers.

Procedure

The request to be converted from a Full-time Lecturer to an Instructor must be made by the individual, in writing, after consultation with his/her Department Chair. The Department Chair must make the argument that an instructor position is needed within the Department. In addition, the Department must have or must establish criteria for Instructors to earn tenure by the time the appointment to the rank of Instructor takes effect.

These criteria should be included in the Department’s Personnel Policies and Procedures and must speak to tenure expectations for those at the rank of Instructor in the areas of teaching, scholarship and service. The expectations for scholarship and service should take into account that Instructors have a heavier teaching load than Assistant Professors. Several departments already have such criteria in place and can provide examples. According to the College Handbook, Instructors do not need a terminal degree to earn tenure. However, an Instructor must earn tenure within the same seven-year timeframe as an Assistant Professor.

Once the request is justified and approved by the Department Chair, it will need to be approved by the Dean, Provost, and President. Requests are due to the Department Chair by February 15 of each year with notification to the applicant by May 1st of that year. Appointments to the rank of Instructor shall be effective as of September 1 of the following academic year. As with all personnel processes, this process will be confidential with the applicant informed of the results at each level of review.

Once converted to an Instructor, the candidate cannot revert back to the Full-time Lecturer position if at any point in the reappointment and tenure review process they are non-renewed. Upon being converted from a Full-time Lecturer to an Instructor, the individual’s teaching load will be reduced from 4/4 to 4/3.