Pilot Guidelines

FACULTY ANNUAL MERIT INCREASE

I. INTRODUCTION AND PURPOSE

The purpose of the Annual Merit Increase (AMI) process for faculty is to provide feedback and evaluate how well tenured/tenure-track and full time continuing contract faculty have carried out their responsibilities.

The AMI process is managed within Arts & Science and involves an official submission by the Chair to the Divisional Dean. Provostial approval is required before AMIs are finalized.

The AMI review should consist of a formal and collegial process in which the Chair receives the guidance of an Advisory Committee duly appointed according to procedures communicated to the department’s faculty members. The Chair is welcome to serve on the Advisory Committee in an ex-officio capacity.

II. GUIDELINES AND PROCEDURES

Annual Merit Increase Procedures

University policy requires that Deans' offices review and document all procedures, and later the allocation of the Annual Merit Increase pools. Procedures will be reviewed annually, subject to Divisional Dean approval, and maintained in Arts & Science records.

Procedural Memoranda

Procedural memoranda must be kept on file with the Arts and Science Office of Academic Appointments. Where applicable, there must be an approved procedure for tenured/tenure-track and a separate approved procedure for full-time continuing contract faculty, who were appointed for the evaluation period (the previous calendar year). The deadline for submission of Faculty Annual Merit Increase Procedural memoranda via e-mail to fas.academic.hr@nyu.edu is December 14, 2023.

Tenured/Tenure-Track and Continuing Contract Faculty

A description of how the Advisory Committee was formed (inclusive of names); where applicable, the chair of the Advisory Committee must be a tenured faculty member. The department chair is welcome to serve on the Advisory Committee in an ex-officio capacity. The method(s) used to determine whether the faculty member is satisfactorily performing their duties should be made clear to all members of the department. Note that for continuing contract faculty, the basis of the review must be related to teaching; service may also be included, but research related activities must be excluded. All faculty must be evaluated using the approved methodology for their respective classification.

Chairs are free to record their own independent judgment regarding performance. In the event such judgment diverges from the evaluation agreed upon by the Advisory Committee, the variance should be explicitly noted.

Deans Review/Approval of Procedural Memoranda

The relevant Divisional Dean will review the “Faculty Annual Merit Increase Procedure” form, discuss any issues regarding the review process with the Chair as necessary, and then issue a written approval of the department’s procedures signaling the review process to begin.

Roster

The Faculty Annual Merit Increase Roster/ Worksheet listing all full-time faculty will be available to the Chair via the OASIS system (or paper-based upon request). Chairs must confirm satisfactory performance no later than February 13, 2024. Through the submission of a Chair's memorandum, Chairs may elect to flag both extraordinary performance or highlight performance concerns.

Deans Review/Approval

The Divisional Dean will review the Faculty Annual Merit Increases to determine that the unit’s approved procedures were followed. Once accepted, the Divisional Dean will issue a memorandum of approval.

Notifying Faculty of Performance Concerns

Upon approval, only faculty who have been flagged as experiencing performance issues must be notified by the chair.

III. ANNUAL MERIT INCREASES

Pools

Salary increases are funded by an AMI pool which is a percentage of funds calculated based on the Arts & Science faculty salary budget and which are provided by the University. A portion of the pool may be allocated to a Dean’s Reserve.

Annual merit increases require the approval of the Office of the Provost, and involve a formal recommendation made by the Chair to the Divisional Dean and, in turn, a recommendation made by the Dean of the Faculty to the Provost.

Conversions

Allocations from the Dean’s Reserve (if applicable) will be added to allocations from the Departmental Pool to determine the Annual Merit Increase recommendation made to the Provost's Office. The Annual Merit Increase will be recorded in the Faculty Salary Worksheet in OASIS and the Chair will have one final opportunity to review the information. Notification of the proposed Annual Merit Increase must remain confidential and should not be disseminated to faculty until the Dean of the Faculty notifies each faculty member in writing of their recommended Annual Merit Increase and their recommended new salary for the following year in late summer.

Appeals

According to Arts & Science guidelines, faculty members are free to appeal their review to their Divisional Dean. They may only appeal their review on the claim that the department’s Advisory Committee did not fully weigh their achievements and contributions for the period under review. The appeal should include whatever information the faculty member deems necessary to support their case and should be accompanied by relevant supporting documentation.

Faculty members may not use the appeals process to seek response to competitive salary offers, to seek reconsideration of a prior salary commitment, to appeal salary levels, or for any other reason that is not based on the most recent ranking. All appeals submitted for any reason other than reconsideration of performance will be returned. Faculty will be given the opportunity to appeal their review to the Divisional Dean within five days of receipt of their AMI letter. The Divisional Dean shall review the relevant materials, consult with the Chair and make independent inquiries as needed. If the Divisional Dean determines that the faculty member has been incorrectly evaluated, the Divisional Dean will consult with the Chair to address any adjustments to the ranking that may be warranted.

Annual Merit Increase Letters

At the conclusion of the process, each faculty member will receive a salary notification letter from the Dean of Arts & Science via OASIS. Letters are typically available at the end of August.