In executing this charge, the Commission determined that the University's faculty reward structure should promote excellence, fairness, consistency and flexibility. Consistent with its mission as a comprehensive public research institution, the University should demand and promote excellence in instruction, research and creative activity. In achieving and maintaining this quality, the University must deploy evaluation and reward strategies that comport with generally accepted standards of fairness. Policies and procedures regarding tenure, promotion, compensation and other forms of rewards should be consistently applied across disciplines and over time, according to readily available, widely disseminated, and clearly articulated criteria. The Commission concludes that the existing systems of faculty appointment, promotion, tenure, post-tenure promotion and review, and development do not require fundamental or major revision.
Current policies appear to function to the general satisfaction of faculty and administrators.
Still, significant improvements might result from a variety of new or reformed policies in almost every aspect of the faculty reward structure. This report describes these changes in detail. Faculty development, reward structures, and the University mission should be intimately interconnected and mutually reinforcing. The expectation of the University is that every faculty member at the University of Oregon should achieve excellence in performance commensurate with full professorial rank. Academic units should help tenured faculty realize this performance through thoughtful career planning and clearly delineated policies and procedures.