Quinn announced that the Faculty Senate had voted unanimously to sponsor a forum on faculty development and salary issues and urged everyone to attend. In response to reactions to his initiatives on faculty evaluation, Dean Roche summarized his views on faculty development, evaluation, and salary increases. Faculty evaluations should be seen in the context of faculty development. Annual review is an important part of junior faculty career development, but in some departments assistant professors do not receive sufficient feedback. Weaknesses in teaching, for example, can be detected early in one's career and remedies proposed.
Many associate professors are unsure about what is needed for full professorship.
Some departments lack guidelines, mentoring, and mechanisms for annual review of their progress toward promotion. This should change for the sake of these individuals and for the sake of Notre Dame. Some colleagues are stronger in one area than another, and we must find ways to allow them to flourish in their areas of strength. Yearly evaluation can help faculty and chairpersons focus on these areas of strength and weakness. Other strategies can also be employed to assist faculty development, including more recognition of extraordinary accomplishments, better mentoring across departments, and an increase in non-salary research support.