Extending the Deadline for Pandemic-related Tenure Clock Extensions

Dear Deans, Associate Deans, and Department Heads,

As you know, in March of 2020 NC State began offering pandemic-related extensions to the tenure clock to acknowledge the high potential of the pandemic to disrupt faculty members’ work and progress towards tenure. As of today, 85 faculty members have requested a pandemic-related extension. At the time we began offering pandemic-related tenure clock extensions, the provost and I stated in our FAQs about the extensions that we would automatically approve these requests through June 2022, but we acknowledged then that we might extend the deadline.

The provost and I have decided to extend this deadline until June 30, 2023. We made this decision after conversations with many of you about your concerns for faculty members at all stages in the pre-tenure period. Requests made after June 30, 2023 will still be considered; the only difference is that requests submitted after this date will be reviewed by the provost rather than approved automatically.

IMPORTANT: If you have faculty members who are scheduled for a mandatory reappointment or tenure review in the upcoming RPT cycle (AY 2021-22) and who wish to delay that review, I strongly recommend that you work with these faculty members to submit their extension request by May 15, 2021. This deadline is consistent with the Tenure Clock Regulation, which states that faculty should request an extension prior to the start of the department RPT review process of the mandatory review year. Faculty members who will be undergoing review in later years should apply for their extensions no later than mid-May of the academic year prior to their scheduled mandatory review or before June 30, 2023, whichever is soonest.

Note that the process for requesting a pandemic-related tenure clock extension remains the same: faculty members must complete the Request for Tenure Clock Extension (PRV-002) form (available here), and their department head and dean must sign the form before submitting it to Amy Jinnette (arjinnet@ncsu.edu). These requests will be automatically approved except in cases in which a request is the second pandemic-related extension requested by the faculty member or cases in which a request is the third total extension requested by the faculty member. To be clear: such requests may still be submitted, but they will require review by the provost.

We have updated our FAQs about tenure clock extensions on our website. Please review these questions and direct your faculty who have questions about these extensions to this resource as well. If you do not find the answer to your question there, of course please reach out to Amy Jinnette or to me at any time. We are happy to discuss any concerns or questions you may have.

Thank you so much for all you are doing to support all of our faculty — pre-tenure, tenured and professional. In addition to reviewing and revising our approach to pandemic-related tenure clock extensions, the provost and I are continuing to listen to all of you about other approaches we can take to support our faculty, and we will continue to work closely with you on this over the next few years. We are committed to supporting our faculty members’ success as we recover from the past year, and we know that this will require a long-term, multifaceted approach.

Best,

Katharine Stewart
Senior Vice Provost for Faculty and Academic Affairs
kestewa4@ncsu.edu