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According to the Faculty Handbook, Section VI. E, the evaluation of a candidate who is standing for reappointment, tenure, or promotion is to be based upon the quality of the candidate’s teaching, scholarship and service. The first two criteria are the most important, and the quality of teaching is the most heavily weighted criterion. Excellence in teaching and service, in the absence of a significant record of scholarship or creative work, is not a sufficient basis for tenure and promotion to Professor. 

This document qualifies these College-wide criteria in a manner consistent with the past practices and continuing expectations in the Digital Arts Program. We intend this document to provide guidance to (1) members who will stand for reappointment, tenure, and promotion, (2) the ad hoc committee that will evaluate candidates standing for reappointment, tenure, and promotion, and (3) the mentor(s) who help guide the candidate(s) along the path to reappointment, tenure, and promotion. The procedures for reappointment, tenure, and promotion decisions are to be found in the Faculty Handbook, Section VI, G, 3, 8, and 9 respectively. Candidates standing for reappointment, tenure, or promotion should prepare their dossier in a manner consistent with the following criteria and standards. 

General Criteria for Reappointment, Tenure, and Promotion Decisions

Teaching 

Effective teaching is a critical dimension of a faculty member’s contribution to the Digital Arts Program and must be demonstrated if a candidate is to receive a positive evaluation for reappointment, tenure, or promotion. 

For purposes of judging a member’s qualifications for reappointment, tenure, and promotion, the Faculty Handbook identifies three criteria for the evaluation of teaching. These are: 

• Commitment to teaching 
• Knowledge and mastery of the discipline 
• The ability to communicate with, stimulate, and evaluate students. 

1. We take commitment to teaching to mean consistently developing and offering courses that contextualize the digital arts within an interdisciplinary framework that contributes towards the College’s studio, performative, and/or curatorial arts departments/programs (including Art, Music, Theatre, Dance and Movement Studies, Cinema and Media Studies, and/or Art History, hereafter referred to collectively as the creative arts departments). Commitment to teaching further reflects experimentation with methods of instruction that engage and challenge students. A candidate’s commitment to teaching is exemplified by the following: 

• Thorough preparation of courses. Indicators of this can be found in a candidate’s syllabi and personal statement, as well as through peer observation, student letters and course evaluations. 
• Consistently offering courses with creative, rigorous assignments and high standards that challenge students, improve their skills, and cultivate their intellectual and artistic growth. Indicators of this can be found in one’s syllabi and personal statement, as well as through peer observation. Indicators may also be found in course evaluations and letter solicited from students. 
• Curricular design and planning, including the design of new courses that serve the needs of the program, that incorporate new methods of instruction, and that diversify and broaden the range of course offerings. Indicators of this can be found in a candidate’s syllabi, personal statement and peer observations. In addition, for tenurable faculty, this should be indicated in a candidate’s engagement in the Digital Arts Program Committee. 
• For tenurable faculty only: teaching introductory and advanced courses required for the Digital Arts Program. Indicators of this can be found in one’s syllabi and personal statement. 
• Supervising senior projects as may be appropriate. While Digital Arts is not currently a concentration, if it eventually offers a senior curriculum, tenurable faculty would be expected to participate. In addition, tenurable faculty are encouraged to support Interdisciplinary Concentrators incorporating Digital Arts in their proposed concentrations. Indicators of this can be found in a candidate’s personal statement. 
• Participating in other courses as may be appropriate (for example, teaching courses for other departments, team teaching with other members of the faculty, or giving guest lectures in another faculty members’ course). While not expected of a candidate on a regular basis, this type of occasional teaching can be useful as a demonstration of a candidate’s commitment to teaching and willingness to experiment. The candidate should consult with their ad hoc committee regarding such matters. Indicators of this can be found in a candidate’s personal statement and course syllabi. 
• Regular self-evaluation of pedagogy and teaching philosophy, as demonstrated in the candidate’s annual reports and personal statement, and by other means such as participation in college-sponsored or college-approved programs for pedagogical development. 
• Fostering collaboration between the Digital Arts Program and the creative arts departments or departments/programs outside of the creative arts, and contributing courses through cross-listing when possible. Indicators of this can be found in a candidate’s personal statement and course syllabi. 

2. We consider knowledge and mastery of the discipline to mean a candidate’s commitment to keep abreast of contemporary developments in the digital arts, including innovative interdisciplinary and experimental approaches. A candidate’s knowledge and mastery of the discipline is exemplified by the following: 

• Course content and pedagogy that reflects current developments in the digital arts and that includes contemporary foundational digital skills, including those related to interactive media, integrated media and/or performance and technology (as defined under Scholarship, below). Indicators of this can be found in a candidate’s syllabi and personal statement, as well as through peer observation. 
• Course topics that effectively contextualize contemporary issues within the digital arts and the creative arts disciplines. Indicators of this can be found in a candidate’s syllabi and personal statement, as well as through peer observation. 

3. We consider the ability to communicate with, stimulate, and evaluate students to mean that a candidate should strive to develop effective written, oral, and digital communication pedagogies and materials and to continue to improve upon those materials over time. A candidate’s ability to communicate with, stimulate, and evaluate students is exemplified by the following: 

• Clear articulation of course expectations. Indicators of this can be found in a candidate’s syllabi, as well as through peer observation. Indicators may also be found in course evaluations and letters solicited from students. 
• Clear articulation of course content. Indicators of this can be found in a candidate’s syllabi, as well as through peer observation. Indicators may also be found in course evaluations and letters solicited from students. 
• Clearly organized presentations. Indicators of this can be found through peer observation and in course evaluations and letters solicited from students. 
• Use of inclusive pedagogical approaches and practices. Indicators can be found in assignments and syllabi that allow students to demonstrate their learning and development in the course in multiple modes. Peer observation can assess the extent to which there is broad engagement and interaction with all students. A candidate’s personal statement can address pedagogical adaptations intended to be more inclusive of the students in the class, specifically around areas of diversity, equity and access. Systematically-collected student feedback, including student course evaluations and student letters, may also provide some evidence on the extent to which students are impacted by efforts of the candidate. 
• Thoughtful and punctual evaluation and grading of students’ work that is designed to foster the improvement of each student’s work over time. Indicators of this can be found in systematically-collected student feedback, including course evaluations. 
• Clearly articulated grading criteria and thorough explanation of why particular grades are given to students so that they are given feedback in order to have the opportunity to improve. Indicators of this can be found in a candidate’s syllabi, course assignments, and student course evaluations, as well as through peer observation. 

The ad hoc committee evaluates the candidate’s teaching on the basis of the following sources of information, as appropriate to particular procedures outlined above: reports on class visits by senior colleagues that take into account classroom pedagogy, the course syllabus, and the assignments in the course (see Peer Review of Teaching Policy below); the candidate’s own representation and explanation of their teaching in annual reports, personal statement, and any other materials that they may choose to submit for reappointment, tenure, or promotion; student course evaluations; grade distributions; letters solicited from former students; and the observations of external reviewers who may choose to comment on the teaching statement and course syllabi included in the reappointment, tenure, and promotion files. 

Peer Review of Teaching Policy 

Peer review of teaching will include: 

1. A pre-observation meeting in which subjects such as session goals, course goals, pedagogical approaches, and assignments are discussed. In addition, the instructor should indicate any specific areas they want feedback on and/or areas on which the observer should focus. 
2. Review of available course materials to contextualize the session 
3. A classroom observation of a single class session. The observer should show up on time, if not early, stay for the whole class, and take detailed notes, but not participate in the class. The observer should follow rules established for students in the class regarding use of technology, eating/drinking, and so on. 
4. A post-observation meeting 
5. A written report of the review that addresses the pre- and post-observation meetings, review of teaching materials, and observations about various aspects of the class session such as content, clarity, and organization; student engagement; teacher-student interactions; and attention to diversity, equity, inclusion, and access. The written report will evaluate the extent to which the review provided evidence regarding the instructor’s use of effective pedagogical practices identified in these guidelines. A draft of the written report will be shared with the candidate by the end of the semester and the candidate will be given the opportunity to discuss with the observer any concerns they may have and suggest changes; if necessary, the candidate may also bring those concerns to the program chair. Since the report remains at the program level (i.e., it is not read by the Dean or by the members of the Committee on Appointments), it may include advice about teaching as well as its evaluation. Candidates are encouraged to work with the program / ad hoc committee chair to address issues that may arise. 
6. The final peer review report becomes a part of the candidate's internal file, which will be read by the candidate and other members of the candidate’s ad hoc committee. All reports may be referenced in the candidate’s recommendation letter and in annual reviews. 

The program chair / ad hoc committee chair will make peer review assignments at the beginning of each semester in consultation with the candidate. The observer will take responsibility for scheduling on a mutually convenient date, and the chair will ensure that the review occurs by the end of the semester. 

Faculty in their first semester of teaching will be reviewed for formative purposes only; no written documentation of the first semester review will be generated. 

Pre-tenure faculty will normally be observed once per semester but in no circumstances more than twice per semester, and each classroom observation will be conducted by one colleague only. Post tenure, faculty will normally be observed once per year. 

At least 2/3 of voting members of a candidate’s promotion committee will have firsthand knowledge of teaching through the peer review process above before voting on reappointment, and the remaining voting members will gain firsthand knowledge of teaching through review of teaching materials. All voting members will have firsthand knowledge of teaching through this peer review process before voting on tenure or promotion. 

The program will refer to the written documentation of peer review in a candidate’s recommendation letter. 

Applicability of criteria for evaluating teaching to those who will not be evaluated for tenure 

Faculty in non-tenured or non-tenure-track appointments will normally be observed for peer review once per year according to the same procedures as for tenure-track faculty. 

The teaching of all faculty in non-tenured or non-tenure-track appointments will be evaluated with the same criteria as untenured faculty in tenure-track positions. 

Scholarship 

The Faculty Handbook indicates that the College expects its faculty to be productive scholars of high quality, and it acknowledges the salutary influence of research and scholarship on teaching. Original research and its equivalent expression in the performing and creative arts are the principal forms of scholarship to be considered in reappointment, tenure, and promotion decisions. Scholarship may furthermore include the interpretation of a scholarly field to a general audience. Original research and work in the performing and creative arts must be subjected to the criticism of professional peers who are in a position to evaluate it. 

Members of the Digital Arts Program are expected to participate in significant and continuing programs of research, to be engaged in the professional discourse of their research specialties, and to be committed artistic scholars that produce regular forms of creative work. Thus, each member is expected to share the results of their research on a regular basis with colleagues outside the College in the form of peer-reviewed publications. Publication is a flexible and evolving term defined according to the norms and production timetables typical of Digital Arts practitioners. It includes creative and artistic work that is presented in public venues as well as traditional scholarship as discussed below in Groups A, B, and C. 

The content and impact of research in areas of the Digital Arts should be evidenced by the quality of a candidate’s research portfolio through their participation in competitive and/or invited virtual, local, regional, national and international opportunities. Virtual opportunities may range from hosted virtual events or live streams by recognized organizations and galleries to works invited or commissioned to exist solely online, including but not limited to gaming spaces, websites, and XR environments. The candidate’s bibliography from third-party reviewers (for example newspapers, journals, interviews, and other media coverage) can play a role in evaluating the quality of the candidate’s creative activities. 

A successful creative practice may be demonstrated by a combination of the following, with Original Creative Work having the greatest weight (this list is suggestive rather than exclusive): 

Group A – Original Creative Work, such as: 

• Solo exhibitions or performances 
• Group exhibitions or performances 
• Commissions 
• Exhibition in nontraditional forms, such as installations and public artworks 
• Publication in traditional forms, such as journals, exhibition catalogues, and album releases 

Group B – Peer Recognition, such as: 

• Grants and residencies 
• Honors and awards 

Group C – Other Forms of Scholarship and Creative Work, such as: 

• Curating of exhibitions 
• Collections and acquisitions 
• Conference papers or presentations 

Note that this list will serve as a general guideline recognizing that one must take into account other factors such as the type of exhibition or performance and quality and reputation of the venue. 

It is recognized that collaborative scholarly output is normal practice in the Digital Arts. In the case of such collaborative efforts, the candidate should make clear the role, effort, and specific contribution they had in the collaboration. 

The Digital Arts Program encourages candidates to dedicate their time to one or more of the following research areas: 

1. Interactive Media, such as experimental storytelling; interactive and/or augmented realities 
2. Integrated Media, such as sound art/installation and design; installation art; experimental art; experimental filmmaking; acoustic ecology; data sonification 
3. Performance and Technology, such as movement-based live performance (motion capture, projection mapping); technology and choreography; live digital performance and improvisation. 

This preceding list of areas is not exhaustive, and as new forms of technology emerge, new areas of inquiry may also develop. Should the candidate have questions regarding their research plans, they should consult with their ad hoc committee regarding new areas of inquiry in their scholarship or creative work and should be discussed in their annual reports. This realization should be considered in future versions of these guidelines and also when a candidate is under review for tenure and/or promotion. 

Professional Service 

The Faculty Handbook indicates that a faculty member should contribute to the life of the College as an advisor, colleague, administrator, and participant in campus decision-making and governance. Service can therefore take various forms, including contributions to the Digital Arts Program, to the community, and to one’s professional field and organizations. A candidate standing for reappointment, tenure, or promotion should make explicit the details of their professional and community service in their personal statement. 

Specific Standards for Reappointment

Teaching 

At the time of reappointment, a candidate should have developed courses at the introductory and advanced level, and worked to refine and improve them, based upon student and colleague feedback. The candidate should have demonstrated a strong commitment to teaching, clear progress toward establishing knowledge and mastery of the discipline, and the ability to communicate with, stimulate, and evaluate students, assessed using the principles outlined above. 

Scholarship 

At the time of reappointment, a candidate should demonstrate a significant program of scholarly activity since hire, including a minimum of several competitive, juried, and/or invited group exhibitions or performances at the local, regional or national level, either in person or virtual; a minimum of one demonstrated or planned solo exhibition or performance; and plans for their post-reappointment leave that correspond clearly with the standards for tenure. Additional creative activities (as outlined in the criteria above) can serve to supplement these core expectations. 

Service 

During a candidate’s first several years at Hamilton (prior to reappointment) most of their efforts will be devoted to course development, refining teaching skills, research, and scholarship. During this time we encourage service only at the interdisciplinary program level. A candidate should consult with their ad hoc committee regarding requests to serve on college-wide committees before reappointment. A member must regularly attend program meetings convened by the Director, and the cross-listing of courses in other creative arts departments will also be considered as a form of college service. Following the first year of appointment, the member must serve conscientiously as an academic advisor for students. 

Specific Standards for Tenure and Promotion to Associate Professor 

Teaching 

A candidate for tenure should demonstrate an evolving teaching portfolio of Digital Arts courses that reflect innovative pedagogical practices and demonstrate continued refinement and improvement based on student and colleague feedback. The candidate should have demonstrated a strong commitment to teaching, knowledge and mastery of the discipline, and a strong ability to communicate with, stimulate, and evaluate students, assessed using the principles outlined above. 

Scholarship 

At the time of review for tenure, a candidate should demonstrate a significant, ongoing program of peer-reviewed scholarly activity that corresponds with the criteria above. This program should include two competitive, juried, and/or invited group exhibitions or performances at the local, regional, national, or international level, either in person or virtual, on average per year; a minimum of one solo exhibition or performance; and appropriate plans for continuation of their scholarly program post-tenure. A preponderance of scholarship at the local level is not sufficient for tenure. Additional creative activities (as outlined in the criteria above) can serve to supplement these core expectations. 

Service 

We encourage, but do not require, that a candidate stand for election to a college committee following their first reappointment (normally after year 3). A candidate standing for tenure should demonstrate more extensive service contributions, such as taking on a larger role in integrating the Digital Arts interdisciplinary program with the creative arts departments, serving on a hiring committee, or participating on an appointed or elected committee. Continued service as an academic advisor is expected. 

Specific Standards for Promotion to Professor

Teaching 

A candidate for promotion to Professor must show continued, successful teaching, but scholarly success takes a more important place in the evaluation of the candidate at this stage. A candidate for promotion to Professor should have established a distinguished teaching record, based upon a sustained, strong commitment to teaching, knowledge and mastery of the discipline, and a strong ability to communicate with, stimulate, and evaluate students, assessed using the principles outlined above. The candidate should particularly demonstrate continued participation in course development, a commitment to teaching required courses, advising, student project supervision, and curricular planning. 

Scholarship 

Scholarly success takes a more important place in the evaluation of the candidate in promotion to Professor. At this time, a member’s scholarship should have advanced decisively beyond the works that qualified the candidate for tenure, and the candidate’s body of work should be recognized by others in their disciplinary field as a significant contribution to the scholarly discourse of that research specialty. The candidate should furthermore demonstrate external, expert recognition that they have established a distinguished regional or national reputation in their field. 

Service 

In preparing to stand for promotion to Professor candidates should make, on average, one significant service commitment on an annual basis, such as participation on (1) a standing committee, (2) an ad hoc curricular committee, (3) a college-wide search committee, or (4) service as the Digital Arts Program Director. A faculty member should also regularly engage in less significant service commitments that demonstrate they are an active member of the community. Continued service as an academic advisor is expected. 

As much as the department and College needs the dedicated service of its faculty, a member’s contribution to service, no matter how substantial, will not substitute for continuing achievement in teaching and scholarship. 

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Approved by COA 9/18/24