Policy and Procedure for Appointments at the Rank of Senior Lecturer
Criteria: Persons appointed to any lecturer rank generally possess a terminal degree in the field (PhD, MFA, etc.), and they are hired in the expectation that they will be excellent classroom or laboratory teachers. The title Senior Lecturer is generally applied to persons with a lengthy and distinguished record of achievement as a teacher, at Northwestern or elsewhere, or equivalent professional experience. Though the title lecturer is often held co-terminously with administrative positions, permission will generally not be granted to appoint administrators to the Senior Lecturer rank unless the person is devoting a substantial portion of his or her effort to classroom, laboratory, or studio teaching.
Procedure for Appointment: Since Senior Lecturers generally serve for multiple years, the appointment of a person not currently on the Northwestern faculty to the rank of Senior Lecturer should follow a good-faith search. All appointments to the rank of "Senior Lecturer" (as well as College Lecturer in the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences) must be approved by the Office of the Provost prior to the making of an offer. This approval is required both in cases where people are being proposed for promotion from Lecturer to Senior Lecturer and in cases of initial appointment to the Northwestern faculty. The dossier should include:
a) A letter from the department or school describing the strengths of the person proposed for the appointment, and the ways in which the person is expected to contribute to the educational program of the department. In cases where the appointment is proposed for a person not currently on the Northwestern faculty, the search process leading to the recommendation should be described.
b) The curriculum vitae of the recommended candidate.
c) In the case of persons proposed for promotion to Senior Lecturer, a statement by the candidate (no more than five pages) describing his or her performance and particular achievements in the classroom and any role in advancing the pedagogical goals of the department or school (e.g., curricular development, advising, etc) or other University activities If the statement describes pedagogical research or scholarly/creative publication, it should demonstrate how that activity has contributed to the department's/school's teaching mission.
d) Evidence of the candidate's accomplishments in teaching and, if appropriate, in professional activities beyond the classroom as they relate to teaching.
August 2001