§33.1 Definitions

a. "Professional staff" shall mean all persons occupying positions designated by the Chancellor as being in the unclassified service.

b. "Initial academic review" shall mean a review and recommendation by a committee of academic employees at the departmental level or, in the event academic employees are not organized along departmental lines, at the division, school, college or other academic employee organizational level next higher than the departmental level, which may exist for the purpose of evaluating an academic employee for continuing appointment.

c. "Subsequent academic review" shall mean a review and recommendation by a committee of academic employees at the division, school, college or other academic employee organizational level next higher than the initial academic review committee which may exist for the purpose of evaluating an academic employee for continuing appointment.

d. "Immediate supervisor" shall mean the person designated by the College President for purposes of evaluating a professional employee pursuant to the Policies of the Board of Trustees.

e. "Working days" shall mean Monday through Friday, excluding holidays.

§33.2 Request for Reasons

An academic or professional employee, within 10 working days following receipt of written notice that the employee's term appointment will not be renewed upon its expiration, further employment following which expiration would be required by the Policies of the Board of Trustees to be on the basis of continuing or permanent appointment, as the case may be, may submit to the College President, in writing, a request that the employee be apprised of the reasons for the notice of non-renewal.

§33.3 Response of College President

Within 10 working days following receipt by the College President of the employee's request pursuant to Section 33.2 of this Article, the College President shall respond thereto in writing. Such response shall be as follows:

a. Academic Employees

1. Where the initial academic review committee has recommended that the employee not be granted continuing appointment, the College President shall indicate that the notice of non-renewal was provided in conformity with the recommendation of such committee and the employee shall receive no further consideration of the non-renewal of the term appointment.

2. Where the initial academic review committee has recommended that the employee be granted continuing appointment and the subsequent academic review committee, if any, has not so recommended, the College President shall indicate the reasons for the notice of non-renewal and the employee shall receive no further consideration of the non-renewal of the term appointment.

3. Where the initial academic review committee has recommended that the employee be granted continuing appointment and a subsequent academic review committee, if any, has recommended that the employee be granted continuing appointment, the College President shall indicate the reasons for the notice of non-renewal and shall inform the employee of the right to a review.

b. Professional Employees

1. Where the employee's immediate supervisor has recommended that the employee not be granted permanent appointment, the College President shall indicate that the notice of non-renewal was provided in conformity with the recommendation of the appropriate member of the professional staff and the employee shall receive no further consideration of the non-renewal of the term appointment; provided, however, where, throughout the employee's employment, each of the employee's formal, written evaluation reports prepared in accordance with provisions of Article XII, Title C, Section 4 of the Policies have characterized the employee's performance as "satisfactory" and the employee's immediate supervisor has recommended that the employee not be granted permanent appointment, the College President shall indicate the reasons for the notice of non-renewal and shall inform the employee of the right to a review.

2. Where the employee's immediate supervisor has recommended that the employee be granted permanent appointment, the College President shall indicate the reasons for the notice of non-renewal and shall inform the employee of the right to a review.

§33.4 Procedure for Review

a. Within 10 working days following receipt by an employee of notification, in writing, by the College President of the right to a review of the reasons for non-renewal, such employee may submit to the Chancellor a request, in writing, that the Chancellor, or designee, review the reasons for such notice of non-renewal.

b. Within 10 working days following receipt by the Chancellor of the employee's request for review submitted pursuant to subdivision (a) of this Section, the Chancellor, or designee, shall acknowledge the employee's request and shall notify both the employee and the College President that a review of the matter shall take place by an ad hoc tripartite committee of members of the professional staff at the employee's campus, to be known as the Chancellor's Advisory Committee.

c. Within 10 working days following their receipt of the communication of the Chancellor, or designee, referred to in subdivision (b) of this Section, the College President and the employee each shall designate, in writing, a member of the professional staff of the College to serve on the Chancellor's Advisory Committee. Copies of the respective designations shall be provided to the employee, the College President and the Chancellor as appropriate.

d. Within 5 working days of their designation, the two members of the Chancellor's Advisory Committee shall designate, in writing, a third member from among a panel of members of the professional staff at the employee's College to be determined in accordance with provisions of Section 33.5 of this Article. Upon designation of the third member, who shall be Chairperson, the Chancellor's Advisory Committee shall be deemed to be fully constituted. Copies of the Chairperson's designation shall be provided to the employee, the College President and the Chancellor. In the event the two members of the Chancellor's Advisory Committee cannot mutually agree upon a Chairperson, selection of the Chairperson shall be accomplished by alternately striking names from the College Panel until one name remains. The right of first choice to strike shall be determined by lot.

e. Within 5 working days following the designation of the Chairperson, the Chancellor's Advisory Committee shall convene to review the reasons upon which the employee was provided written notice that the term appointment would not be renewed upon its expiration. The scope of the review conducted by the Chancellor's Advisory Committee shall not exceed the following:

1. Where the reasons for the notice of non-renewal were the employee's performance or competence, the Chancellor's Advisory Committee may review the substance of the judgments relating to such performance or competence.

2. Where the reasons for the notice of non-renewal involved matters of program, the review conducted by the Chancellor's Advisory Committee shall be limited to the sole question of whether the notice of non-renewal was in fact based upon such considerations when issued. The Chancellor's Advisory Committee shall not be empowered to determine the correctness of determinations of the College President involving matters other than the employee's performance or competence, but shall satisfy itself that the matters of program were the reasons for the decision and shall so state to the Chancellor.

f. The Chancellor's Advisory Committee shall conclude its review within 45 calendar days following the designation of the Chairperson. Within 5 working days following conclusion of this review, the Chancellor's Advisory Committee shall forward its recommendations, in writing, to the Chancellor.

g. Following receipt of the Committee's recommendations, the Chancellor, pursuant to the Policies of the Board of Trustees, shall, within 60 calendar days, take such action as may, in the Chancellor's judgment, be appropriate and shall notify, in writing, the employee, the Committee, and the College President.

h. If a majority of the members of the Chancellor's Advisory Committee recommend in favor of according continuing or permanent appointment, and the Chancellor does not award continuing or permanent appointment, then, in the final year following the notice of non-renewal, the College President shall either:

1. Reconsider the non-renewal action in light of the recommendations of the Chancellor's Advisory Committee and take such action as may, in the College President's judgment, be appropriate and shall notify, in writing, the employee, the Committee, and the Chancellor of the result; or

2. May offer the employee a designated leave. Such designated leave may be granted by the Chancellor, or designee, pursuant to this Section at full salary or reduced salary. A designated leave granted pursuant to this Section may be for any period, but shall in any event cease upon the termination date contained in the written notice of non-renewal. The employee's election to accept such offer must be in writing and is final and binding and may not thereafter be withdrawn. This subdivision shall not operate to change the effective date of non-renewal or result in any additional review under this Article.

§33.5 College Panel

The Chairperson of any ad hoc tripartite Chancellor's Advisory Committee shall be selected from a panel of members of the professional staff at an employee's college determined by mutual agreement of the College President and UUP Chapter President. Such panel shall consist of an odd number, not less than nine. In the event the College President and the UUP Chapter President do not agree upon a panel within 90 days from the execution of this Agreement, selection of the panel shall be completed by the University Assistant Vice Chancellor for Employee Relations and the UUP President.

§33.6 The provisions of this Article shall not be deemed to create any manner of legal right, interest, or expectancy in any appointment to continuing appointment or permanent appointment. Pursuant to the Policies of the Board of Trustees, a term appointment shall automatically expire at the end of its specified period.

§33.7 Neither provisions of this Article nor any review conducted pursuant thereto shall be subject to the provisions of Article 7, Grievance Procedure, of this Agreement. Issues involving the timeliness of actions under this Article shall be referred by UUP, in writing, by certified mail, to the Governor's Office of Employee Relations for resolution. UUP shall be advised of the resolution within 15 calendar days from the date the issues of timeliness were received by the Governor's Office of Employee Relations.