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March 2026 Faculty Senate Newsletter

Published Mar 30, 2026 by
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What’s New

Chancellor’s action on January Faculty Senate Resolutions

The Chancellor took action on the January Faculty Senate resolutions, with the most notable of actions being those affecting some of the committees run through Faculty Senate for the upcoming 2026-2027 academic year. Two committee mergers were approved:
• Academic Awards Committee and the Teaching Grants Committee will become the Faculty Awards Committee
• Calendar Committee and the Admission and Retention Policies Committee will become the Calendar, Admission and Retention Policies Committee.
The Chancellor has also approved the dissolution of the Libraires Committee. The Chancellor has not yet acted on the February 24, 2026 Faculty Senate resolutions.

Common Ground Collaborative

The Office for Faculty Excellence sent out the Call for Presentation Proposals for the UNC System Common Ground Collaborative. Faculty are encouraged to propose presentations on their teaching practices that help students navigate differences through constructive dialogue, discourse, and/or debate and that increase their critical thinking and communication skills. Consult the full Call for Presentations (PDF) and memo about the UNC System Common Ground Collaborative (PDF) for more information. Presentations are being selected for inclusion in the UNC System Common Ground Collaborative on Thursday, May 14, 2026. Up to five applications from ECU will be forwarded to the System Office for consideration. To have your proposal considered, please submit it through this Qualtrics survey by April 9, 2026. The proposal survey will request the following:

  • Faculty/Staff name
  • Collaborator names and roles (if applicable)
  • Department and College
  • Proposed session format (see options above)
  • 150 word narrative describing proposed session
  • Presenter bios
  • Acknowledgement that the proposal has been viewed and approved by supervisor
  • Acknowledgement that, if the proposal is accepted, the presenter will be able to attend and actively participate in the full May 14th convening.

Governor’s Awards for Excellence

The Office for People Operations, Success, and Opportunity sent out the call for nominations for the Governor’s Awards for Excellence. There are seven nomination categories: Customer Service, Efficiency and Innovation, Human Relations, Outstanding State Government Service, Public Service, Safety and Heroism, and Spirit of North Carolina. Please contact ECU’s Governor’s Awards for Excellence Coordinator Toya Jacobs at 252-737-5364 or jacobst@ecu.edu to get more information about the nomination process.

Reminders

Mandatory Statement about the Survey of Student Opinion of Instruction

As the term is ending, faculty are reminded to review the requirements for the Mandatory Statement about the Survey of Student Opinion of Instruction (PDF) to make sure you are complying with the requirements for the survey and that you are providing the statement to students.

Faculty Personnel Deadlines

Below are the deadlines for personnel actions that are coming up soon (see the full Faculty Manual Part X, Section II Schedule for Personnel Actions for more information):

  • Workplan and Annual Evaluation Timeline
    • For 9 Month Faculty:
      • April 1 – Faculty submit drafts of workplan and annual report to unit administrator
      • April 20 – Faculty and unit administrator meet to discuss workplan and annual evaluation in draft form
      • April 26 – Unit administrator submits final workplan and annual evaluation to faculty
  • Progress Toward Tenure Letters
    • For 9 Month Faculty:
      • 3rd Friday in April – Unit administrator provides the Tenure Committee with the candidate’s current annual report, copies of the candidate’s previous and current workplans and annual evaluations, success plans if any, and previous progress toward tenure letters, and a draft of the new Progress Toward Tenure letter written by the unit administrator
      • 4th Friday in April – Tenure Committee meets with unit administrator to review the cumulative record of a candidate’s progress and finalize the Progress Toward Tenure letter
    • Reappointment of Probationary-Term Faculty Members Timeline:
      • For 9 Month Faculty:
        • Last Tuesday in April – Provost Decision
      • For 12 Month Faculty:
        • 2nd Tuesday in April – Unit administrator recommendation to Dean (if applicable)
    • Reappointment of Probationary-Term Faculty Members in 2nd Year of Employment with Credit for Prior Academic Service Timeline:
      • For 12 Month Faculty:
        • 1st Tuesday in April – PAD due to unit administrator
        • 1st Friday in April – Unit administrator makes PAD available to Tenure Committee
    • Promotion and Tenure Timeline – Spring Before Decision Year:
      • Last Friday in April – Unit administrator sends letter and materials to confirmed external reviewers
    • Promotion and Tenure Timeline – Fall and Spring of Decision Academic Year:
      • April 24 – BOT decision (Tenure Only)

    Policies, Rules, and Regulations Sent Out for Comment

    Two policies, rules, and regulations (PRRs) have been circulated for open comment. The Faculty Officers consider the PRRs that are opened for comment and decide whether they should be assigned to committees for review. They agreed to send the Postdoctoral Scholars Regulation to the Research/Creative Activities Committee, and the University Behavioral Concerns Team Regulation to the Committee on Faculty Connection, Access, Retention, and Engagement.

    Faculty are encouraged to submit their own feedback on the policy through the system, but they will be required to sign in using their ECU credentials. If faculty wish for their feedback to be anonymous, they may send their feedback to Dr. Mark Bowler, Chair of the Faculty, and he will submit it on their behalf, or they may submit an anonymous comment to the Faculty Senate Contact Form.

    Spring 2026 Commencement Ceremony RSVP

    The Office of the Provost invites all faculty to attend the Spring 2026 University Commencement Ceremony on May 8, 2026 at 10:00 AM. Faculty should complete the RSVP form by April 28, 2026 to participate.

    Upcoming

    • The eighth regular Faculty Senate meeting is April 21, 2026.
    • The organizational meeting of the Faculty Senate is April 28, 2026.
    • The Board of Trustees meets April 23-24, 2026.

    ADA Accommodation: 252-737-1018 or ada-coordinator@ecu.edu