Current through all regulations passed and filed through September 16, 2024
(A) Introductory statement. The purpose of
this section is to specify general practices regarding the employment of
administrators.
(1) The university has the
right to define its purposes and priorities and to require high standards of
performance by each administrator in accordance with both institutional
objectives and an agreed-upon statement of his or her responsibilities. The
university has the responsibility to provide to the best of its ability
employment conditions which enhance the opportunity for achieving its goals at
least in part, through the personal and professional efforts of its
administrators.
(2) The
administrator has the right to express his or her professional beliefs. He or
she has the duty to conduct himself or herself as a responsible citizen and to
uphold the highest possible personal and professional standards. The
administrator should be free to participate in any lawful on-campus or
off-campus activity in accordance with university policies, provided that in so
doing he or she is not compromising the ability of the university to maintain
its programs or attain its goals.
(3) Administrative status. All full-time
contract personnel have either faculty or administrative status. Those who have
faculty status are those who are eligible for membership in the faculty senate.
The procedures and policies contained herein govern those who have
administrative status except members of the deans' council, those designated as
senior administrators by the president, and the president.
(B) New appointments. The rights, privileges
and responsibilities of administrators of Ohio university are governed by
statements contained in the administrator's handbook and appropriate sections
of the Ohio university policy and procedure manual. New appointees to the
administration of Ohio university will be given:
(1) Written statements indicating the general
nature of their duties, which statements shall be appended to and become a part
of the standard contract of university. The understanding of and acknowledgment
of the contract shall be indicated by the appointee's signing and returning
their copies of the contract according to the instructions.
(2) Literature compiled by the personnel
office, describing and explaining the university group life insurance plan,
major medical expense insurance, the public employees retirement system of
Ohio, the university travel accident insurance plan, the Ohio university
employees credit union, the tax deferred annuities program, and the
administrator's handbook.
(C) Special appointments. It is recognized
that in some areas of the university there are positions dependent upon
financial support from sources other than university general operating and
auxiliary funds. Appointees to such positions will be provided with a written
statement clearly setting forth the nature of their appointments and their
dependence upon outside funding. The contract covering such an appointment will
indicate that it is a "Special Appointment". In cases of termination for
financial reasons, the provisions of paragraph (E), contract termination, do not
apply to such special appointments. Written notice of termination for financial
reasons should be given as far in advance of the anticipated termination date
as circumstances permit.
(D) Term
appointments. In some cases it is necessary to make appointments of a temporary
nature without intention of continuing employment. Such appointments may be
made for specified periods of time, not to exceed twelve months, and shall be
called "Term Appointments". Appointees to such positions will be provided with
written statements clearly setting forth the transitory nature of their
appointments. The contract covering such an appointment will indicate that it
is a "Term Appointment". The provisions of paragraph (E), contract termination, do not
apply to term appointments. Term appointments may be extended or renewed once
for an additional period not to exceed twelve months but only if the scope or
time schedule of the original assignment was not fully known initially and an
extension is necessary for completion of the project. If the term of the
initial appointment covers portions of two fiscal years and therefore two
separate contracts are issued, this shall not be considered a
renewal.
(E) Contract termination
(non-renewal).
(1) It is the intent of Ohio
university to provide reasonable procedures and policies with respect to the
termination of contract status. As Missed herein, contract termination refers
to decisions that have been made that preclude the renewal of a contract for
the following fiscal year. This section does not apply in cases of suspension
or dismissal as outlined in
paragraph (F), although the reason(s) for failure to renew a contract for the
succeeding fiscal year may include one or more of the reason(s) specified in
paragraph (F).
(2) The notice of termination shall include a
written statement of the reason(s) for the decision that has been made. Except
in the case of a termination based on the discontinuance of a position, such
notice shall be forwarded no later than March fifteenth of the current fiscal contract
year.
(3) If the termination is
based on the discontinuance of a position either for budgetary reasons or
because the function is eliminated, the notice of termination shall include a
written statement of the reason(s) for discontinuing the position. Such notice
shall be forwarded no later than fifteen days following the final action by the
board of trustees on the university's budget for the next fiscal year. The
employment termination date will be effective ninety calendar days from the
date of mailing, except in cases where an administrator has a contract for a
period of less than twelve months.
(4) The ninety-day notice is intended to
apply from date of notice to the beginning date of what would have been an
administrator's expected contract period for the following fiscal year. For
example, an administrator normally employed for twelve months would require
notice by Aprilsecond, the university
would continue payment of the administrator's present contract rate following
Junethirty of that year for whatever part
of the ninety day notice period remained. An administrator normally employed
for nine months (September fifteenth thru
Junefifteenth, for example) would require
termination notice by Juneseventeenth to
avoid continued employment and pay beyond September fifteenth In no case shall an administrator who
is on less than a twelve-month contract receive payment for the period in which
work is not normally performed by the administrator.
(5) In all cases where the termination period
extends into the following fiscal year and payment to the administrator is to
be made after Junethirty, for services, a
term contract shall be issued at the same rate of pay that the employee
received during the year of termination. The terminated employee is still
entitled to accumulated sick leave and/or vacation benefits. The terminated
employee may elect to take his/her vacation during the ninety day period or be
paid his/her vacation in a lump sum at the end of the ninety day
period.
(6) Prior to the
termination on an appointment due to the discontinuance of a position, the
administration of the university shall make every effort within the confines of
affirmative action policies to place the person in another suitable position
within the university. If an appointment is terminated due to the
discontinuance of a position, the position will not be filled by a replacement
for a period of two fiscal years unless the released person has been offered
reappointment.
(7) The
administrator being terminated may appeal notice of a contract termination
decision as outlined in paragraph
(E) under the provisions of
paragraph (G) hearing procedure. The above provisions do not apply to either
special appointments ( paragraph
(C)) which are terminated for financial reasons or term appointments paragraph (D)).
(F) Suspension or dismissal. When
appropriate, an administrator may be suspended or dismissed forthwith.
Suspension or dismissal procedures must include written notification and
grounds for such action. The administrator has the right of appeal ( paragraph (G) - hearing procedure). The
grounds or causes for such suspension or dismissal are as follows:
(1) Action(s) of a probably felonious nature
when such action is prejudicial to the administrator's ability to properly
perform his/her assigned tasks and responsibilities or is prejudicial to good
order in the university. When the action is only probably felonious, the
suspension may be an "interim" one, pending a legal ruling. When an action is
ruled legally felonious, the suspension may become a dismissal.
(2) Any conduct occurring in the performance
of one's assigned responsibilities, which causes or could potentially cause
serious interference in the ability of the administrator concerned or in the
ability of other employees to carry on their duties and
responsibilities.
(3)
Insubordination, which refers to a willful refusal to obey, or knowledgeable
disregarding of, the directions and/or supervision of a properly authorized
supervisor acting in an appropriate capacity through the issuance of orders
reasonably related to the fulfillment of his university responsibilities,
without reasonable justification for such refusal.
(4) Serious breach of professional
ethics.
(5) Gross incompetence,
referring to a situation where an administrator is, from the beginning of his
or her employment, or becomes, at sometime thereafter, essentially unable to
fulfill the requirements of his or her position.
(6) Flagrant or consistent failure to conform
to the rules or regulations of the department, office or agency to which one is
assigned.
(G) Hearing
procedures.
(1) If an administrator facing
termination (suspension, dismissal for cause, or contract non-renewal) elects
to pursue the internal review options available to him or her, he or she may
begin by appealing the termination decision through the administrative chain of
recourse, beginning with his or, her immediate supervisor and ending with the
appropriate senior administrator.
(2) If, after following the procedures
outlined in paragraph (G), above, the administrator facing termination
(grievant) remains unsatisfied, he or she may request that the appropriate
committee of the administrative senate privately and informally investigate the
facts surrounding his or her case. In no case shall any member of the committee
be an employee in the grievant's area, i.e., the administrative sub-unit or
department in which the grievant is employed. The committee, upon completion of
its investigation, shall submit a written report of its finding and
recommendations to the grievant and to the appropriate senior administrator,
who shall then reconsider the case and submit a written report of his
conclusions to the committee and the grievant.
(3) If, upon conclusion of the procedures
outlined in both paragraphs (G)(1) and (2), the grievant remains unsatisfied,
he or she may request, in writing, that the president authorized a formal
hearing for the purpose of according the grievant an opportunity to prove that
the stated reason for his or her termination is without foundation. The
president, at his discretion, shall grant the request if he concludes that a
further review of the case is warranted.
(a)
Should the president grant the grievant's request for a hearing, he shall,
following consultation with chairpersons of the administrative and faculty
senates, appoint a hearing committee consisting of five persons, four of whom
shall be contractual employees with administrative status and one of whom shall
be a contractual employee with faculty status. The president shall designate
one of the administrative members as chairman of the committee. No member of
the committee shall be an employee, in the grievant's area, i.e., the
administrative sub-unit or department in which the grievant is
employed.
(b) In the discharge of
its responsibilities, the committee shall proceed as follows:
(i) The committee shall determine the time
and place of the hearing which shall commence not later than thirty days from
the date of the committee's appointment.
(ii) No later than three days following the
date of the committee's appointment, the chairman shall notify the grievant of
the time and place of the hearing and inform him or her of the basic procedures
governing the hearing, which shall be closed.
(iii) At the hearing, the grievant shall bear
the burden of proving, by a preponderance of the evidence presented, that the
stated reason for his or her termination is without foundation. The order of
events at the hearing, Which shall be determined by the committee, shall
reflect this requirement.
(iv)
During the proceedings, the grievant shall be permitted to have an advisor of
his or her choice. Likewise the senior administrator responsible for the
grievant's area or his or her designated representative (the university
representative) shall be permitted to have an advisor present. The functions to
be performed by each advisor shall be determined by the person whom he or she
is advising.
(v) The grievant shall
have the aid of the committee in securing the attendance of persons who possess
relevant information.
(vi) The
grievant and his or her advisor or both and the university representative and
his or her advisor or both shall have the right to confront and question all
persons who make statements before the committee.
(vii) The full proceedings shall be
tape-recorded by the university, which, upon request, shall make a copy of the
master tape available for a reasonable period to the grievant, the university
representative, the committee, or the president.
(c) Upon completion of the hearing, the
committee shall submit a written report of its findings and recommendations to
the president, with copies to the grievant and the university representative.
The president shall then reach a final decision in the case, which decision
shall be communicated in writing to the grievant, the university
representative, and the committee. The president shall not make a public
announcement of his decision unless requested to do so by the
grievant.
(d) If the grievant was
suspended or dismissed from his or her position during all or any part of the
appeal procedures outlined above in
paragraphs (G)(1), (2), or (3) and if, during such period, a final decision not
to uphold the termination is made by the appropriate senior administrator or,
following a hearing, by the president, the grievant shall be reinstated in his
or her position and compensated for all salary and fringe benefits lost during
the appeal procedures.
(H) Recommendation for salary status and
contract renewal. It is the intent of these paragraphs to express the principle
that action regarding salary status and contract renewal should originate at
the departmental level, with systematic evaluation of each administrator by the
department head.
(1) Prior to February
fifteenth each year, the immediate
supervisor shall review the performance records of all administrators on his or
her staff and shall invite each administrator to an appraisal/apprisal
interview. The results of interviews involving marginal or unsatisfactory
performance are to be forwarded in writing by March first to the supervisor's immediate superior, with
a copy to the employee. A brief letter verifying satisfactory performance and
eligibility for salary increase by March first is adequate for employees performing
satisfactorily.
(2) Within fifteen
working days after tenative expenditure levels for the next fiscal year have
been assigned to each administrator by the president, the immediate supervisor
shall submit, in writing, his or her recommendations regarding contract renewal
and salary status for all administrators on his or her staff to the
supervisor's immediate superior, with a copy to the employee. If a supervisor
recommends non-renewal of a contract due to the discontinuance of a position
either for budgetary reasons or because the function is eliminated, notice of
termination shall be forwarded to the employee when the supervisor's immediate
superior has approved the recommendation. Such notice will begin the
termination notice period specified in paragraph (E).
(3) Contracts for the next fiscal year,
specifying both position and title for administrators whose contracts are to be
renewed shall be sent to such persons within fifteen days of final action by
the board of trustees on the university's budget for the next fiscal year.
(a) Term contracts for administrators who
have received notice of termination as a result of paragraph (H)(2), and who are to receive
pay during the next fiscal year, shall be for/awarded to such persons within
fifteen days of final action by the board of trustees on the university's
budget for the next fiscal year. Such contracts shall be issued in compliance
with the termination notice provisions specified in paragraph (E).
(b) If trustee action on the university's
next fiscal year budget necessitates the non-renewal of contracts that were not
provided for in paragraph (H)(2),
notice of termination and a contract for the next year shall be forwarded to
such persons within fifteen days of final action by the board of trustees on
the university's budget for the next fiscal year. Such contracts shall be
issued in compliance with provisions specified in paragraph (E), including the termination
notice period.
(I) Contract acceptance or resignation.
(1) Contracts should be formally accepted or
declined within thirty days of the date of mailing of the contract. Contracts
which have not been accepted or formally declined within thirty days shall be
declared null and void.
(2)
Contract personnel should give thirty days advance written notice of
resignation.
(J)
Familial appointments. Each appointment is made on its own merits, whether
members of one immediate family are in the same department or not. Decisions on
promotion, salary status, or termination are to be made for each under exactly
the conditions which apply to other administrative staff members. Only under
the most unusual circumstances should one member of an immediate family have a
significant supervisory role with respect to another member(s) of that
family.
(K) Retirement. The Ohio
university board of trustees established the mandatory retirement age of
administrative officers from their administrative duties at age sixty-five.
Exceptions to this rule are seldom made and then only upon recommendation of
the president and approval by the trustees. An administrative officer reaching
the age of sixty-five after June 30 is permitted to complete the fiscal year
starting July 1 of that year. Retirement before age sixty-five is
possible.
