1. The Importance of Faculty Counseling and Mentoring: Topics to Discuss
Linda M. Boxer, Vice Dean
Cheryl Gore-Felton, OAA Associate Dean
Jim Brooks, OAA Associate Dean
Janice Lowe, OAA Associate Dean

2. Outline of Topics The purpose of annual counseling
Topics to discuss at the counseling meeting
Counseling memo with A&P actions
Importance of mentoring
Transitions between lines

3. Supporting Early Career Faculty
Providing support, guidance, advice and feedback to early career faculty is a high priority
The University expects that counseling and mentoring will occur on a regular basis
General guidelines outlining the kinds of support, advice, and feedback are provided

4. Counseling
Counseling is the first aspect of guiding early career faculty
It entails providing feedback on performance relative to the standards for reappointment and promotion
A counseling session should be performed at least annually to review the performance of the early career faculty member in light of the criteria for reappointment or promotion

5. Topics for Counseling Meeting
Appropriate areas to discuss may include:
Scholarship quality and productivity to date
General expectations with respect to impact
Scholarly venues of publications
Suggestions for scholarship and funding that may be helpful
Development of a reputation beyond Stanford
Teaching and mentoring quality, quantity, and type
Quality of performance in other academic activities, including clinical work, if applicable

6. Topics for Counseling Meeting cont’d
Additional areas to discuss may include:
General expectations as to levels of service appropriate for early career faculty
Any professional, behavioral or institutional citizenship issues
Allocation of time, current and any possible changes
Criteria and timeline for reappointment or promotion
Alignment of interests and activities with the expectations of the faculty line
Financial issues

7. Topics for Counseling Meeting cont’d 2
Additional areas to discuss may include:
Academic/professional support (availability of mentors, opportunities for learning, resource availability)
Professional development
Achievement of career goals
Personal issues, if any

8. Role of Early Career Faculty Member in Counseling Meeting
Ask the early career faculty member to prepare for the counseling meeting by:
Reviewing the expectations for the line
Reviewing the timing of the reappointment or promotion review
Bringing up-to-date CV and breakdown of effort
Bringing a list of activities in the planning stage
Preparing specific questions regarding progress toward reappointment or promotion

9. Documentation of Counseling
The annual counseling form should document key points regarding progress toward reappointment or promotion in:
Scholarship
Teaching
Clinical activities (if applicable)
Institutional service (if applicable)
Professionalism and collegiality
Include %FTE for each activity

10. Counseling Form
The counseling form should be signed by both the chair/chief and the early career faculty member
A copy of the form should be maintained in the department
At the time of reappointment or promotion, the annual counseling forms for the candidate during that term are sent to OAA with the request to initiate the action

11. Counseling Guidance
During the annual counseling session, discussion of promotion should emphasize the comparative and predictive aspects of the promotion decision
An early career faculty member cannot be counseled that he/she is “on track” for promotion because promotion judgments generally cannot be made until the referee letters are received as part of the evaluation process

12. Early Career Faculty Counseling
Although the purpose of counseling is to offer practical guidance to the early career faculty member in regard to his/her future efforts (such as by pointing out areas for potential attention or improvement), the faculty member should understand that the strategic advice offered is not a prescription for achieving promotion, but rather the letter writer’s best judgment based on review of accomplishments to date

13. Counseling Memo with A&P Action
The counseling memo at the time of reappointment or promotion provides an opportunity to give candid feedback to an early career faculty member on his/her academic performance and progress to date based on the results of the reappointment or promotion review

14. Counseling Memo with A&P Action cont’d
The feedback should be constructive, realistic, and specifically tailored to the candidate and to the standards and criteria he/she will face in a future review or promotion
The counseling memo is submitted with the long form in draft form
After completion of the review process, the counseling memo is finalized and then discussed with the faculty member

15. Mentoring
The second aspect of guidance to be offered to early career faculty is mentoring, providing ongoing advice and support regarding scholarship, teaching, and clinical performance (where applicable)
It is recommended that early career faculty be assigned mentors who are senior faculty members but not their chairs or division chiefs

16. Mentoring cont’d
The mentor should be available to provide guidance on an ongoing basis and meet regularly with the early career faculty member
In situations where the initial mentor assignment is not successful, chairs or chiefs should work with the early career faculty member to identify a suitable mentor
Early career faculty should also be encouraged to seek informal mentors from inside or outside the department who may share interests and provide additional perspectives

17. Information Sessions
The University (Provost and Vice Provost for Faculty Development and Diversity) and OAA provide information sessions for early career faculty
Topics include criteria for the different faculty lines at each rank and information on promotion actions
Guidance is also provided on other topics such as teaching strategies and student advising, management of research budgets and personnel, policies for new parents, etc.

18. Early Career Faculty Member’s Responsibility
The goal of counseling and mentoring is to provide a supportive environment to assist the early career faculty member in succeeding in his/her academic career
It should be recognized and communicated to the early career faculty member that the ultimate responsibility for career trajectory and success lies with each faculty member himself or herself

19. Early Career Faculty Member’s Responsibility cont’d 2
As noted previously, the early career faculty member should understand that a faculty mentor’s strategic advice is not a prescription for achieving promotion, but rather a senior colleague’s best judgment, to be accepted or rejected as the early career faculty member chooses
Accordingly, inadequate counseling and mentoring is generally not considered sufficient grounds for appealing a negative promotion decision

20. Importance of Counseling and Mentoring
Although the ultimate responsibility for success lies with the early career faculty member, Stanford University is committed to providing opportunities, resources, and support, including counseling and mentoring, to help each faculty member develop into an outstanding scholar, teacher and clinician

21. Right-Lining
Our goal is to identify the appropriate line in which the faculty member can develop, flourish and succeed
Ideally, this is done at the time of recruitment and appointment
Faculty interests may change over time such that they no longer align with the expectations of the original appointment line

22. Right-Lining cont’d
The fit for the appointment line should be assessed at each annual counseling meeting
Any divergence should be monitored and corrected, if possible
If necessary, a transition to a different line can be explored
Please consult with OAA and the Vice Dean for guidance

23. Transitions Between Faculty Lines
These occur infrequently and are considered new appointments
In most cases a national search is required, although in some rare situations a search waiver may be approved by the Provost
The appointment file should contain information that distinguishes the faculty member’s current and future roles and responsibilities
In particular, it should explain the necessity for the proposed appointment

24. Clinician Educator Core Criteria
The major criterion for appointment, reappointment or promotion for Clinician Educators is excellence in the overall mix of clinical care and clinical teaching appropriate to the programmatic need the individual is expected to fulfill
If a candidate is an active scholarly contributor or performs in an administrative role, these factors may be taken into consideration when evaluating excellence in the overall mix of contributions

25. Medical Center Line Core Criteria
Appointments (and subsequent reappointments and promotions) are based upon a requirement of excellence in the overall mix of contributions in clinical care, teaching, and scholarship that advances clinical medicine 
Faculty must have a minimum of 20% protected time for scholarship

26. University Tenure Line Core Criteria
The first criterion for a UTL appointment is that the candidate must have achieved (or, in the case of Assistant Professors, have the promise to achieve) true distinction in scholarship in a broadly defined field
The second criterion for a UTL appointment is promise – or a record demonstrating – that the candidate is capable of sustaining a first-rate teaching program during his or her career at Stanford

27. Non-Tenure Line (Research) Core Criteria
A candidate must have achieved (or, in the case of Assistant Professors, have the promise to achieve) true distinction in scholarship 
Unlike faculty in the University Tenure Line whose research is conducted in a broadly defined field, faculty appointed in the Research Line generally have special expertise in a relatively narrow field that is of particular benefit to a broader clinical or research program 

28. Non-Tenure Line (Teaching) Core Criteria
The overriding requirement for faculty appointment, reappointment and promotion in the Teaching Line is excellence in teaching, broadly defined
Under most circumstances, it is expected that Teaching Line faculty will extend their successes at Stanford to broader regional or national audiences

29. Line Transitions
A request for a transition between faculty lines cannot occur in the last year of a term appointment
This cannot be viewed as a method to manage a failed or failing promotion action
Assessment of the alignment of a faculty member’s interests and activities with the expectations of the line should occur at every counseling meeting so there will be advanced warning if a line transition may need to be considered

30. Questions?
Questions on counseling and mentoring?