Scholarship

Overview of Faculty Responsibilities

The task of a university includes the promotion of learning and the discovery and extension of knowledge, enterprises which place responsibility upon faculty members with respect to their disciplines, their students, the university, and the community. The University seeks to foster the scholarly development of its faculty and to encourage the scholarly interaction of faculty with students and with regional, national, and international communities. Faculty have a responsibility to their disciplines, their students, the university, and the community to strive for superior intellectual, aesthetic, or creative achievement. Such achievement, as evidenced in scholarly accomplishments, is an indispensable qualification for appointment and promotion and tenure in the professorial ranks. Scholarly accomplishments, suggest continuing growth and high potential, can be demonstrated through activities of:

• Research, including research and other creative activities,
• Teaching, including delivery of instruction, mentoring, and curricular activities, and
• Community outreach.

All faculty members should keep abreast of developments in their fields (faculty fields may be disciplinary or inter-disciplinary in nature) and remain professionally active throughout their careers.

At PSU, individual faculty are part of a larger mosaic of faculty talent. The richness of faculty talent should be celebrated, not restricted. Research, teaching, and community outreach are accomplished in an environment that draws on the combined intellectual vitality of the department and of the University. Department faculty may take on responsibilities of research, teaching, and community outreach in differing proportions and emphases. Irrespective of the emphasis assigned to differing activities, it is important that the quality of faculty contributions be rigorously evaluated and that the individual contributions of the faculty, when considered in aggregate, advance the goals of the department and of the University.

All faculty have a responsibility to conduct scholarly work in research, teaching, or community outreach in order to contribute to the body of knowledge in their field(s). Effectiveness in teaching, research, or community outreach must meet an acceptable standard when it is part of a faculty member's responsibilities. Finally, each faculty member is expected to contribute to the governance and professionally-related service activities of the University.