Department Chairperson Statement of Responsibilities

The Department Chairperson’s primary responsibility is to provide active and engaged leadership in all matters relating to the department’s academic programs, scholarly activities, planning, personnel, finances, facilities, and student recruitment and retention. With the School/College Dean as immediate supervisor and with the support of the department’s faculty and staff, the Chairperson works to foster and maintain the highest possible standards of academic, scholarly, and professional excellence for the department.

The Chair’s responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Academic programs: ongoing curriculum review, renewal, and development, course and class scheduling, exercising academic judgment on requests for exceptions to established requirements or procedures, maintaining the integrity of the curriculum, and fostering teaching excellence.
• Scholarly activities: fostering a climate that is conducive to, and supportive of, scholarly activity and the pursuit of external funding.
• Planning: ensuring that the department remains actively engaged in tactical and strategic planning, that plans are implemented, and that the department has a clear vision for its future.
• Personnel: exercising sound, independent, and rigorous academic judgment in accordance with established University criteria when evaluating materials and making decisions about recruitment, hiring, reappointment, tenure, promotion, range adjustment, and sabbaticals; mentoring non-tenured faculty and encouraging the continuous development of all faculty; identifying, hiring and evaluating adjunct faculty of high quality, and ensuring that all actions are in compliance with the University’s Affirmative Action program. 
• Finances and facilities: preparation and monitoring of the departmental budget; coordination and care of facilities and equipment.
• Student recruitment and retention: ensuring that the department has active and effective initiatives, in collaboration with the University’s Undergraduate Admissions Office and the Graduate School, to attract an academically strong and diverse pool of students to its programs, as well as ensuring that the department has effective measures in place, in collaboration with University advising and counseling services, to support the achievement of students in its programs and their timely graduation.
• Leadership: exercising those qualities of leadership that will encourage constructive and collegial relationships among the department faculty that support the academic excellence and development of the department’s programs and the success of students. 
• Additional responsibilities include participation in the Chairs’ Council, articulation with and implementation of University policy, and representation of the department to the School/College as well as to the larger professional community and general public.
• Other responsibilities as assigned by the Dean.

The Chair is expected, where appropriate, to responsibly delegate duties and authority to other faculty members and staff to accomplish her or his responsibilities.