Problem Applying for Promotion in Rank at College Institution

[wisconsin1]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Wisconsin

I’m very glad I found this forum – I’ve been snooping around (and learning a lot) and figured I would ask my question to you all.
I recently applied for a promotion in rank at my college (from instructor to assistant professor - only rank, no increase in pay). There is a strict timeline laid forth in the policies, but the institution did not follow them (timeline below):

A. Submission and review of promotion materials shall take place according to the following timeline.
1. November 15: A letter of intent to apply for promotion is submitted by the faculty member seeking promotion to his or her department Chairperson
2. December 15: Request and promotion materials (portfolio) are submitted to the department Chairperson of the faculty who is seeking promotion
3. January 15: Request and promotion materials (portfolio) are sent to the Division Coordinator
4. February 15: Request and promotion materials (portfolio) are reviewed by the Dean’s Council and
a. a recommendation is made by the Academic Dean to the President
OR
b. a notice of the denial of the request for promotion is given by the Dean to the faculty applicant
5. March: 1: The recommendation is reviewed by the President and
a. a recommendation is made by the President to the Educational Policy Committee
OR
b. a notice of the denial of the request for promotion is given to the Dean who sends a written notice to the faculty applicant

6. March 15: The recommendation is reviewed by the Educational Policy Committee and
a. a recommendation is made by the Educational Policy Committee to the Board of Directors
OR
b. a notice of the denial of the request for promotion is given to the Dean who sends a written notice to the faculty applicant
7. April 1: The recommendation is reviewed by Board of Directors and
a. the recommendation for promotion is accepted and promotion is granted
OR
b. a notice of the denial of the request for promotion is given to the Dean who sends a written notice to the faculty applicant
8. April 15: The President sends a written notice to the faculty member regarding his or her promotion and informs the Director of Personnel.

I submitted my portfolio well before the November date. The year went along, the April 15th date passed, and I had heard nothing as to the status of my portfolio. I inquired the beginning of May, and our Vice President of Academic Affairs said “I will get back to you.” I received my new agreement/contract on May 9th with no change in rank, which led me to assume that my promotion portfolio/request had been denied. I had assumed that since I heard nothing that there were no problems…I was wrong. I inquired again, and was informed that my portfolio indeed had been denied back in February (with NO notice).

This upsets me very much. Since they did not follow the timeline as set in policies (which is a legal document), do I have any recourse in arguing that my promotion should be granted (since I was NOT informed otherwise by the dates mentioned)? Any help would be most appreciated – thank you for your time in reading my post! I figured it wouldn't hurt to check.

 

[cbg]

What do you have in these policies that says your promotion in rank MUST be granted?

 

[wisconsin1]

It does not say that it will automatically be granted - since I did not receive the notice of denial by the specified date, I was assuming that no denial must have taken place (and it continued to move through the promotion process). I followed the policies by following the timeline, but what is my recourse for administration not following it? After second/third thoughts, perhaps my question should be - in what way do I as a faculty member hold administration accountable for not following the policies of the institution? I could file a grievance (though I have no idea if it would even be wise of me to do so), but want to see what my options are first.

 

[cbg]

You don't.

 

[OHRoadwarrior]

Feel free to file a grievance. Unfortunately, you have no monetary loss, therefore you have no damages.

 

[commentator]

The failure in logic here is If I apply for a promotion in rank and send in my request for it, they must acknowledge it, must tell me yes or no. You applied, they did not acknowledge. You didn't inquire further, assuming, as you said, that it was up to them to make the next move. This is no different from submitting an unsolicited resume for a job that has not been posted as open. They don't have to respond in any way. And you have no grievance.

 

[wisconsin1]

I do understand what you're saying (thank you all for the replies). The hard thing that I cannot wrap my head around - I did not need to inquire further (policies do not state that), THEY DO need to inform me according to policy (so your unsolicited resume example is not applicable). Not a failure in my logic in my opinion, but I do understand your point of view. I probably will not pursue further, but will most likely file an official letter about my dissatisfaction (regarding the policies not being followed).

 

[Dave1952]

I think it's in your best interests to quietly continue your career. Apply this Fall, again, and be a bit more proactive. If you hear nothing in February ask your Chairman or the Dean whether you have been approved. Continue this for each step.

 

[TigerD]

You could also ask your Chair and Dean why you were not approved and how to improve your packet for the next submission.

DC