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320.090 Emeritus Designation

Bd. Min. 12-6-68, p. 34,190; Amended Bd. Min. 3-17-87; Amended 12-16-94; Amended 11-29-07; Amended 6-17-11; Amended 4-12-13; Amended 10-2-15; Amended 2-6-2020.

  1. Rule—The procedure for granting the title of “Professor Emeritus”, “Associate Professor Emeritus” or “Curators' Distinguished Professor/Teaching Professor Emeritus” shall originate with the retiring[1] faculty member's department. The appropriate title shall be granted to any member of the full-time tenured or non- tenure track faculty with a ranked professorial title in good standing at the time of their retirement, when each of the following conditions have been met:
    1. The faculty member holds the rank of professor or associate professor and has been a member of the faculty for at least fifteen years; or has held the rank of professor in the faculty for at least five years;
    2. The faculty member has indicated the desire to receive emeritus status.
    3. The faculty member’s contributions to the department and the university are recognized as meritorious as determined by majority vote of the members of the eligible departmental voting faculty at the rank of professor or associate professor. Whether non-tenure track faculty are eligible to vote on a recommendation of emeritus status for tenured faculty members will be determined by the departmental faculty.  
    4. The departmental faculty’s recommendation will be transmitted to the school or college dean, who will add the dean’s own recommendation and forward both to the provost.  The provost will review the recommendations of the faculty and the dean, add the provost’s own recommendation, and transmit all recommendations to the chancellor.  The chancellor will review the recommendations and make the final decision on award of an emeritus title.
  2. Administrators at the level of dean and above may be granted an emeritus title commensurate with their former positions (e.g., dean emeritus, provost emeritus). To be eligible, administrators must have held the rank of professor or associate professor at the university for at least five years, have indicated a desire to receive the emeritus title, and made contributions to the university recognized as meritorious as recommended by vote of the faculty senate/council. The recommendation will be transmitted to the chancellor who makes a final decision, or in the case of the chancellor’s candidacy, to the president.
  3. Exceptions
    1. A retiring member of the faculty who is not covered by the above rule who has been recommended by majority vote of the eligible departmental voting faculty at the rank of professor or associate professor and by the dean of the faculty member's school or college, and, by the provost may be awarded an emeritus designation by the chancellor when the faculty member
      1. has retired in good standing;
      2. has indicated the desire to receive emeritus status; and
      3. their contributions to the department and the university are recognized as exceptionally meritorious.
  4. Members of the faculty who have received the title of emeritus shall continue as members (non-voting, except with regard to votes on promotion and tenure recommendations by qualified professors emeriti who are serving on a special promotion and tenure committee or committees related to procedures for review of faculty performance under circumstances described in section 320.035.A.1.c and section 320.035.A.1.d or section 310.015.B.1.d.(1).(a) and section 310.015.B.1.d.(1).(b) respectively of the Collected Rules and Regulations) of the campus faculty; and their names shall appear in the list of Officers of Instruction and Administration in the university catalog. Persons retiring from the university who do not receive the title of emeritus shall receive no title designation.

    [1] For purposes of this rule, retirement shall be defined as resignation from full-time employment with the University at the age of 55 or older.


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