VP Glenda Humiston and I have made the decision to change the 13/24-month option in ANR's academic advancement process to a new 18/30-month option. Before seeking an advancement, first-term academics usually complete at least two years for those in a two-year term cycle, or three years for those in a three-year term cycle. ANR merit and promotion guidelines have allowed an exception to this policy by allowing first-term academics to submit a merit or promotion advancement under a 13/24-month option, i.e., to seek advancement after at least 13 full months for those in a two-year term cycle, or after at least 24 full months for those in a three-year term cycle. In both options, the academic must show the equivalent of 24 (or 36) months of performance in the reduced review period.
Due to an increase in advancement requests for 13/24-month options, the number of service years for requests going down in the last five years, and several cases of first-term academics being denied due to lack of performance equivalency, we are changing the option to an 18/30-month option, respectively. Starting with the 2024/25 advancement cycle, first-term academics may seek advancement at the earliest after at least 18 full months for those in a two-year term cycle, or after at least 30 full months for those in a three-year term cycle. The change will ensure equity with previous years' advancements when fewer 13-month requests were requested and avoid the additional burden of negative outcomes (for academics, supervisors, and UC ANR at large). The change was discussed with the AAC-Personnel Committee in the annual advancement debrief and will be clarified in the eBook.
We will continue to strive for academic excellence, and I assure academics that a critical element of our merit and promotion system remains to reward outstanding achievements and performances. At the same time, we must ensure that early advancements and acceleration requests remain exceptions to the rule and do not become standard requests.
I also want to remind everyone that, as of October 2023, VP Humiston has approved an early-career CE advisor academic market-equity adjustment (for Assistant CE Advisor and Associate CE Advisor ranks). Leadership continues to review academic salaries and the advancement process to ensure salaries align with salaries in the labor market for comparable academic positions.
Brent Hales
Associate Vice President for Research and Cooperative Extension