Decanal Evaluations
In accordance with the Faculty Handbook, Deans shall be evaluated by the faculty of their academic units, in writing, at least once every two (2) years. The evaluation shall be developed and coordinated by collaboration between the Office of the Provost and Chief Academic Officer and the Executive Committee of the school/college. Evaluation rubrics will be distributed to faculty within each school/college to provide them the opportunity to give feedback on their decanal leadership. The evaluation rubric will consist of a series of questions in which participating faculty will assign a score and will be given an opportunity for discursive comments. The discursive comments allow faculty to state any reasons they have for believing that the decanal leadership has or has not helped the school or college make progress in meeting its mission and goals. The Executive Committee will tabulate the results of the evaluation and submit a summary report and all completed evaluation rubrics to the Provost. The rubric responses and comments will be anonymous and will not be edited. The Provost will communicate the results of the evaluation to the full-time faculty within the school or college within sixty (60) days of the completion of the evaluation. The results shall be used by the Provost to improve the effectiveness of deans and to make recommendations to the President regarding their continuation or replacement.
Since 2020, the executive committees of the schools and colleges have worked collaboratively with the Office of the Provost to develop and continuously improve a university-wide core decanal evaluation rubric, as well as school/college-specific sections. The rubrics can be accessed via the hyperlink below for your school or college. You may find responses to FAQs at the bottom of this page.
Access a School or College Rubric
Decanal Evaluation Frequently Asked Questions
1. Who do I contact if I cannot access the evaluation link?
You may contact academicaffairs@howard.edu.
2. My Dean is leaving the university. Do I still have to evaluate that Dean?
All deans--including those who are completing their first or even their last year of service--are to be evaluated for their performance. The annual decanal evaluation process ensures deans receive faculty feedback every year and are able to use that feedback to improve their effectiveness, better enabling them to be fully successful in carrying out their responsibilities for administration of the school or college they lead. In addition, as you know, results are used by the Provost to improve the effectiveness of deans and to make recommendations to the President regarding their continuation or replacement.
3. My Dean just began working a few months ago. Do I still have to evaluate the new dean who was not here for a full year?
All deans--including those who are completing their first or even their last year of service--are to be evaluated for their performance. The annual decanal evaluation process ensures deans receive faculty feedback every year and are able to use that feedback to improve their effectiveness, better enabling them to be fully successful in carrying out their responsibilities for administration of the school or college they lead. In addition, as you know, results are used by the Provost to improve the effectiveness of deans and to make recommendations to the President regarding their continuation or replacement.
4. Why is the rubric open over the summer?
Each year, the faculty evaluate their deans at the end of the academic year. The evaluation rubrics are distributed to the faculty in late spring, and rubrics remain available over the summer months until the last day of the academic year. This is to allow ample time for faculty to complete the evaluation.
5. Will I be able to complete the evaluation during the summer months?
Yes, the rubric will remain open until August 15, 2023, at 11:59 p.m.
6. I am a staff member. Am I allowed to participate?
No, only faculty are allowed to participate in the Faculty Handbook mandated decanal evaluation process. It is the process through which faculty evaluate their deans.
7. How exactly does the decanal evaluation process work?
The first step in this annual evaluation process is for faculty to complete rubrics to evaluate their deans. These rubrics consist of a series of open and closed ended questions about a given dean's performance during that academic year.
The second step is for the executive committee of each school and college to tabulate the results of the evaluation of its respective dean and submit a summary report and all completed evaluation rubrics to the provost. The rubric responses and comments will not be edited.
The third step is for the provost to review the results of the evaluation and the executive committee reports, and then meet with each of the deans individually to discuss this feedback.
Finally, the provost will communicate the results of the evaluation to the full-time faculty within the school or college within 60 days of the completion of the evaluation. Per the Faculty Handbook, the results shall be used by the provost to improve the effectiveness of deans and to make recommendations to the president regarding their continuation or replacement.
8. How can the decanal evaluation rubrics be accessed?
The rubrics may be accessed by navigating to the provost.howard.edu website under the faculty resources category, then select decanal evaluations. On that landing page, there is a hyperlink to the rubric for each school or college.
9. I am a faculty member jointly appointed to more than one school/college. Can I evaluate all of my deans?
Yes, faculty may evaluate the deans of all schools and colleges to which they are appointed. For example, if you are a faculty member jointly appointed to two colleges, then you will be able to access rubrics to evaluate both of your colleges’ deans.
10. I am a member of the graduate faculty, as well as a faculty member in at least one of the other schools and colleges. Can I evaluate the Dean of the Graduate School
Yes, if you are a member of the graduate faculty, you may evaluate the dean of the Graduate School as well as the dean(s) of the school(s) or college(s) to which you are appointed.
11. Are my responses anonymous?
Yes, as required in the Faculty Handbook, your response will be anonymously recorded. If you would like to keep a record of your response, you must choose the option to save a copy of your response as a PDF when you click the “submit” button. If you do not save a copy of your response, it will not be retrievable because it is being submitted anonymously.
12. Can I make any changes or access my answers after I hit submit?
No, once you submit your responses, you will not be able to make changes. Because responses are submitted anonymously, we are unable to retrieve your specific submission to return to you for editing.
13. Some of the questions in the rubric don't appear to apply to me, can I skip them?
Your feedback is valuable. However, if you find a question that you have no first-hand knowledge to answer, yes, you may skip it.