Department of Social Work



Department of Social Work

Guidance for Faculty on the Issue of Promotion to Associate Professor with Permanent Tenure

Within the Department of Social Work, teaching, service, and scholarly research are all important areas when making decisions about promotion and tenure. Historically, “community engaged scholarship” has been a central part of social work at UNCG, even before the original program gained departmental status in 1980. Faculty have been encouraged to bring best practices to the classroom from the social work community through guest speakers, community panels, and the field instruction programs. Consistent with the School of Health and Human Sciences and the larger university, teaching is of primary importance. Faculty members within the Department of Social Work are expected to be effective teachers. Effective teaching includes educating students to become competent generalist and advanced generalist social work practitioners and preparing students to make contributions to the quality of life in their communities. Evaluation of a faculty member’s teaching is completed through regular use of peer reviews, student course evaluations, and faculty member self-evaluation. In cases of teachers with extensive community engaged teaching, evaluations from community partners and scholars who have earned a scholarly reputation for their engaged teaching may also be included as appropriate evaluative measures.

Faculty members are also required to provide service to the department, school, university, community, and profession, and they are expected to design, implement, and complete research on substantial social work practice, policy, or social work education problems. Consultation with community social service agencies is viewed as central to the mission of the department and to our profession and as such is highly valued. Each faculty member must have a defined research program which will have potential for obtaining external funding. Faculty members must choose an academic profile (Scholarship of Discovery, Application, or Teaching) as outlined in the HHS Promotion, Tenure and Reappointment Evaluation Policies, Guidelines, and Procedures document during the first two years of their tenure track appointment. A key requirement in completing research is the dissemination of findings through publication in refereed social-work-related journals and through presentation of papers at professional conferences. The usual time allocation for teaching in the Department of Social Work is 62.5%; for service 12.5%; and for research 25%.

In the Department of Social Work, faculty teach in the undergraduate and/or graduate programs and conduct research on substantive social welfare topics including but not limited to child and family welfare, aging, employment, health, international social welfare, corrections, school social work, and mental health. Each faculty member is expected to articulate a research program which interrelates her or his teaching, service, and research. Research should result in explicit practice or policy implications and must ultimately contribute to an improved quality of life for persons who are the recipients of social welfare services. Research in the Department of Social Work is most highly valued when a faculty member can design, implement, and complete projects which inform teaching in the classroom, provide opportunities for student learning and involvement, result in external funding and publication in a scholarly refereed journal, and have a positive impact on the delivery of social services and/or the quality of life of social welfare recipients.

Although there may be individual variations based on one’s research program, it is generally expected that successful candidates for promotion to Associate Professor with permanent tenure will have demonstrated success in obtaining external funding for their research. Faculty are also expected to publish their work. As a community focused discipline, social work is in line with the focus of UNC Tomorrow as reflected in research that is done in partnership with a community agency. Because social work researchers have to spend time developing relationships in the community, the publication process is not as swift in other disciplines that don't rely on community based research for eventual publication. Further, social work is a collaborative discipline, which values joint publications and interdisciplinary publications.

Articles in refereed social work and related journals and books, book chapters, and technical monographs, such as program evaluation reports, are acceptable forms of publication. It is generally expected that a faculty member will have published a combination of eight to ten articles, books, book chapters, and/or technical monographs since the initial appointment at UNCG in order to be recommended for permanent tenure and promotion to Associate Professor. Articles in refereed social work and related journals are highly regarded forms of publication. Individuals should outline their contributions to collaborative research and publications in their dossier.

Within the Department of Social Work, manuscripts published in peer reviewed journals represent the most common and recognized outlets for completed research. Faculty may publish in social work journals or journals in related fields which are in line with their area of study. Faculty are encouraged to publish in both specific social work journals and in multidisciplinary journals which may reach a wider audience. It is not possible to provide an exhaustive list but a few examples of social work and related peer reviewed journals are provided as exemplars only. This list does not imply that these journals have more value than other relevant peer reviewed journals. On-line peer reviewed journals are considered as well.

Social work journals: Social Work, Families in Society, Research on Social Work Practice, Affilia, Social Service Review, Journal of Family Social Work, Journal of Social Work Education, Journal of Baccalaureate Social Work, Administration in Social Work, Journal of Community Practice, and Social Work Research.

Related, multidisciplinary journals: Children and Youth Service Review, Public Welfare, Family Relations, The International Journal of Aging and Human Development, Community Mental Health Journal, Clinical Gerontologist, Social Development Issues, Journal of Marriage and Family Therapy, The Journal of Women and Aging, and the Journal of Marriage and Family.

External funding opportunities in social work are limited nationally and most funding is obtained from community-based organizations or state agencies for specific, time limited studies or projects. Often these studies entail evaluative research of a social welfare program designed to improve the quality of life for others. Occasionally, funding is secured from a foundation; normally these funds are granted for exceptional social survey research which holds promise for either replication or wide dissemination. Funding opportunities are limited in social work due to community social agencies having few dollars for research and reductions in funding for social programs at the federal, state, and local levels. Nevertheless, faculty in the Department of Social Work at UNCG are expected to obtain funding to support their research even though the amounts of funding may be lower than in other academic disciplines. Pure, applied, and community-engaged research and evaluation are recognized for their contributions.

At the direction of the Department Chair and Dean, a faculty member may also be given a directed professional activity to direct or coordinate. Examples may include coordination of an international exchange affiliation, the school social work licensure program, the undergraduate program, the graduate program, or the field instruction programs. In this case, these accomplishments will be included in the review for promotion and tenure if the activity is consistent with the HHS Promotion, Tenure and Reappointment Evaluation Policies, Guidelines, and Procedures.

• These guidelines are consistent with and complement the HHS Promotion, Tenure and Reappointment Evaluation Policies, Guidelines, and Procedures which were adopted by the Department of Social Work faculty as our departmental guidelines in September 2012.

Revised December 2005, Revised May 2008

Revised March 2, 2011

Revised September 10, 2012

Revised November, 2013

Department of Social Work Tenured Faculty Committee

Examples of Professional Journals*

|Issue areas |Social work journals |Related journals |

|Children and youth |Children and Schools |Children and Youth Service Review |

| |School Social Work Journal | |

| |Child and Adolescent Social Work Journal | |

|Families |Journal of Family Social Work |Journal of Marriage and Family |

| |Families in Society |Family Relations |

| | |Journal of Child and Adolescent Group Therapy |

|Marginalized communities |Child Abuse and Neglect |Journal of Community Practice |

| |Child Welfare | |

|Social work practice |Health and Social Work |International Journal of Group Psychotherapy |

| |Social Work with Groups | |

|Social work education |Journal of Teaching in Social Work |Journal of Technology in Human Services |

| |Journal of Social Work Education | |

| |Arete | |

| |Journal of Baccalaureate Social Work | |

|Social work research |Research on Social Work Practice | |

|Aging |Journal of Gerontological Social Work | |

|International |Journal of Youth Studies (British) | |

| |Journal of Immigrant and Refugee Studies | |

|Spirituality |Journal of Religion and Spirituality in Social | |

| |Work: Social Thought | |

|Values and ethics |Journal of Social Work Values and Ethics | |

|Administration/management |Social Services Review |Journal of Nonprofit Management and Leadership |

| | |Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly |

|Mental health |Social Work in Mental Health |Community Mental Health Journal |

| |Social Work Practice in the Addictions |Psychiatric Rehabilitation Journal |

| |Smith Studies in Social Work |Journal of Rural Mental Health |

| |Clinical Social Work Journal |American Journal of Orthopsychiatry |

|Policy | |Sociology and Social Welfare |

| | |Social Policy |

*This is not an exhaustive list but rather journals to consider when submitting a manuscript for publication. Please seek further guidance from your faculty mentor.

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