Innovations in Faculty Evaluation

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On this page you will find:

  • Practical tools and templates to strengthen promotion and tenure cases for community-engaged scholarship, including sample letters, Senate guidelines, and faculty tips.
  • Institutional models and reforms that illustrate how universities are shifting to recognize public impact in faculty evaluation and advancement.
  • Voices from the field—blogs, webinars, and case studies that share faculty experiences, challenges, and strategies for embedding community engagement in academic careers.

Current Efforts:

  • Align faculty evaluation with public mission of research impact
  • Broaden evidence of impact
  • Promote context and impact considerations

Berkeley BMAP Assessing Community-Engaged Research

by UC Berkeley (January 2021)

These 2021 guidelines clarify faculty evaluation processes and were drafted by the Berkeley Senate (Budget and Interdepartmental Relations Committee) , with adaptation and dissemination by the Vice Provost for the Faculty. As discussed in the blog post and other materials linked below, these guidelines represent innovative leadership in valuing both peer-reviewed and non-peer reviewed scholarly products of community-engaged research, the latter of which are typically “undercounted” in traditional evaluation processes.

Sample Solicitation for Promotion to Tenure (Pending)

This upcoming document will be a draft letter template to request an external evaluation for tenure. The letter template will adapt the current BMAP example letter to include mention of Berkeley community-engaged scholarhsip guidelines.

Tips for Strengthening and Contextualizing Cases Involving Community-Based Research and Other Public Interest-Focused Research

by Professor Emily Ozer (July 2021)

This document provides faculty tips for building stronger cases for community engaged portfolios and gives context for our progress and leadership in faculty evaluation.

Community-Engaged Research & Social Sciences: Why, How, & Next Steps

by Professor Emily Ozer (March 7, 2025)

This slide deck was presented to UC Berkeley's Social Sciences Division. Professor Ozer describes efforts to advance institutional capacity for societal impactful scholarship. 

Berkeley in Black and white

How We Embraced the Challenge of Institutional Change to Pave the Way for Community-Engaged Research - William T. Grant Foundation

by Professor Emily Ozer (June 28, 2021)

In this blog post, Professor Ozer, UCB Faculty Liaison to the EVCP for Public Scholarship and Engagement, writes about community-partnered scholarship and the importance of supportive institutional contexts. The William T. Grant Foundation focuses on funding research and practice in social and health inequalities among youth. 

Universities Take Promising Steps to Reward Research that Benefits Society | The Pew Charitable Trusts

by Pew Charitable Trusts (October 15, 2023)

This white paper/national scan led by Professor Ozer and released by the Pew Charitable Trusts and Impact Funders Forum (formerly Transforming Evidence Funders Network) highlights transformational promotion and tenure policies for community-engaged teaching and scholarship.

Webinar: Promising P&T Reforms for Societally-Impactful Research: Strategies and Opportunities

released by UC LEAD (February 5, 2024)

In this UC LEAD webinar, Professor Ozer and colleauges discuss findings from a new white paper that scans promising reforms to faculty reward systems to recognize a wider range of scholarly contributions in promotion and tenure decisions.