This Cockrell School of Engineering web page provides tenured and tenure-track faculty with important information about family-friendly policies at UT Austin. The goal is to inform faculty about their options and responsibilities. All policies are available in "Handbook of Operating Procedures" and the Provost's Office makes the final determination about their interpretation and applicability.
Letter from Dean Gregory L. Fenves
The Cockrell School of Engineering is committed to an environment that supports and respects our faculty in their academic roles and as individuals leading full lives outside the University. I believe our most productive faculty are those who successfully balance the opportunities and demands of their professional and personal lives. To assist in this achieving this balance, I strongly endorse the family friendly policies at UT Austin. These University policies are designed specifically to support our faculty throughout their careers.
To assist you, we have created this website that contains a variety of helpful information about options and resources. I would like to focus your attention on two policies that are important for all faculty to understand:
Modification of Instructional Duties
Whether welcoming a new baby to the family or caring for an elderly parent, the Modification of Instructional Duties policy provides faculty with an alternative way to satisfy classroom instructional responsibilities. This policy provides temporary release from classroom teaching, thus giving faculty more flexibility and time to attend to pressing family matters. Members of our faculty of all ranks have used this policy to maintain their professional productivity while addressing critical family needs over a short period of time.
Extension of the Tenure-Track Probationary Period
Extending the tenure clock can be a positive career decision for an assistant professor. Personal circumstances that may justify an extension include disability or illness of the faculty member, status of the faculty member as the principal caregiver of a preschool child, or status of the faculty member as a principal caregiver of a disabled, elderly, or ill family member. Research suggests that new faculty members are hesitant to request this extension out of concern that doing so may be detrimental to their professional reputation and ability to earn tenure. I want to assure tenure-track faculty who receive an extension that their productivity will be assessed fairly and appropriately in tenure and promotion reviews in the department, the School, and the University.
In summary, each Department Chair in the Cockrell School is knowledgeable about the University's family friendly policies, and I encourage faculty to work directly with his or her chair to determine the best course of action depending on the family situation.
I welcome your questions and concerns so we may continue to strengthen our family friendly practices within the Cockrell School.
Gregory L. Fenves
Dean
Cockrell School of Engineering
Jack and Beverly Randall Dean's Chair
for Excellence in Engineering