It’s amazing, but we are not far from the end of the academic year. It’s been a busy year in APO. 

I would like to bring a few things to your attention. First, our “Voices at UCR” podcast series now has 4 episodes. In these 20-30 minute interviews with UCR faculty, we learn more about their personal story, career path, and future scholarly directions. Our 2 most recent episodes feature John Fischer who discusses morality and the afterlife, and Jami Woods who talks about psychiatry and gender identity. In prior episodes, we interview Goldberry Long who discusses book publishing, and Bahram Mobasher who expounds on the origins of the universe. “Voices of UCR” is available for listening on any podcasting app, as well as online at https://www.spreaker.com/show/voices-of-ucr.

We are busy working on the AY22-23 CALL. We have engaged in consultations around the campus to identify areas where improved clarity is needed, and we have also introduced some changes aimed at helping faculty present the full spectrum of their achievements. The Life Event Outcome policy is in its second round of Senate review and I am hopeful it will find its way into the new CALL. Specific details on the AY22-23 CALL will be coming soon.

We have been conducting several data analyses in the office. These include comparing success rates with various M/P actions across different populations. Our reports can be found here https://academicpersonnel.ucr.edu/Equity Studies. We are also working on a salary equity analysis and have made progress on the UCOP Faculty Salary Program, both of which we will be announcing the details of soon.

Some clarifying work has been done on the retention procedures, both preemptive and non-preemptive, and we are about to announce a temporary exception to the sabbatical credit accrual threshold. Approval of faculty search plans has been delegated to the Deans, a move designed to improve efficiency and timeliness of searches. Please note, however, that compliance of search committee members to complete the required training could cause a bottleneck in searches if this is not handled early. 

APO continues to work on processing the AY21-22 M/P files. The campus is still a little behind in getting the files moved forward out of the colleges/schools. By my estimate, only about ½ of the files we expect to advance to CAP have made it that far to-date. I have had many discussions about the reasons for this, and they all point toward a shortage of AP staff in the colleges/schools, an increased workload associated with files that require Dean’s letters, and various lingering impacts of the pandemic. I am constantly working to find ways to improve the efficiency of the M/P review process.