Six faculty members who received tenure this year were honored for the achievement at a Tisch Library reception last month, along with several other professors who were promoted.
From the engineering school, Associate Professor of Computer Science Norman Ramsey received tenure, while the university hired Chair of the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering Kurt Pennell as a full professor with tenure, according to Assistant to the Provost Laura Duncan.
Duncan said in an e−mail that within the School of Arts and Sciences, Marina Bers of the child development department, Gary Bedell of occupational therapy and Sam Sommers of the psychology department were all promoted from assistant to associate professors with tenure. The administration also hired Peniel Joseph of the history department at the rank of full professor with tenure.
The university additionally promoted eight other already tenured faculty members from associate to full professors.
The Tisch Library's fifth annual Honored Faculty/Honored Books event celebrated the recently promoted and tenured professors. Approximately 60 people attended, including University President Lawrence Bacow, according to Laura Walters, the library's associate director of teaching and research.
The university generally begins considering professors for promotion or tenure generally late in the spring semester when professors submit applications, said economics professor Yannis Ioannides, who is the chair of the Arts, Sciences, and Engineering Committee on Tenure and Promotion.
The committee, consisting of five elected faculty members from various undergraduate departments, conducts a rigorous process when evaluating applications, according to Ioannides. Its decisions, he said, can often have an "up or out" effect, as a professor who is not given tenure after six years will lose the designation of being a full−time faculty member.
Walters said that a display of books selected by the honored professors for having an impact on their professional careers is currently located in the library's lobby.
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