ABSTRACT
Collaborative work, creative work, publications on administrative issues, textbooks, computer software—all are acceptable evidence of professional growth in the eyes of most upper-level administrators the author know. Ernest Boyer’s Scholarship Reconsidered calls for an overhaul of the notion of academic scholarship. Boyer begins by noting the renewed attention being paid to undergraduate education in institutions and the accompanying interest in good teaching. From the candidate’s perspective, the most crucial part of preparing for tenure or promotion review is building a strong, well-documented application; just as important, perhaps, is the process by which that application is evaluated. Some of the elements of the promotion and tenure review process at Ideal State University already exist in many English departments, and they could exist anywhere—given the right support and the right leadership. Individual cases for promotion and tenure must be made at the department level.
