Procedure 507.1.1

PROCEDURE TO ENHANCE CONFIDENTIALITY AND ANONYMITY IN ADMINISTRATORS REVIEW SURVEYS
(Proposal 16-14)
(Proposal 8-16)
(Proposal 28-16)

Senate Procedures 507.1.1

 

I. Background
This procedure formalizes the steps for conducting survey and reappointment ballots during a
department chair/school dean review. The procedure is designed to enhance the security,
confidentiality, and anonymity of the review process.

The procedure requires the unit’s review committee to give its survey instruments and its list of
constituents (in electronic form) to the University Senate’s administrative assistant, who will then
use a secure, online tool to conduct the constituent survey and an electronic ballot for the unit,
and then deliver the results back to the review committee.

Several electronic survey and balloting tools are available. Because the intent of this procedure
is to improve the process, no particular tool is recommended. Hence, the University Senate’s
Administrative Policy Committee should select the best available tool with the advice of experts
in Michigan Tech’s information services. All efforts should be made to ensure the anonymity of
the respondents. For example, the tool shall not record the computer identity (name, MAC
address, IP address, etc.) of the respondents.

II. Procedure for Survey Conducted with Senate Assistance
1. The unit chair/dean review committee will design the survey instrument and prepare the unit
constituents’ email address list in electronic form. If faculty and staff are to be surveyed
separately then two lists, one for the faculty and another for the staff, must be submitted. The
unit review committee will also submit the email list of all the members of the unit review
committee, identifying its chair and the external member. The survey instruments for faculty and
staff can be different (Senate Procedure 506.1.1).

2. The unit chair/dean review committee will submit the constituent email list and survey
instrument to the Senate administrative assistant at least ten working days before the conduct
of the survey.

3. The Senate administrative assistant will prepare an electronic survey instrument following the
design intent of the unit’s review committee. Comments for questions will be collected
separately from likert-scale responses.

4. Within five working days from the submission date, the Senate administrative assistant will
send a copy of the survey instrument to all members of the unit’s chair/dean review committee
for final approval. The chair of the unit’s review committee will inform the Senate administrative
assistant of any changes to the survey instrument and will specify the start date for the survey.

5. On the specified start date, the Senate administrative assistant will send eligible constituents
an email message with a link to the online survey, and the survey will remain open for seven
calendar days.

6. The Senate administrative assistant will send the results of the survey to the chair of the
unit’s chair/dean review committee and the external member of the committee. These two
members will acknowledge to the Senate administrative assistant the receipt of the results, after
which the administrative assistant will purge all responses from the online survey tool within five
working days. The Senate administrative assistant will update the survey instrument posted on
the Senate website for future use by the Michigan Tech community.

III. Procedure for the Reappointment Ballot Conducted with Senate Assistance

1. The chair of the unit’s chair/dean review committee will notify the Senate administrative
assistant to conduct the ballot for reappointment via an online survey tool.

2. The Senate administrative assistant will conduct the ballot within two working days of the
notification. The balloting will remain open for five working days.

(Name of department chair/school dean) should be reappointed or continue as the chair of the
department/school:
Yes — No — Abstain —

4. The Senate administrative assistant will email the results to the chair of the unit’s chair/dean
review committee and the external member of the committee within two working days of the
conclusion of the survey. The chair of the chair/dean review committee will acknowledge to the
Senate administrative assistant receipt of the results, after which the administrative assistant
will purge all responses from the online survey tool within five working days. The results should
record the number of electronic ballots sent out, the number of votes received, and the
breakdown of the number of votes received (Yes, No, and Abstain).

IV. Entry Page of Survey/Ballot

The entry page for the survey/ballot should read as follows:

“This survey/ballot is being conducted by the University Senate on behalf of [department/school
name] in review of [administrator name, administrator’s title]. No identifying information
(computer name, user name, computer IP or MAC addresses, etc.) is stored. All comments are
stored in a common bin; hence, no pattern can be discerned from your responses. At the end of
survey/ballot, the results will be sent to the chair and external member of the [chair/dean] review
committee of your [department/school], and all survey records will be purged.”

[Insertion of any additional information requested by the unit review committee may follow.]

 

 

Proposal 16-14:
Introduced to Senate: 22 January 2014
Amended by Senate (in red): 05 February 2014
Approved by Senate with amendment: 05 February 2014
Approved by Administration with editorial change (in blue): 24 February 2014

Proposal 8-16:
Introduced to Senate: 4 November 2015
Approved by Senate: 18 November 2015
Disapproved by Administration (offered editorial changes): 01 February 2016
Administration offered new recommendations: 21 March 2016
Motion submitted by Saeid Nooshabadi: 23 March 2016
Revised Response from Administration: 25 March 2016
Motion was tabled: 06 April 2016
New recommendations offered by Administration was tabled: 06 April 2016
Senate approved new recommendations: 20 April 2016

Proposal 28-16:
Introduced to Senate: 21 March 2016
Approved by Senate: 06 April 2016
Approved by Administration: 21 April 2016