Current Status Bill Number:4718 Type of Legislation:General Bill GB Introducing Body:House Introduced Date:19980226 Primary Sponsor:Witherspoon All Sponsors:Witherspoon, Barfield, Easterday, Townsend, Jordan, Law, Limehouse, Bailey, Hawkins, Fleming, Battle, Meacham, Stille, Walker, Robinson, Miller, Carnell, Hamilton, Whatley, Trotter, Vaughn, Kinon, Dantzler, McKay, Davenport, Loftis, Littlejohn, Riser, Barrett, Rodgers and Harrell Drafted Document Number:gjk\21229sd.98 Residing Body:House Current Committee:Education and Public Works Committee 21 HEPW Subject:Faculty tenure at state-supported colleges and universities further provided for
Body Date Action Description Com Leg Involved
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House 19980408 Co-Sponsor removed (Rule 5.2) by Rep. Leach
House 19980331 Co-Sponsor removed (Rule 5.2) by Rep. Sandifer
House 19980226 Introduced, read first time, 21 HEPW
referred to Committee
View additional legislative information at the LPITS web site.
TO AMEND TITLE 59, CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, RELATING TO EDUCATION, BY ADDING CHAPTER 151 SO AS TO FURTHER PROVIDE FOR THE MANNER IN WHICH AND CONDITIONS UNDER WHICH TENURE AT STATE-SUPPORTED INSTITUTIONS OF HIGHER LEARNING IN SOUTH CAROLINA SHALL BE GRANTED.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. Title 59 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
Section 59-151-10. (A) The General Assembly finds that the practice of granting tenure to members of the faculty of state-supported colleges and universities is a long-established practice that hampers the ability of these institutions to adjust to changing conditions and needs.
(B) In the existing academic job market, the complete abolition of tenure would place South Carolina institutions at an unacceptable disadvantage in recruiting and hiring highly qualified persons for their faculties.
(C) Tenure should be reserved for a core faculty with a long-term commitment to the educational mission of particular state-supported institutions and should be awarded only to those persons who have demonstrated records of excellence in teaching such as are worthy of being permanent members of the faculty.
(D) State-supported colleges and universities should have flexibility in developing alternative arrangements for employing faculty by contract where there is no implicit or explicit commitment to persons employed under such contracts being eligible for tenure.
Section 59-151-20. Beginning in 2006, no member of the faculty of any state-supported institution of higher education in South Carolina shall be granted tenure unless that person shall have:
(1) a minimum of ten years of experience teaching at the college or university level in the subject matter in which they hold a faculty appointment;
(2) a documented record of excellence in teaching as evidenced by evaluations of students, alumni, and colleagues.
Section 59-151-30. As of January 1, 2007, the total number of tenured faculty at each state-supported institution of higher education shall not exceed either one-third of the mean number of all full-time teaching faculty for the most recent five years of that institution, or one faculty member for each one hundred full-time equivalent students of the mean enrollment of that institution for the most recent five years, whichever is lesser.
Section 59-151-40. Each institution shall develop explicit policies and procedures for awarding tenure and place written documentation of those procedures on file with the Commission on Higher Education by January 1, 2000. The university may incorporate into its policies plans to integrate research and service activities congruent with excellence in teaching outlined in Section 59-151-20.
Section 59-151-50. Any state-supported institution of higher education may contract with persons to serve on the faculty, providing that the terms of the contracts shall not exceed five years and contracts may be renewable with an annual review and rolling continuation or with incremental evaluation cycles selected by the university.
Section 59-151-60. No person holding a contract appointment on the faculty of a state-supported college or university shall acquire tenure automatically as a result of years of service.
Section 59-151-70. Each institution shall develop such policies for contract employment as are consistent with its mission, and such policies shall be a matter of public record.
Section 59-151-80. All tenured faculty of state-supported institutions of higher learning on the effective date of this chapter shall continue to hold their tenured status. If on January 1, 2007, in implementing the provisions of Section 59-151-30 an institution has too many tenured faculty, the institution shall come within the requirements of Section 59-151-30 through the process of attrition."
SECTION 2. This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.