Tenure Year 4 Parameters
Year Four in the contract
Appendix D2 of the VCCCD–AFT agreement lays out expectations for each year of tenure review and says of itself that it "is not a rigid timeline" and that its list "is not all-inclusive." For the fourth year the text is a single line:
Further development of the areas previously listed.
The areas previously listed are those of the first three years: effective teaching and classroom management; participation in department and division meetings; professionalism and collegiality; involvement in campus governance through committee work; and professional growth that improves teaching, maintains currency in the discipline, or develops the faculty member professionally. Year Three named three of these specifically: continued development of subject expertise through conferences, workshops, or presentations; continued participation on campus committees; and continued development of classroom skills and the ability to work with a diverse student population. For the third contract, which covers Years Three and Four, the evaluation instructions add that all criteria are considered and the candidate is expected to be a fully participating member of the campus community.
The contract leaves the format of the portfolio open. The committee considers student evaluations, peer observations, and the candidate's portfolio together as the measures of how the criteria have been met.
Evidence by area
| Area | Year Four expectation | Pages in this portfolio |
|---|---|---|
| Teaching effectiveness | Continued effective, organized instruction, refined in response to earlier feedback | Teaching Philosophy · Student Evaluations · Committee Observation Feedback · Lab Quizzes · Tools I Tried |
| Professional growth | Continued development in pedagogy, technology, and the discipline | Professional Development · AI Integration · Math Readiness Initiative |
| Professionalism and collegiality | Participation in department and division work; constructive collaboration | Linked Lecture–Lab Coordination · Formal Peer Evaluation · Informal Evaluation and Mentorship · Chemistry Faculty Introduction Board |
| Service and campus governance | Committee membership and departmental initiatives | Distance Education Advisory Group · ZTC Initiative · A.S. in Chemistry Program Collaboration |
| Instructional materials | Course materials developed and maintained | CHEM V101 Lab Manual Renewal Project · CHEM V101 Experiment Video Reference Library · CHEM V104 Laboratory Demo Video Project · Lab Safety Video Project · CHEM V101 Lecture Demonstration · CHEM V101 Interactive Simulations · Sample Materials |
| Responsiveness to previous evaluations | Progress on areas identified in Years One to Three | Improvement Plan · Committee Observation Feedback ("Years 1 to 3 compared") |
| Reflection and planning | Goals for continued improvement | Self Appraisal · Fourth-Year Reflection · Improvement Plan |
The Year Four schedule
The committee set the schedule at its first meeting on September 4, 2026. The portfolio and the self-evaluation are due in week 12 of the semester, the week of October 26, and the full schedule is on the Timeline of Meetings page.