Submitted.
And now we wait.
On the Right Track
I just got an email today saying that my tenure track renewal got accepted!
Obviously that’s not as exciting as GETTING ACTUAL TENURE, but it’s good to know that a) my application was good enough to grant an extension should I need it, and b) now there’s, y’know, an extension in case of unusual circumstances that prevent me from actually applying for tenure next year.
This notification is also a lot earlier than the timeline said it would be (it says mid-May), but maybe they do the renewals at a faster rate than the actual tenures.
ALSO, I did a LOT of work to create my application packet; it will be the same things that I’ll need to submit for tenure (with some more info added, of course, based on what I’ve done this past year), so a big chunk of that work has already been done and I don’t have to worry about starting from zero in the summer.
YAY
*SCREECHES IN TENURE TRACK*
I submitted my tenure track renewal package today. If it gets approved, I’ll have an extra two years to apply for tenure beyond next August.
I don’t plan on delaying my tenure application past next August, but you never know what weird stuff could happen to require a delay.
So it’s a “just in case” sort of thing.
Anyway.
Up to the Date
SO.
Life update (kinda).
I just got off a Zoom meeting with our department head and it sounds like the best course of action for me this year is to apply for tenure renewal. I AM eligible to apply for tenure (though I’d be doing it a year early), but tenure renewal was suggested instead because:
a) if approved, it would add an extra three (?) years on my tenure track timeline, which means that if anything were to happen that would prevent me from applying for tenure next year (the last year I’m allowed to do so), I’d have an extra three years to apply without any sort of penalty.
b) I MAY be doing a brand new class next year, and it would be a class that would look really good on my application due to its uniqueness
c) the application for tenure renewal is exactly the same for tenure – cover letter, CV, and teaching dossier (the only difference is that when applying for tenure you have to also provide referees) – so it’s kind of like a “practice run” for the actual tenure application.
So yeah. I think I’m going to do that.
HAPPY LEIBNIZ DAY 2020, FOOLS!
So 2020 might suck in general, but July 1, 2020 does not suck.
Why?
Because it is the birthday of our savior Gottfried Leibniz, that’s why.
ALSO, today is the official start of my tenure-track position, so that’s coolio. Now I need to not screw up for the next three to four years and get some of that sweet, sweet tenure nectar.
So it’s a good day amidst all the madness I guess.
Edit: Oh my god, this remix.
*Ridiculously Excited Screeching*
OH MY GOD YOU GUYS.
OH MY GOD.
Let me tell you about my day today.
So as I’m sure you’re all aware (if you read my blog, at least), I am currently in a limited-term contract at the U of C, which I just got last August after being a sessional (semester-by-semester) instructor since 2016. This limited-term contract is good through this coming August (2020).
I’m sure you’re also all aware that my dream is to have this job as my career for the rest of my life, so I’ve been really trying to let the higher-ups know that I would basically do anything to keep teaching here.
Anyway, Alberta just made some huge cuts to education, which will affect the U of C in some sort of negative way. We’re not sure how bad it will be yet as the University has not yet released its new budget, but we know it will be a cut from what we’ve got going on so far.
So you can imagine that when our department head emailed me and said he wanted to talk to me today, I was immediately like “oh fuck, here we go, he’s going to tell me they can’t renew/extend my limited-term contract after August and he’s just giving me a heads up.”
Nope.
That’s not what happened.
Want to know what happened instead?
He said that they’re going to be converting my limited-term position into a tenure-track position.
A
TENURE-
TRACK
POSITION.
Do you know what that means? That means that I’ll be able to go up for a tenure review and possibly become a tenured professor. Tenure is basically the supreme job security level.
Tenure is permanence.
And they feel like I’ve earned the right to apply for it.
W H A T .
I don’t think I’ve completely wrapped my head around this yet. This is a huge step towards what I’ve been wanting ever since I started teaching back in 2012. This is the university basically saying “we like you and need you and have confidence in your abilities.”
This is a huge, huge deal to me.
I’m so freaking excited.
Eigenblogger 