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Merit Pay Distribution Plan for UMIACS Faculty

In compliance with the University of Maryland Policy on Faculty Merit Pay Distribution revised in May 2010, this document provides a merit pay distribution plan for tenured and tenure-track faculty in the University of Maryland Institute for Advanced Computer Studies (UMIACS). 

Merit Pay Committee 

A Merit Pay Committee, consisting of three faculty members, will serve to advise the Director on merit pay distribution. The Committee will be directly elected annually via secret ballot by the tenure-track and tenured faculty. Actual merit dollar distribution will be determined by the Director in consultation with the Committee’s evaluation of the Institute’s faculty. 

Insofar as possible, the Merit Pay Committee’s composition over a period of years will reflect the scholarly interests, gender and racial distribution of the Institute. A faculty member may not serve more than two consecutive years on the Committee. 

The Merit Pay Committee will evaluate and rank faculty accomplishments. This evaluation will give significant weight to contributions in research/scholarship/creative activity and service over the preceding three years. Measures to be used in this evaluation will include the quantity and quality of publications in refereed journals/conferences, success in acquisition of research funding, mentorship, level of service on institute and campus committees, and leadership contributions to external professional organizations, journals and conferences. 

Each year the Institute will provide the Committee with documentation of faculty achievements for the immediately preceding year. These documents will be retained by the Committee for at least three years, or until they are no longer to be used during faculty evaluations. 

For each year when merit pay is not available, the achievements of faculty members for that year will be taken into consideration during the next year in which merit pay is available. 

The Merit Pay Committee will certify that they have followed the Institute’s Merit Pay Distribution Plan, or will provide a rationale in any situations where they have deviated from the Plan. 

Director’s Responsibility 

The Director has the authority and responsibility to determine merit increases and merit dollar distribution, subject to the approval of the Dean. However, the Director will be advised in this endeavor by the Merit Pay Committee as outlined above. Merit pay will generally be distributed in dollar increments rather than as a percentage of salary.

The Director will report to the Merit Pay Committee his/her final salary recommendations.

Each year the Director will review the makeup of the Merit Pay Committee over the previous five years to assure that a reasonable representation of the faculty has been achieved, and if it has not, the Director will take appropriate actions to rectify the situation.

Each faculty member will receive a letter from the Director containing his/her new salary and the salary increase. The letter will identify in general terms the Merit Pay Committee’s evaluation of the faculty member and how this was used to assign the merit increase. The letter will inform the faculty member that he/she may request a meeting with the Director to receive an explanation of the merit pay decision. In some cases, this letter may be signed by the Director jointly with the Chair of the faculty member’s tenure home department and the raises may not be broken down by unit.

Faculty members have the right to appeal the merit pay decision via a formal letter to the Director.

The Director will evaluate the salary structure of the Institute annually and consult with the Dean to address salary compression or inequities that have developed in the Institute.

The Director will certify that he/she has followed the Institute’s Merit Pay Distribution Plan, or will indicate areas where deviations have occurred with a rationale.

Implementation

The three-year duration of faculty evaluations will be phased in over three years following the approval of this plan by the campus; this will permit accumulation of faculty achievement documentation.

Connect with UMIACS

Thank you for your interest in the University of Maryland Institute for Advanced Computer Studies (UMIACS). We invite you to explore our research, connect with our community, and stay informed about our latest work.

Explore Our Research

Learn more about our centers and interdisciplinary labs through the listings below.

Key Centers

Multidisciplinary Laboratories

  • Computational Linguistics and Information Processing (CLIP) Lab: Advances language technologies and linguistic science using large-scale data
  • Human-Computer Interaction Lab (HCIL): Pioneering research in user-centered design and human interaction with technology

Stay Informed

Connect With Us

We welcome opportunities to collaborate and engage. Select the option that best fits your interest:

  • Corporate Partners
    Explore partnership opportunities and ways to engage with UMIACS as a business or private-sector organization.
  • Government Agencies
    Discover how state and federal agencies can collaborate with our research community.
  • Media Inquiries
    Connect with faculty experts for interviews, commentary, and research insights.
  • Giving Opportunities
    Support UMIACS through private or corporate contributions.

General Inquiries

For all other questions, please contact us at info@umiacs.umd.edu.

Directions

UMIACS is headquartered in the Brendan Iribe Center for Computer Science and Engineering on the University of Maryland campus at 8125 Paint Branch Drive, College Park, Maryland 20742. UMIACS administrative offices and the director's office are located on the third floor. 

Iribe Center

The Brendan Iribe Center for Computer Science and Engineering is a stunning 215,000-square-foot state-of-the-art facility that encourages research, collaboration and innovation.

Metro 

The closest metro station to the University of Maryland campus is the College Park–U of MD station on the Green Line. A free UMD shuttle bus (104) takes passengers from the metro station to campus every 15 minutes. Get off at the very first stop on campus—the Glenn L. Martin Wind Tunnel Building—and walk two minutes to the Iribe Center.

D.C. Metro Map 104 Shuttle Bus Schedule
104 UMD shuttle bus

Parking 

The closest parking lot to the Iribe Center is located diagonally across the street next to The Hotel. Payment is accessible through the QR code signs on site, and costs $4 per hour or $15 per day. The closest visitor parking on the UMD campus is in Regents Parking Garage, which is about a 15-minute walk to the Iribe Center. Visitor parking starts at $3.45 an hour or $15 per day, and is accessible at pay stations or through the Parkmobile app. More Information on visitor parking at UMD is here. 

Regional Trains 

To reach the UMD campus via Amtrak, visitors can get off at the New Carrollton Metro/Amtrak Station and take the F6 bus to College Park. Amtrak also services Union Station in Washington, D.C., which is accessible via the red and green metro lines by transferring at the Fort Totten station. The MARC Camden line also stops at the College Park-U of MD station Monday–Friday during commute hours. 

Flying

Baltimore-Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport (BWI) is located about 30 miles north of the university. Driving time is approximately 45 minutes depending on traffic. A taxi would cost around $80. Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA) is located in Arlington, Virginia about 20 miles from College Park. Approximate driving time is 45 minutes depending on D.C. rush hour. A taxi directly from the airport is about $90. You can also take the Washington Metro from the airport. Board the Yellow Line toward Fort Totten/Greenbelt. The Yellow Line terminates at Convention Center stop, where you must exit and switch to a Green Line train toward Greenbelt. Washington Dulles International Airport (IAD) is located in Dulles, Virginia about 40 miles from College Park. Driving time is approximately one hour. A taxi will cost at least $100. The silver line goes from Dulles into Washington, D.C, where you will need to transfer to Green Line train heading toward College Park. Super Shuttle provides van service and discounts for more than one person traveling together. 

Policies

The operation of UMIACS is governed by a plan of organization, comprising a constitution and bylaws, as well as several policies related to the appointment, promotion, and evaluation of our members. Here we describe these policies, as well as the operational procedures and processes used by UMIACS to implement these policies.

Founding Document

The creation of UMIACS was approved at the campus level in 1984. The proposal to create UMIACS outlines the original vision for the institute to become "a focal point for new interdisciplinary in the computer sciences across the University campuses," to "facilitate collaboration between the University, industry, and the federal government," and to serve as "an educational resource to various academic departments."

Plan of Organization

The UMIACS plan of organization defines the high-level organization of the institute and outlines key decision-making processes.

Emergency Preparedness

The Emergency Preparedness page outlines institute and university guidelines and communication practices for COVID-19 prevention and disasters.

Expectations of Conduct for UMIACS Members

Throughout its 40+ year history, UMIACS has developed a collegial culture that values all members of the Institute equally, irrespective of academic rank or demographic characteristics. In order to promote and maintain this culture, which is a key enabler of the Institute's academic excellence, we hold all members of the Institute to the highest standards for professional and academic conduct.

Learn More

Diversity and Inclusion

We believe that diversity is a key prerequisite of scientific excellence, and that we can only achieve our full potential if all members of our community—irrespective of seniority and rank—are valued and supported.

Learn More

Center & Lab Policies

UMIACS administers and manages a number of sub-units ranging from federally funded centers and institutes to formal centers and academic programs, to informal laboratories or research groups. 

Center & Lab Policies

Professional Track (PTK) Faculty

The UMIACS Policy on Professional Track (PTK) Faculty establishes unit-level policies that comply with college and university-level guidelines for the appointment, evaluation, and promotion of PTK faculty. Further details are provided in the University of Maryland guidelines on the Appointment, Evaluation, and Promotion (AEP) of PTK faculty.

Tenure Track (TTK) Faculty

Hiring and promotion for tenure-track faculty are administered through their home department. For more information, you can review the University's hiring and promotion process for tenure-track faculty and title descriptions. The UMIACS Appointment, Promotion, and Tenure (APT) committee does not vote on tenure or promotion decisions for TTK faculty. However, the UMIACS director provides an evaluation letter containing a recommendation regarding tenure/promotion, letter that is added to the candidate's promotion package prior to the departmental vote. 

All TTK faculty appointments in UMIACS are time-limited and renewable upon favorable review by the UMIACS APT committee. The current criteria considered in this evaluation are described here.

In addition, all TTK faculty in the Institute are subjected to annual merit review according to the Merit Pay Distribution Plan for UMIACS Faculty. 

Services

Basic technical services that are available to all UMIACS faculty, postdocs, staff, and students:

  • UMIACS Help Desk support for faculty and their affiliated postdocs, staff, students, and external collaborators who have UMIACS accounts
  • UMIACS-hosted collaboration technologies such as GitLab and Wikis
  • Printing services
  • Physical and virtual network connectivity
  • Advanced technical services

The following are provided to UMIACS faculty and, depending on scope, may require additional financial resources to be identified:

  • Assistance in grant preparation: design of computational system, budget preparation, etc.
  • Assistance in purchasing of computational/technological equipment: negotiation with vendors, purchasing, etc.
  • 1TB storage in an object store (similar to AWS S3) for staging and sharing of data
  • Data backup services
  • Modern data center facilities

Business Office Services:

  • Pre-and post-award management of complex grants: including budgeting, proposal preparation, financial management, compliance, and reporting, etc.
  • Personnel management: appointments, benefits, visas, travel, etc.
  • Purchasing
  • Conference management: managing registrations, space scheduling, catering, etc.

Communications Services:

  • Developing well-written stories about research achievements and other newsworthy items and sharing them with college and campus communication groups
  • Pitching news items to local, national and international media and coordinating media interviews
  • Dissemination of news/research achievements through social media

Additional communication services that go beyond what can be supported by the Institute are also offered under a cost-recovery model:

  • Development of visual media such as photo shoots and video production
  • Creation of high-quality brochures or other printed materials
  • Assistance with the development of content for websites (note: only limited support provided contingent on the availability of communications personnel)

Climate Data Scientist Molina Joins UMIACS

As a former Fox News meteorologist turned data scientist, Maria J. Molina studies Earth’s changing climate with cutting-edge artificial intelligence.

Processes & Criteria to Evaluate Faculty

Professional Track Faculty

The review of professional track faculty takes place at their initial appointment, or whenever they request promotion to a different title. The process is outlined in the UMIACS Appointment, Evaluation, and Promotion policy for professional track faculty.

Core/joint Tenure Track Faculty and Adjunct/Affiliate Faculty

Except for a few legacy permanent faculty appointments, all faculty in UMIACS are evaluated when they request the renewal of their affiliation with the institute. All faculty with payroll appointments in the institute are also evaluated annually as part of the merit review process described in more detail below.

General Criteria for Evaluation

The primary mission of UMIACS is to foster and enable cutting-edge interdisciplinary research that is grounded in computer science and that addresses pressing scientific and societal challenges. In support of this mission, UMIACS is committed to fostering, on campus and beyond, a community that includes participation by people of diverse backgrounds, genders, identities, upbringing, and scientific knowledge. All faculty in UMIACS are expected to demonstrate strong scholarship, service to the institute, as well as to adhere to institute, campus, state, and federal regulations, policies, and laws. For more information about professional conduct expectations, see Expectations of Conduct for UMIACS Members.

Specific Criteria

The expectations from faculty are commensurate to the academic rank of the faculty involved. Appointments in UMIACS will be continued, if requested, if a faculty member’s activities and interests remain consistent with this broad mission. In concrete terms, the UMIACS APT committee will consider the following criteria:

  • Evidence of active positive engagement within the UMIACS community in support of the mission of the institute. Examples include active participation in standing and ad hoc committees, participation in UMIACS meetings and seminar series, active support and mentoring of junior members of our community, outreach on behalf of UMIACS to the broader scientific community, both on campus and beyond.
  • Evidence of scientific impact as measured through recent (prior 5 years) publications as well as overall publication record. Examples of concrete metrics include the quality of publication venues, number of publications, number of citations, etc.
  • Evidence of fundraising efforts, as measured through number and dollar amounts for awarded grants routed through UMIACS.

The expectation is that faculty will make major contributions in at least two of the three of the criteria described above. For senior faculty the evaluation specifically focuses on activities that demonstrate scientific leadership, such as serving as PI on major grant proposals, the organization of conferences and workshops, etc. Since the goal of UMIACS is to promote interdisciplinary research, the evaluation will specifically focus on publications and grants that include multiple faculty members from different fields, both from within and outside UMIACS and/or the university.

UMIACS appointments are only made or renewed at the request of the faculty member, and, in the case of joint appointments, with the explicit approval of the chair of the tenure home department. All appointments that entail a financial commitment from UMIACS are contingent upon an agreement between UMIACS, the tenure home department, and any other units in which a faculty member may have a payroll appointment. Such agreements usually specify the fraction of the 9-month salary, FTE contributed by each unit (note that the two fractions are not necessarily equal), as well as the proportion of credit and DRIF to be allocated to each unit for the externally funded projects associated with the faculty member. 

If the initial appointment occurs when a faculty member is hired into the university, the request for UMIACS affiliation is typically made by the candidate during the interview process, and the possibility of an affiliation with the institute is typically included in the offer letter and employment contract. The hiring department provides an application package for the faculty member that is then made available to the UMIACS Appointments, Promotion, and Tenure (APT) committee. 

A faculty member who is already appointed on campus must request a UMIACS appointment from the chair of their tenure home department as well as from the UMIACS director. The evaluation of the appointment may only proceed if both units agree to the financial terms described above. For faculty who are already members of UMIACS, during the last year of their appointment term, UMIACS will inform the chair of their home department that the appointment is ending and will invite the submission of a renewal package. It is the prerogative of the chair of the home department to decide whether to allow the joint appointment to lapse, or to forward the request for a renewal package to the faculty member. For initial appointments, the faculty member will provide to the UMIACS director a package that contains:

  • The recommendation/support of the tenure home department chair. For affiliate/adjunct appointments this item is optional.
  • A biosketch formatted according to the University of Maryland requirements covering the prior five years, or the period the candidate has been employed at the University of Maryland, if this period is less than five years.
  • A one-page statement outlining the faculty member’s proposed contributions to UMIACS during the period of their appointment.

The renewal package must include the following elements:

  • A biosketch formatted according to the University of Maryland requirements, or a confirmation that the faculty member’s information in the Faculty Success system is up to date for the preceding period of appointment in the institute.
  • A one-page statement outlining the faculty member’s contributions to UMIACS during the prior period of appointment.
  • A one-page statement outlining the faculty member’s proposed contributions to UMIACS during the future period of appointment.

For both initial and renewal appointments, the director of UMIACS will review the package provided by the faculty member and decide whether an appointment is warranted. If the director decides to proceed with an evaluation of the appointment, the director will forward the package to the UMIACS APT committee, which will then provide an independent assessment of the request. The UMIACS director will then make the final decision about the appointment based on the minutes of the APT committee meeting and the results of the secret vote taken at that meeting. In instances where an appointment is denied, the UMIACS director will communicate this decision to the faculty member requesting the appointment, and (in case of joint appointments) the chair of the tenure home department.

Initial requests for an appointment in UMIACS may occur at any time during the year and will typically be considered at the subsequent APT committee meeting, assuming a financial agreement (if necessary) has been completed between UMIACS and the tenure home department. UMIACS typically informs tenure home departments of appointments ending during the current academic year in the fall semester and evaluates renewal packages at one of several APT committee meetings during the spring semester. Decisions are typically communicated to faculty and their tenure home chair before the end of May. Most appointments are effective July 1, and typically extend for three years (assistant and associate professors with joint appointments as well as affiliate/adjunct appointments of all ranks) or five years (full professors with joint appointments).

According to the University of Maryland and UMIACS merit review policies all faculty with a paid appointment in the institute are reviewed annually. The review process proceeds as follows:

  • UMIACS faculty will elect a merit review committee, typically before the end of the prior academic year.
  • UMIACS faculty are invited to provide to the merit review committee and the UMIACS director information about their activities during the prior three years. This information may consist of an appropriately formatted biosketch or be provided through the Faculty Success system. An optional one-page statement may also be provided by each faculty member.
  • The UMIACS merit review committee reviews all faculty members according to the evaluation criteria described above, as well as additional criteria that may be requested by the UMIACS director to incentivize or reward certain activities supporting the mission of the institute. The merit review committee assigns each faculty member in one of five categories, ranked from 1 (low performance) to 5 (high performance) according to a rubric determined by the members of the committee. Members of the merit review committee as well as their relatives are excluded from the evaluation and are ranked by the UMIACS director according to the rubric created by the committee.
  • The chair of the merit review committee meets with the UMIACS director and presents the ratings as well as the rubric used in the evaluation. If necessary, the UMIACS director may request that the committee re-evaluate certain faculty, for example to correct inconsistent ratings.
  • The UMIACS director assigns ratings to members of the review committee and their relatives.
  • In years when merit funds are available, the UMIACS director, together with UMIACS and college financial administrators, assigns a dollar amount for each rating category. The merit pay amount received by each faculty member corresponds to the dollar amount associated with the rating they received, prorated by the percent of the 9-month salary contributed by UMIACS.
  • The UMIACS director informs the members of the merit review committee about the dollar amounts assigned to the different ratings and about any changes in ratings made by the director.
  • The UMIACS business office coordinates with the other units in which a faculty member is appointed to determine the overall merit pay, and a salary letter outlining the salary increase is prepared by the tenure home department and shared with each faculty member.

Appointment, Evaluation and Promotion

The University of Maryland guidelines on the Appointment, Evaluation and Promotion (AEP) of Professional Track (PTK) faculty provide transparency and accountability of rules, procedures, and processes; fair and equitable treatment of PTK faculty in appointment, evaluation and promotion; and meaningful inclusion of PTK faculty in the development and implementation of unit, College, or School policies and procedures.

The UMIACS Policy on Professional Track Faculty establishes unit-level policies that are compliant with college and university-level guidelines for the appointment, evaluation, and promotion of such faculty. Select the applicant's rank below to learn more about each position and see the table for which documents are required.

Title APT Vote Required? Signed & Dated CV Signed & Dated Professional Statement References Additional Documents
Assistant Research Scientist/Scholar/Engineer/Professor Y Y Y 3 including at least one that's external to UMD
Associate Research Scientist/Scholar/Engineer/Professor Y Y Y 3 selected by candidate; 3 selected by committee; at least one that's external to UMD
Senior Faculty Specialist Y Y Y 3 Evaluation by supervising faculty communicated to UMIACS director
Research Scientist/Scholar/Engineer/Professor N Y Y 3 selected by candidate; 3 selected by committee; including at least 3 external to UMD
Principal Faculty Specialist Y Y Y 3 including at least one that's external to UMD Nomination letter from UMIACS faculty member or mentor
Faculty Specialist N Y Y 2 Nomination letter from UMIACS faculty member or mentor; interview by supervising faculty member
Faculty Assistant N Y Y 1
Post-doctoral Associate N Y Y 1
All other PTK ranks N Y Y

Instructions for Professional Statement
 

The professional statement must document the candidate’s professional activities, administrative, and/or managerial responsibilities, productivity, creativity, and professional development, and (for research faculty) the research accomplished by the candidate and directions for future research. The statement must  specifically highlight collaborative and interdisciplinary activities within and outside UMIACS, such as collaborative grants and papers.

Contact

For general questions, please contact Elizabeth Hontz. 

For questions regarding financial accounts, contact Petra Zapf. 

For questions regarding payroll, contact Vivian Lu. 

If you are an international applicant, contact Yerty Valenzuela for additional requirements.

Center & Lab Policies

Several structures are organized within UMIACS with the goal of bringing closer together faculty and students with common research interests. These sub-units within the institute are created according to the University of Maryland Policy and Procedures for the Establishment and Review of Centers and Institutes. 

This policy outlines four types of structures:

  1. Institutes—formally-created entities intended to have a level of permanence similar to that of a department. UMIACS itself is such a structure; 
  2. Centers—formally-created entities that comprise multiple faculty, staff, and/or students in an area of specialized scientific focus; 
  3. Groups—informal collections of faculty with common research interests; 
  4. Externally-funded entities—entities created due to an external grant or contract. Confusingly, such structures could be named Centers, or Institutes, or whatever else either the principal investigator or the funding agencies decide, irrespective of their size or level of permanence. 

In UMIACS, some groups are referred to as “Laboratories,” with a prominent example being the Computational Linguistics and Information Processing Laboratory (CLIP Lab). The CLIP Lab is an informal structure that has, nonetheless, developed a long-lasting set of traditions and community spirit. Other groups or labs in UMIACS are typically smaller, involving just one or a few faculty members and associated students. 

Currently, UMIACS hosts two externally funded research groups: The NSF Grand Challenge Institute for Robust Quantum Simulation Institute (RQS), and the Center for Medical Innovations in Extended Reality (MIXR). UMIACS also hosts centers created jointly with external partners, such as the UMD-NIST Joint Center for Quantum Information and Computer Science (QuICS).

As outlined above, groups or labs are informal structures, and therefore, their operation, policies, and procedures are entirely at the discretion of their corresponding members, within, of course, the scope of UMIACS, campus, state, and federal regulations and laws. The organization and operation of the formally established centers within UMIACS varies from center to center and is largely defined by the founding document (the proposal submitted for approval to the campus), or by the proposal submitted to the external sponsor as well as by sponsor requirements, in the case of externally funded centers. As a result, the organization of the different centers within UMIACS varies.

There are, however, some commonalities. All formally established centers have an appointed director who is appointed by, and reports to, the director of UMIACS. In the case of externally funded centers, the principal investigator of the project typically serves as the director.

All centers and major laboratories within UMIACS also have developed a culture of collaboration among their members, and most decisions that impact the centers or laboratories are taken collaboratively by their core faculty, even if the director of the center has substantial latitude in decision making.

We typically distinguish between two types of center affiliations: core faculty, and affiliate faculty. 

The core faculty are those UMIACS faculty members who are the primary members of the center, and are the most engaged in, and responsible for the success of the center. Typically, a group of core faculty members is identified at the creation of the center, however new core members may be added later, as described in more detail below. 

Most of the privileges (e.g., access to center resources) and responsibilities associated with membership in a center are reserved for the core members of the center, who must all also be joint members of UMIACS unless otherwise described in the center's founding documents. It is typically assumed that the core members’ research activities are primarily associated with the center. 

The primary metrics used to evaluate the productivity of centers and to make financial determinations (such as assigning DRIF credit) are restricted to the activities of the core faculty members of each center. Affiliate members of a center are faculty who have a general affinity with the center’s faculty and scientific mission, but whose primary activities take place outside of the center. All faculty members affiliated with UMIACS centers must also be affiliate or adjunct members of UMIACS, and are, therefore, subject to the review of the UMIACS APT committee. 

The first step toward joining a UMIACS center is to develop a relationship with the faculty in the center and with the center’s director. Appointments (core and affiliate, alike) within a center assume a mutually beneficial relationship between the center and each of its members. 

Once a candidate and the current core members of the centers agree that membership in the center is desired, the process for establishing the appointment depends on the nature of the appointment and the candidate's situation, largely as follows:

  •  Faculty member with a joint appointment in UMIACS seeking core membership in a center. The appointment can be directly made at the discretion of the center director and faculty, according to relevant center policies or norms. A faculty member may only be a core member of one UMIACS center.
  • Faculty member with an affiliate, adjunct, or joint appointment in UMIACS seeking affiliate membership in a center. The appointment can be directly made at the discretion of the center director and faculty, according to relevant center policies or norms.
  • Faculty member who does not have a joint appointment in UMIACS seeking core membership in a center. The faculty member must request and receive a joint appointment in UMIACS prior to seeking membership in the center. Learn more about the process for joining UMIACS.
  • Faculty member who does not have an affiliation in UMIACS seeking affiliate membership in a center. The faculty member must request and receive an affiliate, adjunct, or joint appointment in UMIACS prior to seeking membership in the center 

UMIACS Organization Plan

PDF Version

I. PREAMBLE

  1. The University of Maryland Institute for Advanced Computer studies was created in 1985 based on the recommendation of the University of Maryland President's Advisory Council for Graduate Studies and Research. The stated goal of this recommendation was: "The institute will provide a framework for support of numerous existing computer-related research activities within the University; in collaboration with the relevant academic departments, it will serve as a focal point for new interdisciplinary research in the computer sciences across the University campuses. The institute will facilitate collaboration between the University, industry, and the federal government and will help attract new high technology industry to the State."

  2. At a retreat in March 2023 and subsequent faculty discussions, UMIACS adopted the subsequent mission and vision statements, consistent with the initial vision that led to the creation of the Institute. 

    Mission: The mission of UMIACS is to catalyze, support and sustain collaborative and interdisciplinary computing-focused research, scholarship and innovation through crosscutting teamwork and stellar technical and administrative support. 

    Vision: By deeply engaging researchers with a diversity of perspectives and backgrounds, UMIACS aspires to be a leader in high-impact scientific innovations that expand the boundaries of computing research and benefit our campus, the state of Maryland, and beyond.

  3. Adoption and any subsequent amendment of the Constitution require approval by the Institute Assembly, followed by approval by the College Council.
  4. In case of any conflict or inconsistency of this Plan of Organization, including amendments, with duly established and announced rules of the College or University, the latter shall govern.

II. ORGANIZATION

UMIACS Director

  1. The Director is the chief administrative officer of the Institute and has those responsibilities and powers assigned by the College and the University. The Director is appointed by the University for a term not to exceed five years. The Director may be renewed for a second consecutive term after a satisfactory review conducted by the dean of the college within which UMIACS resides. The Director may not serve for more than 10 consecutive years. All key units with constituencies in UMIACS will provide input and feedback on the selection of the UMIACS director.
  2. If a candidate is not a tenured faculty member of the University in a unit, a recommendation as to tenure by the appropriate academic department faculty also shall be made.

Institute Assembly 

  1. The Assembly is the deliberative body of the Institute. It may consider any matter affecting the Institute or its members. It is responsible for its own organization, meetings, and elections.
  2. The following are members of the Assembly, each member having one vote:
    1. all professional track and tenure track faculty who have at least a 25% appointment in the Institute;
    2. the Institute's Director;
    3. such other persons as the Assembly may admit;
    4. one representative of the staff elected by the staff.
  3. All new or renewed appointments of tenure-track faculty in the Institute are limited to at most 5 years. Appointments may be renewed.
  4. Meetings: The Assembly shall meet no less than once during each semester of the academic year.

  5. Standing committees: The standing committees of the Assembly shall include Appointment, Promotion and Tenure (APT), Steering, and Merit Review. The Director, or their designated representative, is an ex-officio voting member of all standing committees. 

    At the beginning of each academic year, the Director shall provide a charge to the standing committees. The charge shall include the expectation that each committee report on their activities to the Assembly during one of the meetings of the assembly and expectations for those reports' content. 

  6. Appointment, Promotion, and Tenure (APT) committee The APT committee advises the Director regarding the appointment and reappointment of faculty in the Institute. The APT committee will be elected by the Assembly before the academic year ends. The committee comprises seven tenure-track faculty members and one professional track faculty member (if available). All elected members of the APT committee must be UMIACS faculty with at least a 25% appointment in the Institute. 

    Each member of the Assembly will be given a slate of eligible candidates and asked to vote for up to 14 candidates (twice the number of seats available) that they find acceptable to be members of the APT committee. 

    Four out of the seven tenure-track members of the APT committee will be those who receive the highest number of acceptable votes, distributed as follows: 2 Professor; 1 Associate Professor; 1 Assistant Professor. The professional track faculty member (if available) with the highest number of votes will also be selected. To pick the remaining three candidates, the following procedure is followed. All candidates get pooled in a partially ordered list, sorted descending by votes. Going down the list, pick the first candidates to fill one remaining slot each for Professor, Associate Professor, and Assistant Professor ranks, and ensure that at least three home departments are represented in the full committee. Ties will be broken at the discretion of the Director.

    The chair of the APT committee will be selected by the Director from the members of the committee with the rank of Professor. 

    For appointments to the ranks of Assistant Professor, Assistant Research Scientist, and equivalent research faculty ranks, as well as for Adjunct and Affiliate appointments at all ranks, all members of the committee may discuss and vote. 

    For appointments to the rank of Associate Professor, Associate Research Scientist, and equivalent research faculty ranks, only APT committee members with the rank of Associate Professor, Associate Research Scientist, Professor, Research Scientist, and equivalent research faculty ranks may discuss and vote on cases. For appointments to the rank of Professor, Research Scientist, and equivalent research faculty ranks, only APT committee members with the rank of Professor, Research Scientist, and equivalent research faculty ranks may discuss and vote on cases.

  7. Steering committee: The Steering committee advises the Director. The Committee should meet at least once each semester to discuss programmatic issues, recruiting, budgets and other areas of interest. A staff person, appointed by the Director, will be present to take minutes available to all UMIACS faculty. The Steering committee will be elected by the Assembly before the academic year ends. 

    Each member of the Assembly will be given a slate of eligible candidates and asked to vote for up to 12 candidates (twice the number of seats available) that they find acceptable to be members of the Steering committee. 

    The members of the Steering committee will be selected by the Director on the basis of the highest number of votes as acceptable, subject to satisfying the following requirements. The Steering committee comprises six members, at least three at the rank of Professor or equivalent. The members of the committee shall represent faculty with primary appointments in at least two different departments and can include members of the professional track faculty. 

    The chair of the department with the highest representation in the Assembly is an exofficio member of the Steering committee.

  8. Merit review committee: A Merit Review committee, consisting of three faculty members, will serve to advise the Director on merit pay distribution. The Committee will be directly elected annually via secret ballot by the tenure-track and tenured faculty. A faculty member may not serve more than two consecutive years on the Committee. 

    Each member of the Assembly will be given a slate of eligible candidates and asked to vote for up to six candidates (twice the number of seats available) that they find acceptable to be members of the Merit Review committee. 

    Insofar as possible, the Merit Review committee composition over a period of years will reflect the diverse composition of the Institute. Each year the Director will review the makeup of the Merit Review Committee over the previous five years to ensure that a reasonable representation of the faculty has been achieved. If necessary, the Director will modify the composition of the committee to rectify the situation subject to the approval of the Steering Committee. The Director should consider how diversity requirements for committee membership can disproportionately burden diverse faculty, who, relative to their colleagues, often face increased service work demands from their department and scholarly community that do not benefit their own careers.

  9. The Director and/or Assembly may assign duties other than the above to any of the standing committees and may create ad hoc committees other than the standing committees.

III. PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY 

The rules in the current edition of Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised shall govern the Plan in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with the Plan, with applicable regulations of the University of Maryland, and with any special rules of order that may be adopted by the Assembly.

IV. PROCEDURE FOR AMENDMENTS 

The plan of organization (sections I-IV) may be amended by the Assembly by a two-thirds vote, provided that the text of the proposed amendment shall have been submitted to the membership at least two weeks in advance of that meeting. The vote may take place during a meeting of the Assembly or may be submitted electronically within 24 hours of the conclusion of the meeting. A quorum is necessary, i.e., two thirds of the current members of the Assembly with at least a 25% appointment in UMIACS must ratify any amendment. Amendments to the plan of organization must also be approved by the College Council. 

The bylaws (section V) may be amended by the Assembly by a majority vote, provided that the text of the proposed amendment shall have been submitted to the membership at least two weeks in advance of that meeting. The vote may take place during a meeting of the Assembly or may be submitted electronically within 24 hours of the conclusion of the meeting. A quorum is necessary, i.e., one half of the current members of the Assembly with at least a 25% appointment in UMIACS must ratify any amendment.

V. BYLAWS

Tenure

As an Institute, UMIACS does not grant tenure. In the case of joint appointments of tenure-track faculty with the Institute, decisions related to academic promotion and tenure are the responsibility of the tenure home department. In such cases, the Director shall provide the tenure home with a letter providing a recommendation regarding the promotion based on the faculty member's contribution to the Institute, a letter that shall be added to the promotion dossier.

Initial Appointment in the Institute of Tenure Track Faculty Members

A request for appointment in the Institute must include, in writing, the following documents:

  • An approximately one-page statement justifying the request, highlighting the proposed contributions of the faculty member to the Institute’s mission (as specified where);
  • A support letter from the chair of the tenure home department;
  • A signed and dated CV (preferably in the official University of Maryland format) or a signed certification that the information available in the Faculty Success system is up to date. For new university hires, the statement justifying the request should preferably be written by the appointee, but it need not be (for example, a justification accurately reflecting the candidate’s intent that is written by the Director of UMIACS or by the chair of the tenure home department); and the CV from the appointee’s application packet, formatted as-is, is acceptable. 

In case the Director determines that the appointment is in the best interest of the Institute, and financial resources are available to support the joint appointment, the Director shall ask the APT committee to review the request in accordance with the UMIACS criteria for appointment and promotion. 

The APT committee vote is advisory to the Director. In case the Director makes a decision contrary to the vote of the committee, the Director shall inform the committee members and provide a justification. 

The Director formally presents the final decision to the faculty member and to the chair of the tenure home department. The APT committee’s vote count is not made available to either the faculty member or tenure home chair.

Initial Appointment in the Institute of Affiliate or Adjunct Faculty Members (No Cost Appointments)

A faculty member seeking appointment in the Institute must submit, in writing, the following documents: 

  • A one-page statement justifying the request, highlighting the proposed contributions of the faculty member to the Institute’s mission;
  • A signed and dated CV in the University of Maryland Format, or a signed certification that the information available in the Faculty Success system is up to date.

In case the Director considers that the appointment is in the best interest of the Institute, the Director shall ask the APT committee to review the request in accordance with the UMIACS criteria for appointment and promotion. 

The APT committee vote is advisory to the Director. In case the Director makes a decision contrary to the vote of the committee, the Director shall inform the committee members and provide a justification. 

The Director formally presents the final decision to the faculty member. The APT committee’s vote count is not made available to the faculty member.

Renewal Appointment in the Institute of Tenure Track Faculty Members

During the final year of appointment of a joint faculty member, the UMIACS director shall inform the chair of the tenure home department and request a reappointment package containing the following documents: 

  • A one-page statement justifying the request, highlighting the proposed contributions of the faculty member to the Institute’s mission;
  • A one-page statement describing the faculty member’s contributions to the Institute during the prior period of appointment.
  • A support letter from the chair of the tenure home department;
  • A signed and dated CV in the University of Maryland format, or a signed certification that the information available in the Faculty Success system is up to date. 

In case the Director determines that the appointment is in the best interest of the Institute, and financial resources are available to support the joint appointment, the Director shall ask the APT committee to review the request in accordance with the UMIACS criteria for appointment and promotion. 

The APT committee vote is advisory to the Director. In case the Director makes a decision contrary to the vote of the committee, the Director shall inform the committee members and provide a justification. The Director formally presents the final decision to the faculty member and to the chair of the tenure home department. The APT committee’s vote count is not made available to either the faculty member or tenure home chair.

Renewal Appointment in the Institute of Affiliate or Adjunct Faculty Members (No Cost)

UMIACS will notify affiliate and adjunct faculty members whose appointments are ending with sufficient lead time for them to be reappointed without a gap. A faculty member seeking re-appointment in the Institute must submit, in writing, the following documents: 

  • A one-page statement justifying the request, highlighting the proposed contributions of the faculty member to the Institute’s mission;
  • A one-page statement describing the faculty member’s contributions to the Institute during the prior period of appointment.
  • A signed and dated CV in the University of Maryland Format, or a signed certification that the information available in the Faculty Success system is up to date. 

In case the Director considers that the appointment is in the best interest of the Institute, the Director shall ask the APT committee to review the request in accordance with the UMIACS criteria for appointment and promotion. 

The APT committee vote is advisory to the Director. In case the Director makes a decision contrary to the vote of the committee, the Director shall inform the committee members and provide a justification. 

The Director formally presents the final decision to the faculty member. The APT committee’s vote count is not made available to the faculty member.

Visiting Appointments (No Cost)

The appointment of visiting faculty is at the discretion of the Director. Such appointments are made for one year and may be renewed in exceptional circumstances for an additional year. After an initial visiting appointment, faculty seeking a longer-term appointment in the Institute must apply for a joint, affiliate, or adjunct appointment.

Other Appointments

If the Director desires to make appointments in the Institute that deviate from the UMIACS criteria for appointment and promotion and/or from the procedures outlined above, a special meeting of the APT committee can be scheduled.

Merit Review

The Institute’s procedures and criteria for assigning merit pay are detailed in the Merit Pay Distribution Plan for UMIACS faculty. This plan shall be reviewed by an ad hoc committee no less frequently than once every 5 years. Any proposed changes to the plan must be approved by a vote of the Institute’s Assembly.

Meetings

The Director will schedule monthly meetings of the Assembly during the academic year.

Election for Standing Committees 

Members of standing committees will be elected before the end of each academic year effective at the start of the following academic year.

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