African Studies Association Women's Caucus
Advice for Members on the Job Market, in Non-Tenure Track Positions, and Undergoing Review
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In this moment, it is imperative that all members grow and work their professional networks. Work your network. Lean on people you know you can trust and/or who are outside your institution to talk through strategies and decisions. If you don't know where to begin in finding mentors, look into scholarly associations and their mentorship programs, such as those supported by the African Feminist Initiative and the Coordinating Council for Women in History.
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Seek out campus advocates and support. Does your school have a dean for diversity and inclusion? An office for faculty or graduate student development? Make connections with trusted senior faculty outside of your department.
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Mentors within and outside your institution can help you fine-tune and tailor a wide range of documents that are instrumental to building and safeguarding your career, including cover letters, book proposals, annual reviews, promotion and tenure files, and Covid-impact statements. Feedback from trusted colleagues within your institution is especially important for personnel reviews.
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Seek communal and emotional support. This will look different for everyone but be assured that none of us are carrying these loads on our own. Now it is more vital than ever to invest in practices, spaces, and people who renew and heal.
PANDEMIC IMPACT STATEMENT GUIDELINES
Best practices for writing your Covid impact statement
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Clemson. “COVID-19 Pandemic Impact Statements, 2020-2021 Academic Year,” March 16, 2021. [https://www.clemson.edu/provost/faculty-affairs/Documents/tpr_documents/facultycovidimpactstatement_document.pdf]
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Iowa State University. “Best Practices for Documenting the Impact of the Covid-19 Pandemic on Faculty Workload,” September 2020. [https://www.cals.iastate.edu/files/best_practices_documenting_covid_impact.pdf]
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Kansas State University. “Guidance for COVID-19 Impact Statements for Evaluations,” February 17, 2021. [https://www.k-state.edu/provost/about/fromtheprovostsdesk/fy2021/Taber-Markham-Message-Guidance-for-COVID-19-Impact-Statements-for-Evaluations-2-17-21.pdf]
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Rochester Institute of Technology. “Pandemic Impact Statements: Suggestions for Faculty,” n.d. [https://www.rit.edu/nsfadvance/sites/rit.edu.nsfadvance/files/docs/AdvanceRIT_EquityImpactsPandemic_FacultyTipsheet_FINAL.pdf]
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Susan Bulkeley Butler Center for Leadership Excellence. “Best Practice Tools: Documenting the Impact of Covid-19,” 2020. [https://www.purdue.edu/butler/documents/Best-Practices-Tool-1-Documenting-Impact-of-COVID-19-for-tenure-track-and-tenured-faculty.pdf]
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UMass Amherst: Advance Program. “Documenting Pandemic Impacts: Best Practices | ADVANCE Program,” n.d. [https://www.umass.edu/advance/documenting-pandemic-impacts-best-practices]
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University of California San Francisco. “COVID-19 Personal Statement and CV Guidance,” n.d. [https://facultyacademicaffairs.ucsf.edu/academic-personnel/academic-review-and-advancement/COVID-Personal-Statement-and-CV-Guidance.pdf]
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University of California Santa Barbara. “Guidance for Covid Impact Statement,” January 25, 2021. [https://ap.ucsb.edu/news.and.announcements/covid-19/2021-01-25_Guidance_for_COVID_Impact_Statement.pdf]
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University of Florida. “Promotion and Tenure COVID Impact Statement Guidance for Faculty,” February 18, 2021. [http://aa.ufl.edu/media/aaufledu/tenure-and-promotion/Guidance-for-faculty-impact-statement-final.pdf]
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University of Nebraska Lincoln. “COVID-19 Impact Statements,” n.d. [https://journalism.unl.edu/pdf/COVID%20Impact%20Statements.pdf]
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University of North Carolina Charlotte. “Pandemic Impact Statement for Annual Review,” December 22, 2020. [https://provost.uncc.edu/sites/provost.uncc.edu/files/media/Faculty%20Annual%20Review%20COVID%20Statement.pdf]
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University of Pennsylvania. “A Message to Penn Faculty: Pandemic Impact Statements,” February 23, 2021. [https://almanac.upenn.edu/articles/from-the-provost-and-vice-provost-for-faculty-a-message-to-penn-faculty-pandemic-impact-statements]
Institutional guidelines for Covid impact reporting and reviewers
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Case Western Reserve University. “GUIDELINES FOR EVALUATING COVID-19 IMPACT STATEMENTS IN PROMOTION AND TENURE REVIEWS,” n.d. [https://artscimedia.case.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2013/10/11112940/Provosts-Guidelines-for-Reviewing-Covid-19-Statement.pdf]
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University of Colorado Boulder. “Campus Actions to Support Our Faculty During the Pandemic: Guidelines for Faculty and Academic Leaders,” n.d. [https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Xf55ZUQdAvKlFRyqq6RvBCWEJgJnazaV]
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University of Essex. “Thesis Submission Guidance Covid Impact Statement | University of Essex,” n.d. [https://www.essex.ac.uk/student/postgraduate-research/thesis-submission-guidance-covid-impact-statement]
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University of Manchester. “Acknowledging the Impact of COVID-19 on Postgraduate Research Programmes,” n.d. [https://documents.manchester.ac.uk/display.aspx?DocID=50197]