Academy Chair Policy

The Academy of Medical Educators Endowed Chair Program is a portfolio of endowed chairs in education to support teaching excellence, educator careers, creativity, and dissemination. The intent of these term-limited chairs is to allow talented Academy members to expand their impact as educators at UCSF and beyond by providing a source of discretionary funding for the Academy members’ use.

Endowed Chair Program Goals

To support teaching excellence, career development, and professional identity as an educator for the chair holder and expand their impact at UCSF and beyond.
To help the chair holder develop the next generation of educators.
For the chair holder to serve as liaison between their department, the School of Medicine, and the Academy.
For the chair holder to use this discretionary income to pursue new “value-added” education work beyond specific roles in education, such as course or clerkship director.
To promote the AME values of community, diversity, advocacy, service, and innovation.

History

Guided by the vision of the former dean of the UCSF School of Medicine, Haile T. Debas, the Academy of Medical Educators facilitated the establishment of a portfolio of matched department- and Academy-based endowed chairs Academy Endowed Chair Program was launched in 2001

Twenty matched endowed chairs established with $250,000 from the School of Medicine’s Dean's Office and at least $250,000 in academic departmental funding
Three Academy-based chairs established with School of Medicine funds and philanthropy
One Academy-based chair that supports the Academy Director position established through philanthropy
More than $10 million has been committed to this program since its inception

Endowed Chair Appointment Process

Academy endowed chair holders are selected via a competitive search process and are appointed for a five-year term. To support the fair and equitable use of resources, most endowed chairs are limited to a single term.

Eligibility

Eligible faculty are identified as part of a pre-search process and included in the call for applications. UCSF does not use race, gender, sex or other protected categories or proxies for protected categories in the selection process.

Inclusion Criteria:

Be an AME member in good standing.
Uphold the Academy’s Principles of Professionalism in Health Professions Education
UCSF faculty appointment
- For matched endowed chairs, faculty appointment in that department.
Chair holders for whom a second term is available must re-compete with other eligible AME members and have a successful stewardship review of the first term to be eligible.

Exclusion criteria:

Academy endowed chair holders may not concurrently hold more than one chair.
Academic leadership positions such as department chair, or administrative positions such as associate dean or health systems leader.

Chair Holder Review

Each chair holder has a mid-term review in the third year of the five-year term and receives a summary statement of evaluation at its conclusion; this document will provide the chair holder with a sense of how well they are fulfilling the expectations of their department, the Academy, and the School of Medicine, and what goals might be achieved by the term's completion.

This review consists of the chair holder meeting with the Academy Director to discuss accomplishments, barriers and prepares the Academy Director to best advocate for full completion of proposed work. Subsequent to this meeting, the Academy Director meets with the Department Chair, where applicable, and Vice Dean of Education.

A fifth-year stewardship review is also required at the end of the chair holder’s term.

Renewal of Chair Holder Appointment

Renewal of appointment for a second five-year term requires a satisfactory fifth-year stewardship review and the concurrence of the director of the Academy, the vice dean for education, the vice dean for academic affairs, and the department chair, in addition to any approvals that may be required by the School of Medicine, Academic Senate, or campus Academic Affairs. Conditions for renewal of appointment include meeting the general expectations for Academy membership and departmental liaison for the Academy. The expectations of Academy members include participation in Academy administration and programs, continued excellence in teaching and educational activities, and attendance at Academy functions. Departmental liaisons are expected to meet periodically with their department chairs and with other Academy members in their departments to facilitate Academy support for all educators.

The appointment decision is generally made by March of the fifth year. This process is initiated by request of the Academy director and the department chair to the dean to appoint a stewardship review and search committee. This request is made in the Fall of the fifth year of the chair holder’s term and accompanied by a suggested list of the committee chair and members. The Academy director, the department chair, and the vice dean for education, or their designees, also serve on this committee. In late Winter the committee chair conveys recommendations to the dean regarding stewardship for the chair holder’s concluding term and for the new chair holder. Communications around this transition process require careful attention so that all stakeholders are timely informed, including unsuccessful candidates and the outgoing chair holder. The chancellor’s formal appointment letter to the successful candidate concludes the cycle.