A new online tool is now available for University of Delaware faculty to create and store information related to their activities in teaching, scholarship and service.

UDAcademe is an accessible, secure portal that brings together material supporting all of the University’s various faculty reporting, evaluation and promotion and tenure (P&T) processes into a central cloud-based repository. At the same time, the system serves as a database for scholarly information and products such as published research, creative work and exhibitions, grants and contracts.

“UDAcademe will transform our appraisal systems and simplify the reporting process with a paperless workflow,” said John Sawyer, associate provost for institutional research and effectiveness and implementation leader for the system. “It was fully customized for UD’s campus governance systems, and its flexible tools can help meet the needs of each individual college.”

Starting in 2017, the system will be used campus-wide for the University’s faculty annual appraisal and planning process, promotion and tenure reviews, and peer reviews.

Developed by software firm Data180, UDAcademe was first introduced to campus in December 2014 as Faculty180. Since that time, 240 faculty members and department chairs piloted the system; 12 departments used it for performance appraisals last January, three departments for contract renewals in the spring, and three departments are currently piloting the P&T process.

"UDAcademe really streamlines the annual appraisal, two- and four-year review and tenure and promotion processes,” said Bahira Trask, professor and chair of the Department of Human Development and Family Studies in the College of Education and Human Development. “Once uploaded, deans and department chairs can easily access a faculty member’s activities and achievements and organize the information into the various required formats.”

The tool empowers faculty with control over their own data. Once the data is entered, users can repurpose it for different needs. The system also can give information back to users in the form of website and grant application bios, analytics and reporting tools.

“UDAcademe is a great way to organize your CV and promotional materials. Once you input the data, the system arranges your information in an attractive presentation form for whenever you need it, reducing redundancies and saving time,” said Susan Barton, associate professor and extension specialist in the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources.

User-friendly templates allow faculty to develop grant proposals, bios and current and pending reports. The system also provides a way to record grant activity and community engagement, helping provide an account of the University’s accomplishments.

“Among the University’s greatest strengths are our research contributions and public service, and yet we previously had no central place to document this activity,” said Matt Kinservik, vice provost for faculty affairs. “UDAcademe will help the University better gauge and tell the story of our service, economic and community impact.”

Built to interact with other sites, UDAcademe documents can be linked with a department’s public website, UDSpace and UDExperts, allowing faculty to share their expertise and accomplishments with other audiences. Users will also be able to import data from PubMed and Web of Science, Google Scholar and other reference management tools.

UDAcademe has been prepopulated with the following: faculty demographic information, office location and email address, title, academic rank and tenure status, scholarship data from Academic Analytics (2004-present), course data (spring 2010-present), course evaluation reports (spring 2016), and sponsored projects grants data from the UD Grants database. UD faculty annual appraisal forms, contract renewal and P&T dossiers, and their workflow process have been included as well.

The workflow process assures that only people with appropriate permissions can access and view a faculty member’s information. The same permissions that control access to human resources data control access in UDAcademe.

Online help

A UD website has been created, at www.academe.udel.edu, where users can access FAQs, instructions, tutorials and the system login. Faculty in need of additional assistance can get on-screen help within the system or request IRE staff to provide virtual or face-to-face training.

Faculty can log in to UDAcademe directly at www.udel.edu/academe using their UDelNet ID.

Questions or suggestions can be emailed to UDAcademe@udel.edu.

Committees

The UDAcademe implementation was guided by a task force comprised of faculty, staff and a variety of stakeholders representing colleges across campus. A governance board oversees institutional use and policy compliance and includes AAUP and Faculty Senate representation and University, college and departmental leadership. A working group composed of Institutional Research, Information Technology, and college administrative staff manages ongoing operations.