Abstract
This article presents the results of a national survey that examined how colleges and universities evaluated artistic work produced by theatre faculty in promotion and tenure decisions. The study gathered responses from 304 institutions representing two year colleges, four year institutions, master’s level programs, and PhD granting universities. The authors document considerable variation in theatre curricula across institutional types and identify systematic differences in the availability of theatre degrees. The findings indicate that institutions lacked consistent procedures for assessing artistic work and rarely maintained written guidelines for evaluators. Many departments kept incomplete or irregular records of production evaluations, and the presence of systematic policies was strongly associated with institutional type. The survey also explored the relative importance of artistic accomplishment, publication, professional reputation, and off campus production activity. Analyses reveal that institutions weighted these criteria differently depending on degree level and program mission. A factor analysis identified eight dimensions that structure artistic evaluation practices, including professional orientation, colleague evaluation, institutional oversight, community response, student input, and the presence of systematic procedures. The article concludes that the evaluation of artistic work in theatre programs was highly decentralized and that clearer criteria and more consistent documentation were needed to support equitable personnel decisions.
Recommended Citation
Becker, Samuel L.; Gunkel, Geprge; Arbogast, Rebecca; and Sell, Lisette
(1985)
"Evaluating Art: Policies and Practices,"
Association for Communication Administration Bulletin: Vol. 53, Article 23.
Available at:
https://stars.library.ucf.edu/aca/vol53/iss1/23
