Emeriti Faculty

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The awarding of Emeritus status at Indiana University is an honor, designating a retired faculty member as having led a distinguished professorial career and made significant contributions to the university.

Emeriti privileges 

If you’ve been awarded Emeritus status, we welcome you as a valued and vital member of this academic community. Our hope is that you will continue on in your scholarly and creative activities by utilizing the benefits that come along with your new membership at the Emeriti House.

Read about all IU Retiree status benefits at Human Resources.

Emeritus status eligibility and procedures

In alignment with ACA-45 and ACA-A1, the “unit and appropriate administrators” must put forward a recommendation for the emeritus title to be conferred to a retiring faculty member or librarian. Given this, the process entails the following steps:

  1. A retiring faculty member or librarian should indicate to the principal administrator their desire to apply for emeritus status.
  2. The written recommendation should highlight the retiring faculty member’s or librarian’s performance and “past service” (BL-ACA-A8) to the university and the profession, focusing on "academic functions consistent with the individual's academic appointment classification prior to retirement" (BL-ACA-A1).
  3. The final recommendation should be submitted by the retiring faculty member’s Dean or equivalent to the VPFAA via email, vpfaa@iu.edu.
  4. The VPFAA and Provost review the recommendation and make a recommendation to the Board of Trustees.
  5. Final approval rests with the Board of Trustees.

The Emeritus title can be extended on the retirement eDoc if approval has been received, or it can be processed at a later date.

Commonly asked questions regarding Emeritus status

ACA-45 (Emeritus Status), BL-ACA-A1 (Academic Appointments), and BL-ACA-A8 (Status and Privileges of Retired Faculty Members and Librarians).

The Emeritus title is an academic appointment that may be conferred upon those retiring faculty members and librarians upon recommendation “…by the unit and appropriate administrators and approved by the Board of Trustees” (see, BL-ACA-A1 and ACA-45). The Emeritus title is characterized as an “honorary title”, wherein “honorary appointments are given to those not employed within the University who render service to the University’s mission in a manner that justifies the recognition of an honorary title” (BL-ACA-A1). This appointment is “in part recognition for their [emeritus faculty members and librarians] past service” and “intended to encourage emeriti contributions to the intellectual life of this academic community” (BL-ACA-A8).

All faculty members and librarians who are intending to retire can apply for emeritus status. Emeritus status does not necessarily require a faculty member or librarian to be eligible for IU Retiree Status.

The Emeriti House

At the Emeriti House, you can expect a constant rotation of visiting lecturers, musical performances, cultural activities, and more. You’ll also have special access to university grants and funding, campus and city bus services, and software and hardware.

The Emeriti House is available to and welcomes all emeriti faculty and librarians of IU, including widows and widowers, spouses, partners, and guests.

Learn about other emeritus faculty members

Learn more about current and former emeriti faculty by visiting the Archives of Institutional Memory. You can read biographies of faculty and librarians dating back to 2005.