I. PURPOSE
- The Faculty Council of the College of Arts and Sciences was created to advise the Dean of faculty concerns. The Council will consider the concerns, notify the Dean of them, and recommend how they might be addressed.
- The Dean of the College (as an ex-officio member of the Council) shall receive minutes of all meetings. All Council communications must be sent through the Dean. The Dean will attend Council meetings as appropriate, and the chair will meet with the Dean on a regular basis.
- The Council, through its faculty representatives, shall keep the faculty informed of the time and place of meetings and of the agenda, and encourage them to use the Council as another means of communicating with the administration.
- The Council will function as a Curriculum Committee and a Committee on Grants and Awards and will appoint special committees, as directed in VII-C below.
II. ELIGIBILITY
- Voting Eligibility
All full-time faculty within each department of the College of Arts and Sciences are eligible to vote for their representatives to the Faculty Council.
- Membership Eligibility
Each department with fewer than twenty faculty shall have one representative on the Faculty Council, to be chosen from the full-time faculty, excluding the Department Head. Departments with twenty or more faculty will have two representatives. The Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences shall be an ex-officio member of the Faculty Council.
III. Elections
- Election Procedures
Specific procedures for election of representatives to the Faculty Council are to be determined by the individual departments.
- Time of Elections
Each department shall be notified by the office of the Dean to hold its election during the third week prior to the starting date of final exams each spring semester. Each newly constituted Faculty Council shall assume authority at the end of the examination period in the spring semester.
- Appeals
Appeals of the result of an election may be made by anyone eligible to vote. Such appeal must be made in writing within two weeks of the election and directed to the Faculty Council. The Council shall make a judgment as to the validity of the complaint and make its recommendation to the Dean of the College.
- Vacancy
If an elected member of the Faculty Council cannot serve a full term, the department concerned shall conduct an election among its members to fill the unexpired term.
- Absences
If a member is absent more than two times during an academic year, the Council shall recommend to the relevant department that the position be declared vacant and a new member elected.
IV. TERMS OF SERVICE
- One-half of the members of the Faculty Council shall be elected each year for two-year terms.
- Resignation
The resignation of a Faculty Council member shall be made in writing and sent to both the Chair of the Council and to the relevant department.
- Alternates
In the event that any elected representative to the Council cannot attend a meeting, that representative must choose another eligible faculty member from the same department to attend the meeting as an alternate. Said alternate shall have the same rights and privileges as the elected representative for that meeting. If an alternate cannot attend, an absentee vote will be acceptable.
V. OFFICERS
- The Chair of the Faculty Council shall be elected for a one-year term by the members of the Council at the first scheduled meeting of the Council. The Dean shall call the first meeting and preside until a Chair is elected.
- The Chair is responsible for communicating to the Dean all matters of faculty concern discussed by the Council.
- The Council may choose other officers as it deems necessary.
VI. MEETINGS
- Scheduled Meetings
At least two regular meetings will be held at announced dates during the academic year.
- Other Meetings
Meetings outside regularly scheduled meetings may be called by (1) the Dean of the College or (2) the Chair of the Faculty Council or (3) a majority of the members of the Faculty Council.
- A quorum shall consist of a simple majority--including the Chair.
VII. COMMITTEES
- The Council shall have the following:
Standing Committees:
- Curriculum
- Grants and Awards
- Merit Pay/Personnel
Special Committees
- (To be determined annually.)
- Committee Composition
All committee members shall be appointed by the Chair from the membership of the Council as a whole and approved by the Council as a whole.
- The Chair of each committee shall be elected from the membership of the committee.
- Every council member shall serve on at least one Standing Committee. No Council member shall serve on more than two Standing Committees during one academic year. Standing Committees shall be composed of at least 5 members.
- Role and Scope of the Standing Committees
- Curriculum Committee
- The purpose of the Curriculum Committee is to review all CAS curricular proposals for compliance with CAS and University criteria (as stated in the Guidelines for their submission.)
- The Committee shall request the Department Head (or representative) of the Department whose proposals are being considered to be available during the Committee hearing.
- The Committee shall make its recommendations to the Faculty Council while concurrently reporting recommendations to the Department Head. The Faculty Council will vote on the Curriculum Committee's recommendation at its next meeting, and the Faculty Council's report will be sent to the Dean. A thorough justification of any negative recommendation at the Committee and Council level should be presented to the Dean.
- Grants and Awards Committee
- The Grants and Awards Committee shall seek nominations and/or applications from all full-time CAS faculty for the annual CAS awards for
- Teaching, Research, and Service
- Faculty Development
- Faculty travel
- After review of said nominations/applications and selection of the recipients, the Committee shall report its recommendations to the Council as whole. The Council shall vote and make final recommendations to the Dean.
- Personnel/Merit Pay
- The primary function of this committee will be to review, along with the three Department Heads who will be selected by the Dean, the applications for college-wide Merit Pay. The committee will then recommend to the Dean recipients and levels of merit pay. This committee will work within the parameters of the guidelines for Merit Pay established within the College and will follow the procedures in place for determining merit.
- Special Committees
- The need for Special Committees of the Faculty Council shall be determined by the Faculty Council. Members of such committees shall be appointed by the Chair of the Faculty Council. Membership of Special Committees shall not exceed five. At the discretion of the Faculty Council, membership may include a maximum of two non-Council members to be selected from the full-time CAS faculty. No Special Committee shall exist beyond one year, unless reconstituted by the Faculty Council.
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