Faculty Senate Handbook

Fourth Edition

1994-96

For current rules and procedures, please refer to Current Edition of Faculty Senate Handbook

FACULTY SENATE

FUNCTIONS

The functions of Faculty Senate are defined in the Governance Manual as recommending policy to the President "in such areas as curriculum, admissions and standards practices, educational programs, University organization, advisement and counseling, student affairs and matters of similar import". Senate is designated by APSCUF as the University curriculum committee specified in the CBA.

MEMBERSHIP

Each of the 30 departments elects one Senator and one or more alternates for 3-year terms. Elections are staggered so that 1/3 of the membership is elected each year.

MEETINGS

Meetings are held on the first and third Tuesdays of the months of the fall and spring semesters when classes are in session, 4 PM-5:30 or 6 PM. Additional summer meetings are held as necessary. Senate currently meets in Chryst Auditorium, where refreshments are served.

DISPOSITION OF SENATE ACTIONS

Regarding recommendations to the President of a routine nature (e.g., course approvals), if the President does not respond to Senate within 30 days the matter is tacitly approved. Recommendations of a more formal nature regarding external approval (e.g., new majors) require written transmittal from the chairperson and written response from the President.

The Provost places the Senate Action Summaries on the PAC agenda for informational purposes.

ORGANIZATION

OFFICERS

The Faculty Senate elects the chairperson, chairperson pro tempore, and secretary at the first meeting of each spring semester for one-year terms. Nominations are made from the floor. offices are assumed at the first meeting of the fall semester. The chairperson appoints the parliamentarian (Charles Scharnberger, 1994-95).

The chairperson (Don Eidam 1994-95) presides at Faculty Senate meetings; updates Senate-related parts of the Governance Manual; maintains membership rolls and election schedules for Senate and all committees for which Senate conducts elections; informs course and program proposers of approval progress; represents Senate at SPARC, Commencement Committee, Development Committee, Medal Fund Management Board, and Council of Trustees meetings and at Commencements; and performs other services requested by the Senate, President, and Council of Trustees. The chairperson receives 3 credit hours of released time each semester.

The vice chairperson (Susan Luek 1994-95) presides at Faculty Senate meetings in the absence of or at the request of the chairperson of the Faculty Senate and chairs the Joint Conference Committee.

The secretary (Marvin Margolis 1994-95) records the minutes, prepares the agenda, and audiotapes the meetings (these tapes are retained for a period of at least one year).

FACULTY SENATE COMMITTEES

ELECTIONS AND NOMINATIONS

Elections for committees are held at the first meeting of the fall semester, except for the chairs of University Honors Program and International Studies Curriculum Committees who are elected in the spring semester. Prior to the meeting the secretary distributes a list of committee members and the positions that need to be filled. Be sure to receive permission from your colleagues before you nominate them. Nominations are made from the floor. They may be seconded to show support, but a second is not required. When nominations are completed, the chairperson calls for a vote by ballot.

FACULTY SENATE STANDING COMMITTEES

Most of these committees have representation from the four academic units and from non-school faculty. All regular faculty (including regular part-time faculty) are eligible for nomination. the position of chairperson of a Faculty Senate standing committee, except for International Studies Curriculum Committee, can be held only by a senator. The terms of the chairpersons are three years.

See the Faculty Senate Standing Committee Annual Reports distributed to all faculty 5/94 for a description of the business conducted this past year. See the Governance Manual for membership composition and functions of committees.

The following is a list of standing committees:

(meets 4-5:30/6 PM on the second and fourth Tuesdays of the month). Current Chair: Colin McLeod.

(meets at 3 PM on the last Wednesday of each month and more often if needed). Current Chair: Fritz Erickson.

meets over winter break and at the beginning and end of the summer; appeals are generally heard over the course of two days for each of the three time periods).

Current Chair: Fritz Erickson

Current Chair: Susan Luek

(meets monthly). Current Chair: Olga Iglesias

Current Chair: William Dorman

Current Chair: Joel Piperberg

Current Chair: Edward Ottinger

Current Chair: Karen Brooks

Ad Hoc Committees may be created by Faculty Senate either from its own membership or from the University as a whole to consider or investigate matters of concern.

The only Ad Hoc committee currently active, the Faculty Senate Policies Review Committee, was appointed in Spring '93. Composed of 3 Senators, its charge is to review all policies in the Governance Manual regarding Senate (by-laws, functions, committee structure) and all Senate procedures, and to propose any changes deemed appropriate.

Committees Requiring Modification by Faculty Senate

A. Commencement Speaker Committee

B. Cultural Affairs Committee

C. University Judicial Board meets as needed

Committees Requiring Modification by the Administration Whose Membership is Appointed or Elected by Faculty Senate

A. Academic and Administrative Computing Advisory

B. Administrative Computing Advisory

C. Financial Aid Committee

D. Library Advisory Committee

E. Noonan Endowment Fund Committee

F. Honorary Degree Committee

FACULTY SENATE MEETING AGENDA

The following is a description of the current agenda model.


I.				Minutes--The chair asks for additions or corrections. Note is made of any. When the senators have completed their comments, the chair rules that the minutes stand approved as read/corrected.

II.				Chair's report.

III.				Student Senate President's report.

IV.				Administrators' reports--President, Provost, Associate VPAA, University vice-presidents, and other administrators.

V.				Standing Committee reports.

VI.				Other Committee reports

VII.				Faculty Emeritus Recommendations:

When a department wishes to recommend a retired faculty for faculty emeritus status to the Council of Trustees, the department faculty senator bring the recommendation to Faculty Senate. The motion to recommend is in written form with copies distributed in Faculty Senate. The motion is read during the Faculty Senate meeting by the department senator.


VIII.				Proposed Courses

New programs and oucrses are brought in under the three-meeting rule. They are presented by the chair of the Undergraduate Course and Program Review Committee. The purpose of the three-meeting rule is to allow sufficient time for all faculty to review proposed programs and courses. If they are not successfully challenged in three meetings, they are considered to be approved by Faculty Senate.

Existing courses that are requesting General Education designation as LA core, W, CQ, P, AW, Lab, or Qarc are brought in under the one-meeting rule. They are presented by the chair of the Undergraduate Course and Program Review Committee. If they are not successfully challenged in one meeting, they are considered approved by Faculty Senate.


IX.				Pre-Scheduled Agenda Items

These items, the corpus of the meeting, consist of those RTA'd or postponed at previous meetings followed by newly-proposed items. They are normally scheduled in "chronological" order, that is, in the order in which they were placed on the current agenda according to the records of the Secretary.

Proposals requesting Senate approval are placed on the agenda in two ways:

1) Committee chairs may present proposals from their committees at the time of their reports to Senate;

2) individual senators (including the chairperson and the APSCUF President--an ex officio member of Senate) may have a proposal placed on the agenda by contacting the Secretary by noon of the first Monday after the previous meeting.

Proposals from standing committees do not require a second; others do. In either case, 40 written copies of the proposal, its rationale, etc., should be made available prior to the meeting. Proposals are introduced but not normally voted upon at the first meeting, so that Senators are afforded time for consultation with their department.

It will sometimes be deemed appropriate for proposals, upon introduction or after discussion, to be referred to a standing committee such as the Academic Policies Committee or the Joint [Faculty/Student] Senate Conference Committee.

MINUTES

As the historical record of Faculty Senate deliberations, the minutes are utilized by the Offices of the Registrar, Academic Advisement, VPAA, etc., as an official resource for academic policies and curricular approvals. They are distributed together with relevant attachments, to all faculty, administration, staff, and Snapper and Student Senate representatives to Faculty Senate, as well as to all Trustees who wish to receive them. Indeed, Faculty Senate minutes constitute the most frequent periodic mailing to all faculty (not counting pay checks!).

RULES OF ORDER

Senate adheres to Robert's rules, with the exception of certain well-established local traditions, including: 1) the limitation of two speeches by a Senator on any one motion is not enforced; nor is the time limit of any one speech normally enforced; 2) non-Senators are afforded the same privileges; 3) the numerical tally of the results of elections is neither published nor announced. Normally everyone who wishes to be heard is recognized before anyone is heard for a second time, with the exception of obvious follow-ups. Senators are normally recognized before non-Senators.

New Senators are provided by the chair with a copy of Jones' Parliamentary Procedure at a Glance. The Senate parliamentarian may be consulted by all Senators; he/she serves the body, not the chair. His/her role is advisory only. The chairperson issues all rulings, which may be overriden by the body.

As labyrinthine as they are, yet Robert's Rules (704 pages in the ninth edition) sometimes constitute more a set of guidelines than of algorithms; and exceptions to a rule often have exceptions. Most motions are debatable and require a simple majority. the motions that follow are under normal circumstances exceptions:

NOT DEBATABLE				2/3 MAJORITY
Adjourn				Limit
Table				Previous question
Vote by ballot				Suspend rules
Previous question
Withdraw motion
Consider by Paragraph
Limit debate
Suspend rules

Date: 1 August 1994
From: Don Eidam, current chairperson

This handbook was edited by me and produced by Mrs. Nancy Kendig. It is current as of this date, and it will be updated every two years.

I now have the Governance Manual in Word for Windows 2.0b on my home and office computer; sections related to Senate and Senate actions will be continually updated. You may request from me a search and printout of any sections. For your own disk copy of the Governance Manual, contact Alfonso Pena in Public Relations.

For current rules and procedures, please refer to Current Edition of Faculty Senate Handbook

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