Faculty Senate

Faculty Senate

The Faculty Senate shall consist of the chair, vice chair, a representative for contingent faculty elected by all contingent faculty who are contracted when the election is held and two representatives each elected by the members of the College of Health Professions, the College of Liberal Studies, the College of Natural Sciences, and the College of Professional Studies.  All members have the right to voice and vote in the senate.

Advisory members shall consist of the president, the provost, and the chairs of faculty standing committees.  These advisory members shall have the same rights and privileges as any other member of the senate except the right to make motion and to vote.

Specific duties of the Senate:

1. To conduct the regular business of faculty governance.
2. To express faculty sentiment on appropriate occasions.
3. To collaborate with, support, and consider recommendations from faculty standing committees.
4. To advise the administration of the university and express faculty concerns and interests regarding the allocation of funds in the budget.
5. To make recommendations to the administration regarding future directions and policies of the university.
6. To formally report to the faculty concerning all senate activities and all matters of faculty interest, including the activities of those designated organizations on which faculty representatives have been appointed by the senate.
7. To review and make recommendations to the faculty regarding all proposals for the establishment of ad hoc faculty committees and other ad hoc committees involving faculty membership and which transcend division or school lines, including joint faculty-student or faculty-administration committees.
8. To review faculty and university policies regularly, including:
   1. Reviewing the effectiveness of faculty governance structures and proposing any necessary changes to the committee system, Faculty Senate, or Faculty Assembly.  A careful review should be managed by the faculty chair every five years.
   2. Reviewing the university’s policies regarding standards of student academic performances and the university’s Academic Integrity Policy, and making or recommending necessary changes. A careful review should be managed by the senate’s coordinator for academic performance and integrity policies every three years.
   3. Reviewing curricular policies related to global and community engaged education in consultation with the Wang Center for Global and Community Engaged Education, and making or recommending necessary changes. A careful review should be managed by the senate’s coordinator for global education policies every three years.
9. To develop policy and make recommendations to the administration concerning all matters of university business that impact faculty welfare, including:
   1. Policy concerning the utilization of resources available to faculty.
   2. Policy concerning faculty scholarships and grants.
   3. Policy concerning faculty leaves.
   4. Policy concerning fringe benefits, retirement, and salaries.
10. To consult with the Office of the Provost in the planning and organization of the faculty fall conference.
11. To elect members of the senate to serve in the following roles:
    1. Faculty Secretary
    2. Faculty representative to the Board of Regents
    3. Two members of the University Budget Advisory Committee
    4. One member of the University Benefits Committee
    5. One coordinator for academic performance and integrity policies
    6. One coordinator for global education policies
    7. One member that will serve on the Conciliation Committee if it is called
    8. Four members, one representing each College, that will serve on the Faculty Joint Committee if it is called.
12. To recommend, elect, or appoint faculty to serve in the following roles:
    1. Advisory member to the Retirement Fund Advisory Committee
    2. Member of the Title IX Committee
    3. Member of the University Diversity Committee
    4. Member of the University Safety Committee
    5. Four faculty who will work closely with the Dean of Students Office to serve on Academic Dishonesty Hearing Panels.
    6. Five members and five alternatives for the Formal Dismissal Hearing Committee