Faculty Council (FC)

All full-time faculty are eligible to be elected to the Faculty Council. Senior Faculty (defined as Associate or Full Professors with tenure) are members of Group 1, tenured Assistant Professors and tenure-track Faculty are members of Group 2, promoted non-tenure track faculty are members of Group 3, and Assistant Professor or Lecturer non-tenure track faculty are members of Group 4. 

The FC will consist of eleven (11) members elected from the four Groups as follows: eight (8) members from Group 1, and one (1) member each from Groups 2, 3, and 4.  The FC will be headed by three officers, the Chair, the Vice-Chair, and the Secretary/Treasurer, who will be elected by the incoming FC.  The FC Chair shall be a Senior Faculty member.  The Campus Dean is an ex-officio, non-voting member of the FC.  The FC may delegate some of its duties to other Campus committees.

1.  Monthly FC Meetings, open to all full-time faculty, will be held during the regular academic year as scheduled by the FC Vice-Chair in consultation with the Chair.  Any non-FC members attending may not vote, but may speak if called upon.  Additional meetings can be requested, subject to approval from the FC Chair.  In the event of a denial, an appeal supported by a positive recommendation from three (3) of the FC members will be sufficient to grant the request.  In order to conduct business at a meeting, a quorum must be present, as defined as 50% of the elected members of the FC.

2.  In addition to the monthly FC Meetings, the FC Vice-Chair, in consultation with the Chair, will schedule a monthly Joint Faculty and Administration (JFA) Meeting.  This meeting is where all faculty (including part-time faculty), administrators, and staff can have their voices heard by the FC, and where the FC can report and discuss their actions taken since the previous meeting.

3.  Rules of Order for Meetings

Robert’s Rules of Order is the general guide for FC Meeting procedures unless suspended by a 2/3 majority of FC members present.

4.  Elections

     a.  Eligible Members

1. All full-time faculty members are eligible for election to the FC.  No nominations are required.
2. Any Group 1 or 2 member who has an approved leave for a semester of the upcoming academic year will be exempt from serving on the FC for that year.  These members may however request to serve if they wish.
3. Eligible faculty members who do not want to be on the FC for the upcoming academic year may petition the outgoing Chair, via written or electronic correspondence by a Chair set deadline, for removal from the ballot.  The outgoing Chair will automatically grant such petitions unless it would create a significant hardship for the FC (e.g. Not enough Senior Faculty to form an ad-hoc RTP Committee or no FTNTT members as required by the TT-CBA).  In that event, the outgoing FC will meet to determine the best course of action for the faculty members requesting exemption and the FC.

b.  Member Terms

1. FC members will be elected for a term of one (1) year.  FC Officers will be elected by the FC members for a term of one (1) year.
2. No FC member may serve for more than three (3) consecutive years.  However, a member must stand for reelection for each year of desired service.

c.   Election Process

1. The FC Vice-Chair will distribute paper ballots to each member of the full-time faculty annually no later than one (1) month before the April Faculty Council Meeting.  Names that will appear on the ballot will be determined in consultation with the FC Chair.
2. Ballot Structure.
   1. There will be one combined ballot for Groups 1 and 2, and one combined ballot for Groups 3 and 4.  Each ballot will list the names of all eligible members minus the names of exempt faculty members as defined in Sections 4.a.ii, 4.a.iii, and 4.b.ii above.
   2. The names of the current FC members shall be marked as such on each ballot.
   3. Only members of Groups 1 and 2 may vote for Groups 1 and 2 candidates.  Only members of Groups 3 and 4 may vote for Groups 3 and 4 candidates.
3. Each voting member shall mark their ballot as follows:

a.  Groups 1 and 2 Ballots:

Voting members may vote for up to nine (9) total members, but no more   than eight (8) in Group 1, and no more than one (1) from Group 2.

b.  Groups 3 and 4 Ballots:

Voting members shall vote for one (1) member each from Groups 3 and 4.

1. Ballots shall be returned to the FC Vice-Chair in a signed and sealed envelope by an assigned due date.  Ballots returned in unsigned envelopes or mismarked ballots (e.g. those with more than the allowed number of choices marked) will be disqualified.  The FC may vote in the future to conduct these elections electronically.
2. Three (3) members of the Faculty Affairs Committee (appointed by the Chair of the Faculty Affairs Committee) will be responsible for opening and counting the ballots.
3. The Group members with the most votes will be elected to the incoming FC.  In the event that there is a tie for an FC position, the winner(s) will be chosen in a blind random drawing (e.g. pulling names out of a box) of the tied faculty members.
4. The outgoing FC Chair shall convene a meeting of the incoming FC to hold an election from within the incoming FC for the new FC officers.  Only incoming FC members will be allowed to vote for the new officers.  The newly elected FC Chair will notify the chair of the Faculty Affairs Committee of the election results.  This meeting and the officer elections shall be completed prior to the April Faculty Council Meeting.  The method of conducting the officer elections will be decided upon by the incoming FC members.
5. The chair of the Faculty Affairs Committee shall notify all members of the faculty of the election results.  The newly elected FC will assume their positions at the April Faculty Council Meeting.
6. In the event that one or more of the newly elected FC members is unable to assume their elected position, the Group member(s) with the next highest number of votes will be elected in their place, subject, if necessary, to the same blind random drawing.