Bylaws | Faculty Senate

Mission

The Snow College Faculty Senate represents the faculty in the policy-making process of the College. It is a partner with the administration, Board of Trustees, and staff in promoting the mission of Snow College in the following areas:

Academic freedom
Curriculum, including establishing prerequisites, and placing courses within disciplines
Degree and certificate requirements
Educational program development
Standards or policies regarding student preparation and success
College governance structures as they relate to faculty roles
Academic standards
Faculty advancement, tenure and continuing review
Policies for faculty professional development activities
Processes for program review
Processes for institutional planning and budget development
Other academic and professional matters as mutually agreed upon between the Board of Trustees and the Faculty Senate.

Membership

The Senate will consist of two senators from each division, an adjunct representative, the Faculty Association President, and a student representative. (Division deans may not be senators.) There may be at-large senators if needed to fill the positions of Senate president, vice president, and the other standing committees. There may be at-large senators if needed to fill the positions of Senate president, vice president, and the other standing committees.
1. The division senators shall be full-time faculty members. At least one senator from each division must be tenured or have the equivalent of seven years teaching experience at Snow College. The remaining senators shall be junior or senior full-time faculty members who have taught at either campus for at least one academic year.
2. At-large senators shall be full-time faculty members.
3. An adjunct representative shall be selected appointed by the Snow College adjunct community and must have taught at either campus for at least one academic year and be currently employed by Snow College. The adjunct representative shall be recognized as a voting senator, but may not serve as Senate president nor vice president.
4. The Faculty Association President shall be recognized as a voting senator, but may not serve as Senate president nor vice president.
5. A non-voting student representative shall be chosen by the student government.
The Faculty Senate may appoint a parliamentarian to provide administrative support. All the parliamentarian’s actions will be conducted with the approval and authority of the Senate president. The parliamentarian will be a full-time faculty member, but will be a non-voting member of the Faculty Senate. However, the parliamentarian may be asked questions regarding procedure.
1. The Senate president and vice president shall conduct a yearly review of the parliamentarian and recommend that he or she continue in the position or call for the appointment of a new parliamentarian with Senate approval.
Terms of Office
1. Each division senator will serve a three-year term. Senatorial service will be limited to two consecutive terms with a minimum one-year break before reelection. One-third of the Senators will be elected each year by division-wide election. Division elections and ongoing at-large senatorial elections will be completed by January 20th to ensure that new senators can arrange schedules to meet at the designated time during their terms of office.
2. The adjunct representative shall be selected by an early fall semester, electronic mail-in nomination and election process administered by the Faculty Senate. The adjunct representative will serve a 3-year, renewable term while employed by Snow College. Service will be limited to two consecutive terms with a minimum one-year break before reelection.
3. The term for the Faculty Association President shall be as indicated by the Faculty Association bylaws.
4. The term for the student representative shall be as indicated by the student government.
5. A parliamentarian will serve a renewable term of four years so as to maintain perspective and consistency on issues as Senate membership changes. The parliamentarian will be limited to two consecutive terms with a minimum one-year break before reappointment.
6. In the case of Senate reorganization or other exigencies, some terms may be designated one- or two-year terms at the discretion of the current Senate.
Taking Office: Taking Office: Senators-elect may attend Senate meetings as non-voting members before they assume their respective offices and designated duties on July 1.
Organizational Meeting: In an April Senate meeting of each academic year, the Faculty Senate shall elect a president and vice president for the next school year (see 3.1). The senate shall make committee assignments no later than September.
Filling Vacated Senate Member Seats, Proxies, and Unexcused Absences
1. The resignation of a member of the Senate will be accepted and is valid on notification in writing to the Senate.
2. Members of the Senate may be removed from office by a two-thirds majority vote of the Senate; however, the senator under consideration for removal may not vote on the issue.
  1. If allegations of inappropriate behavior are brought against a sitting Senate member by another Senate member, the Senate president shall ensure that an investigation is made in a timely manner.
  2. A motion for removal shall not come to the floor of the Senate until after an investigation and report have been completed by an ad hoc committee of Senate members appointed by the Senate president and the results of the investigation presented to the Senate during a regularly scheduled meeting. Voting shall be by secret ballot.
3. Senate seats vacated by resignation, incapacity, or removal shall be filled for the duration of said Senate member’s term by election or appointment in that senator’s division, community, or by an all-faculty election for an at-large position.
4. A member of the Senate who is unable to attend a regularly scheduled Senate meeting may designate a proxy representative. The Senate member must notify the Senate President of his or her absence and inform the president of the name of the chosen proxy. In the event of excessive absences, the Senate seat shall be considered “vacated” by discussion of the Senate and procedure to fill the seat will begin (see 2.6.3).

Organization of the Senate

President and vice president of the Senate: The president and vice president of the Senate shall be tenured faculty members or professional track faculty members with seven years of teaching experience at Snow College and at least one year of service as a senator. The Faculty Association President and adjunct representative may not serve as Senate president nor vice president. The president and vice president are elected to one-year terms by secret ballot (see 2.5). The Senate president calls and chairs Senate meetings and compiles the agenda in consultation with senators and the parliamentarian. The vice president is expected to conduct meetings should the president not be available. The Senate president shall attend College Council as a voting faculty member. The Senate president shall attend other meetings and work on ad hoc committees as requested by the President of the College.
Responsibilities of all senators: Along with assisting in setting the agenda the senators shall also serve in any other standing, college, or ad hoc committees as assigned. The senators shall report back to the Senate on their committee assignments and the work of said committees. The senators shall act as liaisons between the Senate and their divisions/colleagues.
Parliamentarian: The parliamentarian is responsible for taking, distributing, and posting meeting minutes. The parliamentarian will also be responsible for helping the president develop the agenda, researching relevant historical actions related to current Senate discussions, and maintaining Robert’s Rules in Senate meetings.
The following are subcommittees of the Faculty Senate (see 4.5):
1. Advancement and Tenure Committee
2. Curriculum Committee
3. Faculty Development
4. Professional Track
5. Global Engagement
6. Honors Committee
7. Library Committee
8. Service Learning
9. Teaching and Technology Committee

Operations

Presiding Authority: The Senate Presiding Officer shall be its president. In the absence of the president, the vice president shall preside. In the absence of both officers, the meeting will be adjourned.
Senate Meetings: The Senate shall hold at least one regular meeting at a stated time each month, September through April. In addition, special meetings shall be convened by the president of the Senate or, in the president’s absence, the vice president:
- When requested by the President of the College; or
- When requested by written petition of at least ten percent of the faculty members; or
- When requested in writing by thirty percent of the senators; or
- When approved by the Senate during a regular meeting.
1. Senate meetings are open to all faculty, administrators, and other interested persons except during closed sessions.
2. Senate Agenda: Agenda items may be considered from the following sources:
  - Any senator; or
  - The President of the College or the College Council; or
  - Written petitions signed by at least ten percent of the faculty.
3. Proposed agenda items must be received at least two academic days before the meeting: Matters not on the agenda may be considered by the Senate at any meeting with the consent of a majority of Senate members present.
General Faculty Meetings: Meeting of the general faculty of the college may be called by the Senate president or Senate vice president, the Faculty Association president, or upon petition by one-third of the Faculty of the College to review any action taken by the Senate or its committees. Such petition shall specify the items to be considered.
College Council Representative Selection: The College Council has tasked the Faculty Senate with selecting five voting members of the College Council. The Faculty Senate President and the Faculty Association President shall serve as voting members of the College Council. The Faculty Senate shall define the process and select three at-large College Council voting members from full-time Snow College faculty members on a rotating three-year schedule.
When the need for the formation of a new standing or ad hoc committee is recognized, such a committee will be constituted by a two-thirds vote of the entire Senate. Additionally, an existing committee whose purpose is no longer evident can be disbanded by a two-thirds vote of the entire Senate.
Procedures for amending the Faculty Senate Bylaws shall be as follows:
1. Amendments to these bylaws may be adopted at any regular business meeting of the Faculty Senate. Proposals must be received as a written statement and must be submitted by at least two people, at least one of whom is a sitting senator. The proposed changes shall be discussed and voted upon in a regular Senate meeting. To approve the proposed changes, two thirds of the entire Senate must vote in the affirmative.
2. Senate bylaws will be posted on the Senate website.

Appeal of Committee Decisions

Any decision made by a Senate committee may be appealed to the Faculty Senate through the following process. The appeal can be initiated by:
1. A senator; or
2. The College President or Vice President for Academic Affairs; or
3. A petition signed by ten percent of the faculty; or
4. In the case of an Advancement and Tenure decision, the individual concerned.
The Senate will then take a vote and the appeal will be decided by two-thirds majority of senators.
The Senate, in its deliberations, may choose to consult with individuals, written documents, or poll the faculty at large before deciding.
The vote will either uphold the committee position or overturn it. The issue(s) may be sent back to the committee for further review.
If the subcommittee of the Senate and the Senate are at an impasse on a committee decision, the Senate position shall prevail.

Referendum

A call for a referendum of a Senate decision shall require a petition containing signatures of one third of the faculty.
A repeal of a Senate decision shall require a majority vote of the full-time faculty.