RSCC Policy GA-32-01; Faculty Senate Constitution

Roane State Community College

Policy Number: GA-32-01

Subject: Faculty Senate Constitution

Identification
The name of this organization shall be the Faculty Senate.
Philosophy
In the interest of academic freedom and professional responsibilities, the Faculty Senate is dedicated to promoting faculty participation in decision-making, and to provide an orderly process for improving communication and mutual understanding between the administrative officers, the faculty, and the students of the college.
Duties and Powers
1. To express the collective opinion of the faculty to the administration of the college on any matter of concern to the faculty, and to provide for the administration a significant avenue for the dissemination, discussion, and evaluation of all matters of concern to the faculty.
2. To initiate faculty input for the planning and implementation of college programs, policies, and facilities, and to serve as a vehicle for recommendations faculty make to address current college issues, problems, and institutional goals.
3. To define and recommend general educational objectives, subject to approval by the president, and to participate fully and actively in the determination of programs and policies that pertain to academic matters and faculty welfare.
4. To aid in securing and maintaining adequate salaries, tenure, sound retirement systems, and such other benefits and improvements in conditions as will enable faculty to function effectively, and to provide a forum for the open discussion of faculty grievances and student concerns involving the faculty as a whole.
5. To promote principles of human dignity and concern for the interest of both Roane State Community College (RSCC) and the surrounding communities.
Membership
1. Senators
  1. Eligibility
    1. Senators shall be members of the faculty who are employed for no less than one academic year on a full-time basis have a primary teaching role at the college, and have a teaching load of at least 8 hours per semester. Division heads may not be elected as senators; however, they are represented in their capacities as teachers by the division senators.
    2. Faculty members are eligible after one year's employment (which may be waived for the formation of a new division).
    3. Representation of academic divisions shall be equal, with five senators and two alternates elected from each. In addition, the senate membership will include the president, vice president, secretary, past-president, RSCC TBR Faculty Sub-Council representative, and the parliamentarian (if appointed from outside the elected Senate).
    4. The library shall continue to be considered a division with one senator and one alternate elected. The library representatives will serve as ex officio members and shall be employees of the library who are employed for no less than one academic year on a full-time basis; primary teaching role and minimum teaching load of 8 hours not applicable. As ex officio members, the library representatives may participate fully in all senate business and attend all meetings but will not have voting priveleges.
    5. Any faculty member or librarian may decline serving on the Faculty Senate.
    6. If an elected senator cannot serve, the alternate will become the senator and another alternate will be chosen by the division.
    7. Alternates shall serve at meetings in the absence of the full-time member. It shall be the responsibility of the full-time member to notify the alternate of his/her absence. The elected alternate, serving in the absence of an elected senator, has full voting privileges. If the elected alternate is not able to attend in the absence of an elected senator, or if more than one elected senator must be absent from the respective division, a senator may designate an eligible alternate from his/her division to attend and vote on his/her behalf.
    8. If a senate member is absent from three meetings without asking the alternate to attend, the Senate, acting through the senate secretary, will notify the division chair who will call a meeting of the division. The division may specify that the alternate assume this position and elect a new alternate.
    9. It shall be the responsibility of the division to replace any vacancies at the earliest date.
  2. Duties of Senators
    1. To serve as liaisons between their division and the Faculty Senate in disseminating information and soliciting responses.
    2. To present division proposals and discussion on issues.
    3. To request division meetings as needed for the dissemination of information and the discussion of issues.
    4. To notify the elected alternate of his/her anticipated absence at future meetings and arrange for appropriate alternate representation from his/her division.
2. Officers
  1. Names
    
    The officers of the Faculty Senate shall be president, vice president, secretary, past president, RSCC TBR Faculty Sub-Council representative, and the parliamentarian. All officers shall make up the Faculty Senate Executive Board, are members of the Faculty Senate Election Committee, and are voting members of the Faculty Senate.
  2. Responsibilities
    1. President
      1. Presides over meetings of the Faculty Senate.
      2. Establishes the agenda and provides a copy for each member of the faculty in advance of all regularly scheduled meetings.
      3. Calls special meetings.
      4. Appoints committees as needed.
      5. Speaks for the Faculty Senate at general faculty meetings.
      6. Represents the Faculty Senate (or designates someone to serve) on the following committees as a voting member but cannot commit the Faculty Senate to a special course of action without Faculty Senate approval:
        
        Administrative Council
        
        College-Wide Strategic Planning Committee
        
        Academic and Curriculum Council
        
        Faculty Evaluation Committee
        
        College Support Council
        
        Exemplary Awards Committee
      7. Calls general faculty meetings as needed.
      8. Assists in the nomination of the Promotion and Tenure Committee in compliance with the Promotion/Tenure policy.
      9. Attends or appoints a member of the senate to attend the TBR Faculty Sub-Council meetings in case of the absence of the elected representative.
      10. Handles and dispenses funds as needed.
      11. Meets regularly with RSCC president.
      12. Prepares action request forms for administration as needed.
      13. Assists in the nomination of the Hearing Committee in compliance with the Promotion/Tenure policy.
      14. Appoints senators from each of the academic divisions (Health Sciences, Humanities, Mathematics and Sciences, and Social Science, Business and Education) to serve as representatives to the Academic and Curriculum Council. The senate president is a representative from his or her respective division. Thus, a total of four representatives serve from the Senate except when the Faculty Senate president is from the library. In this event there are representatives from each of the academic divisions as well as the Faculty Senate president, then five representatives would serve.
      15. Attends the Institutional Budget Hearing Committee. In case he/she is not able to attend the Institutional Budget Hearing Committee, he/she appoints a Faculty Senate representative to the Institutional Budget Hearing Committee.
    2. Vice President
      1. Acts for the president in his/her absence or at his/her request.
      2. Assists the president in the performance of his/her duties.
      3. Serves as the guardian of the senate constitution, ensuring that the document reflects the current status of the organization.
      4. Follows up on action taken by the Faculty Senate to ensure that institutional policies and procedures reflect this action.
      5. Coordinates the selection process for the Sarah Ellen Benroth award for teaching excellence.
    3. Secretary
      1. Records, prepares, and distributes the minutes of meetings, after their approval, with amendments or corrections, to each member of the senate, faculty, and professional staff and maintains a permanent record of such.
      2. Keeps a record of attendance for each senate meeting.
      3. Prepares and maintains an official membership list of the Faculty Senate from which roll call votes will be made.
      4. Keeps a record of those eligible to serve on the senate.
      5. Manages updates of the Faculty Senate web page.
    4. Parliamentarian
      1. Informs senators concerning points of order, rules, and regulations set forth by the senate.
      2. Follows, in other situations, Roberts' Rules of Order (most recent edition).
    5. Past-President
      Ensures that the current policy and/or the constitution accurately reflects actions taken during the previous year.
    6. TBR Faculty Sub-Council Representative
      1. Attends TBR Faculty Sub-Council meetings and reports back to the Faculty Senate.
      2. Notifies president of any anticipated absences, so that a temporary replacement representative can be appointed to attend.
  3. Succession and Vacancies
    1. The offices of president, vice president, and secretary may be held by the same person for up to two consecutive terms. The office of TBR Faculty Sub-Council representative may be held by the same person for up to four consecutive terms. The parliamentarian is appointed annually by the president and has no term limitation.
    2. If an office becomes vacant because of resignation or removal, then at the next regularly scheduled meeting an election will be held to fill the vacancy.
  4. Removal
    The only valid reason for removal from office shall be negligence in the performance of duties as stated in the Faculty Senate Constitution. Any officer may be removed by a 3/4 vote of the membership of the Faculty Senate.
3. Adjunct Faculty Committee
  1. Part-time faculty members, also deemed adjunct faculty, shall be represented by a standing Adjunct Faculty Committee established within the Faculty Senate. This committee will serve to embody the professional and academic interests of the adjunct faculty at Roane State Community College. This includes recommending policy and practices regarding the recruitment, employment, orientation, support, and development of adjunct faculty at the college.
  2. Representatives shall be selected according to the following criteria:
    1. During the college’s fall adjunct in-service meeting, information will be distributed to all adjunct faculty regarding Senate representation. Additionally, an email communication via the adjunct faculty listing regarding Senate representation will be sent the first week of classes in August. Interested adjunct faculty will be encouraged to contact their division Dean or a Senator within their division.
    2. On a volunteer basis, the division may accept up to 5 adjunct faculty representative nominations.
    3. The Adjunct Faculty Committee will consist of 1 adjunct faculty representative per academic division, voted in by the faculty of that division.
    4. The adjunct faculty representative is expected to serve for 1 academic year.
    5. To be eligible, members of the Adjunct Faculty Committee must be teaching within the current regular semester (fall or spring) and must have taught at least 1 course per semester within the previous two academic years.
    6. In the event an adjunct faculty representative is unable to serve the remainder of an academic year or is not employed at the college in a subsequent semester, nominations and elections will promptly take place within the semester of the vacancy according to listed criteria.
    7. The Adjunct Faculty Committee is required to elect its own Chair from within its members.
    8. The Chair will serve as the voting member for the Adjunct Faculty Committee. Non-chair adjunct faculty members do not have voting rights.
    9. The Chair of the Adjunct Faculty Committee as well elected adjunct faculty representatives are expected to attend all Faculty Senate meetings. Should the Chair of the Adjunct Faculty Committee be unable to attend, he/she should appoint a substitute from the adjunct committee to vote in his/her absence.
Election Procedures
1. Election Committee
  1. The Election Committee shall consist of current FS Executive Board plus one member from each division not already represented by the Executive Board. If such division member(s) need to be selected, they will be chosen by the current Senators of those division(s).
  2. The Election Committee will choose a chair and co-chair after the last FS meeting of the fall semester.
2. Nominations
  1. Before divisional meetings during spring in-service, a designated Election Committee member from each division will obtain a list of division faculty who are eligible to be nominated as senator.
  2. At divisional meetings during spring in-service, the designated Election Committee member will accept nominations for division senators. Self-nominations are allowed. The list of nominees willing to accept the position will be returned to the Election Committee Chair and these nominees will be included on the ballot for division senators.
  3. Each division should submit at least seven nominees to ensure a sufficient number of senators in the event that the president and/or vice president are elected from the division.
  4. During the last full work week of February, nominations for president and vice president will be accepted via email to entire election Committee.
    1. An email announcing nomination procedures will be sent to all faculty members on the Friday before the nomination period begins. A reminder will be sent on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday of the nomination period.
    2. Nominations will be accepted from any full-time faculty member who has first requested permission from the team he/she wishes to nominate.
    3. Candidates for president and vice president shall be nominated as a team and listed jointly on the ballot.
    4. Nominees for president and vice president must be tenured faculty members who have previously served on Faculty Senate for at least one academic year and are also nominated as senators for their divisions.
    5. The nomination period will remain open for one full work week (Monday thorugh Friday).
    6. When a team is nominated for president/vice president, the Election Committee Chair will notify both members of the team who then have until the end of the nomination period to accept the nomination. If either team member declines the nomination, the other member may be nominated as part of another team as long as the nomination is received within the nomination period.
3. Voting
  1. An online election platform will be chosen by the Election Committee with consideration of the following factors: single vote verification, anonymity, multi-device compatibility, ballot security, and capability of all members of the Election Committee to confirm results.
  2. An email announcing voting procedures will be sent to all eligible faculty members on the Monday and Wednesday before the election.
  3. Eligible voters will be determined by TBR Policy 5.02.01.00 which defines faculty as follows: “Regular, full-time personnel at institutions whose regular assignments include instruction, research, and/or public service as a principal activity, and who hold academic rank as professor, associate professor, assistant professor or instructor at the institutions.”
  4. On the last Thursday in March, the election will be conducted online from 8:00 am Eastern until 8:00 pm Eastern time.
  5. All positions shall be elected by simple plurality. Other than the president and vice president, the candidates receiving the five highest number of votes in each division shall become the division's senators. Other than the president, vice president, and elected senators, the next two candidates with the greatest number of votes in each division shall become the division's alternates.
  6. In case of a tie for president/vice president, the Election Committee will re-open secure electronic voting to all eligible faculty members. Only candidates tied for the most votes will be included on the ballot.
  7. In case of a tie for a division senator, the Election Committee will re-open secure electronic voting to all members of the division. Only candidates tied for the most votes will be included on the ballot.
4. Announcement and Assumption of Office
  1. With the exception of positions for which a tie must be broken, announcement of all division senators, FS President-elect, and vice president-elect will be made after all Election Committee members have verified the results the day following the election.
  2. All current and newly elected members of Faculty Senate will attend the last Faculty Senate meeting of the spring semester.
  3. The following year's Secretary and Parliamentarian will be nominated from among the newly elected senators by the President-elect at the last FS meeting of spring semester and must be approved by majority vote of current and newly elected Faculty Senate members in attendance.
  4. The following year's TBR Sub-Council Representative will be nominated from among the newly elected senators at the last meeting of spring semester and elected by majority vote of current and newly elected Faculty Senate members in attendance.
  5. All Faculty Senate Officers and Senators will assume their elected positions after the last Commencement ceremony of the spring semester for a term of one year. In the event that Commencement ceremonies are cancelled for any reason the Senate will assume their roles on the day after the scheduled date for the last Commencement ceremony of the spring semester.
Meeting Procedures
1. Meetings
  1. Regular - The Faculty Senate shall meet at least once each month during the fall and spring terms at a regular time to be designated by the president of the Faculty Senate.
  2. Called - Meetings can be called by the president of the Faculty Senate under the following circumstances:
    1. Emergency situations as deemed by the president of the Faculty Senate.
    2. Upon request by three (3) senators of the Faculty Senate.
  3. Attendance – Any faculty member may attend Senate meetings; however, only Senators are eligible to vote at meetings. For Senate meetings, faculty should be defined as having a primary teaching role at the college and a teaching load of at least 8 hours per semester.
2. Voting
  1. No vote shall be taken unless a simple majority of the senate members are present.
  2. A motion will carry with a simple majority vote, except where otherwise noted.
  3. Every vote shall be conducted by voice vote.
  4. At the discretion of the president a show of hands vote may be called.
  5. Any senate member may request a roll call vote.
  6. Every member, including alternates serving in the absence of regular members, shall be a voting member, including the president.
  7. Any constitutional amendment or bylaw shall require a 2/3 majority of the senate to pass.
3. General
  Any faculty member, administrative official, or student has the right to address the Faculty Senate at the beginning of the meeting, after a quorum has been established. If possible, the following procedure shall be followed:
  1. Any concerned parties should petition the Faculty Senate president to be placed on the agenda and should appear before the Faculty Senate on the designated date.
  2. Other persons concerned with the problem (for example, division chairs, in cases of promotion, tenure, etc.) will be advised and invited to the meeting and may comment on the matter if they so desire.
  3. The recommendation of the senate shall be delivered within a specified time period.
  4. If the petitioning individual or the senate is dissatisfied with final action, then the individual or the senate may appear before the general faculty for further suggestions.

Revision History: 09/1976, 05/1980, 05/1981, 11/1985, 10/1988, 04/1990, 08/12/1991, 07/01/1995, 11/1997, 11/05/1999, 06/01/2000, 07/11/2016, 05/06/2019, 01/27/2020, 02/02/2021, 09/28/2021

TBR Policy Reference: 1.03.10.00

Revision Date Effective: 10/25/2022

Revision Approval By: Christopher L. Whaley, President

Original Date Effective: 01/11/1988

Original Approval By: Cuyler A. Dunbar, President

Office Responsible: Vice President Student Learning

Reviewed: 02/10/2022

Roane State Community College

RSCC Policy GA-32-01; Faculty Senate Constitution

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