1570 - Secretary of the Faculty

CONTENTS:

A.  Appointment
B.  Responsibilities and Duties
C.  Nomination Process for Secretary of the Faculty

A. APPOINTMENT.

A-1. The Secretary of the University Faculty is appointed by the president from among the tenured members of the university faculty or faculty emeriti (see 1520 II-1 and III-2). The president appoints the secretary from a list of candidates recommended by a nominating committee and ratified by the Faculty Senate (see C below).

A-2. The secretary position will be the equivalent of at least one-quarter time and may be greater, at the discretion of the president, depending on the circumstances, the needs of the Faculty Senate, and the needs of the faculty member appointed.

A-3. The term of service is three years and is renewable.

A-4. The secretary serves at the pleasure of the president and reports to the chair of the Faculty Senate and to the provost. The provost, in consultation with the vice provost for faculty and the chair and vice chair of the Faculty Senate, conducts an annual review of the faculty secretary. Early in the third year of service, an in-depth evaluation is conducted by the provost and the chair of the Faculty Senate. Included are evaluations by the senate as a whole, by other appropriate administrators and faculty, and by the incumbent. A confidential evaluation report is given to the president for review and discussion with the incumbent by the first week in October in the third year of service.

B. RESPONSIBILITIES AND DUTIES. The Secretary of the Faculty shall:

B-1. Serve as a channel of communication to the members of the university faculty concerning administrative and regents’ actions and work with the administration and Faculty Senate in achieving positive outcomes to ensure faculty participation in the development of university policies and procedures through the faculty governance system.

B-2. Serve as a resource for faculty regarding university policy and procedures and as a channel of communication to the administration regarding faculty interests and concerns.

B-3. Facilitate the timely and orderly adoption of policies and procedures by: 1) consulting and collaborating with the administration to identify and address policy issues; 2) keeping administrative officials informed of policy proposals being developed by university committees and others.

B-4. Propose the agenda and supporting documents for each meeting of the university faculty for approval by the president; ensure that the minutes of the meeting are recorded and published; ensure that reports of actions of the university faculty are forwarded to the president, and the Department of Special Collections and Archives in the University Library.

B-5. Serve as an ex-officio nonvoting member of the Faculty Senate and as the secretary, ensure that the agenda and supporting documents, for each meeting are distributed and published. Ensure that the minutes for each meeting are recorded and published. Work closely with and advise the chair and vice chair of Faculty Senate on policy matters and on the conduct of senate business, provide services related to shared governance on request from the Faculty Senate, other faculty bodies, faculty, staff, students, and administration.

B-6. Serve as a resource for the Committee on Committees. Oversee the process for solicitation of faculty members to serve on university-wide standing committees and maintain committee membership lists.

B-7. Serve as an ex officio nonvoting member of the Faculty Affairs Committee. Provide consultation and advice regarding faculty governance and personnel issues affecting faculty.

B-8. Serve as chair of the University Multi-campus Communications Committee, 1640.94.

B-9. Oversee and ensure the accuracy of the Faculty Senate and Faculty Secretary, websites. Oversee the placement of material on those websites.

B-10. Perform such other duties related to faculty governance as may be assigned by the president or the president’s designee or the university faculty.

C. NOMINATION PROCESS FOR SECRETARY OF THE FACULTY.

C-1. The chair of the Faculty Senate appoints a three-member nominating committee, with the approval of the Faculty Senate. The committee is composed of the vice provost for faculty and two other members of the senate, one of whom shall be the Faculty Senate Chair, or his/her designee, who shall serve as the committee chair.

C-2. The nomination committee should seek out and give preference to nominees who have the following qualifications; (1) attained the rank of full professor or are faculty emeriti, (2) communication skills, (3) have had extensive experience in university service, and (4) excellent understanding and commitment to the role and mission of the University of Idaho and to shared governance thereof. The committee should seek nominations from, but are not limited to, faculty senate and from university-level committee members.

C-3. The committee recommends a list of candidates for ratification by the Faculty Senate. The senate may meet in executive session to discuss candidates recommended by the nominating committee. The senate may not add names to those recommended by the nominating committee but may choose to delete any of the candidates nominated by the committee.

C-4. The Faculty Senate forwards the names of nominees ratified by the Faculty Senate to the president. The president selects the faculty secretary from that list or requests that a new group of nominees be selected following the procedures outlined in C-1 through C-3.

Version History

Amended July 2019. The Policy Coordinator position was removed from the Faculty Secretary as a responsibility and the position was reduced from half time to at least quarter time, or greater.

Amended July 2018. Section B was updated to reflect current roles and responsibilities of the Faculty Secretary, including oversight of policy.

Amended July 2017. Update to reflect current roles and responsibilities of the Faculty Secretary, including oversight of policy process and the role this position plays in achieving positive outcomes.

Amended January 2010. Added the responsibility to serve as chair of the University Multi-campus Communications Committee.

Amended July 2009. Responsibility for vita preparation was removed from the Office of the Faculty Secretary and placed with the faculty.

Amended July 2003. Second substantial revision to reflect current practice and responsibilities.

Amended July 2002. Editorial changes.

Amended November 1991. The faculty secretaryship was redefined as a half-time position (allowing for the creation of a half-time ombudsman position) and the responsibilities of the office were substantially changed.

Adopted 1979.