Submitted by the Faculty Assembly President (Kay Fowler) and the Faculty Advisory Council (current members Amruth Kumar, Ellen Kaiden, Mark Howenstein, Susan Eisner, and Patricia Ard; and incoming members Sue Scher and James Morley).
Dated: Fall, 2005 to be discussed at the September 7, 2005 Faculty Assembly meeting
Background: Faculty self-governance and faculty participation in the shared governance of the college have a long, proud history and record at Ramapo College. From the very beginning, faculty have taken an active role in helping to shape and guide the College. Recognizing the need to honor and preserve the best features of this tradition (shared governance, faculty-wide voting, and transparency) and the simultaneous need to improve and enhance the flexibility, responsiveness, effectiveness, and efficiency with which we structure and conduct our governance, the Faculty President and Faculty Advisory Council members put forward the following two-part document.
Part A: ³Streamlining Faculty Assembly Meetings² concerns actions that are currently acceptable within the existing bylaws. Hence these changes need no vote and will be implemented starting with the October Faculty Assembly meeting this year.
Part B: ³Proposal for Restructuring Faculty Advisory Council² is being offered for discussion and ultimately decision by the Faculty Assembly as a two-year pilot project. Since this proposal does affect the bylaws, approval for the pilot would require a 2/3 majority vote of the Faculty Assembly, as would the vote at the end of the two years on whether to make this design a permanent change in the faculty governance bylaws. If approved, the pilot will coincide with the planned Fall 2006 implementation of the Unit Plan and the first term of a new Faculty President. (Note: If the vote to approve this proposal on a pilot basis fails to receive a 2/3 majority, the Faculty Advisory Council status quo continues.)
Process: There is an increasing consensus that faculty governance at Ramapo College needs improvement. The Faculty Assembly President and Faculty Advisory Council members have heard from various colleagues through conversation, emails, and 23 responses received to a Faculty Advisory Council questionnaire distributed at the May, 2005 Faculty Assembly. Faculty Advisory Council members themselves have raised concerns and suggestions over the past two years. Faculty have requested shorter and less frequent meetings, streamlined agendas focused on the most relevant matters, more pertinent and action-oriented discussions, enforced speaking limits, and strictly observed rules of order. Colleagues have articulated important goals for governance to include ensuring due influence on College policy, supporting facultyıs responsibilities as teachers and scholars, improving the quality of decision-making, seeking the emergence of reasoned consensus, operating with norms of civility and professionalism, and maintaining openness to all faculty voices.
To this end, several proposals have been offered from various quarters ranging from maintaining the status quo to abolishing the Faculty Assembly altogether in favor of a representative Senate. Overall, there appears to be broad agreement that faculty want a more effective and streamlined system of self-governance that will enhance its voice in college matters. The Faculty Advisory Council held in-person retreats and e-mail exchanges during summer of 2005 to consider all these comments and ideas, and to prepare a resulting proposal for enhancing faculty governance to be brought before the Faculty Assembly membership at its September meeting. This document is the outcome of those discussions.
Part A: Modifications to Faculty Assembly Meetings (effective October, 2005; no vote needed).
Background: The current monthly Faculty Assembly meeting schedule and format have served well to keep faculty informed, relating, commenting, and voting on pending matters, but it has several deficiencies. These include overlap with other faculty commitments, insufficient distinction in the weight given to major and minor issues, too many and too lengthy informational presentations, erratic or no attendance by some members, and distracting cross chatter during discussions. Too frequently the substance of issues has been lost in discussions over voting process, or too much discussion time has been spent on some issues to the neglect of others. Often the voices of junior faculty are not sufficiently heard. As the number of faculty increases, the current meeting system will become even more unwieldy. Thus, the following modifications to Faculty Assembly shall be implemented as of the October Faculty Assembly meeting.
Meetings will be held three times a semester (instead of four ): September, October, December, February, April, and May. If there are insufficient agenda items the scheduled faculty assembly meeting will be canceled with one weekıs notice.
Meetings will be scheduled for a maximum of one and one-half (instead of two) hours.
Committee reports: Instead of full oral reports at the Faculty Assembly, reports from standing committee such as the Academic Review Committee, the Sustainability Buildings and Grounds Committee, the faculty representatives to the Board of Trustees Committees, and the Teaching and Learning Technology Roundtable are to be submitted electronically by 4:00 p.m. on the Wednesday prior to Faculty Assembly. These reports will then be posted to the agenda and to the website. Reports will be presented at the Faculty Assembly only when matters of urgent substance require discussion/decision (as determined by the committee representative, Faculty Assembly President, or Faculty Assembly Advisory Council) . In any case the oral presentation of the report shall be limited to a maximum of ten minutes unless the Faculty President grants a five minute extension. The Secretary of the Faculty Assembly will inform presenters when they have approximately one minute left to speak..
Time allowed for discussion will be determined in advance and will be posted on the agenda. The scheduled time will be adhered to unless the Faculty Assembly President grants a five-minute extension. A motion to continue discussion for an additional 15 minutes must be seconded and will move immediately to a hand vote (no discussion). A majority will be required to pass the motion. This and the approval of the minutes will be the only votes taken by hand.
Informational reports will be submitted in writing for posting by 4:00 p.m. of the Wednesday prior to Faculty Assembly. Informational reports where an opportunity for an oral presentation is needed at the Assembly will be restricted to five minutes. The Secretary of the Faculty Assembly will inform presenters when they have approximately one minute left to speak.
The Provost and the representative of the Deans will submit their reports in advance electronically for posting, and keep oral presentations at Faculty Assembly meetings to a maximum of five minutes each.
Roberts Rules of Order will be observed including Speaking Limits as specified in the bylaws Article 7 Section 5, to wit: ³In process of debate, speakers (not including persons presenting a report) are limited to no more than two statements on any one motion, and no comment may exceed three minutes.² The FA President will recognize and keep track of the order in which faculty who have expressed an intent, will speak. The one voice at a time practice will be observed, and civility will under gird all discussion.
Agenda and relevant documents will continue to be posted to the website one week in advance of Faculty Assembly meetings, to encourage electronic discussion of items before and after the assembly
Paper ballots will continue to be used for all votes other than for the minutes or extension of discussion time.
The Faculty Assembly President and Faculty Advisory Council will continue the regular meeting schedule with the President and Provost.
Part B: Proposal: A Two-Year Pilot Restructuring of the Faculty Advisory Council (needs a 2/3 majority vote of the Faculty Assembly to pass)
Background: Modifications to Faculty Assembly described in Part A above, the increasing size of the faculty itself, and changes in the College at large all suggest the need for restructuring the Faculty Advisory Council. Recognizing and respecting the importance of focusing Faculty Assembly discussion and votes on key action items, while maintaining the presence and contribution of faculty in all relevant academic and administrative matters, the Faculty Advisory Council proposes the following revisions to faculty governance.
A. The Faculty Advisory Council shall be renamed the Executive Council of the Faculty Assembly to reflect the need for and reality that this group serve as a representative faculty voice in faculty governance, rather than merely as advisors to the Faculty Assembly President.
B. The Executive Council will have six more members and wider representation than the current Faculty Advisory Council. The Council will be comprised of the Faculty Assembly President, five All-College Councilors and six Councilors representing their respective academic units.
C. This model gives an equal vote to each Council member, allows both College-wide and Unit perspectives a voice, and allows the Faculty Assembly President to delegate his/her duties as appropriate. Broadening representation and distributing authority among this 12-member Executive Council will further ensure and extend faculty representation and contribution in college-wide decision-making, agenda-setting, meetings and events.
D. This model provides for votes on minor matters, as determined by the Faculty President, to be voted on by the Executive Council. Such decisions will be publicized on the FA website within a week of the decisions, and will remain open to discussion at the next Faculty Assembly.
E. This model should result in the need for fewer special task forces, and formation of special task forces only to fulfill charges of major importance.
F. Each Councilor would be selected by the faculty as follows:
The entire Faculty Assembly membership will continue to elect the Faculty President for two-year terms (a maximum of two terms may be served consecutively) as well as to elect five at-large representatives.
Nominations for President and at-large positions will open following the December Faculty Assembly, and close at the February Faculty Assembly meeting. Election will take place by mail-in ballot over the following two weeks. Results will be announced by March 15. There may be no more than two representatives from any one school/unit among these six at-large elected officers (including the Faculty Assembly President).
In addition, each School and the Library will elect one representative to the Executive Council. That process will begin on March 16. The Faculty Assembly Secretary will oversee these elections by accepting nominations and self-nominations for unit representatives up to March 30, and then preparing the list of School candidates and sending that list to the Schoolıs Dean by the first week of April. A private paper School vote will be completed by May 15. Results of the unit elections will be reported to the Faculty Assembly Secretary by May 15.
Councilors will serve for two years each (from Sep. 1-Aug. 30) in staggered terms. A Councilor may serve no more than two terms consecutively whether as at-large or as unit representative. Councilors may run again after a two-year break in service.
In order to achieve staggering, for the first election (and only the first election) the two at-large Councilors who are continuing will finish out the one year of their current term (and can then run for a second two-year term); the remaining three at-large Councilors will be elected for one three-year term but will not be permitted to run for a second term without a break in service. Unit representatives will be elected for a two-year term and may be elected for a second two-year term on completion of the first.
The Faculty Assembly Secretary will continue to be elected by the full membership of the Faculty Assembly for a two-year term (a maximum of two terms may be served consecutively), and will serve as an ex-officio member of the Executive Council attending all meetings. In the event of a tie vote, the Faculty Assembly Secretary would enter a vote.
The Academic Review Committee will name a representative to sit ex-officio (non-voting member) on the Executive Council. The Executive Council will elect a Faculty Assembly Vice-President for a one-year term (maximum of two one-year terms), to serve as principal backup for the Faculty Assembly President in implementation of key responsibilities. A separate position of Faculty Assembly Tech Officer will be appointed by the Faculty President for a two-year term (as is the Parliamentarian) and will maintain the faculty assembly website and electronic discussion at the direction of the Faculty president. The Tech Officer will serve as an ex-officio (non-voting) member of the Executive Council.
Only tenured faculty shall be eligible to run for the Executive Council of the Faculty Assembly. (Note: This does not apply to ex officio members)(
Executive Council meetings will generally be held weekly, and will be posted in advance. A quorum for a vote will be seven voting members of the Council including either the Faculty Assembly President or the Faculty Vice President.
Minutes will be maintained, and a report will be posted electronically within one week on all matters voted upon by the Executive Council to further ensure transparency. Councilors representing Schools will also report to, and solicit input from, their Unit Councils on a regular basis.
The Faculty Assembly President may veto a decision made by the Council. With a majority vote of the Council membership, the veto would be overridden. In such a case the item will be referred to the full Faculty Assembly for deliberation and vote.
To provide checks and balance, a petition of 20 faculty members from at least three schools can move any item which was handled by the Executive Council to be included in the agenda for discussion at a full Faculty Assembly meeting. A two-thirds majority vote of the Faculty Assembly would be needed to actually reverse a decision made by the Executive Council.
Since a number of items will be handled by the Executive Council, full Faculty Assembly meetings (maintaining the guidelines presented in Part A ³Streamlining²) will be reduced to two meetings a semester: September, December, February and May. The President of the Faculty Assembly may call, when necessary, special Faculty Assembly meetings. Such meetings may also be called by petition to the President from twenty faculty (from no less than three academic units or divisions). If a regularly scheduled meeting of the Faculty Assembly is deemed not necessary (for lack of agenda items) by the President of the Faculty Assembly and the Advisory Council, it may be canceled and members notified at least two days in advance.
n. The Executive Council of the Faculty Assembly will meet at least once a month throughout the academic year with the President and Provost, maintaining the current meeting schedule of the Faculty Advisory Council with the President and Provost.
o. The President of the Faculty Assembly will maintain his/her current meeting schedule with the President and Provost.
Action Requested: A vote to support or reject this ³Proposal for A Two-Year Pilot Restructuring of Faculty Advisory Council Structure.² If approved, this new governance structure would be provisional for two years, commencing in academic year 2006-2007. The effectiveness of the model will be assessed by the Faculty Assembly in Spring 2008, and a vote on whether to make the changes permanent would be taken in May 2008.
Both the vote for the pilot project and the vote to make the changes permanent would need a 2/3 majority since they affect the Faculty Assembly bylaws. At any point during the two-year pilot the Faculty Assembly could dissolve the Executive Council by a 2/3 majority vote, and return to the Faculty Advisory Council model in place as of October 2005.