Information about Faculty Constitution

Constitution of the Agricultural Faculty

Revised - May 2007

ARTICLE I. COMPOSITION AND ADMINISTRATION
ARTICLE II. POWERS OF THE AGRICULTURAL FACULTY
ARTICLE III. MEETINGS OF THE AGRICULTURAL FACULTY
ARTICLE IV. COMMITTEES OF THE FACULTY OF AGRICULTURE
ARTICLE V. REPRESENTATION TO THE UNIVERSITY SENATE
ARTICLE VI. AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION
ARTICLE VII. REVIEW OF THE CONSTITUTION

ARTICLE I. COMPOSITION AND ADMINISTRATION

1. Composition of the Agricultural Faculty . All employees with the rank of at least assistant professor and those having the rank of instructor for at least two years shall be eligible to vote on all Agricultural Faculty matters. Included are those individuals appointed as an Adjunct Faculty (as defined in Executive Memorandum C-12, 25 August 1987) or a Clinical Faculty member. Research Faculty members may vote on all items, excepting curricular matters. Associate and Affiliate administrative or professional appointees are specifically excluded.
   
2. Chief Administrative Officer . The chief administrative officer of the Agricultural Faculty is the Dean of Agriculture.
   
3. Instructional Department. An Instructional Department as used in this document is defined in the University Academic Procedures Manual, Section K-1.

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ARTICLE II. POWERS OF THE AGRICULTURAL FACULTY

1. The Faculty of Agriculture shall have jurisdiction, consistent with University policy, of specific internal affairs, and shall discuss and make recommendations regarding all matters affecting its responsibilities in teaching, research, and extension. Specifically the Agricultural Faculty shall:
   
   1. Establish course content, curricula, requirements, and certification for graduation.
   2. Advise the Dean in matters of educational policy and long-term planning that affect the responsibilities of the Agricultural Faculty.
   3. Advise the Dean and others on matters that concern Agricultural Faculty and student welfare.

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ARTICLE III. MEETINGS OF THE AGRICULTURAL FACULTY

1. The powers of the Agricultural Faculty shall be exercised at open meetings of the entire Agricultural Faculty, convened after proper written notification. The presiding officer shall be the Dean or his or her designee. The Dean shall appoint a Secretary of the Agricultural Faculty who shall keep the minutes of all meetings and a Parliamentarian who shall rule on all questions of procedure.
   
   1. Regular meetings shall be called at least once during each of the fall and spring semesters of the University calendar, at times set by the Agenda and Policy Committee. At least one week prior to the announced date of the meeting, the Agenda and Policy Committee shall distribute an announcement and agenda for the meeting to each voting member.
   2. Fifteen percent of the Agricultural Faculty shall constitute a quorum at an Agricultural Faculty meeting. No meeting shall be held in the absence of a quorum.
   3. Decisions of the Agricultural Faculty shall be reached by a simple majority of the Agricultural Faculty attending any called meeting.
      
   1. Voting will be by secret ballot if requested by any Agricultural Faculty member present.
   2. A mail vote by the Agricultural Faculty shall be conducted on any issue if requested by any voting Agricultural Faculty member and approved by one-fifth of the members present. Issues in all mail ballots shall be decided by a majority of the votes cast.
   4. To encourage informed and efficient discussion of Agricultural Faculty business, only items appearing on the distributed agenda may be acted upon at a meeting, unless consent is voted by three-fourths of the members present. Written reports submitted for information only, even though not requiring immediate Agricultural Faculty action, shall whenever possible be distributed in advance of the meeting, and be noted on the agenda for question and discussion only. Any Agricultural Faculty member may introduce, for discussion only, any item not on the agenda at the appropriate time during regularly scheduled Agricultural Faculty meetings.
   5. The minutes of each Agricultural Faculty meeting shall be distributed to each Agricultural Faculty member within ten days after the meeting, and to the Offices of the President, Vice-Presidents, Deans, and Directors.
   6. Special meetings may be called either by the Dean or by the Agenda and Policy Committee, or upon written request to the Agenda and Policy Committee by ten or more Agricultural Faculty. At these meetings, the same rules of agenda and procedure shall apply as at regular meetings.
   7. Emergency meetings of the Agricultural Faculty may be called by the Dean or his or her designee in consultation with a representative of the Agenda and Policy Committee by verbal notification of each Department Head and Administrative Office at least two hours before such an emergency meeting is to be convened. Regular rules of procedure shall apply except that such emergency meetings may consider and take appropriate action on emergency problems only.

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ARTICLE IV. COMMITTEES OF THE FACULTY OF AGRICULTURE

1. The committees of this Agricultural Faculty include the following: Area Promotions Committee, Standing Committees of the Agricultural Faculty, Ad Hoc Committees of the Agricultural Faculty, Administrative Committees. The Dean shall distribute annually to all Agricultural Faculty members a list giving the membership of all committees of these types.
   
   1. Area Promotions Committee . This committee shall receive and act upon the recommendations of the primary committees in Agriculture in the regular promotions procedure of the University. Membership of this committee shall include the Dean of Agriculture who shall be Chairperson and call meetings, the Director of Academic Programs, the Director of the Cooperative Extension Service, the Director of Agricultural Research Programs, the Director of International Programs in Agriculture, Department Heads and Agricultural Faculty Representatives (as described hereafter in Article IV) of the departments which normally generate promotions. A quorum of this committee shall consist of seven-eighths of its membership with at least one-third of those present being Agricultural Faculty representatives. Absentee ballots shall not be permitted. This committee will carry out its functions in agreement with the "Policy Concerning Promotions," page N-73, Academic Procedure Manual.
      
      1. Eligibility to serve as an Agricultural Faculty representative of this committee shall be limited to tenured Full Professors in Agriculture who do not have major administrative responsibilities.
         
      2. The Agricultural Faculty of each department shall elect one eligible Agricultural Faculty representative to the committee according to the following procedures.
         
         1. Candidates shall be nominated at an open meeting of the Agricultural Faculty of the department.
         2. Each nominee must express willingness to serve if elected.
         3. Elections shall be by written ballot in which all members of the Agricultural Faculty (as defined in Article I, A) in residence of a department have an opportunity to vote.
         4. To be elected, a candidate must receive a majority of ballots cast.
         5. Elections shall be concluded before July 1 of the year in which the term of service on the committee begins.
      3. The regular term of service for Agricultural Faculty representatives shall be three years, with approximately one-third of the apportionment elected each year according to a rotation schedule among the departments. The Agenda and Policy Committee shall be empowered to establish details of the rotation schedule and to make adjustments in this schedule if necessitated by a change in the number of departments. Each regular term of service shall begin July 1. There shall be no restrictions on consecutive terms of service.
         
      4. An Agricultural Faculty representative who is unable to complete the term of service or who is unable to participate in the affairs of the Area Promotions Committee shall be replaced by the department represented. Procedures for filling such unexpired terms or temporary vacancies on the Committee shall be the same as for the election to a full term, except for the time of election.
         
   2. Standing Committees of the Agricultural Faculty . Such committees shall deal with policy or action matters of continuing concern to the Agricultural Faculty. They shall be established or terminated only under the provisions of the constitution.
      
      1. Terms of membership on all Standing Committees shall commence one month prior to the last official day of the spring semester unless otherwise specified. Before the last official day of the spring semester, the newly elected chairperson shall provide the Secretary of the Agricultural Faculty with a list of the officers of his or her committee. Members of Standing Committees shall be elected prior to March 1 in an open meeting of each department unless otherwise specifically stated. No department head shall be elected to serve.
         
      2. Unless otherwise specifically stated, terms of membership shall be three years for elected members, with one-third of the members newly elected each year. Unless otherwise stated no member shall be eligible for immediate re-election after completion of a full-term.
         
      3. Excepting the Grade Appeals Committee, a Chairperson shall be elected annually in a meeting held no later than the last official day of the spring semester or May 1, whichever is earlier, by majority vote of the newly elected and continuing voting members. The organizational meeting shall be called and chaired by the retiring Chairperson.
         
      4. Each committee has the responsibility for organizing itself, establishing a frequency for conducting business commensurate with achieving stated or perceived objectives in each area.
         
      5. At least once each academic year, committee Chairpersons shall review with committee members those sections of the constitution and/or Academic Procedure Manual that apply to the activities of that committee.
         
      6. Each committee may appoint such sub-committees as it deems necessary.
      7. Each Standing Committee shall submit annually a written report to the Agricultural Faculty.
         
         
         1. Agenda and Policy Committee . The functions of this committee shall be to maintain liaison between the administrative officials of Agriculture and the Agricultural Faculty, and to guide the Agricultural Faculty in the efficient exercise of its powers.
            
            
            1. Schedule, announce, and prepare the agenda for Agricultural Faculty meetings in cooperation with the Dean.
               
            2. Identify problems and counsel the Dean on policy matters of concern to the Agricultural Faculty.
               
            3. Provide for periodic reports to the Agricultural Faculty from the Dean and the major administrative officers in the areas of teaching, research, and extension.
               
            4. Act as a committee on committees: conduct the election of Senate representatives from Agriculture and coordinate the activities of other standing committees of the Agricultural Faculty.
               
            5. The membership of the Agenda and Policy Committee shall consist of a voting representative from each Instructional Department and the Chairperson of the Senate representatives from Agriculture. The Dean, or his or her designee, and the Secretary of the Agricultural Faculty shall serve as non-voting members of the committee.
               
         2. Curriculum and Student Relations Committee . The functions of this committee shall be to coordinate and evaluate on a continuing basis the course work, curricula, and teaching offered by the Instructional Departments of the College of Agriculture, to examine and make recommendations to the assembled Agricultural Faculty on proposed changes in course work, curricula, and degree requirements, and to ensure prompt attention to educational problems of students.
            
            
            1. Membership of this committee shall be one representative from each Instructional Department. Pro-tempore members may be appointed by the Dean to give recognition to interdisciplinary and other programs. The Director of Academic Programs, or his or her designee, and the Associate Director of Academic Programs shall serve as ex officio members. The undergraduate Agricultural Council shall select to serve as a non-voting member of this committee one undergraduate student from a pool consisting of one student nominated by the department head from each instructional department. One graduate student will serve as a non-voting member. The Secretary of the Faculty shall randomly select one graduate student from a pool of graduate students consisting of one student nominated by the department head from each instructional department.
               
         3. Grade Appeals Committee . The function of this committee is to provide recourse to a student who believes that an inappropriate grade has been assigned as a result of prejudice, caprice, or other improper conditions such as mechanical error, or assignment of a grade inconsistent with those assigned other students. Additionally, a student may challenge the reduction of a grade assigned for his/her alleged dishonesty.
            
            1. This committee shall consist of three members of the instructional Agricultual Faculty; two students, undergraduate or graduate, corresponding to the status of the appellant; and a non-voting Chairperson. The Chairperson will be an Assistant or Associate Dean appointed by the Dean.
               
               1. Faculty membership of this committee shall be randomly selected by the Chairperson of the Agenda and Policy Committee from a pool consisting of one Agricultural Faculty member elected annually from each Instructional Department. Three members will be selected as regular members and all others in the pool shall serve as alternate members. No member shall serve more than two consecutive terms.
                  
               2. Student membership shall consist of two undergraduate students and two graduate students. In addition there will be nine alternates from each category selected to be used as necessary. Undergraduate regular and alternate members shall be selected annually by the undergraduate Agricultural Council from a pool of undergraduate students consisting of one student nominated by the Department Head from each Instructional Department. Before the last official day of the spring semester, the presiding officer of the Agricultural Council shall provide the Secretary of the Agricultural Faculty with a list of the regular and alternate undergraduate students selected for the Grade Appeals Committee.
                  
                  

                  Graduate student regular members shall be selected in a random fashion from a pool of students from each instructional department. Annually graduate students from each instructional department shall elect one graduate student from their instructional department to serve in the pool for a one-year period. Before the last official day of the spring semester, the Secretary of the Agricultural Faculty in consultation with the Chairman of the Agenda and Policy Committee shall randomly select two graduate students from the pool and convey their names to the Chairperson of the Grade Appeals Committee. The remaining graduate students in the pool shall be considered alternate members of the committee to serve as necessary.

            2. The college Grade Appeals Committee shall conduct business as prescribed in the University Regulations bulletin.
               
         4. Grievance Hearing Committee. The function of this committee is to provide a means of fairly considering and acting upon complaints of all academic personnel including faculty, instructors, post doctoral residents, post doctoral research assistants and associates, graduate assistants in research, and graduate instructors in research in their roles as academic employees of the University, but not in their roles as students.
            
            

            A. Membership of this committee shall consist of 30 individuals selected at random from the Agricultural Faculty who are in tenure-track positions. The committee shall consist of at least one-third professors and at least two-thirds tenured faculty members. Selection shall take place prior to March 1 by procedures designed by the Secretary of the Agricultural Faculty and approved by the Agenda and Policy Committee. No Agricultural Faculty member selected to serve shall hold the position of president, vice-president, dean, associate dean, assistant dean, director, associate director, assistant director, department head, associate department head, assistant department head or act in any of the above capacities.
            

            1. Each member shall serve a two-year term; however, to ensure continuity, fifteen members shall be newly selected each year.
               
               
            2. The Grievance Hearing Committee Chairperson shall be a tenured full professor. The chairperson shall be elected annually in a meeting held no later than the last official day of the spring semester or May 1, whichever is earlier, by a majority vote of the newly selected and continuing members. The organizational meeting shall be called and chaired by the retiring chairperson to elect a new chairperson and to review the committee's charge and operating procedures. Upon the election of a chairperson, this information will be transmitted to the Secretary of the Agricultural Faculty who shall inform the Secretary of University Faculties and the Executive Vice-President for Academic Affairs.
               

         B. The process for resolving grievances for academic personnel of the College of Agriculture shall be conducted in accordance with Executive Memorandum C-19 (revised), 31 Oct. 1997.
         

   3. Ad Hoc Committees of the Agricultural Faculty. Such committees shall deal with policy or action matters not delegated to an established standing committee and unlikely to require continuing attention. Such committees shall be established by the Dean or by vote of the Agricultural Faculty. Unless otherwise provided, such committees shall function by t he following rules:
      
      1. Size, membership, and leadership of these committees shall be determined by the Dean, in consultation with the Agenda and Policy Committee.
         
      2. Such committees shall make a written report and final recommendations to the Agricultural Faculty.
         
      3. Membership shall extend for the duration of the committee, and the committee shall be disbanded upon acceptance of its report.
   4. Administrative Committees Upon Which Agricultural Faculty Members Serve. Such committees shall deal with regular tasks of administering the established responsibilities of the subdivisions within Agriculture. Proposals for major changes in activities or policies stemming from these committees will be reported to the Agricultural Faculty. Except when otherwise provided, these committees shall be established by the Dean after consultation with appropriate major administrative assistants to determine the need, membership, terms of service, leadership, and reporting requirements.

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ARTICLE V. REPRESENTATION TO THE UNIVERSITY SENATE

1. Responsibilities. The senators from Agriculture shall be responsible for regular participation in the activities of the University Senate, for communicating to the Faculty of Agriculture and its subdivisions the direction of senate actions and deliberations, and for transmitting viewpoints and discussions of their Agricultural Faculty to the University Senate.
   
2. Election Procedure.
   
   1. The Agricultural Faculty shall elect the number of senators apportioned to Agriculture. Terms of office shall be three years, with approximately one-third of the apportionment elected each year prior to March 1 .
   2. Each Instructional Department shall have at least one, but no more than two, Agricultural Faculty serving as senators .
   3. Each department shall elect one Agricultural Faculty member (as defined in Article I, A) to serve as its senator according to the following procedures :
      
      1. Candidates must be nominated at an open meeting of the department.
         
      2. Nominees must state their willingness to serve after reviewing Senate rules of operation and attendance.
         
      3. Elections shall be by secret ballot in which all members of the Agricultural Faculty in residence of a department have an opportunity to vote.
      4. To be elected, a candidate must receive a majority of ballots cast.
         
   4. In addition to the senators elected as departmental representatives, senators-at-large shall be elected and so designated by the Agricultural Faculty to fill the remaining number of senate vacancies assigned to Agriculture.
      
      1. Each department eligible to elect a senator may submit only one nominee for senator-at-large. Such nominees will be selected by the departments in a manner identical to regular senators. Nominees will be forwarded to the Secretary of the Agricultural Faculty .
         
      2. Election of senators-at-large shall be by mail ballot of the entire Agricultural Faculty. Ballots shall contain names of all candidates in random order. Each Agricultural Faculty member may cast votes equal to but not to exceed the number of senate vacancies to be filled. That number of candidates receiving the most votes shall be elected.
         
      3. The number of votes cast for each candidate shall be filed with the Dean.
         
   5. Immediately following each annual election, all senators from Agriculture shall meet at the call of the Dean and elect a Chairperson. The Chairperson shall act as a spokesman for the delegation and shall serve on the Agenda and Policy Committee.
   6. Senators unable to complete their terms or unable to attend senate meetings for periods of one regular semester or more shall be replaced. Replacement for shorter periods of absence shall be at the option of the senator in question or the department represented. In either case, the replacement of a senator shall be for the duration of the unexpired term. Senators who are aware of the forthcoming need for their replacement should notify the Chairperson of the Agenda and Policy Committee.
      1. To replace senators elected under B,3 above, the department represented shall elect a replacement (according to the procedures of B,3) upon request by the Chairperson of the Agenda and Policy Committee.
      2. Senators-at-large shall be replaced by the Agenda and Policy Committee from the most recent list of candidates filed under Article V, B,4, above. Candidates not previously elected shall be considered alternates, in the order of votes received. Should a second replacement be required, or should the first alternate be unavailable, the second alternate would be selected, etc.

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ARTICLE VI. AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION

1. Initiation of Amendments. An amendment to this constitution may be initiated by two-thirds vote of the Agenda and Policy Committee, or by written petition signed by ten members of the Faculty of Agriculture to the Agenda and Policy Committee .
2. Ratification . Any properly initiated amendment petition shall be placed on the agenda of the next regular or special meeting of the Agricultural Faculty for discussion. At such a meeting, any proposed amendment may be further amended by a two-thirds vote of those in attendance. Thereafter it shall be submitted to a mail ballot of the entire Agricultural Faculty, in which a favorable vote by a majority of those voting shall be necessary for ratification.

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ARTICLE VII. REVIEW OF THE CONSTITUTION

1. The Constitution shall be reviewed by the Agenda and Policy Committee every five years. Any changes resulting from such review shall follow the conditions of Article VI.

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