FAIRMONT STATE COLLEGE
FACULTY SENATE BY-LAWS

ARTICLE I.  Meetings

Section 1.  Regular meetings of the Faculty Senate shall be held each month during the academic year on dates to be announced by the Executive Committee. A list of dates for such forthcoming meetings shall be published annually and distributed to each Senator at least ten days prior to the September meeting.

Section 2.  The last regularly scheduled Senate meeting of each academic year, which shall follow the annual Senate membership reorganization, shall be held for the purpose of electing new officers for the next year. The meeting shall be called and chaired by the President of the outgoing Senate.

Section 3.  The members present at any meeting may, by a majority vote of those present, change the date for any subsequent meeting or call a special meeting.

Section 4.  Any member of the College community with a direct interest in the business of any Senate meetings shall have the right to attend such meeting. He/she shall have the right, subject to the approval of the President of the Senate, to plead his/her case if he/she feels that his/her interests have not been properly presented.

Section 5.  In the event that a Senator is unable to be in attendance for a particular meeting, he/she may send a substitute representative from his/her own School who meets the requirements for Faculty Senate membership. The individual designated as a substitute shall assume the seat and vote for the absent member provided that notice of such substitution be given to the Secretary of the Senate prior to the call to order of the meeting.

Section 6.  The physical presence of at least fifty percent of the members or their substitutes shall constitute a quorum.

Section 7.  Meetings of the Senate shall be conducted in accordance with the then current edition of Robert's Rules of Order, except as otherwise provided in the by-laws.

ARTICLE II.  Officers

Section 1.  The Senate shall, by secret ballot, elect annually or whenever a vacancy exists a President, a Vice President, a Secretary, and an Executive Committee of three members from among its elected members.  The term of office shall be one year except when an election is held to fill a vacancy, the period shall be for the unexpired part of the original term of office. These officers shall be eligible for re-election.

Section 2.  The Executive Committee of the Senate, composed of the President of the Senate, the Vice President of the Senate, the Secretary of the Senate and three Executive Committee members elected by the Senate, shall meet at least one time prior to each Senate meeting to prepare an agenda and to designate items of business as major or minor.

Section 3.  The School whose Senator has been elected President will be entitled to choose a substitute Senator to serve during the term of the President.

ARTICLE III.  Voting Procedure

Section 1.  Policy determination shall be by majority vote of members present provided a quorum is constituted. Policies shall be effective after passage by the Senate and approval by the President of the College. The latter may interpose a veto on any Senate action, in which case, the Senate may direct the President of the Senate to invite the President of the College to present his/her rationale or reasons for the imposed veto.

Section 2.  The President of the Senate is the presiding officer and as such shall not vote.

Section 3.  A written, secret ballot shall be used in all elections.

Section 4.  A written, secret ballot shall be used to decide upon all major items of business unless there be a general consensus to forego such procedure for a specific issue.

Section 5.  On any matter before the Senate three-fifths of those members present shall be empowered to end debate.

ARTICLE IV.  Faculty Committees

Rules of General Application

Section 1.  Committees shall be established by the Senate as needed for the proper fulfillment of the functions as delegated to it by the Faculty of Fairmont State College.

Section 2.  Each committee shall meet at least one time a year.

Section 3.  Notice of all regular meetings of standing committees shall be announced in the Faculty Bulletin.

Section 4.  All committee meetings will be open to all interested persons, unless in the opinion of the committee, a closed meeting is necessary to protect personal rights of privacy.

Section 5.  Each committee shall keep adequate records of committee business. Matters of general importance to the college shall be reported promptly to the President of the Senate.

Section 6.  At least once per year each committee shall send a report of its activities in writing to the Executive Committee of the Senate. Additional reports may be requested by the Senate at any time.

Section 7.  Committees shall be expected to conduct research, deliberate on policies, and make recommendations to the Senate relevant to the issues which they have explored. Procedural or policy changes recommended by a faculty committee which affect the instructional program or faculty welfare must be approved by the Senate and the President of the College. Procedural or policy changes which do not affect the instructional program or faculty welfare shall be referred to the responsible institutional unit.

Section 8.  Ex-officio members of standing committees shall not vote on committee matters.

ARTICLE V.  Faculty Committees

Purpose, Organization, and Function

Section 1.  At least 30 days prior to the last regularly scheduled Senate meeting of the academic year, the President of the Senate shall appoint a Nominating Committee of five members of the Faculty Senate charged with providing a slate of proposed officers.

Section 2.  At the regularly scheduled December Senate meeting, the President of the Senate shall appoint a Nominating Committee of five members of the Faculty Senate charged with providing a slate of five nominees for the Committee on Committees, designating one of the five nominees to serve as chairperson. The Chairperson of the previous year's Committee on Committees shall be an Ex-Officio member of the Committee on Committees.

Section 3.  The Committee on Committees shall be elected at the regularly scheduled January Senate meeting.  Nominations shall be made by the Nominating Committee and from the floor of the Senate.

Section 4.  Faculty members of the standing committees, with the exception of the Curriculum and Instruction Committee, shall be nominated by the Committee on Committees or nominated from the faculty-at-large through elected Senators. The first reading of the proposed committee assignments will be at the last regularly scheduled Senate meeting of the academic year; the second reading, at the first regularly scheduled Senate meeting of the following academic year.

Section 5.  Student members nominated to serve on faculty standing committees shall have been chosen from a list presented to the Committee on Committees by the Student Government. For every student nominated, two names shall have been presented by the Student Government.

Section 6.  The Committee on Committees shall nominate a chairperson and as many faculty members to faculty committees as it deems necessary to fulfill each committee's function. When naming ex-officio members where specified, the Committee on Committees should consult with the designated Administrative Officer to determine whether that officer or a representative of that officer will serve in the ex-officio capacity. One student representative shall be selected to serve on each faculty committee for each ten faculty members or fraction thereof on the committee with the exception of the Curriculum and Instruction Committee where two student representatives shall be selected. No student representative shall be selected for the Academic Appeals Board , Faculty Development Committee, Faculty Grievance Committee, Faculty Personnel Committee, and the Faculty Welfare Committee.

Section 7.  The Faculty Standing Committees shall be nominated by the Committee on Committees (itself a standing committee) and approved by the Senate. In addition, each of the following Senate committees shall include one member designated by the Faculty Assembly: Student Hearing Board, International Education Committee, Institutional Testing and Research Committee, Faculty Development Committee, Admissions and Credits Committee, Financial Aid Committee. In the spirit of mutual support in fulfilling the mission of the College, it is understood that the following Faculty Assembly committees will include a member designated by the Faculty Senate: Admissions, Credits, and Academic Appeals: Curriculum: Faculty Development, Welfare, and Legislative Advocacy: and Faculty Personnel. Other standing committees may be added at the discretion of the Senate.

A.    Academic Appeals Board.  The Academic Appeals Board shall conduct impartial investigation of any charges by students of prejudicial or capricious evaluation and recommend appropriate action. Grade appeals shall have been presented to the School Chairman and the Academic Vice President prior to the presentation of the Academic Appeals Board. The written decision of the Academic Appeals Board shall be sent to the Academic Vice President, instructor, and student involved.

B.       Admissions and Credits Committee.  The Admissions and Credits Committee shall serve as a Faculty Advisory group to the Office of the Registrar and the Office of Admissions. In this capacity, the Committee shall review general college policies adopted by these offices and recommend any appropriate changes. This Committee shall be empowered to act upon individual cases and admission, readmission, retention, and credits of students and shall also be empowered to render judgment on petitions for grade changes submitted by faculty and administration. The Registrar and Executive Director of Enrollment Services shall serve as ex-officio members.

C.     Athletics Committee. [1]    The Athletics Committee shall include the Director of Athletics and the college NCAA Academic Representative [2]  as ex-officio members and shall:

        1.     review and recommend policies;

        2.     advise the President and the Athletic Director in the determination and maintenance of high standards of performance by the institution in this specialized area;

        3.     act as a liaison between faculty, students and administration;

        4.     monitor the athletic budget allocations and inter-collegiate schedules; and

        5.     periodically review compliance with WVIAC, NCAA, and Title IX policies and regulations.

D.    Curriculum Committee.  The Curriculum Committee shall:

        1.     review the initial decisions concerning curriculum change as reported by the Academic Vice President;

        2.     hear any appeals from School chairpersons or other members of the faculty concerning disposition of curriculum proposals;

        3.     undertake research into the successes and failures of the college curriculum;

        4.     develop policy guidelines that will assist the college curriculum development. All four functions of the committee will result in recommendations reported to the Faculty Senate for final action.

E.     Faculty Development Committee. [3]    The Faculty Development Committee shall:

        1.     publicize and solicit applications for Faculty Development grants and select the recipients for final  approval by the President of the College;

        2.     assist the Professional Development Coordinator in seeking funds for these and similar activities; and

        3.     serve as an advisory board to the Professional Development office.

F.     Faculty Grievance Committee. [4]    The Faculty Grievance Committee shall act as an appeal organ of the Fairmont State College faculty. Its purpose is purely investigative. Faculty members are expected to take complaints to the School or department chairperson, the appropriate dean, vice president, or whatever body has authority to act upon the question. The Grievance Committee may not consider grievances resulting from appeals to or decisions from the Academic Appeals Board, the President of the College, the Board of Directors, or any agency external to Fairmont State College. The recommendation of the Faculty Grievance Committee  should be sought only after all appropriate channels for consideration of the complaint have been found unresponsive or ineffective in satisfactorily resolving the grievance.

G.     Faculty Personnel Committee.  The Faculty Personnel Committee shall make recommendations directly to the College President on professional personnel concerning tenure, promotion in rank and sabbaticals. This committee shall also handle the business directed to it by the Faculty Senate Executive Committee.

H.    Faculty Welfare Committee.  The Faculty Welfare Committee shall recommend programs for the welfare of the faculty. It shall include the Assistant to the President as an ex-officio member.

I.      Institutional Testing and Research Committee.   The Institutional Testing and Research Committee shall include the Vice President for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs as an ex-officio member and shall:

        1.     examine the effectiveness and progress of testing programs and recommend any needed alternatives; and

        2.     conduct research studies to be determined by the Faculty Senate or by the Committee with approval of the Faculty Senate.

        3.     function as the official institutional agency for insuring the ethical and legal use of humans and  animals in the normal course of conducting institutionally related research. [5]

J.      International Education Committee.  The International Education Committee shall investigate, promote, and coordinate all phases of international education among students and faculty and shall assist in their coordination. [6]

K.    Legislative Advocacy Committee. [7]    The Legislative Advocacy Committee shall:

        1.     keep faculty informed concerning higher education legislation as it is proposed and as it proceeds through the legislative process;

        2.     disseminate membership lists of legislative committees and addresses of pertinent legislators;

        3.     work in cooperation with similar committees on the other state college and university campuses; and

        4.     survey and collate information and opinions of faculty and forward them to the Advisory Council of Faculty for inclusion in proposed legislative packages.

L.     Library Committee.  The Library Committee shall study library needs in view of the academic program and advise the librarian on matters of general library policy, the development of library resources, allocation of library budget, and upon means which may best integrate the library program with other academic activities of the College. The Committee shall serve as a liaison group between the faculty and the librarian.

M.   Student Financial Aid Committee.  The Student Financial Aid Committee shall include the Director of Financial Aid as an ex-officio member and shall recommend policies for the student financial aid program and approve the awarding of all student financial aid.

N.    Student Hearing Board. [8]    The Student Hearing Board shall hear student discipline cases, as directed by the Vice President for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs or his/her designee, in accordance with procedures outlined in the Student Handbook. A hearing panel consisting of the chairperson of the Student Hearing Board (who will not vote), three additional faculty and two students will be selected from the Student Hearing Board membership. After hearing all related evidence, the panel shall by secret ballot render a decision and, if guilty, recommend an appropriate penalty to be implemented by the Vice President for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs. The student may appeal the decision, following the procedure specified in the Student Handbook.

O.    Faculty Harassment Complaint Committee. [9]   The Faculty Harassment Complaint Committee, drawn from a panel of fifteen faculty, shall conduct a formal hearing and make a recommendation to the President of the College in accordance with the Institutional Harassment Policy in any case in which a faculty member is the respondent.

      

ARTICLE VI.  Amendment of By-Laws

Amendments of By-Laws of the Faculty Senate shall be made only at a regular meeting thereof, by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Faculty Senate followed by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Faculty. No proposition to amend shall be acted upon unless written notice thereof has been given to the President of the Senate at least thirty days prior to the meeting. A copy of such a proposition shall be embodied in the call for the next regular meeting, and a copy sent to each Senator at least ten days before the date of the next regular meeting at which time the amendment will be presented for Senate Action.

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[1] Amended by Faculty Senate, February 10, 1981 and August 22, 1983

[2] Amended by the Faculty Senate, April 27, 1989

[3] Adopted by Faculty Senate, August 22, 1983

[4] Amended by Faculty Senate, 1978

[5] Amended by Faculty Senate, 1987; approved by Faculty, August 20, 1987

[6] Amended by Faculty Senate, approved by Faculty, March 23, 1993

[7] Adopted by Faculty Senate, August 22, 1983

[8] Approved by Faculty, November 29, 1991

[9] Approved by Faculty, April 19, 1994