The Faculty Council advises the College on behalf of the IST faculty on matters of faculty development, issues, policy, and faculty governance.
The Faculty Council is composed of an elected representative from each of the Scholarly Interest Groups (SIGs). The representative is chosen by a majority of votes cast by members of each SIG. Two additional representatives may be appointed from the faculty at large to augment the representation of the Scholarly Interest Groups. These extra appointments (if deemed necessary) are made by the Dean for the purpose of creating balance in council membership and shall be voting members of the Faculty Council. At least one voting member of the Faculty Council is a fixed-term faculty member.
The Faculty Council shall be chaired by a tenured faculty member, who is included in the total membership of the Faculty Council, but who does not act as the representative from his or her SIG. Elections to fill the position of Chair of Faculty Council will be held every other year during the spring semester. The term of the Chair of Faculty Council shall be two academic years. The Chair of the Faculty Council will serve on the Dean’s Academic Council as an appointed member by the Dean.
SIGs are groups composed of faculty members (tenure-track and fixed-term) who share an interest in a particular IST academic program. SIGs are formed and maintained to provide fellowship and networking opportunities for their members and to support scholarship, pedagogy and mentoring in that particular area. SIGs, via their representation on the Faculty Council, provide guidance and support to the College in areas such as course development and evaluation, recruiting of graduate students, strategic planning, recommendations on College operations, and support in providing guidance in areas such as faculty evaluation and promotion and tenure guidance, e.g., understanding the specifics of scholarship in the SIG domain. New faculty members may select their SIG affiliation. All faculty may be a non-voting member of a second SIG if desired.
Responsibilities
The Faculty Council meets twice a month and meetings are open to all Faculty. The functions and purpose of the Faculty Council are: (1) gather feedback regarding SIG processes, individual and faculty concerns; (2) provide feedback to the Dean via the Faculty Council Chair; (3) interpret, maintain and evolve the College Constitution or other administrative policies related to faculty rights and responsibilities; (4) select and oversee college-wide initiatives aimed at enriching the interdisciplinary mission in research and teaching in the College of IST, and (5) review and make recommendations on sabbatical leave applications.
Revised: Karen Brewster, Assigned IST Administrative Guideline Number, 11/16/2020