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University of Nebraska at Kearney

Constitution of the College of Fine Arts and Humanities

  1. NAME

    The name of the organization shall be the Faculty of the College of Fine Arts and Humanities, University of Nebraska at Kearney, hereinafter referred to as the Faculty.

  2. POWERS

    Within the limits established by the laws of the State of Nebraska and the Bylaws and Rules of the Board of Regents of the University of Nebraska, the Faculty shall:

    1. establish rules for the conduct of its business and approve or disapprove proposals for changes in the constitution;
       
    2. establish committees for the conduct of Faculty business and assign functions and responsibilities to those committees;
       
    3. set entrance requirements to the College and requirements for degrees; approve or disapprove the establishment of programs for majors and minors of courses to be offered in the College; determine scholastic standards to be met by students in the College; establish procedures for probation, suspension, reinstatement, and other measures related to the maintenance of academic standards; and establish other rules concerning curricula, instructional programs and grading regulations;
       
    4. consider other business brought before it by the Dean, the Standing Committees, the Faculty, or other authorized persons according to procedures outlined in this constitution;
       
    5. consider other items of broad interest to the welfare of the Faculty.
       
  3. MEMBERS
     
    Section 1. The membership of the Faculty shall consist of all full-time instructors and full-time or part-time persons holding the rank of Assistant Professor and above in this College.
     
    Section 2. Individuals with responsibilities in more than one college will declare in which college they desire to be a voting member, subject to the approval of the Dean.
     
  4. OFFICERS
     
    Section 1. The Dean of the college of Fine Arts and Humanities or the Assistant or Associate Dean shall preside at meetings of the Faculty, except that in the absence of the Dean or the Assistant or Assistant Dean, the Faculty shall elect a president pro tem.
     
    Section 2. The secretary shall be elected during the first meeting of the academic year and shall serve for a two-year term.
     
    Section 3. The Faculty shall elect a parliamentarian at the first meeting of each academic year.
     
  5. MEETINGS
     
    Section 1. Regular business meetings will be held in October and in March, at a time designated by the Dean with at least two weeks notice given to the Faculty.
     
    Section 2. A special meeting may be called in any one of the following ways:
    1. by the Dean
    2. by a Standing Committee of the College
    3. by the College Council
    4. by written request of 25 members.
    Section 3. Notifications of regular meetings and copies of the agenda shall be mailed to the Faculty normally two weeks in advance. Special meetings must be called by the Dean within ten (10) work days after the appropriate request and an agenda distributed to the Faculty five (5) days prior to the meeting,
     
    Section 4. Items shall be placed on the agenda in any of the following ways:
    1. by the Dean
    2. by a Standing Committee of the College
    3. by the College Council
    4. by 10 or more members of the Faculty who shall submit the item in writing to the Advisory Committee
    5. by action from the floor, provided that no substantive action may be voted on during the same meeting.
    Section 5. A quorum shall consist of a simple majority of the Faculty.
     
    Section 6. A motion to refer to a mail ballot shall be in order after all discussion but before the vote is taken on any substantive matter before the Faculty, and it shall be adopted providing 50 percent of the members present favor such a motion. A substantive matter shall be taken as being confined to main motions. A summary of the arguments of the debate, pro and con, which were presented at the Faculty meeting and which were germane to the issue, shall be prepared by the secretary and sent, along with the ballot to each member of the Faculty.
     
    Section 7. All elections, including mail ballots, shall be decided by a majority vote of all members voting. in electing members to all committees the person receiving the greatest number of votes shall be elected.
     
    Section 8. The agenda of each meeting of the Faculty will be sent to the Graduate Student Association, and this body may designate representatives to participate in the meeting, without voting privileges. The representatives of the Graduate Student Association must be (a) student(s) in departments in the College of Fine Arts and Humanities.
     
  6. COMMITTEES

    There shall be two (2) standing committees: The Advisory Committee and the Educational Policy Committee. These committees shall convene at regular intervals to be determined by the membership at the beginning of each academic year. standing Committees may create appropriate subcommittees.

    Section 1. The Advisory Committee shall:
    1. advise the Dean on matters initiated by the committee or by the Faculty;
       
    2. advise the Dean on matters he/she refers to it;
       
    3. advise the Dean on the implementation of College policies;
       
    4. review the long term and general aspects of the College's activities, including staff and facility requirements;
       
    5. propose College policies for presentation to the Faculty;
       
    6. have general review responsibility and make recommendations concerning promotion, continuous appointment, and leave of absence and sabbatical policies within the College;
       
    7. be consulted by the Dean in recommending the appointment, reappointment, nonreappointment, promotion, granting of continuous appointment, demotion, transfer, dismissal, or apportionment of faculty and staff. if the recommendation of the Advisory Committee differs from that of the Dean, the Dean shall so inform the Vice chancellor for Academic Affairs and the Chancellor.
    Section 2. Advisory Committee Composition
    1. The Advisory committee shall be composed of seven (7) members, one from each of the units Art and Art History, English, Music/Dance, Speech Communication/Theater Arts, Foreign Languages, Philosophy, and Journalism/mass Communication.
       
    2. Each elected member will serve a three year term.
       
    3. Terms shall be staggered, with two members, or three when necessary, elected each year.
       
    4. Members must be associate or full: professors unless a unit would be denied representation.
       
    5. Department Chairs may not serve on this committee.
       
    Section 3. The Educational Policy Committee shall:
    1. advise the Dean on all matters of educational policy;
       
    2. exercise general oversight of the College's academic standards;
       
    3. recommend to the Faculty proposed College policies concerning admission and graduation requirements, including changes in degree requirements, new programs and new degrees;
       
    4. be authorized by the Faculty to determine addition of courses, deletion of courses, changes in course names and numbers. After acting under this authorization, the Committee will circulate its decisions in writing to the Faculty'. These decisions will be considered approved unless within fifteen (15) work days of issuance, action-is initiated under Article V, sections 2 and 3;
       
    5. receive from the Dean the names of students who have completed the requirements for graduation. The Faculty members of the Committee are authorized by the Faculty to recommend to the chancellor, the President, and the Board of Regents that the respective degrees be awarded;
       
    6. be authorized by the Faculty to act on student petitions for relief from College rules;
       
    7. serve as an appeals committee for students who believe that evaluation of their academic progress has been prejudiced or capricious;
       
    8. make recommendations on staffing, budget, and program as they affect matters of educational policy.
    Section 4. Educational Policy Committee Composition
    1. The Educational Policy Committee shall be composed of fifteen (15) members.
       
    2. one representative will be elected from Art and Art History, English, Foreign Language, Journalism/Mass Communication, Music/Dance, Philosophy, and speech Communication/Theater Arts.
       
    3. In the event that a department has more than 25% of the total membership of the faculty of the College, that department will elect an additional representative.
       
    4. Five faculty members will be elected as at-large representatives to the committee.
       
    5. All representatives shall be elected to serve staggered three year terms.
       
    6. The committee shall select two junior or senior students and one graduate student to serve one year terms. The student members shall be majoring in one of the departments of the College.
    Section 5. Special committees may be created by the Dean, by the Faculty and by the Standing Committees.
     
    Section 6. The Dean shall be responsible for maintaining a current description, including the method of selection and responsibilities, of all committees, as approved by the Faculty. This description constitutes an Appendix to this constitution and shall be printed in the Faculty Handbook of the College or otherwise published from time to time.
     
    Section 7. Committee Membership
    1. Department Chairs shall be considered members of the Faculty except for membership on the Advisory Committee.
       
    2. Standing committee members shall not be eligible for membership on more than one standing committee.
       
    3. In case of vacancy on a standing committee, the unit will elect a member to serve the rest of the term.
       
    4. Members of special committees will be appointed by the Dean, unless the membership is otherwise determined by the Faculty.
       
  7. COLLEGE COUNCIL
     
    Section 1. The College Council shall consist of the chairs of all departments of the College, The Dean may appoint additional members to the Council.
     
    Section 2. The Council shall:
    1. advise the Dean in matters relating to administrative policies and procedures within the College of Fine Arts and Humanities and its departments or other administrative units; 
    2. make recommendations to the Dean in matters relating to University administrative policies and procedures which affect the College;
       
    3. provide a forum for discussion of mutual problems and concerns relating to the administration of departments or other units in the College; 
    4. initiate the long term and general aspects of the College's activities, including staff and facility requirements;
       
    5. be consulted on matters concerning the disbursement of the budget.
  8. OFFICE OF THE DEAN
     
    Section 1. Responsibilities
    The Dean of the College shall provide educational leadership; shall be the officer primarily charged with the administration of the College and its budget; shall serve as intermediary between the College and the University; shall be the presiding officer at Faculty meetings; shall report to the Faculty at regular business meetings on the status of past College Legislation.
     
    Section 2. Selection of the Dean
    Appointment of the Dean shall be recommended to the President and the Board of Regents by the Chancellor, following procedures specified in the Bylaws of the Board. when college recommendations are requested for membership on an advisory/search committee, the Advisory Committee shall make such recommendations. At least every fifth anniversary of appointment the Advisory Committee shall make recommendations to the Chancellor or designated representative concerning the continued appointment of the Dean.
     
    Section 3.

    Temporary Vacancy.
    In case of incapacitation or other temporary vacancy in the' office of the Dean, the advisory Committee shall confer with the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs on the appointment of an Acting Dean.
     
  9. DEPARTMENTS
     
    Section 1. A department is an academic community of interest and an administrative unit of the college as defined by current institutional policy. Subject to the bylaws of the Board of Regents and in conformity with the policies of the University and the College of Fine Arts and Humanities , a department shall determine its policies and programs through means adopted by the department, The Chair of the department or the departmental staff may make recommendations to the Dean and the Faculty of the College concerning the welfare of the department or its relations to other departments. Before making such recommendations the Chair shall consult with the faculty of the department, Where the recommendation of the Chair differs from the advice of the faculty, the Chair shall so inform the Dean. Meetings of the department may be called by the Chancellor, the Dean, the Chair or by a majority of its members,
     
    Section 2. Chair.
    1. The department chair shall be responsible to the Dean for departmental administration; be the department's official representative in all matters except those delegated to other members of the department; and serve as intermediary between the department and other individuals and units of the university.
       
    2. The Chair shall be appointed by the Board of Regents, upon recommendation of the Dean, after appropriate consultation with the departmental faculty and concurrence by the Chancellor and the President, for a term not exceeding five (5) years, but eligible for reappointment. A reasonable time before considering the reappointment of a chair, the Dean shall take a closed ballot of the department members on the question of reappointment of the incumbent.
       
    3. In case of a vacancy existing or pending in a department's chair, the Dean will request the department to provide suggestions and the name or names of candidates, a request which shall be fulfilled through means adopted by the department.
  10. PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY
     
    Except when otherwise provided in this Constitution, all meetings and actions taken shall be in accord with Robert's Rules of Order, latest revised edition.
     
  11. AMENDMENT OF THE CONSTITUTION
     
    Section 1. Proposal of Amendments

    Amendments to the constitution may be proposed by the Advisory Committee or at least twenty (20) faculty members, but in either case no later than ten (10) work days before a regular Faculty meeting,
     
    Section 2. A vote on a motion to change the constitution may not be taken at the meeting at which it was introduced and shall be taken no later than at the next following meeting.
     
    Section 3. Approval of Amendments
    1. The Advisory committee shall circulate in writing proposed amendments to the constitution to the Faculty at least five (5) work days prior to the Faculty meeting.
       
    2. Voting shall be by distributed ballot.
       
    3. Two-thirds approval of the Faculty voting on the question and approval by the Chancellor, the President, and the Board of Regents will be necessary for adoption.
  12. ACCEPTANCE OF THE CONSTITUTION

    A majority of the Faculty voting on the question will be necessary for approval of this Constitution which will become effective upon acceptance of the Chancellor of the University of Nebraska at Kearney and the Board of Regents of the University of Nebraska.

 

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