The Faculty Status Council (FSC)
The Faculty Status Council (FSC) deals with questions of faculty status. The Council is responsible for policy review and recommendations to the College Faculty Assembly on College Faculty personnel matters and professional well-being. In individual cases of probationary review the Council acts as an advisory body to the Dean of Faculty. In individual cases of promotion or tenure review, the Council acts as the review and recommending body, reporting to the President. In addition, in questions of professional competence and dismissal for cause, if the issue is not settled after a personal conference with the faculty member, the Division Chair, and the Dean of Faculty, the Dean of Faculty must request the FSC to act as an advisory body. The Council is also responsible, in consultation with the Faculty Appeals Committee, for review of policies and procedures used in faculty appeals.
Membership on the Faculty Status Council consists of seven tenured College Faculty Assembly members (with appropriate gender balance and diversity of perspectives), and the Dean of Faculty. Six of the College Faculty Assembly members are divisional designees and one is an at-large designee. The at-large member may be utilized to maintain gender balance and balance of perspectives on the Council. All Vice Presidents, the Provost, and the Associate Provost are ineligible for service on FSC during their administrative service. Division Chairs are ineligible for service on the FSC during their term as Division Chair. The Director of Faculty Development is also ineligible for service on FSC. A special nominating ballot and election process is used to fill positions on the FSC.
Prior to Round One elections in March, a special nominating ballot is used for vacancies on the Faculty Status Council. In early spring a list will be compiled of all tenured faculty, including those serving on another council. The list will be subdivided by gender and division, to suit the needs of available positions on the FSC. Faculty will be asked to vote for up to three candidates within each subdivision. The top candidates from the faculty vote will be contacted for agreement to serve and placement on the ballot. This ballot will go to the faculty for a vote. If an elected candidate is currently serving on a council, that candidate would be released from those council duties for the next academic year. The next round of elections would fill that newly vacated council seat. (See section on Elections and Appointments.)
College Faculty Assembly members are elected for staggered three-year terms, and the chair is elected from Council members. At the conclusion of each year, those elected members whose three-year terms are concluding then serve an additional three years as alternates. If an elected member of the FSC is unable to participate for a period of time (e.g., for medical or other similar reasons), then an alternate becomes a pro tem member of FSC. If an elected member of the Council has been an active mentor for the candidate for tenure or promotion, then that Council member is excluded from Council consideration of that case and an alternate participates in all the Council’s deliberations, voting, and recommendations regarding that case. The Executive Council will appoint the necessary alternate.