As amended 11/10/ 2004
Article I
Name
The name of this organization shall be The Faculty Assembly of Ramapo
College of New Jersey.
Article II
Members
The voting members of The Faculty Assembly shall be limited to the
full-time Faculty in residence, Librarians, and Professional Staff who have
teaching responsibilities as part of their contractual load. The non-voting
members shall include the Vice President for Academic Affairs and the
Directors of the Schools and Academic Divisions. The Faculty considers
regular attendance of Faculty Assembly meetings a professional
responsibility.
Article III
Officers
Section 1. The officers of the Assembly shall be a
President and a
five-member Advisory Council, serving a two-year term.
Section 2. The President of the Faculty Assembly and the Advisory Council shall be eligible voting members (see article II) and are elected by referendum of all voting members of the Assembly. Such referendum shall be conducted at the end of each spring semester.
Section 3. The President of the Faculty Assembly and the Advisory Council may stand for reelection for one additional two-year term.
Section 4. No more than two members of the Advisory
Council may be
from the same unit. If more than two members of one unit are nominated,
the two candidates with the highest and second-highest number of votes
shall be declared winners.
Section 5. The President of the Faculty Assembly may
designate a
member of the Advisory Council as President pro tem.
Article I
Meetings
Section 1. The Assembly shall meet a minimum of two
(2) times every
academic semester. The date for the regular meetings will be decided by
the President of the Faculty Assembly in consultation with the Advisory
Council. The dates shall be published together with the academic
meeting calendar of the College.
Section 2. The President of the Faculty Assembly may
call, when
necessary, special Faculty Assembly meetings. Such meetings may also
be called by petition to the President from twenty faculty
(from no less than
three academic units or divisions). If a regularly scheduled meeting of the
Faculty Assembly is deemed not necessary (for lack of agenda items) by
the President of the Faculty Assembly and the Advisory Council, it may be
canceled and members notified at least two days in advance.
Section 3. A quorum of the Faculty Assembly shall consist
of one-quarter
of the full-time voting members in residence.
Article V
Duties of the Officers
The Faculty Assembly President:
a) chairs the Faculty Assembly meetings;
b) prepares Assembly agenda in consultation with the
Advisory Council;
c) develops the academic meeting schedule in consultation
with appropriate academic offices;
d) establishes ad-hoc faculty committees in consultation
with the Advisory Council and fills the membership by a
referendum of the voting members of the Faculty Assembly;
e) insures the completion of assigned work/tasks by
faculty
committees and study groups;
f) delivers an annual charge to the Standing Committees
of
the Assembly and serves as liaison with those
Committees;
g) meets at least monthly with the Advisory Council
h) meets regularly with the President of the College
and
sits as a member of the President's Cabinet;
i) meets regularly with the
Vice President for Academic
Affairs and sits as a member of the Vice President's
Cabinet;
j) serves as liaison with the College's Board of Trustees
and reports regularly at Board meetings;
k) serves as liaison with elected faculty representatives
to
Board of Trustees Committees
The Faculty Advisory Council:
a) consults with Faculty Assembly President on committee
appointments;
b) advises Faculty Assembly President on agenda topics
and issues;
c) advises Faculty Assembly President on policy options
or
the need for task forces, study groups or special
committees;
d) meets at least monthly with the Faculty Assembly
President;
e) meets at least twice each semester with the President
of
the College and the Vice President for Academic Affairs;
f) any member of the Advisory Council may be appointed
President pro tem by the Faculty Assembly President;
Article VI (Revised by 2/3 majority on mail ballot read
Committees
Section 1. The standing committee of the Faculty Assembly shall be:
The Academic Review Committee
1. The Committee - The Academic Review Committee reports to the Faculty Assembly on issues of academic policy and curriculum. It works most immediately with Convening Groups. It is charged to strengthen the autonomy of Convening Groups within the context of all-college accountability.
Authority - The Committee is a standing committee of the Faculty Assembly.
Name – The Committee is named the Academic Review Committee (ARC).
Membership – The Committee is composed of six members, one from each of the five Schools of the College and from the Library. Members are elected by their respective units. Each unit shall nominate a minimum of two candidates and select by written ballot one faculty to serve on the committee. Membership is limited to full-time, tenured faculty and librarians.Terms of Office - Members serve for a term of two years. Members are limited to no more than two consecutive terms.
Voting – Decisions are made by a plurality vote of the Committee. A tie will be considered a negative vote.Meetings – The Committee will meet weekly as a general rule. Frequency may be regulated by the Committee at its own discretion. Four members constitute a quorum.
2. The Chair
Eligibility for Office – The Chair will be selected by a plurality of the Committee
Functions – The Chair schedules and presides at meetings, proposes agenda items for Committee approval, reports the findings of the Committee to the Faculty Assembly, and serves in other capacities when designated by the Committee. In the absence of the Chair, the Committee will appoint an acting chair.
3. Functions
The Committee shall establish and publish academic and curricular guidelines, subject to approval by the Faculty Assembly and appropriate Administrative Officers. In the normal course of events, the Committee shall review academic policies and initiatives, approve courses and programs, and evaluate the integrity of the Gen Ed program and Senior Seminars. Reports will be presented regularly to the Faculty Assembly during the Academic Year.
4. Code of Conduct
The Chair will ensure that minutes and attendance at every meeting are posted on the Faculty Web Site in a timely manner.The Chair or any other member of the Committee may be removed if the Committee deems that performance, attendance or professional conduct is problematic. A motion to remove the chair or a committee member must be approved by at least four committee members.
A member may be recused from voting when, in the judgment of the committee, there is a conflict of interest.
The Chair will meet with the Provost and the Faculty Assembly President whenever such a meeting is in their mutual interest.
The Chair will specify, in writing, for faculty the concerns and reasons for acceptance or rejection of all proposals. This shall be done in a timely manner.
Aggrieved faculty and staff may appeal to the Committee in writing or in person. The appeal may be pursued beyond the Academic Review Committee in the regular process for administrative review.
5. Remuneration
The Chair of the Committee will be compensated, according to rank, the equivalent of six credits per annum. Other members of the Committee will be compensated, according to rank, the equivalent of four credits per annum. Compensation may be taken, if preferred, in released time.6. ARC Report on Academic Life
The Chair of the Committee or a suitable delegate must report annually to the Faculty Assembly, in writing, and be subject to questioning. This report will have been approved by majority vote of the Committee members. The ARC Report on Academic Life will review the work of the academic year in question, explain and justify decisions, and point to new initiatives and on-going concerns.
Structure and Process
The process for approval of new proposals will not be essentially different from our present procedures.
Steps for Approval of New Courses, Programs or Academic Policy
· Faculty Proposal for Course, Program or Policy
· Convening Group(s) or Other Appropriate Group Approval
· School Approval
· Academic Review Committee Approval (acting in place of former Academic, Curriculum, Gen Ed, Senior Seminar)
· Faculty Assembly Approval
Section 17: Members of the Faculty Assembly serving on other All-College committees shall report relevant issues or activities at Assembly meetings under "Announcements".
Article VII
Section 1. The rules contained in the latest edition
of Robert's Rules of
Order shall govern the Assembly in all cases to which they are applicable
and in which they are not inconsistent with these bylaws and any special
rules of order the Assembly may adopt.
Section 2. The Parliamentarian shall be appointed by
the President of the
Faculty Assembly for a two year term.
Section 3. Resolutions to be voted upon by the Faculty
must be
accompanied by a written statement of explanation and circulated through
the President and the Advisory Council to the general Faculty at least one
week prior to the Assembly meeting.
Section 4. New resolutions may be introduced at the
general meeting and
either be acted upon at the meeting in which they are introduced, or
referred to the appropriate group for further analysis and comment. The
chair may request a motion to refer to committee, which, if made, must be
acted upon immediately.
Section 5. In process of debate, speakers (not including
persons
presenting a report) are limited to no more than two statements on any
one motion, and no comment may exceed three minutes.
Section 6: (Added by FA vote 11/10/04)
The Faculty Assembly President, in consultation with the Faculty Advisory Council, in a timely fashion following each Assembly meeting, will formally report to the Provost on any resolution taken by the Faculty Assembly which requires decisions and/or implementation beyond the assembly body. i.e. these would include curriculum changes, academic policies changes, recommendations re: capital improvements, and the like, but would not include internal matters such as the establishment of a faculty assembly committee or an expression of faculty opinions such as a resolution regarding academic freedom.
Article VIII
Amendment of Bylaws
These bylaws can be amended at any regular meeting of the Assembly by
a two-thirds vote , provided that the amendment has
been submitted in
writing at the previous meeting.
Article IX
Adoption of Bylaws
The bylaws will be adopted upon a majority, i.e. two-thirds vote of the
voting members in residence.