Part I : Constitution of the Faculty of Whittier College

PART I : CONSTITUTION OF THE FACULTY OF WHITTIER COLLEGE

 

A. NAME AND PURPOSE

The name of this organization is the Faculty of Whittier College. The purpose of the Faculty of Whittier College is to promote, in all possible ways, the excellence of Whittier College as an institution of higher education. Specific areas of interest related to this objective include, but are not limited to: the selection, promotion, retention or release of faculty members, and the granting of tenure; and the establishment of criteria for all activities that result in the granting of academic credit by the College. The Faculty is also concerned with the maintenance of its academic freedom, professional ethics, salaries, and collateral benefits.

The Faculty recognizes the legal responsibility and authority of the Board of Trustees of the College for the conduct of College functions as expressed in its Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws. The Faculty believes, however, that all sectors of the College community must be represented in a properly governed institution. As a matter of policy, therefore, the Faculty will cooperate with representatives of the Students, the Administration, the Alumni, and the Board of Trustees by participating in joint committees as may be appropriate.

B. MEMBERSHIP

Members of the Faculty shall be those persons who hold the rank of Professor, Associate Professor, Assistant Professor, or Instructor, and who regularly teach full time at Whittier College, as well as full time professional librarians. The President and the principal Academic Officers of the College as designated by the President in consultation with the Faculty Chairman are members of the Faculty and as such may attend Faculty meetings, be heard, and vote.

Other members of the instructional staff, holding the academic rank of Lecturer or above, may attend faculty meetings and be heard, without voting privileges. The Faculty Executive Council may recommend that selected part-time faculty or non-instructional staff members be granted voting privileges by the faculty. Other non-instructional staff members may be recommended by the Faculty Executive Council to be granted the right to participate in Faculty meetings, but without the right to vote. These recommendations shall be submitted to the faculty annually.

C. OFFICERS

The officers for the faculty shall consist of the Chairperson, the Vice Chairperson, and the Secretary-Treasurer. They shall be elected in the Spring of each year for a period of one year beginning with the last faculty meeting of the academic year. No faculty officer except the Secretary-Treasurer shall serve more than two consecutive terms in the same position.

The Chairperson of the Faculty shall preside at all meetings of the faculty, and of the Executive Council, and shall be a non-voting member of all faculty committees.

The Vice Chairperson shall preside at all meetings in the absence of the Chairperson and shall assume the duties of the office of the Chairperson in the case of the latter's inability to serve.

The Secretary-Treasurer shall keep minutes of all meetings of the Faculty and of the Executive Council and shall maintain files of important papers and reports pertinent to faculty business. The Secretary-Treasurer shall provide all members of the faculty with timely notice of meetings and shall provide an agenda of each meeting. The Secretary-Treasurer shall see to it that the Faculty Handbook is kept up to date.

The Secretary-Treasurer shall be custodian of all funds received by the faculty and shall deposit and disburse them at the direction of the faculty. He/She shall keep an accurate account of any transactions and shall be able to present a current financial report at any meeting and shall provide such a report at the last faculty meeting of each academic year.

D. FACULTY EXECUTIVE COUNCIL

The Faculty Executive Council shall consist of the three faculty officers; representatives of the divisions of Humanities, Social Sciences, and Natural Sciences, elected by the membership of their respective divisions; and a member-at large, elected by the faculty as a whole. The procedures by which the members of the Faculty Executive Council are to be elected may be found in Part II of the Faculty Handbook.

The divisional representatives and the member-at-large shall serve for a period of two years, and having served a full term shall be ineligible for re-election to that same position until after one year has elapsed. In order to provide continuity, the terms shall be arranged so that the Division of Humanities and the Division of Social Sciences representatives are elected in the even-numbered years, and the Division of Natural Sciences representative and member-at-large are elected in the odd-numbered years.

New members shall take office at the last faculty meeting of the academic year in which they are elected.

The Executive Council shall meet at regular intervals as it deems appropriate during the regular College term. It shall designate faculty committee members for all appointed faculty committees and the chairperson of these faculty committees, for administrative committees, and for student committees, and shall nominate faculty members to committees for the Board of Trustees. It shall provide faculty leadership and shall coordinate and expedite the business of the faculty through the appropriate committees. It shall act as a guardian of academic freedom. It shall serve as the grievance committee for the faculty; however, in the case of matters arising from the work of the Faculty Personnel Committee, the Executive Council shall limit its hearing of grievances to assuring that proper procedures and process are observed. It shall fill vacancies in appointive or elective offices in a manner it deems appropriate for the circumstances.

Nothing in the foregoing shall be considered as abridging the right of faculty members to bring business before the faculty at faculty meetings, including the right to propose amendments in accordance with the provisions of Article IX of this Constitution.

E. MEETINGS

 Regular meetings of the faculty shall be held at least monthly during the college term. Special meetings may be called by the Chairperson of the Faculty, or upon the request of the President of the College, or by the petition of ten percent of the members of the Faculty.
Fifty percent of the faculty plus one constitutes a quorum for the transaction of business.

Non-members may be present at any meeting at the invitation of the Chairperson of the Faculty or as a result of action of the Faculty.

It is expected that all members of the Faculty will attend faculty meetings on a regular basis.

F. COMMITTEES

 The faculty recognizes two broad classes of committees which are involved in the function of the College. The first class consists of those committees working in areas for which the faculty bears the prime responsibility. The composition of these committees for their responsibilities is presented in the Faculty Handbook, Section II,C,D.

The second class of committees is comprised of those working in areas which are not primarily faculty responsibilities, but upon which members of the faculty are expected to serve. This includes committees of the Board of Trustees, the Administration, and the Student Body.

The Executive Council may appoint ad hoc committees at its discretion, or at the direction of the faculty.

G. ASSESSMENTS

 An annual assessment shall be proposed by the Executive Council in September at the first faculty meeting of the academic year. It shall be accepted or modified by vote of the faculty at that meeting, and the amount agreed upon shall be payable in October by all voting members of the faculty.

H. FACULTY HANDBOOK

 The faculty, working through its Executive Council and Secretary-Treasurer, shall prepare, maintain, and distribute to all members, a Faculty Handbook to implement the policies set forth in this Constitution.

I. AMENDMENTS

 Amendments to this Constitution must be presented at the meeting preceding the meeting at which they are to be voted upon, or contained in a written announcement of the meeting which must be distributed at least one week prior to the meeting. Adoption of a proposed amendment requires the approval of two-thirds of those voting.