2.3 The University Faculty Council

2.3.1 Purpose of the University Faculty Council (UFC)

The UFC serves to promote effective communication and coordination among the different college governing bodies at UMW. It also serves to recognize and address matters of common concern to all instructional faculty, matters that transcend the issues of a specific college, matters affecting general faculty welfare, and curriculum matters affecting all colleges. The UFC also serves to promote effective coordination and interaction by providing a formal means of regular communication between the faculty, the President and the Provost, and the Board of Visitors.

2.3.2 UFC Duties

The duties of the University Faculty Council are to:

  1. Serve as the policy-review body on university-level matters related to curriculum, faculty affairs and welfare, support services, and student affairs; and to discharge the responsibilities of the faculty in matters of university-wide concern, consistent with the authority of the faculty as stated in § 2.2.1.
  2. Communicate regularly with all constituencies of the faculty in order to have a clear university-level perspective on issues of interest and significance to the faculty.
  3. Advise and communicate with the President, Provost, and Board of Visitors regarding the interests of the faculty and other matters of university-wide importance.
  4. Monitor the development and approval of changes to the University Faculty Handbook, and work with the Office of the Provost to ensure that any changes are approved in accordance with the procedures set forth in § 1.11 and incorporated into the Faculty Handbook once all necessary approvals are obtained. Any changes to § 2.3.4 shall be approved by majority votes of the faculty governing bodies of each college through procedures to be determined in each college.
  5. Provide oversight to ensure that the policies and actions of each college are in accordance with the University Faculty Handbook and consistent with University goals, values, and mission.
  6. Oversee and monitor university-level committees and make suggestions for changes needed to discharge the duties of the University Faculty Council and to exercise the authority delegated to the faculty at the University level under § 2.2.1. Proposals for new university-wide standing committees, or elimination of current standing committees, must be developed in consultation with each college’s governing bodies. Such proposals must be approved by majority votes of the faculties of each college, through procedures to be determined in each college, before being submitted for approval as revisions to the University Faculty Handbook (see §§ 1.11.1 and 2.1). Faculty advisory committees may be created or eliminated by a majority UFC vote. The university-level committee structure is outlined in §§ 2.4–2.7.
  7. Represent the faculty to the public at times when such representation is desirable and appropriate.
  8. Appoint two UMW representatives to the Faculty Senate of Virginia. The UFC Chair, or their designee, will serve as one of the UMW representatives; the other representative can be a UFC member or a member of the full-time instructional faculty.

2.3.3 UFC Authority

The UFC has the authority to propose modifications to its membership and organization as outlined in section § 2.3.4; such changes must first be approved by majority votes of the faculty governing bodies of each college before being incorporated in the Faculty Handbook.

2.3.4 Membership and Organization of the UFC

The UFC will be comprised of a minimum of one representative from every department, subject to the following constraints: any department that will have twelve (12) or more faculty members at the beginning of the next academic year may choose an additional representative; departments may choose to share a representative and share only one vote. The composition of the UFC should be reviewed every five (5) years and adjusted if necessary to align with the current structure and strategic plan of the University. The President, Provost, one staff representative selected by the Staff Advisory Council and one student representative selected by the Student Government Association serve as non-voting ex officio members.

2.3.4.1 Eligibility

Election to the UFC is open to instructional faculty holding full-time appointments who have served at UMW for a minimum of three years at the commencement of service.

2.3.4.2 Terms of Service

Members of the UFC will serve staggered terms of two (2) to three (3) years. Members may serve again after a one-year break in service.

2.3.4.3 Election of Members

University Faculty Council members are elected by their departments. Departments must notify the University Faculty Organization Committee of their representatives prior to elections and appointments to standing committees.

2.3.4.4 Temporary Replacements for Members of University Faculty Council

Faculty members who are unable to serve part of a term on the University Faculty Council (due to such factors as academic leave or illness) must, in a timely manner, notify the Chair of the expected duration of their absence. Whenever practical, the replacement of a member will take place within ten working days of notification of the member’s absence. Replacements for members representing a department will be selected by procedures determined by their department. Upon their return, absentee faculty members complete their original term. Service as a temporary replacement member of the University Faculty Council does not limit a faculty member’s eligibility for election to a consecutive full term.

2.3.5 UFC Officers

From among its membership, the UFC annually elects officers at an organizational meeting to be held within thirty days of elections and prior to the last day of class of in the Spring semester. A quorum of the newly-constituted committee should be present, and only those individuals who will serve on UFC the following year may vote for officers. Whenever practical, the officers should represent different colleges of the University. Officers officially commence their roles on August 16.

2.3.5.1 UFC Chair

The Chair of the UFC should be a tenured member of the instructional faculty. The Chair is responsible for preparing the agenda for UFC meetings, presiding over the meetings, and representing the faculty at meetings of the Board of Visitors. The UFC Chair shall receive a workload reduction each semester during their term of one (1) course release or the equivalent, as appropriate to the discipline (typically three [3] credits).

2.3.5.2 UFC Vice Chair

The Vice Chair of the UFC should be a tenured member of the instructional faculty, who (except in extenuating circumstances) will serve as Chair the following academic year. The Vice Chair is responsible for serving as Chair in the absence of the Chair. Ideally, the UFC Vice Chair would be elected for their first year of UFC service to serve as Vice Chair, Chair, and Past Chair within a three-year term.

2.3.5.3 UFC Past Chair

The previous year’s UFC Chair will serve as the Past Chair for the year following their year as UFC Chair. If the previous year’s UFC Chair was in the last year of their elected term, then their term will be extended by one year in order for them to serve as UFC Past Chair the following year. In such cases, UFOC should be cognizant of balancing staggered terms of other members of the UFC Past Chair’s unit with the UFC Past Chair’s extended term.

2.3.5.4 UFC Secretary

The Secretary is responsible for taking the minutes of each meeting, which are to be posted on the UFC webpage and distributed to the University faculty after being approved by the UFC. The Secretary also compiles a list of all actions taken by the UFC in the current academic year to be approved at the April general faculty meeting.

2.3.5.5 UFC Parliamentarian

The Parliamentarian will assist the UFC Chair with management of UFC meetings through application of Robert’s Rules of Order and general UFC rules of order set forth in Appendix D.

2.3.5.6 UFC Executive Committee

The UFC Executive Committee should consist of the five UFC officers: UFC Chair, Vice Chair, Past Chair, Secretary, and Parliamentarian. Any college which does not have a representative in the UFC officers may choose one UFC member to serve on the UFC Executive Committee. The UFC Executive Committee will represent the faculty in meetings with the President’s Leadership Council and upon invitation with the Executive Committee of the Board of Visitors. The UFC Executive Committee will meet in support of the UFC Chair as meetings are planned and issues arise that require faculty governance review and input outside of normal UFC meetings.

2.3.6 UFC Meetings

Meetings of the UFC are held and conducted according to the rules of order in Appendix D. Meetings of record of the UFC are held at least once a month between August and April (though typically not in December) according to a schedule prepared by the Provost’s office in collaboration with the UFC leadership and the presiding officers of the college governing bodies. This schedule will be announced by July 1 of each year. Special meetings of the UFC may be called by the Chair or by at least three members of the UFC representing each of the three colleges. Any special meetings of record must be announced to all faculty. Attendance at UFC meetings is open to all members of the University community, and their participation is governed by the rules of order in Appendix D.