Faculty Senate

News

 

February 2, 2024: Implementing Changes to Bylaws to Comply with the Constitution 

The Faculty Senate has issued "Guidance for Academic Units for Implementing Changes to Bylaws to Comply with the Constitution of the Faculty of Clemson University, as amended". The guidance, approved by the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost, can be viewed here. Questions about the guidance or implementing changes can be directed to:

Fran McGuire, Faculty Manual Consultant (lefty@clemson.edu); and

William Everroad, Director of Faculty Shared Governance (weverro@clemson.edu)

 

The 2023 General Faculty Meeting Minutes can be viewed here.

The 2023 General Faculty Meeting will be held Monday, August 16, 2023 at 10:00 a.m.

The Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs & Provost has called a meeting of the faculty in accordance with Article 1§4 of the Constitution of the Faculty of Clemson University. This meeting occurs at the beginning of each academic year and typically includes a report on the State of the University from the President of the University, a report of the State of Academic Affairs from the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost, a report from the Faculty Senate President, and a report from the Faculty Representative to the Board of Trustees. This meeting includes consideration of two agenda items brought to the floor in accordance with the Constitution and parliamentary procedure.

The resolutions to amend the Constitution of the Faculty of Clemson University on the agenda for the consideration of the faculty were approved by the Faculty Senate for inclusion on the agenda. The full text of both resolutions and the reports that originated the recommendations are available on BOX and is accessible by all faculty using their Clemson login.

FSR 202205 Research Committee Charge
This resolution effects the changes recommended by Research Committee Report 202227. The Faculty Senate believes that expanding the scope of the committee can assist the assembly with making recommendations and reinforcing to the administration regarding the evaluation and pursuit of the many types of scholarly output.

1. Amend the name of the Research Committee to, “The Research, Scholarship, and Creative Endeavors Committee”.

2. Amend the charge of the charge of the Research Committee to indicate, the committee “shall study and make recommendations on policies, procedures, and practices primarily related to research, scholarship, and creative endeavors.”

FSR 202301 Amendment of Constitutional Faculty and Faculty Senate Apportionment
This resolution effects the changes recommended by Policy Committee Report 202107.

1. Amend the composition of the Constitutional Faculty to include, “non-tenure track faculty with the primary responsibility of teaching, research, and service or any combination thereof” with the exception of, “Faculty with the adjunct, visiting or temporary rank modifiers and post-doctoral researchers” who are “not eligible for
automatic membership.”
As indicated in the report, this action follows AAUP guidelines and mirrors the composition of every AAU aspirational peer institution faculty studied by including contract teaching, research, and clinical faculty in university shared governance processes.

2. Amend the mechanism by which senate seats are apportioned to each college by allocating “one seat for every 40 eligible faculty members appointed in the college” and one seat for each represented academic unit within the college. The proposed apportionment will increase the size of the Faculty Senate more in line with peers and to accommodate the growth and expansion of the Constitutional Faculty.

3. Remove the title of “Alternate Senator” as their participation is not necessary or mandatory.

Considering the complexity of the proposals, the Faculty Senate will be hosting two additional townhalls to address any questions to inform conversations within the colleges regarding the upcoming consideration and vote.

 

Wednesday, May 10: Hybrid Townhall from 1:00 p.m. until 2:00 p.m. in the Edgar Brown Union Senate Chambers.

Tuesday, August 15: Virtual Townhall from 1 p.m. to 2:30 a.m. via Zoom.

Officers will be on hand in an informal setting to field questions. Faculty are encouraged to drop in at their convenience. Additionally, faculty are encouraged to meet with their college’s Lead Senators. Since the Faculty Senate session ended on April 11th, representation may have changed. The Faculty Senate website will indicate the most up to date information on current college representatives. If anyone needs any assistance, please contact the Faculty Senate Office (senate@clemson.edu)


♦ The 2022 Clemson University Faculty Manual is now available to view: 

The approved changes for this year are listed at the beginning of the Faculty Manual in a summary of changes. Any future modifications to the Faculty Manual will be distributed to all faculty.

Departmental and college bylaws, as well as departmental TPR guidelines, must be consistent with the Faculty  Manual. To assist with consistency, we created document review checklists.  These checklists are available on the Faculty Senate website. Mary Beth Kurz, Faculty Manual Consultant, is available to assist with review and revisions of bylaws and TPR guidelines.

While we carefully reviewed the Faculty Manual for errors, we acknowledge that even the most meticulously edited work will not be free from mistakes.  We ask for your patience;  you can send any corrections or suggestions for the Faculty Manual to the Faculty Senate or the Faculty Manual Consultant.

If you have any questions, please contact us: Kristine Vernon (kvernon@clemson.edu); Mary Beth Kurz (mkurz@clemson.edu); and Faculty Senate (senate@clemson.edu). 

Approved changes to be incorporated into the August 1, 2023 Faculty Manual: 

• Faculty Manual Change 2023-01: Evaluation of Teaching Effectiveness

• Faculty Manual Change 2023-02: Timeline for Post-Tenure Review

• Faculty Manual Change 2023-03: College TPR Committees 


♦ The Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs & Provost has called a meeting of the faculty in accordance with Article 1§4 of the Constitution of the Faculty of Clemson University. This meeting occurs at the beginning of each academic year and typically includes a report on the State of the University from the President of the University, a report of the State of Academic Affairs from the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost, a report from the Faculty Senate President, and a report from the Faculty Representative to the Board of Trustees as well as considerations of agenda items brought to the floor in accordance with parliamentary procedure.

The 2022 General Faculty Meeting will be held Monday, August 22, 2022 at 10:30 p.m. and can be viewed here: 

Clemson Stream Link:  https://tv.clemson.edu/live2/


♦ The Faculty Senate passed a resolution Tuesday, April 13 recognizing the outstanding service of Clemson University staff members during the Covid-19 pandemic. The resolution can be viewed here:

♦The Faculty Senate held a Special Meeting on Friday, June 12th, 2020 to consider the adoption of a statement that was presented by the Delegation from the College of Architecture, Arts, and Humanities during a Free Speech period before the Faculty Senate regular meeting held on Tuesday, June 9th, 2020. The statement was adopted by a majority vote during the special meeting and reflects the position of the Faculty Senate.

Transcript of the Free Speech, "Statement on Racist and Violence-Inciting Social Media Posts".

Faculty Senate Statement against racist and violence-inciting public expressions


About

The Clemson University Faculty Senate is established in Article II of the Constitution of The Faculty of Clemson University. The Faculty Senate is the representative assembly of the faculty. It represents the faculty of Clemson University in its relationship with the university administration; recommends new policies or changes in existing policies to the Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost; and promotes the welfare of the faculty and of its individual members. For over fifty years, the Faculty Senate has participated in a variety of initiatives to improve the status of the faculty of Clemson University.

A history of the Faculty Senate may be found in"Clemson University Faculty Senate: Over Sixty Years of Service."

Detailed information about the Faculty Senate, including membership and governing documents, as well as official meeting minutes and reports, can be found under Senate Information or in the Senate Brochure.

For faculty policies affecting all Clemson Faculty, see Faculty Policies.


2023 Senate Meetings

The Faculty Senate meets once a month on the second Tuesday of each month. Meetings begin at 2:30 p.m., and are located in the Student Senate Chambers. Another related faculty meeting includes, per the Faculty Manual, one annual General Faculty meeting. Watch for related emails.

2023

January 10
February 7
March 7
April 11 Location: Madren Conference Center Auditorium
May 9
June 13
July 11* Subject to Change
August 8
September 12
October 10
November 14
December 12