Faculty and Unclassified Staff Handbook
Chapter 2 -- Academic Affairs
Faculty Senate Bylaws
Article I. Name
The name of this organization shall be the Faculty Senate of Fort Hays State University.
Article II. Object
Section 1: The Faculty Senate represents the Faculty of Fort Hays State University in participating in the governance of the University.
Section 2: It is advisory to the President of the University, and as such provides for representative participation of the faculty as interested partners in decision making and the effective management of the vital affairs affecting campus personnel.
Section 3: It cooperates with the Student Senate in promoting conditions for effective learning and fair treatment of the students; actions of the Student Senate may be reviewed by the Faculty Senate at the request of the President of the University or any member of the Faculty Senate.
Section 4: It cooperates with the Alumni Association and Classified Senate to achieve common goals and objectives.
Section 5: It cooperates with the surrounding geographic community to promote the collective interests of Fort Hays State University.
Article III. Representation
Section 1: For the purpose of determining representation on the Faculty Senate, Faculty shall be defined according to the Memorandum of Agreement, including all other ranks listed in the MOA:
As provided in the Unit Determination Order in case #75-UDC-1-1999, dated April 12, 1999, as amended on January 21, 2009, the PERB ordered that the appropriate unit for the Faculty of Fort Hays State University shall consist of the following classifications:
INCLUDE: All full-time Fort Hays State University faculty members who hold academic rank as Instructor, Lecturer, Assistant Professor, Associate Professor or Professor. Also included are employees who hold the rank as Program Specialist, Librarian or Research Scientist.
EXCLUDE: All employees who have appointments as President, Provost, Vice Provost, Vice President, Associate Vice President, Assistant Vice President, Dean, Associate Dean, Assistant Dean, Department Chair, Curator, Academic Director, Director of the Library, Assistant Director of the Library, and Head Reference Librarian and other employees with assigned unit supervisory duties. Also exclude Visiting Faculty, persons who are confidential employees, and members of the classified service of the State of Kansas.
Section 2: All members of the Faculty, shall have the right to vote for representatives to the Faculty Senate in their respective departments.
Section 3: Number, Eligibility, and Election of Representatives.
a. Representation is determined by the following ratio: One representative for every ten members of a department who are qualified as teaching faculty, or fraction thereof.b. It is recommended that these Faculty representatives shall have served at least three full, consecutive years as Faculty of the University.
c. For the purpose of serving as an elected representative of a department on Faculty Senate, only full-time faculty who are not in the position of Department Chair will be eligible.
d. Method of election.
(1) Each department shall determine its own methods for electing representatives. It is recommended that this process follow Parliamentary procedure that includes all members of the faculty in the respective department. Voting through written ballots is recommended.
(2) Faculty representatives shall be elected no later than the third school week in March for the term of office to begin during the academic year.
(3) If a department becomes entitled to an additional representative after the April election, the department shall elect its additional representative prior to June 1.
(4) Faculty members not attached to a department, and those holding joint appointments, may choose the department in which they wish to vote, provided that no faculty member may vote in more than one department.
Section 4: Terms of Representatives.
a. Except as modified in this subsection and subsection d. below, the terms of senators shall be three years. Terms of elected Senators from a given department shall be adjusted so that the term of no more than one Senator from any given department will expire at the end of any academic year. It is recommended but not mandated that departments set a maximum limit of two consecutive terms of service on the Senate.
b. The terms of senators shall begin and end with the academic year.
c. Filling a Vacancy.
(1) In the event a vacancy occurs before the completion of a term, a successor shall be elected for the unexpired portion of the term. (See section 3, d, 1.)
(2) In the event a Senator goes on leave of absence, that member's place shall be filled temporarily by an alternate, and he/she shall resume his/her place in the Senate upon return to the University.
(3) A department may provide an official alternate either by authorizing the departmental chair to appoint an alternate or by electing an alternate. The duly elected or appointed alternate shall have voting privileges.
d. If a person is serving as Vice President of the Faculty Senate in the third year of a term in the Senate, such person, if not re-elected, shall be granted a one-year extension as senator-at-large in order to fulfill the duties of the President of the Senate.
Section 5: Any senator may place an item on the agenda of the Senate or may present a proposal for referral to a committee.
Article IV. Officers
Section 1: Election and Tenure of Officers.
a. Officers of the Faculty Senate shall be a president, a vice president, and a secretary. A vice president and secretary shall be elected by the Senate as a whole at the April meeting, and will succeed to their respective offices at the beginning of the next academic year following their election.
b. In the absence of the President of the Faculty Senate, the vice president of the faculty senate shall preside.
c. The method of election shall be by nominations from the floor and written ballots to be counted at the meeting.
d. The term of office for the President of the Faculty Senate and secretary shall be one year.
e. The Vice President of the Faculty Senate shall be the President-Elect of the Faculty Senate and will succeed to the presidency June 1.
Section 2: Certification of Officers.
a. Elected officers shall certify their willingness to perform their duties.
Section 3 Duties of Officers.
a. The President of the Faculty Senate shall:
(1) preside over all meetings.
(2) circulate the agenda of each regular meeting to the Senators no later than one week prior to the meeting.
(3) prepare an annual report, which shall be presented at the Spring Convocation.
(4) create any administrative arrangements and agencies necessary to conduct Senate business and activities (e.g., select ad hoc committees, liaisons, special appointments).
(5) attend meetings as an ex-officio member as designated by the University President or Provost. Such committees may include, but not limited to, Inauguration Committee, Council for Institutional Effectiveness, President’s Roundtable, President’s Cabinet, Budget Committee, Workday, Strategic Planning, and FHSU Foundation Campus Campaign.
(6) attend and represent the FHSU faculty at Board of Regents meetings and Council of Faculty Senate Presidents meetings.
b. The Vice President of the Faculty Senate shall:
(1) perform the functions of the President of the Faculty Senate in the event the President of the Faculty Senate is unable to do so.
(2) receive and deposit in the University Archives the minutes of the meetings of both Faculty Senate and its standing committees. (per FHSU FS Standing Rule #7)
c. The Secretary of the Faculty Senate shall:
(1) keep the minutes.
(2) distribute the minutes to the faculty no later than one week prior to the next regularly scheduled Senate meeting.
(3) engage in correspondence.
(4) perform the functions of the President of the Faculty Senate in the event the President and Vice President of the Faculty Senate are unable to do so.
Section 4: Committee on Committees.
The officers, meeting as a Committee on Committees, shall appoint the members of the standing committees, except the Executive Committee, for the following academic year.
Section 5: Filling a Vacancy.
a. Vacancies in the offices of Vice President of the Faculty Senate and Secretary of the Faculty Senate shall be filled by an election at a Senate Meeting where nominations are taken from the floor and written ballots are used to count the votes. The President of the Faculty Senate may appoint a Senator to fill the vacant position(s) until the election process is completed.
b. If the President of the Faculty Senate is unable to perform the duties of the presidency due to illness, absence from FHSU or other conflicts and the inability to perform exceeds 60 days, then the Faculty Senate Executive Committee may, for the good of the Senate, take certain actions.
The Executive Committee may authorize the Vice President of the Faculty Senate to assume the position of the presidency for that remaining year. The Committee may also request that the absent President of the Faculty Senate become the Senate President the following year. If the vacating Senate President is not able or willing to serve in that capacity the following year, then the Executive Committee will request an election for a new Vice President of the Faculty Senate as prescribed in ARTICLE IV-Officers, Section 1 c.
[as amended by Faculty, November 1998; resolution 9899-21]
Section 6: Administrative Support.
The University Administration shall provide one-quarter reassigned time for the President of the Faculty Senate with an additional one-quarter reassigned time to be provided by the department from which the President of the Faculty Senate is elected. In addition, the Provost’s office shall provide administrative support to the Faculty Senate.
Article V. Meetings
Section 1: Regular Meetings.
a. Regular meetings of the Faculty Senate shall be held from September through May.
b. Monthly meeting times shall alternate between Mondays and Tuesdays at 3:30 p.m.
Section 2: Special Meetings.
a. Special meetings shall be called by the President of the Faculty Senate upon the written request of twenty percent of the senators or ten percent of the faculty, or upon the request of the Executive Committee or President of the University.
b. Special meetings shall consider only the issue for which they are called.
c. If a special meeting is called to meet a short deadline for a Senate decision imposed by the Board of Regents or the university administration, then a written and/or email notice of the meeting must be sent to all Senators at least one week prior to the special meeting date. If a quorum of the Senators is not obtained at the special meeting, then the Executive Committee may act on behalf of the Senate with advice and guidance of the Senators present at the meeting.
Section 3: Quorum and Majority.
a. A quorum for the conduct of business shall be a majority of the members.
b. Decisions in all matters except Standing Rules shall be by majority of those voting.
Section 4: Order of Business.
The usual order of business for regular meetings shall be the following.
a. Sign attendance sheet
b. Minutes of the previous meeting
c. Announcements
d. Reports of standing committees
e. Reports of special committees
f. Unfinished business
g. New business
h. Adjournment
Section 5: Open Meetings.
a. Meetings of the Faculty Senate will be open in accordance with statutes of the State of Kansas.
b. Non-members will be seated in a separate section and may address the Faculty Senate upon recognition by the President of the Faculty Senate and with an affirmative vote by the Senate.
c. Upon request, the President of the University shall be recognized by the President of the Faculty Senate.
d. The presiding officer may cause anyone who disrupts the proceedings to be ejected.
Section 6: General Faculty Meeting.
a. The General Faculty Meetings for fall and spring are held concurrently with the Fall and Spring Convocations called by the President of the University.
b. The President of the University shall call a general meeting of all faculty before the start of the fall semester (Fall Convocation), where the President of the Faculty Senate shall report on any summer activities of the executive committee or Faculty Senate, and the upcoming academic year activities of the Faculty Senate.
c. The President of the University shall call a general meeting of all faculty before the end of the spring semester (Spring Convocation) for the purpose of reviewing the annual report of the President of the Faculty Senate.
Section 7: Parliamentary Procedure.
a. Robert's Rules of Order, newly revised, shall govern the meetings of the Faculty Senate in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are consistent with these Bylaws or the Standing Rules.
b. A parliamentary consultant shall be appointed by the Executive Committee of the Senate.
Section 8: Standing Rules.
The Faculty Senate may, upon two-thirds vote of the Senate, adopt, amend or repeal Standing Rules governing its operations.
b. A record of the Standing Rules and Bylaws will be kept and made available.
Article VI. Committees
Section 1: Powers and Functions of Committees.
a. Standing committees shall be responsible for recommending policies and actions on items referred to them and for formulating recommendations in the area of their responsibilities for the consideration of the Faculty Senate.
b. Standing committees of the Faculty Senate may establish subcommittees as needed; subcommittees may consult with other members of the faculty, members of the administration, or students.
c. Each standing committee, special committee, and subcommittee shall elect its own chair and secretary.
d. Each committee shall submit written reports of its recommendations to the Executive Committee, which shall put them on the agenda.
e. A majority of committee members shall constitute a quorum for meetings.
Section 2: Standing Committees.
a. The Executive Committee.
(1) The Executive Committee shall consist of the President of the Faculty Senate, Vice President of the Faculty Senate, immediate past President of the Faculty Senate, and Secretary of the Faculty Senate, and the chairs of the other standing committees.
(2) The Executive Committee shall
(a) receive proposals.
(b) provide for negotiation with the President of the University in the event a Senate recommendation is not approved.
(c) provide liaison between the Senate and other components of the University.
b. The Academic Affairs Committee.
(1) The Academic Affairs Committee shall consist of at least nine members.
(2) The Academic Affairs Committee shall be concerned with curriculum, educational improvement, general education, instructional technology, research, specialized accreditation, faculty recognition, program discontinuation, FHSU Online course development and redevelopment, and other matters regarding the academic program of the University.
c. The Strategic Planning and Improvement Committee.
(1) The Strategic Planning and Improvement Committee shall consist of at least five (5) members.
(2) The Strategic Planning and Improvement Committee shall concern itself with the Bylaws and Standing Rules of the Faculty Senate, and review them for amendments at least every three years.
(3) The Strategic Planning and Improvement Committee may provide input to the University’s President and Vice Presidents regarding strategic goal setting, action planning, and continuous quality improvements efforts.
d. The University Affairs Committee.
(1) The University Affairs Committee shall consist of at least seven members.
(2) The University Affairs Committee shall be concerned with policies regarding appointments, promotions, tenure, buildings, budgets, professional ethics, and maintaining formalized contact with classified staff.
(3) This committee shall provide the due process called for by the AAUP Statement on Academic Freedom and Tenure in the event such should become necessary.
(4) In all cases wherein a faculty member must have a hearing, the University Affairs Committee shall nominate a panel of at least five members of the faculty who have tenure; this nomination shall be subject to approval by the Senate.
e. The Student Affairs Committee.
(1) The Student Affairs Committee shall consist of at least five members.
(2) The Student Affairs Committee shall concern itself with relations between the faculty and the student government, leadership of the Division of Student Affairs, and policies regarding student services and student rights, after due consultation with administrative staff concerned with student affairs.
(3) The Student Affairs Committee shall lay before the Faculty Senate any proposal that the Student Senate wishes the Faculty Senate to consider.
(4) After appropriate consultation with representatives from the Student Senate and administrative staff concerned with student affairs, the Student Affairs Committee shall recommend to the Senate regulations of the University, and the means of enforcement and appeal.
f. The Partnerships and Technology Committee.
(1) The Partnerships and Technology Committee shall consist of at least five (5) members.
(2) It shall concern itself with the development and maintenance of all University strategic partnerships, domestic and international. The committee will also provide input to all appropriate university administration regarding technology needs of the faculty not limited to on-campus classrooms, faculty computers, and educational technology for in-person and online class delivery.
Section 3: Appointment Power of the President of the University.
Nothing in these Bylaws shall be taken to limit the power of the President of the University to appoint committees to assist or advise him/her in any matter.
Section 4: Committee Appointment Procedure.
a. After the spring election of new senators for the following academic year, the President of the Faculty Senate shall request of the newly elected members and all continuing senators that they submit, to the President of the Faculty Senate, their requests for appointments to committees for the following academic year.
b. Each senator, except the officers, shall serve on one standing committee and may serve as representative of the Senate on no more than one other campus committee.
c. The President of the Faculty Senate shall announce the committee assignments at the first senate meeting of the new academic year.
d. The President of the Faculty Senate, at the first senate meeting of the academic year, shall ask the committees to meet to select their chair and secretary, and then notify the President of the Faculty Senate of the senators in these positions.
Article VII. Initiative, Referendum and Recall
Section 1: Initiative.
a. Any petition signed by eight members of the faculty shall be sufficient to lay a proposal before the Faculty Senate.
b. The President of the University shall also have the power to lay a proposal before the Senate.
Section 2: Referendum.
Any petition signed by twenty‑five percent of the faculty shall be sufficient to cause the President of the Faculty Senate to conduct a referendum on any action of the Senate as specified by the petition.
Section 3: Recall.
Any petition signed by one‑third of the members of any department shall be sufficient to cause a vote on the recall of any of its representatives and the election of a replacement, such vote and election to be held by a method in conformity with Article III of these Bylaws.
Article VIII. Amendment and Ratification
Section 1: Amendment.
a. An amendment to these Bylaws may be proposed to the full faculty for consideration by a majority vote of the entire senate membership, via general consensus, paper ballot, or electronic methods. The manner of voting shall be determined by the President of the Faculty Senate.
b. A proposed amendment shall be ratified by a majority vote of the faculty members voting, provided that the amendment has been circulated to the faculty via paper or electronic means at least seven days prior to a ballot. Ballots shall indicate the deadline with a specific date and time.
Section 2: Ratification.
These Bylaws shall be ratified by a majority of the faculty by written or electronic ballot within seven days, and according to the specified date and time deadline.
Revised by Faculty Senate (11-2006, 04-26-13, 2-28-14, 11-09-19).