SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY EDWARDSVILLE
THE FACULTY SENATE BYLAWS

1. The Faculty Senate shall normally consist of 49 proportionally elected members and the faculty-elected members of the Graduate Council, with the 49 proportionally elected members allocated to and elected by the various academic units, as determined by the Rules and Procedures Council. The academic units are defined as: College of Arts and Sciences, School of Business, School of Dental Medicine, School of Education, School of Engineering, Library and Information Services, School of Nursing, and School of Pharmacy.  Non-tenure track full-time instructors shall constitute a separate distinct unit.  Senators not represented within one of these academic units based on their primary academic affiliation will be assigned to a unit, as determined by the Rules and Procedures Council.  Representation of additional units may be added by majority vote of the Faculty Senate. 
   
   
2. Faculty Senators shall be elected to three-year terms which shall begin with the new academic year. Each academic unit shall elect its representatives.  If a Faculty Senator is appointed Chair of the University Planning and Budget Council, they shall, upon appointment as Chair, become an at-large, non-voting member of the Senate.  This at-large Senate membership will continue for the duration of the term as UPBC Chair, provided that the individual remains eligible for Faculty Senate membership during the term as Chair.  The replacement for the Senator who becomes Chair of UPBC will be selected from the same unit in accord with the Bylaws of the Faculty Senate. 
   
   Faculty members appointed as representatives to the University Planning and Budget Council who are not regularly elected members of the Faculty Senate shall become at-large, non-voting members of the Senate.  At least two of the faculty senators appointed to UPBC shall be senators who are assigned to the University Budget, Finance, and Operations Council.  Faculty members appointed as representatives to the Illinois Board of Higher Education who are not regularly elected members of the Faculty Senate shall become at-large, non-voting members of the Senate.
   
   
3. Faculty Senators will be expected to attend all meetings of the Faculty Senate or designate an alternate from the same academic unit to attend in their place.
   
   
4. Upon recognition of a vacancy, the Executive Committee shall inform the Rules and Procedures Council to initiate action to fill the vacant Senatorship. Resignation of a Faculty Senator shall be submitted, in writing, to the Executive Committee.
   
   
5. At the beginning of each academic year, the seat of any Faculty Senator who was absent without replacement by an alternate for a majority of meetings (more than 50% of the total Senate meetings and assigned Council meetings) during the preceding year may be declared vacant by the Rules and Procedures Council. The Faculty Senator may appeal the decision to the Executive Committee.  If a Senator is to be absent from the Faculty Senate for an extended period of time, then that Senator should either resign or have an alternate from the same School or unit (see I.A) attend meetings during his or her absence.
   
   
6. Each elected member of the Faculty Senate shall serve on a Council.
   
   
7. A Faculty Senator elected by a unit must have at least a 50% assignment within that unit. If a Senator becomes unqualified to serve, the seat shall be declared vacant by the Rules and Procedures Council and the unit directed to elect a replacement.  The Faculty Senator may appeal this decision to the Executive Committee. 
   
   
8. A Faculty Senator elected by a unit can be recalled by a majority vote of the faculty of the unit. A recall election shall be held by the Rules and Procedures Council on the petition of at least 15% of the faculty in the unit.  If the election is successful (a majority of the unit votes to recall), the seat shall be declared vacant by the Rules and Procedures Council and the unit directed to elect a replacement.
   
   

II. Meetings

1. The Faculty Senate shall schedule regular meetings at least once a month during the academic year, or more frequently if its responsibilities require.
   
   
2. The Faculty Senate may be called into a special meeting by the Executive Committee provided the members are given at least one week’s notice of the meeting and the topics necessitating the meeting. Only those topics announced may be considered at the meeting.  The Executive Committee shall call a special meeting on the written request of five or more Faculty Senators. 
   
   
3. The Faculty Senate shall conduct its business under recognized parliamentary procedures, as specified in Robert’s Rules of Order, and shall appoint as needed its parliamentarian annually.
   
   
4. Agendas of the Faculty Senate and its subordinate units shall normally be prepared by the Executive Committee and the appropriate Chairpersons, respectively. Faculty Senators and committee members may place items on the agenda upon request to the Executive Committee or appropriate Council or committee Chairperson.  Any member of the faculty shall receive on request the agenda for any meeting of the Senate or any of its subordinate units.
   
   
5. Each Faculty Senator, or designated alternate, present at a meeting shall have one vote.
   
   
6. While only Faculty Senators or their designated alternates shall be eligible to propose and to vote on motions, in accordance with the Illinois Open Meetings Act, the public is allowed to comment at Faculty Senate meetings, generally for a maximum of 3 minutes per person and a maximum of 20 minutes per meeting allotted for public comment.
   
   
7. A public body may, upon a majority vote of a quorum present, vote to go into closed session. All meetings, however, must be conducted in accordance with the Illinois Open Meeting Law.  Final action can be taken only in open meetings.
   
   
8. Quorums of the Faculty Senate and its subordinate units shall be one half of the Faculty Senate or subordinate unit membership. Designated alternates shall be considered in quorum counts.
   1. After a quorum is established in accordance with this section, additional members may attend the meeting via video or audio conference if the member is unable to attend the meeting due to: (i) personal illness or disability; (ii) employment purposes or public business of the body; or (iii) family or other emergency.
9. Faculty Senate Councils normally shall meet at least once a month during the academic year at the call of their respective chairperson or by petition of one-third of the respective membership.
   
   
10. The Faculty Senate shall maintain a registry of membership of Faculty Senators, of all its subordinate units, and of its appointments to various university committees. It shall also maintain a calendar of all scheduled meetings for the convenience of its membership and other interested parties.
    
    
11. The President of the Faculty Senate may call a meeting of the entire faculty at least once a year. The faculty shall be notified at least two weeks in advance of the meeting of the topics to be discussed.

III. Officers of the Faculty Senate

1. The Officers of the Faculty Senate shall be elected from the past or current membership of the Faculty Senate and shall remain members of the Faculty Senate during their term of office, and shall include the President, President-Elect, and Past-President.
   
   
   1. The President of the Faculty Senate shall be presiding officer with the power to call Faculty Senate and general faculty meetings. They shall be Chairperson of the Executive Committee and shall be a non-voting or ex-Officio member of all Faculty Senate subordinate units.  The President shall represent the Faculty Senate in any organized all-University activity.
      
      The Faculty Senate shall be represented on Chancellor Search Committees, search committees for positions within two reporting lines of the Chancellor, and for other positions on ad-hoc or standing committees, councils, etc. related to Faculty Senate’s charges, including but not limited to University Planning and Budget Council (UPBC), Parking and Traffic, Intercollegiate Athletics Committee, and Committee for Higher Administrator Performance Appraisal (CHAPA).  Representatives will be chosen by the Faculty Senate President, in conjunction with the Executive Committee.  Each appointment must be announced to the Faculty Senate members.  Committee appointees are responsible for reporting relevant business and actions of the committee to Faculty Senate.
      
      
   2. The President-Elect of the Faculty Senate shall assist the President of the Faculty Senate in their duties. They will serve as President-Elect the first year, automatically become President in the second year, and the Past-President in the third year.  If the office of the President becomes vacated, the President-Elect shall serve the remainder of the unexpired term of President, followed by their regular term of President.  In the event of a vacancy in the office of the President-Elect, the Rules and Procedures Council shall conduct an election to fill this vacancy.  The President-Elect shall be a non-voting, ex-Officio member of all Faculty Senate subordinate units.
      
      
   3. Nomination and Election of the President-Elect of the Faculty Senate.
      
      
      1. Nomination of a candidate for President-Elect may be made either by the Nominating Committee or by nomination on the floor of the Faculty Senate. Nominees must be former or current members of the Faculty Senate.  The Nominating Committee shall consist of the President of the Faculty Senate, the President-Elect of the Faculty Senate, and the Chair of the Rules and Procedures Council.  The Chair of the Rules and Procedures Council shall chair the Nominating Committee.  This committee shall be formed in January.  The committee shall prepare a slate of one or two candidates to represent to the Faculty Senate at the February meeting.  The committee must contact potential candidates to ensure their willingness to serve prior to advancing their names.  At the February meeting of Faculty Senate, the Chair of the Rules and Procedures Council shall present the slate of candidates to the Senate.  Nominations will then be accepted from the floor of the Senate.  If such nominees are not present when nominated, it will be the task of the Nominating Committee to determine whether they are willing to serve.  Declining nominees will not be included on the ballot. 
         
         
      2. Following the February meeting of the Faculty Senate, Information Technology Services will prepare an electronic ballot and provide it to the voting faculty. The ballot will include the names in alphabetical order of all nominees willing to serve and a blank line for a write-in vote.  Faculty will have two weeks to complete the voting procedure.  The confidentiality of votes is to be maintained.  The results will be given to the President of the Faculty Senate. 
         
         
      3. If one candidate receives over 50% of the votes cast in the election, that candidate will be the winner of the election for President-Elect, and the results will be announced at the March meeting of the Faculty Senate by the President of the Faculty Senate.
         
         
      4. If no candidate receives over 50% of the votes cast, the decision on how to proceed will be made by the Faculty Senate at its March meeting. The Senate will be informed of the total number of votes cast in the election, the percentage return, and the number of votes received by the candidates receiving the two highest percentages; but, the Senate will not be informed of which candidates received those votes.  The Senate may vote to accept a plurality rather than a majority of votes to declare the winner.
         
         
      5. If the Senate votes not to accept a plurality, then there will be a run-off election between the candidates with the two highest vote totals. The run-off will use the procedures outlined in Section b. above.  The result will be presented to the Faculty Senate at the April meeting.
   4. The President, President-Elect, and Past-President shall serve the whole faculty and consequently shall not serve as unit representatives. If the President-Elect was a current Senator at the time of election, and was not in the final year of their term, then the unit from which the President-Elect was originally elected as a Senator shall elect a replacement to fill the unexpired term vacated by the election.  The officers shall serve as non-voting members of the Senate and its subordinate units.  The presiding officer of the Senate may vote to break a tie.
      
      
   5. Functions and terms of office of other officers shall be designated by the Senate at the time the office is created. Election of other Faculty Senate officers shall be conducted by the Rules and Procedures Council.
2. Election of Faculty Senate officers shall be conducted by the Rules and Procedures Council in the Spring semester. Terms of officers shall begin with the new academic year.

IV. Executive Committee

1. The officers of the Faculty Senate and the Chairpersons of the Councils will constitute the Executive Committee of the Faculty Senate, with power to act for the Faculty Senate between meetings on matters which must be dealt with immediately where a week’s delay would constitute a decision. All other items shall be reported to the Senate for consideration.  The actions of the Executive Committee shall be subject to review by the full Faculty Senate.  No one serving as dean, associate dean, assistant dean, chancellor, vice-chancellor, assistant vice-chancellor, assistant to the vice-chancellor, or equivalent positions shall be a member of the Executive Committee. 
   
   
2. The Executive Committee shall function as a steering committee to help enable and facilitate the Faculty Senate working effectively. The Executive Committee shall be responsible for the agenda of meetings of the Faculty Senate.  The Executive Committee shall respond to matters presented to it by individual faculty members and may place such matters on the agenda, as it deems necessary.
   
   
3. The President of the Faculty Senate, or their representative and any member of the Executive Committee who so chooses, shall meet on a regular monthly basis with the Chancellor of the University for informational purposes.
   
   
4. The Executive Committee shall be responsible for scheduling and assigning project completion dates for those agenda items sent to Faculty Senate subordinate units.
   
   
5. The Executive Committee shall be responsible for liaising with internal bodies such as Student Senate and University Staff Senate.

V. Councils

1. The Faculty Senate shall establish the following standing Councils:
   
   
   1. Undergraduate Curriculum Council
   2. Faculty Development Council
   3. Rules and Procedures Council
   4. Welfare and Governance Council
   5. University Budget, Finance, and Operations Council
   6. Graduate Council, as described in Article V, Section C of the Faculty Senate Constitution.
2. The Faculty Senate Past-President, President, and President-Elect shall appoint Chairpersons for the Council for the coming year and shall submit the appointments for approval of the Faculty Senate at the May meeting.
   
   
3. The Faculty Senate Executive Committee shall appoint Faculty Senate members to each Council. Such membership shall be composed of at least three members of the Faculty Senate.  Councils may add additional members from outside Faculty Senate; representatives added from other campus constituency groups shall be voting members.
   
   
4. Each Council shall develop its own operating procedures, which must be approved by the Faculty Senate.
   
   
5. Each Council may establish, in addition to the standing committees identified in Section VI, Paragraph H, below, subcommittees and ad hoc committees as needed to fulfill that Council’s responsibilities. Membership to standing or ad hoc committees is not limited to members of the Faculty Senate.  The Chairperson of each committee shall be appointed by the Council to which the committee is to report, and the Chairperson must be a member of that Council.  The Graduate Council may establish and terminate its own standing committees.
   
   
6. Additional Standing Committees may be established by amending these Bylaws.
   
   
7. All Councils, as well as the Executive Committee and the Faculty Senate as a whole, are responsible for matters such as inclusion, equity, access, efficiency, communication connections, communications, sustainability, transparency, and governance.
   
   
8. The Faculty Senate shall be responsible for recommending possible changes in the Board Statutes to the Board of Trustees; reviewing current practices and policies in the area of academic governance and formulating guidelines for the administration and governance of all academic units; formulating and recommending to the Faculty Senate policy relating to the structure, functioning, and funding of the Southern Illinois University system and the organizational relationships among and between the Board of Trustees, the President, Southern Illinois University Carbondale, the School of Medicine, and Southern Illinois University Edwardsville. When relevant, this charge may be taken up by any council, the Executive Committee, and/or the Faculty Senate as a body.
   
   
9. Additional functions and responsibilities of the Faculty Senate Councils and Standing Committees are as follows:
   
   
   1. Undergraduate Curriculum Council
      
      
      1. Functions: The Curriculum Council is responsible to the Faculty Senate for formulating and recommending policy on undergraduate curriculum (instructional programs; courses of study; definitions of certificates, diplomas, degrees, student entrance, retention and exit), for formulating and reviewing undergraduate policy proposals, for reviewing the administration of all undergraduate curricular matters, and for conducting undergraduate program reviews. The council is also responsible to the Faculty Senate for all matters of undergraduate student success related to academic and faculty interest, such as advising, academic probation, conduct, and housing, as well as liaising with Student Senate. “Undergraduate” shall be defined as including both dental and continuing education. 
      2. Standing Committees: Academic Standards, Policies, and Student Success Committee, Committee on Assessment, General Education Committee, Graduation Appeals Committee, Undergraduate Courses Committee, and Undergraduate Programs Committee.
   2. Faculty Development Council
      
      
      1. Functions: The Faculty Development Council shall: work with the Office of the Provost to develop and promote programs relating to faculty roles and responsibilities in the area of teaching, scholarship, and service, such as the Fall Faculty Symposium, Scholarship of Teaching and Learning Initiatives, and Faculty Conversations; serve as liaison to SIUE faculty to identify faculty development interests; coordinate the dissemination of information of campus, state, and national initiatives concerning faculty roles and responsibilities; encourage broad faculty involvement and open discussion within departments regarding faculty roles and responsibilities and coordinate these activities at college, school and university levels; provide for the oversight of the Excellence in Undergraduate Education Program (EUE); work in conjunction with the EUE Coordinator to develop program guidelines and review procedures, to conduct a periodic assessment of the EUE Program, and to advise the EUE Coordinator on other matters pertaining to EUE; and review EUE proposals and make recommendations to the Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs on the allocation of EUE funds.
      2. Standing Committee: Teaching Excellence Award Committee
   3. Rules and Procedures Council
      
      
      1. Functions: The Rules and Procedures Council is charged with recommendations pertaining to structuring the Faculty Senate, specifically the reapportionment of Senate seats, seating and unseating Senators, and the election of Senate Officers; examining the academic governance of the University per se including name changes and/or the restructuring of departments and schools; liaison with internal bodies, e.g. Student Senate, University Staff Senate, etc.; evaluation of the Chancellor and the Provost and Vice Chancellor; as needed, recommending committee appointments to the Faculty Senate president and coordinating with the University Governance Office to track committee appointments.
      2. Standing Committees: Constitution and Bylaws Committee, Evaluation and Liaison Committee, and Personnel Committee.
   4. Welfare and Governance Council
      
      
      1. Functions: The Welfare and Governance Council is responsible for the following: on behalf of SIUE faculty (as defined in the Faculty Senate Constitution) not represented under a current labor contract, the Welfare and Governance Council shall concern itself with all policies for faculty evaluation, salary, promotions, tenure, leaves of absence, recruitment, employment, retraining, development, rights and responsibilities, general faculty benefits, discipline, severance, and grievance.
      2. Standing Committees: Faculty Benefits and Facilities Committee, Faculty Salary Equity Committee, Faculty Status Committee, Honorary Degree and Distinguished Service Award Committee, Faculty Grievance and Family Friendly Leave Request Committee; Non-represented Faculty Welfare.
   5. University Budget, Finance, & Operations Council
      
      
      1. Functions: The University Budget, Finance, & Operations Council is responsible to the Faculty Senate for all matters relating to faculty participation in university budgeting, for liaising with Staff Senate, for attention to sustainability, for providing oversight on academic matters relating to the academic calendar, counseling, technology, and support services.
      2. Standing Committees: Academic & Support Services

VI. Amendments to the Bylaws

Bylaws may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the Faculty Senate and thereafter approval by the Chancellor.  The Senate vote may be taken at a Senate meeting if previously circulated to the members.

FS#02-21/22 Approved by the Faculty Senate March 3, 2022
Approved by the Chancellor June 6, 2022

FS#03-20/21 Approved by the Faculty Senate May 6, 2021
Approved by the Chancellor June 2, 2021

WC#01-19/20 Approved by the Faculty Senate February 6, 2020

RP#01-12/13 Approved by the Faculty Senate February 7, 2013

Approved by the Chancellor March 5, 2013

Approved by the Office of the Chancellor August 11, 2011

Membership revisions were approved by Rules & Procedures Council on February 17, 2011, Faculty Senate Executive Committee February 24, 2011, and the Faculty Senate April 7, 2011

Election process revisions were approved by the Faculty Senate April 2, 2009