Section 2.4

The Steering Committee of the Council

The officers of the Council of Chairs/Director--i.e., the Chair, the Chair-elect, the representative to the Arts and Sciences Council and two at-large members--shall constitute the Steering Committee. Arts and Sciences' five representatives to the University Council of Chairs Steering Committee shall be these five elected officers. Terms of office for the Steering Committee are two years. The Chair-elect serves as Chair in the second year of the term.

Nominations and Elections

Nominations and elections of officers of the College Council of Chairs and Directors shall be conducted during the spring term. In even-numbered years, a Chair-elect and a representative to the Arts and Sciences Council are elected. In odd-numbered years, a Chair-elect and two at-large members are elected.  All eligible Chairs/Directors will be given the opportunity to opt out of consideration.  All those who do not opt out will appear on ballot.  Voting shall follow by secret ballot.

Each officer must receive a majority of votes for the position to which he/she was nominated in order to be elected to that position. If there is not a majority, a run-off election shall be held between the top candidates.

If a vacancy were to occur midyear, the position will be offered to the candidate receiving the highest votes in the original vote.  If that individual does not accept the position, the next candidate will be offered the position.  If the next highest candidate(s) were involved in a tie in the original election, a new run-off election may be held.  This process will continue until the vacant position is accepted.  Vacancies occurring at the end of the first year of a member's term are filled through the normal spring election process.

Meetings of the Council

Meetings of the full Council and of the Steering Committee shall be held as needed. Since the primary function of the Council is to facilitate a reciprocal flow of information between the dean of the college and the chairs/directors, as well as among the members themselves, meetings of the Council shall be scheduled whenever items of interest and concern to the dean or to the members are identified. In general, meetings will be scheduled once a month.

Any chair can propose an agenda item for the Council. It is ordinarily the function of the Steering Committee to establish and arrange the agenda for Council meetings. The Chair of the Council or the dean can call an emergency meeting, provided all chairs/directors are notified.

12/20/19