Faculty Council Bylaws
South Seattle College Faculty Council Bylaws (ratified by the South Seattle College faculty on November 16, 2020)
Article I: Name
This organization shall be known as the South Seattle College Faculty Council (FC).
The South Seattle College Faculty Council is an elected group of faculty members from each instructional division and/or area at South Seattle College.
Article II: Purpose and Scope of Responsibilities
The Faculty Council shall equitably solicit, present, and amplify campus-wide faculty opinions and perspectives on academic and professional matters. The Faculty Council provides a dedicated venue for the faculty body to discuss, build consensus on, and make recommendations on professional matters of importance.
The Faculty Council is created to facilitate collective engagement from faculty across divisions to amplify diverse perspectives and collective opinions of the faculty body in service of faculty life and the improvement of our campus community. The formation of the Faculty Council emphasizes mutual support and collaboration between faculty and other campus groups to amplify the concerns of the larger faculty community through shared experiences and conversations with other groups on campus.
The expressed responsibilities of this organization shall be:
- To provide an open forum for faculty to communicate and collaborate across divisions.
- To serve as a nexus for transparent communication between campus groups and the faculty body.
- To solicit, present, and amplify campus-wide faculty opinions, perspectives, and recommendations on academic and professional matters as part of college and district-wide conversations on changes to improve operations and environment for faculty and instruction.
- To advocate for equitable and inclusive faculty participation in campus and district wide initiatives by raising awareness and sharing opportunities, facilitating, and organizing with faculty from all divisions, specifically BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and part-time faculty.
- To consciously and responsibly source the perspectives, opinions, and participation of BIPOC and LGBTQ+ faculty from across divisions in order to move the campus culture towards an anti-racist and inclusive future.
Article III: Membership
Section 1: The Faculty Council members will equitably solicit, present, and amplify campus-wide faculty opinions and perspectives on academic and professional matters on behalf of the Faculty Body.
Clause 1: The “Faculty Body” is defined as active faculty who are teaching during the current academic quarter or within the previous three quarters. The “Faculty Body” may also be defined as faculty who served the college in any faculty service or teaching capacity: e.g. grant funded work, scholarly research, leadership of campus-wide projects on course release. For example: someone serving in an interim dean position would not be considered “active faculty” for the quarters they serve in this role, but when they return to teaching they become a voting member of the Faculty Body.
Section 2: The Faculty Council shall be comprised of 10 members:
(2) members representing Academic Programs (1 member representing Math, Science, & Business + JIS, and 1 member representing Arts, Humanities, & Social Sciences + BAS)
(1) member representing Library faculty
(1) member representing BTS
(1) member representing Counseling
(1) member representing Professional & Technical Faculty
(1) member representing part-time faculty
(1) member representing extension campuses (New Holly / Georgetown)
(2) at large members from various divisions
Note: at-large members can be full or part time faculty.
Section 3: In the event that campus academic divisions are reorganized the composition of the Faculty Council members may be revised in accordance with Article VIII.
Article IV: Duties of the Faculty Council Members
Section 1: Duties of the Faculty Council Chair
Clause 1. The Chair or designee of the Faculty Council shall preside at all Faculty Council meetings.
Clause 2. The Chair or designee shall relay to college governance bodies the recommendations of the faculty on any relevant professional matter when directed to do so by the Faculty Body.
Clause 3. The Chair or designee shall relay to college governance bodies the opinions or perspectives of the faculty on any relevant professional matter when directed to do so by the Faculty Council.
Clause 4. The presiding officer at meetings of the Faculty Council shall have the right to vote upon motions brought before the Council when their vote would change the result. Thus, their vote may either make or break a tie vote.
Clause 5. The Faculty Council Chair shall organize quarterly meetings of the Faculty Body by:
- Preparing agendas.
- Reviewing minutes of previous meetings and coordinating and disseminating this information to the Faculty Body.
- Compiling background information needed for clarification of agenda items.
Clause 6. The Faculty Council Chair shall read, keep abreast of, and be conversant about information of professional concern to the Faculty Body.
Clause 7. The Faculty Council Chair shall manage the Faculty Council email and assist in organizing communications between Faculty Council Members and constituents.
- Organizing communications between Faculty Council members and constituents in their areas.
- Organizing communications between Faculty Council members and established campus groups: President’s Cabinet, Instructional Council, College Council, Curriculum and Instruction Committee, United Students Association, AFT, and other campus groups.
Clause 8. The Faculty Council Chair shall have the authority to designate additional positions as needed. Any additional Faculty Council position may be created to ensure sharing of leadership duties, divisional perspectives, individual faculty expertise, and equitable work distribution. These positions must be approved unanimously by the Faculty Council.
- Any additional positions created may operate on a rotating basis or annual basis but require unanimous approval from the Faculty Council.
Section 2: Duties of Faculty Council Members
Clause 1. The Faculty Council members shall, on behalf of their constituent groups, bring forward professional issues that affect faculty.
Clause 2. The Faculty Council members will report back to constituents and solicit feedback
- Each Faculty Council member will meet with constituents as needed in the frequency and manner that best suits their division faculty.
- Each Faculty Council member will maintain a listserv of faculty within their constituent division.
Clause 3. The Faculty Council Members shall solicit faculty opinions and perspectives on academic and professional matters when requested by governing bodies or campus groups.
Clause 4. The Council Members will communicate on behalf of the Faculty Council with established campus groups: President’s Cabinet, Instructional Council, College Council, Curriculum and Instruction Committee, United Students Association, AFT, and other campus groups.
Clause 5. Assist in transparent and accessible Faculty Council communications by regularly maintaining the Faculty Council webpage, posting meeting minutes, updating faculty resources and service opportunities, and outlining active Faculty Council projects and activities.
Clause 6. Assist in organizing meetings of the Faculty Council and Faculty Body.
- Assist the Chair in compiling background information for agenda items or faculty outreach.
- Initiating contact with any resource speakers whose presences at meetings of the Faculty Body is necessary for informational purposes.
Clause 7. The Council Members shall attend and act as parliamentarians at all meetings of the Faculty Council and Faculty Body.
- Faculty Council members are expected to log their hours and stay in regular communication with the Chair and fellow Faculty Council Members.
Article V: Council Member Compensation
The Faculty Council will vote annually on a compensation structure for Faculty Council members compatible with annual funds allocated to the Council. The Faculty Council prioritizes compensation of part time labor before any compensation is allocated to full-time faculty for their service.
Section 1: Part time faculty will be compensated for their time at Faculty Council meetings at the stipend faculty rate and compensated for participation in subcommittee or planning activities as voted on by the FC annually. Part-time compensation for participation outside of meetings will be compatible with annual funds allocated to the FC as an annual stipend or at the hourly rate as defined by AFT collective bargaining agreement.
Section 2: The full-time Faculty Council members are participating in this group as part of their contractual service commitment to the college. If additional funds allow, and only after part-time faculty compensation, the Faculty Council may provide a stipend for full-time faculty work such as: compensation for the Faculty Council Chair or summer labor for Faculty Council representatives. Any stipend for full-time faculty must be decided by a unanimous Faculty Council vote.
Article VI: Terms of Office and Elections
Section 1: The term of office for all Council Members shall be two years with the option to renew for an additional third year at the discretion of each member. The Faculty Council will work to ensure that no more than half the seated Council leaves office at the same time to establish institutional memory and continuity.
Clause 1. Faculty Council elections will take place during Spring Quarter, and all new members will take office during the first week of the subsequent academic year (Fall, Winter, Spring).
Clause 2. If the Faculty Council is required to conduct any business during the Summer Quarter, the outgoing Faculty Council Chair and Faculty Council Members will be charged with coordinating this business.
Clause 3. Once elected, the Faculty Council vote to elect the Chair will take place during spring quarter and the new Faculty Council Chair will take office during the first week of the subsequent academic year (Fall, Winter, Spring).
Clause 4. Only members who have served on the Faculty Council for at least one year are eligible to serve as the Chair.
Section 2: Procedure for the election of the Faculty Council Members
Clause 1. Faculty members may put forth their own names or nominate another (with that individual’s approval) for consideration by the Faculty Council.
Clause 2. Faculty members nominated for a Faculty Council position will provide a brief statement or short biography to inform the voting Faculty Body of their goals for serving on the Faculty Council.
Clause 3. The current Faculty Council will oversee and conduct an election by electronic secret ballot to the Faculty Body.
Clause 4. The faculty will vote by simple majority within their academic division (as defined in Article III) to elect the division’s representative to the Faculty Council.
Section 3: Procedure for the election of the Faculty Council Chair.
The election for the Faculty Council Chair shall be determined by a simple majority of the incoming Faculty Council members (as outlined in Section 1, Clause 3).
Section 4: Eligibility to run for the Faculty Council:
Any active faculty member will be permitted to serve on the Faculty Council after a one 2-year cycle of non-service to encourage participation from other faculty members in their area.
Section 5: Procedure to fill Faculty Council vacancies.
Clause 1. A call for nominations will be sent to faculty within the same quarter the vacancy is created. Until an election is completed an at-large member will represent the division with a vacancy.
Clause 2. A new member will be elected by a simple majority vote of their division of the Faculty Body conducted by electronic secret ballot.
Clause 3. The newly elected member’s term will begin immediately following the election.
Clause 4. The faculty member elected to fill the vacancy will hold the position for the remainder of the original term. Filling a vacancy does not count towards the term limits for this Faculty Council seat. The faculty member filling a vacant position can immediately accept nomination to serve in the next Faculty Council service cycle once the vacancy term concludes.
Article VII: Meetings
Section 1: Frequency of Faculty Body Meetings and Faculty Body Recommendations
Clause 1. At the start of each quarter, the Council Chair shall schedule at least one meeting of the Faculty Body for that quarter. In these quarterly Faculty Body meetings, faculty will be invited to vote and make official recommendations as a Faculty Body.
Clause 2. Robert's Rules of Order, Revised shall be the authority on the order of business and parliamentary procedure in all regular and special meetings of the Faculty Council and its committees. Council members
Clause 3. Agenda for meetings of the Faculty Body.
- Quarterly Faculty Body meeting agenda items will be sourced from division faculty in each area brought before the Faculty Council.
- Agenda items may also be brought to the Faculty Council from campus or district groups.
- Agenda items for Faculty Body meetings require a majority vote of Faculty Council members before the agenda is set.
Clause 4. Eligibility to participate in meetings of the Faculty Body.
- Meetings of the Faculty Body will be open to all active faculty members.
- Only active faculty members may participate in votes for official Faculty Body recommendations.
- Active faculty is defined in Article III, Section 1, Clause 1.
Clause 5. Votes for official Faculty Body recommendations will also be accepted through electronic poll for exactly one week after the quarterly Faculty Body meetings to accommodate faculty who were unable to attend and vote at the quarterly Faculty Body meeting.
Clause 6. Once voting closes for official Faculty Body recommendations the Faculty Council will share recommendations with the Faculty Body, campus-wide and district governing bodies as applicable.
Clause 7. In order to make an official Faculty Body recommendation the Faculty Council requires participation from at least one-third of full-time Faculty members, participation from at least 20 part-time Faculty members, and votes sourced from all divisions.
Clause 8. The Council Chair may call special meetings of the Faculty Body. The Council Chair will send a notice of special Faculty Body meetings at least one week in advance of the meeting date.
Clause 9. Members of the Faculty Body can bring requests for special meetings of the Faculty Body to the Faculty Council member from their division or the Faculty Council Chair. The Faculty Council shall call a special meeting of the Faculty Body if approved by a simple majority of Faculty
Section 2: Sourcing Opinions and Perspectives from Faculty
Clause 1. In matters that do not require an official Faculty Body recommendation, the Faculty Council may solicit the opinions and perspectives of Faculty Body members through electronic polling.
Clause 2. The Faculty Council may also offer opinions and perspectives of the Faculty Council members as a group.
Clause 3. These Faculty Body and Faculty Council opinions and perspectives do not meet the standards of official Faculty Body recommendations outlined in Section 1, Clause 5, however, they will help to facilitate transparent communication and collaboration between Faculty and campus groups or the larger college community.
Clause 4. Taking action to solicit and collect these opinions and perspectives may be determined by simple majority vote of Faculty Council members.
Section 3. Faculty Council Meetings
Clause 1. The faculty council will meet at least twice quarterly, before and after the meeting of the Faculty Body. The Faculty Council chair can call additional meetings of the Faculty Council as needed.
Clause 2. A simple majority of the Faculty Council members constitutes a quorum in order for the Faculty Council to take action as a council.
Article VIII: Adoption and Amendment of Bylaws
Section 1: The Faculty Council shall adopt these Bylaws when approved by consensus of the Faculty Council Members.
- Clause 1. Any proposals to amend the Faculty Council Bylaws must be distributed to all Faculty Council members at least one week prior to voting.
Section 2: Review of the Bylaws following the first year of the Faculty Council.
- Clause 1. The Faculty Council members will review the Bylaws in the Spring of 2021 and propose revisions informed by the first-year experience of the council.
- Clause 2. Proposed changes to the bylaws must be approved by a consensus of the Faculty Council Members by the Fall of 2021.