THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT ASHEVILLE

FACULTY SENATE

Senate Document Number 0207F

Date of Senate Approval 09/13/07

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Statement of Faculty Senate Action:

To: Faculty Senate (Council) Chairs, UNC System

From: Bonnie C. Yankaskas, Ph.D., Faculty Assembly Vice-Chair

Re: Proposed change to Faculty Assembly Charter

Date: 4 April 2007

Attached is a copy of the charter for the Faculty Assembly that has been marked with proposed changes. The main change being proposed is to the method for determining the number of delegates from each campus to the faculty assembly. The method to date has used a number cut-off to determine the delegation size. The charter as it now stands says the following:

Each institution having not more than 300 full-time faculty and professional staff members shall choose two delegates; each institution having from 301 to 600 full-time faculty and professional staff members shall choose three delegates; each institution having 601 to 900 full-time faculty and professional staff members shall choose four delegates; and each institution having more than 900 full-time faculty and professional staff members shall choose five delegates.

As campus growth continues system-wide, the current cut-off numbers will cause delegation sizes to creep up, leading to an imbalance in the relative representation to faculty assembly from different size faculties. There were two obvious choices to remedy this situation: 1) to increase the numbers used for the cut-offs; or 2) to move to using a percentage of total faculty for the cut-off, rather than a number. The advantage of the second choice is that the charter would not have to be revised continually as campuses grow in the future. We thus propose to change the method for calculating delegate size to reflect the size of each campus’s full-time faculty relative to the total system faculty, rather than the absolute number of faculty. The delegate distribution will remain consistent with the original intent of the charter. For any campus that might lose delegates under this system in the first year of the change, there will be a grandfather clause that allows them to keep the present number of delegates.

The faculty assembly has approved the proposed changes. According to the charter, the process of approving a change is the following:

An amendment to the Charter may be introduced in the Assembly by any member of the Assembly; and if approved by a majority of the authorized membership of the Assembly, it shall be transmitted to the participating institutions of the Assembly for ratification by the faculty of each institution in accordance with the processes of that institution. An amendment shall become effective upon its ratification by two-thirds of the participating institutions of the Assembly.

The charter is enclosed. Strikethrough identifies wording to be removed, and new wording is underlined. Please present this to your faculty to be ratified. We would appreciate your campus results by May 1^st. Send your results to Sue Carpenter at sac@northcarolina.edu or if you have any questions about the process or the proposed changes, please contact me: bcy@med.unc.edu, 919-966-6936.

CHARTER OF THE FACULTY ASSEMBLY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA

I. OBJECTIVES AND FUNCTIONS

1. The Faculty Assembly of the University of North Carolina shall gather and

exchange information on behalf of the faculties of the constituent

institutions of The University of North Carolina.

2. The Assembly shall, through appropriate channels, advise the Board of

Governors of The University of North Carolina, the General Assembly, and

other governmental agencies and officers on matters of university-wide

importance.

3. The Assembly shall advise and communicate with the President of the

University of North Carolina with regard to the interests of the faculties and

other matters of university-wide importance.

II. ORGANIZATION AND RELATIONSHIP

1. Representation in the Assembly shall be apportioned among the constituent institutions of The University of North Carolina with regard to the number of full-time faculty and professional staff members in the service of each institution. Each institution having not more than 300 full-time faculty and professional staff members shall choose two delegates; each institution having from 301 to 600 full-time faculty and professional staff members shall choose three delegates; each institution having 601 to 900 full-time faculty and professional staff members shall choose four delegates; and each institution having more than 900 full-time faculty and professional staff members shall choose five delegates shall select the number of delegates based on the percent that their full-time faculty comprise of the full system-wide faculty according to the following cut-offs: <2%, two (2) delegates; >2 and <5%, three (3) delegates; >5% and <10%, four (4) delegates; and >10%, five (5) delegates. At any time that the number of full-time faculty and professional staff members of an institution changes as to entitle it to a larger or smaller number of delegates under the foregoing formula, the number of its delegates forthwith shall be changed accordingly. An exception to this will be made at the time of change to the charter (spring ‘07 date) such that no institution will decrease its number of delegates in the year of the change to the formula. Every delegate to the Assembly shall be a full-time faculty or professional staff member of the institution he seeks to represent. The manner of selection of delegates shall be determined by the faculties of the respective institutions consistent with their institutional practices. It is highly recommended, however, that one of the delegates from each institution be the Chair of the faculty senate (faculty council) for that institution. Terms and rotation of delegates shall be specified in the bylaws.

2. The Assembly shall have a ~~Chairman~~ Chair and other such officers, who shall be chosen in such manner and for such terms, as the Assembly may provide in its bylaws.

3. Each institutional delegation to the Assembly shall make available to the faculty of its institution the official minutes of the proceedings of the Assembly, together with the written report of the delegation.

III. OPERATIONS

1. The Assembly shall adopt its own bylaws.

2. The bylaws of the Assembly shall provide for regular, stated meetings of the Assembly, which shall be held at various locations.

3. Special meetings of the Assembly may be called by the President of The University of North Carolina, by the officers of the Assembly, or by members of the Assembly, in accordance with procedures to be established in the bylaws of the Assembly.

4. Records of the activities of the Assembly shall be kept and transmitted to the appropriate successor officers of the Assembly. Released time shall be made available to the officers of the Assembly, subject to the approval of the President of The University of North Carolina.

5. The Assembly shall be provided by The University of North Carolina with necessary secretarial assistance and other related services and resources.

6. The members of the Assembly shall be reimbursed by The University of North Carolina for expenses incurred in attending meetings of the Assembly.

IV. RATIFICATION AND AMENDMENT OF THE CHARTER

1. This Charter shall be transmitted to the constituent institutions of The University of North Carolina for ratification or rejection by the faculty of each institution in accordance with the processes of that institution. The Charter shall become effective upon its ratification by two-thirds of the constituent institutions of The University of North Carolina. The institutions whose faculties ratify the Charter shall become participating institutions and shall send delegations to the Assembly

2. An amendment to the Charter may be introduced in the Assembly by any member of the Assembly; and if approved by a majority of the authorized membership of the Assembly, it shall be transmitted to the participating institutions of the Assembly for ratification by the faculty of each institution in accordance with the processes of that institution. An amendment shall become effective upon its ratification by two-thirds of the participating institutions of the Assembly.

The foregoing Proposed Charter of the Faculty Assembly of the University of North Carolina was adopted unanimously by the University Faculty Assembly, representing all 16 17 public institutions of higher education in North Carolina, meeting in ~~Greensboro on April 15, 1972~~. Chapel Hill, May 4, 2007.

~~John L. Sanders~~ Brenda Killingsworth Chair~~man~~ of the Assembly