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Faculty Council meeting minutes, 1985-2004

 File — Box: 6

Scope and Contents

From the Collection:

The folders contain the minutes of the Faculty Meetings for an academic year, starting late August/ early September and ending May or June. The earliest minutes are recorded in ledger books. All of the Faculty Meetings are scheduled by the Chair at the start of the academic year. Faculty members met every month, special meetings of the Faculty may be held at any time on the call of the Chair, the President, or upon the written request of any 5 members of the faculty. A quorum at such special meetings shall be 50% of the faculty. First meetings in the academic year (usually in September), announced any faculty changes (names of new professors, visiting professors, professors on sabbatical) as well as the Chair persons for sub-administrative divisions. February meetings usually involve changes needed to be made in the catalog for next year, and May ones address the students who are going to receive graduation honors.

Initially, Anderson, presided over the meetings and kept the ledger book. Presidents continued to preside over faculty meetings and setting the agenda until 1966 when the position of Chair of Faculty was introduced and it was the new chairman that presided these faculty meetings as well as the Academic Council meetings. The Chair of Faculty was elected on a 2 year term, which recently was extended to 3 years, without possibility of election for a consecutive term. The Chair of Faculty also attends meetings of the Board of Trustees, the Executive Committee of the Board of Overseers, and the Alumni Board, and sits with the Budget Officers of the College in the President's Council. The Chair is the one reviewing and signing the Faculty and Academic Council minutes. At the beginning of each faculty meeting, the Chair of Faculty calls on the Dean of Faculty or the President for important announcements. After that, follow reports of the Board of Review concerning regulations, the Policy Committee and then the Divisions regarding curricular changes. These curricular changes have been screened by the Academic Council before making the faculty meeting agenda. Student Conduct was integrated into faculty meetings until this special subcommittee was given to the Dean of Students.

In the early faculty minutes ledger, the name and score of the students receiving at least seventy percent on a final examination were kept and the topics were mostly geared towards disciplinary and scheduling issues. The meeting minutes have continued to be reports of sub-administrative groups: reports or enrolment, finances, new codes of conduct or by-laws, with various committees starting to be instituted for each of those areas throughout the year. Any changes are voted upon by the full time tenure-track faculty, the ones who are given the right to vote in the meetings.

The Meeting Minutes were first taken by a Secretary elected from and by the Faculty. Recently, the Registrar's Office secretary has been taking the minutes which are then reviewed by the Chair of Faculty, by the Dean of Faculty, approved by the Academic Council and then distributed as official.

Dates

  • 1985-2004

Conditions Governing Access

Collection is open for research.

Extent

From the Collection: 6.5 Linear Feet (12 boxes)

Language of Materials

English

Repository Details

Part of the Whitman College and Northwest Archives Repository

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