Article 2: The Faculty Council and Faculty Executive Committee

§ 2-1. Legislative power vested in Council

The legislative powers of the General Faculty are vested in a Faculty Council.

§ 2-2. Members

(a) The Council consists of two groups of members, ex officio and elected.

(b) The ex officio members are: the chancellor, the chair of the faculty, the secretary of the faculty, and members of the Faculty Executive Committee and delegates to the Faculty Assembly who are not otherwise elected members of the Council.

(d) The elected members of the Council are chosen by and from the electoral divisions defined in subsection (e) in proportion to the members of the voting faculty, or major fraction thereof, assigned to the respective divisions, and provided that no college or school is represented by more than one-third of the elected members. In divisions entitled to two or more representatives, members are chosen on the basis of proportional representation of (1) professors, associate and assistant professors with permanent tenure, and librarians, and (2) all other ranks. If there are too few members of the voting faculty in either category to qualify for at least one representative, the two categories are combined. Representation is determined by the composition of the electoral division as of January 1 preceding the date of the election according to the procedure in § 2-2(g).

(e) The electoral divisions are:

1) The Division of Fine Arts of the College of Arts and Sciences;

2) The Division of Humanities of the College of Arts and Sciences;

3) The Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics of the College of Arts and Sciences and The Institute of Marine Sciences;

4) The Division of Social Sciences of the College of Arts and Sciences;

5) The University Libraries;

6) The School of Information and Library Science;

7) The Kenan-Flagler Business School;

8) The School of Education;

9) The Hussman School of Journalism and Media;

10) The School of Law;

11) The School of Social Work;

12) The School of Government;

13) The School of Medicine;

14) The Adams School of Dentistry;

15) The School of Nursing;

16) The Eshelman School of Pharmacy; and

17) The Gillings School School of Global Public Health.

(f) Departments and other units initiating faculty appointments that are not assigned to an electoral division by subsection (e) are assigned to an appropriate division by the secretary of the faculty.

(g) Each year the secretary of the faculty adjusts the apportionment factor so that the number of elected members of the Council is as near 70 as practicable. The results of this apportionment are reported to and approved by the Committee on University Government.

(h) The Committee on University Government, with the approval of the chancellor, may amend the provisions of this section to adjust details of the pattern of membership herein established whenever required by changes in the organization of the University.

(i)In addition to the electoral divisions established elsewhere in this article, there shall be a division for retired faculty which will elect two members of Faculty Council. These members shall not be considered in the apportionment described in § 2-2(g). Faculty are eligible for election to this only if they satisfy the requirements for voting in that division, as stipulated in § 2-4(d). [Added March 18, 2011]

§ 2-3. Terms

Elected members of the Council serve for terms of three years and are not eligible for election more than twice in any period of seven years. Nominations and elections are held in the spring semester in each academic year and the term of office begins on July 1. A member’s term of office is not affected by his or her promotion during the term or by reapportionment of the Council before expiration of the term.

§ 2-4. Nomination and election

(a) Nominations for election to the Faculty Council are the responsibility of the Nominating Committee. Other names may be added to the ballot by written nomination submitted to the secretary of the faculty by three or more faculty members of the division for which the nomination is made.

(b) The Nominating Committee establishes divisional nominating committees within each electoral division of the Faculty Council. These committees recommend nominees for the Faculty Council. Each committee recommends at least two nominees for each vacancy within its electoral division unless the number of vacancies makes that impractical.

(c) Members representing the electoral divisions established in § 2-2(e) are chosen by members of the voting faculty whose primary appointments are in schools or departments assigned to that electoral division.

(d)Retired faculty are eligible to vote pursuant to § 2-2(i) if they satisfy the following conditions:

1) they retired from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as members of the voting faculty and do not currently fulfill the requirements of § 1-4(b); and

2) they are registered with the Office of Faculty Governance according to procedures set by the secretary of the faculty.

(e) Ballots containing the nominations are distributed to the appropriate division by the secretary of the faculty. Elections are determined by a plurality of the votes cast. The secretary of the faculty decides tie votes by lot.

(f) The secretary of the faculty fills vacancies for the remainder of unexpired terms from the list of those voted on in the two most recent elections for that division in the order of the highest number of votes received. If all such persons decline appointment or are no longer eligible for election or there is an insufficient number, the Faculty Executive Committee fills the vacancy for the remainder of the unexpired term. Council members taking leave for not longer than one year may be temporarily replaced during such leave in like manner. Council members taking leave for longer than one year are deemed to have resigned from the Council. [Sec. 2-4 was revised March 18, 2011, to reflect amendments establishing a Faculty Council division for retired faculty.]

§ 2-5. Organization

Pursuant to § 502(D)(2) of The Code of the Board of Governors of The University of North Carolina, the chancellor has the right to preside over the deliberations of the Faculty Council. The chair of the faculty presides upon the request of the chancellor. The secretary of the faculty is secretary of the Council ex officio. The presence of a majority of the elected members is necessary for a quorum. The Council may adopt bylaws to govern its proceedings.

§ 2-6. Meetings

The Council meets regularly each month from September through April. Special meetings may be called by the chancellor, or, in his or her absence, by the chair of the faculty, and must be called upon the written request of ten members of the Council. It is the duty of all members to attend all regular and special meetings of the Council, save for good cause. If any voting member is absent for two successive regular meetings without cause, the Council may declare his or her membership vacant.

§ 2-7. Voting

All members have the right to vote. The presiding officer votes only in case of a tie.

§ 2-8. Powers

(a) The Council exercises the legislative powers of the General Faculty:

1) to determine the educational policies of the University and the rules and regulations under which administrators and faculty will conduct the educational activities of the University;

2) to prescribe the requirements for admissions, programs of study, and the award of academic degrees by the University in the context of the basic educational policies of the University and the special competencies of the faculties of particular colleges and schools;

3) to recommend persons for honorary degrees and special awards; and

4) to advise the chancellor and other officers of administration and the student body in matters of student conduct and discipline, and to approve any rules and regulations governing student conduct that affect academic standards or performance.

(b) The Council also has power, concurrently with the General Faculty:

1) to provide for such standing and special committees as the Council may deem necessary or useful for the effective and expeditious conduct of its business;

2) to act upon reports from and to make recommendations to the General Faculty, faculty committees, colleges, schools, institutes, and other units of the University;

3) to request information and reports from and to give advice to the chancellor and other officers of administration with respect to any matter affecting the life of the University; and

4) to discuss and resolve upon matters relating to the life of the University.

§ 2-9. Minutes

Summaries of the actions of the Council are published promptly.

§ 2-10. Faculty Executive Committee

(a) The Faculty Executive Committee consists of the chair of the faculty, the secretary of the faculty, and twelve members of the voting faculty elected by the faculty for renewable three-year terms. The chair-elect of the faculty serves a one-year term as a non-voting ex officio member. The term of office begins on July 1. An elected member who has served two successive full three-year terms is ineligible for election to the succeeding term.

(b) Members are nominated and elected and interim vacancies are filled in the manner provided for electing other standing committees [§ 4-3], except that the Advisory Committee acts instead of the Nominating Committee.

(d) The Faculty Executive Committee has the following powers and duties:

1) to exercise the consultative powers delegated to the Faculty Council by §§ 2-8(b)(3) and 2-8(b)(4), above, subject to such restrictions or instructions as the Council may from time to time establish;

2) when prompt action is required, to exercise the legislative powers delegated to the Faculty Council by §§ 2-8(a)(1) and 2-8(a)(4), above, subject to confirmation by the Council at its next regular meeting;

3) to serve as an advisory committee to the chair of the faculty;

4) to represent the Faculty Council and the General Faculty in advising the University administration with respect to issues, such as planning and the setting of University priorities, that the committee deems important to the University’s mission;

5) to work with the various officers and groups within the University toward the realization of goals set in actions of the Faculty Council;

6) to report to the Council at regular intervals, including reporting annually on the status of the implementation of resolutions of the Faculty Council; and

7) to serve as members of the Faculty Council as provided in § 2-2(b).