Appendix B: Charter of the Faculty Senate

Adopted by GMU General Faculty April 12, 1989; amended March 30, 1994.

I. Membership of the Faculty Senate
A. Members
  • President of the University
  • Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs
  • The Deans of the Colleges and Independent Schools
  • One Independent Institute Director designated by the Directors of the Independent Institutes
  • Director of the University Libraries
  • Thirty-six Faculty Members Elected from the Collegiate Units
    • B. Appointment of Elected Senators

    For purposes of allocating Senators to academic units, the Faculty from all Independent Institutes will be pooled into a single collegiate unit. The number of Senators representing each collegiate unit (College, Independent Unit or Institute Pool) shall be determined according to the principle of proportionality, based on the full-time equivalent size of the Faculty of each Collegiate, Unit or Institute Pool on February 1st of each year, with the following restrictions:

    (a) When the number of collegiate units is five or more, no one unit may have more than fifty percent of the membership.

    (b) Each collegiate unit shall have a minimum of two Senators.

    By March 1st of each academic year, the Senate Committee on Organization and Operations shall establish the representation from each unit on the basis of the figures provided by the Administration. Elections shall follow by May 1st.

    The Directors of the Independent Institutes shall designate one of their number annually to serve in the Senate.

    C. Qualifications of Elected Senators

    Elected Senators shall be members of the constituent Faculties they represent on full-time appointment in the rank of assistant professor or above, with at least one year's full-time service at George Mason University. These qualifications may be waived for emerging collegiate units so that the full time Faculty Senate membership quota may be met, except that all Senators must be on full-time appointments.
    D. Election of Senators

    Each collegiate unit shall decide upon the method of electing its representatives, with the stipulation that they be elected for staggered terms, the maximum to be three years.
    II. Responsibilities of the Faculty Senate
    A. As Representative of the General Faculty
    1. The Senate shall have the fundamental general responsibility to speak and act for the General Faculty on matters affecting the University as a whole.

    2. The Senate, on behalf of the general faculty, shall have the particular responsibility to formulate proposals on those matters affecting the welfare of the university as a whole. In the best traditions of American universities, these recommendations constitute the primary advice to the administration.

    3. In extraordinary circumstances, the General Faculty may, by the following procedure, reverse specific decisions of the Senate:

      a. The President shall call a meeting of the General Faculty to consider reversal of a specific decision of the Senate within ten working days of receiving a petition to do so signed by at least 10% of the voting members of the faculty. To be valid, a petition to reverse a specific decision must be submitted no later than two weeks after the distribution of minutes reporting Senate action.

      b. No vote on the issue shall occur at the meeting. Rather, the meeting shall determine whether or not a mail ballot of all voting members of the General Faculty should be conducted on the issue. The meeting shall be subject to ordinary regulations governing a quorum at meetings of the General Faculty.

      c. If the meeting approves a mail ballot, it shall be distributed within five working days of the meeting.

      d. The ballots shall be counted five working days after their distribution. To pass, the motion to reverse a decision of the Senate must be approved by a majority of those eligible to vote.

    4. The General Faculty may amend the Senate Charter by the following procedure:

      a. The President shall call a meeting of the General Faculty to consider such action within ten working days of receiving a petition to do so signed by at least 10% of the voting members of the faculty or after receiving proposals approved by the Senate or the Provost. Notice of the meeting shall be accompanied by copy of the proposed changes. Both should be received at least 5 working days before the called meeting.

      b. A quorum for the called meeting shall be 10% of the voting faculty. Debate at the meeting shall be on the proposed changes. To pass, the proposed changes must be approved by a majority of the voting faculty who are present and voting.

      c. Amendments which have been passed by the General Faculty must be presented by the President to the Board of Visitors for their approval.

    5. The authority of the Senate shall not extend over the internal affairs of any single collegiate unit except as they affect the interest of the University as a whole or the interest of other units.

      a. If a disagreement arises between the Senate, acting for the General Faculty, and the governing bodies of one or more single collegiate units over the question of which body properly exercises authority on a specific issue, the President shall decide by assigning the contested issue to one or another body.

      b. If the Senate, acting for the General Faculty, takes an action which a Senator believes violates the legitimate interests of the collegiate unit he represents, that Senator shall have the right to demand a second vote on the issue at the same meeting. The vote shall be taken immediately by secret ballot, except that means shall be used to discriminate among ballots cast by representatives of the various units. If two thirds of the total number of Senators elected to represent any collegiate unit oppose the action, it shall be reversed.

    B. As Advisor to the President

    On matters affecting the entire faculty and transcending collegiate unit boundaries, the Senate shall be the primary faculty representative in consultation with the central administration and the President. The Senate and the administration recognize that consultation in such matters implies an obligation on the part of each to engage in regular communication. After due consideration of the Senate's advice, the President will reach a final decision and communicate it to the Senate. If the decision differs from the Senate recommendation an explanation will be included in this communication.
    III. Implementation
    A. This Charter shall take effect and replace the previous charter on its approval by the General Faculty in a regular or special meeting following the guidelines in section II. A. 4.
    B. Section I
    1. This Charter shall be implemented according to the normal procedure described in Section I. B., using appropriate figures as of April 1, 1989.

    2. Within ten working days after the Committee on Organization and Operations reports the representations from the several colleges, the colleges shall conduct elections in accordance with Sections I. C. and I. D.

    3. When these elections have been completed, the newly elected Senators shall take office.
    C. Section II

    Section II shall take effect on the approval of this report by the General Faculty.

    Revised 7/94