University-wide elections among students, faculty and staff were held in October. The results are as follows. Please note not all campus units have reported as of this publication.
- Eric Van Duzer (School of Education) – Chair, University Senate
- Jeff Abell (Oceanography) – Faculty Senator, CNRS
- Julia Alderson (Art) Faculty Senator, CAHSS
- Guy Aronoff (History) – Lecturer Senator
- Charlotte August (Advisor, Advising Center) – Staff Senator
- Richard Bruce (ASC, CAHSS) – Staff Senator
- Nancy Dye (Psychology) – Lecturer Senator
- Beth Eschenbach (ERE) – Faculty Senator, CNRS
- Matthew Johnson (Wildlife) – At-Large Faculty Senator (Major Academic Units)
- Benjamin Marschke (History) – Faculty Senator, CAHSS
- Gina Pierce (Budget Analysts, CAHSS) – Staff Senator
- Jeremy Shellhase (Library) – Faculty Senator (Other Major Academic Units)
- Mary Virnoche (Sociology) – At-Large Faculty Senator (Major Academic Units)
- Gregory Young (Communication) – Lecturer Senator
- Noah Zerbe (Politics) – At-Large Faculty Senator (Major Academic Units).
- Gregg Gold (Psychology) – Faculty Senator (CPS)
- Justus Ortega (Kinesiology and Recreation Administration) – Faculty Senator (CPS)
In addition to elected members, the senate will include two student delegates, selected by Associated Students; one delegate selected by the HSU Emeritus and Retired Faculty Association, and one delegate to be selected by the Labor Council.
The senate will also include ex-officio voting members, which include the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Vice President for Enrollment Management and Student Affairs, Vice President for Administrative, two General Faculty Representatives to the Academic Senate of the California State University, Chair of the Integrated Curriculum Committee, outgoing Chair of the Senate, President of the HSU Chapter of California Faculty Association (non-voting), and President of Associated Students.
“The new senate will be a smaller body, but it will have broader representation from campus,” said Provost Robert Snyder.
To prepare for and enable a smooth transition to the University Senate, incoming University Senate Chair Eric Van Duzer and Provost Bob Snyder will co-lead a small transition team to oversee the process. Information on the transition process will be shared via the senate web site and periodic updates to the campus community.
The senate’s primary duty is formulating educational policy, including admissions, curricula and criteria for granting degrees. The senate is also involved with the selection of administrative personnel and in the selection of future university presidents. Other duties include maintaining communication to campus delegates and establishing senate committees.
In an effort to encourage more participation in the senate, members’ terms are limited to three years and a senator may not serve more than two consecutive terms. Approximately one third of the membership will be elected annually to ensure a mix of new and experienced senators.
The formation of the university senate comes from a recommendation in the Cabinet for Institutional Change’s 2010 report, “Building the Capacity for Change: Improving the Structure and Culture of Decision-making at HSU”:http://change.humboldt.edu/docs/cicFinalReport2Feb2010.pdf (PDF).
“We hope the University Senate will lead to a better sense of communal decision making with all stake holders involved,” said Jay Verlinden, chair of the Department of Communication and current President of the Academic Senate.
In April, the Academic Senate Executive Committee charged the Faculty Affairs Committee (FAC) to develop a written proposal for a University Senate structure. Using the university senate model from San Diego State as well as reviewing the current HSU General Faculty Constitution and Senate Bylaws, the FAC drafted new portions of the Constitution and Bylaws, which were approved by the General Faculty in September.
In addition to broader campus representation, the new senate is designed with a more streamlined decision making processes. Senators will be required to serve on at least one senate committee, a policy aimed at involving senators at the beginning stages of policy development.
The new University Senate has its first meeting in January.
For more information on the University Senate, including constitution and by-laws, visit http://www.humboldt.edu/senate/election-info.html