Faculty members who work hard to advance the institutional mission of teaching, learning, and research, represent the core human resource of higher education.
Shared governance is essential to the success of any university, enabling faculty to participate in the development and implementation of university policy, which both improves the content of the policy and helps build support among faculty for what the university chooses to do. A senate speaks up for faculty rights on all issues in which they have an interest. It helps to protect the academic freedom without which the university cannot promote excellence in research and teaching. IN addition, faculty senates perform an “influential” role, affecting university policy through their prestige and the respect they command.
Do you have a faculty senate at your university? What are your thoughts on making a faculty senate effective in your academic life?
Our university has the Senate. In general, The Senate shall be the expert council of the University. The list of authorities of the Senate is "huge". In short, the Senate shall: determine strategic developmental policies of the University; determine educational, scientific, artistic and professional policies of the University...
So, I can say that, in general, the Senate having a huge potential for making an effective academic life...
Do you have a faculty senate at your university? Yes. The Senate consists of:
- The Rector of the University.
- The Deans of Schools.
- The Heads of Departments (no more than two per School) with a two-year non-renewable term, on a rotation basis so that all Schools are represented. The representation process is defined by Rector’s Decision.
- One representative of the undergraduate, one of the postgraduate, and one of the doctoral students.
- One representative of the Laboratory Teaching Staff, one of the Special Teaching Staff, one of the Laboratory Technical Staff, and one of the Administrative Staff, all with a two-year term, and voting rights only on issues related to their personnel category (https://www2.aua.gr/en/info/senate).
Administrations has a instrumental part in the effectiveness of the university senate. Other important strategies is to Improve communication, work with the faculty to solve problems, and encourage faculty involvement leads to the senate's ability to focus on teaching, learning, and scholarship. Do not do those a things and the senate tends to focus on administrative issues.
Yes In our University we have it. You can check from the following link.
https://www.caluniv.ac.in/about/Minutes.html
At the American University of Sharjah (AUS), UAE, I had a fruitful experience in this regard together with other founding and pioneering faculty members where we worked during the years (1998 through 2005). We establishEd the faculty senate, drafted it’s faculty handbook and got it reviewEd and approved procedurally by faculty at large, developing all university standing committees, developed the university strategic plans, monitored university budgets, and established a. Sustainable system of the university faculty governance . I was elected senate member for few terms, then served as a member of the execute senate committee, and got elected as a president of the faculty senate. The achievements of the American University of a Sharjah speak for itself. AUS is unique in the Middle East in establishing and sustaining faculty governance and faculty leadership. The experiences were enormous. I am proud and grateful for such a wonderful opportunity in serving for more than seven years in establishing one of the best universities in the Middle East. Later I served as Chair of the university at large committee for peer review and recommendations on faculty rolling contracts academic ranks promotions. The curriculum development in the school of engineering and civil engineering department, setting standards for faculty hiring, faculty promotion, participating effectively in faculty hiring through transparent and equal opportunity practices and procedures, and managing and establishing the academic and research laboratories, in addition to teaching heavy academic loads in the geo environmental area (geotechnical, water and environmental engineering) in addition to common mechanics courses, participating extensively in preparing ABET accreditation materials, participating in establishing pioneering Graduate programs, in additions to conducting world class research, publishing in international specialized journals, serving the local industry by providing consultancy on mega projects in UAE, were also among the enormous contributions I had the privelage to contribute to effectively During am amazing seven years of my career in academia.
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