September 22, 2021

FACULTY SENATE MINUTES
September 22, 2021 

Zoom Meeting  

Present: Henri Akono, David Barrett, Amy Booth, Debbie Bouchard, Alice Bruce, Ana Chatenever, Mauricio da Cunha, Paula Drewniany, Phil Dunn, Allison Gardner, Jacquelyn Gill, Michael Grillo, Mark Haggerty, Emily Haigh, Heather Hamlin, Sam Hanes, Nuri Emanetoglu, Amanda Klemmer, Sara Lello, Natalie Machamer, Derek Michaud, William Nichols, Harlan Onsrud, Robert Rice, Deborah Rooks-Ellis, Deborah Saber, Mary “MJ” Sedlock, Kathryn Slott, Rosemary Smith, David Townsend, Tim Waring, Todd Zoroya, President Joan Ferrini-Mundy, Robert Dana, Chris Lindstrom, Jen Bonnet (PEAC), Jacob Chaplin (Undergrad Rep)  

Absent from In Person Several were attending via Zoo Webinar : Elizabeth Armstrong, David Batuski, Donald Beith, Susan Bennett-Armistead, Catharine Biddle, Carla Billitteri, Tim Bowden, Kristina Cammen, Andre Khalil, Anil Raj Kizha, Sarah Lindahl, Margo Lukens (sabbatical), Ivan Manev, Dmitri Markovitch, Sid Mitchell, Renae Moran, Elizabeth Payne, Deborah Rogers, Michael Scott, Mohsen Shahinpoor, Sean Smith, Matthew Wallhead, Peter Van Walsum, John Volin Provost, VP Research Kody Varahramyan, Ken Ralph, Joanne Yestramski, Peter Altmann (CEAC), Karina Iskandaro (Grad Rep),   

I.  Welcome, Announcements and Comments 

William “Dee” Nichols welcomed everyone to the first in person Full Faculty Senate meeting since February 2020. There is a webinar option for those that need it over in person meetings. Dee thanked Amanda Klemmer for making that option happen.  

 

Across the UMaine System there are approximately 22,000 people that have registered their vaccines. About 85% on the UMaine campus have verified they are vaccinated, 96% of residential students. Last week about 1,900 were not vaccinated and that is now down to 500. Full-time employees are at about 80% vaccinated. This is all positive. It is also flu season, so it is a good idea to get that vaccine, available at Walgreens, Hannaford, etc.  

 

The NECHE report self-study is in draft form but pretty much ready to go. UMaine should receive the draft report by September 30th and feedback needs to be completed by October 18th. The Chancellor will be visiting campus on October 26th.  

 

Amanda Klemmer commented that the Webinar is being used for hybrid meetings. Everyone in person is in a mask so she asked that people make sure they speak up so those on the Webinar can hear. Those not in person can use the question box for any questions, chat is disabled.  

II.  Approval of Minutes
May 5, 2021
Approved  

III.  Announcements and Updates from the Administration
President Ferrini-Mundy said she is happy for live meetings but Zoom was nice so you could see people’s faces. She said cooperation of the entire community has allowed everyone to be back, classes in session, dorms full, research being conducted etc. She said she is aware of the challenges for many people with whatever is happening with K-12, family, etc. 

President Ferrini-Mundy said regarding Unified Accreditation, many have been engaged throughout the summer in preparing the draft for self-study. There are several months before it is finalized and sent to NECHE so she’s considering setting up workshops or forums in the future.  

In 2016 the UMaine System Board of Trustees (BOT) decided to create a new partnership with UMaine and UM Machias to help stabilize UMaine Machias and grow it. There is a seven-campus requirement but UMaine Machias had challenges with enrollment decline along with other challenges. So UMaine Machias was created as a Regional Campus of the University of Maine in 2017. Last spring a lot of work was done in the administrative and shared services areas. It was also determined there needed to be an accelerated effort to make this partnership work and be a true partnership. A Taskforce was created and chaired by Dean Emily Haddad with seven different working groups, about 100 members. Feedback from taskforce members and from people at UMaine Machias has been positive. There is a report due in September; it is a little delayed. This fall many of these things should be moving or in process. By next fall people should be comfortable with what it means to have UMaine Machias as a Regional Campus of UMaine. Under review is that UMaine Machias is still a university but needs governance for its size. Student Affairs, Enrollment Management, and Finance and Administration personnel are already working with UMaine Machias. The previous logo was a ships wheel; they were the Clippers. Now, the UMaine logo will be used with UMaine Machias above it. People seem to like the new logo; it will be used in enrollment starting now. Students at Machias will have access to UMaine courses and programs and some UMaine students are currently taking courses at UMaine Machias. 

 Dr. Robert Dana said things are going well and activity on campus consists of large and small events. Students are vaccinated and following safety practices which is working. The transmission rate is a little higher than last year but probably because fewer people are being tested. About 35 cases are among faculty, staff, and students. Only two are housed in the isolation space on campus. The state rate is at 7% and UMaine at 4 or 6%. Working on those that have not been vaccinated, they need to have that done by October 15. Currently using Geofencing around campus to see who has not responded to messages, they will be getting “head on activity in the next few days.” Dr. Dana said there may be an opportunity to have a J&J clinic. For faculty, please continue to encourage students to continue safety practices and those not vaccinated to get it.   

IV.  Questions of the Administration 

  1. Someone online asked about custodians not having to wear a mask in a building unless they were within 6 feet of another person. That means they can walk around the building unmasked. If someone leaves their office for a moment the custodian can go in to clean the office leaving particles in the room for when the person returns shutting their door and removing their mask. Masks are uncomfortable but should be worn.
  2. Dr. Dana said this could be a matter of miscommunication because custodians should be wearing a mask inside. He will take it up with Facilities so there is no confusion. President Ferrini-Mundy said the rule is, if you are indoors, you wear a mask.

 

  1. Navigate is used as an advising tool but the company is DAB, are other products being used from them, for instance predictive analytics? Are predictive analytics being used, by whom, what level (administration, faculty)?
  2. President Ferrini-Mundy asked if Michael Grillo thought it would be an advantage? He said he was “neutral” but thought it would be an advantage for faculty to be engaged if it involves academics. President Ferrini-Mundy said she would look into it, but Dr. Dana could discuss Navigate. He said they use DAB for Student Life and the Provost is the Project Manager. Jessica Miller, Associate Provost for Academic Affairs and Faculty Development introduced herself and Brain Olsen who works with Navigate using it to simplify communication with students. She thought Michael raised an important issue. He said he is more concerned about predictive analytics and being involved not just have it presented. Jessica introduced Sam Carroll, the new Registrar.

 

  1. Regarding Open Houses being scheduled on Monday’s instead of Saturday, people have stated that faculty cannot attend on Monday.
  2. That will be referred to the Provost Office.

 

  1. With the new branding of UMaine Machias, how is their very low ranking in the country going to affect the UMaine brand with a similar logo?
  2. There were discussions around that. They have been a partner since 2016, it was a decision made by the BOT to look out after the smallest university in the UMaine System. Every effort needs to be made to move them upward and with UMaine Enrollment Management managing their enrollment there is a hope that helps. There are strong areas at Machias, and we want those areas to grow. The Coastal Year Program is available to some UMaine students who prefer a smaller atmosphere their first year. There were twelve students that took that offer. It may become a way to attract students to UMaine that feel they need a smaller environment the first year.

Comments: With courses like PreCalc being full at UMaine it gives some students an opportunity to get the class at UMaine Machias instead of waiting and throwing off their class sequence. 

Comments: Dr. Dana commented there are ten different Open Houses scheduled for Monday or Friday this fall. 

V.  New Business  

Faculty Senate
Motions to Change Bylaws Articles I-VI
September 22, 2021  

Motion 1. To Change Bylaws Articles I-VI (William Dee Nichols) 

Preamble
On August 3, 2021, elected members of the senate were sent a letter from the Faculty Senate President that included the task of comparing the Bylaws and Constitution revisions to our current Constitution and Bylaws posted on our Faculty Senate web site. As previously noted in the welcoming letter, the Constitution and Bylaws Committee diligently worked over the past two academic years on needed revisions to our Constitution and Bylaws. After multiple meetings, including face to face, survey data, special meetings and multiple executive committee meetings, the Constitution and Bylaws committee completed their task and submitted revisions and edits to the President of the Faculty Senate. The August third letter included the revised attachments to the constitution and bylaws. Senators were requested to read all the attached documents and then go to the Faculty Senate Webpage https://umaine.edu/facultysenate/ and compare.  

The first motion to the Faculty Senate Bylaws section is included below.  

Proposed Amendment to Bylaws of the Faculty Senate
Article I: The revised section was previously mentioned under the heading of Article II Committee Membership. The Constitution and Bylaws Committee felt that it should be moved to the front of the Bylaws as a new first Article. The justification was to provide a better flow and context to the Bylaws. It was also added to provide a consistent definition of an elected Faculty Senate Member to match Article IV of the Constitution on Membership. 

Other than relocating the description of membership the only other changes were to add who have been on the faculty for at least two years to section (a) and the term Full time to section (e) lecturers and Instructors. The committee also added (g) to acknowledge College Bylaws and those definitions of full-time faculty. 

Article II: was also added for consistency with the Constitution, to reflect current practices, and to improve the overall flow of the Bylaws. 

Article III: was previously Article I. The committee recommended moving the representative to the Board of Trustees to a separate section. In addition, we clarified the election process and made consistent with other portions of the Constitution and Bylaws as well as current practices. The Committee added the following: 

In a process overseen by members of the Committee on Committees in conjunction with the 

Faculty Senate Administrative Assistant. The rest remains the same. 

Article IV: The committee pulled out the BOT section from Election of Officers and gave it a new article of its own. The wording is consistent with previous document. 

Article V: is also new and will be voted on at a later time upon ratification of the council. While the Faculty Governance Council has yet to be ratified by the Faculty Senate, it is a newly elected Senate position once the charge of the council has been ratified it will need to be added. The wording is consistent with the BOT election as described in Article IV. 

Article VI: was previously Article II and has been renumbered. The committee deleted the word new from the first sentence as that was confusing. The committee also added the words of Faculty Senate to the third sentence to clarify that it was not the president of the university. The committee also added the part in consultation with the chairperson of the Committee on Committees. The committee did this for consistency with our documents. The committee also rearranged parliamentarian so that the committee membership and chair of the committees would be together. The committee also added the following: Except as otherwise noted, the chair and the majority of members of each committee must be elected members of the Faculty Senate. Committees may have co-chairs who may or may not be Senators. Co-chairs serve at the discretion of the senate President and on the advice of the committee. Senators may serve on multiple committees. 

Therefore, the motion is to make the following changes to Article I- Article VI of our Bylaws to read as follows:  

ARTICLE I: DEFINITION OF AN ELECTED FACULTY SENATE MEMBER (See Constitution, Article IV Membership): 

Preamble: voting/non-voting 

For the purposes of the Faculty Senate as referenced in the Faculty Senate Constitution and Bylaws, a faculty member shall be defined as any of the following: 

a. Tenured or tenure track faculty member who have been on the faculty for at least two years.
b. Research faculty member with an academic appointment.
c. Cooperative Extension faculty member, continuing contract or continuing contract track.
d. Full time faculty members at any rank.
e. Full time Lecturers and Instructors.
f. Directors and Department Chairs who are also full-time faculty members and meet all of these criteria: 1. Program offers a degree, major or concentration, 2. Program has full time faculty members, other than the director, and the director is engaged in teaching, scholarship, and service., 3. Faculty members in the program engage in shared  governance. In essence, an eligible director should be accountable to the faculty, and treated as a chair by the University.
g. Definitions of what constitutes a full-time faculty member may be found in College Bylaws as well.

ARTICLE II: FACULTY SENATE NOMINATIONS AND ELECTIONS (See Constitution, Article IV Membership):
The number of full-time members of each college shall be determined by the dean of that college in consultation with the sitting president of the Faculty Senate. Each college is then notified in late February, or early March, of the number of seats they currently have in Faculty Senate and the number of terms expiring. The college solicits nominations from their faculty, holds an election and notifies Faculty Senate the names of those that have been elected. 

ARTICLE III: ELECTION OF SENATE OFFICERS
At the March meeting of the Faculty Senate, the Committee on Committees shall present preferably at least two candidates for President, Vice President, and Secretary. The agenda for the April meeting shall include the names of those nominated. There shall be an opportunity for nominations from the floor at the time of the election in April. In a process overseen by members of the Committee on Committees in conjunction with the Faculty Senate Administrative Assistant, each office shall be voted on separately by secret ballot, where there is a contest, and a majority of the votes cast shall be necessary for election. In the event that no candidate receives a majority, a second vote shall be taken between the two candidates receiving the most votes in the initial balloting. 

In the event that the President’s office becomes vacant prior to the expiration of the term, the Vice-President shall become President. In the event the Vice President’s office becomes vacant prior to the expiration of the term, the Senate shall hold a special election. At a regularly scheduled meeting of the Senate, the President shall inform the members of the vacancy, ask the Committee on Committees to secure nominations, and set the time for the election at the next regularly scheduled meeting of the full Senate. At the time of election, the procedure shall be as outlined at the beginning of this paragraph section. In the event the Secretary’s office becomes vacant prior to the expiration of the term, the President shall, in consultation with the Executive Committee, appoint a replacement to serve the remainder of the term. 

ARTICLE IV: ELECTION OF FACULTY REPRESENTATIVE TO THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES
The Faculty Representative to the Board of Trustees shall hold a position as a voting member of the Faculty Senate. The term of office shall be two years and the elected member can serve a maximum of two consecutive terms. Any full-time tenure-track or continuing appointment faculty member, who has been on the University of Maine faculty for at least two years, is eligible for election to this position. The newly elected representative shall begin their duties on July 1 following their election. 

At the March meeting of the Faculty Senate prior to the expiration of the representative’s term, the Committee on Committees shall present preferably at least two candidates for the Board of Trustees Representative. The agenda for the April meeting shall include the names of those nominated. There shall be an opportunity for nominations from the floor at the time of the election in April. Voting, overseen by members of the Committee on Committees in conjunction with the Faculty Senate Administrative Assistant, shall be by secret ballot, where there is a contest, and a majority of the votes cast shall be necessary for election. In the event that no candidate receives a majority, a second vote shall be taken between the two highest candidates. 

In the event that the position of the Board of Trustees Representative becomes vacant prior to the expiration of the term, the Senate shall hold a special election. At a regularly scheduled meeting of the Senate, the President shall inform the members of the vacancy, ask the Committee on Committees to secure nominations, and set the time for the election at the next regularly scheduled meeting of the full Senate. At the time of election, the procedure shall be as outlined at the beginning of this section.  

ARTICLE VI: COMMITTEE MEMBERSHIP
The President of the Senate shall designate the Chairperson of the Committee on Committees. The Committee on Committees, except as otherwise noted, shall make recommendations to the President of the Senate for all faculty members of each standing committee. The President of Faculty Senate, in consultation with the chairperson of the Committee on Committees shall appoint the parliamentarian, the members of each standing committee, and the chair of each committee, who serves at the pleasure of the Faculty Senate President. Except as otherwise noted, the chair and the majority of members of each committee must be elected members of the Faculty Senate. Committees may have co-chairs who may or may not be Senators. Co-chairs serve at the discretion of the senate President and on the advice of the committee. Senators may serve on multiple committees. Ex officio members, where specified in the composition of a committee, shall have all rights of membership. The President shall be an ex officio member of each standing committee. To ensure that each College is represented on the Executive Committee, the President may appoint members to serve “at large” on the Executive Committee. 

Comments: It was suggested that the order should be to change the Constitution and then this section of the Bylaws. Table Motion  

Vote: Tabled  

Faculty Senate
Motions to Change Bylaws Articles VII Sections 1-3
September 22, 2021  

Motion 2 to Change Bylaws Article VII Sections 1-3 (William Dee Nichols) 

Preamble
On August 3, 2021, elected members of the senate were sent a letter from the Faculty Senate President that included the task of comparing the Bylaws and Constitution revisions to our current Constitution and Bylaws posted on our Faculty Senate web site. As previously noted in the welcoming letter, the Constitution and Bylaws Committee diligently worked over the past two academic years on needed revisions to our Constitution and Bylaws. After multiple meetings, including face to face, survey data, special meetings and multiple executive committee meetings, the Constitution and Bylaws committee completed their task and submitted revisions and edits to the President of the Faculty Senate. The August third letter included the revised attachments to the constitution and bylaws. Senators were requested to read all of the attached documents and then go to the Faculty Senate Webpage https://umaine.edu/facultysenate/ and compare.  

The second motion to the Faculty Senate Bylaws section is included below.  

Proposed Amendment to Article VII, Sections 1-3 of the Bylaws of the Faculty Senate 

Article VII was previously Article IV
The biggest change to this section was adding some committees that were not in our last revision of the bylaws and to also improve the consistency of membership. Almost all of the committees have a rewording of membership and ex officio members. The plan is that each committee will present their own motion to approve the changes. For this motion we will examine Sections 1–3. 

Section 1 – Executive Committee: The only change was to membership. 

Section 2 – Committee on Committees: Was added and is this is new. There was no description of the Committee on Committees. It was decided to add it after Executive committee as this committee plays a role in committee membership. 

Section 3 – Constitution and Bylaws Committee: This was previously section 6. Only change was to membership. 

Therefore, the motion is to make the following changes to Article VII, Sections 1-3 of our Bylaws to read as follows:    

ARTICLE VII: STANDING COMMITTEES 

Section 1. EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 

A.  Function. The Executive Committee has broad responsibility for planning and facilitating the activities of the Senate. This committee assigns, coordinates and reviews the work of the committees of the Faculty Senate.
The Executive Committee conducts the business of the Senate on a temporary basis, if in its judgment, an emergency exists.
B.  Membership. The members of the Executive Committee are the President of the Senate, the Vice President, the Secretary, the Parliamentarian, the Board of Trustees Representative, the System Shared Governance Committee Representative, and the Chairpersons of each standing committee. The immediate past president of the Senate will hold the designation of “Past President” and will serve as a non-voting member of the Senate Executive Committee and hold a seat at Senate meetings.

Section 2. COMMITTEE ON COMMITTEES
A.  Function. The Committee on Committees, at the request of the University President or designee, recommends faculty members to standing or ad hoc administrative committees, assists with appointments to Faculty Senate standing committees, and coordinates elections of Faculty Senate officers.
B.  Membership. The members of the Committee on Committees are represented as much as possible by at least one faculty senator from each college and Cooperative Extension. Additional ex-officio members of the committee include the Senior Officer for Administration and one graduate student association representative.

Section 3. CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS COMMITTEE
A.  Function. The Committee on Constitution and Bylaws reviews proposed amendments to the Constitution and Bylaws of the Faculty Senate.
B.  Membership. The members of the Committee on Constitution and Bylaws are the Parliamentarian, the Vice President, the Secretary, and two Faculty Senators from different colleges or Cooperative Extension. 

Vote: Approved 

Faculty Senate
Motion: To make Changes and Amendments to the Faculty Senate Constitution
Presented by the Constitution and Bylaws Committee of the Faculty Senate   

Preamble
On August 3, 2021, elected members of the senate were sent a letter from the Faculty Senate President that included the task of comparing the Bylaws and Constitution revisions to our current Constitution and Bylaws posted on our Faculty Senate website. As previously noted in the welcoming letter, the Constitution and Bylaws Committee diligently worked over the past two academic years on needed revisions to our Constitution and Bylaws. After multiple meetings, including face to face, survey data, special meetings and multiple executive committee meetings, the Constitution and Bylaws committee completed their task and submitted revisions and edits to the President of the Faculty Senate. The August third letter included the revised attachments to the constitution and bylaws. Senators were requested to read all of the attached documents and then go to the Faculty Senate Webpage https://umaine.edu/facultysenate/ and compare.  

The motion in regard to the Faculty Senate Constitution is included below.   

Proposed changes to the Constitution of the Faculty Senate 

Article I – No changes  

Article II – 

Section 1. No changes
Section 2. No changes
Section 3. Minor change to: (Board of Trustees of the University of Maine System, Policy Manual, Section 303 “Academic Degrees”) Reflects Policy Manual. 
Section 4. No changes
Section 5. No changes  

Article III – 

Section 1. No changes
Section 2. No changes
Section 3. No changes
Section 4. No changes
Section 5. No changes
Section 6. No changes
Section 7. No changes
Section 8. No changes
Section 9. No changes  

Article IV – 

Section 1. Added the University of Maine at Machias
A. Eligibility – Minor change: 1. Only full-time faculty of the University of Maine who have been on the faculty for at least two years are eligible to serve on the Faculty Senate. Definitions of what constitutes a full-time faculty member can be found in College Bylaws as well as in the Faculty Senate Bylaws.
B.  Appointment –

  1. No change
  2. Minor change- the number of full-time members of each college shall be determined by the dean of that college in consultation with the sitting president of the Faculty Senate. Clarified it was the senate administrative assistant and not the elected Senate Secretary.
  3. No change except added information regarding UMaine Machias inclusion on our senate. 
  4. Minor change – deleted even if the resulting number of total Senators is temporarily greater than 40. This section was no longer applicable or relevant.

C.  Time and Manner of Elections –

  1. Minor change – Once any adjustments in apportionment are made (see Article IV B. 2 above), each college faculty shall elect its Senators during the spring semester of each academic year. 
  1. Minor change – A special election by the applicable college faculty, following the process specified in the Faculty Senate or college Bylaws, shall be held to fill an unexpired vacant position on the Faculty Senate. This sentence was added for consistency and to match our Bylaws. 
  1. This section was deleted as it was already addressed.

D. Term of Office

1. No change
2. No change

Section 2 – we combined section 2 and 3 moving the president of the university under Administrative members. We also clarified that the Administrative members were non-voting. 

Section 3 – previously section 4. Only change was to clarify no vote and change from member to representative. 

Section 4 – previously section 5. Only change was to clarify no vote and change from member to representative. 

Section 5 – previously section 6. Only change was to clarify no vote. 

Article V –
Section 1. No changes
Section 2. No changes
Section 3. Minor change – Added the Faculty Senate prior to President
Section 4. No changes  

Article VI –
Section 1. No changes
Section 2. Minor change Added Faculty Senate
Section 3. Minor change – deleted provided all members have been notified at least seven days in advance.
Section 4. No changes
A. No changes
B. Minor change from 72 to 24 hours to reflect practices.
C. No changes
Section 5. No changes
Section 6. No changes
Section 7
A. No changes
B. No changes

Added C. Secret ballot. A vote by secret ballot on any motion can be demanded by one fourth of the present and voting members of the Senate if a quorum is present. 

Section 8. No changes
Section 9. Added the University of Maine at Machias 

Article VII – Recommend reading this section and comparing it to current constitution. While changes were minor, changes were made. This section was reordered. This was done for flow of the document and consistency with Bylaws. 

Section 1 – was section 2. We added as much as possible, the University of Maine at Machias and clarified Faculty Senate president 

Section 2 – was section 1 

Section 3 – we added a section on sub committees. 

Section 4 – was section 3 No changes 

 

Article VIII – 

Section 1. No changes 

Section 2. No changes 

Section 3. Added the following: Recommendations approved by the university President (or not disapproved within the 30-day time window) shall be distributed to all academic units and shall be posted on the Faculty Senate website. Recommendations disapproved by the university President shall be returned to the Faculty Senate for further consideration and possible appeal. 

Section 4. No changes 

Section 5 No changes 

 

Article IX – No changes throughout this final section. 

Section 1. No changes 

Section 2. No changes 

 

Therefore, the motion is to make the following changes/amendments to the Faculty Senate Constitution to read as follows:  

Proposed Changes/Ammendments to Faculty Senate Constitution 

(Changes are highlighted in yellow and boldfaced). 

 

Article I: Purpose 

Section 1. Purpose. The purpose of the University of Maine Faculty Senate is to represent the faculty of the University of Maine in the development of university policies as described in this Constitution. 

 

Article II: Authority 

Section 1. Authority of the Board. The Board of Trustees is the legal governing body of the University and nothing within the Constitution shall be construed as granting to the faculty or to the University of Maine Faculty Senate the authority to act outside the policies of the Board of Trustees. 

 

Section 2. Collective bargaining. Nothing within the Constitution shall be construed as granting to the faculty or to the University of Maine Faculty Senate the authority to act in ways that are inconsistent with any collective bargaining agreement. 

 

Section 3. Degree Requirements. The responsibility for the determination of the requirements which students must meet to be eligible for a degree rests with the faculty of the University of Maine. (Board of Trustees of the University of Maine System, Policy Manual, Section 303 “Academic Degrees”.) 

 

Section 4. Delegation to the Senate. The University of Maine Faculty Senate is delegated by the faculty the authority to act on its behalf in ways specified in this Constitution. 

 

Section 5. Approval of the Chancellor. This Constitution has been approved by the Chancellor of the University of Maine System pursuant to Board of Trustees’ Policies. 

 

Article III: Jurisdiction 

Section 1. Degree requirements. Subject to other provisions of this Constitution, the Senate shall have the authority to act on behalf of the faculty in establishing University-wide degree requirements. 

 

Section 2. Establishment of policy. In the following matters a recommendation of the Faculty Senate shall become University policy except when disapproved by the President of the University in a written response to the Senate within thirty days from the date on which such a recommendation is transmitted to the President: academic freedom, free speech and assembly policies, student academic standards and performance, the definition of academic titles and general criteria for ranks, standards for actions on the academic standing of students, and curriculum matters involving two or more colleges. 

 

Section 3. Review and recommendation. The Senate shall have the authority to review and make recommendations regarding all other academic matters not specified in Section 2, above, or any matter affecting the academic environment including such matters as institutional plans and priorities, the allocation of the University’s financial resources, academic organization, the library, the awarding of honorary degrees, admissions’ policies and standards, the establishment and elimination of academic programs, and the assessment of academic outcomes. 

 

Section 4. Resolution of disagreements. In regard to recommendations disapproved by the President of the University of Maine under the provisions of Section 2 above, good faith effort shall be made by all parties to resolve any disagreements. 

 

Section 5. Response of the President. The President of the University of Maine shall inform the Faculty Senate routinely of the disposition of its recommendations. 

Section 6. Reservation of authority to the colleges. The individual colleges shall have the authority to establish degree requirements for the degrees offered by the colleges and the Faculty Senate shall have the authority to establish degree requirements for the Bachelor of Arts degree. For purposes of this paragraph, the Graduate Faculty shall have the standing of a college faculty. 

 

Section 7. Reservation of authority to faculty members. Nothing in this Constitution shall be construed to deprive individual faculty members of any authority they otherwise have under any collective bargaining agreement or Board of Trustees’ policies. 

 

Section 8. Participation in appointment processes. The faculty shall participate in processes leading to the appointment of academic and administrative officers including the President and the Vice Presidents. 

 

Section 9. Evaluation of University of Maine administrators. The Faculty Senate, acting through the Executive Committee chaired by the President of the Faculty Senate, shall conduct faculty evaluations of UMaine administrators, in consultation with the President of the University. 

 

Article IV: Membership 

Section 1. Faculty members. 

The faculty members of the University of Maine and the University of Maine at Machias shall elect faculty Senators as follows: 

 

  1. Eligibility 

 

  1. Only full-time faculty of the University of Maine and the University of Maine at Machias who have been on the faculty for at least two years are eligible to serve on the Faculty Senate.  Definitions of what constitutes a full-time faculty member can be found in College Bylaws as well as in the Faculty Senate Bylaws.

 

  1. Appointment
  2. Each college shall have at least four Senators except colleges with fewer than 10 faculty, which shall have two Senators.  Faculty senators will be distributed across the colleges so that one Senator will be elected for each ten full time faculty members, rounded upward. The Maine Business School and the Honors College are hereby formally recognized as colleges.

 

  1. For purposes of apportionment, the number of full-time members of each college shall be determined by the dean of that college in consultation with the sitting president of the Faculty Senate. Each February, the deans of various colleges shall send the Senate administrative assistant a list of full-time faculty. Using the above rules, the administrative assistant, subject to the approval of the Executive Committee of the Senate, shall determine the number of faculty representatives to the Senate to which each college is entitled and shall so inform the deans. Departmental chairpersons shall be eligible for election as faculty Senators.

 

  1. The Cooperative Extension faculty, who are not represented as part of a college, shall be represented by two Senators. Likewise, the faculty of the University of Maine’s regional campus, the University of Maine at Machias, are not represented as part of a college and shall be represented by two Senators.

 

  1. In the event of changes in the composition of colleges or distribution of faculty across colleges, the Executive Committee of the Senate shall formulate a plan to phase in the adjustments to apportionment of Senators resulting from such changes. Such a plan must include the provision that elected Senators shall have the option to complete their term.

 

  1. Time and manner of election. 

 

1.  Once any adjustments in apportionment are made (see Article IV B. 2 above), each college faculty shall elect its Senators during the spring semester of each academic year.  

 

2. A special election by the applicable college faculty, following the process specified in the Faculty Senate or college Bylaws, shall be held to fill an unexpired, vacant position on the Faculty Senate. The President of the Faculty Senate shall declare a position vacant if, in consultation with the faculty Senator, the President determines that the Senator is unable to continue to fulfill his/her responsibilities. Senators have the responsibility to inform the Senate President of any circumstances that may preclude their continued participation in Senate activities. 

 

  1. Term of office.
  2. The term of office of a Senator shall be three years, beginning July 1 following election, serving for not more than two successive terms.

 

  1. If a college is represented by more than two Senators, their term of office shall be fixed so that approximately one third of the Senators shall be elected each year.

 

Section 2. Administrative members. Administrative members of the Senate shall consist of the University President, the Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost, the Vice President for Research, and one elected representative from the Deans’ Council. Administrative members have no vote.  

 

Section 3. Undergraduate student representatives. There shall be two undergraduate student representatives selected by the Student Government Association. Undergraduate student representatives have no vote.  

 

Section 4. Graduate student representative. There shall be one graduate student representative selected by the Association of Graduate Students.  Graduate student representatives have no vote.  

 

Section 5. Un-represented groups may request liaison status with the Faculty Senate. If the request is approved by the Senate, the group will select its representative to attend full Senate meetings. The Liaison will have no vote.  

 

Article V: Officers 

Section 1. Officers. At a meeting in April of each year, the Senate shall elect, from among the faculty members, the following three officers for a term of one year: President, Vice President, and Secretary. Any tenure-track or continuing appointment faculty member, who has been on the University of Maine faculty for at least two years, is eligible for election to these offices. Newly elected officers shall begin their duties on July 1 following their election. 

 

Section 2. Succession of officers. The President and Vice President may not serve more than two consecutive terms in the same office. 

 

Section 3. Parliamentarian. The Faculty Senate President shall select a Parliamentarian. 

 

Section 4. Elections. Election of these officers and their duties shall be as detailed in the Bylaws of the Senate. 

 

Article VI: Meetings 

Section 1. Regular meetings. The Senate shall hold regular monthly meetings during the academic year at a time and place which it shall determine. 

 

Section 2. Special meetings. Special meetings of the Senate may be called by the President of The University of Maine, by the Faculty Senate President, or by the Faculty Senate Secretary on request of any ten members of the Senate, provided all members have been notified at least 24 hours in advance of the time and date of the special meeting. 

 

Section 3. Special separate meetings. Nothing in this Constitution shall preclude the calling of special separate meetings of the administrative members or of the faculty members or of the student representatives of the Senate. Such meetings may be called by the President of the University of Maine, by the President of the Faculty Senate, by the President of the General Student Senate, or by the Faculty Senate Secretary on the request of any faculty members. 

 

Section 4. Agenda. The complete agenda for each regular meeting of the Senate shall be established by the Agenda Committee which shall consist of the President, the Vice President, and the Secretary. Particularly it shall designate those proposals which are to be considered by the Senate under new business. 

  1. Submission of proposals. Any member of the Senate may submit proposals, in writing, to the Agenda Committee. The Agenda Committee shall have the authority to request additional clarifying or supporting material concerning each proposal before it is placed on the agenda. However, the committee may not withhold a proposal from the agenda for more than thirty days, except by consent of the proposer.
  2. Distribution of agenda. The Secretary shall distribute the agenda at least 24 hours prior to each regular meeting

C. Referral or automatic postponement of non-agenda proposals. Except in an emergency, as determined by a two-thirds vote of the members present, any proposal introduced under new business which does not appear on the agenda shall either be referred to an appropriate committee or automatically postponed until the following meeting. 

 

Section 5. Parliamentary authority. Robert’s Rules of Order, as most recently revised, shall govern meetings of the Senate, except in cases where such rules are inconsistent with this Constitution. 

 

Section 6. Substitute members. A member who must be absent from any meeting of the Senate shall name an alternate from the same college or administrative office to attend and to exercise all privileges and powers of the regular member. 

 

Section 7. Quorum. 

  1. A quorum of the Senate shall consist of a majority of its members.
  2. Roll call vote. A roll call vote on any motion can be demanded by one fourth of the present and voting members of the Senate if a quorum is present.

C. Secret ballot.  A vote by secret ballot on any motion can be demanded by one fourth of the present and voting members of the Senate if a quorum is present. 

 

Section 8. Attendance of non-members 

 

  1. Administration and faculty non-members. Any member of the administration or faculty may attend meetings of the Senate. Such a visitor may speak but have no vote.  
  2. Invited participants. The President of the University of Maine or the President of the Senate may invite anyone to participate in the discussions of the Senate.

 

Section 9. Distribution of minutes. The Secretary shall keep the minutes of the Senate and distribute them to all of the members of the Senate as well as to the faculties of the participating colleges, Cooperative Extension, and the University of Maine at Machias at least seven days prior to the next regular meeting. Posting the minutes on the Faculty Senate website shall constitute such a distribution.  

 

Article VII: Committees 

Section 1: The Committee on Committees. The Committee on Committees, as much as possible, will consist of one faculty Senate member from each college, one faculty Senate member from the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, the University of Maine at Machias, and the Graduate Student Association Representative to the faculty Senate. The Committee on Committees shall, at the request of the University President or designee, recommend faculty members to standing and ad hoc administrative committees or shall provide a list to the President or designee of faculty members who have agreed to serve on a specific committee. The President of the Senate shall designate the Chairperson of the Committee on Committees. Keeping balanced college representation in mind, The Faculty Senate President, in consultation with the chairperson of the Committee on Committees, shall appoint the members of each standing committee, the Parliamentarian, and the chair of each committee who serves at the pleasure of the Faculty Senate President. Except as otherwise noted, the chair and the majority of members of each committee must be elected members of the Faculty Senate. Committees may have co-chairs who may or may not be Senators. Co-chairs serve at the discretion of the Senate President and on the advice of the committee. Senators may serve on multiple committees. Ex-officio members, where specified in the composition of a committee, shall have all rights of membership, but have no vote. The President of the Senate shall be an ex-officio member of each standing committee and will attend committee meetings when possible. To ensure that each College is represented on the Executive Committee, the Faculty Senate President may appoint members to serve “at large” on the Executive Committee. 

 

Section 2. Standing committees. The Senate may create standing committees as provided in its Bylaws. Such standing committees shall report to the Senate in writing at least once each academic year.   

 

Section 3. Subcommittees.  Each standing committee may create such sub-committees as will expedite its work. Subcommittees may include faculty members, administrators, and students, but the chairperson must be a member of the parent committee and a majority of members must be Faculty Senators. Each subcommittee shall be responsible to the parent committee and report directly to it. 

 

Section 4: Ad hoc committees. The Senate may create ad hoc committees to address specific short-term issues as deemed appropriate and expedient at the time. Such ad hoc committees will report to the Senate at appropriate intervals and in writing at the conclusion of their charge. Such ad hoc committees will disband at the conclusion of their charge. 

 

Article VIII: Disposition of Recommendations 

Section 1. Veto by colleges. Any academic policy recommendation by the Senate may be vetoed by a majority of the colleges, voting in their separate college meetings, or by a paper mail ballot of the college or by electronic voting that reasonably ensures only one vote per faculty member if a regular college meeting cannot be scheduled during the time limit allowed for a veto. Each college shall determine which recommendations of the Senate are subject to its veto and shall exercise its right of veto by the 45th day (vacations excepted) after the recommendation has been acted upon by the Senate. 

 

Section 2. Referendum on veto. The veto of a majority of the Senate by a majority of colleges shall become effective only if it is supported by a majority of the faculties of the colleges voting by paper mail ballot or by electronic voting that reasonably ensures only one vote per faculty member. If paper, ballots shall be mailed by the Secretary to all faculty members of the colleges within fifteen days following a veto. The secretary shall count such ballots fifteen days after mailing them. Electronic votes shall be counted five days after the electronic mailing of the ballot or electronic notification of the call to vote.   

 

Section 3. Transmittal of recommendations. Recommendations passed by the Senate shall be transmitted to the President of the University of Maine for the appropriate action.  Recommendations approved by the university President (or not disapproved within the 30-day time window) shall be distributed to all academic units and shall be posted on the Faculty Senate website.  Recommendations disapproved by the university President shall be returned to the Faculty Senate for further consideration and possible appeal. 

 

Section 4. Appeal to the Chancellor. In the event that a recommendation of the Senate is not approved by the President of the University of Maine, or in the event of a serious and prolonged disagreement between the President of the University of Maine and the Senate on a question of grave concern to the University of Maine, the Senate, by a majority vote taken by secret ballot may authorize the President of the Senate to communicate, in writing, directly with the Chancellor in order to present its viewpoint. A copy of such a communication shall be provided to the President of the University of Maine. 

 

Section 5. Appeal to the Board of Trustee. If, after the procedures outlined in Section 4, a serious and prolonged disagreement exists between the Senate and the Chancellor, the Senate, by a majority vote through secret ballot, may authorize the President of the Senate to communicate directly in writing with the Board of Trustees to present its viewpoint. A copy of the communication shall be forwarded to the Chancellor. 

 

Article IX: Amendment 

Section 1. Proposal of the amendment. Any member of the Senate may propose an amendment to the Constitution. The proposed amendment shall be submitted to the Secretary of the Senate at least forty-five days prior to the vote on the proposed amendment. Upon receipt of the proposed constitutional amendment, the Secretary shall forward it to the Chairperson of the Committee on Constitution and Bylaws. The Secretary shall notify the membership of the Senate in the next regular meeting printed agenda that such a proposal has been received and forwarded to the Committee on Constitution and Bylaws. This committee shall review the proposed constitutional amendment and may make recommendations. The proposed constitutional amendment and the action of the Committee on Constitution and Bylaws shall be distributed by the Secretary to the membership of the Senate at least fifteen days prior to the meeting at which action is to be taken. 

 

Section 2. Adoption of the amendment. If the proposed amendment received a two-thirds majority of the votes cast in the Senate, it shall be submitted to all university faculty members for ratification. The Secretary or the Secretary’s designee shall conduct a suitable referendum within fifteen days after publication in the minutes of the Senate indicating a favorable action on the amendment by the Senate. The referendum may be accomplished using one of the following methods: 

(a) by hard copy mail with the Secretary counting the votes fifteen days after the mailing of the ballot to all faculty members or 

(b) by electronic vote using an electronic announcement that reasonably reaches all faculty members individually and that reasonably ensures that no more than one ballot may be cast by any one faculty member with the counting of votes by the Secretary to occur five days after the electronic mailing of the ballot or after electronic notification of the electronic means of voting. 

A two-thirds majority of the ballots cast in the referendum shall be necessary for adoption of the amendment. Any challenge based on process that contests a Constitutional amendment vote shall be deemed null and void unless transmitted to the President of the Senate within fourteen days of the ballot count. 

 

Amended by Faculty Senate and approved by Section 2 of Article IX:
December 18, 2002
September 23, 2009, Article V, Sections 1 and 2
May 20, 2011, Article III section 6, Article IV sections 1B.2 and 3, Article VI sections 4 and 9, Article VIII sections 1 and 2, and Article 9 section 2
March 1, 2017, Article IV 

September 22, 2021, Article III: Section 9; Article IV: Sections 1-4; Article VI: Section 7.C, Section 9; Article VII: Section 1; Article VIII, Section 3 

 

Vote: Approved 

 

  1. Committee Reports 

BOT – Mike Scott 

Next Monday there will be a BOT meeting. 

 

Academic Affairs – Michael Grillo 

The committee will meet soon with about nine issues to be discussed this year. One issue will look at how students’ progress through majors, how those majors are selected, etc. Also, the committee will look at the unified catalog. Questions about the research learning experiences and how to engage students and how it works with department needs. Everything will be in the Faculty Senate folder on Drive. 

 

Gen Ed – Subcommittee of Academic Affairs – Sam Hanes  

The committee will look at improving assessments; everyone on the committee has gone through the assessments before so everyone knows what works and what does not. They will be looking at other models for different ways to do the assessments. There will be a meeting this month to work on how to make changes. General Education has an Ad Hoc committee with members from all colleges. They will look at the last two years of work and make recommendations. Those recommendations may be presented later in the year and then a motion for spring. 

 

Comment: Dee said there is a new Student Government representative at today’s meeting and recognized the SGA representative. SGA can provide student representation for committees of the Senate. 

 

Constitution & Bylaws – Amanda Klemmer & Kathryn Slott 

No report other than Motions. 

 

Research & Scholarship – Sean Smith    

Sean sent a report: I will be organizing our first meeting of the Research and Scholarship Committee within the coming week and will be reporting back on areas for initial focus to report back to the Senate in early October. Asli Sezen Barrie (copied here) has taken a new assignment with the National Science Foundation but has been working on summarizing the results from the pandemic survey led by the R&S Committee. Those results will be communicated to the Senate as soon as possible. Please let me know if you require any more information from me at this time. 

 

Finance & Institutional Planning – Mauricio da Cunha & Mike Scott 

The committee is meeting next week and currently analyzing data collected from the survey last spring. 

 

University Environment – Amanda Klemmer 

The committee is meeting next week. There is an outside group doing an assessment of the Childcare Center. Last week the Equity Council met, and partner accommodation was discussed. Associate Provost Miller is putting together a committee on partner accommodation positions and where things stand on campus.  

 

Harlan said a new focus of the Environment Committee this year is to discuss a document, Maine Faculty Senate for Accelerating Progress in Order to Achieve the University Commitment to Zero Carbon Emissions by 2040. The document is available in Google Drive for those interested. There are some draft actions for senate, some of those recommendations may change over time as input is gathered from faculty, students, emeriti, alumni, etc. If anyone is interested let Harlan know. The first meeting is in a week.  

 

Dee commented that his daughter, a freshman, mentioned the lack of lights and call boxes on campus for those walking at night. Dee said he thought he would mention it to the Environment Committee and SGA. 

 

Service & Outreach – Debbie Saber 

Meeting on Monday to prepare an agenda for the committee. 

 

Dee said he would like to see all committees have goals for the year, add those to Google Drive. Debbie commented that committees without a folder should add them under 2020-2021. 

 

Committee on Committees – Heather Hamlin 

There is a need for two people for the NECHE self-study group. If interested, please reach out to Heather. It was stated that only one to two faculty members are needed from across the UMaine System. Still put your name in if interested. UMaine already has a member on the Unified Catalogue committee. 

 

Program Creation & Reorganization Review – Sid Mitchell 

No report. 

 

Library Committee – Deborah Rogers & Robert Rice  

The committee met and discussed several areas. Library staff, for three months, had been notifying departments of collection cuts. The staff will continue to notify departments prior to any collection cuts. With suppliers increasing prices it is pricing the library out. So far, the library budget remains the same. Four reference librarian positions have been filled. There are currently five other searches in process. The Covid restrictions have been lifted including print reserves, masks must still be worn. The fire during finals week was arson and the case is still open. Damages are still being assessed and need to see what will be replaced. The committee has reported before about the ongoing strategic plan being developed as part of the NECHE report. There are some concerns and comments that will be developed with the Library Dean. All meeting notes are in Google Drive. There’s still room on the committee, “dream team” so if interested contact the committee. 

 

Faculty Information Technology Committee – Todd Zoroya 

No report. 

Peter Schilling is looking for faculty to do a demo of products like Turn It In. So far, no volunteers. Let Todd know if you are interested. 

 

Elected Members Committee – Ad Hoc System Shared Governance – Ivan Manev 

No report. 

 

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion – M.J. Sedlock 

The committee is looking for additional members, representatives from each college is needed. Anyone interested please contact MJ. At the recent meeting holiday observances were discussed and that it should be discouraged to hold meetings or events on holidays or holy days. The committee also discussed the Rising Tide Center, what the center did that is not being done, etc. Also looking at staff wages, minimum wage, etc. Minutes from the meeting are in the Faculty Senate drive folder. 

 

Reports of Faculty Members on Committees of the Administration – Heather Hamlin 

No report. 

 

  1. Old Business  

No report. 

Adjourned 4:30 pm 

Respectfully submitted,
Kathryn Slott 

Prepared by Kim Junkins