Documents Committee

Documents Committee
Faculty Senate Documents Committee
Year-End Report
2012-2013

Membership: Chair, Chris Wubbena (Art); Larry Bohannon (Education), Eric Clements (History), Heather McMillan (Business), Sophia Scott (Polytechnic Studies), Lisa Speer (Kent Library), Candide Walton (Science and Mathematics), Susan Wehring (Health and Human Services)

Faculty Senate Goals/Charges for Documents Committee 2012-2013:

1. Review proposals to amend the Faculty Senate Constitution and formulate them as recommendations to the Faculty Senate
2. Review periodically the contents of the Faculty Handbook to ensure that the contents reflect current University policy
3. Recommend changes in the Faculty Handbook to make it consistent with current amendments to the Faculty Senate Constitution
4. Make certain that Faculty Senate records are preserved according to the requirements of Section 6.60  

Action Items Completed 2011-2012:

1. The Faculty Senate Constitution was reviewed, feedback requested, with no requests for amendments to the Constitution received by the committee.       
2. The Faculty Senate Bylaws were reviewed and feedback requested.           
3. In reviewing the Faculty Senate By-Laws, in particular:  

6.60 Records of the Faculty Senate. The records of the Faculty Senate are vital materials for documenting the history of the University.  Therefore, the records of the Senate, including all relevant bills, resolutions, committee reports, and minutes, will be preserved in the collections of the University Archives. The University Archivist and the Faculty Senate Documents Committee are charged to create and maintain procedures for transferring records to the Archives regularly, at least at regular intervals.  

the Documents Committee noted that, while Faculty Senate records are being preserved in the University Archives (i.e., Special Collections and Archives, Kent Library), section 6.60 refers to a position that does not exist (e.g., “University Archivist”).   Currently, Faculty Senate works with the staff of Special Collections to insure that records are preserved for safe-keeping.¹  However, because there is no designated University Archivist and no sanctioned or systematic campus-wide records management program, deposits of Faculty Senate records are not occurring at established or regular intervals.  The last Faculty Senate records added to the University Archives were in 2008.  There is additional concern that vital records from other campus offices may also be in jeopardy of being lost over time.  Additional university-level support for Special Collections and Archives is required to ensure that the historical record of the institution is preserved.  

¹Guide to the Faculty Senate Records, Special Collections and Archives, Southeast Missouri State University, at http://library.semo.edu/archives/collections/Finding%20Aids/Faculty%20Senate/CSS/Faculty%20Senate%20Records%20Title%20Page.htm.  

Action Items Continuing to Next Year (2013-2014):

1. The Documents Committee recommends further review of Faculty Senate Bylaws
2. The Documents Committee recommends follow up regarding Faculty Senate Bylaws 6.60 Records of the Faculty Senate.  

 Submitted by Chris Wubbena, Chair, Documents Committee 2012-2013