Section 6: Committee Structure

The committee structure of the faculty of Centenary College is designed to involve the entire college as a community of scholars in overseeing and planning curricula, programs of study, policies and standards, student activities, and related matters. This involvement is within the stipulations of the charter of Centenary College. The committees are advisory insofar as they make recommendations to the faculty and/or the administration of the College. The Chairs of the Faculty Coordinating, Economic Policy, Academic Policy, and Personnel Committees will comprise a panel which must convene an open meeting of the faculty during the Spring semester of each academic year.

Each committee is expected to have a secretary or recorder who will keep a records or minutes file and will circulate minutes to the committee through the committee chair and forward a copy of the minutes to the archivist in the library and the Faculty Coordinating Committee. In all cases, ex officio members of committees are non-voting. At the end of each academic year, each committee chair will deliver minutes of the committee's work and other relevant documents to the incoming chair. Items of a confidential nature will be filed in the Office of the Provost at the end of each academic year.

Those faculty members who serve on committees have a major responsibility to the College and the profession; while such service cannot replace classroom teaching as the primary function of a professor, it is important in the total program of an academic community.

Newly elected and appointed committee members shall be empowered effective August 15 of each year. During the period following the April faculty meeting through August 15, newly elected and appointed committee members shall be empowered to act as substitutes when necessitated by committee business. (10/1993)

Academic Policy Committee

Purposes and Responsibilities

The Academic Policy Committee initiates and recommends to the Faculty policies concerning the undergraduate academic program of the College. Such policies include those involving curriculum, degree requirements, academic regulations and standards, student classification and class standing, student course load, honors in majors, new programs or degrees, first-year experience, summer school, distance learning, articulation agreements, and all other academic matters that are the responsibility of the Faculty and are not specifically delegated to the Course Review and Petitions Committee.

Composition of Committee

The committee is composed of six faculty members, one student, and the Provost (ex officio) and Registrar (ex officio). Three faculty members, one from each division, are recommended by the Faculty Coordinating Committee for one-year terms with possibility of renewal for two more years. Three faculty members, one from each division, are elected by the faculty for three-year staggered terms. The student member is recommended by the SGA for a one-year appointment with possibility of renewal. The committee chair will be elected from the faculty members of the committee.

Procedural Rules

  1. The Committee meets weekly at a regular hour, which should be published at the beginning of each semester.
  2. The Academic Policy Committee will hold at least one open meeting each Fall semester and will hold a joint open meeting with the Personnel, Faculty Coordinating, and Economic Policy Committees each Spring semester.

Administrative Council

The Administrative Council provides an advisory role to the President of the College. Its function is to consider all aspects of the College's operation, as directed by the President of the College. It is particularly charged with transferring information concerning student life, as reported by the Dean of Student Life to the President and the Board of Trustees. It is also particularly charged with responding to and acting on the recommendations of the planning team and the Economic Policy Committee.

Composition of Committee

The Administrative Council is composed of the President of the College, the Provost, the Vice President for Development, the Vice President for Finance and Administration, the chair of the Faculty Coordinating Committee, the President of the Student Government Association, and any other members at the discretion of the President of the College. (09/00)

The chair of the Faculty Coordinating Committee plays an important role on this Committee. He or she is to 1) take an active role in the administrative decisions of the College, 2) convey the wishes of the faculty and the concerns of the faculty, when directed by the faculty, to the appropriate administrators when the direction and objectives of the College are being formulated; report back to the faculty the administrative decisions of the College and the rationale for those decisions.

Centenary Plan Committee

Purposes and Responsibilities

This committee administers faculty policies related to three degree requirements: GED 151: Service Learning, GED 251: Career Exploration, and GED 351: Intercultural Experience. The committee creates opportunities for students to fulfill these requirements. It decides whether proposed courses and independent projects meet the criteria for the intercultural experience and/or the service-learning requirement according to the guidelines approved by .the faculty. The committee advises the Director of the Career Center in the teaching of GED 251: Career Exploration.

Composition of the Committee

Three faculty members, one from each division; one student; the Director of Intercultural Affairs, the Director of Service Learning; the Director of the Career Center; and the Provost of the College, ex officio.

Conduct Review Committee

Purposes and Responsibilities

A primary function of this committee is to consider and decide upon all cases involving non- academic misconduct referred to it by the Judicial Referral Board. If the student questions the fairness of a disciplinary action taken against him/her by a dean or a student judicial body, he/she should be granted on request the privilege of a hearing before this committee. At the request of the Executive Council of the SGA, the committee will rule upon the constitutionality of actions taken by the Student Government Association. Furthermore, the committee should stay informed about disciplinary problems and make recommendations to judicial bodies and members of the administration charged with disciplinary responsibilities.

Composition of Committee

The committee shall be composed of one faculty member (one who will serve as chairperson), a staff member (other than the Dean of Student Life or the Assistant Dean of Student Life) to serve as recorder, the Dean of Student Life or designee, ex officio, and five full-time undergraduate students (one representing each class and one student at large). See the Judicial Affairs section of the Student Handbook for more information on the composition of the committee. (4/2004)

Convocations Committee

Purposes and Responsibilities

The committee will coordinate convocations for the College. In consultation with other members of the campus community, it will participate in the selection of speakers, themes, dates, physical locations, implement financial arrangements, and coordinate publicity. The spring semester will be used to plan the convocations schedule for the coming year. In addition, the committee will evaluate programs to determine if the convocations are meeting campus needs.

Composition of Committee

The committee will be composed of the following members or appropriate representatives from their departments:

Three faculty members (one from each of the three academic divisions — with one serving as committee chairperson), the Liberal Arts Chair, one administrator, the Director of Marketing and Communications, ex officio, and two students recommended by the Student Government Association and appointed by the President of the College. (approved 4/2006)(2/2008)

Course Review and Petitions Committee

Purposes and Responsibilities

The committee is a judicial body that reviews academic proposals and petitions for compliance with policies established by the Faculty, including: new course proposals, student petitions, routine catalog changes for programs and courses, interdisciplinary degree proposals, special topics courses, and modules.

Composition of Committee

The CRPC is composed of three Faculty members, one from each division, appointed by the FCC; and one student, recommended by SGA; and the Registrar, ex-officio. (09/2001) The committee chair will be elected from among the Faculty members of the committee.

Economic Policy Committee

Purposes and Responsibilities

This committee will make recommendations on matters of economic policy. To this end it will have access to the college budget figures and be able to review these amounts to ensure they are consistent with the economic policies recommended by the committee. To make recommendations on staffing, the committee will work in sub-committees. Staff recommendations will be considered by the staff members of the committee and faculty recommendations by the faculty members. The committee as a whole will make recommendations to the President and suggest priorities on additional staffing. The faculty sub-committee will meet annually to make overall faculty salary recommendations and when necessary to review academic budgets. The faculty sub-committee and the Academic Policy Commit tee shall meet annually to discuss additional staffing.

The primary function of this committee is to recommend policy, not review budgets by line item. This group should endeavor to determine in what areas Centenary should commit its resources and make recommendations to the President accordingly.

The Economic Policy Committee will hold at least one open meeting each Fall semester and a joint open meeting with the Personnel, Academic Policy, and Coordinating Committees each Spring semester.

Composition of Committee

This committee will be composed of three staff members at least one of whom is non-exempt* and one is exempt*, three faculty members, and one student member. (03/01) Staff members who report directly to the President are not eligible for service to the EPC. (05/05) The three faculty members, one from each division, will be elected by the faculty-at-large for three-year staggered terms to serve as the faculty representatives on the committee. Each division will nominate two divisional candidates from among which the faculty will elect one. The student member is recommended by SGA and approved by the President. The Academic Dean (Provost) and vice president for finance and administration will serve as an ex officio members of the committee. Three positions (the faculty chair, the staff chair, and the secretary) will be elected by the members of the committee at the beginning of each academic year or as necessary. Both chairs will be responsible for setting agenda items pertinent to their constituencies and reporting at relevant times (e.g., at faculty and staff meetings). (05/08) The committee shall meet at least once each semester with the Faculty Personnel Committee to discuss common interests. (4/00)
*non-exempt staff - one who is neither primarily engaged in academic instruction nor charged with administrative or managerial responsibility, and who is not primarily a student.
*exempt staff - one who holds a position of executive, administrative or managerial responsibility or one that requires recognized professional achievement either by formal training or equivalent experience and who meets the appropriate minimum salary test contained in the Fair Labor Standards Act. (03/01)

Enrollment Management Committee

The duties of this committee are to:

  1. develop, implement, and evaluate a comprehensive plan for increasing student enrollment and retaining students. This plan would involve all constituencies of the Centenary community; (03/01)
  2. formulate and recommend to the faculty minimum standards for the admission of students;
  3. read and make individual admission decisions on the cases of applicants who do not meet the minimum standards (4/2004);
  4. advise the Admissions and Financial Aid offices regarding financial aid and scholarships;
  5. review and develop policies for awarding scholarships, grants-in-aid and other financial packages.
  6. periodic (3 year) reviews of the academic support services. (5/2007)

Composition of Committee

The committee is composed of three faculty members (one from each division) recommended by the Faculty Coordinating Committee, one student recommended by the Student Government Association, and a representative from each of the following offices: Provost, Financial Aid, Admissions, Registrar, Student Life, and the Academic Resource Center. The committee chair will be elected from the faculty members of the committee. (4/2004)

Faculty Coordinating Committee

The Faculty Coordinating Committee is the major coordinating body of the faculty and its committee system. It is the administrative body of the faculty. It also carries on an active dialogue with the Administrative Council concerning the academic operation of the College.

One of the committee's major tasks is to recommend matters to committees of the faculty for investigation or review. At the beginning of each academic year, the committee will supply the chair of each faculty committee a list of appropriate tasks and duties based on achieving the purpose and goals of the College.

The Faculty Coordinating Committee is further charged with assisting in the preparation of the agenda for faculty meetings and carrying out that agenda. In doing this, it is not to review or pass judgment on the material brought to the faculty meeting for consideration but to deliver it to the faculty in the most efficient manner. The Office of the Provost will assist in carrying out this function. If no agenda items are submitted for a given faculty meeting, the Faculty Coordinating Committee may choose to cancel the meeting.

The Faculty Coordinating Committee will also collect and make available the minutes from committees of the faculty. In this regard it will attempt to coordinate the activities of any committees working on similar matters. The Faculty Coordinating Committee will also attempt to encourage and facilitate communication between the committees of the faculty. In addition, the Faculty Coordinating Committee will proofread the minutes of each faculty meeting prior to their submission to the faculty at large. (12/2003) The FCC will maintain a website of the minutes and other pertinent documents issued by the standing committees of the faculty. (4/2004)

Each year the Faculty Coordinating Committee will recommend to the President the names of faculty members to serve as the non-elective members of the committee system of the College. The Faculty Coordinating Committee will serve as a nominating committee for posts the faculty elects for voting delegates to the Conference of Louisiana Colleges and Universities. The committee is charged with carrying out all elections in an efficient, timely, and open manner. The Faculty Coordinating Committee will hold a joint open meeting with the Academic Policy, Personnel, and Economic Policy Committees each Spring semester. (03/01)

As needed, the Faculty Coordinating Committee will revise the faculty handbook. This will be done with the counsel of the faculty and the committees of the faculty.

Annually the Faculty Coordinating Committee shall organize and coordinate input from the faculty regarding the College's administrative officers. This information shall be forwarded to the President.

Finally, the Faculty Coordinating Committee, when directed by the faculty, shall act as the official voice of the faculty. When it is necessary that the wishes and desires of the faculty, as a group, be made known to the administration of the College or an outside agency, the Faculty Coordinating Committee under the direction of the faculty shall represent the faculty.

Composition of Committee

The Faculty Coordinating Committee consists of an at-large chair, who is elected by the faculty from among the tenured faculty for a two-year term, the three divisional chairs, who must be tenured members of the faculty and are elected by each division individually, and the Provost, ex officio. The chair of the Faculty Coordinating Committee will be the first faculty officer elected each year. This election shall take place each April with the term of service beginning the weekday before the start of classes the following fall. The chair of the Faculty Coordinating Committee shall serve as one of the two faculty representatives to the Board of Trustees. The chair of the Faculty Coordinating Committee will not be allowed to serve more than two terms in any six-year period.

Faculty Development Committee

As part of the College's attempt to retain talented faculty and promote excellence in teaching and scholarship, the committee shall, with the advice and consent of the faculty, establish and maintain a faculty development program. The committee shall assist the Provost in the development and implementation of policies and programs related to faculty development, such as special faculty travel, First-Friday and other workshops, sabbatical leaves, and recommendations on endowed professorships, and other scholarly and professional activities. (09/00) The committee also oversees scheduling of public presentations reporting on scholarly accomplishments during sabbatical leaves. Forums for these presentations will be developed in coordination with this committee. (4/2004)

Composition of Committee

Three faculty members (one from each division), one at-large faculty member and the Provost, ex officio. The members of this committee shall be recommended by the Faculty Coordinating Committee and appointed by the President. The committee shall elect its own chair.

Faculty Personnel Committee

The responsibilities of the Faculty Personnel Committee are to:

  1. recommend to the Provost promotions to the levels of Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, and Professor;
  2. create and administer a formal evaluation procedure for the Centenary faculty;
  3. make recommendations on reappointment, tenure and termination and for establishing and conducting annual reviews on which such recommendations are based, including particularly the third-year and sixth-year reviews;
  4. serve as an advisory body to the administration on matters dealing with the academic and professional integrity of the faculty;
  5. make evaluations and recommendations concerning merit pay increases and appro priate salary adjustments; and
  6. interview and make recommendations to the Provost on all finalists for tenure track faculty positions, including chaired professorships and the following selected administrative positions: President, Provost, Vice President for Development, Vice President for Finance and Administration, Vice President for Marketing and Communications, Registrar, Dean of Student Life, Director of Financial Aid, Director of Admissions, Director of Development, and Director of Athletics. (9/2000) In the case of faculty searches, the two members of the Faculty Personnel Committee representing the academic division in which the search is taking place will attend the public presentations and talks delivered by each candidate and share their evaluations with the committee-at-large. In the case of scheduling difficulties, the Faculty Personnel Committee can designate any two members to attend. (5/2007)
  7. The Faculty Personnel Committee will hold at least one open meeting each Fall semester and a joint open meeting with the Academic Policy, Economic Policy, and Faculty Coordinating Committees each Spring semester.

The recommendations in all of these areas shall be guided by standards initially proposed by the committee, approved by the faculty, and published in the faculty handbook. The commit tee's recommendations shall be made directly to the Provost. The deliberations of the committee and its recommendations to the Provost shall be confidential, except in instances when the appeals process warrants access to information.

Composition of Committee

One administrator (the Provost, ex officio) and six tenured faculty members (two from each division, representing different departments) elected by the faculty at-large for three-year staggered terms. Each division will nominate two divisional candidates for each vacancy, from among which the faculty will elect one. Only full-time faculty, with faculty rank, shall be eligible to vote. Beginning in the Fall semester 2005, any faculty member serving as an Associate Dean to the Provost of the College shall be ineligible to serve on this committee until the end of their term of service as Associate Dean. (4/2004) The committee shall elect its own chair.

Procedures: The committee shall meet at least once each semester with the Economic Policy Committee to discuss common interests.

The chair of the Personnel Committee shall serve as one of the two faculty representatives on the Board of Trustees.

Graduate Council

This committee is responsible for developing the criteria for admission to graduate programs and satisfactory progress toward degrees and for policies pertaining to personnel, curricula, degree requirements, and finances. Proposals relating to any of these areas may originate with the Provost, members of the Graduate Council, or any faculty or administrative officer of the College and should be sent to the Provost and chair of the Graduate Council with majority approval from the department seeking the program. The Graduate Council submits its recommendations to the faculty for approval.

Composition of Committee

The Provost, ex officio, one faculty representative from each department with an active graduate program; a faculty representative from a department that does not offer a graduate program appointed by the Faculty Coordinating Committee; and one graduate student, nominated by the program in which he or she is currently enrolled. Graduate student represen tation will rotate annually among active graduate programs.

Institutional Effectiveness Committee

Purposes and Responsibilities

This committee will be responsible for analyzing assessment reports submitted concerning the core courses as well as academic, program and administrative department reviews. The members of the committee will look for specific learning outcomes or achievement of goals associated with courses and programs and make specific recommendations to faculty members, department chairs, committees and administration. Should the committee see the need for additional institutional resources to assist a faculty member and/or program to meet its learning outcomes, the Institutional Effectiveness Committee will send such recommendations to the Planning Committee and/or administration. This committee will also provide faculty members and administrative units with assistance in fashioning assessment techniques.

Composition of Committee

Three tenured members of the faculty (one from each division) recommended by the Divisional Chair for appointment by the Faculty Coordinating Committee, to serve three-year terms; a member of the administrative staff, as designated by the President of the college; the Director of Institutional Research (ex officio member) and the member of the Provost’s staff responsible for assessment (ex officio member).

Intercollegiate Athletics Committee

The duties and responsibilities of the Intercollegiate Athletics Committee are to:

  1. assess the various aspects of intercollegiate athletics with the goal of establishing and maintaining standards of scholarship and sportsmanship consistent with the values and traditions of Centenary College and the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA).
  2. serve as an advisory body to the administration and faculty on all matters concerning intercollegiate athletic programs. To provide input to the President and standing committees on decisions that directly affect the student-athlete, i.e., entrance requirements.
  3. serve as a liaison between intercollegiate athletics and the academic areas of the college.
  4. serve in an advisory capacity to the Director of Athletics, who shall:
    • Advise the committee of significant NCAA policies, rules, and regulations and provide interpretations of their applicability to the athletic program at Centenary;
    • seek the advice of the committee on any major proposed charges in athletic policy and programs; and
  5. serve in an advisory capacity in the employment of athletic personnel.
  6. conduct periodic (3 year) reviews of the academic support services, and send findings with recommendations as needed to the Provost for approval, and to the Academic Resource Center for Students and the Athletic Department’s Academic Support Division. (5/2007) (10/2007)

Composition of Committee

The Director of Athletics, ex officio, the Compliance Coordinator, ex officio; the NCAA faculty athletic representative, two additional faculty members (one male, one female), two students (one male and one female). Faculty members are recommended by the Faculty Coordinating Committee for staggered terms of three years and appointed by the President. Student members are recommended by the SGA and appointed by the President. One of the faculty members shall serve as the chair of the committee. Care should be taken that, with the exception of the Director of Athletics, faculty members of the committee are not involved with the intercollegiate athletic program in any way. (03/01) (4/05)

Procedural Rules

The committee should have a minimum of one meeting per semester, within the first six weeks of the semester. The committee chair shall call the meeting.

Learning Resources Committee

The committee makes recommendations to the Provost and Dean of the College, the Director of Library Services, the Director of Information Technology, and serves as a conduit for information to the faculty. The committee will review information regarding academic library and technology learning resources. The committee will discuss the following: acquisition, promotion, training, policy, procedure, faculty expectations, evaluation, planning, provision and equipment maintenance, personnel, and will consult academic departments and divisions concerning computing and library resources.

Magale Library:
The committee will advise the Director of Library Services on general library policies and planning, use of facilities and technologies, budget priorities, development of library acquisitions, and implementation of access services.

Information Technology:
The committee will advise the Director of Information Technology on academic computing policies, procedures, planning, and faculty needs and expectations. (4/05)

Composition of Committee

Three faculty members (one member from each division, all recommended by the Faculty Coordinating Committee and appointed by the President), three administration/staff (Director of Library, Director of Academic Computing, and Director of Hurley Music Library), and one student (recommended by the SGA and appointed by the President).

Media Committee

Purposes and Responsibilities

The Media Committee oversees the operations of KSCL, the Conglomerate Weekly, Pandora, the Yoncopin, and the Film Society. Its fundamental responsibility is to ensure that the media are operated in a manner that provides our students with a valuable learning experience consistent with the educational purpose of the college. In performing this function the committee will:

  1. develop and implement policies that apply to all the media in general and to each specific medium;
  2. determine the contractual obligations of the student head of each medium;
  3. select the media heads and review the appointments to be made by the media heads to other paid media positions and, when necessary, remove said persons;
  4. approve the annual budget of each medium prior to its submission to the Student Government Association (SGA);
  5. ensure that the expenditures of each medium are in keeping with its budget alloca tion from SGA; and
  6. recommend to the Faculty Coordinating Committee faculty advisers for the media.

The SGA representative on the committee will inform the SGA of the proceedings of the committee.

Media Heads

Each medium has one student head.

The student heads of the media are responsible for the operation of the media in accordance with their contracts; federal, state, and local laws and regulations; college policies; and professional standards. The media heads are to keep their faculty advisers informed concern ing the operation of the media and to present regular reports including financial records to the Media Committee.

Media Advisers

Each medium has one media adviser.

The primary responsibility of the media adviser is to consult with the media head to ensure that the operation of the media conforms to generally accepted standards of quality and professionalism. Accordingly, media advisers will:

  1. meet with media heads in the beginning of the fall and spring semesters to discuss how the media advisor can be of most assistance (e.g., assist with personnel training; assist with developing a budget; etc.) and perform agreed upon activities;
  2. discuss specific goals of the media with the media head;
  3. serve as an advocate for the medium in matters of administration. This includes serving as a liaison with individuals having concerns about the medium (e.g., content, personnel behavior); and
  4. follow the activities of the medium and provide necessary feedback. (04/05)

Composition of Committee

The Media Committee will be composed of the student head and media adviser of each medium, the Student Government Association representative, the Director of Marketing and Communications, the faculty adviser to the major in Communication, a member of the Board of Trustees, and a faculty member other than those listed above to serve as chair.

Planning Committee

Purposes and Responsibilities

The Planning Committee will be a representative body of the faculty, administration, student body, and Board of Trustees responsible for providing direction to the College. To this end, they will periodically review and update the goals of the College and assess college operations to determine if it is consistent with the College's goals. This group will also be responsible for maintaining and updating a strategic plan for the College. Since planning, to be effective, must receive input from all facets of college life, this committee is expected to maintain close ties to the Faculty Coordinating Committee, the Administrative Council, and the Student Government Association. The Planning Committee is also expected to work closely with the Economic Policy Committee to ensure implementation of the College's long-range plans. The recommen dation of the committee will go to the President of the College.

Composition of Committee

The Planning Committee will be compoed of eleven members: Three members of the administration, appointed by the President; a Board member; three faculty members recom mended by the Faculty Coordinating Committee, and approved by the President; the chair of the Economic Policy Committee; and three student members appointed by the Student Government Association and approved by the President. The faculty members will serve three-year staggered terms, with each division having a representative. The student members will serve one-year terms, with each member from a different division.

Voting Procedures

The following rules apply to the six members of the Personnel Committee, the three members of the Economic Policy Committee, and the three elected members of the Academic Policy Committee. The election for these positions will be conducted following the election of the Faculty Coordinating Committee chair. To be eligible for election, one must be full-time and hold faculty rank. Election shall be for a three-year term. In the event of unfulfilled terms, faculty members shall be elected for partial terms to fill the unfinished terms. After each full or partial term of at least two years, faculty members will be ineligible for reelection until three years have elapsed since the most recent service. No faculty member shall serve more than a total of fifteen years on the two committees, and no faculty member shall be elected to a full or partial term if he or she will not be able to serve that term.

Last updated May 16, 2008.