MCS Faculty Constitution

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The Constitution of the Faculty Organization of the Mellon College of Science of Carnegie Mellon University

Adopted 17 May 1979
Amended effective May 2, 1988
Ref.: The Constitution of the Faculty (Carnegie Mellon University Faculty Handbook, Spring 1991 edition, p. 8)

I. Members

The Faculty Organization of the Mellon College of Science, also called the MCS Faculty Organization, consists of all persons holding appointments in the Mellon College of Science that qualify them to be members of the Faculty of Carnegie Mellon University, as defined by the Constitution of the Faculty of Carnegie Mellon University. In addition, Associate and Assistant Deans of the Mellon College of Science are members. The MCS Faculty Organization may include other members by election, a majority vote being required at a meeting of the Organization or by letter ballot.

II. Officers and Conference Committee

The officers of the MCS Faculty Organization are the Chair and the Chair-Elect.

A. The officers are elected from among the tenured faculty members who are not Deans, Associate Deans, Assistant Deans, or Department Heads. At the end of the academic year the Chair shall retire from office and the Chair-Elect shall become Chair for the following year. The election of the new Chair-Elect shall be decided by secret letter ballot before the end of the academic year. The candidate receiving a majority of votes cast shall be elected. In the event no candidate receives a majority vote, a runoff election shall be held between the top two candidates.

The nominees on the ballot are chosen by a nominating committee appointed by the Chair at least one month prior to the election. The committee shall present at least two nominees for Chair-Elect from departments other than that of the Chair-Elect. Any ten members of the Faculty Organization may add a candidate to the slate. All candidates on the ballot must have agreed to serve if elected. If the office of Chair should become vacant, the Chair-Elect shall become Chair. If either the office of Chair or Chair-Elect should become vacant an election of a new Chair-Elect shall be held as soon as is practical.

B. It is the responsibility of the officers to ensure that the members of the Faculty Organization are kept informed concerning important academic matters, and matters involving faculty well-being. The officers also represent the faculty in the administrative councils and committees of the College as specified below. Matters of concern to individual members of the Faculty Organization or groups of members may be presented to the appropriate administrative officer or College Committee by the Chair. The Chair, Chair-Elect, and Faculty Senators elected by the MCS departments form a group of elected representatives of the faculty, referred to as the Conference Committee. The Chair may call a meeting of the Conference Committee or of the MCS Faculty Organization for discussion of any important matter.

III. The MCS College Council

The College Council is the administrative body of the college. It is chaired by the Dean and, meeting on a regular basis, advises the Dean on all policy matters of concern to the college.

In addition to the Dean, the College Council members include the Department Heads of MCS or their representatives, Associate and Assistant Deans, the Chair and Chair-Elect of the MCS Faculty Organization, students representing the undergraduate and graduate student bodies of the college, and other persons who may be invited by the Dean. Agenda items for consideration of the Council may be presented by any member of the Council. The Chair of the MCS Faculty Organization shall present for the agenda any item at the request of five faculty members.

IV. The MCS Review Committee on Tenure, Promotion, and Reappointment

The Review Committee discusses the recommendations of the Ad Hoc Committees and makes recommendations to the Dean for each candidate, as described in the MCS document on Criteria and Procedures for Decisions on Reappointments, Promotion, and Tenure. The Committee consists of the Dean, the Department Heads and three senior faculty members, two of whom are chosen by the Dean, the third being the chair of the Faculty Organization.

V. Meetings and Referenda

The Chair shall call a general meeting of the Faculty Organization at least once each year before the end of the spring term. On the request of any three members of the College Council, the Chair of the Faculty Organization and/or the Dean shall call a meeting of the MCS Faculty Organization or hold a referendum of the members of the Faculty Organization to determine its position on any important policy matter. Also, at the request of fifteen members of the MCS Faculty Organization, the Chair shall call such a meeting or hold such a referendum. Normally, such matters will first be discussed by the Dean and the Conference Committee.

This Constitution of the Faculty Organization of the Mellon College of Science requires for its adoption or subsequent change a referendum by letter ballot with approval of 2/3 of those members voting.

NOTE:

By letter of 13 July 1979, the President has reserved the right to approve all changes in the Constitution of the Faculty Organization of the Mellon College of Science.
In the official text of the Constitution currently in effect, the terms "Chairman" and "Chairman Elect" are used in place of "Chair" and "Chair-Elect", respectively. The text printed in this Handbook reflects, however, current usage.