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The University Council

Revised 5/4/2017, UC Charter Subcommittee

The University Council (UC) shall advise the President and the Lesley University community in the development and implementation of the university vision and strategic plan, and around other key decisions where input is requested from the President. The Council also helps to actively identify and address other important agenda items for the university. Membership is representative of University stakeholders, and communication is both university-wide and specifically to individual constituencies. Meetings will be open to the university community; agenda and minutes will be published for community members in a timely manner.

Areas of Responsibility

University Council is empowered to:

  • Participate in decision-making, advise the President, and provide for information sharing across the institution in matters of significance to the university.
  • Identify key issues to the President and other members of the Cabinet, present various possible solutions to be considered, and help to problem-solve.
  • Solicit response from the President when a motion is taken in the council.
  • Focus on university-wide strategic planning and collaboration.
  • Address matters of University collaboration.
  • Establish regular communication with the Faculty Assembly, with the governance of the four schools, and with other university advisory and governing bodies.

University Council members are expected to:

  • Attend one meeting per month on the fourth Thursday between 11am and 1pm.
  • Bring matters with implications for their constituencies to other representative bodies.
  • Serve on a UC sub-committee. Sub-committee charges will be identified by UC annually or as needed under the leadership of the Chair and Vice-Chair.

Membership

Membership of the University Council includes 19 faculty, 19 administrators and staff members (including academic administrators) and 4 students. The President and the Vice President for Strategy and Implementation will serve as non-voting ex officio members and are not eligible to serve as UC Chair or Vice-Chair. The UC Chair and Vice Chair are non-voting members, but still represent their constituencies.

The faculty members will include:

  • 1 Faculty Assembly Steering Committee (FASC) representative from each school (4)
  • 1 core faculty representative per school (4)
  • 1 adjunct faculty representative per school (4)
  • 3 at large FA representatives (3)
  • Faculty Assembly (FA) Chair (1) - Ex Officio
  • Budget and Planning Committee (B&P) Chair (1) - Ex Officio
  • Faculty Affairs and Academic Policies Committee (FAAP) Chair (1) - Ex Officio
  • Lesley University Diversity Council (LUDC) Chair or Vice Chair (1) - Ex Officio

The faculty representatives above are elected by their respective bodies for two-year terms.

The staff and administrative members will include:

  • President/non-voting (1)
  • Vice President for Strategy and Implementation/non-voting (1)
  • Presidential appointment (11)
  • Provost (1)
  • 1 staff member per school (4)
  • 2 staff representatives from Staff Representative Advisory Council (SRAC) (2)
  • Lesley University Diversity Council (LUDC) Chair or Vice-Chair (1) - Ex Officio

The staff and administrative representatives above are elected by their respective bodies for two-year terms.

The 4 student members will include:

  • Student representatives chosen by the Undergraduate Student Government (2)
  • Student representatives chosen by the Graduate Student Association (2)

The student representatives above are chosen by their respective bodies for a one-year term.

UC Leadership

Each year a Vice-Chair is nominated or self-nominated from within the active UC membership. Nominations are made in April of each year; secret ballot elections are held at the May UC meeting. The Vice-Chair will be elected for two years, serving the first year as Vice-Chair and the second year as Chair. Chair and Vice-Chair roles will alternate annually between faculty and staff. A core faculty serving as Chair will receive one workload unit release. A staff member serving as Chair will receive financial compensation at a rate based on the number of meetings and meeting preparations at the start of their term (e.g., FY17 compensation was $3,600). The Vice-Chair position does not include workload release or compensation.

Meeting Participation

Members of the university will be invited to participate in discussion as the agenda dictates. Meetings will be open and visitors will be encouraged to raise questions or comments during time set aside during each meeting. Visitors are welcome to participate in sub-committee work.

Agenda for the University Council

The UC agenda is set by the UC Chair, the Vice-Chair, the Provost, and one administrator. The Agenda Committee meets monthly, and in May of each year the Committee will seek to establish the key agenda items for the forthcoming academic year, along with timelines for those items needing on-going attention. At monthly meetings, new items will be considered as these come forward.

Requests in writing for consideration of agenda items can come from any member (or groups) of the Lesley community to the Agenda Committee and will be addressed at the monthly meeting of the Agenda Committee. All requested agenda should include identification of action being requested: decision, advice, or information sharing. A response will be made within one month of Agenda Committee consideration, indicating if and when the item will be discussed at a subsequent meeting, or if not, where the item should go to be addressed appropriately.

UC agenda are considered public documents and will be distributed at-large at least one week prior to UC meetings.

Communication

Agenda & minutes will be public and posted on a public online location available to the Lesley community. The UC will call an Executive Session when the agenda dictates a confidential discussion of its members.

Sub-committees and Task Forces

When agenda items require research or further discussion and deliberation, a sub-committee or task force can be established by the UC. Such sub-committees and task forces will include members of the UC and any additional members from the Lesley community as seems appropriate to the matter under consideration. These working bodies will report back to the UC. Additional task forces to address issues raised by the faculty or the President may be created outside the purview of the UC. In accordance with the principles of openness, trust and shared commitment to the mission, these working bodies will deliberate and act in an inclusive, participatory fashion and seek consensus. Recognizing that consensus is not always achievable, these sub-committees and task forces will, when necessary, take votes (by secret ballot if requested) and the results of these acts will be reported back to the UC. Such a practice, when needed, would serve to assure that minority opinions are not lost in a process that otherwise seeks consensus.

Charter Revisions

The UC charter will be reviewed by UC or a sub-committee of UC every five years.

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