Charter of the General Faculty

The General Faculty of the Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences (OSU-CHS) has adopted the following Charter to assist in the orderly conduct and governance of its affairs, to ensure due process, and to facilitate faculty administration division of labor and reciprocally supportive collaboration in achieving our goals and purposes. The College of Osteopathic Medicine (COM) and the graduate programs are functional academic units of the Center for Health Sciences. The Chief Academic Officer of the COM is the Dean of the COM and the Chief Academic Officer of CHS is the Provost of CHS.

• Article I

  Name

  The name of this organization shall be: “The General Faculty of the Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences”. 

• Article II

  Functions and Responsibilities 

  Section 1. Academic Affairs
  The General Faculty is concerned with the welfare of the academic community and shall therefore recommend policies and procedures concerning the whole Center in matters to include:

  1. educational policies and procedures for admissions, courses, curricula, academic standards, schedules, academic calendar, learning resources, research, programs of instruction, and educational procedures and innovations;
  2. policies and procedures for student affairs and auxiliary services, student regulations and discipline, academic freedom, advisement, counseling, safety and security.

  Section 2. Fiscal Affairs and Planning
  The General Faculty also shall advise concerning:

  1. policies and procedures directly affecting members of the faculty including budgeting of funds, faculty and administrative appointments, continuing education of the faculty, sabbatical leave, benefits, promotion, tenure, retirement, and other functions affecting faculty morale;
  2. long range planning involving the goals, development, and growth of the Center including educational, innovative and building programs, and allocations of resources.
• Article III

  Members

  Section 1. Members
  The membership of the General Faculty of OSU-CHS shall be composed of full-time and part-time faculty members with the rank of instructor or above.

  Section 2. Voting Rights
  Full-time faculty and part-time faculty with at least 0.75 FTE or greater will have voting rights.

  Section 3. Proxy
  No votes shall be cast by proxy.

  Section 4. Voting by Mail
  Voting by mail or electronically is permitted if approved by the Faculty Senate unless otherwise mandated by the Charter of the General Faculty and the Faculty Senate, Bylaws of the General Faculty, or Bylaws of the Faculty Senate.

• Article IV

  Powers

  Section 1. Governance Powers
  The General Faculty and Faculty Senate shall operate under the procedures set forth herein.

  Section 2. Exercise of Powers
  These governance powers shall be exercised either by the General Faculty or by the Faculty Senate (see Article VII). The General Faculty shall establish its Operational Procedures and Bylaws.

  Section 3. Accountability of Senate
  The Faculty Senate shall be subject to the orders of the General Faculty and none of the acts of the Senate shall conflict with actions taken by the General Faculty.

• Article V

  Officers

  The Officers of the General Faculty shall be the Officers of the Faculty Senate (see Article VII. Sect. 2) and the Chief Academic Officer of CHS who shall preside over all meetings of the General Faculty. These officers shall perform the duties prescribed by this Charter by the parliamentary authority adopted by the General Faculty, and any other activities necessary to achieve the objects of the General Faculty of OSU-CHS.

• Article VI

  Meetings

  Section 1. Meetings
  The General Faculty will meet at least once each semester. The agenda of the Fall meeting routinely includes:

  1. Report by the Chief Academic Officer of CHS or Designee
  2. Report by the President of the Faculty Senate
  3. Introduction of new faculty
  4. An update on the COM and graduate programs at CHS.

  The Spring meeting routinely includes:

  1. A State of the Center message by the Chief Academic Officer of CHS;
  2. A State of the Faculty message by the President of the Faculty Senate to review faculty committee actions and proposed directions for faculty efforts;
  3. An open forum for discussion of agenda items approved by the Faculty Senate;
  4. Approval of students for promotion and graduation in the College of Osteopathic Medicine (COM);
  5. Election of members of the Faculty Senate, President-elect of the Faculty Senate, members of the Promotion and Tenure Committee, members of the Promotion and Tenure Resolution Committee, and members of the Curriculum Oversight Committee.

  Section 2. Special Meetings

  1. Special meetings may be called by 1) the Faculty Senate, 2) the Chief Academic Officer, or 3) written petition of a majority of faculty having voting privileges as defined in Article III, Section 2.
  2. The purpose of the meeting shall be stated in the call.
  3. Every faculty member shall be offered notice.
  4. Except in cases of emergency, at least seven (7) days’ notice shall be given, and the meeting shall be called within thirty (30) days of presentation of a petition.

  Section 3. Quorum
  A quorum shall consist of a majority of faculty who have voting rights who are attending either in person or from a distance using video conferencing or other electronic methods. A record of attendance shall be kept.

• Article VII

  The Faculty Senate

  Section 1. Members

  1. Membership shall be elected from the General Faculty who have voting rights.
  2. Persons holding administrative positions of Assistant Dean or above shall not be eligible for election as Senate members.
  3. Officers and members of the Faculty Senate shall total nine (9).

  Section 2. Officers

  1. The Officers of the Faculty Senate shall be: 1) the President, 2) the President-elect, 3) the Secretary, 4) the Sergeant at Arms/Treasurer, and 5) the Past-President. These 5 officers will constitute the Executive Committee.
  2. No member shall hold more than one office at a time, or shall serve more than two consecutive terms in the same office.
  3. Only faculty members who have had at least two years of faculty service at the Center shall be eligible to hold an elected office of the Faculty Senate.
  4. Persons holding administrative positions of Assistant Dean or above are not eligible for election as Senate Officers.

  Section 3. Election of Officers and Members

  1. Members of the Faculty Senate shall be elected by written ballot for two (2) year terms.
  2. Elections of the President-elect shall be conducted annually by and from among the faculty having voting rights as defined in Article III, Section 2. The President-elect shall be elected by a written ballot by voting members of the General Faculty for a one (1) year term. The President-elect shall assume the duties of the President the following year.
  3. The Past-President of the Faculty Senate shall continue as a member of the Faculty Senate for a one (1) year term.
  4. The election of the President-elect and members of the Faculty Senate shall be conducted on or before June 1. Ideally, there shall be member parity of graduate program faculty and clinical faculty. Installation shall be effective June 1.
  5. The election of the Secretary and the Sergeant at Arms/Treasurer shall be from Faculty Senate membership by the members of the Faculty Senate.
  6. The OSU-CHS Representative to the Faculty Council at OSU shall be one of the nine (9) voting members of the Senate.
  7. The OSU-CHS Representative to the Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education Faculty Advisory Council shall be one of the nine (9) voting members of the Senate.

  Section 4. Powers

  1. Members of the Faculty Senate shall be elected by written ballot for two (2) year terms.
  2. The Faculty Senate shall conduct the affairs of the General Faculty between the latter’s meetings, make recommendations of the General Faculty, and perform such other duties as are specified in the Charter and Operating Procedures or Bylaws, and/or are necessary to achieve the objectives of the General Faculty.
  3. Any member of the General Faculty may bring matters relating to governance before the Assembly of the General Faculty or the Faculty Senate by written request.
  4. The Faculty Senate shall determine its own rules, procedures, times and place of meetings, and regulations governing its internal affairs.
  5. The Faculty Senate shall establish its Operational Procedures and Bylaws.

  Section 5. Meetings

  The Faculty Senate shall meet each month except July and August. If matters of import arise during July or August, the Executive Committee will be empowered to act on them. All actions taken will be brought to the full Faculty Senate in September for ratification.

  Section 6. Dues/Senate funds

  Dues may be requested of the members of the General Faculty by a vote of the Senate with the concurrence of a majority of faculty voting in the Center. The Senate shall not initiate such a process more than once in any one year. All Senate funds shall be deposited in a Center Special Agency Account, credited to the Senate, and expended upon the signature of the President of the Faculty Senate and by majority consent of Senate Officers.

• Article VIII

  Committees

  Section 1. Selection of Membership

  Faculty members and faculty chairs of committees will be selected from the voting membership of the General Faculty.

  Section 2. Standing Committees

  • Center-wide Committees
    • Center-wide Committees include the following:
      • Learning Resources
      • Student Affairs
      • Research
    • Faculty members and the chair of these committees are recommended by the Faculty Affairs Committee in consultation with the Chief Academic Officer of CHS, and appointed by the Faculty Senate.
  • Faculty Senate Committees
    • Faculty Senate Committees include the following:
      • Faculty Affairs
      • Budget and Benefits
      • Promotion and Tenure
      • Promotion and Tenure Resolution
    • The Faculty Affairs and Budget and Benefits committees and their chairs are recommended by the Faculty Affairs Committee and appointed by the Faculty Senate. Promotion and Tenure and Promotion and Tenure Resolution Committee members are elected by the General Faculty during the General Faculty meeting in the Spring.
  • Regulatory Committees
    
    • Regulatory Committees include the following:
      
      • Affirmative Action
      • Institutional Review Board
      • Institutional Animal Care and Use
      • Institutional Biosafety
      • Chemical Hygiene & Radioisotope Use
    • Faculty members and faculty chairs of these committees are recommended by the Faculty Affairs Committee in consultation with the Chief Academic Officer of CHS, and appointed by the Faculty Senate.
  • College of Osteopathic Medicine (COM) Committees
    • College of Osteopathic Medicine (COM) Committees include the following:
      • Academic Standards
      • Student Selection
      • Continuing Medical Education
      • Curriculum Oversight Committee
      • Student Accessibility Committee
    • Faculty members and faculty chairs of Academic Standards, Student Selection, and Student Accessibility committees are recommended by the Faculty Affairs Committee in consultation with the Dean of the COM, and appointed by the Faculty Senate. The Curriculum Oversight Committee members are elected by the General Faculty during the General Faculty meeting in the Spring.

  Section 3. Special/Ad Hoc Committees

  There shall be such special/ad hoc committees as the General Faculty and/or the Faculty Senate shall from time to time deem necessary to carry on the work of the General Faculty.

• Article IX

  Liaison with Administration

  Section 1. Function

  The Faculty Senate will advise the Chief Academic Officer and other administrative officers of the Center in relation to matters of interest and import to OSU-CHS. These areas may include teaching and curriculum, research, health sciences, public service, libraries, budgetary planning, faculty, personnel, intra-college relations, interrelations between health delivery centers in the community, Center operations, and Center projects.

  Section 2. Disposition of Requests for Action

  Written requests from the Faculty Senate to the Chief Academic Officer of OSU-CHS or from the Chief Academic Officer of OSU-CHS to the Faculty Senate shall be answered in writing within thirty (30) calendar days. The report shall include rationale for actions taken or not taken.

• Article X

  Parliamentary Authority

  The rules contained in the current edition of Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised shall govern the General Faculty and the Faculty Senate in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with this Charter and any special rules of order which the General Faculty may adopt.

• Article XI

  Amendment of the Charter

  Section 1. Amending

  This Charter may be amended with the following procedure:

  1. Amendments to this Charter can be proposed by any committee or member of the General Faculty and shall be submitted to the Faculty Senate for review and approval.
  2. Amendments approved by the Faculty Senate shall be submitted to members of the General Faculty at least (fifteen) 15 days prior to a vote of the General Faculty.
  3. Amendments must be approved by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the General Faculty.

  Section 2. Effective Date

  Amendments to this Charter shall be effective after approval by the General Faculty and the Chief Academic Officer of CHS.

• Article XII

  Adoption

  This Charter shall become effective after it has been approved by the faculty and Board of Regents. Faculty approval shall consist of a majority of General Faculty voting by written ballot.

   

  Review History

  • Charter approved by the Board of Regents, January 10, 1985.
  • Revised Charter approved by the General Faculty on November 29, 1990, and by the Chief Academic Officer, on December 13, 1990.
  • Revised Charter approved by the General Faculty on May 15, 2003 and by the Chief Academic Officer on June 6, 2003.
  • Revised Charter approved by the General Faculty on May 13, 2009.
  • Revised Charter approved by the General Faculty on September 16, 2013 and by the Chief Academic Officer on July 25, 2013.
  • Revised Charter approved by the General Faculty on May 11, 2017 and by the Chief Academic Officer on May 24, 2017.
  • Revised Charter approved electronically by the General Faculty on January 23, 2020 and by the Chief Academic Officer on February 4, 2020.
  • Revised Charter approved electronically by the General Faculty on May 31, 2022.