As published in the Athens State University (ASU) Employee Handbook, Part 6.9 and Part 7.1, academic policy-making is the responsibility of the Faculty as a part of the academic governance structure of the institution. Faculty members serve the student population and administration of Athens State University by establishing, reviewing, and revising academic policies pursuant to the institutional mission and the success of the degree programs offered by the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Education and the College of Business. The responsibilities of the Faculty in academic affairs and related academic matters are defined and published in the Employee Handbook: Part Seven – Faculty Governance, which covers the general role of the Faculty, the faculty constitution and by-laws, and the curriculum review process.

While the entire Faculty is charged with academic governance at Athens State University, the Faculty entrusts much of its management of academic affairs to the Faculty Senate. Although the entire Faculty convenes at least twice per normal academic year, the Faculty Senate meets at least once per month. Article III of the By-Laws of the ASU Faculty defines voting members of the Faculty as those faculty members who are not retired, adjunct or temporary. Furthermore, while Department Chairs are a part of the voting membership, College Deans are not. No later than April 1 of each academic year, the voting faculty elects 12 senators, four from each College, and from these 12 senators a presiding officer. These elected senators will act as the Faculty Senate for the next academic year. As specified in Article XI, paragraph B and C of the By-Laws, the election process is supervised by members of the Faculty Elections Committee, one of the standing committees of the Faculty.

The presiding officer presides over all meetings of the Faculty Senate, convocations of the entire Faculty and any special called meetings of the entire Faculty or Faculty Senate. In addition, the presiding officer represents the faculty on the President’s Administrative Council and assigns faculty members to standing committees based on their committee preferences and the applicable provisions in the By-Laws. The presiding officer also appoints a secretary who serves at all full-faculty and Faculty Senate meetings. As defined in Article XI, Paragraph G of the By-Laws, any member of the faculty has the right to present proposals before the Faculty Senate for consideration given the faculty member follows the guidelines specified in the By-Laws.

The Faculty has established several standing committees that act in an advisory capacity to the entire Faculty. These committees pursue permanently assigned duties as defined in Article IX of the By-Laws and other tasks as assigned by the Faculty or Faculty Senate. The standing committees are the Academic Affairs Committee, the Curriculum Committee, the Faculty Affairs Committee, the Learning Resources Committee, the Sabbatical Committee, the Curriculum Committee and the Faculty Elections Committee. In addition, the Faculty or Faculty Senate may establish ad hoc committees when needed.

Additional information on the role of the Curriculum Committee and the Curriculum Review Process can be found in the narrative for Comprehensive Standard 3.4.1.

In addition to the role of the Faculty in academic governance, individual faculty members may volunteer to serve on, or are appointed to serve on, a variety of University committees that have specific charges relating to various components of the University. Through these committees, many faculty members are involved in establishing and reviewing policies and taking part in various procedures that affect the operation and governance of the institution.

Nine faculty members, three from each College, constitute the University Peer Promotions Committee. As specified in the Employee Handbook, Part 6.8, two members are elected by the faculty in each College, while one member from each College is appointed by the College Dean. The Committee is charged with reviewing promotion applications and portfolios and providing the individual College Deans with written evaluations of the candidates from each College by December 15 each year.

In addition, faculty members serve on the Budget Advisory Committee (BAC), first established in fall 2009. Several faculty and staff members serve on this committee, which oversees the annual budgeting process and acts in an advisory capacity to the President. Additional information on the budgeting process can be found in the narrative for Core Requirement 2.5.