Common use of Faculty Advisory Councils Clause in Contracts

Faculty Advisory Councils. 1. A Faculty Advisory Council shall be established in each school for the purpose of providing faculty consultation, advice and recommendations to site administration with respect to local school policies, issues and problems, including but not limited to curriculum and instruction matters. Councils are not to deal with collective bargaining matters, contract or grievance matters, personnel matters or employee discipline matters, except as specified elsewhere in this Agreement. 2. The existence and operation of Councils shall not preclude individual faculty members from expressing their own opinions on any matters, or interfere with normal communication between administrators and faculty members, nor are councils intended to perform the functions of department chairpersons. Unit members are encouraged to identify themselves when submitting concerns to the FAC, however, they may submit their concerns anonymously. 3. Unscheduled extended duty units shall be jointly assigned by the FAC and the principal. 4. Faculty Advisory Councils shall be the official representatives for unit members at each site. It will be their duty to conduct secret ballot elections to make certain that consensus exists among a sixty-six percent (66%) majority of the affected faculty concerning planned changes being considered as a result of the restructuring process. They will continue to conduct elections throughout the restructuring process whenever it is determined that a consensus count is needed. In the process of restructuring, if a school decides on a system of site-based, decision-making, then the FAC will be involved only in those issues which affect the school climate, most especially in those issues which impact on staff working relationships within the school. 5. Councils shall be comprised of one (1) representative for each seven (7) unit members, but shall have a minimum of three (3) members, one of whom must be either an Association Site Representative, Association Chair, or Member of SMMCTA Board of Directors. FAC members must have tenure. 6. Council representatives shall be elected annually, during the first two (2) weeks of school, following nominations from the faculty. All elections are to be by secret ballot, supervised jointly by the Association Site Representative and the site administrator. 7. Each Council shall select its own chairperson by secret ballot. The chairperson shall schedule and conduct meetings of the Council. In addition, the Council and the site administrator shall meet together at reasonable intervals and mutually convenient times (as much as monthly) upon the request of either, and may meet more frequently if mutually desired.