Graduate Faculty Rules and Regulations

Table of Contents

PURPOSE

RESPONSIBILITY AND AUTHORITY

MEMBERSHIP

ELECTION TO MEMBERSHIP

OFFICERS

THE GRADUATE COUNCIL

OFFICIAL MEETINGS

AMENDMENT TO THE RULES

 I.  PURPOSE

The purpose of the Graduate Faculty shall be:

A.  To implement the policies of the Board of Curators of the University of Missouri in the administration of graduate studies at Missouri University of Science and Technology.

B.  To create and maintain an environment which will encourage and implement the pursuit of scholarly work beyond the Baccalaureate degree. The evidence of successful pursuit of this purpose is the conferral of the Master's degree, the degree of Doctor of Engineering, or the degree of Doctor of Philosophy on scholars who have demonstrated that they have attained significantly greater competence in some discipline beyond the undergraduate level of achievement.

II. RESPONSIBILITY AND AUTHORITY

The Graduate Faculty, acting in accordance with the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Curators and with Campus Policy legislated by the General Faculty, is responsible for the establishment of the policies, rules, and regulations governing all Missouri University of Science and Technology graduate studies.  Specific functions of the Graduate Faculty are:

A.  To exercise responsibility for research and for creative or scholarly work at the graduate level and to make recommendations to the Chancellor and the General Faculty concerning the fostering of these activities.

B.  To have special regard for Campus problems involving graduate students, to make regulations concerning eligibility and requirements for graduate degrees, graduate certificate programs and graduate/undergraduate dual enrollment, and to consider and to act on recommended curricula and course offerings within the graduate programs.

C.  To make regulations regarding graduate admission.

D.  To recommend to the Chancellor, for presentation for approval to the General Faculty, names of acceptable candidates for graduate degrees.

III. MEMBERSHIP

A.  The membership of the Graduate Faculty shall consist of the following:  The President of the University of Missouri System, the Chancellor, the Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, the Vice Provost and Dean for College of Engineering and Computing, the Vice Provost and Dean of College of Arts, Science, and Education, the Vice Chancellor of Research, the Vice Provost of Graduate Education, the Vice Provost for Academic Support, the Vice Provost for Enrollment Management, Chairs of Departments authorized to offer graduate degree programs and/or graduate courses, and other members of the faculty at Missouri University of Science and Technology who are accepted under the rules of the Graduate Faculty to assume the responsibilities and authorities delegated to it.

Graduate Faculty membership will be approved automatically for those newly hired at a position of Assistant Professor or higher and holding the highest degree ordinarily awarded in the candidate's field.  Their membership will be subject to reappointment regulations (Article IV.D.).

B.  No person who is a candidate for a degree at the Missouri University of Science and Technology shall be eligible for membership in the Graduate Faculty.

C.  Other than individuals holding the administrative positions enumerated in Article III.A., the qualifications for membership in the Graduate Faculty shall be:

1.  The candidate shall hold the highest degree ordinarily awarded in his or her field.  Exceptions can be made on the recommendation of the Membership Committee of the Graduate Faculty or upon two-thirds vote of the members present and voting at a regular meeting or a special meeting called for that purpose.

2.  He or she shall hold a Tenured/Tenure-track position of Assistant Professor, Associate Professor, or Professor at the Missouri University of Science and Technology.

3.  He or she shall have shown evidence of activity in research or in creative or scholarly work beyond that comprised in earning his or her own higher degree.  Such evidence may consist of:

a.  Appropriate publications in refereed journals, or proceedings of technical or research conferences where the participants have been selected by a program committee.

b.  An active research program which has either received support on the basis of a research proposal judged by competent scholars, or which the Membership Committee of the Graduate Faculty, after careful consideration, evaluates to be of high quality.  If the program has been active for several years, it must have resulted in publications to be admissible as evidence.

c.  Teaching and development of new courses at the graduate level, which may include the authorship of textbooks.

D.  Associate Member:

1.  A person not satisfying the above criteria for membership may apply to become an Associate member.  Upon the recommendation of the Membership Committee and approval by the Graduate Faculty, associate membership will be granted.  Examples of such persons are research, adjunct, or visiting professors, lecturers, etc.  An Associate Member is a non-voting member with a term equal to the normal review period or the length of their stay at S&T, whichever is shorter.

2.  In the above, "non-voting" refers only to deliberations of the entire Graduate Faculty.  Associate members shall enjoy all other privileges and responsibilities of voting members, including the privilege to chair, serve on, and vote in graduate advisory committees.

E.  Terminal Appointments:

1.  Any member of the Graduate Faculty who is granted Emeritus status shall retain their existing membership rights and privileges for the remainder of their affiliation with the University. Emeritus faculty who wish to resign their membership in the Graduate Faculty may do so by notifying the Vice Provost of Graduate Education.

2. Any member of the Graduate Faculty who terminates employment with the University shall retain Associate Membership status for two (2) years after their departure from the University. Should they wish to extend this appointment further, they will need to apply for Associate Membership as outlined in Article III.D.

 F.  Removal of Membership:

A Department Chair may request that a faculty be removed from Graduate Faculty Membership or Associate Membership if they are found to no longer be meeting the requirements of membership as outlined in Articles III.C., III.D. To do so, they must submit an official petition for removal of membership including evidence and justification for the removal to the Office of Graduate Studies. Review of the petition will follow the same guidelines as outlined for a member not receiving a recommendation by the Membership committee as outlined in Article IV.D.

IV.  ELECTION TO MEMBERSHIP

A.  Petitions for membership in the Graduate Faculty shall be submitted to the Vice Provost of Graduate Education by the Chairs of the Departments concerned no later than the first day of October during the Fall Semester and the first day of March during the Spring Semester.  The petition shall be accompanied by evidence that the department chair feels necessary to substantiate the qualifications of the individual being considered for membership.

B.  The Membership Committee of the Graduate Faculty shall consider the petitions and submit the names of the candidates who meet the qualifications to the President of the Graduate Faculty along with the recommendation that they be elected to membership.  The President of the Graduate Faculty will then forward the recommendations of the Membership Committee to all members of the Graduate Faculty.

C.  The petitions and accompanying evidence of the candidates who are recommended for membership by the Membership Committee shall be made available to the members of the graduate faculty at least three days prior to the date of the membership election.

D.  Graduate Faculty members shall be reviewed six years after the initial appointment and every five years thereafter by the Membership Committee in order to ascertain whether the member is continuing to be active in graduate work.  The name of a member who, in the opinion of the membership committee, has ceased to meet the requirements as described in Section III.C.3a-c shall be submitted to the President of Graduate Faculty with the recommendation that their membership not be renewed provided the member in question does not withdraw their application before the membership election ballot is distributed.

   1.  In the event that a recommendation to not renew is made by the Membership Committee, the President of Graduate Faculty shall notify the member and the member's Department Chair to notify them of the recommendation. The member will be given a minimum of five working days to prepare a rebuttal to the Membership Committee's recommendation to be given to the President of Graduate Faculty.  If not done so already, the Department Chair will be asked to provide the name of a member of the Graduate Council to act as an advocate for the member filing the rebuttal.

   2.  The Membership Committee, Graduate Council advocate, and the President of Graduate Faculty will meet to consider the rebuttal to reach a final decision.  The recommendation from this group will then be forwarded to the member being considered for renewal and that member's Department Chair no later than five working days before the membership election ballot is distributed.

E.  All voting pertaining to the membership of individuals in the Graduate Faculty shall be by secret ballot.

V.  OFFICERS

A.  President:  The President of the Graduate Faculty shall be elected by the Graduate Faculty from among its members at the May meeting of the Graduate Faculty.  The term of office shall be for one year beginning on the first day of the academic year following the election.  If the President is vacated, the Secretary shall call a special meeting of the Graduate Faculty and elect a new President to serve the remainder of the term.  The duties of the President shall be:

1.  To preside at meetings of the Graduate Faculty.

2.  To prepare an agenda for Graduate Faculty meetings.

3.  To maintain current membership lists of the Graduate Faculty.

4.  To appoint an acting Secretary to record the minutes of the Graduate Faculty meetings when the elected Secretary is absent.

5.  To maintain files of Graduate Faculty minutes and committee reports or reference.

6.  To be the Chair of the Graduate Council.

B.  Secretary.  The Secretary of the Graduate Faculty shall be elected by the Graduate Faculty from among its members at the May meeting of the Graduate Faculty.  The term of office shall be for one year beginning on the first day of the academic year following the election.  If the position of Secretary is vacated, the President shall call a special meeting of the Graduate Faculty and elect a new Secretary to serve the remainder of the term.  The duties of the Secretary shall be:

1.  To record the minutes of Graduate Faculty meetings.

2.  To distribute copies of the minutes of Graduate Faculty meetings to members of the General Faculty.

3.  To be the Secretary of the Graduate Council.

C.  Parliamentarian.  The Parliamentarian of the Graduate Faculty shall be appointed by the President of the Graduate Faculty.  The parliamentarian of the Graduate Faculty shall also be the Parliamentarian of the Graduate Council.  The duties of the Parliamentarian shall be:

1.  To rule on points of order at Graduate Faculty and Graduate Council meetings.

2.  To ensure that Graduate Faculty and Graduate Council meetings are conducted according to Robert's Rules of Order.

VI.  THE GRADUATE COUNCIL

A.  Purpose:

1.  To provide a smaller representative body which is adequate to represent the opinion and philosophy of the membership of the Graduate Faculty.

2.  To provide the President of the Graduate Faculty with a means of continuously sampling Graduate Faculty attitudes concerning policy and procedures between regular meetings of the Graduate Faculty.

3.  To provide a forum for the development of changes in Graduate School procedures, policies, and programs, and to recommend action items to the Graduate Faculty.

B.  Organization.

1.  The Council shall consist of the President of the Graduate Faculty, as Chair, and one representative for each graduate degree granting program and from each department offering graduate courses (5000+ level) not otherwise represented.

2.  In May of alternate years, the Graduate Faculty by departments or programs, shall elect one of their members to serve a two year term on the Graduate Council commencing with the start of the next academic year.

Graduate Council Representatives  

3.  Committees.

a.  At the beginning of each academic year, the Chair of the Graduate Council shall appoint a Membership Committee and designate one member as Chair of the Committee.  The Membership Committee will be selected from departmental representative serving on the Graduate Council.  The Chair will attempt to select at least one individual from an engineering department, at least one from a science department, at least one from a department associated with arts, humanities and social sciences, and at least one from a business related department.  The department chair for each individual being reviewed for graduate faculty membership renewal may forward the name of a specific faculty member currently serving on the graduate council to serve as an advocate for the individual being reviewed.  The purpose of the advocate is to participate in the discussion when the candidate's dossier is being considered by the Membership Committee.  The advocate may participate in the discussion but will not be allowed to vote when the Membership Committee makes its recommendation to the Graduate Faculty.  

b.  As deemed necessary and at his or her discretion, the Chair of the Graduate Council may appoint other committees from the membership of the Graduate Council or Graduate Faculty.  All committees shall contain at least one individual from an engineering department, at least one from a science department, at least one from a department associated with arts, humanities and social sciences, and at least one from a business related department.

C.  Authority and Responsibilities

1.  The Graduate Council shall be responsible for analyzing, evaluating, preparing, and presenting to the Graduate Faculty that information which is required for its intelligent consideration of topics upon which action is required.

2.  The Graduate Council is an advisory body and possesses only that authority which is specifically delegated to it by the Graduate Faculty.

D.  Chair of the Graduate Council.  The President of the Graduate Faculty shall be the Chair of the Graduate Council.  The duties of the Chair of the Graduate Council shall be:

1.  To preside at Graduate Council meetings.

2.  To appoint an acting Secretary to record minutes of Graduate Council meetings when the elected Secretary is absent to ensure that matters brought before the Graduate Council and their disposition are recorded for future reference.

3.  To maintain current membership lists of the Graduate Council.

4.  To bring before the Graduate Council any matter requested by a member of the Graduate Faculty.

5.  To appoint and dissolve committees of the Graduate Council.

6.  To maintain files of the approved minutes of Graduate Council meetings and reports of Committees of the Graduate Council for reference.

7.  To present to the Graduate Faculty resolutions or referred items requiring action by the Graduate Faculty.

E.  Meetings of the Graduate Council.  The Chair of the Graduate Council shall call meetings of the Graduate Council on an as needed basis.  An agenda for the meetings shall be prepared and circulated to members of the Graduate Council at least two (2) days prior to the meetings.

VII.  OFFICIAL MEETINGS OF THE GRADUATE FACULTY

A.  Official meetings of the Graduate Faculty shall be of two types:

1.  Regular meetings.  Regular meetings of the Graduate Faculty shall be held, upon the call of the President of the Graduate Faculty, at least once each semester.  The call and agenda for the meeting shall be mailed to all members of the Graduate Faculty at least one week in advance of the meetings.

2.  Special meetings.  Special meetings are called by (a) the President of the Graduate Faculty as deemed necessary at his or her discretion or by (b) written petition of five (5) percent of the membership of the Graduate Faculty.  Special meetings shall be held within twenty (20) school days after the request has been made.  Special meetings shall be for a specific purpose, announced in advance by written notice to the Members, and no business other than that for which the meeting is called shall be transacted.

B.  Conduct of Meetings

1.  The President of the Graduate Faculty shall normally preside at all meetings of the Graduate Faculty.  In the absence of the President of the Graduate Faculty, the Chair of the Membership Committee shall preside.

2.  A quorum shall consist of those members in attendance when considering items included in an agenda sent to members at least one week in advance of the meeting.  No business shall be conducted on other items without a quorum consisting of fifty (50) percent of the members of the Graduate Faculty.

3.  Items of new business brought before the Graduate Faculty are normally referred by the President to the Graduate Council for consideration.  After due consideration, the Graduate Council shall present the item to the Graduate Faculty with their recommendation.

4.  Meetings shall be conducted according to Robert's Rules of Order.

5.  Official minutes shall be recorded for each meeting of the Graduate Faculty by the Secretary.  Minutes of all meetings shall be approved by the Graduate Faculty.

6.  Minutes of Graduate Faculty meetings shall be distributed to all members of the General Faculty within twenty (20) school days.

VIII.  AMENDMENTS TO THE RULES

A.  Additions to or deletions from these rules shall require approval by a majority of the Members of the Graduate Faculty.

B.  Voting shall be by secret ballot at an official meeting of the Graduate Faculty or by mail or e-mail ballot after the motion to amend is made at a duly called meeting.

May 2019