Officer Job Descriptions

UAB Election Process - Officer Description

Job Description: Chair, Faculty Senate

1. Serve as Chair of the Faculty Senate from June 1 to May 31

2. Attend University of Alabama Board of Trustees meetings (Commencing at the September Board Meeting and ending at the June Board Meeting) (5 meetings; 1 ½ days each)
a. Give State of the University Address to the Board of Trustees at the meeting held at UAB (usually February)

3. Participate in/or and organize the agenda for a series of fixed meetings:
a. Faculty Senate Meeting (2nd Tuesday of each month): chair meeting (3 hours/month)
b. Faculty Senate Executive Committee Meeting (last Wednesday of each month); develop with Committee input the agenda for the Faculty Senate Meetings and the Faculty Senate Executive Committee/UAB President Meeting (3-4 hours/month)
c. Faculty Senate Executive Committee/UAB President Meeting (1st Tuesday of each month); chair meeting (2 hours/month)
d. Representative to the Executive Committee of the Academic Programs Council (consisting of the Provost, Deans, and Academic Unit Heads)(first and third Wednesdays of each month) (5 hours/month)
e. Attend key Senate Standing Committee meetings (1-3 hours/month)

4. Coordinate dissemination of information items to Faculty by working with the Secretary of the Faculty Senate and the Senate Administrative Secretary (4-6 hours/month)

5. Work collaboratively with Faculty Senate Standing Committees and the Faculty Policy and Procedures Committee (1-3 hours/month)

6. Deal effectively, objectively, and quickly with a number of ad hoc questions and issues as they arise (3-8 hours/month)

7. Assume responsibility for the budget allocated to the Faculty Senate and staffing of the Faculty Senate Office (1-2 hours/month)
8. Provide an annual performance evaluation for the Senate Administrative Secretary (2 hours/year)

9. Become a member of the Faculty Policy and Procedures Committee as Past-Chair (3-4 hours/month)
10. Work closely with the Chair-Elect and the Secretary of the Faculty Senate to facilitate a smooth transition (frequent phone calls, emails, & face-to-face; 2-4 hours/week)

11. Foster relationships with the Faculty Senate Presidents at the other University of Alabama System institutions (3 days)

12. Work on projects assigned by the UA System Office (2-4 days/year)

13. Work with the Higher Education Partnership on State initiatives to
strengthen UAB (1 day/year)

14. Represent UAB as a member of the Alabama Council of University Faculty Presidents (1 ½ days/year)
15. Represent UAB at the Alabama Higher Education Day in Montgomery (1 day/year)

16. Work with Dr. Scripa concerning the Faculty Senate budget. (1/2 day/year)

17. Serve on the University-wide committee – the Naming Committee and any other such committees as deemed appropriate for Faculty Senate representation (6 hours/year)

18. Note: The Faculty Senate Constitution (Section III.4.a) indicates that the Chair of the Senate serves on the President’s Executive Committee. This committee is no longer a University-wide committee, based on information from President Garrison and Provost Capilouto

This job description for the Chair was last reviewed and updated on May 26, 2004 by the Secretary of the Faculty.)

1. Attend the FSEC meeting (usually the 1st Tuesday of the month at 9:00 – 10:30 am) with the President and Provost. Take notes, but not official minutes and these notes are to be used only to assist the Senate Executive Committee to appropriately take follow up actions when needed. The minutes for this meeting are prepared by the President’s office and then forwarded to the Senate office (when received from the President’s office, these minutes are forwarded to members of the Senate Executive Committee and also posted on the Senate web page.) It is to be noted that often the discussions at this meeting are to be confidential and not distributed, therefore, the official minutes of the FSEC meeting with the President are approved by the President before forwarded to the Senate.
Estimated Time: 1.5 hours
2. The completed agenda for the Senate meeting to occur on the second Tuesday of each month is to be forwarded electronically to the Senate’s Office Associate and then forwarded to the UAB Reporter Editor. The agenda must be submitted to the UAB Reporter Editor by 10 am on Thursday morning.
3. Work with Office Associate to update the front page of the Senate web site.
Estimated Time: Less than 5 minutes.

1. On Monday check with the Senate’s Office Associate to be sure that any documents to be distributed at the Tuesday morning Senate meeting are copied and will be available at the meeting. Discuss any last minute arrangements needed for guest speakers and any equipment needs for the meeting
2. On Tuesday, obtain one copy of each handout document for attachment to the official minutes for the meeting. Work with the Senate’s Office Associate to assure the availability of the attendance log for senate meeting attendees and that the monthly data is posted to the database with senators/alternates listed by academic unit to quickly determine if each unit is represented at meetings.
3. Record the minutes of the Senate meeting following the agenda headings. Record the time the meeting started and when the meeting adjourned. Record the status of a quorum to assure that any votes are based on compliance with the bylaws.
4. Obtain permission from any speakers who have a Power Point presentation or other materials for the materials to be forwarded to the Senate office and posted on the Senate web page. The Senate’s Office Associate may obtain this permission when materials are sent to the Senate office for copying and distribution at the meeting.
5. The summary of the minutes must be prepared by the Wednesday morning and forwarded to the Chair, the Chair-elect and the Office Associate for review, feedback and then revision. This corrected summary of the minutes must be completed by Thursday morning and forwarded to the Senate office. The Senate’s Office Associate then forwards the Summary of the minutes to the Editor of the UAB Reporter, all senators and then posts on the Senate page.
6. By the end of the week, (or as soon as schedule permits) prepare the expanded minutes and forward to the Chair and Chair-elect for review. The headings of the expanded minutes must include the following: Call to Order/Quorum Status, Recognition of Visitors, Adoption of the Minutes from last Senate meeting, Chair Report, Guest Speaker if any, Standing Committee Reports, Other Activities, Open Forum, Announcements, Review of Action Items for the meeting, Review of Action Items for last month’s Senate meeting, Written Materials Distributed Listing, and Adjournment; Obtain the attendance information from the Senate’s Office Associate for inclusion in the expanded minutes.
Note: The Office Associate Assistant may also need to review these minutes depending on the events at the Senate meeting and to check any gaps in the notes of the Secretary.
7. Draft any letters/correspondence that is required as follow up actions based on decisions/actions at the Senate meeting. The cover letter should be printed on the Senate letterhead paper and the page should have a “form/fill in section” for Date and Decision of Approval or Disapproval so that Provost or President can return the cover- page to the Senate as notification of decision/action. For example, any Senate approved recommendations that are to be forwarded to the Provost a draft letter/memo should be prepared and forwarded to the Chair for review. Once the Chair has reviewed, then the correspondence is prepared on the Senate letterhead paper and the Chair’s signature is obtained. A copy is sent to the President, a copy is retained in the Senate office and the Secretary retains a copy. The Office Associate adds this correspondence information to the Senate tracking log database.
8. Work with the Office Associate to update the front page of the Senate web page.
Estimated Time: Senate Meeting Time = 1.5 hours; preparation of the summary of the minutes requires 1-2 hours depending on the events scheduled and the preparation of the expanded minutes is an additional 1-2 hours.

1. Prepare a draft agenda for the Week Four Executive Committee meeting. Forward this draft to the Chair and Chair-elect for review. This requires a review of all pending issues/topics and all minutes since the last Senate meeting.
2. Request reports from the Chairs of the Senate Standing Committees in preparation for the FSEC meeting in week four.
3. This agenda will include items for these meetings:
• The FSEC during Week Four.
• The next Senate meeting.
• The FSEC meeting with the President.
4. Work with the Office Associate to update the front page of the Senate web
page.
Estimated Time: Two hours.

1. Attend the FSEC meeting and prepare minutes for the meeting. These minutes are to be distributed to the Executive Committee members and posted on the Senate web page for all senators by the Office Associate.
2. Work with the Chair and Chair-elect to finalize the agenda for the next Senate meeting. This agenda must be submitted (by the Office Associate) to the UAB Reporter on the Thursday morning of the first week of the month. The agenda outline is to include:
Faculty Senate Meeting – Location – Date; Call to Order; Recognition of Visitors; Chair Report; Standing Committee Reports; Open Forum; Announcements and Adjournment. Additional headings may be required for guest speakers and other activities such as Academic Unit reports.
This finalized agenda and the finalized minutes of the previous month’s Senate meeting are forwarded to all Senators one week prior to the next month’s Senate meeting.
3. Request that the Office Associate forward a Senate meeting announcement for the next Senate meeting to the UAB Reporter. This announcement must include the date and location of the meeting.
4. Submit the finalized expanded minutes for the last Senate meeting to the Office Associate for distribution to senators.
5. Work with the Chair to finalize the topics that the Chair will forward to the President’s assistant for the FSEC with the President meeting that occurs in the first week of each month. The Chair of the Faculty interacts with the President’s office to finalize the agenda for the FSEC with the President held in the second week of the month.
6. Work with the Office Associate to update the front page of the Senate web page.
Estimated Time: 2-3 hours

1. Refer to the Elections Committee schedule of activities in the Secretary’s notebook.
2. These activities occur by the month and do not reoccur each month.
Estimated Time: Varies by the task required.

1. This review should occur in the fall term and in conjunction with the activities of the Governance and Operations Committee.
2. If changes were to be recommended to the Constitution and/or the Bylaws the Secretary would assist with the presentation of such information to the total faculty and/or to the senators.
Estimated Time: Varies by the task required.

Secretary of the Faculty - Duties/Actions/Responsibilities
Materials Summarized from C&B – Faculty Senate

1. Section II.1 – The officers of the faculty are …. A Secretary….
2. Section III.3 – Officers serve one-year terms as provided in the bylaws… The Secretary of the Faculty may serve a maximum of three successive one-year terms.
3. Section III.4.c – The Secretary must keep minutes of the meetings of the faculty and senate, which must be placed in the University Archives. The Secretary circulates announcements of meetings of the faculty and senate, conducts all referenda regarding proposed amendments to the constitution, keeps the official copy of the constitution and bylaws, takes the roll of senators at each meeting, oversees the election of senators in the constituent units, and chairs the Election Committee.
In the event that the Secretary fails to perform, or is unable to perform, his or her duties, the Chair must appoint an Acting Secretary to finish the term.
4. Section IV.7 - …. The Secretary of the Faculty are members of the senate
with voice and vote during their terms in office.
5. Section VI.2. …….the Secretary of the Faculty serves as Secretary of the Senate.
6. Section VI.5…….Secretary of the Faculty…..are the Senate Executive Committee.
7. Section VII.1 The Secretary and the Governance and Operations Committee of the senate, with the Secretary as chair, shall serve as the Elections Committee to supervise and certify the nomination and election of officers of the faculty and members of the senate, and for other purposes, as provided by the bylaws.
8. Section IX.1 Amendments to this constitution may be proposed by either a two-thirds affirmative vote of the members of the senate or by a petition to the Secretary of the Faculty signed by five per cent of the faculty. The Secretary must submit proposed amendments to the faculty for their vote.

1. Section I.2 Terms for faculty officers……begin on June 1 (and end May 31).
2. Section I.3.c Under normal circumstances the time and place for senate meetings will be published in the UAB Reporter by the Secretary of the Senate one week before the meeting is to occur.
3. Section I.4.b. Each standing committee chair is responsible for giving advance notice to the Secretary of the Senate specifying the time and place of committee meetings.
4. Section I.5.b. The Secretary of the Senate must distribute the agenda for the next Senate meeting one week in advance of the meeting to all senators, alternate senators, and ex officio members of the senate.
5. Section I.7.a. Minutes of all senate meetings and senate executive committee meetings should be furnished to all senators as early as possible. Distribute the minutes electronically to Senators and post the minutes on the Senate web page.
6. Section I.7.c. Committee records, including reports to the senate, should be transmitted to the Secretary of the Senate no later than the end of each senate year and must be available for inspection.
7. Section I.10.a. The Secretary of the Senate records and tallies individual absences.
8. Section I.10.b. When a senator has been absent from three regularly scheduled meetings during one senate year and has not sent an alternate senator, the Secretary shall notify the Chair of the Governance and Operations committee.
9. Section II.2.b. The Secretary of the Senate, with the assistance of the Senate Governance and Operations Committee, oversees the election of members to the Faculty Policies and Procedures Committee.
10. Section III.10. The Secretary of the Faculty must prepare a list of senate nominees ranked in descending order of the number of votes received in the election for each constituent unit….
11. Section IV.2. Action to recall a senator may be initiated by a petition of not less than one-third of the faculty eligible to vote in the senator’s constituent unit. Upon receiving this petition, the Secretary must promptly notify the senator, and send out ballots to the appropriate constituency….

C. Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised
[Selections from pp. 449-51 that seem not to be duplicated or superseded by the Senate Constitution and Bylaws]
1. The secretary is the recording officer of the assembly and the custodian of its records, except those specifically assigned to others, …..
2. The duties of the secretary are:
• 5) To notify officers, committee members, and delegates of their election or appointment, to furnish committees with whatever documents are required for the performance of their duties, and to have on hand at each meeting a list of all existing committees and their members.
• 7) To sign all certified copies of acts of the society, unless otherwise specified by the bylaws.
• 8) To maintain record book(s) in which the bylaws, special rules of order, standing rules, and minutes are entered, with any amendments to these documents properly recorded, and to have the current record book(s) on hand at every meeting.
• 9) … to conduct the general correspondence of the organization—that is, correspondence, which is not a function proper to other offices, or to committees….
3. When reports are received form committees, the secretary should record
on them the date they were received and what further action was taken on
them, and preserve them among the records.
4. The rules for minutes as outlined in Robert’s Rules should be consulted for minutes’ contents.

D. General Duties of Secretary
1. Secretary works with the Senate’s Office Associate to have
senator attendance tracking (ongoing for all meetings) at meetings done by monthly meetings and
with the data compiled by senators and alternates from each academic
unit. The goal is to determine that each academic unit is represented at the
monthly meetings.
2. Secretary maintains a notebook of senate related documents to be transferred to the newly elected Secretary. This notebook must include minutes (Senate meetings – summary submitted to UAB Reporter and the expanded minutes distributed to the Senators and posted on the Senate web page) of all senate related meetings (Executive Committee (FSEC), the FSEC with the President meetings (these minutes are generated by the President’s office and forwarded to the Senate following the monthly FSEC with the President and Provost. The Senate’s Office Associate posts all types of Senate related minutes, resolutions, and committee reports are posted on the Senate web page.
3. Secretary works with the Senate’s Office Associate to maintain the currency of the Senate web page and the links associated with the page.
4. Secretary works with the Senate’s Office Associate to maintain a copy of the Senate’s official files (including original and all amended versions of the Senate’s C&B) in the Senate office for at least a 5-year period of time. The Secretary and the Senate’s Office Associate prepare copies of the Senate files to be forwarded to the University Archives after retention in the office for 5 years (copies of all records are maintained in the Senate office) and a tracking database is maintained to document, which documents have been forwarded to the Archives and the listing of files maintained in the Senate office.
5. Secretary works with the Senate’s Office Associate to assure that all correspondence sent out of the Senate office/by Senate officers shall be logged into an electronic tracking database and a paper copy maintained in the files. This tracking log is to document:
• date correspondence mailed/sent electronically
• identification of the recipient
• identification of the sender
• reference to the purpose of the correspondence
• any attachments with identification of such
• outcome or response to the correspondence
This tracking log is to be monitored on a regular timeline to assure that
actions by the Senate are responded to and that the status of
recommendations or requests to the President/Provost are available to the
Chair and the Executive Committee.
6. The Secretary shall review all minutes of Senate related meetings on a regular basis to assure that any follow up actions are addressed by the Executive Committee.
7. The Secretary shall draft letters with recommendations of the Senate that are to be forwarded to the Provost and copied to the President. The Chair shall review and assist the Secretary to complete this type of correspondence in a timely manner.
8. The Secretary shall request reports from the Standing Committee chairs one week prior to the Executive Committee meetings to assist in the planning of the agenda for the Executive Committee and the next Senate meeting. The Secretary obtains an annual report from each chair of the standing committees and these reports should outline pending issues before each standing committee.
9. The Secretary prepares an annual report to the Senate for the May meeting.
10. The Secretary maintains a notebook of Senate materials to be passed to the incoming Secretary of the Senate.
11. The Secretary reviews the files and pending issues before the Senate with the incoming Secretary of the Senate.
12. Following the May Senate meeting, the Secretary reports to the Chair-elect the pending issues before the Senate and any pending recommendations that were forwarded to the Provost and President.

1. The regular meeting of the senate is on the second Tuesday of each month at 7:30 a.m. A quorum is based on summation of the four officers (chair, chair-elect, secretary, past-chair) and the total number of Senators from all 15 academic units and then the determination of a majority as 50% plus one. A meeting shall be called to order when a quorum of 18 members is achieved.

2. Every regular or special meeting of the Senate must adjourn two hours after the time
appointed for its beginning unless the time is extended by unanimous consent or by a
motion made and carried to extend the time.

3. A Senator unable to attend a meeting of the Senate must notify the Secretary of the
Senate that alternate senator is attending in place of the Senator who must be absent; however, if a Senator fails to notify the Secretary of the an absence, the ranking Alternate Senator present from the unit serves in the senator’s absence.

4. The Secretary must prepare a roll of the members of the senate and each senator must
sign the roll at each meeting. Alternate senators attending in place of a senator must sign the roll, indicating which senator he/she is replacing.

5. A draft copy of the summary of the minutes of the Senate will be published in the
UAB Reporter before Senate approval. Corrections will be published in the next
Senate meeting’s minutes and posted on the Senate web page..

6. Resolutions approved by the Executive Committee or other Standing Committees of
the senate for consideration at a meeting must be made available in writing at that
meeting. Approved resolutions are to be posted on the Senate web page by annual
year term of the Senate.

7. Any Senator, Alternate Senator, or person wishing to address the Chair (and thereby the Senate) should stand, if physically possible, to signal that intention and speak only when recognized by the Chair. The speaker is to state his/her name and the constituent unit affiliation and should remain standing while having the floor.

8. Any Senator making a main motion or substantive amendment, should be prepared,
upon request of the Chair, to submit the wording of that motion or amendment to the Secretary of the Senate in writing before a vote is taken.

These standing rules of the Senate were adopted by the senate following its initial organizational meeting and amended effective May 2004September 2001.

By Week of the Month – Activities That Must Occur on A Scheduled Basis
October 29, 2003 – Prepared by Secretary Greenup

2. The completed agenda for the Senate meeting to occur on the second Tuesday of each month is to be forwarded electronically to the Senate’s Office Associate and then forwarded to the UAB Reporter Editor. The agenda must be submitted to the UAB Reporter Editor by 10 am on Thursday morning.
Estimated Time: Less than 5 minutes.

1. On Monday check with the Senate’s Office Associate to be sure that any documents to be distributed at the Tuesday morning Senate meeting are copied and will be available at the meeting. Discuss any last minute arrangements needed for guest speakers and any equipment needs for the meeting
2. On Tuesday, obtain one copy of each handout document for attachment to the official minutes for the meeting. Work with the Senate’s Office Associate to assure the availability of the attendance log for senate meeting attendees and that the monthly data is posted to the database with senators/alternates listed by academic unit to quickly determine if each unit is represented at meetings.
3. Record the minutes of the Senate meeting following the agenda headings. Record the time the meeting started and when the meeting adjourned. Record the status of a quorum to assure that any votes are based on compliance with the bylaws.
4. Obtain permission from any speakers who have a Power Point presentation or other materials for the materials to be forwarded to the Senate office and posted on the Senate web page. The Senate’s Office Associate may obtain this permission when materials are sent to the Senate office for copying and distribution at the meeting.
5. The summary of the minutes must be prepared by the Wednesday morning and forwarded to the Chair, the Chair-elect and the Office Associate for review, feedback and then revision. This corrected summary of the minutes must be completed by Thursday morning and forwarded to the Senate office. The Senate’s Office Associate then forwards the Summary of the minutes to the Editor of the UAB Reporter, all senators and then posts on the Senate page.
6. By the end of the week, (or as soon as schedule permits) prepare the expanded minutes and forward to the Chair and Chair-elect for review. The headings of the expanded minutes must include the following: Call to Order/Quorum Status, Recognition of Visitors, Adoption of the Minutes from last Senate meeting, Chair Report, Guest Speaker if any, Standing Committee Reports, Other Activities, Open Forum, Announcements, Review of Action Items for the meeting, Review of Action Items for last month’s Senate meeting, Written Materials Distributed Listing, and Adjournment; Obtain the attendance information from the Senate’s Office Associate for inclusion in the expanded minutes.
Note: The Office Associate Assistant may also need to review these minutes depending on the events at the Senate meeting and to check any gaps in the notes of the Secretary.
7. Draft any letters/correspondence that is required as follow up actions based on decisions/actions at the Senate meeting. The cover letter should be printed on the Senate letterhead paper and the page should have a “form/fill in section” for Date and Decision of Approval or Disapproval so that Provost or President can return the cover- page to the Senate as notification of decision/action. For example, any Senate approved recommendations that are to be forwarded to the Provost a draft letter/memo should be prepared and forwarded to the Chair for review. Once the Chair has reviewed, then the correspondence is prepared on the Senate letterhead paper and the Chair’s signature is obtained. A copy is sent to the President, a copy is retained in the Senate office and the Secretary retains a copy. The Office Associate adds this correspondence information to the Senate tracking log database.
Estimated Time: Senate Meeting Time = 1.5 hours; preparation of the summary of the minutes requires 1-2 hours depending on the events scheduled and the preparation of the expanded minutes is an additional 1-2 hours.

Job Description: Chair-Elect of the Faculty

1.Attend University of Alabama Board of Trustees meetings (5½ - 9 days/year, depending on whether one stays overnight)

a. Faculty Senate meetings (2nd Tuesday of each month); preside at meeting in absence of chair (3 hours/month)

b. Faculty Senate Executive Committee meeting (last Wednesday of each month); develop with Committee input the agenda for the Faculty Senate meetings and the Faculty Senate Executive Committee/UAB President meeting; preside at meeting in absence of chair (3-4 hours/month)

c. Faculty Senate Executive Committee/UAB President meeting (1st Tuesday of each month); preside at meeting in absence of chair (2 hours/month)

d. Attend meetings of the Academic Programs Council (and possibly APC Executive Committee) (1½-3 hours/month)

4. Collaborate with Chair of Faculty, Secretary of Faculty, and Executive Committee on Senate business (2 hours/week)
OPTIONAL ROLES:

1. Attend meetings of Alabama Council of University Faculty Presidents (1½ days/year)

This job description for the Chair-Elect was last reviewed on May 26, 2004 by the Secretary of the Faculty.

Job Description: Past Chair, Faculty Senate

1. Serve as Past Chair of the Faculty Senate from June 1 to May 31
2. Serve as the President Pro Tempore when the Chair and Chair-Elect are not able to attend scheduled meetings of the Faculty Senate and the Executive Committee. This is based on Section I.9 of the Bylaws as amended at the May 11, 2004 Senate meeting.
2. Participate in the agenda for a series of fixed meetings:
a. Faculty Senate Meeting, 2nd Tuesday of each month (2 hours/month)
b. Faculty Senate Executive Committee Meeting, last Wednesday of each month; participate in the development of the agenda for the Faculty Senate Meetings and the Faculty Senate Executive Committee/UAB President Meeting (1.5 hours/month)
c. Faculty Senate Executive Committee/UAB President Meeting, 1st Tuesday of each month (2 hours/month)
d. Serve as Senate representative to the FPPC, 3rd Friday of each month (2 hours/month)
3. Work closely with the Chair-elect, Chair and the Secretary of the Faculty Senate to facilitate an effective working relationship: phone calls, emails, & face-to-face (1 hour/week)
4. Carry out ad hoc assignments (1 hour/month)

This job description was last updated on May 26, 2004 by the Secretary of the Faculty.

Copyright © 2003 UAB Faculty Senate Latest Revision, August 16, 2004 For questions or comments about this page, contact Stephanie Belcher.

Copyright © 2003 UAB Faculty Senate
Latest Revision, August 16, 2004
For questions or comments about this page, contact Stephanie Belcher.