There are four general councils and committees of the faculty:
(1) The Council on Reviews (COR) consisting of the Promotions Committee and the Reappointments Committee
(2) The Educational Affairs Committee (EAC)
(3) The Faculty Council, encompassing the Committee on Conference with the Trustees and the Committee on Finance and Planning
(4) The Appeals Council
These bodies advise the administration and faculty on policy and act for the faculty in specified areas.
Any council may establish standing or ad hoc committees, in addition to those designated below, which may include persons who are not members of the parent body. All such committees will report to the faculty through the parent group. Any positions on such committees are filled through appointment by the Committee on Committees. The president is a member, ex officio, of all councils and committees.
No member of the faculty may serve simultaneously on more than one of the following committees: the Council on Reviews, the Educational Affairs Committee, the Faculty Council, and the Appeals Council. Faculty members who will be on leave during the year in which a term is scheduled to begin are ineligible for election.
After serving the equivalent of a full term (three years) on the Teaching Resources Committee and/or Educational Affairs Committee, or Faculty Council, faculty members may annually choose to have their names removed from the ballots for all elected committees for two years. Time spent on leave does not count towards this grace period. Members of the faculty will not be obligated to serve for more than a total of nine years (3 full terms) on any combination of these committees.
After three years of service on either the Promotions Committee or the Reappointments Committee, or the former Committee on Reappointment, professors may annually choose to have their names removed from the ballots for all elected committees for three years. Time spent on leave does not count towards this grace period.
After serving a total of six years (two full terms) on either the Promotions Committee or the Reappointments Committee, or the former Committee on Reappointment, professors may annually choose to have their names removed from the ballots for these committees for the rest of their employment at Middlebury College. A faculty member elected to a two- or three-year term on the Promotions Committee or the Reappointments Committee, who will satisfy the six-year lifetime service limit on those committees before the expiration of the elected term, may step down from the Promotions Committee or the Reappointments Committee at the end of the academic year in which the six-year limit is reached. Faculty who wish to exercise this option must notify the Office of the Dean of the Faculty by no later than November 1 in the year at the end of which they will step down.
A faculty member may request to be exempted from the ballots for elected committees and from selection for standing appointed committees, on an annual basis, for a period of time not to exceed four years in a career. Normally no more than two of these four years may be consecutive.
To be exempt from committee service during the following year, faculty members must normally notify the dean of the faculty by November 1.
Faculty members elected to two- or three-year committee terms must normally wait until the completion of the term to which they were elected before being able to avail themselves of this exemption. Such faculty members may, however, request to have their names removed from the ballots for elected committees that take precedence, in terms of the order of election, over the committee on which they are currently serving. If the request is made before the final year of a two- or three-year elected term of service, it will not count toward the total number of years for which one may request exemption from committee service.
If more than 12 percent of the full-time faculty request exemptions for a given year, then the requests will be honored on the basis of seniority, as determined by date of first appointment to the faculty.
Elections for all elected faculty councils and committees will take place on-line. The Office of the Dean of the Faculty will provide the Office of the Secretary of the College with a list of those members of the faculty, including faculty on leave, who are eligible to vote in the elections. Faculty members must enter their ID number and PIN to authenticate their identity when voting, but this information will not be associated with the votes cast.
The on-line polls for each election will remain open for a minimum of two working days, defined as days on which classes are scheduled, weekdays during the period between Winter Term and the spring semester, or weekdays during the examination period.
The order of committee elections is as follows: Promotions Committee, Reappointments Committee, Educational Affairs Committee, Faculty Council, Appeals Council. The schedule for elections in each academic year shall be determined by the secretary of the College in consultation with the Faculty Council. The elections for the Council on Reviews and the Educational Affairs Committee shall be scheduled whenever possible to be completed before spring recess.
1. The Promotions Committee of the Council on Reviews
a. Function
The Promotions Committee advises the president on each case in which a faculty member is under review for promotion to tenure or to full professor, or is facing dismissal.
The provost sits with the Promotions Committee. It is expected that during the course of a review for tenure, the president shall become familiar with the scholarship and teaching record of the candidate. All decisions and recommendations by both the committee and the president shall be made and justified in accordance with the provisions and procedures specified in the Rules of Appointment and Tenure in the Faculty Handbook chapter of this handbook.
The committee as part of the Council on Reviews shall hold an annual open meeting to explain its procedures and to respond to questions and concerns from the faculty.
b. Election
i. The committee will consist of three tenured full professors from the full-time teaching faculty elected by the faculty. No more than two members of the committee may be from one division and no more than one from a department. Each year a member of the faculty will be elected to a three-year term.
ii. No faculty member may serve concurrently as a dean or other administrative officer and a member of the Promotions Committee.
iii. A faculty member elected to a two- or three-year term on the Promotions Committee who is on leave before the expiration of the elected term must serve the remaining years of the elected term after returning from leave.
iv. Promotions Committee members will be given reduced teaching loads, as determined by the dean of the faculty.
v. All balloting for the Promotions Committee will be conducted on-line and coordinated by the secretary of the College.
vi. The preliminary ballot will list all tenured full professors, with the exception of current members of the Council on Reviews, those who will be on leave, and those made ineligible or whose obligation is waived because of stipulations set forth above. On the preliminary ballot, faculty members may vote for a maximum of two candidates for each position to be filled.
If a candidate receives a majority of the votes cast on the preliminary ballot, and the number of votes equals or exceeds 35 percent of the current voting membership of the faculty, he or she will be declared elected. If no one is elected to the Promotions Committee on the preliminary ballot, a run-off ballot will be distributed listing in alphabetical order the three candidates who received the greatest number of votes on the preliminary ballot. If no one receives a majority of the votes cast on the run-off ballot, a final ballot will be distributed, listing those two who received the greatest number of votes on the run-off ballot. For any second vacancy on the Promotions Committee, a subsequent election will be held. A ballot will be distributed listing in alphabetical order those three faculty members, still eligible for election to the Promotions Committee, who received the greatest number of votes on the preliminary ballot. If no one receives a majority on this ballot, another ballot will be taken listing those two who received the greatest number of votes on the preceding ballot. For any third vacancy on the Promotions Committee, a separate election will be conducted. If no one is elected on the run-off ballot, a final ballot will list the top two eligible candidates.
vii. A member of the Educational Affairs Committee, Faculty Council, or Appeals Council who is elected to the Promotions Committee will relinquish his or her position on the other committee.
2. The Reappointments Committee of the Council on Reviews (COR)
a. Function
The Reappointments Committee advises the president in all reappointment decisions. This committee also conducts ten-year reviews. The provost sits with the Reappointments Committee. All decisions and recommendations by both the committee and the president shall be made and justified in accordance with the provisions and procedures specified in the Rules of Appointment and Tenure in the Faculty Handbook chapter of this handbook.
The committee as part of the Council on Reviews shall hold an annual open meeting to explain its procedures and to respond to questions and concerns from the faculty.
b. Election
i. The committee will consist of three tenured full professors from the full-time teaching faculty elected by the faculty. No more than two members of the committee may be from one division and no more than one from a department. Each year a member of the faculty will be elected to a three-year term.
ii. No faculty member may serve concurrently as a dean or other administrative officer and a member of the Reappointments Committee.
iii. A faculty member elected to a two- or three-year term on the Reappointments Committee who is on leave before the expiration of the elected term must serve the remaining years of the elected term after returning from leave.
iv. Reappointments Committee members will be given reduced teaching loads, as determined by the dean of the faculty.
v. All balloting for the Reappointments Committee will be conducted on-line and coordinated by the secretary of the College.
vi. The preliminary ballot will list all tenured full professors, with the exception of current members of the Council on Reviews, those who will be on leave, and those made ineligible or whose obligation is waived because of stipulations set forth above. On the preliminary ballot, faculty members may vote for a maximum of two candidates for each position to be filled.
If a candidate receives a majority of the votes cast on the preliminary ballot, and the number of votes equals or exceeds 35 percent of the current voting membership of the faculty, he or she will be declared elected. If no one is elected to the Reappointments Committee on the preliminary ballot, a run-off ballot will be distributed listing in alphabetical order the three candidates who received the greatest number of votes on the preliminary ballot. If no one receives a majority of the votes cast on the run-off ballot, a final ballot will be distributed, listing those two who received the greatest number of votes on the run-off ballot. For any second vacancy on the Reappointments Committee, a subsequent election will be held. A ballot will be distributed listing in alphabetical order those three faculty members, still eligible for election to the Reappointments Committee, who received the greatest number of votes on the preliminary ballot. If no one receives a majority on this ballot, another ballot will be taken listing those two who received the greatest number of votes on the preceding ballot. For any third vacancy on the Reappointments Committee, a separate election will be conducted. If no one is elected on the run-off ballot, a final ballot will list the top two eligible candidates.
vii. A member of the Educational Affairs Committee, Faculty Council, or Appeals Council who is elected to the Reappointments Committee will relinquish his or her position on the other committee.
3. Educational Affairs Committee (EAC)
a. Function
The Educational Affairs Committee has two functions of equal importance: (1) to oversee the general direction of the College curriculum and (2) to make recommendations on staffing and the allocation of teaching resources. The Educational Affairs Committee considers proposals for new majors and programs, changes in degree requirements and the College academic calendar, and other matters of general educational policy, and refers the proposals it approves to the full faculty for further action. The committee considers proposals for new and restored positions on the faculty and for replacement staffing for faculty on leave, and recommends the proposals it approves to the president or the president's designate. The committee's purpose is to provide guidance and direction to the manner in which resources are allocated to carry out Middlebury's educational mission as a liberal arts college.
b. Composition
The Educational Affairs Committee will be composed of seven members: five elected, full-time, tenured members of the faculty; and two academic administrators appointed by the president, one of whom will chair the committee. When voting is necessary, only the elected faculty members shall vote, except in the case of a tie, when the chair shall cast a deciding vote. Faculty members elected to the Educational Affairs Committee normally shall not, during their term of office, serve on any other committee or serve as chair of a department or division. In carrying out its functions, the Educational Affairs Committee shall create, as it deems necessary, ad hoc committees to obtain information and recommendations about particular issues. The composition of such ad hoc committees shall be at the discretion of the Educational Affairs Committee, except that ad hoc committees on matters of general educational policy or academic regulations shall always include at least one student member.
The Student Government Association shall be responsible for the appointment of four student representatives to serve as members of a Student Educational Affairs Committee. The Student EAC shall invite one faculty member of the EAC to serve in an advisory capacity. The EAC will meet with the Student EAC at least once a month to discuss matters of general educational policy. The EAC will consult with the Student EAC prior to presenting proposals that require approval of the full faculty, such as proposals for new majors and programs, changes in degree requirements and the College academic calendar, and other matters of general educational policy. The Student EAC may initiate proposals for consideration by the EAC. The members of the Student EAC are permitted to attend monthly faculty meetings, with the right to speak during consideration of curricular measures presented by the Educational Affairs Committee.
c. Election
i. The five elected members of the Educational Affairs Committee shall be elected at large by all voting members of the faculty. No more than two members of the committee may be from one division, and no more than one from a department. The elected members shall serve three-year terms. Each year EAC members will be relieved from teaching one semester course and one winter term course.
ii. All balloting for the EAC will be conducted on-line and coordinated by the secretary of the College.
iii. The preliminary ballot will list all tenured members of the full-time teaching faculty, with the exception of the members of the Council on Reviews and those who will be on leave during the following year. On the preliminary ballot, faculty members may vote for a maximum of two candidates for each position to be filled.
iv. If a candidate receives a majority of the votes cast on the preliminary ballot, and the number of votes equals or exceeds 35 percent of the current voting membership of the faculty, he or she will be declared elected. If no one is elected to the EAC on the preliminary ballot, a run-off ballot will be distributed listing in alphabetical order the three candidates who received the greatest number of votes on the preliminary ballot, or, if there are two open positions on the EAC, the six candidates who received the greatest number of votes on the preliminary ballot. If no one receives a majority of the votes cast on the run-off ballot, a final ballot will be distributed, listing those two (or four, if there are two vacancies on the committee) candidates who received the greatest number of votes on the run-off ballot. If there are two open positions of different lengths on the EAC, the person receiving the most votes will be elected to the longest term position, and the person receiving the second highest number of votes will be elected to the second-longest term position. For any third vacancy on the EAC, a separate election will be conducted. If no one is elected on the run-off ballot, a final ballot will list the top two eligible candidates.
v. A member of the Faculty Council or Appeals Council who is elected to EAC will relinquish his or her position on the other committee.
d. Procedures
i. Educational Policy
(a) All proposals affecting general educational policy will be recommended to the faculty through the Educational Affairs Committee.
(b) The Educational Affairs Committee will make recommendations regarding general educational policy at one faculty meeting, and such recommendations will be discussed in divisions prior to the next faculty meeting.
(c) Such matters may not be initiated at the May meeting of the faculty.
ii. Programs and Majors
(a) The Educational Affairs Committee will recommend for approval by a vote of the faculty any new program or major or the elimination of any existing program or major.
(b) Proposals for new programs and majors to be introduced in the following year's catalog should be submitted, with divisional approval, to the Educational Affairs Committee no later than November 15. All proposals for new programs and majors recommended by the Educational Affairs Committee will be presented to the full faculty for a vote.
iii. Academic Regulations
(a) Proposals for changes in academic regulations included in the catalog and the College Handbook will be referred to the Educational Affairs Committee.
(b) The Educational Affairs Committee may either consider these proposals itself, refer them to an ad hoc committee, or refer them to the Curriculum Committee. Recommendations regarding changes in academic regulations may be brought directly to the faculty for a vote by an ad hoc committee or by the Curriculum Committee.
e. Standing Committees
The various standing committees will keep the Educational Affairs Committee informed of their activities through minutes of all their meetings. In a given year the EAC may also decide to concentrate its attention on the issues arising before a particular standing committee: at the EAC's request, one of its members may be named to sit on such a committee and to serve as a liaison between the two groups. The standing committees include:
i. Curriculum Committee
(a) Composition: the dean of curriculum, who is chair, four faculty members from different divisions, and two student members, elected by the Student Government Association.
(b) Function: To approve or reject requests for additions, deletions, or alterations of courses that have been recommended by the appropriate divisions and/or departments; to act upon proposed changes in requirements for programs, majors, and minors; to exercise general oversight of the distribution requirement and the cultures and civilizations requirement; to exercise general oversight of the first-year seminar program; to undertake responsibility for the administration of an effective and well-balanced winter term program; to approve, in consultation with the dean of the College or designee, proposals from students for Independent Scholar status. The divisions may propose to the Curriculum Committee that certain courses be given divisional designations rather than departmental letters. Such proposals require prior consent of the instructor's department and the division in which the course is to be offered.
(c) Procedure:
(1) Proposals for the addition of courses to the curriculum must be presented to the Curriculum Committee for approval. Proposed courses for the fall term should be submitted to the Curriculum Committee by March 1. Proposed courses for the spring term should be submitted to the Curriculum Committee by October 1.
(2) Proposals for changes in requirements for programs, majors, and minors should be submitted to the Curriculum Committee by February 1.
(3) Disposition of proposals in categories (1) and (2) may take one of the following forms:
Changes approved unanimously by the committee become a part of the curriculum except those involving financial commitments or teaching staff.
All proposals other than those passed unanimously may, at the discretion of any member of the Curriculum Committee, be brought by the committee to the Educational Affairs Committee for action; if approved, they become part of the curriculum except those involving financial commitments or teaching staff.
The Curriculum Committee will consult the Educational Affairs Committee before acting on proposals which involve questions of financial commitments or teaching staff.
All approved changes will be reported to the faculty.
ii. Administration Committee
To consider any appeals regarding a student's status including readmission.
iii. Athletic Policy Committee
The committee has the responsibility to formulate and recommend to the faculty policy concerning intercollegiate athletics for Middlebury College undergraduates, in accordance with the rules of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, the Eastern College Athletic Conference, and the New England Small College Athletic Conference, in which Middlebury maintains membership. The committee acts as an executive committee. Its decisions are subject to review at the following faculty meeting through approval of the minutes of its meeting. As an executive committee, the committee has the following responsibilities: (a) approving all athletic schedules within the limits established by the faculty; (b) approving the number of classes missed for a particular event; (c) making exceptions to established faculty athletic policy; and (d) obtaining financial authorization from the administration prior to taking executive action or recommending action by the faculty. One of the faculty members of the committee shall serve as the College's NCAA faculty representative. The chair of the Athletic Policy Committee, who shall be a tenured member of the faculty, shall also serve as a member of the Physical Education and Athletics Committee on Reappointment (PEACOR).
iv. Preprofessional Committees
To prepare committee recommendations; to assist students in their applications to medical, dental, engineering, and other professional schools.
v. Teacher Education Committee
To work with the director of teacher education in an advisory capacity. The committee consists of the director of teacher education and two faculty members.
vi. Information Services Committee
The committee is charged with reviewing and recommending priorities and policies about the acquisition, deployment, use, and support of library, media, and computing resources.
vii. Off-Campus Study (Programs Abroad Committee)
To review, appraise, and approve or disapprove all student applications for a leave of absence to study off campus. The committee shall be composed of two members of the faculty, one of whom is from the foreign language division, the director of off-campus study, and two senior students who have participated in off-campus programs.
viii. Career Services Advisory Committee
To work with the executive director of career services in an advisory capacity. The committee consists of the executive director and two faculty members.
ix. Honorary Degree Committee
Two faculty members will be appointed to serve on the trustee committee that recommends to the president candidates for honorary degrees and Commencement speakers.
3. The Faculty Council; The Committee on Conference with the Trustees, and The Committee on Finance and Planning
a. Function
The council will advise the president and serve as a channel of communication between the faculty and the president. Three of its members will also serve as a Committee on Conference with the Trustees. The other three will also serve as a Committee on Finance and Planning. The council will
i. Meet with the president or the provost at least once a month. It may, through its secretary, request meetings with the president at other times.
ii. Advise the president concerning allocations of space.
iii. Advise the president on academic administrative appointments.
iv. Consider items referred to it by the faculty and report to the faculty its recommendations.
v. Keep permanent records of all council proceedings. It will upon request of any member take a formal vote on any matter.
vi. Report to the faculty its deliberations at the earliest faculty meeting and subsequent to each council meeting.
vii. Act, with the advice of the provost, as a Committee on Committees. The Committee on Committees will appoint the faculty members to all regular standing committees and subcommittees. The council will determine terms of appointment to councils and committees and announce these to the faculty. It may recommend to the faculty the reconstruction or the abolition of committees. In this function, the council's actions are subject to ratification of the faculty.
viii. Act, through three of its members, as a Committee on Conference with the Trustees. This subcommittee will meet at least twice a year (more often if asked to do so by the council) with the Trustee Committee on Conference to discuss matters of mutual concern. The secretary of the council will also serve as chair of the Committee on Conference with the Trustees.
ix. Act, through the other three of its members, as a Committee on Finance and Planning. This subcommittee will
(a) Advise the president on faculty salaries, benefits, general financial planning, and long-range priorities.
(b) Meet with the president, the provost, the Educational Affairs Committee, and other members of the administration each spring to discuss faculty salaries, benefits, general financial planning, and long-range priorities.
(c) Organize an informational meeting and discussion session for the faculty normally in October to consider faculty salaries, benefits, general financial planning, and long-range priorities.
(d) Follow up on the October meeting with recommendations to the administration by December.
(e) If called upon to do so by the Faculty Committee on Conference, join that committee in meeting with the Trustees' Conference Committee.
(f) Report to the faculty as appropriate, but at least twice each year. Provide the faculty with information about faculty salaries, benefits, general financial planning, and long-range priorities, and seek faculty input on these matters.
(g) Meet at least once a year with the Staff Council.
b. Composition
i. The council will consist of four tenured and two nontenured members. A member of the faculty must have completed two years of full-time faculty status at Middlebury before his or her elected term begins. A member of the Faculty Council may not serve on the Council on Reviews, the Educational Affairs Committee, or the Appeals Council.
ii. The council will choose a Committee on Conference with the Trustees and a Committee on Finance and Planning from its members. It will elect as secretary one of its tenured members, who also will serve as the chair of the Faculty Conference Committee component. It also will elect a chair of the Committee on Finance and Planning. The secretary of the council, in consultation with the provost and the council, will prepare an agenda for each monthly meeting. The secretary of the council may call additional meetings of the council for the purpose of preparing an agenda.
iii. Term of Election: Normally, both tenured and nontenured members of the faculty will serve for three-year terms. A nontenured member who receives tenure during his or her term will complete the term as a tenured member, and the resulting vacancy in the nontenured ranks will be filled by election, as specified below.
c. Election
All balloting for Faculty Council will be conducted on-line and coordinated by the secretary of the College. A preliminary ballot will list all tenured members of the faculty, except members of the Council on Reviews and the Educational Affairs Committee, and all eligible nontenured members of the faculty. Members of the faculty in their first or second year of appointment are not eligible for election, nor are those on part-time, associate, visiting, or other special appointments, or those who are currently under tenure review. Full-time members of the department of physical education are eligible for election to Faculty Council in the nontenured category after two or more years of service on the faculty. Also, faculty who will be on leave during the year in which a term is scheduled to begin are ineligible for election.
Depending on how many people are to be elected in each category (tenured or nontenured) in any one year, the faculty will be asked on the preliminary ballot to name twice that number from all eligible faculty members. A final ballot will be distributed after the preliminary ballot has been counted. Of those people who received the most votes on the preliminary ballot, the names of twice as many people as need to be elected in each category will be listed. On the final ballot, voting faculty will be asked to name the exact number of people to be elected. Those people with the highest number of votes in their respective categories will be elected to available positions, with the person receiving the most votes elected to the longest term position, the person receiving the next highest number of votes elected to the second-longest term position, etc. In case of a tie or ties, a run-off ballot will be conducted.
A member of the Appeals Council who is elected to the Faculty Council will relinquish his or her position on the other committee.
4. The Appeals Council and Appeal Committees
a. Function
The Appeals Council will form an Appeal Committee to hear the case of any faculty member who believes that his or her non-reappointment is based on grounds involving procedural errors that may have influenced the Promotions Committee or the Reappointments Committee and/or the president, or violations of academic freedom, as outlined in the Rules of Appointment and Tenure, Appeal Procedures, in the Faculty Handbook chapter of this handbook.
b. Election of Appeals Council
The faculty will elect five tenured faculty to serve as an Appeals Council. The Appeals Council will select a secretary. All tenured members of the faculty, except the members of the Council on Reviews, the Educational Affairs Committee, and the Faculty Council, and administrative officers, are eligible for election to the Appeals Council. No two members of the Appeals Council may be from the same department.
All balloting for the Appeals Council will be conducted on-line and coordinated by the secretary of the College. Each year members of the faculty will be elected to three-year terms to fill vacant positions on the Appeals Council. A preliminary qualifying ballot will list all tenured members of the faculty, except the members of the Council on Reviews, the Educational Affairs Committee, and the Faculty Council, and administrative officers. People who will be on leave during the year in which a term is scheduled to begin are ineligible for election. On the preliminary ballot, faculty members may vote for a maximum of two candidates for each position to be filled. If a candidate receives a majority of the votes cast in this ballot, and the number of votes equals or exceeds 35 percent of the current voting membership of the faculty, he or she will be declared elected.
If no one is elected to the Appeals Council on the preliminary ballot, a run-off ballot will be distributed listing in alphabetical order the names of the three candidates receiving the greatest number of votes in the preliminary balloting. If no one receives a majority of the votes cast on this ballot, a final ballot will be taken, listing those two who received the greatest number of votes on the run-off ballot. If there is another vacancy, the remaining two names on the first ballot will be presented for election. If an additional vacancy must be filled, the third person on the first ballot will be declared elected.
c. Formation of an Appeal Committee
When an appeal is to be heard, the Appeals Council will form an Appeal Committee, choosing its chair and two other members by rotation from the Appeals Council. In no case will a member of an Appeal Committee be a member of the appellant's department. In the event of an appeal resulting from a negative PEACOR review, an additional member will be selected at random from the pool of eligible senior associates in athletics to serve on the Appeal Committee alongside two regular members of the Appeals Council. The selected senior associate in athletics should have no shared coaching responsibilities with the appellant. The Appeals Council will hear and act upon any request (whether by a panel member or by the appellant) that any member be disqualified from serving on an Appeal Committee; such request must be submitted to the Appeals Council within one week after the appellant has been notified of the Appeal Committee's membership.
5. Physical Education and Athletics Committee on Reappointment
The Physical Education and Athletics Committee on Reappointment (PEACOR) will be composed of the director of athletics, the senior woman administrator, a senior department member elected by the members of the department of physical education, the chair of the Faculty Athletic Policy Committee, and the dean of the College. This committee will conduct major reviews of faculty in the department of physical education in accordance with the provisions for "Review and Reappointment in the Department of Physical Education" included in the rules of reappointment and tenure.