Agnes Scott College
PA-3: Inclusive and Participatory Governance
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.25 / 3.00 |
Susan
Kidd Executive Director Center for Sustainability |
Does the institution have formal participatory or shared governance bodies through which the following stakeholders can regularly participate in the governance of the institution?:
| Yes or No | |
| Students | Yes |
| Academic staff | Yes |
| Non-academic staff | Yes |
A brief description of the institution’s formal participatory or shared governance bodies:
Students: The main governing body for students is the college’s Student Government Association (SGA), which oversees student representation on campus. SGA is composed of elected students, who serve as the executives representing a range of student organizations. The SGA President attends all Board of Trustees meetings and reports on the work of SGA. They also summarize any comments and concerns from the student body to the Trustees. This reporting can lead to votes of support by the Trustees when they agree with the need to address any student concerns.
Academic Staff: The Faculty Executive Committee (FEC) is a group of faculty members elected annually to lead all faculty decision-making. There are also specific committees, each assigned with subjects to research and then report back their recommendations to the full faculty. The FEC also recruits and assigns faculty members to serve on all Trustee committees.
Non-Academic Staff: Agnes Scott has a strong Staff Council with elected representatives from all aspects of the college’s functions. This group elects their chairperson annually and they also select Staff Council members to serve on all Trustee committees. The Staff Council has been responsible for major decisions that positively impact the staff.
Total number of individuals on the institution’s highest governing body:
Number of students representing their peers as official members of the institution’s highest governing body:
Number of academic staff representing their peers as official members of the institution’s highest governing body:
Number of non-academic staff representing their peers as official members of the institution’s highest governing body:
Number of women serving as official members of the institution’s highest governing body:
Percentage of official members of the highest governing body that are women:
Website URL where information about the institution’s highest governing body may be found:
Does the institution host or support one or more formal bodies through which external stakeholders have a regular voice in institutional decisions that affect them?:
A brief description of the campus-community council or equivalent body that gives external stakeholders a regular voice in institutional decisions that affect them:
While Agnes Scott does not have institutional programs to engage with the residents of Decatur, the college does work to maintain a robust relationship with the City of Decatur and Dekalb County. This includes:
- Joint Climate Resilience Plan with the City of Decatur
- Agnes Scott representative on the Dekalb County Green Commission
- Agnes Scott’s Board of Visitors which includes community leaders who are briefed on the work of the college and are asked to contribute their ideas and advice on how to best inform the constituencies that they represent about the college.
Number of people from underrepresented groups serving as official members of the institution’s highest governing body.:
Website URL where information about the institution’s governance structure is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
A faculty member, staff member, and student are selected to serve as official non-voting members of each of the Board of Trustees committees (four in total) by their respective governance bodies (FEC, Staff Council, and SGA - as referenced in Part 1 of this credit). While these associate members do not have voting authority, Agnes Scott College is deeply committed to a culture of shared governance and the voices that constituency representatives bring to the board as associate members are respected and valued. As these associate members are charged with reporting back to their constituencies, communication and understanding of complex issues are enhanced on campus.
Students and faculty have had representatives since 1991 and staff since 2008.
The total number of trustees is 28 voting members. The total number reported here is 40 to reflect the faculty, staff, and student associate members.
All information on the Board of Trustees was approved by Associate Vice President and Secretary of the Board.
A faculty member, staff member, and student are selected to serve as official non-voting members of each of the Board of Trustees committees (four in total) by their respective governance bodies (FEC, Staff Council, and SGA - as referenced in Part 1 of this credit). While these associate members do not have voting authority, Agnes Scott College is deeply committed to a culture of shared governance and the voices that constituency representatives bring to the board as associate members are respected and valued. As these associate members are charged with reporting back to their constituencies, communication and understanding of complex issues are enhanced on campus.
Students and faculty have had representatives since 1991 and staff since 2008.
The total number of trustees is 28 voting members. The total number reported here is 40 to reflect the faculty, staff, and student associate members.
All information on the Board of Trustees was approved by Associate Vice President and Secretary of the Board.
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.