Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 65.09
Liaison Joseph Kahn
Submission Date Oct. 15, 2020

STARS v2.2

Central Michigan University
PA-3: Inclusive and Participatory Governance

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.50 / 3.00 Eric Urbaniak
Student Reviewer
OID
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

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:

In the Student Government Association (SGA), student have the opportunity to represent their departmental colleges. Within SGA, the academic senate is the highest shared governing body on campus. As described in their website:
“The Academic Senate has enjoyed a 50-year history as the University’s primary policy-making body for a wide range of issues involving academic life at CMU. The Senate has a long tradition of productive and open debate, and is committed to enhancing the academic experiences of students and faculty. The Senate is the final academic curricular authority for graduate and undergraduate programs, both on and off campus at CMU. As a shared decision-making body, the Senate’s membership consists of representatives elected by each academic department, six fixed-term faculty elected by each of the academic colleges, six student representatives chosen by the Student Government Association, the Deans, the Chief Diversity Officer, the Provost, and the President. Academic Senate meetings are open to the public and are held bi-weekly."

In addition to the academic senate, non-academic staff can participate in shared governance through several University committees and initiatives. Firstly, the Budget Priorities Committee (BPC) is a group of students, staff, and faculty who make formal budget recommendations to the President, and bridge the gap between the President and campus community members. More information can be found through the BPC website:
https://www.cmich.edu/bpc/Pages/default.aspx

Additionally, staff have the opportunity to participate in the Diversity Counsel, Police Oversight Council, and Collective Bargaining Units which enable non-academic and academic staff to advocate for institutional change.
https://www.cmich.edu/bpc/Pages/default.aspx
https://www.cmich.edu/office_president/police_oversight/Pages/default.aspx


Total number of individuals on the institution’s highest governing body:
8

Number of students representing their peers as official members of the institution’s highest governing body:
0

Number of academic staff representing their peers as official members of the institution’s highest governing body:
0

Number of non-academic staff representing their peers as official members of the institution’s highest governing body:
0

Number of women serving as official members of the institution’s highest governing body:
1

Percentage of official members of the highest governing body that are women:
12.50

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?:
Yes

A brief description of the campus-community council or equivalent body that gives external stakeholders a regular voice in institutional decisions that affect them:

The governing body at CMU which dictates campus relationships with stakeholders is the Shared Governance and Communications Committee. This was created by 2013 by former president George E. Ross, and still exists to review and implement internal and external stakeholder engagement programs. The number one priority of the Shared Governance Committee is to "Provide a means for internal and external stakeholders to share feedback, including concerns regarding perceived lapses in following the hallmarks of shared governance and communications at CMU. The committee will act not as jury, judge or mediator, but may help open lines of communication between relevant parties and suggest possible paths to address issues. It will not, however, be involved in implementing solutions."

One of the regular tasks taken on by the committee is an annual survey to assess stakeholder engagement, and gather formal input from all external stakeholders. The information gathered in this survey is used to dictate the direction of university decisions and initiatives. Finally, the committee prepares an annual report summarizing collected data to be presented to university leadership.

In addition to the annual survey conducted by the Shared Governance and Communications Committee, the committee founded the University Community Advisory Panel, which is charged with "seeking input from all those affected by an impending decision; the final authority will communicate how information is to be collected. It is incumbent on all those potentially affected by a decision to communicate their points of view." While this committee does not function in a regular manner, it is activated whenever there is a decision that will impact external stakeholders- so that CMU ensures it is making decisions in the best interest of everyone.


Number of people from underrepresented groups serving as official members of the institution’s highest governing body.:
2

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:

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.