Elon University
PA-3: Inclusive and Participatory Governance

The purpose of the Student Government Association, authorized by the Elon University Administration, shall be to represent the rights and opinions of the student body in a manner consistent with the mission of Elon University, to provide for appropriate student activities, and to join with the faculty and administrators of the university in building a stronger, more effective educational community. Members of SGA are elected by the undergraduate student body.

The Academic Council is the coordinating committee of the faculty and deliberates on any matter within the province of the faculty for the purpose of formulating general policy for approval or disapproval of the faculty. Those matters which are the responsibility of standing committees are referred to the appropriate committee.
The Academic Council consists of 19 elected members, the chair of the University Curriculum Committee (without vote), the President (without vote) and/or the Provost/Executive Vice President (without vote).
Eligibility to Serve. To serve as a voting member of the Academic Council, a faculty member must be a voting member under the terms of the faculty bylaws, and must have 2 years of service on the faculty. Divisional and school representatives must hold the rank of senior lecturer, associate professor, or above; at-large members must hold the rank of lecturer, assistant professor, or above. No more than two members of the faculty whose principal duties are administrative may serve on Academic Council at any one time.
Eligibility to Vote for Members. All faculty members who have voting privileges under the terms of the faculty bylaws are eligible to vote for members of Academic Council. The only exception to this is for the part-time representative who is elected by part-time faculty.

The mission of the Staff Advisory Council is to facilitate active and direct communication between staff employees and the President and to provide a forum for input and discussion of issues important to the staff and the university. To achieve this mission, the Staff Advisory Council will:
-Participate in the shared governance of the university
-Serve as an advocate for staff and provide input in university initiatives and decisions
-Review and make recommendations on appropriate issues, policies and procedures
-Promote a positive and collaborative campus environment by strengthening communication between staff, faculty, students and administration
-Contribute to the university’s culture of community and recognition
The Staff Advisory Council (SAC) represents all non-faculty employees of Elon University. Collectively, the university describes this group as staff. The Staff Advisory Council consists of fifteen representative seats and 2 non-voting members of Senior Staff. Each of the staff classifications control a predetermined number of representative seats as described below.
• Administrative Staff (6 seats)
• Office/Support Personnel (5 seats)
• Physical Plant (4 seats)
The President annually appoints the two non-voting members from the Senior Staff. The Chair of the Staff Advisory Council attends Board of Trustees meetings.

The School of Education has a Teacher Education Committee with 3 community members from the local K-12 school system. This committee is responsible for the direction, policy and curriculum of teacher education.

The Elon Academy provides multiple opportunities and formats for participating families to provide feedback. Each summer, families are offered meetings with college planning faculty during which programmatic feedback is solicited. Four Saturdays throughout the academic year, families participate in programming and are provided paper surveys (in English and Spanish) on which to give feedback about workshop speakers and topics. Additionally, at each family program, a suggestion box is available for families to provide anonymous feedback. Lastly, a meeting for all family members is held once per year, during which feedback can be shared with staff members.

Parents are the key stakeholders in the It Takes a Village Project at Elon, as such, parents, or those in the role of parents, are regularly in discussion with Village administrators concerning the direction of the project. For example, parents proposed the creation of Science in the Village after noticing that their 4th grade children who find reading daunting generally struggle with the science curriculum. In response, Science in the Village was developed and implemented to provide hands-on opportunities for students (K-8) to develop the understanding and skills necessary to be problem-solvers in a scientific and technological world. In addition, several Latino parents sought information about financial literacy and English language learning for themselves. In response to this information request, the Village created a financial literacy and TESOL class for parents. Approximately 60 parents regularly participate in the parent class on Elon's campus.

The Kernodle Center for Service Learning and Community Engagement has an Advisory Committee, which includes community partners. This group provides feedback and input 2-4 times a year. Input is also gathered from community partners twice a year at the Preparing for Partnership breakfast/lunch.

Other Centers or Programs on campus have committees or boards with community members on them. These committees/boards impact the decisions of those centers or programs.

The university CFO and Town of Elon Manager meet on a monthly basis to discuss topics that affect both the town and university.