Maryville College
PA-3: Governance

The Student Body President is elected by popular vote each year by all currently attending students, and he/she holds a seat on the College Board of Directors for one fiscal year. He/she also assigns students to campus committees in order to ensure that students have representation across campus.

The Student Body President is elected by popular vote each year by all currently attending students, and he/she holds a seat on the College Board of Directors for one fiscal year.

Two students are selected each year to serve on the Planning and Budgetary Advisory Committee which is charged with overseeing the college's strategic plan, advising on new projects and initiatives, and monitoring the college's budget. In 2013, students were selected to join a newly formed committee that created the newly implemented "Maryville College Works" program which is a major change to the graduation requirements for each student. In 2014, the Student Government Association re-wrote part of the college handbook by changing the existing alcohol policy and submitting it to the Student Development Office. Through participation in Student Government Association, the MC Board of Directors, The Campus Sustainability Group, the Planning and Budgetary Advisory Committee, the Academic Life Council and other ad hoc committees, students have a voice and representation for all decision-making on campus.

All staff are represented through the college's Staff Council. Through Staff Council, all staff have the ability to nominated and elect a Staff Chair each academic year. The Staff Chair has a formal role in representing the whole college staff to the MC Board of Directors.

The Staff Chair has a formal role in representing the whole college staff to the MC Board of Directors. The Chair is elected by a vote from all staff members.

Through participation in Staff Council, the MC Board of Directors, the Planning and Budgetary Advisory Committee, The Campus Sustainability Group, and other committees, all staff have the ability to have formal role in decision-making processes in each area. In the last three years, staff in the Academic Support Center piloted the Cooper Success program which targets athletes and aids them with coursework and study materials. Staff in the Career Center helped shape the MC Works initiative which was a major change to the core curriculum. The Student Intervention Team is made up of mostly staff members and was created for the purpose of aiding at risk students. There are three non-supervisory staff who are a part of the Planning and Budgetary Advisory Committee, and multiple staff on SERT which both play a large role in budgeting practices and finding efficient ways to use resources. A staff member from Mountain Challenge is largely in charge of the Campus Woods and the environmental efforts within them. Staff within respective departments assist in interviewing and hiring of new employees and interviewing prospective employees. Non-supervisory staff from Admissions and Communications oversee all communications process and media relations.

All full-time faculty are included in monthly faculty meetings, where the entire faculty votes on proposals, including all changes to the curriculum. Furthermore, all faculty vote to elect a Chair of the Faculty each year and a Faculty Liaison Committee (chaired by the Chair of the Faculty). This leadership group meets regularly with the Dean and President. Furthermore, the Chair of the Faculty sits on the President’s Cabinet (with all VPs and Cabinet-level positions) and is also invited to all Maryville College Board of Directors meetings. At each Board of Directors meeting, the Faculty Liaison Committee (chaired by the Chair of the Faculty) is invited to present a written report to the full Board and to participate in the Academic Affairs Committee meeting.

All full-time faculty are included in monthly faculty meetings, where the entire faculty votes on proposals, including all changes to the curriculum. Furthermore, all faculty vote to elect a Chair of the Faculty each year and a Faculty Liaison Committee (chaired by the Chair of the Faculty). To be more specific, the faculty make nominations for Chair of the Faculty, and the Faculty Liaison Committee puts together the ballot, in consultation with the Dean, based on those nominations. The election is held during the regular monthly faculty meeting every spring. This leadership group meets regularly with the Dean and President. Furthermore, the Chair of the Faculty sits on the President’s Cabinet (with all VPs and Cabinet-level positions) and is also invited to all Maryville College Board of Directors meetings. At each Board of Directors meeting, the Faculty Liaison Committee (chaired by the Chair of the Faculty) is invited to present a written report to the full Board and to participate in the Academic Affairs Committee meeting.

Faculty are involved at varying levels in formal and informal conversations and plans for establishing organizational mission, vision, and goals. All academic policies are reviewed by the faculty and, in most cases, voted upon. Academic Life Council (led by the Dean and a committee of elected faculty members) reviews and approves all proposals before they come before the faculty for a vote. An example of this is the new Core Curriculum that ALC has been creating and voting on in 2014 and 2015. Broader, strategic institutional initiatives are brought to the faculty that fall solidly within the academic division of the College. As an example, the President appointed an Adult Learner Programs Exploration Committee in 2015 to explore broad initiatives that are consistent with the mission of the College. The Planning and Budget Advisory Committee is also involved in strategic planning, prioritization of projects, and budgeting, and that group is chaired by a faculty member and includes the Chair of the Faculty and a member of the Faculty Liaison Committee. The Faculty Chair is also responsible for communication between departments and sits on ad hoc committees or assigns other faculty to those committees for any formal decision-making processes. Faculty have also served on formal strategic plans for the College and to maintain transparency practices all minutes from faculty meetings are publicly distributed to faculty and reviewed.