Stanford University
PA-3: Participatory Governance

The Associated Students of Stanford University (ASSU) is over 110 years old and is the only organization at Stanford of which every student is a member. The ASSU provides funding to over 500 volunteer student organizations (VSO). These organizations in turn provide the majority of cultural, political, recreational and religious programming for the entire campus. The financial independence that the ASSU affords student organizations is one of the founding principles of the organization. The ASSU also works to represent the interests, needs and perspectives of Stanford students at every level of decision making within the university. They advocate on behalf of Stanford students on issues such as the cost of living, diversity, student life and student activities. Each year the ASSU strives to innovate new projects and create new services that will improve the quality of student life at Stanford. The ASSU is represented by two legislative bodies (the Undergraduate Senate (http://assu.stanford.edu/senate-business/) and the Graduate Student Council (http://gsc.stanford.edu/), an Executive branch (http://assu.stanford.edu/executive-initiatives/), an Enterprise Component (http://sse.stanford.edu/), and many other bodies. Each body handles a respective function but with significant overlaps. Loosely: • The legislative branch facilitates the operation of student groups, managing the funding process for almost any event on campus • The executive branch holds the improvement of student life and welfare as paramount, through self-initiated programming and support of individual student endeavors • Stanford Student Enterprises ensures the long-term financial viability and independence of the Association and facilitates numerous student jobs and organizational reimbursements Students also serve on over 50 University Committees, including the five committees of Stanford's Board of Trustees. These include the Board of Trustees Committee on Alumni and External Affairs, the Board of Trustees Committee on Development, the Board of Trustees Committee on Finance, the Board of Trustees Committee on Land and Buildings, and the Board of Trustees Committee on Globalization. The Nominations Commission (NomCom), which is a branch of the ASSU and is composed of 7 students from the undergraduate and graduate populations, is responsible for nominating students as voting members to university committees, Stanford Board of Trustee committees, and the Stanford Student Enterprises board of directors. NomCom has a direct impact on issues across the university through the students they nominate to committees. The term for the 7 NomCom members begins at the start of winter quarter and runs through the end of the next fall quarter. This term was adjusted by an amendment to the bylaws and passed in November 2013 by the Undergraduate Senate and the Graduate Student Council. The 2016 NomCom co-chairs are Kate Gasparro and Sumant Sharma. http://www.stanfordnomcom.com/about/

All staff members at Stanford are encouraged to participate in the Team for Improving Productivity at Stanford (TIPS), which reports to the University Management Group. At the least, administrative deans from 27 departments on campus are required to appoint staff members to this team, which is an open forum that: 1) Serves as a catalyst for communicating information to all staff. 2) Collaborates, raises awareness, influences and provides advice to enhance productivity across campus. 3) Supports successful and effective development and implementation of business processes. 4) Provides opportunities for leadership development to all Stanford staff. The objectives of the TIPS group are to: 1) Provide a forum for staff who seek information and advice about Stanford programs and services. 2) Provide an opportunity for open discussion and the exchange of ideas about topics of interest. 3) Stay current and be informed about business operations and communicate information to and from business process owners and end users. 4) Provide a voice for user-level input and constructive feedback through identification, development, and implementation of University business processes. 5) Partner with other University groups in the identification, development, and implementation of policies, processes, and systems supporting Stanford business practices. 6) Engage staff to participate in Working Groups* focused on specific business processes, policies, and tools. 7) Bridge communication between staff and University Management Group (UMG). The UMG is comprised of all administrative deans at the university and is charged with making decisions regarding the university's business processes. The UMG/TIPS Liaison is responsible for incorporating the feedback from the TIPS group by attending meetings, reviewing agendas, and soliciting additional input where necessary during the process of business and system development.

The Senate is composed of 55 voting members serving staggered 2 year terms and 15 ex officio members. Standing guest seats are reserved for the student representatives, the Registrar, the Vice Provost for Academic Affairs, the Vice Provost for Student Affairs, the Vice Provost of Faculty Development and Diversity and the Emeriti Council representative. The Chair, Vice Chair and Steering Committee members are elected from within the Senate body. Members of the Academic Council are eligible to serve on the Senate and are placed in units based on school and discipline. Senators are elected annually by the Hare System of Proportional Representation; all Academic Council faculty may vote for faculty within their units. Elected Senators serve as free agents, not as representatives of a particular program, unit or school. The number of seats per unit is allocated relative to the size of the school and disciplines within that unit. The Steering Committee is elected by the incoming Senate from a slate of Senators nominated by the Committee on Committees. One of the Steering Committee's first tasks is to appoint members of the incoming Senate to serve on the Committee on Committees. Each Board of Trustees subcommittee has at least one faculty member appointed via the Committee on Committees and the Nominations Committee. Full Professors in the Academic Council are also elected to the Advisory Board, which handles the promotion and tenure of Academic Council faculty.

https://sustainable.stanford.edu/sites/default/files/documents/Stanford_sustainable_guidelines.pdf

The Office of Government and Community Relations serves as a formal liaison between Stanford and its neighboring communities by maintaining relations with numerous community-based organizations and individuals. Government and Community Relations supports campus-community efforts that contribute to the vitality of the greater community. More information on the bodies and mechanisms through which external stakeholders engage with Stanford’s governance is available at the Office of Government and Community Relations’ website, below. A few compelling examples are also highlighted below. http://govcr.stanford.edu/ Stanford has been operating under two key Santa Clara County entitlement documents: a Community Plan and a 2000 General Use Permit, or GUP. The Community Plan provides a set of rules and policies to guide the university’s land use planning over an extended period of time. The GUP implements those policies and includes specific conditions to minimize impacts of Stanford’s development. In 2016, Stanford began the application process to Santa Clara County for an updated General Use Permit to authorize the next phase of campus land use in the coming years. The process requires both internal examination of the university’s academic and space needs as well as consultation with neighbors and community partners. Stanford launched the community effort with three public open houses in early June 2016 to solicit input from residents of campus and neighboring communities. http://news.stanford.edu/2016/05/06/stanford-kicks-off-land-use-planning-process/ Additionally, in April 2015, Stanford announced that as a result of the four-year study on the university-owned Searsville Dam, the university had narrowed its options to two alternative approaches, both of which will improve fish passage, manage accumulated and future sediment and avoid an increase in upstream or downstream flood threats in the San Francisquito Creek watershed. The next step in determining the future of Searsville Dam is for the university to continue and extend discussions with local organizations to move through the environmental review process and formally discuss future changes. Many of these organizations, including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the National Marine Fisheries Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the State Water Resources Board, the California Division of Safety of Dams, San Mateo County, and the San Francisquito Joint Powers Authority, have been involved in the study from the beginning, in addition to faculty experts, local non-profit organizations and community members, who all participated in the formal Searsville Advisory Panel. A full list of Advisory Panel members is available at the link below. https://news.stanford.edu/searsville/Searsville_Steering_Committee_Recommendations_April_2015.pdf Finally, since 1951, Stanford has held a formal partnership with the Stanford Research Park, a 700-acre piece of real estate located on Stanford’s land that Stanford devoted for corporate innovation after World War II. The Stanford Research Park now houses over 150 companies, comprising a diverse and thriving community of entrepreneurs and innovators, many of whom are Stanford graduates and/or participate in Stanford’s governance in various ways. The Stanford Research Park itself is a core component of Stanford’s real estate and works closely with Stanford’s Real Estate Office within Land, Buildings and Real Estate to continually expand formal ties with the university in a variety of ways. More information is available at the link below. http://stanfordresearchpark.com/