| Overall Rating | Gold - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 68.22 |
| Liaison | Mary Ellen Mallia |
| Submission Date | Dec. 21, 2018 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
University at Albany
PA-3: Participatory Governance
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.75 / 3.00 |
Mary Ellen
Mallia Director of Environmental Sustainability Finance and Business |
Do the institution’s students have a representative body through which they can participate in governance (e.g. a student council)? :
Do the institution’s students have an elected representative on the institution’s highest governing body?:
A brief description of the bodies and mechanisms through which students are engaged in governance, including information to support each affirmative response above:
The main governing body of the university is the University Council and University Senate.
Each state-operated campus of the SUNY system has an oversight Council, appointed by the Governor. This body supervises the operations and affairs of each state-operated campus. Nine of the ten members of the Council are appointed by the Governor for seven year terms. The tenth member is a student, who is elected for a one-year term by and from the students enrolled at the institution. UAlbany also has a spot for one faculty and one alumni representative on the council.
https://www.albany.edu/council/index.shtml
The Senate includes faculty, staff, non-voting administrators, and students (graduate and undergraduates). Undergraduate and graduate students have one non-voting seat on the University Council (Board of Trustees) each. Graduate students have 5 seats in the University Senate, and undergraduate have 10 seats. https://www.albany.edu/universitysenate/
Grads and undergrads also have voting representation in the SUNY System Student Assembly.
There are approximately a dozen executive positions for undergraduates in the Student Association and approximately six for graduates in the Graduate Student Association. There are 30-40 students in each legislative body. There are hundreds of leadership positions available in undergraduate and graduate student groups.
There is also a University at Albany Foundation Board that provides advice and counsel regarding fund raising, gift and grant management and developing and managing real property. There is a spot for a student representative to sit on this board as well. https://www.albany.edu/uafoundation/uaf_board_of_directors_list.shtml
Do the institution’s staff members have a representative body through which they can participate in governance (e.g. a staff council)?:
Do the institution’s non-supervisory staff members have an elected representative on the institution’s highest governing body?:
A brief description of the bodies and mechanisms through which staff are engaged in governance, including information to support each affirmative response above:
There is a faculty representative on the University Council.
The university participates in a Shared Governance model. Shared governance is the set of principles and practices through which these stakeholders, where appropriate, participate in the process of informed decision and policy making whose impact is advancing the mission of the institution. The groups involved in shared governance include: the University Council, Senate, Senior Administration and the Student Associations (graduate and undergraduate). See: https://www.albany.edu/sharedgovernance/
For the University Senate, faculty is defined by the University bylaws as including both teaching and professional staff. All of these groups have representation on the University Senate and all councils and committees.
Members of classified staff (CSEA) are not included in the faculty senate. Their avenue of participation in governance bodies would be through the Joint Labor Management Committee as well as express concerns over university matters and/or working conditions via the local CSEA chapter (#691) http://www.csea691.com/
Do the institution’s teaching and research faculty have a representative body through which they can participate in governance (e.g. a faculty senate)?:
Do the institution’s teaching and research faculty have an elected representative on the institution’s highest governing body? :
A brief description of the bodies and mechanisms through which teaching and research faculty are engaged in governance, including information to support each affirmative response above:
The Vice Chair of the Senate also sits on the University Council. Three elected representatives serve in the SUNY System Faculty Senate and report back to the University Senate.
All faculty members can run for University Senate positions in their School or College. There are two positions for part-time adjunct faculty. Part-time and contingent faculty were given voting rights via a Senate resolution last year and they can serve on the Senate's Councils and subcommittees.
Does the institution have written policies and procedures to identify and engage external stakeholders (i.e. local residents) in land use planning, capital investment projects, and other institutional decisions that affect the community?:
A copy of the written policies and procedures:
The policies and procedures:
The University Council is mostly made up of community members. https://www.albany.edu/council/members.shtml
The University Foundation Board is also mostly comprised of community members. https://www.albany.edu/uafoundation/uaf_board_of_directors_list.shtml
Community members are not part of the University Senate. '
The university has embedded public engagement as a campus value and core priority as indicated in our strategic plan. https://www.albany.edu/strategicplan/values-and-priorities.shtml and https://www.albany.edu/strategicplan/priority-public-engagement-and-outreach.shtml
The implementation of this charge manifests in several activities related to land use planning and capital investments. The university invites community input on major capital projects such as the construction of Liberty Terrace and the current renovation of the Schuyler Building and ETEC. Avenues for this include public meetings and presentations by university administrators to local neighborhood associations. Additionally, our President serves as co-chair of the New York State Regional Economic Development Council for our region. https://www.albany.edu/news/83584.php
Matt Grattan, oversees our community and economic development activities. https://www.albany.edu/news/experts/62224.php
Does the institution have formal participatory or shared governance bodies through which community members representing the interests of the following stakeholder groups can regularly participate in institutional governance?:
| Yes or No | |
| Local government and/or educational organizations | Yes |
| Private sector organizations | Yes |
| Civil society (e.g. NGOs, NPOs) | Yes |
A brief description of the bodies and mechanisms through which external stakeholders are engaged in institutional governance (including information about each stakeholder group selected above):
The shared governance model is illustrated at: https://www.albany.edu/sharedgovernance/
Members on the University Council represent local government/education through James Jackson, Regent for the NYS Education Department, the private sector through Mike Castellano of SEFCU, Mark Egan from the Capital Region Chamber of Commerce and civil society through James Clancy, Assistant Director NYS Department of Health
The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives 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.