Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 65.64
Liaison Rob Andrejewski
Submission Date March 1, 2019
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

University of Richmond
PA-3: Participatory Governance

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 0.75 / 3.00 Rob Andrejewski
Director of Sustainability
Office for Sustainability
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Do the institution’s students have a representative body through which they can participate in governance (e.g. a student council)? :
Yes

Do the institution’s students have an elected representative on the institution’s highest governing body?:
No

A brief description of the bodies and mechanisms through which students are engaged in governance, including information to support each affirmative response above:

Two students are appointed to each of the following Board of Trustees committees: Academic & Enrollment Management Committee, Advancement Committee, Business Management Committee, and Student Development Committee. The student representatives to the Athletics Committee are appointed by the VP and Director of Athletics. The student representatives to the Academic and Enrollment Management, Business Management, and Advancement and Communications Committees are appointed by the Office of the VP and Secretary to the Board of Trustees. The students who serve on the Student Development Committee are appointed by the Presidents of the two student representative bodies, Westhampton College Government Association (women) and Richmond College Student Government Association (men).

Student government: Students are eligible to participate in student government via a student council for their respective coordinate college, Westhampton College for female students and Richmond College for male students. All students are invited to run for the council or president position, and a cabinet is elected for each college and graduation year. Elections are held each year after a campaign period, and students of the represented college and graduation year vote online for the candidates they want. Additionally, the Jepson School of Leadership Studies has an elected student council, with a similar election process but students are elected to represent all of the Jepson school, not just their class year. The Robins School of Business has an elected Student Government Association for business majors. Finally, student representatives are chosen by faculty and staff to be a part of various planning committees on campus, including the Sustainability and Environmental Awareness Committee.


Do the institution’s staff members have a representative body through which they can participate in governance (e.g. a staff council)?:
Yes

Do the institution’s non-supervisory staff members have an elected representative on the institution’s highest governing body?:
No

A brief description of the bodies and mechanisms through which staff are engaged in governance, including information to support each affirmative response above:

The University Staff Advisory Council (USAC) represents the needs of staff to senior administration, advocates for fair and equitable policies, and thinks proactively about how to make UR an employer of choice. USAC has 26 representatives, nominated and then elected by staff members within the two employment categories: exempt and non-exempt. Representation for each job category is based upon the number of staff in each category at the time of election. Nominations are solicited from all staff. All members of the staff have the right to vote in any election to determine the membership of the Council. The Associate Vice President for Human Resource Services; Manager, Events and Property Services; and the immediate past USAC chair serve as non-voting ex-officio members of the Council.


Do the institution’s teaching and research faculty have a representative body through which they can participate in governance (e.g. a faculty senate)?:
Yes

Do the institution’s teaching and research faculty have an elected representative on the institution’s highest governing body? :
No

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:

Faculty representatives to multiple Committees of the Board of Trustees are appointed by the Chair of the Committee on Committees of the University Faculty Senate.

The University of Richmond Faculty Senate is the body authorized by both the University Faculty and the Board of Trustees to represent the faculty in the university’s governance process on matters that impact the university or affect more than one school.

Charter: https://facultysenate.richmond.edu/charter/Faculty-Senate-Charter%20v2.pdf


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?:
No

A copy of the written policies and procedures:
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The policies and procedures:
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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 No
Private sector organizations No
Civil society (e.g. NGOs, NPOs) No

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):
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The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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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.