Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 49.65
Liaison Jennifer Bodine
Submission Date Feb. 19, 2019
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Weber State University
PA-3: Participatory Governance

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 2.50 / 3.00 Jennifer Bodine
Sustainability Specialist
Facilities Management
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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?:
Yes

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

Students can participate on a variety of governing bodies. The Weber State University Student Association has an Executive Branch comprised of one President and seven Vice Presidents over various areas. WSUSA also has a Legislative Branch comprised of 23 Senators representing every College on campus and special constituencies. All of the above-mentioned positions are filled through an election by the student body. There are multiple committees that fall under each Vice President that can be filled through direct appointment of students or by student volunteers.

The President of the Weber State University Student Association is one of ten WSU Board of Trustees members. The Weber State University Student Association Vice President over academics is a member of Dean's Council. Again, both of these positions are elected positions.


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:

WSU has a Staff Advisory Committee comprised of elected representatives from every department on campus. This committee seeks input from all staff on campus and works to resolve issues or advocate for policy changes if needed. The SAC Chair serves on WSU's President's Council. This committee also participates in the Utah Higher Education Staff Association. The SAC Chair does not have a seat on the Board of Trustees.


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:

WSU has a Faculty Senate Committee comprised of representatives from every College. The Faculty Senate Chair is a voting member on the Dean's Council and the President's Council. They do not have a seat on the Board of Trustees


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?:
Yes

A copy of the written policies and procedures:
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The policies and procedures:

WSU's Board of Trustees consists of ten persons. Eight are appointed by the Governor with the Senate's consent. The ninth is the president of the Alumni Association and the tenth is the president of the Weber State University Student Association.

The Utah State Board of Regents currently consists of 19 resident citizens of the state of Utah, 16 appointed by the Governor, and 3 non-voting members (Utah State Board of Education & Utah College of Applied Technology).

Policies establishing and guiding these boards can be found at: https://www.weber.edu/ppm/Policies/1-Organization.html


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):

WSU's Board of Trustees consists of ten persons. Eight are appointed by the Governor with the Senate's consent. The ninth is the president of the Alumni Association and the tenth is the president of the Weber State University Student Association. Seven of the eight appointed by the Governor are private business owners. The last appointee was the Superintendent for the Weber County School District.

The Utah State Board of Regents currently consists of 19 resident citizens of the state of Utah, 16 appointed by the Governor, and 3 non-voting members (Utah State Board of Education & Utah College of Applied Technology).

Policies establishing and guiding these boards can be found at: https://www.weber.edu/ppm/Policies/1-Organization.html

Board of Regents members represent all of the categories identified above (local government and/or educational organizations, private sector organizations and civil society). A list of all of the Board members with career and background profiles can be found here - https://higheredutah.org/boardmembers/

The WSU president offers invitations to WSU alumni and friends to serve on the National Advisory Council. The group provides:

Guidance on strategic issues
An independent sounding board
Feedback from the community
Expertise, as needed, on projects or programs
Assistance in identifying opportunities for the university in key communities
Advocacy for the university in the communities where members live and work

This group is also comprised of representatives from local government and/or educational institutions, private sector organizations, and civil society.

A description of the Council can be found here - https://www.weber.edu/PresidentsOffice/NationalAdvisoryCouncil.html


The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
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Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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