The Faculty Senate shall have authority given to it by the Faculty. It will be a legislative body and with power of decision and representation specified in the duties and responsibilities articulated.

Guided by the Norbertine principles of stabilitas loci, subsidiarity, and communio, the faculty senate will represent the entire faculty body at all rank and positions, always with a view towards the greater good of the faculty, students, staff, college, and community.

4.1 Functions Guided by the Norbertine principles of stabilitas loci, subsidiarity, and communio, the Faculty Senate will represent the entire faculty body at all rank and positions, always with a view towards the greater good of the faculty, students, staff, college, and community.

4.1.1 Represent faculty to administration by meeting with the President as needed, and will be reported as soon as possible.

4.1.2 Hold regular discussions with the faculty they represent by running divisional meetings in collaboration with the divisional deans, holding open office hours for faculty, and other venues as needed.

4.1.3 Make decisions on behalf of the Faculty with the option of elevating a matter to a full Faculty meeting. Topics that are deemed extraordinarily consequential, such as, but not limited to, criteria for tenure & promotion, faculty governance, election of any committee members, and changes to the Core Curriculum would be expected to be voted on by the full Faculty. To facilitate this:

4.1.3.1  All actions, including the voting record of the members of the Faculty Senate, will be reported as soon as possible and will be presented in the minutes of the next Faculty meeting.

4.1.3.2 If the vote tally on any motion has a difference of two or fewer between the count of “yes” and “no” the matter will be referred to the full faculty.

4.1.3.3. If twenty (20) percent of the faculty would like to revisit any decision that the Senate has made as expressed by written petition to the Speaker within two weeks of the posting of the minutes of the senate meeting reporting the decision, the Speaker will bring the matter to the full Faculty.

4.1.4. Advise on the agenda for full Faculty meetings.

4.2 The Faculty Senate will be composed of eleven (11) voting members, elected by the faculty, serving three-year terms. One senator will be elected from each division and the remainder elected from the faculty body at large. The VPAA will serve on the Senate ex officio as a non-voting member. The Senate will elect its Speaker-Elect from among the elected Senators who will assume the role of Speaker for the next academic year. Candidates must be tenured and have enjoyed voting rights in the Faculty for a period of one year before being eligible for election.

4.3 The Faculty Senate will meet approximately twice monthly during the academic year, but in no case is the Faculty Senate to receive less than forty-eight hours notice prior to meeting. Senators should be prepared for the possibility that the Senate may occasionally meet during the summer. 4.3.1 4.4 Election Agenda Individual faculty members, faculty committees, the President, Vice President for Academic Affairs and other administrative officers may suggest agenda items to the Senate Speaker. The Speaker will forward the agenda to the senators in advance of the next meeting. The agenda will be published in advance of all meetings according to the regulations outlined in Section 1.