Faculty Senate has low prof participation

Technically, every professor is a member of the Faculty Senate. But only 10 percent of faculty members participate in the body, according to Senate Past-Chairperson David Hildebrand, a statistics professor. In light of the recent debate over whether the senate should respond to the latest draft of the judicial charter, many senate members have attempted to define the body's role within the University. The senate includes a three-chairperson system and an executive committee that contains both constituency representatives and at-large members. Since the senate does not determine University policy or make other decisions, its discussions and actions are limited, and therefore vary in significance. "Most of the time, the Faculty Senate is important for being, but it's not doing terribly important things," Hildebrand said. Those "important things" occur in the laboratories, libraries and classrooms, he added. The senate's primary purpose is to represent the "collective voice" of the faculty. Unlike the University Council, however, that voice cannot be heard publicly. All senate meetings are closed, although the chairperson does report on the senate's activities at council meetings, which are open to the public. "People are more comfortable in reflecting on some issues and discussing things with candor," Senate Chairperson William Kissick said, explaining why the meetings are closed. "It's difficult to change your mind in public and it's easier to change your mind in private." Kissick said that although the body does not actually make policy, it is very involved with the administration and its decisions. "[The senate] advises policy and it's definitely related to policy," he said. "The Faculty Senate here is mainly a vehicle for communication, cooperation and collaboration." Although the senate's role in the University is not exactly defined, Kissick -- the George Seckel Pepper professor of public health and preventative medicine -- said "strength in ambiguity" works to the body's advantage. The senate molds its discussion and action depending on the issues at hand. Senate Chairperson-Elect Peter Kuriloff, an Education professor, noted that the Senate Executive Board represents every single faculty member since the senate itself includes every professor. But whether the senate truly speaks for the entire faculty is questionable because, as Hildebrand noted, the senate's major weakness is in participation. "We can call on maybe 10 percent of the faculty for sustained participation," he said. "That's not enough." Hildebrand added that those who are active within the senate care about the University. He said they also tend to have a wide range of interests that go beyond their own fields.