CUL Task Force on Inclusiveness

Recommendation 2: Modify the Scope and Bylaws of the Academic Assembly

The Academic Assembly should remain a separate body that addresses issues that affect only academic staff.  These include but are not limited to “decisions relating to academic appointments, promotions, tenure, conditions of service and related matters of internal governance.”[1] 

Currently, Academic Assembly monthly meetings deal with a variety of issues that pertain to staff of all ranks and statuses.  These meetings are open to all staff, although many non-academic staff may not be aware of that fact, and those who are aware may be reluctant to attend.  By moving responsibility for the programming to a more inclusive Library Forum Steering Committee, we hope to diminish a strongly felt barrier between academic and non-academic staff, and we acknowledge structurally that all staff have a shared interest in understanding CUL’s and the university’s mission and operations and the larger environment in which these entities operate.

Academic Assembly committees include Academic Personnel Policy (dealing with policies on appointment, promotion, and termination, etc.), Economic Status of Librarians (tracking salary data, etc. of academic library staff over time), and Professional Development (promoting and providing continuing education and professional development for CUL librarians and archivists).  Academic Personnel Policy addresses issues pertaining only to academic staff.  It may be practical to expand the scope of Economic Status of Librarians to cover other staff classifications and migrate it to the Library Forum.  We believe that establishing a Career and Professional Development Committee under the aegis of the Library Forum would obviate the need for the Academic Assembly Professional Development Committee.  The Career and Professional Development Committee of the Library Forum could take responsibility for the kind of programming now handled by the Professional Development Committee, such as professional development week, brown bag lunches, and happy hours.

Therefore, we suggest that the Academic Assembly be reconfigured in the following way, recognizing that this requires a vote by the Assembly membership to change the Academic Assembly bylaws.

• As is now the case, all CUL staff with academic appointments are members of the restructured Academic Assembly.
• The University Librarian serves as the chair (no change from the current bylaws).
• The Academic Assembly Steering Committee, elected by academic staff, consists of five members and a secretary.  The Director of Library Human Resources serves as an ex-officio member.  (The addition of the director is a change from the current bylaws and recognizes a new responsibility for the committee, academic personnel policy.)
• The charge of the Academic Assembly Steering Committee is to
  • assist and advise the chair in the preparation of the Assembly’s agenda and in the scheduling of regular and any special meetings of the Assembly (no change from the current Steering Committee charge)
  • appoint members to such standing and ad hoc committees as may be directed by the Assembly (no change from the current Steering Committee charge)
  • take responsibility for
    • policies on appointment, promotion, and termination
    • grievance procedures
    • nomination of search committees and appointment of review boards for promotion
    • evaluation policies and procedures, and performance reviews
    • review of fringe benefits policies
      (These are the responsibilities of the current Committee on Academic Personnel Policy.)
  • hold an annual meeting to report on the state of academic librarianship at Cornell and have the option of calling other meetings as needed