About

Valparaiso University’s Faculty Senate is committed to the University’s system of shared governance, a tradition that is central to American higher education. Faculty Senate is a body where faculty make policy in the areas of our responsibility, and where faculty and administration enter into dialogue. As faculty, we bring to those discussions our dedication to truth and its free exposition, embracing the exchange of criticism and ideas and acknowledging our interdependence in the community of scholars (Faculty Handbook 2.5.2.1 and 2.5.2.3).

The Valparaiso University faculty as a whole recommends to the University President academic policies and programs of the University as well as policies affecting the general welfare and professional life of its members. It has the responsibility for certification, accreditation, professional programs, and for graduation requirements, and advises the University President on all matters affecting the appointment, promotion, and tenure of members of the faculty.

Except when meeting in plenary session, the faculty delegates its advisory and legislative functions to the Faculty Senate and University Council. All actions of Faculty Senate and University Council may be modified or rescinded by the faculty.

Faculty voice in legislative matters is expressed primarily through Faculty Senate for academic matters and through University Council for non-academic matters. Each body works, in part, through its standing, special, and ad hoc committees; the scope of these committees helps to define the subject-matter jurisdiction of each body.