Committees

  The Committees page of SA Senate provides the necessary descriptions of each committee we are involved in. Enjoy!

 

Academic Advising Advisory Committee
Duties:
a. Advise and make recommendations to the Vice President for Academic Affairs and the Academic Council concerning needs and improvements that will enhance the effectiveness of undergraduate and graduate academic advising at South Dakota State University, including advisor in-service programs and the formulation of University advising policy and procedures.
b. To advise and make recommendations to the administration concerning the security, the access and the dissemination of academic advisee information.

Athletic, Intramural and Recreation Committee
Duties:
Advise on all matters pertaining to athletics, intramural and recreation programs with the exception of those matters concerning employment of individual faculty members, which is the responsibility of the College of Arts & Science.

Building and Grounds
Duties:
a. Periodically review the Campus Master Plan and recommend changes as they become necessary.
b. Recommend priorities for capital improvements.
c. Recommend locations for new buildings, streets, parking lots, athletic and recreation facilities, etc., and closing of streets or abandonment of facilities, after consulting with Landscaping & Site Development Subcommittee.
d. Recommend disposal of existing building & facilities.
e. Recommend the assignment of space in university buildings and facilities.
f. Consider recommendations on needed parking facilities after recommendations have been submitted by the Parking and Traffic Committee.

Landscaping and Site Development
Duties:
a. Make recommendations on all campus and site development projects.
b. Make recommendations concerning the aesthetic quality of the campus. It is intended that the committee would not only serve as a means of “reacting,” but should also make proposals concerning the campus environment as it is affected by works of arts, color schemes (especially in major auditoriums and meeting places) and placement and use of graphics.


Naming University Facilities
Duties:
a. Recommend guidelines for naming University facilities.
b. Solicit and screen suggestions for names of University facilities.
c. Recommend needs for University facilities to the Buildings and Grounds Committee.

Dramatics and Forensics
Duties:

The committee will be responsible for the budgets based on University activity fee allocations for dramatics and/or forensics.

Faculty Development
Duties:
a. Develop policies and procedures for faculty development opportunities.
b. Advise Faculty Development Coordinator and the Office of Academic Affairs on programs and issues.
c. Assist in the creation and implementation of faculty development workshops, programs and enrichment.
d. Assist in reviewing grant applications and proposals.
e. Assist in the establishment and upgrading of a long-range plan and assessment program for faculty enrichment.

Health Service Committee
Duties:
a. Meet every 2nd and 4th Thursday at 7:30 a.m.
b. Advice and counsel the President, Dean of Student Affairs and Health Service staff on preventive and clinical health needs of the students and on Health Service staff evaluation and selection.
c. Formulate general health services policies. Major policy decisions shall be submitted to the President for action. All policy decisions are subject to approval by the President, and any committee member may request presidential approval on council decisions.
d. Review and submit an annual Health Service budget, and recommend the Health Service fee to the University Fee Budget Committee.
e. Engage in long-term planning for the Health Service.
f. Establish task forces of students, faculty and staff as needed to study pertinent health service issues.
g. Prepare, in conjunction with the Dean of Student Affairs and the Administrator of the Health Service, an annual report summarizing health service policies and performance for the President’s review and for the President of the Student Association.


International Advisory Council
Duties:
a. Develop and recommend strategic plans for international activities.
b. Serve as liaison between all units to build cohesiveness within and between units for international education and activities (international clearing house).
c. Act as sounding board to Director for development of policies and procedures, discussion of issues, generation of ideas.
d. Explore and develop new international initiatives.
e. Review existing international activities and project plans for future.
f. Review and promote curriculum dealing with internationalization, especially with interdisciplinary courses and Global Studies Major/Minor.
g. Serve as liaison between people and programs that are focused on internationalization and those designed for diversity enhancement, both domestically and internationally.
h. Review and provide guidance for existing and new agreements with international universities.
i. Initiate and promote faculty development opportunities to support internationalization.
j. Encourage international involvement within their respective units.
k. Review applications for international travel grants, exchange professorships, etc., subject to approval by deans, vice presidents and president.
l. Be advocates for globalization at SDSU.

Library Committee
Duties:
a. Advise the Dean of Libraries on policy and seek to maintain liaison among the faculty, students, and library. In practice, the committee serves in an “advise and consent” role with respect to policies on matters such as:
1.) Library hours
2.) Services
3.) Loan policies
4.) Fees
5.) Fees for services (photocopying, computer searches, etc.)
6.) Collection policies
7.) Physical facilities (building construction, renovation, etc.)
b. Annually reviews the Library budget and approves department allocations. It also reviews and approves major panning documents submitted by the Dean of Libraries.
c. Is responsible for assignment of individual faculty and graduate research and sets general policy for their use.

Music Council
Duties:
Assist and advise in all matters pertaining to the maintenance of high musical standards in performance organizations and groups through:
a. Planning activities.
b. Determining budgetary needs.
c. Assisting directors and department administrative head.

Native American Advisory Committee
Duties:
a. Assist in identifying and prioritizing the needs of the Native American Students at SDSU.
b. Coordinate programs for students minoring in Indian Area Studies.
c. Assist Native and non-Native American students in advising them of the courses and programs available for them.
d. Recommend to the administration programs and policies which maximize educational opportunities for Native American students.

Parking and Traffic
Duties:
a. Advise the President, through the Executive Vice President for Administration, on campus parking and traffic needs.
b. Recommend to the President through the Executive Vice President for Administration all parking and traffic rules and penalties.
c. Review and recommend parking fee/vehicle registration charges.
d. On an annual basis, review and react to budgets prepared by Physical Plant of funds derived from parking fees and fines, and review and react to the Physical Plant parking lot construction and repair priority lists. If the committee does not concur with the budget or proposed parking projects, its views will be forwarded to the Executive Vice President for Administration.

Traffic Appeals
Duties:
a. Serve as a judiciary body to try and judge those persons who appeal citations for violation of the rules set by the Parking and Traffic Committee.
b. One primary bench (one faculty/exempt, one career service, one student, and the Chairperson) shall hear the first appeal.
c. The secondary bench (one faculty/exempt, one career service, two students, and the Chairperson) shall hear the second appeals.
d. A decision of the secondary bench shall be considered final.
e. Appeals shall be routed through the Chairperson of the Traffic Appeals Subcommittee, who will convene in an order of rotation.

Scholarships, Loans and Grants in Aid
Duties:
a. Responsible for all student awards and aid programs.
b. Designate responsibilities of such committees to which it may assign college or departmental duties.

Summer Term Committee
Duties:
a. Suggest and make recommendations on matters that re of particular concern with respect to summer school.
b. Consider proposed short courses and workshops and make recommendations.
c. Assist in planning and facilitating short courses and workshops.
d. Establish subcommittees that may be needed for each specific short course or workshop.

University Activity Fee Budgeting Committee
Duties:
a. Study budgets and fee recommendations submitted to the committee by the Health Service, Student Union; Dramatics, Forensics, and Music Committees, Alumni Association and the Student Senate.
b. Make recommendations to the President of the University concerning approval of these budgets and the amount of the student fee in each case.
c. Make recommendations of the President of the University for all policies concerning fee exemptions, including which students qualify for partial fee privilege. The recommendations of the Dean of Student Affairs and of the Student Senate should be sought in this area.
d. Advise each group submitting a budget for consideration of the dates for submission and decisions on budgets.

Food Service Administrative Committee
Duties:
a. Meet 1st and 3rd Thursday at 3:30p.m.
b. Advise the President and Vice President for Administrative on University food service policy and the rules necessary to implement such policy.
c. Represent the University in contract negotiations and other policy determination with University food service management.
d. Insure that adequate communication is established with students concerning food service matters.

Academic Affairs Committee
Duties:
a. Meet at 3:30 p.m. on at least one Monday a month and on other Mondays as needed.
b. Study and make recommendations to the Academic Senate on all curriculum matters, including Class I, II, and III proposals at the undergraduate level.
c. Study and make recommendations to the Academic Senate on all other matters of academic policy at the undergraduate level.
d. Act in an advisory capacity to the Vice President for Academic Affairs.
e. Cooperate with the Graduate Council in matters which affect both graduate and undergraduate instructional programs.

Academic Appeals Committee
Duties:
a. To hear and decide appeals of student semester grades and matters of academic dishonesty.
b. This committee shall meet at the beginning of each fall term for organizational purposes.
Academic Improvements Committee
Duties:
a. Serve as a coordinating body for university-wide-in-service training.
b. Develop policies and plans for utilization of media facilities and technology, except those policies provided for in the Board of Regents/Council of Higher Education Agreement.
c. Develop policies and plans for the utilizations of media materials.
d. Develop policies and plans concerning ownership, development/production and copyright of media materials.

Committee on Committees
Duties:
a. Recommend to the Senate and president additions and deletions of committees as needed.
b. Contact all members of each electoral unit to identify those willing to fill committee vacancies.
c. Submit for Senate approval in April the new membership of all Senate and appropriate administrative committees for responsibilities that begin in the fall term. d. Fill other committee vacancies with Senate approval as they occur.
e. Coordinate and supervise the publication of the University Committee Handbook both in hard copy and electronically (via the Academic Senate’s web page) for distribution in the fall semester each year.
f. Notify the new appointees as well as the President’s Office of Senate confirmation of the committee appointments.

General Education Core Committee
Duties:
a. Work in conjunction with the Office of Academic Affairs to organize and coordinate University efforts to inform students and faculty of the nature, purpose and value of the System General Education Requirements and the Institutional Graduation Requirements.
b. Annually review and revise, if deemed appropriate, the goals and criteria for inclusion of courses and academic experiences in the Institutional Graduation Requirements.
c. Establish procedures and review requests for course or program additions to the Institutional Graduation Requirements and the System General Education directly to the SDSU Academic Senate for approval.
d. Establish procedures and conduct a five-year rotating review of courses and educational experiences listed under each of the institutional graduation requirement goals, with one goal reviewed per academic year.
e. Establish procedures and conduct a review of courses listed under the System General Education Requirements.


Harding Lecture Committee
Duties:
It is the philosophy of the Heading Distinguished Lecture Committee that the presentation pf free public lectures by distinguished figured in these areas will complement and balance students’ understanding of issues and events in the world, stimulate faculty and staff to more creative and rigorous scholarship and teaching, and provide the general public the opportunity to hear the words and ideas of notable public figures. The Committee will attempt to rotate through the general areas of :
1.) Current events.
2.) Politics and Journalism.
3.) Science and social sciences.
4.) Arts and Humanities.


Honors College Committee
Duties:
a. Advise on curriculum for honors programs.
b. Make selection of students who enter honors program.


Student Affairs Committee
Duties:
a. Advise Student Affairs concerning implementation of Student Affairs policies and related student needs.
b. Recommend to the Academic Senate and/or to the President of the University the following:
1.) Policies and rules affecting formulation, operations and activities of student organizations, including fraternities and sororities.
2.) Policies and rules affecting conduct and responsible relationships between students in the University as defined in the Student Code.
3.) Policies and rules affecting student housing, including residence hall government and operations and University relationships with off-campus housing or students.


Student Conduct Committee
Duties:
a. Meet every 2nd and 4th Thursday at 3:30 p.m.


Media Council
Duties:
a. Student Association
1.) President of SA shall act as Chairperson of Council.
2.) SA shall have authority to make structural changes to the Council with regards to membership.
3.) All annual budgets requesting student fee dollars approved by Council are subject to approval by SA and University Activity Fee Budget Committee.
b. Media Council
1.) Determine media managers once each year following application and interview procedure.
2.) Determine duties of each of media managers.
3.) Fill media manager vacancies in timely manner.
4.) Hold meetings no less than once per month during regular fiscal school year.
5.) Abode by parliamentary authority set in the Newly Revised Robert’s Rules of Order.
6.) Approve all expenditure over $200.
7.) Approval all annual media budgets prepared by media managers and forward recommendation to Student Senate regarding annual budgets that request student fee dollars.
8.) Serve as regulatory body for media organizations with regard to initiating and implementing necessary policies or policy changes.
9.) Undertake any personnel issues such as grievances and complaints.
10.) Approve all policy and procedural uniformity for media organizations.
11.) Provide policy and procedural uniformity for media organizations.
12.) Enter contract for services with DSA that ensures accounting services are provided to media organizations.
13.) Shall have no authorized or implied editorial functions.
Note: Four responsibilities required every year of media:
a.) Submission of operating procedures.
b.) Submission of budget.
c.) Submission of year-end report.
d.) Selection of new managers.


Student Union and Activities’ Advisory Council
Duties:
a. Committee consisting of at least 3 members of Students Union Activities Advisory Council, I representative of UPC and 2 members appointed by Dean of Student Affairs shall be charged with responsibility of conducting search, screen and interview process to fill the position of Director of Student Union and Activities. Committee shall recommend at least one candidate to University President through Dean of Student Affairs. Council shall have representation on all Dept. of Student Union and Activities search/screening committee.


b. Develop and recommend University Student Union Building use policies to university President for approval.
1.) All policies reviewed every three years: recommendations submitted to University President for approval.
c. Approve annual department budget which must also be approved by UFBC and university President.
d. Provide advice/input into development of Department of Student Union and Activities mission and goal statement on a yearly basis.
e. Provide advice/input into planning for long-range building utilization, staffing patterns, and fiscal management.
f. Annually coordinate and oversee surveys to assess customer satisfactions.
g. As needed, may develop procedural/operational guidelines and by-laws for department and functions of Advisory Council. All approved by University President through Dean of Student Affairs.
h. Alterations to “Authorities and Responsibilities” may be accomplished through following procedure:
1.) Proposed change submitted for Council discussion and debate one month before voting occurs.
2.) All changes require affirmative vote from five of seven voting members.
3.) Once approval of proposed change is secured, then reviewed by Student Senate and endorsed by majority vote of those present and sent to University President for approval.