Executive Council of Graduate Faculty
Charge for the Council
The Executive Council of Graduate Faculty is reviewing and refining its governing bylaws. Updated bylaws will be posted once they have been confirmed.
Bylaws
Membership
The membership of the Executive Council is representative of the graduate faculty on KU’s Lawrence Campus. Members are appointed to staggered three-year terms. Three members represent the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. The School of Education nominates two representatives. Each remaining school has a single representative.
Executive Council Members: 2019-2020
| Name | Department | Term Ends |
|---|---|---|
| Open Position | School of Journalism | 2020 |
| Open Position | School of Engineering | 2020 |
| Open Position | School of Music | 2020 |
| Brook, Jody | School of Social Welfare | 2022 |
| Cai, Hui | School of Architecture and Design | 2022 |
| Gillispie, Matt | College of Liberal Arts & Sciences | 2022 |
| Hallman, Heidi | School of Education | 2022 |
| Li, Yan | College of Liberal Arts & Sciences | 2021 |
| Miner, Joshua | College of Liberal Arts & Sciences | 2021 |
| Short, Andrew | College of Liberal Arts & Sciences | 2021 |
| Wintoki, Jide | School of Business | 2021 |
| Wolfe, Michael | School of Pharmacy | 2021 |
| Werle, Michael | KUMC Faculty Representative | Ex Officio |
| Roberts, Jennifer | Office of Graduate Studies | Ex Officio Chair |
2020-2021 Meeting Dates, Deadlines, Agendas, and Minutes
The Executive Council meets at 2 pm every third Friday. Meetings are held in 210 Strong Hall unless otherwise indicated.
The table below lists the submission, processing, and notification deadlines that correlate to each meeting. Petitions must be received by the Office of Graduate Studies by 8:00 a.m. on the date listed. Processing, posting, and notifications will be completed before staff leaves on the date listed.
| Meeting Date | Petition Submission | Agenda | Processing and Notification | Minutes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall 2020 | ||||
| 28 Aug | 17 Aug | 21 Aug | 1 Sept | 22 Sept |
| 18 Sept | 8 Sept | 11 Sept | 22 Sept | 13 Oct |
| 9 Oct | 28 Sept | 2 Oct | 13 Oct | 3 Nov |
| 30 Oct | 19 Oct | 23 Oct | 3 Nov | 14 Nov |
| 20 Nov | 9 Nov | 13 Nov | 24 Nov | 15 Dec |
| 11 Dec | 30 Nov | 4 Dec | 15 Dec | 2 Feb |
| Spring 2021 | ||||
| 29 Jan | 19 Jan | 22 Jan | 2 Feb | 23 Feb |
| 19 Feb | 8 Feb | 12 Feb | 23 Feb | 16 Mar |
| 12 Mar | 1 Mar | 5 Mar | 16 Mar | 6 Apr |
| 2 Apr | 22 Mar | 26 Mar | 6 Apr | 27 Apr |
| 23 Apr | 12 Apr | 16 Apr | 27 Apr | 18 May |
| 14 May | 3 May | 7 May | 18 May | Fall 2021 |
Petitions for Policy Exception: Guidelines
In extraordinary circumstances, the Vice Provost for Graduate Studies, in collaboration with the Executive Council of Graduate Faculty, may grant exceptions to university policy. Petitions requesting such an exception must present a well-reasoned argument, supported by documentary evidence, that the policy is inappropriate to the situation in question and strict adherence to the letter of the policy would compromise the spirit of the policy or undermine KU's values. To be considered, petitions must include the following:
- Reference to the policy or policies in the Policy Library
- Clear statement of the exception requested
- Cogent argument about the extraordinary circumstances warranting an exception
- Documentary evidence of the extraordinary circumstances and wisdom of the exception
- Statement of endorsement by department leadership
- Statement of endorsement by school or college leadership (usually from the Dean's Office or Graduate Division)
Petition Documentation FAQ
What should I include in a petition to appoint a GTA at the 700 level or above?
KU approaches the question of who can teach graduate students from two angles:
- Potential for perceived conflict of interest
- Qualifications, credentials, and accreditation
- The GTA is not a social or academic peer to the graduate students enrolled in the course.
- For the purpose of this review, peer relationships may be indicated by enrollment in the GTA's academic program (regardless of year), mentorship by the GTA's advisor, sharing equipment or office space, membership in the same graduate student organization (GSO) or other campus organization, participation in a shared social group, etc.
- The faculty instructor of record will conduct all grading and evaluation of enrolled graduate students.
- Peer-to-peer mentoring is a suitable role for a GTA in a 700+ class. Peer-to-peer mentoring may include leading discussion groups, providing formative feedback on homework assignments before they are graded by the professor, etc.
- The Office of Graduate Studies may allow grading by a GTA in a 700+ course when the student doing the grading is in a different program and has no social overlap with enrolled students. For example, a doctoral student on the Lawrence campus may grade the work of master's students in a different program and conducted at the Edwards campus.
What documents or evidence should I use to support a request prompted by a medical concern?
Please do not submit any individual medical records or personal health information or documentation, including anything that might be protected by HIPAA. Please contact Graduate Studies for more guidance on this topic.
What documents or evidence do you recommend?
This section is under development.. Faculty and staff are strongly encouraged to work closely with students to determine the best possible evidence that supports their request for an exception to policy. The Office of Graduate Studies is committed to reviewing any documentation that students, departments, and schools feel demonstrates the inappropriateness of university policy in a specific situation.
Examples of acceptable documentation in cases of personal crisis might include death certificates, proof of travel or other preexisting commitments, police reports, etc.
Petition Process
All petitions for exceptions to Graduate Studies policy will be reviewed by the Vice Provost for Graduate Studies in collaboration with the Executive Council of Graduate Faculty. To be included on the agenda, petitions must be submitted according to the deadlines and standards established above. Graduate Studies staff will decline incomplete petitions and will notify petitioners when a petition is either declined or added to a Council agenda. Graduate Studies staff will notify petitioners of the Council's decisions no later than the end of the Tuesday following a Council meeting.
Petitions for exception to the Graduate Admissions policy or the English Proficiency Requirements for Graduate Admission must be submitted using the workflow process in Admit. Notifications to the petitioner will be delivered through the Admit workflow process.
All other petitions for exception to Graduate Studies policies must be submitted as a PDF packet to grad-petitions@ku.edu. Notifications to the petitioner will be sent by email to the address that submitted the petition.
The Executive Council of Graduate Faculty has authorized administrative approval of some requests under limited circumstances. These circumstances are outlined below.
Administrative Approval: Graduate Faculty Nominations
Graduate Faculty nominations may be approved administratively by staff in the Office of Graduate Studies when they meet one of the following criteria. The Executive Council of Graduate Faculty will review all other nominations to the Graduate Faculty.
- Individuals who hold full-time, tenure-track faculty appointments at KU with the rank of Associate Professor, Full Professor, or Emeritus/a Professor may be approved for any one, several, or all of the five privileges.
- Individuals who hold full-time, tenure-track faculty appointments at KU may be approved for service as a member of master's and/or doctoral committees, service as the chair of master's committees, and/or service as the Graduate Studies Representative (GSR) on doctoral committees.
- Individuals who already hold current Graduate Faculty privileges at the KU Medical Center may be approved for equivalent privileges on the Lawrence campus.
Administrative Approval: GTA appointments to Courses at the 700 level or above
Staff in the Office of Graduate Studies may administratively approve appointments of Graduate Teaching Assistants (GTAs) to courses at the 700 level or above when they meet all of the following criteria. These criteria are intended to mitigate the potential for perceived conflict of interest and ensure worthwhile professional development opportunities for GTAs. The Executive Council of Graduate Faculty will review all other requests to appoint GTAs at the 700 level or above.
- The format of the class lends itself well to appropriate utilization and development of the GTA's skills.
- The petition letter clearly demonstrates no social or academic overlap between the GTA and enrolled graduate students.
- The petition letter clearly demonstrates the GTA will not perform grading or evaluation of enrolled graduate students.
Active Policy Work Groups
The following work groups are being convened to develop policy proposals for governance review during the 2020-2021 academic year. Please check back here for regular updates about these policy initiatives.