The Other Side of the Story
The President's action does not preclude executive committee members from being able to be elected to the new faculty senate at Kingsville, as rumored. They were only precluded from serving on the Constitutional Task Force in order "to enhance the objectivity (real or perceived) of those involved in this undertaking. The Texas Council of Faculty Senates may have been given inaccurate information.
The External Review Committee's recommendations included the following:
“A special task force should be elected by the faculty at large to study and, if necessary, amend the constitution of the faculty senate at TAMUK and the constitution and by-laws of the general faculty as they relate to the faculty senate, its role as well as its actual and perceived powers so that it reflects the faculty senate’s advisory role. Consideration should be given to excluding current and, for some designated period, past faculty senators to enhance the objectivity (real and perceived) of those involved in this undertaking.
The Board of Regents unanimously approved a Minute Order stating:
“The Chancellor of The Texas A&M University System is authorized to provide any support necessary to the president of Texas A&M University-Kingsville in reconstituting the Faculty Senate in order to enhance communication and to broaden representation so as to properly encourage the faculty in its advisory capacity to the president, as set out in the policy of The Texas A&M University System.”
On this authority, and pursuant to the above-referenced recommendation of the External Review Committee, the President took the following action:
“Effective immediately and consistent with the Board’s minute order, the Faculty Senate at Texas A&M University-Kingsville is hereby suspended as an official body of the university pending the election of a newly constituted faculty advisory body. The existing Constitution and Bylaws of the General Faculty, as well as all Faculty Senate Committees, is also suspended until a revised and amended Constitution and Bylaws are approved . . . Faculty who have served on the Faculty Senate Executive Committee at any time since Fall 2003 to the present are ineligible to serve on the Constitutional Task Force.”
It should be clearly noted that the President’s action to exclude only the Faculty Senate Executive Committee was much less severe than the actual recommendation made by the External Review Committee to exclude all members of the Faculty Senate.
Elections were completed by October 10, 2005 with approximately 62% participation of the general faculty.