Executive Committee & Principal Assistant

Duties and Responsibilities

Executive Committee

The executive committee consists of the chair, chair-elect, immediate past chair, and the executive secretary.  This committee operates as a collaborative team with shared duties and responsibilities, along with a permanent half-time principal assistant that supports this committee in its duties. They oversee the Senate committees and work to keep the senate running smoothly.

In their roles representing all WSU faculty to the administration, the Faculty Senate Executive Committee meets on a regular basis with the president, the provost, and other senior administrators to discuss faculty issues, and serve on high level committees representing a faculty perspective.

Chair

The chair of Faculty Senate, in addition to chairing Senate and Steering committee meetings, serves as an ex officio member of the Honorary Degrees Committee. They carry the mace and lead the processional in Pullman Convocation, Pullman Commencements, and Spokane Commencement. As a representative of faculty on all campuses, the chair visits WSU campuses and locations to meet with faculty and administrators to discuss faculty and student issues, and writes and presents reports to the Board of Regents at each of their regular meetings.

Chair-Elect

The chair-elect has two primary duties, in addition to those that are shared with the Executive Committee. The chair-elect is chair of the Committee on Committees, which coordinates staffing on all Senate committees and makes recommendations for faculty to serve on presidential committees. In the absence of the chair of Senate, the chair-elect acts as chair of Faculty Senate and/or Steering Committee.

Past Chair

The immediate past-chair serves in an advisory capacity to the executive committee and may be responsible for continuing initiatives started during his or her term as chair-elect and chair.

Executive Secretary

The executive secretary’s primary duties, in addition to those that are shared by the Executive Committee, involve conducting Faculty Senate elections in the spring, presenting comments at Steering Committee meetings, acting as a liaison to the PAC-12 Academic Leadership Coalition, and to proofread, review, and edit minutes and agendas for Steering and Senate. The executive secretary, along with the principal assistant, plays a role in inviting and scheduling speakers to visit Faculty Senate meetings.