I. Membership & voting eligibility

A. Membership

The Faculty of the Department of Mathematics shall consist of the tenure-track and tenured professors, associate professors, assistant professors, and instructional-track faculty appointed in the Department. 

An emeritus faculty member of the Department of Mathematics shall be any person who has retired from being a faculty member of the Department of Mathematics and has been given emeritus status by The University of Iowa.

B. Voting faculty

In accordance with the Manual of Operations and Procedures of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, members of the Faculty as defined in Article I.A, who hold a paid appointment in the Department or are currently on paid or unpaid leave from such an appointment shall have the right to vote upon or consent to any matter upon which action by the Faculty is taken or required. Instructional-track faculty will not participate in promotion and tenure decisions for tenured or tenure-track faculty. Eligible voters who are unable to be present at a departmental meeting when the vote is taken on an agenda item may leave a written absentee vote with the chair of the meeting before the vote is taken. 

C. Voting eligibility

A voting member may begin voting on the date that the official appointment begins.

II. Officers

A. Department officers

The officers of the Department of Mathematics shall be the Department Executive Officer
(DEO) of the Department, along with any other officers such as Associate Chairs appointed by
the DEO.

B. Officer duties

The officers shall perform the duties prescribed by the Manual of Operations and Procedures
and by the parliamentary authority adopted by the Department.

C. DEO appointment

The Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences recommends to the Provost a person to
be appointed as the DEO of the Department of Mathematics.

D. DEO duties

The duties of the DEO shall be as follows:

  • The DEO shall have primary administrative responsibilities for recommending faculty appointments; promotions and salary raises; implementing the department’s curriculum; monitoring the work of its undergraduate and graduate students; evaluating its faculty; procuring and regulating equipment; and managing its budget and office staff. The DEO shall also be responsible for
    scheduling and conducting departmental meetings. In carrying out these responsibilities, the DEO shall consult with appropriate faculty.
  • The DEO shall be the representative of the Department of Mathematics to the administration of the college and university. The DEO shall have the task of explaining departmental needs to the collegiate and university administration and communicating collegiate and university policies to the students and faculty in the Department.
  • The DEO will recommend to the Dean a voting faculty member of the Department of Mathematics (ordinarily one of the Associate Chairs) to whom administrative responsibility will be delegated in the DEO’s absence.

III. Meetings of the departments

A. Who can call a department meeting?

Meetings of the Department shall be called by the DEO as needed to conduct departmental business. At least one meeting will be called each semester. 

B. Meeting requests

A meeting shall be called by the DEO in a timely manner upon receipt of a petition requesting
a meeting, which bears the signatures of at least five voting members of the Department of
Mathematics. If a specific issue is involved, no action will be taken on that issue before the
departmental meeting scheduled to discuss it.

C. Notice of meeting

Members of the department will be informed about a meeting either by email or by written
notice placed in their mailboxes at least five (5) days before the meeting. The email or written
notice shall specify the agenda for the meeting.

D. Who can run the departmental meeting?

The DEO or the person designated by the DEO shall be the chair of a departmental meeting.

E. Duties of the chair

The duties of the chair of a departmental meeting include the following:

  1. opening the meeting at the required time and calling the meeting to order,
  2. announcing business in the appropriate order,
  3. stating and putting to a vote any proper motions that are made,
  4. announcing the results of the votes,
  5. enforcing the rules of order on all occasions,
  6. deciding all questions of order according to the parliamentary authority,
  7. adjourning the meeting after a motion to adjourn passes.

F. A quorum

A quorum during any semester shall be 40% of the number of voting members of the Department of Mathematics not on leave for that semester. To pass a motion made at a departmental faculty business meeting and not controlled by other portions of the Manual of Operations and Procedures shall require a minimum of 30% of the voting faculty members of the Department of Mathematics not on leave for that semester.

G. Departmental meeting secretary

A Departmental Meeting Secretary shall be elected at the first departmental meeting of each academic year and shall serve for one year. If such a person cannot be identified, it is permissible for an Acting Secretary to be appointed by the Chair for one meeting only. The Secretary or the Acting Secretary shall record and prepare minutes for each departmental meeting. These minutes shall include precise wordings of motions voted on, the outcomes of the votes, and the main points of discussion. The DEO shall arrange for the minutes to be distributed to the faculty. A file shall be kept in the Departmental Office for official documents such as the Manual of Operations and Procedures, rules of order, and other similar documents. A file shall also be kept in the Departmental Office for minutes of Departmental Meetings. The Departmental Meeting Secretary shall give a copy of the approved minutes for each Departmental Meeting to the Departmental Administrator of the Department of Mathematics to be kept in the file of minutes of Departmental Meetings.

H. Parliamentary procedure

The DEO may appoint a person to give advice on parliamentary procedure.

I. Order of business

The usual order of business shall include the review and approval of minutes of previous meetings.

J. Secret ballot

A secret ballot shall be used to vote on a motion made at a meeting with a quorum present if a motion to have a secret ballot receives affirmative votes by at least five of the eligible voters present. A motion not to have a secret ballot shall be out of order. If a motion to have a secret ballot passes, this does not rule out a subsequent motion to have a mail ballot.

K. Mail ballot

A mail ballot shall be used to vote on a motion made at a meeting with a quorum present if, prior to the voting on the original motion, a motion to have a mail ballot receives affirmative votes by at least one-third of the eligible voters present. A motion not to have a mail ballot shall be out of order. 

L. Mail balloting procedure

For mail balloting, a paper ballot and an envelope shall be distributed into the mailboxes of all eligible voters. Mail ballots are to be returned in a sealed and signed envelope within the specified time period to the Departmental Administrator of the Department of Mathematics. Email ballots shall be distributed by email to all eligible voters not in residence. Email ballots with a verifiable electronic return path, which are sent to the Departmental Administrator of the Department of Mathematics, are acceptable if received within the same specified time period. Voting results of a mail ballot together with a list of those who voted by a paper ballot, and a list of those who voted by an email ballot, shall be provided to all eligible voters.

M. What if departmental meeting doesn't have a quorum?

If a departmental meeting does not have a quorum, the wording of a proposal on an issue appearing explicitly on that meeting’s agenda shall be determined by a majority vote of the voting members present and the proposal shall be submitted by the DEO to a vote of the Department by mail ballot.

Table of Contents

Article I - Membership and voting eligibility

Article II - Officers

Article III - Meetings of the department

Article IV - Committees

Article V - Parliamentary authority

Article VI - Authority of the Manual of Operations and Procedures

Article VII - Amendments to the Manual of Operations and Procedures

Approved by the Department of Mathematics: February 2020

Approved by the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences: May 2020

IV. Committees

A. Standing committees

There shall be the following standing committees: 

  • Hiring Committee
  • Executive Committee
  • Undergraduate Committee
  • Graduate Committee
  • Teaching Evaluation Committee
  • Colloquium Committee
     

B. Committee composition and duties
  1. Hiring Committee. The Hiring Committee shall consist of six tenure-track or tenured faculty members serving staggered two-year terms and the DEO, who shall chair the committee. The Hiring Committee shall make decisions on recommendations to the College administration on all visiting positions. For each tenure-track or tenured search, the DEO shall form a search committee consisting of the DEO and four other voting faculty, at least two of whom are members of the Hiring Committee. For each instructional-track search, the DEO shall form a search committee
    consisting of the DEO and four other voting faculty, at least two of whom are members of the Hiring Committee and at least one of them is an instructional-track faculty. Each search committee is subject to the approval of the Hiring Committee. The search committee shall make recommendations to the voting faculty about the search. The voting faculty shall then decide on recommendations to the College administration for the position.
  2. Executive Committee. The Executive Committee shall consist of four tenure-track or tenured faculty members, each serving a three-year term, along with the DEO who shall chair the committee. This committee shall serve as an advisory committee for the DEO. In particular, this committee may advise the DEO on issues such as nominating faculty for awards, teaching assignments, and any other issues that are the responsibility of the DEO.
  3. Undergraduate Committee. The Undergraduate Committee shall consist of five members, each serving a three-year term. Up to two of the committee members shall be instructional-track faculty. If the DEO has appointed a person as the Associate Chair for Undergraduate Studies, then this person shall be an additional member and the chair of this committee. Otherwise, the committee shall elect a chair. This committee shall oversee the undergraduate curriculum, and recommend changes to the Department. The Undergraduate Committee shall make recommendations to the Department for textbooks for lower division undergraduate courses. Textbook selection for all lower division undergraduate courses shall be made by a vote of the faculty, usually on the recommendation of the Undergraduate Committee.
  4. Graduate Committee. The Graduate Committee shall consist of five tenure-track or tenured faculty members, each serving a three-year term. If the DEO has appointed a person as the Associate Chair for Graduate Studies, then this person shall be an additional member and the chair of this committee. Otherwise, the committee shall elect a chair. This committee oversees the graduate program and recommends changes to the Department.
  5. Teaching Evaluation Committee. The Teaching Evaluation Committee shall consist of four members serving staggered two-year terms. Up to two of the committee members shall be instructional-track faculty. The DEO shall appoint one of the members of the committee to be the chair of the committee. The Teaching Evaluation Committee shall evaluate the teaching activities and effectiveness of visiting faculty (faculty who are not tenure-track, have a contract for 3 or fewer years and are not instructional-track faculty) and provide written feedback to the faculty member with a copy to the DEO.
  6. Colloquium Committee. The Colloquium committee shall consist of two tenure-track or tenured faculty members at least one of whom has tenure. Members of the colloquium committee shall serve one year terms. The Colloquium Committee shall work with the faculty to arrange the colloquium program of the Department of Mathematics and shall make decisions regarding the colloquium budget in consultation with the DEO.

C. Election of standing committees
  1. Only voting members of the Department of Mathematics shall be eligible to serve on elected committees. Vacancies shall be filled by an election, which is usually held at the first departmental meeting of the academic year. When necessary, additional elections shall be held to fill vacancies of unexpired terms. Nominations for each committee shall be solicited at this meeting. If a member cannot be present during nominations, written nominations and willingness to serve on specific committees may be left with the chair of the meeting before the close of nominations. Elections shall be held by secret ballot at this meeting unless a motion to have a mail ballot is passed at this meeting. If the number of nominations for a particular committee does not exceed the number of vacancies, a vote by acclamation is permissible.
  2. In electing the members of all standing committees, each eligible voter may vote for one person for each vacancy to be filled. When the vacancies to be filled have different terms, the candidates with the largest numbers of votes shall fill the vacancies with the longest terms.

D. Term of office

The term of office for any member of a standing committee begins at the moment the member
is elected to that committee and ends when either the successor is elected or the member submits
a written resignation to the DEO.

E. Special committees

Special committees may be appointed by the DEO to consider departmental business not covered by one of the standing committees. All the tenured, tenure-track and instructional-track faculty will be eligible to serve on special committees.

V. Parliamentary authority

Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised, 2011 Edition shall govern this organization in all parliamentary situations that are not explicitly provided for in the Manual of Operations and Procedures and its amendments.

VI. Authority of the Manual of Operations and Procedures

The Department of Mathematics shall follow the Manual of Operations and Procedures and operating rules of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and The University of Iowa as they apply to departmental business. The Manual of Operations and Procedures of the Department of Mathematics supplement those operating rules. Once adopted, the Manual of Operations and Procedures becomes effective immediately and replaces any previous Manual of Operations and Procedures used by the Department of Mathematics. All members of the standing committees who were elected before the Manual of Operations and Procedures are adopted shall serve out their terms in office.

VII. Amendments to the Manual of Operations and Procedures

A. Consideration of amendments

The Department of Mathematics shall consider amendments to the Manual of Operations and Procedures proposed in a petition, signed by at least five voting members of the Department of Mathematics and submitted to the DEO. The proposed amendment shall state the precise Article, Section and Sentences to be amended. The proposed amendments shall specify the words to be added, deleted or replaced. Moreover, the proposal shall give a complete statement of the wording of the section in the amended form.

B. Notice of proposed amendments

A notice of the proposed amendments shall be distributed in written form by the DEO. The proposed amendments shall appear as an agenda item on the written notice of the next departmental meeting.

C. Adoption of an amendment

Adoption of an amendment to the Manual of Operations and Procedures can be achieved either at a departmental meeting, as in Article VII.B, or by means of a mail ballot. In either event, to pass a motion to amend shall require a majority vote of the entire voting faculty of the Department including those on leave or not in residence. The Department acknowledges that amendments to the Manual of Operations and Procedures are subject to the approval of the Dean, so that they are consistent with the Manuals of Operations and Procedures of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and the University of Iowa.