Operating Paper of the Department of Linguistics

Approved by Represented Faculty 5 May 1999

This operating paper for the Department of Linguistics of Southern Illinois University at Carbondale (SIUC) is in accordance with the By Laws and Statutes of the Board of Trustees and the policies set forth by the University and the College of Liberal Arts (COLA), and is in accordance with the terms of the 1998 agreement between the Board of Trustees of SIUC and the SIUC Faculty Association (IEA/NEA).

I. Mission Statement

The mission of the Department of Linguistics is to promote the knowledge and understanding of human language from both the theoretical and applied perspectives. This includes the study of:

language structure

language use and language policy

first and second language acquisition and bilingualism

language change

language education, including second language pedagogy

The Department contributes to the University's undergraduate education in three major ways. It offers an undergraduate degree in Linguistics; it participates in the University's Core Curriculum program, and it offers specialized academic writing courses for non native speakers of English. It contributes to the University's graduate mission by providing professional training through its two Masters degrees in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) and Applied Linguistics (AP). The Department also cooperates with other departments within the university in interdisciplinary masters and doctoral degree programs.

The Center for English as a Second Language (CESL), which is a unit within the Department, is an intensive English language program aimed at preparing international students seeking to enter an undergraduate or graduate program at an American University. In addition, CESL assists in the recruitment of international students to SIUC; collaborates with other units in a variety of international projects; and works with Admissions in the establishment of entry criteria and in the testing of undergraduate and graduate students, including the evaluation of international teaching assistants.

Graduate students in the department have opportunities through graduate assistantships to receive supervised training in teaching English at CESL and in the Department of Linguistics undergraduate writing program.

In keeping with its mission, the faculty conducts research in both theoretical and applied aspects of linguistics, with a particular focus on second language acquisition and language teaching. Additionally, the Journal of Pidgin and Creole Languages (JPCL), which is published by John Benjamins, is housed in the department and offers opportunities to both undergraduate and graduate students to obtain first hand experience in editing a scientific journal.

The faculty is involved in both formal and informal activities in support of the profession at large, and is also actively involved in a number of outreach activities in Carbondale and in the Southern Illinois region and contributes in a significant way to the overall commitment of the SIUC academic community to international diversity.

II. Definition of Department of Linguistics Voting Faculty

The Department of Linguistics, which is comprised of two units, recognizes and supports a concept of faculty membership which reflects unity within diversity. In the spirit of unity upon which the Linguistics and CESL units were combined and continue to operate, faculty members who meet minimum requirements as stated below are considered Department of Linguistics faculty members, no matter whether their appointments are in the Linguistics unit or in the CESL unit. Voting rights and responsibilities associated with Department of Linguistics faculty status encompass all categories, issues, and areas of concern to the Department as a whole and not specifically designated as the rights and responsibilities of the separate units. At the same time, and without negating Department of Linguistics faculty status, it is recognized that persons within this category are also members of either the Linguistics faculty or the CESL faculty based on their primary unit of appointment. Voting rights and responsibilities of each of these two sub-Department of Linguistics faculty groups shall be restricted to those categories, issues, and areas specifically designated as the prerogative of the separate units.

A. Department of Linguistics Voting Faculty

The Department of Linguistics voting faculty shall consist of all persons holding tenure and/or 100% academic appointment in the Department of Linguistics as professors, associate professors, assistant professors, instructors, promotional-track lecturers, and administrative/professional personnel with teaching duties in the Department.

1. Linguistics Voting Faculty

Persons who meet the requirement as set above (II.A.) for Department of Linguistics voting faculty shall be considered members of the Linguistics voting faculty if their primary faculty appointment within the Department is made to the Linguistics unit of the Department.

2. CESL Voting Faculty

Persons who meet the requirements as set above (II.A.) for Department of Linguistics voting faculty shall be considered members of the CESL voting faculty if their primary appointment within the Department is made to the CESL unit of the Department.

3. Change of Primary Appointment

a. CESL to Linguistics

Change of appointment of a member of the CESL voting faculty from a primary appointment in the CESL unit to a primary appointment in the Linguistics unit may be made only upon approval by a majority of the CESL voting faculty and upon approval by two-thirds of the Linguistics voting faculty.

b. Linguistics to CESL

Change of appointment of a member of the Linguistics voting faculty from a primary appointment in the Linguistics unit to a primary appointment in the CESL unit may be made only upon approval by a majority of the Linguistics voting faculty and upon approval by two-thirds of the CESL voting faculty.

B. Department of Linguistics Faculty

Includes all Department of Linguistics voting faculty, as defined in II.A., plus all other faculty members with primary appointments in the Department of Linguistics.

III. Department of Linguistics Faculty Responsibilities

A. Any Department of Linguistics faculty member may make recommendations on any and all matters of concern to the Department.

B. The Department of Linguistics voting faculty has the responsibility for approving department-wide policies, procedures, and operating principles.

C. The Linguistics voting faculty has the responsibility for approving all policies, procedures, and operational matters related to the credit-bearing courses and degree programs in the Department.

D. The CESL voting faculty is responsible for working with, and advising, the CESL administration in operational matters, and for developing and approving procedures and policies related to the unit.

E. Any action duly taken by the Department of Linguistics voting faculty, the Linguistics voting faculty, or the CESL voting faculty shall become binding on the relevant parties and shall be directed to the appropriate individual or committee(s) for implementation.

F. It is expected that each Department of Linguistics faculty member will engage in an appropriate combination of teaching, research, and service in accordance with Department of Linguistics and COLA guidelines.

IV. Administration of the Department of Linguistics

The Department of Linguistics is administered by the Chair, who is a member of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty holding tenure in the Department of Linguistics. The Chair is the chief fiscal officer of the Department of Linguistics, is responsible for coordinating academic matters in the Department of Linguistics, and is generally responsible for the administration of the Department of Linguistics. The Chair is accountable to the Department of Linguistics voting faculty for matters related to the operation of the Department of Linguistics.

In order that the Department of Linguistics function smoothly, the chair is assisted by other members of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty, including, especially, the Director of CESL.

No individual may simultaneously serve as both the Chair of the Department of Linguistics and the Director of CESL.

A. Chair of the Department of Linguistics

1. Selection, Appointment, and Term of Office of the Chair

a. The Chair serves a three-year term, and may stand for reelection to a second three-year term. Six years shall be the maximum length of a Chair's service, although (s)he may stand for re-election after a period of three years has passed since (s)he last served as Chair. If at any time the position of Chair becomes vacant before a new Chair has been elected, after receiving a majority positive vote of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty, the Dean of COLA shall appoint as Acting Chair a tenured Professor or tenured Associate Professor in the Department of Linguistics. The Acting Chair shall assume all of the duties of the Chair until a new Chair is appointed. The choice of a new Chair should be made near the end of the term of the current Chair, so that an Acting Chair should only be needed in exceptional circumstances. When a new, permanent Chair is required, the process to select him/her as described below shall commence as quickly as possible.

b. When a new Chair is to be selected from an internal pool of candidates, the Department of Linguistics' Selections and Elections Committee (see section on ad hoc committees, Section V.B.1.a., below) shall proceed as follows while insuring that University and Bargaining Agreement guidelines are followed:

i. make available a file containing a current curriculum vitae for each person eligible to run. Candidates who are currently members of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty must be tenured Professors or tenured Associate Professors. In addition, candidates must have graduate faculty status. Subsequently, the Committee shall issue a Nomination Slate listing the names of all persons eligible to serve as Chair. Each member of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty may use this ballot to nominate as many candidates for Chair as (s)he chooses. The results of this ballot shall be reported to the Department of Linguistics voting faculty.

ii. contact each Professor and Associate Professor who is tenured in the Department of Linguistics, to determine whether (s)he is willing to stand for election.

iii. prepare a nomination ballot containing the names of all those members who are willing to be considered.

iv. make available appropriate documentation, including CV's, for perusal by Department of Linguistics voting faculty.

v. hold meetings of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty to interview the candidates. Each candidate shall be interviewed separately. Interviews shall include a formal presentation by the candidate. Interviews with other University officials shall be arranged as required.

vi. After all interviews have been completed, the Selections and Elections Committee shall poll the Department of Linguistics voting faculty by secret ballot as to the preferred candidate until a run-off of only two candidates is achieved. At that point, a final ballot to the Department of Linguistics voting faculty shall require the voter to mark his/her top choice for Chair. The candidate receiving 60% (rounded to the nearest unit) of votes shall then be the Department of Linguistics' choice. If, at this point one candidate has not received 60% of the possible votes, the department shall be polled on the desirability of an external chair, and if 60% of the faculty so vote, the Department shall request a meeting with the Dean to make that request. If the Dean agrees, the procedure in c) below shall be followed.

Participation of the Bargaining Unit in the Chair Election process specified here shall constitute 'the procedures for the [Bargaining Unit] to provide a recommendation to the Dean on appointment … of the Chair'.

vii. The Selections and Elections Committee shall meet with the COLA Dean to convey the name of the choice of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty. If the COLA Dean is not able to support the Department of Linguistics voting faculty's choice, the Selections and Elections Committee shall arrange a meeting of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty to discuss the next step in the selection process.

viii. If the preferred candidate does not accept the offered position, or if the COLA Dean cannot support the preferred candidate, the Selections and Elections Committee shall arrange a meeting of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty with the COLA Dean to determine the next step in the search process.

c. If the search is external, the election process shall proceed as follows:

i. The Selections and Elections Committee shall conduct elections for an ad hoc Search Committee for External Search for Chair (see section on ad hoc committees, Section V.B.1.a., below). The Search Committee in conjunction with the COLA Dean shall prepare a position description and other appropriate documents and shall advertise the position in media appropriate to the scope of the search. It is the duty of the Search Committee to see that the search is carried out in accordance with University and Bargaining Agreement regulations. With the advice of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty and the COLA Dean, the Search Committee shall screen the applicants, reducing their number to a maximum of ten. The Search Committee shall present the names of these candidates, with appropriate documentation, including CV's, to the Department of Linguistics voting faculty. The Department of Linguistics voting faculty shall vote by secret ballot on whether each individual is an acceptable candidate for Chair. The Search Committee shall present the names of the three candidates who receive maximal support in this ballot (provided in each case that it is a majority) to the COLA Dean with a request to interview each of them. The Search Committee shall break any ties in the ballot.

ii. After the interviews have occurred, the Search Committee shall arrange a meeting of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty with the COLA Dean. The sole agenda item for this meeting will be a discussion of the merits of the candidates for the position of Chair of the Department of Linguistics.

iii. Subsequent to this meeting, the Search Committee shall poll the Department of Linguistics voting faculty by secret ballot as to the preferred candidate. The ballot shall ask whether each individual candidate is acceptable or not. A candidate must receive the support of 60% (rounded to the nearest unit) of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty and must receive a positive tenure recommendation from a majority of the Department of Linguistics tenured faculty who vote in a separate tenure ballot, to be forwarded in a separate recommendation to the COLA Dean.

iv. Providing the conditions of the previous paragraph are met, the candidate who receives the most support shall be recommended to the COLA Dean as the next Chair of the Department of Linguistics and tenure shall likewise be recommended. Participation of the Bargaining Unit in the Chair Election process specified here shall constitute "the procedures for the [Bargaining Unit] to provide a recommendation to the Dean on appointment … of the Chair".

v. If the preferred candidate does not accept the offered position, or if the COLA Dean cannot support the preferred candidate, the Selections and Elections Committee shall arrange a meeting of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty with the COLA Dean to determine the next step in the search process.

2. Review of the Chair

a. A review of the Chair shall be held during the Fall Semester of the third year of his/her appointment. If the Chair should be reelected and reappointed for a second term, there shall be a second review in Fall Semester of the sixth year.

b. The COLA Dean may elect to initiate an early review of the Chair at his/her discretion or if presented with a petition from at least one-third of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty.

c. Whenever a review of the Chair is due, in addition to the procedures initiated by the COLA Dean, the Selections and Elections Committee shall poll by secret ballot the Department of Linguistics voting faculty on the question of whether the Chair's appointment should be continued. The results of the poll shall be reported to the Department of Linguistics voting faculty and to the COLA Dean.

d. If fewer than 60% of those voting in either ballot indicate that the Chair should continue, the Selections and Elections Committee shall request the COLA Dean to call a meeting of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty excluding the Chair. The purpose of this meeting shall be to discuss reasons pro and con on the question of continuation of the Chair.

3. Duties of the Chair

The Chair is the Department of Linguistics' chief academic, administrative, and fiscal officer:

a. The Chair shall administer the Department of Linguistics in accordance with the Department of Linguistics Operating Paper and in consultation with the Executive Committee, which (s)he chairs and in which (s)he has a vote, initiating and formulating suggested departmental objectives, policies, and operating principles.

b. The Chair also represents the Department of Linguistics to COLA and other administrative units on campus (such as the Graduate School), and, conversely, represents those units back to the Department of Linguistics.

c. In accordance with Department of Linguistics, COLA, University, and Bargaining Agreement Guidelines, the Chair determines course assignments and workloads (and should consult with the Linguistics faculty at a meeting on course scheduling for each semester), and research and service assignments of each member of the Department of Linguistics faculty, in consultation with that person.

d. Except as otherwise specified, the Chair is an ex officio, nonvoting member of every Department of Linguistics standing and ad hoc committee.

e. The Chair may appoint and dismiss ad hoc committees: for example, committees for special lecturers, equipment, space, and computing. Any member of the Department of Linguistics may be appointed to such an ad hoc committee.

4. The Chair is responsible for:

a. new faculty appointments in accordance with the final vote of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty

b. extensions of term faculty appointments in accordance with review and recommendation by the appropriate unit's voting faculty.

c. annual reviews of tenured and tenure-track faculty

d. promotion and tenure recommendations in accordance with current Department, COLA, University, and Bargaining Agreement guidelines.

e. merit salary increases based on Executive Committee recommendations and in accordance with approved current Department, college, university, and Faculty Association Agreement guidelines.

f. the budget for Linguistics in consultation with the Linguistics voting faculty, and the budget for CESL in consultation with the Director of CESL

5. The Chair, in consultation with the appropriate committees, shall provide for an annual review and evaluation of departmental goals, policies, programs, and operating principles, and share with the Department of Linguistics voting faculty the annual Departmental Achievement Report and Planning Document, and the budget of the Department.

6. The Chair shall also be responsible for scheduling and calling such meetings as provided for elsewhere in the Department of Linguistics Operating Paper.

7. The Chair shall designate at the beginning of each academic year, one person from among the tenured Professors or the tenured Associate Professors with primary appointment in the Department of Linguistics to serve as Acting Chair during the short-term absence of the Chair, not to exceed two months.

B. CESL Director

The chief academic, administrative, fiscal and personnel officer of the Center for English as a Second Language is the CESL Director. This position provides the continuity necessary for management of this self supporting unit. To be eligible to serve in this position, a candidate must be a member of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty and be tenured, tenure track, a Senior Lecturer, or a Principal Lecturer. The Director reports to the Chair of the Department and is evaluated annually by the Chair.

1. Term of Office, Selection, and Appointment

a. The CESL Director is a four year position that can be renewed for an additional four year term by a majority approval of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty. After two terms, the position of Director shall be decided by an open election.

b. If at any time the position of Director becomes vacant, the Chair of Linguistics, after consulting with the Department of Linguistics voting faculty, shall appoint as Acting Director a qualified member of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty. The Acting Director shall assume all of the duties of the Director until a new Director is appointed. The process to select a Director as described below shall commence as quickly as possible.

c. If At any time it is known that the Director will not be in office at the beginning of the next academic year, the Department of Linguistics voting faculty shall meet with the Chair to discuss the impending vacancy to determine whether the search will be internal or external. The Chair shall take the faculty's recommendation to the Dean for approval. In the case of an internal search, the Selections and Elections Committee shall conduct the election following the same procedures as set out above for election of Chair. In the case of an external search, the Search Committee for an external search for Director of CESL shall conduct the search.

2. Review of the Director of CESL

a. In the Fall of the fourth year of the Director's term, a review of the Director shall be initiated by the Chair, incorporating input from all Department of Linguistics faculty members. The results of this review shall be reported to the Department of Linguistics voting faculty and to the Chair.

b. The Chair may elect to initiate an early review of the Director at his/her discretion or if presented with a petition from at least 60% of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty.

c. Whenever a review of the Director is due, in addition to the procedures initiated by the Chair of Linguistics, the Selections and Elections Committee shall poll by secret ballot the Department of Linguistics voting faculty on the question of whether the Director's appointment should be continued. The results shall be reported to the Department of Linguistics voting faculty, the Chair of Linguistics, and the COLA Dean.

d. If fewer than 60% of those voting indicate that the Director should continue, the Selections and Elections Committee shall request the Chair of Linguistics to call a meeting of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty excluding the Director of CESL. The purpose of this meeting shall be to discuss reasons pro and con on the question of continuation of the Director.

3. Responsibilities and Duties of the Director of CESL

The CESL Director has overall responsibility for all policies, procedures, and operational matters related to the CESL program. In collaboration with the appropriate committees, the Director of CESL's duties include the following:

a. coordination and review of the CESL curriculum

b. recruitment and admission of new CESL students

c. coordination of CESL student placement and evaluation

d. preparation and review of CESL budgets

e. recommendation of new CESL faculty appointments

f. evaluation of all CESL faculty and staff

g. selection, supervision, and evaluation of CESL support staff

h. submission of CESL merit salary recommendations in accordance with approved Department, college, university and Faculty Association Agreement guidelines.

i. coordination and supervision of teacher training

j. facilitation of CESL based research and grant proposals

k. scheduling and chairing regular meetings of the CESL faculty

4. Teaching load and contract: In compensation for his/her increased administrative and service duties, it is expected that the Director of CESL shall have a reduced teaching load in the CESL and/or Linguistics units of the department. The courses to be offered shall be determined by the Chair in consultation with the Director and the respective unit faculties.

V. Committees of the Department of Linguistics

All committees serve in an advisory capacity. Where appropriate (primarily for routine matters), committee recommendations are passed on to the Chair for implementation. In other cases (i.e., policy matters), committee recommendations are presented to the voting faculty of the respective unit for final approval and implementation.

Except as otherwise provided for below, all committees are responsible for electing their own officers.

All committees (except for the Selections and Elections Committee and any Grievance Appeals Committees and Search Committees) are responsible for scheduling their own meetings, but are required to meet at least once each semester. Meetings may be called by the committee chair, the Chair of the Department, or by a minimum of one third of the members of a committee.

All Department of Linguistics faculty members are entitled to propose agenda items to the relevant committee and may be requested to appear to discuss those items.

Except as indicated, only members of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty are eligible for election to standing committees. Department of Linguistics nonvoting faculty may serve on ad hoc committees and serve as appointees for special assignments. The initial election of members of the Selections and Elections Committee after the adoption of this Operating Paper shall be undertaken as soon as possible by the entire Department of Linguistics voting faculty, so that it may begin its work. Thereafter, the Selections and Elections Committee shall be responsible for all committee elections, including its own. Unless specified otherwise, members of committees are elected for two-year terms, except for the initial election which shall stagger membership so that half shall be elected for one year and half for two; and thereafter, all members for two years. This initial staggering of membership shall also apply to the Selections and Elections Committee. Committee members shall take office at the beginning of the fall semester.

Elections supervised by the Selections and Elections Committee shall be held in the spring term of each year for all departmental committees.

Student members as designated below are elected by the students themselves. Those elected serve one-year terms.

Committee members who have a conflict of interest on an issue before their committee shall recuse themselves when appropriate.

A. Standing Committees

1. Executive Committee  Eight members:

The Department Chair, the Director of CESL, two members of the CESL voting faculty elected by the CESL voting faculty, three members of the Linguistics voting faculty elected by the Linguistics voting faculty, and one graduate student elected by the Linguistics Student Association. The Department Chair serves as chair of this committee. All the members of the committee except the student member are voting members of the committee. If personnel matters are discussed, the student member may be asked not to attend.

This committee is concerned with all matters pertaining to Department of Linguistics goals, policies, and operating procedures. Its specific responsibilities include admissions policies, selection of graduate assistants and nominees for graduate fellowships, recommendations for faculty merit salary increases, and responses to student petitions.

2. Linguistics Curriculum Committee  Four members:

Two members of the Linguistics voting faculty, one member of the CESL voting faculty, all elected by the Linguistics faculty; and one second-year student, elected by the Linguistic Student Association. All are voting members, except that the student member may not vote on issues involving the evaluation of theses and research reports.

This committee is concerned with all matters pertaining to course review, proposals for new courses, course and curriculum changes, comprehensive examination requirements and procedures, and teaching evaluation procedures and policies.

3. CESL Curriculum Committee  Variable number of members

Area coordinators who are Promotional Track lecturers, one member of the CESL teaching staff/faculty who is elected by the CESL voting faculty, one member of the Linguistics voting faculty who is elected by the CESL voting faculty, and one CESL Graduate Assistant, who is elected by the Linguistic Student Association. Only members of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty are voting members of the committee. The CESL Curriculum Coordinator is an ex officio non-voting member of the committee.

This committee assists and advises the CESL Curriculum Coordinator regarding issues of general relevance to the CESL curriculum as well as day to day operational matters. It constitutes a formal vehicle for reports to the CESL Policy Committee on the status of the curriculum and for curriculum issues and concerns. The committee encourages faculty suggestions and questions concerning curriculum development, direction, and evaluation.

4. CESL Policy Committee  Variable number of members.

All CESL voting faculty shall be members of the CESL Policy Committee.

This committee assists and advises the Director in the formulation of general policies that affect the long term academic health of the unit. Examples of such issues include but are not limited to tuition increases; hours of instruction, proficiency requirements, the addition of new programs and contracts, faculty and student policies that are not governed by specific university regulations, recruitment, entrance/exit criteria, CESL's relationship with SIU and the community, personnel matters, and program evaluation.

5. Selections and Elections Committee - Four members:

This committee is charged with administering elections for all officers in the Department. It shall consist of two members elected from the Linguistics voting faculty and two members elected from the CESL voting faculty, and it shall elect its own chair, each elected by its respective voting faculty. It shall initiate Chair of Linguistics and Director of CESL elections in those years in which they are necessary, and it shall initiate and supervise all committee elections every spring.

6. Research Committee  Two members:

One member of the Linguistics voting faculty and one member of the CESL voting faculty both elected by the Department of Linguistics voting faculty.

This committee is concerned with encouraging and coordinating research and support activities for research within the Department. A regular assignment for the committee is to monitor guidelines for research involving Linguistics or CESL classes and students and to review proposals for such projects.

B. Ad Hoc Committees

1. Search Committees for External Searches

a. The Search Committee for an External Search for Chair of Linguistics. This committee shall consist of three members of the Linguistics voting faculty, to be elected by members of the Linguistics voting faculty, the CESL Director, and one member of the CESL voting faculty, to be elected by members of the CESL voting faculty with at least one committee member belonging to the Bargaining Unit. The Chair of Linguistics shall not serve on this committee.

b. The Search Committee for an External Search for Director of CESL. This committee shall consist of two members of the Linguistics voting faculty, to be elected by the Linguistics voting faculty, with at least one committee member belonging to the Bargaining Unit; and three members of the CESL voting faculty, to be elected by the CESL voting faculty. The Chair of Linguistics is an ex officio nonvoting member of this committee. The current Director of CESL shall not serve on this committee.

2. Search Committees for New Faculty

The designated search committees shall be responsible for all stages of each search as well as for the selection of a finalist for each position. Proper and timely notification shall be made to all faculty. All appointments for Linguistics faculty positions must be approved by the Department Chair, and appointments for CESL faculty positions by the Department Chair and the CESL Director. The Chair is an ex-officio non-voting member of each search committee. The CESL Director is an ex officio nonvoting member of the CESL Search Committee.

a. Linguistics: The Search Committee for all Linguistics faculty positions shall be composed of all Linguistics voting faculty and one member of the CESL voting faculty elected by the Linguistics voting faculty.

b. CESL: The Search Committee for all CESL faculty positions shall be composed of all CESL voting faculty and one member of the Linguistics voting faculty elected by the CESL voting faculty.

3. Tenure and Promotion Committees (see tenure and promotion documents, appended to this operating paper)

4. Grievance Committee

This committee shall be constituted and organized only when necessary, i.e., upon receipt by the Department Chair of a grievance filed by a faculty member or student in the Department of Linguistics. The committee shall include three members from the Department of Linguistics voting faculty elected by the Department of Linguistics voting faculty. For a CESL grievance there shall be two CESL members and one Linguistics member, and for a Linguistics grievance there shall be one CESL member and two Linguistics members. All Grievance Committees shall include at least one member of the Department of Linguistics Bargaining Unit. The Selections and Elections Committee shall initiate and supervise the election. The Department Chair or CESL Director, who are ineligible to serve on the Grievance Committee, shall inform the person filing the grievance of the composition of the committee. The grievant has the right to ask for the removal of no more than one member of the committee, whereupon a new member shall be elected. Committees formed after such a process are binding. In the case of a student grievance, the student(s) may request that two students be added to the three member committee. A Grievance Committee is dissolved upon the resolution of the case it was formed to consider.

VI. Meetings

Meetings of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty shall be called by the Department Chair at least once each fall and spring semester. The Chair, who conducts all meetings of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty, shall distribute an agenda in advance. Only those holding Department of Linguistics voting faculty status are eligible to vote. A simple majority is required for a motion to be carried. Additional meetings must be called by the Department Chair upon petition of at least three members of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty, or of at least three members of the Department of Linguistics Bargaining Unit.

The same guidelines apply for meetings of the Linguistics voting faculty and CESL voting faculty.

VII. Absentee Votes and Secret Written Ballots

Absentee ballots in faculty or committee meetings shall be permitted upon written request of a faculty member who is unavoidably absent. General and open proxies are not permitted. Secret ballots shall be unmarked for unit membership except as required by the Faculty Association Contract.

Secret written ballots in any faculty meeting or committee meeting may be requested by any faculty member for any vote. In all cases where percentages of votes in this Operating Paper are specified, it is understood that numbers will be rounded down to the next lowest unit if less than 0.5, and rounded up to the next highest unit if 0.5 or higher.

VIII. Academic Qualifications of New Bargaining Unit Faculty

New tenure-track Faculty in the Department of Linguistics shall hold the rank of PhD in Linguistics, Applied Linguistics, TESOL, or a related field at the time of appointment, although candidates who have almost finished their dissertations may be considered if exceptional circumstances or qualifications warrant.

VIII. Ratification and Amendments

A. Ratification: Following an advisory approval by the Department of Linguistics voting faculty, this document shall be ratified by a majority vote of the Linguistics Bargaining Unit, as specified in the 1998 agreement between the Board of Trustees of SIUC and the SIUC Faculty Association.

B. Amendments

It is expected that this Operating Paper will undergo regular review and amendment in order to reflect any future changes in the size, composition, or organization of the Department of Linguistics.

1. Initiation of amendment proposals

Any member of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty may propose, in writing, an amendment to this document. The proposal must be made at least one week in advance of any meeting to discuss it.

2. Initial discussion

The amendment shall be discussed at a meeting of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty.

3. Subcommittees

If deemed necessary, a special subcommittee, with representation from the Bargaining Unit, Department of Linguistics voting faculty who are not in the Bargaining Unit, and administrators with primary appointment in the Department of Linguistics, to be elected by their respective voting constituencies, shall be constituted to research the issue and make its recommendations to the Department of Linguistics voting faculty.

4. Ratification

Upon advisory approval of the Department of Linguistics voting faculty, the proposed amendment shall be ratified by sixty percent majority vote of the Department of Linguistics Bargaining Unit.

Appendices

1. Merit salary guidelines existing as of 1998. Click here for Linguistics Unit

2. Tenure and Promotion Guidelines as of 1998 with the following exception:

· Under section 3, the Tenure/Promotion Committee shall elect a chair from among its own members.

· Under section 4 on names of referees, the chair of the Tenure/Promotion committee shall be consulted.

· Under section 5, the wording on the reporting of the sense of the committee shall be replaced with the following:

The chair of the Tenure/promotion committee shall submit a separate letter of recommendation, upon approval by that committee, reflecting the sense of the committee's deliberations both for and against the candidate.