About Arts and Sciences
Administration:
Advisory Committees to the Vice President and Dean of the Faculty
Steering Committee of the Chairs
Each year the chairs of the twenty-nine departments, including representatives from the School of International and Public Affairs and the School of the Arts, elect a Steering Committee. The Steering Committee, colloquially known as the Steers, consists of two chairs from each of the three divisions (Humanities, Social Sciences, and Natural Sciences). The Steers meet with the Vice President for Arts and Sciences to set the agenda for each chairs’ meeting and represent the interests of the Chairs in other forums. The Vice President convenes the department chairs for regular meeting throughout the year which includes the Deans of the six schools, and other administrative officials as appropriate.
Academic Review Committee
The Academic Review Committee is comprised of fifteen faculty members. The Vice President for Arts and Sciences and Associate Vice President for Arts and Sciences serve ex officio. There are at least five faculty representatives from each of the three divisions, Humanities, Social Sciences, and Natural Sciences. The Department of the Arts and the Department of International and Public Affairs each has one faculty representative on the Committee. The representative from the Department of the Arts is a tenured Professor or a Full Professor of Practice; all other faculty representatives are tenured faculty. Faculty representatives are appointed by the Vice President for Arts and Sciences, following consultation with Deans, the Steering Committee of the Chairs, and the Executive Committee of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences.
The Academic Review Committee is charged with overseeing the periodic review of all departments, centers, and institutes in the Arts and Sciences. The principal functions of the review are to assess program quality and effectiveness, to foster planning and improvement, and to provide guidance for administrative decisions. The process provides an opportunity for critical self-review on a recurring basis and for reevaluating long-range planning assumptions and goals. By providing a means for reaching collective judgment on the strengths and weaknesses of a program, its comparative advantages, and its future opportunities and challenges, the review process contributes to achieving and maintaining the excellence of programs across the Arts and Sciences.
Faculty Budget Group
The Faculty Budget Group is comprised of three members of the Steering Committee along with three members of ECFAS. They meet regularly with the Vice President for Arts and Sciences and his staff in order to review budgets and discuss their implications for the Arts and Sciences. The group serves in an advisory capacity, offering suggestions for the most effective utilization of the Arts and Sciences budget and providing feedback to the Vice President concerning proposed resource allocations and financial policies.