Department of Computer
Science
University of Maryland
College Park, Maryland
September, 2000
The purpose of the Plan
of Organization is to specify the means by which the Department of Computer
Science (the Department) carries out its educational and research
responsibilities and plays its proper role in University affairs. This Plan
supersedes all previous versions.
The chief
administrative officer of the Department is the Department Chairperson.
1.
Appointment. The Chairperson is appointed by the
College Dean (and ultimately by the University) to a fixed term of office,
usually 5 years. Prior to a new appointment or the reappointment of a
chairperson, expressions of opinion of the Department Council and of the
Department faculty shall be given to the University administration. No person
shall serve as Chairperson for more than 10 consecutive years.
2.
Functions. The Chairperson’s functions are
a.
To act as the chief representative and advocate
for the Department.
b.
To promote and engage in superior teaching,
service, and research in the Department.
c.
To plan and administer the Department's budget,
in consultation with the Dean and with the advice of the Council.
d.
To make recommendations with respect to faculty
appointments, tenure, and promotions, as specified in applicable regulations.
e.
To work for recruitment and promotion of
qualified faculty and staff and to ensure equity in hiring and personnel
decisions.
f.
To administer all programs of the Department.
g.
To solicit active participation of Department
members in Department affairs and to communicate policies.
h.
To preside over meetings of the Council and
Assemblies, as necessary.
i.
To appoint ad hoc committees as necessary.
j.
To ensure implementation of this Plan of
Organization.
The Chairperson has no vote in any Department
Assembly or committee.
1.
The Assemblies. The General Assembly of the Department of Computer Science shall be
composed of the following constituencies: the Faculty Assembly, the Staff
Assembly, the Graduate Student Assembly, and the Undergraduate Student
Assembly. Each voting member of a Constituent Assembly is eligible to vote for
the Assembly’s representatives for the Department Council.
a.
The Faculty
Assembly shall consist of all full-time University employees who hold at
least a half-time academic-year appointment in the Department, with a title
classified as faculty in the University’s Faculty
Handbook. This includes faculty on sabbatical leave, but not those on
leave-without-pay. Visiting Faculty are not included, nor are faculty
researchers who do not hold a Ph.D degree and faculty with teaching duties who
do not hold a master’s degree in computer science or a related field. A member
of the faculty who holds an appointment in the Department with an academic
title but who does not meet the description above shall have a voice but no vote
in the Faculty Assembly.
b.
The Staff
Assembly shall consist of all non-exempt and exempt staff of the University
who hold at least a half-time appointment within the Department.
c.
The Graduate
Student Assembly shall consist of all officially registered graduate
students of the University who are enrolled in a graduate program of the
Department.
d.
The Undergraduate
Student Assembly shall consist of all officially registered undergraduate
students of the University who are declared computer science majors.
e.
Any person who belongs to more than one
constituency above shall be counted with the category of the person's choice.
2.
Functions. Each of these Assemblies serves as an
electoral body and as the voice of its members within the Department. Its
functions are
a.
To approve the Department Plan of Organization,
and any of its Amendments, as well as the Bylaws.
b.
To initiate suggestions to the Department
Chairperson through representatives on the Department Council.
c.
To act as the electorate in department, college
or campus elections in which the members of that Assembly are allowed to vote.
d.
To identify, where applicable, the Assembly's
candidates, either by petition or nomination, for any such election as
mentioned in the preceding clause.
e.
To act as referendum body for any referendum
called by the Department Council. (All such referenda are advisory in nature.)
3.
Organization and Meetings of the Constituent
Assemblies.
a.
Each Department Assembly shall be entitled to
formulate its own plan which shall not contravene this Plan of Organization or
its By-Laws. Any such organizational plan shall be filed with the Department
Council.
b.
The Department Constituent Assemblies are not
required to hold regularly scheduled meetings. However, upon petition of 20% of
the membership of any one Assembly, the Department Chairperson shall call a
meeting of this particular Assembly and act as chair pro tempore for such a
meeting if the Assembly has no chair at that time.
1.
The Department
Council shall consist of the Department Chairperson who acts as Chairperson
of the Council, along with elected and ex-officio members as specified in the
By-Laws.
The functions of the Council are:
a.
To consult with and advise the Department
Chairperson on matters of concern to the Department and its Constituent
Assemblies.
b.
To establish standing and ad hoc subcommittees
not otherwise specified in this Plan of Organization as needed or desirable for
the Department.
c.
To review the Plan of Organization and By-Laws,
in years ending with a zero or a five, and to initiate proposed changes then or
at other times when necessary or desirable.
d.
To perform any other duties specified in the
By-Laws.
Meetings of the
Council shall be called by the Department Chairperson or upon petition of 25%
of the elected Council membership.
2.
The Appointment, Promotion, and Tenure
Committee (APT Committee) of the Department shall consist of an elected APT
Chairperson and the Faculty Assembly. Subcommittees of the APT Committee for
the various activities of the Committee and the qualifications of the APT
Chairperson are specified in the By-Laws.
The functions of the APT Committee and
appropriate subcommittees are:
a.
To
perform an annual review of all assistant and associate professors of the
Department. A recommendation to the Department Chairperson concerning their
possible promotion, tenure, or continuation of contract will be made as
appropriate. Procedures for this are specified in the By-Laws.
b.
To
review any prospective faculty member for the Department and advise the
Department Chairperson on the desirability of the appointment.
c.
To perform any other duties specified in the
By-Laws.
3.
The Education
Committee of the Department considers all educational matters of the
Department. Its membership is specified in the By-Laws. The functions of the
Education Committee are
a.
To
review and recommend changes in the educational programs of the Department.
b.
To
recommend changes in courses, curricula, admissions and retention of students,
and financial aid policy.
c.
To establish subcommittees of the Committee as
may be necessary or desirable for the performance of its functions.
4.
Members of the Faculty Assembly who are tenured,
tenure-track, or permanent shall elect Department
Representatives to the University Senate from their ranks.
5.
A Salary
Committee consisting of three members of the Department tenure-track
faculty may be used by the Department Chairperson to assist in determining
faculty merit salary raises. Members of this Committee shall be elected by the
Department tenure-track faculty.
6.
Other
standing or ad hoc committees may be constituted by
the Council, APT Committee, Education Committee, or Department Chairperson as
needed or desired to carry out their respective duties, or as required by the
University. These committees may be either elected or appointed as deemed
appropriate.
All elections for Department Councilors,
Committee members, Senators, and APT Chairperson shall be by secret ballot. The
By-Laws shall specify the nomination and election procedures, the dates of the
elections, the terms of office of the elected members, and the procedures for
filling vacancies in any elected office.
Robert’s Rules of Order Revised (most recent
edition) shall govern the procedures followed by any assembly, council,
committee, or other recognized unit of the Department in all cases in which
these rules are applicable. In case of any conflict or inconsistency of the
Plan of Organization and By-Laws with duly established and announced rules of
the College, Campus, or University System, such rules shall govern.
Absentee ballots are not allowed for any votes
at meetings of Assemblies, Council, or committees, but these bodies may decide
to use an electronic balloting procedure rather than voting at a meeting.
The Department shall have the power to make
by-laws and regulations that are in accordance with rules and powers of the
College, Campus, or University System. An amendment to the By-Laws may be
proposed by any member of the Department. Amendments to the By-Laws shall
require approval first by the Department Council and then by at least three of
the Constituent Assemblies. Approval by the Council requires a simple majority
vote of the entire voting membership of the Council. Approval by any
Constituent Assembly shall be by secret ballot and requires a three-fifths
majority of those voting on the amendment in that Assembly. The text of the
proposed by-law shall be publicly available to each member of the Department at
least two weeks prior to the end of the balloting period. Amendments that are
approved by this process take effect immediately, unless approval is required
by other University bodies.
The Plan of Organization shall be periodically reviewed
by the Department Council as specified above. Amendments to this Plan shall
require approval first by the Council and then by each of the Constituent
Assemblies. Approval by the Council requires a simple majority vote of the
entire voting membership of the Council. Approval by any Constituent Assembly
shall be by secret ballot and requires a three-fifths majority of those voting
on the amendment in that Assembly. The text of the proposed amendment shall be
publicly available to each member of the Department at least two weeks prior to
the end of the balloting period. Amendments that are approved by this process
take effect immediately, unless approval is required by other University
bodies.
Department of Computer
Science
University of Maryland
College Park, Maryland
Revised February, 2001
These By-Laws are adopted in accordance with
Article 6 of the September, 2000 Plan of Organization of the Computer Science
Department.
The Department Council shall be constituted as
the Elections Board for all elections. The Elections Board shall specify
procedures for the conduct of elections to include and be consistent with the
following rules:
1.
There
will be a single election each year to fill all positions on the Council, all
elected positions on other Department Committees, positions for University
Senators that need to be filled within the next year, and the APT Chairperson
position.
2.
Throughout the month before elections,
nominations will be sought for undergraduate and graduate student
representatives on Department committees. Nominations can be from students or
from the Undergraduate or Graduate Coordinator.
3.
At the same time, all faculty and staff will be
notified that they have been nominated for each position for which they are
eligible. Each person nominated will be given the opportunity to decline
nomination.
4.
Balloting will be by secret ballot, written or
electronic. Ballots shall contain only the names of nominated eligible
candidates. If there is no nominated eligible candidate for a position, the
Department Chairperson will appoint an eligible person to fill the vacancy.
5.
Election voting will take place during a two
week period and be completed by May 14. The approval voting scheme will be
used. Each voter casts one vote for each candidate they find acceptable for the
position being voted on. Within a week of completion of voting, the Elections
Board will meet to tabulate the vote and announce the winners. If there are k
vacant positions within a single category (e.g., Department Council), then the
k candidates with the most votes are the winners. (A majority is not
necessary.) Should there be a tie vote, the Department Chair will cast the
deciding vote.
6.
In the case of a tie, the Elections Board shall
decide which candidate shall be reported as the winner of the election.
All elected terms of
office will commence July 1, unless otherwise specified by University rules.
The Council may call for a referendum by appointing
a subcommittee consisting of at least one representative from each Assembly to
conduct the referendum. The subcommittee shall make a copy of the referendum
available to all members of the Assemblies during a voting period of at least
14 days and report the result to the Council at the next Council meeting,
within a week of the end of the voting period.
Faculty, staff, and student members of the
Department Council shall be elected by and from the Constituent Assembly they
are to represent. In addition to the Council Chairperson, there shall be 7
faculty members, 1 staff member, 2 graduate students, and 1 undergraduate
student as councilors. The term of office of each councilor is one year.
Councilors may succeed themselves, but may not serve more than two consecutive
terms. The Department’s Director of Administration shall be an ex-officio
non-voting member of the Council and shall act as Council secretary.
If a councilor vacates
office before the date of termination of the term, the Department Chairperson
shall choose a person from the same constituency as the vacating councilor to
fill the remainder of the term.
All voting members of the Faculty Assembly are
voting members of the APT Committee. All other Faculty Assembly members shall
be nonvoting members of the APT Committee.
1.
Subcommittees
For the purposes of
considering and voting on appointments, promotions and tenure, the following
subcommittees are established:
a.
The
subcommittee of all Assistant Professors, Associate Professors and Professors
considers appointment to the rank of Assistant Professor.
b.
The
subcommittee of all Associate Professors and Professors considers contract
renewal for Assistant Professors, promotion of Assistant Professors to the rank
of Associate Professor, appointment of Associate Professors, and granting the
title of Associate Professor Emeritus to an Associate Professor upon
retirement. For an appointment or promotion to Associate Professor with tenure,
the subcommittee consists of all tenured Associate Professors and Professors.
c.
The subcommittee of all Professors considers
promotion of Associate Professors to Professor, appointment of Professors, and
granting the title of Professor Emeritus to a Professor upon retirement.
d.
Each of these subcommittees shall be augmented
to include research or instructional Faculty Assembly members of equivalent
ranks for appointment and promotion considerations of research or instructional
faculty members.
2.
APT
Chairperson
a.
The elected APT Chairperson shall be a Professor
(not Assistant or Associate Professor) who holds tenure in the Department.
b.
The APT Chairperson shall be elected by the
tenure-track faculty members of the Department, and serve as chairperson for
the full APT Committee as well as each of its subcommittees.
c.
The APT Chairperson shall convene the Committee,
or respective subcommittee, whenever necessary.
d.
The APT Chairperson shall act as Secretary for
each meeting, or shall appoint a Committee or Subcommittee member to act as
Secretary. The actions of the Committee or Subcommittee will be in the form of
a written report signed by the APT Chairperson including a recommendation to
the Department Chairperson expressing approval or disapproval of a proposed
action along with the count of the vote. The report to the Department
Chairperson shall include any minority reports requested by a committee or
subcommittee member.
3.
Appointment Considerations
a.
Appointments to the various faculty ranks should
meet at least the minimum qualifications as set forth by the University and
University Senate.
b.
Such appointments should be based on the
individual's teaching, research and service credentials and the individual's
standing in the computer science community.
c.
Consideration of faculty with joint appointments
with another department are to be coordinated by the Computer Science
Department Chairperson with the other department, so that complete information
is available to all committees involved.
This
committee consists of all members of the Faculty Assembly who have had teaching
responsibilities within the last two years, two students elected from the
Undergraduate Student Assembly, two students elected from the Graduate Student
Assembly, the Undergraduate Student Coordinator, and the Graduate Student
Coordinator. The Department Chairperson shall serve as Chairperson of the
Education Committee and the Director of Administration shall be an ex-officio
member of the Education Committee and serve as Secretary. The Committee may, by
majority vote, add other members if appropriate.