I. Authority

1. These Rules and Procedures are adopted under the authority of Chapter IV of the Code of Bylaws of Vanderbilt University, which allows the Faculty of each School to "adopt policies, rules, and procedures found necessary or desirable in connection with its internal administration."
   
    
2. These Rules and Procedures supplement the Code of Bylaws of Vanderbilt University, the Constitution of the Faculty Assembly and Faculty Senate, the Faculty Manual, and such other governance documents as are applicable to the University as a whole. In the event of conflicts between these Rules and Procedures and governance documents or procedures applicable to the University at large, those University governance documents and procedures shall take precedence. In the event such conflicts are identified, these Rules and Procedures shall be amended to eliminate the conflict.

II. Faculty

1. The Faculty of the School of Engineering consists of all persons holding academic appointments in the School with titles defined in Part II, Chapter 1, Sections A and B of the Faculty Manual.
   
    
2. The voting Faculty of the School of Engineering consists of the full-time members of the Faculty of the School, and those having full status with partial load (which includes administrative officers who hold faculty appointments).
   
    
3. Each member of the Faculty will hold an appointment in an academic department of the School. Administrative support for the faculty member will be the responsibility of the department in which the primary appointment is held.
   
    
4. Faculty members may hold a secondary appointment in addition to their primary appointment. Secondary appointments do not carry tenure, and termination of the primary appointment automatically terminates the secondary appointment.
   
    
5. Each faculty member is responsible to the Chair of his/her department and to the Dean in discharging the obligations of a member of the Faculty of the School.

III. Meetings of the Faculty

1. The Dean shall schedule one meeting of the Faculty each semester and shall schedule other meetings during the academic year on a regular basis as necessary for conducting the business of the School and for the purpose of recommending individuals for degrees.
   
   Special meetings for the consideration of a specified item of business may be called by the Dean, or the Chancellor, or upon written request of eight voting members of the Faculty, or upon written request of 75 per cent of the voting members within one academic department if that department has less than ten voting members. Upon receiving such a request, the Dean shall either place the item on the agenda of a regularly scheduled meeting within 30 days or call the special meeting within that time.
   
    
2. The Dean or his/her appointed representative shall preside at all Faculty meetings.
   
    
3. Except as otherwise provided in these procedures, the transaction of School business shall proceed according to Robert's Rules of Order (Revised).
   
    
4. Twenty voting members of the Faculty shall constitute a quorum to do business.
   
    
5. Meetings of the Faculty will normally be open to all members of the University community. Closed sessions may be called by the Dean, however, when matters of a confidential nature are to be considered.
   
    
6. The Dean's Office shall distribute an agenda to the Faculty at least two days before each regularly scheduled meeting.
   
    
7. The Dean shall appoint a Secretary of the Faculty, who shall take minutes of each meeting and shall distribute to all faculty members copies of those minutes in timely fashion, but not later than two days before the next regularly scheduled meeting.
   
    
8. Copies of all motions to be brought up for a vote under New Business shall be in the hands of the Faculty at least two days before the meeting at which the vote is to be taken. This rule may be set aside by the consent of two-thirds of those voting members present.
   
    
9. The Chair may, in the debate on any issue, announce a time limit for debate. This limit may be extended by a majority vote of Faculty present and voting.

IV. Committees

1. The standing committees are:
   
   a. Administrative Committee
   
   The Administrative Committee shall serve as an advisory committee to the Dean on all matters concerning policies and operation of the School. The Committee also reviews all academic probation in the School.
   
   b. Admissions and Scholarship Committee
   
   The Admissions and Scholarship Committee shall recommend the standards for admission to the School and shall choose the recipients of all undergraduate Honor Scholarships.
   
   c. Graduate Committee
   
   The Graduate Committee shall facilitate communication between the Directors of Graduate
   Studies from the departments and programs within the School and shall choose the recipients of all School graduate financial awards. The Committee also shall review all new curricula and proposed changes in existing curricula of Master of Engineering programs and present recommendations to the Faculty for either adoption or rejection of these changes. The Committee acts as an admissions committee for the Master of Engineering programs.
   
   d. Curriculum Committee
   
   The Curriculum Committee shall receive from the departments and review all proposed course and curriculum changes. It will then present these to the Faculty with a recommendation for either adoption or rejection. It may ask the originator of a proposed change to modify that change before presenting it to the Faculty.
   
   e. Library Committee
   
   The Library Committee shall represent the interests of the School in all matters concerning the services of the Vanderbilt University Library. All faculty requests for acquisitions should be directed to this Committee.
   
   f. Safety Committee
   
   The Safety Committee shall coordinate and recommend policy involving fire protection, life safety, environmental and occupational matters. The Safety Committee also provides liaison with the Environmental Health and Safety Department.
   
   g. Research Council
   
   The Research Council shall act to promote research activity in the Faculty and to recognize excellence in faculty research.
   
   h. Consultative Committee on Promotion and Tenure
   
   Before acting on all departmental recommendations for tenure, for promotions to Associate Professor and Professor, or for promotion of research faculty members in the School, the Dean will confer with the Consultative Committee on Promotion and Tenure about the qualifications of the candidates and will receive a recommendation on each from the Committee.
   
   i. Committee on Information Technology
   
   The Committee on Information Technology shall have oversight responsibility for School network infrastructure, staff responsibilities, system management, the Instructional Computing Laboratory and the use, development, and extension of information technology within the School.
   
    
2. The Dean may appoint such ad hoc committees as are appropriate to meeting special needs of the School.
   
    
3. Standing and ad hoc committees may bring to the Faculty any information or reports of interest to the Faculty.
   
    
4. Motions submitted by committee chairs on behalf of their committees shall be subject only to such technical amendments from the floor as may be acceptable to the committee. Before the final vote is taken, only three motions from the floor shall be in order, one to table, one to return the proposal to the committee for further consideration, and one to postpone to a designated time.

V. Departments

1. The School is organized in academic departments.
   
    
2. There shall be a Chair of each department who is nominated by the Dean, acting on the advice of the Faculty, and approved by the Chancellor.
   
    
3. Each Chair will convene the tenured members of the department in May of each year to review all non-tenured members of the department and nominate faculty and research faculty members for promotion. These reviews and nominations will be made under the criteria in the Faculty Manual and the Procedural Guidelines for Appointments, Renewals, Promotions and Tenure in the School of Engineering.

VI. Elections to Senate and Graduate Council

Before May 1 of each year, the Faculty will elect, by secret ballot, representatives to the Faculty Senate and to the Graduate Faculty Council. Before that election, the Dean shall appoint a committee to nominate a slate of candidates for those positions.

VII. Amendments

1. These Rules and Procedures may be amended by a majority vote of the voting Faculty.
   
    
2. Proposed amendments shall be submitted at a faculty meeting at least two weeks before they are brought to a vote. Amendments may be voted upon at a specially called meeting if the intention to take such action is included in the call for that meeting.
   
    
3. The Dean shall take timely action to review these Rules and Procedures and to initiate such amendments as necessary to reflect University changes in rules and procedures.