What is faculty senate?

Faculty senate is an elected group of full time faculty that meet to discuss issues that affect the full time faculty at RRCC.  From the faculty senate bylaws, senate is responsible for:

1. Serving as the faculty group in the shared governance structure
2. Serving as a channel of communication between the faculty and the administration
3. Communicating with the faculty on matters of interest or concern
4. Communicating with the adiminstration regarding the needs, desires, and concerns of the faculty
5. Working with the administration in the development, revision, and implementation of policies and procedures affecting the faculty
6. Serving as the voice of the faculty in communication with all college governing groups (such as Collaboration Council)

Senate meets roughly every other week during fall and spring semesters on Tuesdays 3:45-4:45pm (see meeting calendar in the navigation at left).  Each department or collection of departments has a representative on senate, elected in April for a 2 year term, according to the bylaws.  Meetings are open for any full time faculty to attend.

Senate also manages election of the Faculty of the Year, the Rank/Tenure and Emeritus status of faculty, and approves of most faculty committee memberships.

Senate Officers

Senate has three elected officers: President, Vice President, and Secretary.  Their roles are outlined in the bylaws, but of note: the faculty senate president is the faculty representative on Collaboration Council and meets regularly with campus administration about faculty business.

Current Senate Members

Below is a list of the current faculty senators for the Spring 2023 and the prefixes they represent.

• Brandon English (President) -
• Shane Spivey (Vice President) - AST, CHE, GEY, PHY, SCI
• Tracy Gray - BIO
• John Padgett - EMP, EMS, FST, LEA, OUT
• Jeremy Beard - ENG, EGT, WQM
• Matthew Watts - MAT, DAT
• Julie Schneider - CIS, CNG, CSC, CWB
• Nora Hebert - Arvada
• Toni Nicholas - HIS, HUM, SPA, GEO, PHI
• Carol Martin - ECO, ECE, EDU
• Berndt Savig - ART, NUA, FIW, THE, DAN, MGD, PHO, JOU, FVM, MUS
• Kevin Kelley - ENG, LIT, CCR
• Amy Buckingham (Secretary) - COM, POS, PSY, SWK, SOC, ANT, CRJ
• Julio Suarez Pesquera - BUS, HVA, EIC