RTPC & Faculty Shared Governance Resources

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  1. Faculty Shared Governance
  2. RTPC Faculty Rights and Policies

Faculty Shared Governance

As the Faculty Handbook declares, all faculty are collaborative partners in our shared responsibility for managing USC’s academic enterprise. RTPC and tenure-track faculty alike are eligible to participate in faculty governance at both the school and University level, in accordance with Academic Senate and Faculty Council rules–the only exception being matters of tenure are decided by tenured faculty.

Shared governance at USC has three pillars:

  • School Faculty Councils, committees, and departmental governance
  • The Academic Senate and its subcommittees
  • University committees

Academic Senate

The Academic Senate consists of representatives from each school’s Faculty Council as well Senate leaders who are elected by a vote of all USC faculty. RTPC (full-time and part-time) and tenure-track faculty all have an equal vote in university-wide elections for Academic Senate leadership. They are eligible to serve as leaders, and can and do serve on the broad range of USC’s University-wide committees. Half of the Senate presidents over the last decade have been RTPC. The Senate includes substantial RTPC membership, in some years making up more than half of the faculty who serve.

For more information on the Academic Senate and its subcommittees, see the links below.

Joint Provost / Senate Committees

The Provost’s office and Academic Senate have forged specific partnerships, through joint committees, that explore and make recommendations on key issues that require knowledge of both the faculty role and experience and considerations for administration and implementation. The pool from which members are invited to serve includes all USC faculty, and members have been full- and part-time RTPC and tenure-track faculty.

For more information on Joint Provost/Senate committees, see the links below:

University Committees

University committees are convened by the Provost’s office, and are populated by faculty and administrators. Some committees also include staff and students. University committees review and make recommendations on issues related to administration, policies, and University-level honors and benefits. The pool from which members are invited to serve includes all USC faculty, and members have been full- and part-time RTPC and tenure-track faculty.

Academic Programs and Policies

Curriculum and research at USC are under the purview of USC’s faculty. Curriculum development, approval, and academic reviews are all led by faculty. Research programs and funding are led by the faculty. And faculty serve on committees that help make decisions on policies and practices that support and govern these endeavors. The pool from which members are invited to serve includes all USC faculty, and members have been full- and part-time RTPC and tenure-track faculty.

For more information on Committees that govern academic programs and policies, see below.

Finance and Enrollment

The Committee on Finance and Enrollment (CoFE) plays a crucial role in determining central policies of the university about university-level finances (e.g., net tuition, income and expenditures, etc.) and university-level enrollment management (e.g., size, scope, and make-up of the university’s student body). 

On matters for which the Board of Trustees has fiduciary responsibility, the Committee makes a recommendation to the Trustees through the Provost; on other matters it makes its recommendations to the Provost. (For health sciences schools, recommendations are made to the Senior Vice President for Health Affairs.) While the Committee does not have final authority, it has been routine for its recommendations to be enacted.

Personnel Policies and Decisions

Faculty are responsible for shaping the working environment within the university, including approving the titles and modifiers conferred upon faculty, making recommendations about promotions and disagreements between faculty and deans about promotions, reviewing and making recommendations on professional misconduct cases, and conferring honorary degrees. The pool from which members are invited to serve includes all USC faculty, and members have been full- and part-time RTPC and tenure-track faculty.

For more information on Committees that govern personnel policies and decisions, see below.

Committee Selection

Committee membership is determined differently depending on the committee and where it is housed. For example, for Academic Senate subcommittees, members are selected by the Senate Nominating Committee from a pool of faculty who have been nominated by other faculty or have self nominated for service on each subcommittee. Guidelines exist on the process of self-nomination, roles, and responsibilities, the details for which can be found on the Senate’s website. The Academic Senate executive board is elected every year by the faculty.

For Joint Provost / Senate committees and task forces, the Academic Senate executive board makes recommendations to the Provost regarding who should serve as well as on various additional University committees. Some committees include ex officio membership, and members of the administration with relevant portfolios or expertise serve in those roles.

Each school handles committee selection according to its internal rules and may vary by committee.

See also the USC Faculty Handbook, Section 2-B(4)

Faculty Councils

Faculty councils are the independent faculty governing bodies that share governing responsibilities for each of their respective schools with their school’s dean. They make recommendations about school policies and processes and issues related to faculty employment specific to their school, such as workload profiles, merit and promotion review criteria and processes, and appointments. Each council writes their own bylaws, but the Senate requires RTPC representation on every school council.

See USC Faculty Handbook, Section 2-B(3)

School Committees

All faculty are eligible to participate in governance committees within schools, subject to Faculty Council guidelines. These include school-level committees which may make recommendations on the following list and vary by school. Committee member selection is also determined by the guidelines set by the faculty council, dean, or department depending on the committee.

  • Performance evaluations (merit, promotion, and reappointment reviews)
  • Curriculum development
  • Faculty development
  • Program governance
  • Student admissions
  • Student honors and student misconduct

RTPC Faculty Rights and Policies

RTPC faculty have all of the same academic rights as tenure-track faculty. The policies governing RTPC faculty employment are shaped collaboratively by the Academic Senate and the Provost and documented in the Faculty Handbook.

For information about RTPC faculty rights and policies, see the links below.

  • USC Faculty Handbook
    • Section 3-B(1)(a): Academic freedom
    • Section 3-B(2): Academic responsibilities
    • Section 4-B(3)(c): RTPC and Governance [See also 4-C(2)(c), 4D-(2)(c), and 4-H(2)]
    • Section 4-C(2): Appointments to Research-Track, Teaching-Track, Practitioner-Track, and Clinical-Track
    • Section 4-D(3): Term of Employment for Research-Track, Teaching-Track, Practitioner-Track, and Clinical-Track Faculty 
    • Section 4-G: Evaluation, Reappointment, and Promotion of Research-Track, Teaching-Track, Practitioner-Track, and Clinical-Track Faculty