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Teaching and Learning Advisory Council

Committee Mission

The mission of the Teaching and Learning Advisory Committee (TLAC) is to help stimulate the creation of a campus culture that truly values, promotes, recognizes, and rewards excellence in teaching and learning.

TLAC activities include:

  1. Engaging the university community in a dialogue concerning such teaching excellence. For example:  
    • What constitutes excellence in teaching and learning, and how do we know?
    • How do we best work toward excellence in teaching and learning?
    • How does technology relate to excellence in teaching and learning?
  2. Serving as a resource to the university concerning teaching and learning information, including philosophy, methodology, technology, science of learning information, etc.
  3. Determining the needs of faculty members in their quest to achieve teaching and learning outcomes and assisting them to meet those needs
  4. Recommending policies for promoting and improving the impetus for teaching and learning excellence
  5. Networking with other committees (where appropriate) to meet shared goals
  6. Recognizing teaching and learning excellence on campus
  7. Providing faculty with opportunities to encounter varied teaching and learning practices and to share its expertise.

Operating Procedures

 

Approved by TLAC 3/14/18

ARTICLE I

Committee Status, Responsibilities, Membership and Meeting Policies  

1.1 The Teaching and Learning Advisory Council (TLAC) is a major standing committee of the Academic Senate, and the responsibility of the committee is to carry out the stated mission of the TLAC.

1.1.1  The mission of the TLAC is to help stimulate the creation of a campus culture that truly values, promotes, recognizes, and rewards excellence in teaching and learning.

1.1.2 The committee has a responsibility to coordinate its efforts with other units and programs of the University whose missions are similar.

1.2 The TLAC shall have nine (9) voting members with faculty rank as approved by the Academic Senate.  

1.2.1 Committee terms shall be three years, one-third of which shall expire each year.

1.2.2 Members of the committee must participate in the peer observation training program within one year of appointment. They are expected to volunteer as peer observers as time allows.

1.3 The TLAC shall meet on a regular basis throughout the academic year. The frequency of meetings will be determined by the committee and on an as needed basis. However, the committee must conduct its first meeting during the first month of the academic year.

1.4 A quorum shall consist of five (5) voting members.

        1.4.1 Approval of a motion shall require a simple majority of those voting members present.

1.4.2 In the interim between the close of the academic year and the opening of the Fall Semester, the committee’s new faculty members who have been appointed for the coming academic year can be counted to make up the quorum if a situation should arise where that is necessary.

1.5 Meeting attendance shall be recorded.

1.5.1 If a member is absent for three meetings without excuse, he/she may be replaced on the TLAC.

 

ARTICLE II

The Election and Responsibilities of Officers

2.1 Elections:

2.1.1 Election of officers will take place at the last meeting of the academic year. The new chair must have served the previous academic year on the TLAC. The Chair will then assume that position immediately and arrange for and call the first meeting of the next academic year.

        2.1.2 All terms of office shall be for one (1) year.

2.2 Responsibilities:

        2.2.1 The chairperson shall be responsible for:

  1. Calling the meetings of the TLAC and coordinating its work;
  2. Conducting the meetings of the TLAC;
  3. Submitting reports to the Academic Senate for its action;
  4. Represent the committee with other units of the University as necessary.

        2.2.2 The secretary shall be responsible for:

  1. Recording the actions of the committee and submitting them to the committee for approval;
  2. Maintaining the TLAC website

ARTICLE III

TLAC Subcommittees

3.1 The TLAC shall create and/or abolish ad hoc and/or standing subcommittees of the TLAC as necessary.

        3.1.1 All subcommittees shall report to the TLAC as a whole.

 

ARTICLE IV

Amendments to the Operating Procedures

4.1 Amendments to these procedures shall require a vote of approval by two-thirds (2/3) of the voting membership of the committee.

4.2 Revised Operating Procedures will be sent to the Academic Senate for information.