Senate Award for Service in University Governance
This award was established in 2008 to recognize faculty members for extensive, consistent, and valuable contributions to the academic governance of the University.
The award includes both a framed certificate and recognition on a plaque placed at an appropriate location in the University and recognition in an appropriate University publication. Recipients will be honoured at a meeting of Senate for the academic year in which the award is given.
Senate is the body identified traditionally and in the Mount Saint Vincent University Charter with the academic governance of the University. The core of the University enterprise is academic life, encompassing teaching, research, and collegial collaboration and support. That work takes place, of course, at Senate, which bears ultimate responsibility for academic governance, but it is also dependent on the efforts of department chairs and directors and the work of a variety of committees and other bodies that initiate, develop, enact and monitor policies established by Senate. These bodies ensure consultation with different parts of the academic community and critical reflection on the issues that shape the academic experiences of the community.
In recognition of the importance of the work of faculty members in academic governance, Senate has approved the Senate Award for Service in University Governance.
This award is intended to recognize the work of faculty members. It is not normally made to a person who currently holds a position in senior administration, although the recipient could be someone who has served in an administrative capacity at the University and part of whose contribution to academic governance was made during the period of that service.
The award is given only once to any one person, in recognition of an extended period (normally ten years or more) of significant service to academic governance at the Mount. The award is not necessarily given every year.
The recipient must have a record of extensive, consistent, and valuable contributions to the academic governance of Mount Saint Vincent University.
Nominations, signed by at least two nominators, shall be made to Senate Executive through the Secretary of Senate by 15 January. Accompanying each nomination shall be a rationale that provides evidence that the nominee meets the criteria for the award.
Senate Executive shall establish a small task group to review the evidence presented by the nominator(s), inquire among colleagues as to both the extent and the quality of the nominee’s service, and make recommendations to Senate Executive.
Senate Executive shall review the recommendations of the task group and forward a nominee’s name to Senate. In any given year and if Senate Executive is unable to select only one, Senate Executive may forward up to two nominees’ names to Senate if both nominees merit recognition.
Senate shall consider in camera the recommendations of Senate Executive and vote, by secret ballot, to approve or not approve an award.
