Overall Rating Silver - expired
Overall Score 56.15
Liaison Rebecca Walker
Submission Date March 1, 2019
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Southern Oregon University
PA-3: Participatory Governance

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.50 / 3.00 Roxane Beigel-Coryell
Sustainability & Recycling Coordinator
Facilities Management & Planning
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1

Do the institution’s students have a representative body through which they can participate in governance (e.g. a student council)? :
Yes

Do the institution’s students have an elected representative on the institution’s highest governing body?:
No

If yes to either of the above, provide:

A brief description of the bodies and mechanisms through which students are engaged in governance, including information to support each affirmative response above:
The student government on campus is known as the Associated Students of Southern Oregon University (AASOU). As part of the Oregon Student Association, ASSOU is committed to making students’ lives better through social organizing, legislative advocacy, and voter registration. Elections are held every spring for the following school year. During elections the President and Vice President, the Student Senate, and any referendums are voted on. Within the Student Senate, there is an elected representative that serves as the Environmental Affairs Senator. Students can serve on the Student Senate as an elected representative, or may be appointed to the ASSOU Executive Branch to serve on the Student President's Cabinet. Included on the Executive Cabinet is a Director of Sustainability position. There is also a student representative on the university's highest governing body, the Board of Trustees, however it is not an elected position. The representative is appointed by the Governor of the State of Oregon and is subject to confirmation by the Oregon Senate in the manner prescribed by law.

Do the institution’s staff members have a representative body through which they can participate in governance (e.g. a staff council)?:
Yes

Do the institution’s non-supervisory staff members have an elected representative on the institution’s highest governing body?:
No

If yes to either of the above, provide:

A brief description of the bodies and mechanisms through which staff are engaged in governance, including information to support each affirmative response above:
Non-supervisory staff members have a representative on the institutions Board of Trustees. The representative is appointed by the Governor of the State of Oregon and is subject to confirmation by the Oregon Senate in the manner prescribed by law. Additionally, non-supervisory staff have elected representatives on the University Planning Board. The University Planning Board is charged with creating effective collaboration between University planning and resource allocations, providing transparency to strategic planning and budgeting. Specifically, the Board’s duties include: • Monitoring progress on strategic planning goals and objectives. • Recommending strategic investments and allocation of resources for programmatic, physical, and technology needs. • Recommending priorities for capital construction and deferred maintenance

Do the institution’s teaching and research faculty have a representative body through which they can participate in governance (e.g. a faculty senate)?:
Yes

Do the institution’s teaching and research faculty have an elected representative on the institution’s highest governing body? :
No

If yes to either of the above, provide:

A brief description of the bodies and mechanisms through which teaching and research faculty are engaged in governance, including information to support each affirmative response above:
Faculty are able to engage in participatory governance through the Faculty Senate. The Faculty Senate Constitution is available at https://inside.sou.edu/assets/senate/docs/constitution/Constitution-bylaws-final.pdf Faculty also have a representative on the institutions Board of Trustees. The representative is appointed by the Governor of the State of Oregon and is subject to confirmation by the Oregon Senate in the manner prescribed by law. Additionally, faculty have elected representatives on the University Planning Board. The University Planning Board is charged with creating effective collaboration between University planning and resource allocations, providing transparency to strategic planning and budgeting. Specifically, the Board’s duties include: • Monitoring progress on strategic planning goals and objectives. • Recommending strategic investments and allocation of resources for programmatic, physical, and technology needs. • Recommending priorities for capital construction and deferred maintenance

Part 2

Does the institution have written policies and procedures to identify and engage external stakeholders (i.e. local residents) in land use planning, capital investment projects, and other institutional decisions that affect the community?:
No

A copy of the written policies and procedures:
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The policies and procedures:
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Does the institution have formal participatory or shared governance bodies through which community members representing the interests of the following stakeholder groups can regularly participate in institutional governance?:
Yes or No
Local government and/or educational organizations Yes
Private sector organizations Yes
Civil society (e.g. NGOs, NPOs) Yes

If yes to one or more of the above, provide:

A brief description of the bodies and mechanisms through which external stakeholders are engaged in institutional governance (including information about each stakeholder group selected above):
Southern Oregon University works very intentionally to engage community members and local stakeholders in university planning and shared governance bodies. The university's Board of Trustees includes community members from local businesses, educational institutions, the hospital, the local utility provider, and a local renewable energy company. The university has also called in key community stakeholders to participate in the university's strategic planning process. The university's Board of Trustees meetings are also open to the public and publicly noticed, with a time during each meeting for individuals to speak during public forum.

Optional Fields 

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
http://governance.sou.edu/

Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.