Bylaws and Procedures

The Faculty Assembly shall:

Section 1: Discuss and deliberate upon matters of general University interest, including all teaching and research activities, and campus life.

Section 2: It shall consider, make recommendations, and pass resolutions on any matters referred to it by the President of the University, the Board of Trustees, or the Faculty Senate.

Section 3: On its own initiative it may submit recommendations and resolutions to the Board of Trustees on any matter affecting the general interests of the University.

Section 1: The membership of the Faculty Assembly consists of all full-time regular faculty members in both tenure track and non-tenure track positions. This includes clinical and lecturer faculty who hold the rank of Professor, Associate Professor, Assistant Professor, Clinical Professor, Clinical Associate Professor, Clinical Assistant Professor, Professor of Instruction, Distinguished Senior Lecturer, Senior Lecturer, or Lecturer, as well as administrators with a faculty appointment within the University in one of the ranks listed above.

Section 2: While the Faculty Senate is the elected, representative body of the faculty, when the Faculty Assembly is convened with a quorum (10% of membership), it becomes the ultimate legislative body of the faculty at Northwestern University.

Section 1: The University President serves as the Chair of the Faculty Assembly. The Chair of the Faculty Senate serves as the Vice Chair.

Section 2: The University President will represent the Faculty Assembly to the Board of Trustees or its Executive Committee.

Section 1: The Executive Committee of the Faculty Assembly consists of the President of the University, the Provost, the Associate Provost for Faculty Affairs, the Chair of the Faculty Senate, the immediate past chair of the Faculty Senate, and the chair-elect of the Faculty Senate.

Section 2: The Executive Committee will publish an agenda one month prior to the meeting of the Faculty Assembly.

Section 3: The Executive Committee will be available to convene on an emergency basis in addition to regularly scheduled, quarterly meetings.

Section 4: The Executive Committee shall appoint a faculty member to be the Faculty Assembly Secretary.

Section 1: The University President will preside over meetings of the Faculty Assembly. The Faculty Senate Chair, in consultation with the Executive Committee, will establish its agenda and convene meetings at fixed dates at least twice a year.

Section 2: Additional meetings can be called by petition of at least 100 members of the Faculty Assembly. The faculty must be given a minimum of two weeks notice for all such special meetings with agendas made available at least one week in advance.

Section 3: There is no required quorum for the Faculty Assembly to meet. However a quorum consisting of 10% of the membership is necessary to pass resolutions. Only members present at the time of the vote are eligible to vote on any question or motion. In the absence of a quorum, discussion may occur at the discretion of the chair, but no action may be taken except adjournment to a specified future time. Faculty Assembly Members may attend via teleconference or video conference at a single location designated by the Faculty Assembly on the Chicago campus if pressing circumstances prohibit attendance in Evanston. Members of the NU-Q campus may also participate through teleconference or video conference from locations in Qatar. Faculty members participating by teleconference or video conference as described above will be considered present and in attendance for purposes of determining the existence of a quorum.

Section 4: The Faculty Senate Chair in consultation with the Executive Committee shall determine the order of business in any meeting of the University Assembly. Robert’s Rules of Order shall govern the conduct of the meetings except as the Faculty Assembly may prescribe.

Section 5: All recommendations and resolutions made by the Faculty Assembly will be reported to the full faculty within a week following a meeting.

Section 6: Additions to the agenda may be submitted not later than one week prior to the Faculty Assembly meeting with a petition of 75 signatures.

These bylaws may be amended at any meeting of the Faculty Assembly by two-thirds vote providing that at least 10% of the faculty is present and that notice of any proposed amendment has been sent to the membership at least one week in advance of the meeting. If 10% of the faculty is not present, the proposed amendment is sent to the Faculty Senate which is the elected representative body of the faculty as a whole. The bylaws will be considered amended if two thirds of the full membership of the Faculty Senate votes its approval.

The University Faculty Assembly shall regularly meet, discuss, and deliberate upon matters of general University interest, including all teaching and research activities, and campus life. It may also make recommendations and pass resolutions on particular issues referred to it by the President or Provost of the University, the Board of Trustees, or the Faculty Senate. On its own initiative it may submit recommendations and resolutions to the Board of Trustees, transmitted through the President or Provost, on any matter affecting the interests of the University.

The membership of the University Faculty Assembly consists of all regular full-time faculty members in tenure and non-tenure track positions. This includes clinical and lecturer faculty who hold the rank of Professor, Associate Professor, Assistant Professor, Clinical Professor, Clinical Associate Professor, Clinical Assistant Professor, Professor of Instruction, Distinguished Senior Lecturer, Senior Lecturer, or Lecturer, as well as administrators with a faculty appointment within the University in one of the ranks listed above. Ten percent of the members of the University Faculty Assembly shall constitute a quorum. While the Faculty Senate is the elected, representative body of the faculty, when the University Faculty Assembly is convened with a quorum, it becomes the ultimate legislative body of the faculty at Northwestern University. 

The University President or his designate will preside over the meetings of the University Faculty Assembly. The Faculty Senate Chair, in consultation with the President or his designate, will establish its agenda. The President will represent the University Faculty Assembly to the Board of Trustees. 

The University Faculty Assembly shall have the power to adopt and amend bylaws governing its composition, organization, and procedures in a manner consistent with the University Statutes.