Principles of Governance

1. All tenured and tenure-track members of the faculty of Perkins School of Theology and of the Department of Religious Studies in Dedman College, along with the Maguire University Professor of Ethics and the Scurlock Professor of Human Values, are members of the faculty of the Graduate Program in Religious Studies, unless, in consultation with the Dean of Perkins, the chair of the Department, or the Provost (as the case may be), they explicitly exempt themselves from membership. Other members of the faculty of Southern Methodist University may become members of the GPRS faculty upon the recommendation of the Director, by vote of the GPRS faculty.

2. The GPRS faculty as a body exercises academic oversight of the program; individual members of that faculty participate in instructional activity as their interests and competences and the needs of the program may determine. A member of the faculty is expected to attend its meetings; to serve on the Steering Committee if elected; and to participate, as appropriate, in the work of one or more fields.

3. The faculty shall establish, review, and revise policies governing admission, curriculum, fields of study, and degree requirements, subject to the approval of the Graduate Council of Dedman College. It shall consider other matters pertinent to the operation and well-being of the program that may be brought to its attention and shall act upon them, or recommend action to others, as may be appropriate to the case.

4. The faculty shall meet annually in April or May, and on the call of the Director at other times as the need may arise. The Director shall preside. The Assistant to the Director shall serve as secretary to the faculty, and shall keep the minutes of its meetings.

5. The faculty shall delegate certain responsibilities to a Steering Committee.

Composition:

The Steering Committee shall consist of the Director, who will serve as its chair; the Chair of the Department of Religious Studies; one member of the faculty for each field of study in the GPRS, and, if recommended by the Director, one or more additional faculty members; and two GPRS students. The overall composition of the Steering Committee should reflect diversity in gender, ethnicity, academic affiliation, and other pertinent respects.

The Director and the Chair of the Department shall serve ex officio. The other faculty members of the Committee shall serve two-year terms, staggered so that approximately half will be replaced each year. The new members shall be elected by the GPRS faculty each spring for the ensuing academic year, upon the nomination of the faculty of the respective fields. The Director may, at his or her discretion, nominate one or more additional faculty members. Nominations may be made from the floor. The student members shall serve one-year terms, and shall be elected by the registered students of the GPRS each spring for the ensuing year.

The student members of the Steering Committee shall participate fully in the work of the Committee except when individual student cases involving confidential information are being considered.

The Assistant to the Director shall serve as secretary to the Steering Committee, and shall keep the minutes of its meetings.

Duties:

The Steering Committee shall exercise general oversight of the program on behalf of the faculty. It shall be responsible for ongoing program assessment and for long-range planning, and shall bring to the GPRS faculty any recommendations it deems advisable concerning modifications in any aspect of the program. It shall serve as an advocate for the interests of the program within the University, and shall work with the Director, the Dean of Perkins School of Theology, the Dean of Dedman College, and the Dean of Research and Graduate Studies to further these interests.

It shall oversee the process by which applications for admission to the GPRS are considered, and with the advice of the faculty of the various fields of study, shall act upon applications.

It shall monitor the progress of students in course, act upon students’ admission to candidacy, and consider individual student petitions for any variations from normal curricular requirements.

Upon the recommendation of the faculty of the pertinent fields, it shall approve students’ plans of study and dissertation proposals.

It shall undertake such other duties as the faculty may assign to it.

6. The faculty involved in each field of study shall collectively undertake certain responsibilities in the program. The faculty in the individual fields of study shall be convened as needed

to monitor the progress of students in course; to review students’ plans of study, to consider the relationship between faculty resources in the field and students’ interests and objectives, and to advise the students, each other, and the Steering Committee accordingly;
to review students’ dissertation proposals;
to review applications for admission, and to make recommendations to the Steering Committee;
to nominate faculty for membership on the Steering Committee; and
to take up any other matters pertinent to the operation of the field that they may wish to consider, whether on their own initiative or upon the request of the Steering Committee, the Director, or the faculty as a whole.

A member of the Steering Committee shall normally serve as convener of the faculty involved in each field for these purposes.

7. Amendments to these Principles of Governance may be proposed by any member of the faculty, or by the Steering Committee. Any proposed amendment must be distributed in writing to all members of the faculty at least seven days prior to the meeting at which it is to be considered. In order to pass, an amendment must receive the support of a majority of the members of the faculty who are based in the Department of Religious Studies and a majority of the members of the faculty who are based in Perkins School of Theology.

Adopted by the faculty of the Graduate Program in Religious Studies, March 24, 2006