Facilities and Support Services Committee

The Facilities and Support Services Committee (FSSC) shall have the responsibility for dealing with issues involving facilities, space, parking, computing and the library. FSSC will make recommendations on these issues to University Council. Specifically, the responsibilities of the FSSC are:

• University, college, or other constituent facilities and space needs;
• University, college, or other constituent computing needs;
• Library needs;
• Parking issues and policies. 

1. Membership. Voting Members of the committee shall consist of:
   • Faculty (7 from the Faculty Senate, at least one from each college) AVP for Information Resources
   • AVP for Student Services
   • AVP for Facilities Management and Construction
   • Administration and Finance Office Representative
   • Academic Deans Representative
   • President's Office Representative
   • Librarian Representative
   • UCT Representative
   • USA Representative
   • SGA Representative
2. The secretariat for the committee shall be provided by the Office of the Provost.
3. Election of Members. The members of the FSSC will be elected (or appointed as the case may be) by the respective constituency being represented. Members are expected to serve a two-year term. The terms of office begin at the beginning of the fall semester. Approximately 50 percent of the elected committee representatives will be replaced annually.
4. Responsibilities of Members. Members will be expected to represent the views of the constituents they represent on the committee, but should serve the best interests of the university community. Members are expected to keep their constituencies informed of FSSC matters on a regular basis.
5. Resignation of members. Any member desiring to resign from FSSC shall contact the Chair, who will contact the represented group to fill the vacancy.
6. Removal of members. A committee member, who exceeds two absences per year, may be replaced at the discretion of the chair. The chair will contact the represented group to fill the vacancy.
7. Alternate Committee members. Each electing or appointing body may designate alternate member(s) for the full year who will represent the body in the absence of the regular member. If the body has more than 1 representative, they may either name an alternate for each member or a list of alternates for the group from which an alternate will be selected in order. The name of the alternate(s) must be submitted to the Committee secretariat for inclusion in the membership roster in order to be recognized for voting authority. Alternates are encouraged to attend each meeting. If the electing or appointing body does not choose to appoint an alternate, one is not required. In the absence of the regular member the alternate will be a full voting member.

1. 1. Election of Chair. The FSSC membership will elect a chair from the committee. The Chair must be a tenured faculty member who will receive one course release or stipend per long semester. The FSSC will also have an administrative vice-chair, the Associate Vice President for Information Resources. The Chair will be elected in the first fall FSSC meeting and begin serving immediately. Nominations will be taken from the committee membership and a simple majority will be required for election.
2. Duties of Chair. The responsibilities of the Chair are to coordinate with the Administrative Vice-Chair for:
   • Calling and scheduling meetings;
   •  Setting the agenda for meetings of the committee;
   • Distributing the committee agenda and minutes prior to scheduled meetings;
   • Presiding over committee meetings;
   • Coordinating the work of the committee with other Shared Governance committees;
   • Providing a charge and membership selection for sub-committees;
   • Providing policy oversight for the Computer Services Advisory Committee (CSAC), the Library Advisory Committee (LAC) and SGS assigned advisory committees;
   • Maintaining contact with all subcommittees and advisory committees as an ex-officio and non-voting member;
   • Presenting monthly reports to University Council on the work of the committee;
   • Preparing and distributing annual reports on the committee to the university community.

1. The Chair shall serve a term of two (2) years, if possible, or a new Chair will be elected at the first fall FSSC meeting from the FSSC membership.
2. Committee members serve two (2) year terms, with half the members elected each year by their constituent groups, unless the represented group's constitution dictates otherwise.
3. Constituencies must select their FSSC representative and notify the chair or vice chair prior to the first FSSC meeting of each year.
4. The normal term of service in FSSC is twenty-four (24) consecutive months, beginning with the fall semester. 

1. Frequency. Meetings are normally held at least once each month. The committee normally selects the schedule for the meetings at the beginning of each semester.
2. Specially called meetings. Special meetings may be called by the Chair(s) or by written request of a majority of committee membership.
3.  Agendas. The agenda for each meeting shall be published at least one week in advance of the meeting. Each committee member may submit to the Chair(s) items for the Committee agenda, prior to its publication. Any member of any constituent group or any person at UHCL may introduce a policy proposal or other item to the chair of FSSC. The chair of the committee may:
   • Place the item on the committee's next available meeting agenda;
   • Return the item to the person or group with notice that the item is not an FSSC concern;
   • Route the item to the appropriate SGS committee; or
   • Inform the person or group that the item needs further development before being introduced into FSSC.
4. Support materials. Items on the agenda for action shall be accompanied by appropriate support material at or before the time the agenda is published, unless this requirement is waived by the committee membership for special items.

5. Quorum. A majority of the members shall constitute a quorum.

1. A 60% majority of the committee membership is required to forward a recommendation to the University Council. All other voting will be by simple majority of all voting committee members.
2. No proxies will be permitted on votes for final committee recommendations. Alternative methods of voting may be used as approved by FSSC membership.
3. FSSC's recommendations are sent directly to University Council for approval.

All subcommittees are required to:

1. Have a chair selected by the FSSC membership;
2. Have a defined charge, name, and mechanism for membership selection; and
3. Report to FSSC.

Any subcommittee recommendation must pass through FSSC as follows.

• Subcommittee develops proposal and presents a first reading to FSSC allowing members to take the proposal to their respective constituencies.
• FSSC votes on the proposal at the second reading.

The following subcommittees are permanent standing committees of FSSC established to address FSSC's specific responsibilities:

• Space Allocation and Utilization Subcommittee (SAUS) - The Space Allocation and Utilization Subcommittee shall be a standing subcommittee of the Facilities and Support Services Committee (FSSC), chaired by an FSSC faculty member appointed by the FSSC Chair and approved by FSSC membership and the AVP for Information Resources will serve as administrative co-Chair. Membership consists of:
  • One faculty or administrative representative from each college (excluding co-Chair), to be selected by the college
  • Facilities Scheduling Coordinator
  • VP of Administration & Finance (or designee)
  • AVP for Information Resources (co-Chair)
  • AVP for Facilities Management and Construction
  • AVP for Student Services (or designee) 
  • One University Staff Association (USA) representative
  • One Student Representative
  • Executive Director of the Library (or designee)
  • Executive Director of UCT (or designee)

The subcommittee oversees space allocation and utilization, including the renovation of existing space or reallocation of vacated space. The subcommittee makes recommendations to FSSC on issues involving university space. Examples include reallocation of space between colleges or academic support units, rental rates for university space, and general classroom upgrades. The Facilities Scheduling Coordinator will report reallocations or renovations within colleges or academic support units at least annually.

• Parking and Traffic Safety Subcommittee - The Parking and Traffic Safety Subcommittee shall be a standing subcommittee of FSSC chaired by an FSSC faculty member appointed by the FSSC chair and approved by FSSC membership. Membership consists of:
  • One faculty or administrative representative from each college (excluding Chair), to be selected by the college
  • One undergraduate student representative
  • One graduate student representative
  • Two University Staff Association (USA) representatives
  • One University Life Committee representative
  • Police Chief (or designee)
  • AVP for Facilities, Management and Construction (or designee)
  • Disability Coordinator
  • Executive Director of the Library (or designee)

This subcommittee has responsibility for coordinating with the administration and related units of the university oversight of the planning, maintenance, and correction of parking and traffic safety matters at the university including parking-related fees. The subcommittee does not deal with traffic citation appeals. All actions of the committee are brought to FSSC as a recommendation. This subcommittee is responsible for widely informing and involving all affected constituents in its deliberations and approved Actions.

The following advisory committees report to FSSC:

• Computer Services Advisory Committee (CSAC);
• Library Advisory Committee (LAC);

Advisory committees must report to FSSC at least once per long semester.

Any advisory committee policy recommendation must pass through FSSC as follows:

• Advisory committee develops proposal and presents a first reading to FSSC allowing members to take the proposal to their respective constituencies.
• FSSC votes on the proposal at the second reading

Nothing in this article prevents FSSC from taking up issues within the purview of any advisory committees.