President Donald R. Gerth
Over the past years several academic units have organized advisory committees representing professional and lay groups with interests and competencies related to specific educational programs of the university. Illustrative of these groups are those associated with the School of Management and with the Labor Studies, Electronic Music and Recording, Early Childhood and Medical Technology programs.
With this memorandum I am inviting academic units generally to consider establishing advisory committees involving community representatives. The purposes of these advisory committees will include the maintenance of a continuing association with professional colleagues, identification of potential employers for our students, and the generation of input and advice concerning program development with individuals who are working actively in the various fields related to our programs of instruction, research and service. These groups can be of substantial help to individual academic programs.
To achieve campus-wide coordination of this activity I should like to ask that the following procedures be observed:
1. The groups in each instance will be known as the “Advisory Committee of the words “board”
and “foundation” should not be used.
2. Membership in the advisory committees would be for defined terms, and should not exceed
three years.
3. Appointments to advisory committees will in each instance be proposed by the
responsible dean and will subsequently be confirmed by way of a letter from the President
of the University.
4. The groups should be broadly representative of the particular interests and concerns
related to the educational program. Attentiveness to our service region broadly defined
also would be most helpful.
5. For each advisory committee there should be developed a statement of purpose.
For those schools, departments and programs which already have established advisory committees I would appreciate receiving a list of the members and a statement of purpose for the group. As additional groups are developed and as appointments are to be made the
necessary paperwork to accomplish this should be forwarded to the Executive Dean, University
Relations*. A list of all advisory committees and their members will be prepared and distributed each year through the Office of University Relations for the information of all of us. Members of advisory committees also will be included in the University Catalog as appropriate.
This approach has been followed, as I noted above, by a number of our colleagues and has been productive and helpful. It can be so for all of us as we seek to build the university.
*Current title is Associate Vice President for Faculty Affairs.