University of Virginia Library

Senate Gaining Support

Among the specific powers and
duties the committee thinks the
University Senate should have are:
reviewing the long-range master
plan for the physical University;
reviewing policies to govern outside
relationships with agencies for
research, instruction and related
purposes; considering admissions
and recruiting policies; and
recommending appointments to the
Board of Visitors.

Many of the functions the
committee would delegate to the
Senate are already provided for in
the Constitution of the present
body. The proposed Constitution
explains that the Board of Visitors
must concur with any Senate action
involving real property, budgetary
appropriations and contractual obligations.

The President of the University
could also provide for Board
concurrence on any action by
informing the Senate that such
concurrence would be required on a
specific issue which does not
automatically come under Board
control.

With the proposed revision in
mind, the committee has also
considered recommending other
revisions in the student governing
bodies themselves. These other
revisions would be necessitated by
the change in status of the Senate.

One idea which has arisen
suggests that the present Student
Council be abandoned, being informally
replaced by the Student
Caucus, made up of all the student
Senators.

The lesser functions of the
individual schools would be taken
over by the Councils of the schools
themselves. Presently only some of
the schools actually have such a
body, such as the Engineering
Council.