University of Virginia Library

Committee Problems

In the discussion of the department
administration, faculty members answered
questions concerning committee structures,
voting privileges, and the advising system.

David Jordan, chairman of the department,
stated that lists of committees were public
knowledge and that difficulties with committees
occurred generally on two points.

The first of these problems was that faculty
members could not be compelled to sit on
committees and since remuneration for extracurricular
activities was, as one faculty member
stated, "rare."

The second problem in committees came
from what Mr. Jordan stated in having
"different men with different views on the
faculty" working for a consensus.

Mr. Jordan also explained that faculty
members only had one vote each in any
meeting and that the only time voting was
restricted to certain faculty members was on
questions of promotion.

In the area of promotion, Mr. Jordan
explained that the department followed the
American Association of University Professors'
guidelines on considerations for promotion
after five years of service.

He further explained that three aspects were
considered for promotion, namely a review of
scholarship, teaching, and the priorities of the
department.