Bylaws
Revised : November 21, 2006
Membership and Terms of
Membership
The Academy is a community of
scholars firmly committed to providing leadership and energy in
advancing the culture of excellence in teaching and learning at the
University of Maryland.
Once an individual
is accepted into the Academy, the individual becomes an Academy
Fellow and remains an Academy Fellow as long as his or her
affiliation with the University of Maryland continues. For the
duration of his or her membership, an Academy Fellow receives all
pertinent information disseminated to Academy Fellows and is
invited to all meetings and activities of the Academy. If an
Academy Fellow wishes to be disengaged from the Academy, the Academy
Fellow needs to notify the Academy Chair in writing to end his or
her term as an Academy Fellow.
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Eligibility and
Selection
All faculty and staff of the
University of Maryland with teaching or mentoring responsibilities
are eligible for Academy membership.
The Academy solicits nominations
annually, normally during the spring semester. Each applicant is
requested to submit a bio-sketch of no more than three pages, a
one-page letter indicating how the applicant’s interests correspond
to the mission of the Academy, and a letter of support from the
applicant’s unit administrator. The application process is fully
described in the Academy’s website.
The Provost will be asked to
send a letter, accompanied by a formal invitation from the Academy,
to all Lilly-CTE Teaching Fellows, Distinguished Scholar-Teachers,
and other campus faculty recognized for their outstanding
contributions to, or scholarly achievements in teaching and
learning at the University level or above, inviting them to submit
self-nominations to the Academy.
The selection process will commence with
a review of the application by the Membership Selection Committee.
The Membership Selection Committee will determine which applicants
will have the Committee’s approval to be sent on to the full
membership of the Academy for its approval.
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Expectations of New
Fellows
The
Academy seeks to add on the order of 10 new Academy Fellows each
academic year. Each new Academy Fellow is notified not only of
acceptance into the Academy, but also of the expectation that the
new Academy Fellow will play an active role in the activities of the
Academy during the next four years. Expectations include engagement
in such activities as serving on committees, organizing meetings,
following up on Academy initiatives, and generally engaging in
activities of the Academy as articulated in the Mission Statement
and the list of Activities of the Academy.
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Meetings
There will be at least two
regular Academy meetings per academic year: a fall meeting and a
spring meeting. At the fall meeting, the new Academy Fellows will
be introduced and the Academy’s agenda set for the academic year.
The spring meeting will address issues such as the election of the Chair
(or co-Chairs),
approval of new Academy Fellows, the budget, initiatives, and
reports, including the report of the Chair (or co-Chairs) on the
Academy's activities during the academic year. At meetings of the
Academy, a quorum will consist of 10 Academy Fellows. When there is
a quorum at such an Academy meeting, then except for changes to
these by-laws, a simple majority of those Academy Fellows present is
sufficient to pass proposals and motions. Election votes will be by
secret ballot if requested by one or more of the Academy Fellows
present. Any Academy Fellow can ask for an email ballot for any
proposal except for election of officers.
A special meeting of the Academy may be
called by the Chair, either at the Chair’s discretion or by written
request to the Chair from five Academy Fellows. The agenda and date
for such a meeting will be communicated to the Academy Fellows at
least two weeks in advance of the meeting.
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Officers of the Academy
There will be a Chair (or 2
Co-Chairs), who presides over the meetings of the Academy, takes a
leadership role in promoting the activities and initiatives of the
Academy, and serves as spokesperson for the Academy in
communications with internal and external bodies. The Chair will be
elected at the annual spring meeting for a one-year term, and can be
re-elected for one additional term. The finances of the Academy
will be managed by the Chair, or an Academy Fellow appointed by the
Chair.
Other Academy officers may be created as needed by
approval of the Academy Fellows.
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Committees
The Academy will rely on committees
to conduct certain of its affairs. The Membership Selection
Committee will be a standing committee of the Academy, approved by
the Academy Fellows and containing at least three Academy Fellows. Other committees may be appointed by the Chair.
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Amendments
Amendments to these By-laws may be
adopted by a two-thirds vote of the Academy Fellows present at any
regular meeting of the Academy at which a quorum is present.
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