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Steering Committee

Pilot Proposal for Steering Committee

A proposal to pilot a Steering Committee was presented for two readings in the fall semester of 2024 and the motion passed with a voice vote. A faculty committee composed principally of the chairs (or chair-designated members) of standing committees would coordinate regularly scheduled faculty meetings, set faculty meeting agendas, gather and channel faculty concerns, and allow for effective communication among standing committees of the college.

The pilot Steering Committee began meeting in the spring semester of 2025 and shall expire (“sunset”) after five semesters of operation, and no later than June 30, 2027. 

For the duration of the pilot, the Steering Committee shall not be considered a “standing committee,” in order to avoid conflicting with handbook stipulations that prevent faculty from serving on two standing committees at the same time. Similarly, the provision in the handbook requiring that committees elect their own chairs shall not affect the pilot Steering Committee, which shall be chaired by the secretary of the faculty for the duration of the pilot.


Function of the Steering Committee

The Steering Committee shall:

  • meet monthly during term;
  • set the agenda of regularly scheduled faculty meetings, determining which topics should be placed on the agenda, and in what form;
  • solicit reports and agenda items from administrators, committee chairs and the heads of working groups or commissions, as appropriate;
  • gather and solicit questions from faculty, and thoughts from faculty about topics of interest and concern, guiding those questions to appropriate channels among committees or administrative offices as well as using such information to determine what should be on the faculty meeting agendas;
  • share information among themselves about the individual agendas of standing committees, within the limits of confidentiality set by each committee’s mandate, to improve the effectiveness of each committee’s work and to coordinate on issues that require contributions from multiple committees; and
  • propose new standing committees, when appropriate, and/or propose the elimination/sunsetting of existing standing committees, when appropriate, for the approval of the full faculty at a faculty meeting.

Note on committee function: if the Steering Committee does not place on the agenda of a faculty meeting an item that a voting member of that meeting believes should be part of the agenda, the Steering Committee shall, upon written appeal by the voting member, place the item in question on the agenda of a regularly scheduled faculty meeting no later than two months after receiving this appeal. This privilege, currently operational for all voting members, does not change under the proposed function of the Steering Committee and ensures that the Steering Committee will not stifle any voice in its effort to expand the range, and focus the work, of the faculty meeting.

Faculty Meeting Dates for 2025-26 and Deadlines for Agenda Items

Agenda items should be sent to Faculty Secretary Lorelei Koss at koss@dickinson.edu by noon on the dayslisted below.

Sept. 2 & 4 Faculty Meeting (Tuesday/Thursday)

  • Friday, Aug. 22 – Agenda items due to Lorelei Koss by noon.

Oct. 7 & 9 Faculty Meeting (Tuesday/Thursday)

  • Friday, Sept. 26 – Agenda items due to Lorelei Koss by noon.

Nov. 6 & 11 Faculty Meeting (Thursday/Tuesday) Observing Election Day on 11/4.

  • Friday, Oct. 24 – Agenda items due to Lorelei Koss by noon.

Dec. 2 & 4 Faculty Meeting (Tuesday/Thursday)

  • Friday, Nov. 21 – Agenda items due to Lorelei Koss by noon.

Feb. 3 & 5 Faculty Meeting (Tuesday/Thursday)

  • Friday, Jan. 23 – Agenda items due to Lorelei Koss by noon.

Mar. 3 & 5 Faculty Meeting (Tuesday/Thursday)

  • Friday, Feb. 20 – Agenda items due to Lorelei Koss by noon.

Apr. 7 & 9 Faculty Meeting (Tuesday/Thursday)

  • Friday, Mar. 27 – Agenda items due to Lorelei Koss by noon.

May 5 & 7 Faculty Meeting (Tuesday/Thursday)

  • Friday, Apr. 24 – Agenda items due to Lorelei Koss by noon.
Members of the 25-26 Steering Committee
  • Steering Chair: Lorelei Koss (Mathematics and Computer Science), Faculty Secretary
  • Alex Bates (East Asian Studies), Chair, Research & Development Committee
  • Eva Copeland (Spanish), Co-Chair, All-College Committee on Student Engagement & Experience
  • Tricia Hawks (Economics), Chair, All-College Committee on Information and Technology Services
  • James Martin (Music), Chair, All-College Committee on Equity, Inclusivity and Belonging
  • Emily Pawley (History), Chair, Faculty Personnel Committee
  • Melinda Schlitt (Art and Art History), Co-Chair, All-College Committee on Student Engagement & Experience 
  • Andy Wolff (Political Science and International Studies), Chair, All-College Committee on Planning and Budget 
  • Evan Young (History), Chair, All-College Committee on Academic Program & Standards 
  • Sarah McGaughey (German), Parliamentarian (without vote)
  • Karen Neely Faryniak (President’s Office), Chief of Staff and Secretary of the College (without vote)