Faculty Governance

The University System of Maryland (USM) consists of 13 institutions with distinct but complementary missions.  The Board of Regents recognizes the distinct and complementary roles that the Regents, the Chancellor, the Presidents, other administrators, the faculty, the staff, and students have in governing the USM institutions.  Moreover, the Board also recognizes that as higher education changes and evolves; implementation of the fundamental principles of shared governance set forth below must also continue to evolve. This policy affirms the Board's commitment to these fundamental principles, which shall guide the development of institution- specific shared governance practices consistent with this policy.

(See: http://www.usmd.edu/regents/bylaws/SectionI/I600.html)

Faculty Handbook: https://www.umaryland.edu/provost/administrative-and-fiscal-affairs/faculty-handbook/

SSW Faculty Chair: Corey Shdaimah, LL.M., PhD

‌The SSW Faculty Organization (referred to as the “FO”) is the official faculty body of the School of Social Work.  It consists of the members of the social work faculty of the University of Maryland, Baltimore (UMB) and of the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC).  From here on the term "School of Social Work" or SSW shall be taken to include the faculty members of UMB and UMBC.  The functions of the Faculty Organization are to: (1) enable the SSW faculty to exercise its control over curriculum and related academic matters; (2) participate in the planning, execution and evaluation of policy regarding the School in its relationship to the University and the social welfare communities; and (3) attend to all matters related to faculty governance.  Except for the administrative divisions of the UMB and UMBC programs, the School is one unit and is not departmentalized and should be considered a single unit with a single faculty.

The FO meets at least twice each semester and is the means through which the faculty of the School of Social Work participates in the governance of the School. The Faculty Executive Committee (FEC) sets the agenda for FO meetings and the SSW Faculty FPO‌ shall serve as a constitutional document for the faculty in carrying out its responsibilities.

All faculty are expected to participate in FO meetings and committees. As stated in the FPO, “Each faculty member shall be appointed by the beginning of Fall semester of the academic year to at least one and not more than two Curriculum Area Committees.  In addition, each faculty member shall be appointed to one, and not more than two, Specialization Committees.” [See Current FO Committee List]

The FO carries final authority for the curriculum and degree requirements for students, subject to the general policies of the University of Maryland established by the Board of Regents.  The FO also shares responsibility with the Dean for developing and implementing University and School policies and procedures.

The UMB Faculty Senate (see https://www.umaryland.edu/faculty-senate/) works in partnership with campus administrative leadership to establish campus goals and policies. Four SSW faculty representatives serve on the UMB Senate.