Bylaws of the Lee College Curriculum & Academic Affairs Committee
(Revised April 2019, Updated Aug. 2021)
Article I: Charge & Ancillary Duties
A. Committee Charge
a. The primary purpose of the Lee College Curriculum & Academic Affairs Committee is to provide a single entity where all changes in academic programs and policies are presented, approved where appropriate, and passed on to faculty and administrators throughout the college. These issues include, but are not limited to:
i. New program introduction ii. New course approval iii. Changes in existing programs/courses iv. Changes in the core curriculum v. Grading policy vi. Instructional policy vii. Avoiding course duplication
b. If new programs need to be approved, the college president recommends them to the Board of Regents only after they have been approved by the Committee.
B. Ancillary Duties
a. The Committee will consider concerns other than curriculum or academic affairs per se as instructed by the President of the College.
Article II: Membership & Governance
A. Membershipa. The membership of the Committee be as follows:
i. Voting Members
1. One counselor elected by the Counselors. 2. One librarian elected by the Library. 3. One elected representative from Workforce & Community Development. 4. Two members from Lee College Huntsville Campus. 5. One member elected from each of the fourteen divisions on the Baytown Campus.
a. Academic Divisions: Developmental Education; English & Humanities; Kinesiology & Wellness; Mathematics, Engineering, & Sciences; Social & Behavioral Sciences; Speech Communication, Languages, & Teacher Education; Visual & Performing Arts. b. Technical Divisions: Allied Health; Business Technology; Computer Technology; Industrial Studies; Nursing; Process Technology; Technical Studies.
ii. Ad Hoc Members
1. Provost / SACSCOC Liaison 2. Associate Vice President, Academic Affairs 3. Associate Dean of Student Affairs
iii. Floor Privileges
1. Any faculty member, staff, or administrator will be grated floor privileges at the discretion of the Chair.
b. Membership by Division Chairs
i. If selected by a Division as its representative, a chair of a Division may serve on the Committee.
B. Officersa. A Committee Chair and Committee Vice-Chair of the CAAC be Faculty members of the Committee. b. The Chair and Vice Chair will be elected each April by the Committee.
i. The term of office for each position is one (1) academic year.
c. The Committee Chair shall:
i. Represent the CAAC on various Committees of the College that relate to the business of the Committee, including the Instructional Planning Committee. ii. Convene subcommittees for a variety of purposes that may include, but not be limited to: Core review, updates for the Curriculum Maintenance System, or significant changes in College policy as it relates to curricular or academic affairs issues. iii. Serve as a facilitator for all business of the Committee, and refrain from voting unless it is in case of a tie by ballots cast during a meeting.
d. The Committee Vice-Chair:
i. Assume the duties of the Chair in his/her absence. ii. Temporarily assume the duties of the Chair when the Chair is the author of a motion brought before the Committee.
C. Voting Membersa. Terms of Service by Voting Members
i. Faculty members selected by their Divisions to serve on the Committee will serve two-year staggered terms. ii. The staggering of terms is as follows:
1. Begin terms in even years: H/C Academic; Allied Health; Business Technology; Math, Engineering, & Sciences; Kinesiology & Wellness; Workforce Education; Developmental Education; Process Technology; Nursing. 2. Begin terms in odd years: H/C Tech-Voc; Social & Behavioral Science; English & Humanities; Technical Studies; Visual & Performing Arts; Computer Technology; Speech Communication, Languages & Teacher Education; Industrial Technology.
b. The names of selected members be given to the appropriate Dean, who will forward the names to the chair of the Committee. c. It will be the duty the Committee Chair to inform the Counseling Department, Library, and/or Divisions when new members from those areas are to be elected. d. New members will serve at the beginning of an academic year.
D. Committee Secretarya. The Committee Secretary shall be the Division Secretary of the Chair or Vice-Chair. b. The Committee Secretary shall keep all minutes of Committee meetings, both regular and called. c. Committee meeting minutes shall be posted on the Lee College Website in a perpetual archive.
Article III: Policies & Procedures
A. Meeting Schedulesa. Regular meetings will be held on the third Tuesday of the following months: September, October, November, February, March, April, and July. b. Called meetings may be convened at the Chair’s discretion, whether in-person or virtually (via e-mail), for emergency items. c. That meetings, both regular and called, will be led by the Chair. d. Roberts Rules of Order, 11th Edition will be followed for all Committee meetings. e. A quorum shall consist of at least eight voting members of the Committee. f. Committee members unable to attend Committee meeting(s) are to send a substitute who will possess deliberation and voting rights. g. All meetings will allow floor privileges to non-Committee members at the discretion of the Chair.
Article IV: Curriculum & Academic Affairs Committee Review Process
A. Items Reviewed by CAACa. All newly proposed, changes to, or deletions of programs, degrees, certificates, or courses must come to the Curriculum Committee for approval prior to being presented to the Board of Regents.
i. This includes, but is not limited to: changes in degree/certificate sequence, changes to requisites, changes to names, Catalog changes, changes to academic affairs procedures (ex: student grievances, etc.), or other items impacted by the Charge of the Committee (Article I, A).
b. Items such as ACGM, WECM, or other state mandated changes must be brought to the Committee as informational items and entered into the Meeting Minutes, though Committee action is not required.
i. These informational items will be entered in the Curriculum Maintenance System prior to the meeting so they may be included in the meeting agenda.
B. Call for Agenda Itemsa. The Chair will issue a public call for agenda items for the Committee no less than three (3) weeks prior to a regular meeting. b. This call for agenda items will be distributed via an “All Users” email to the College.
C. Submission of Agenda Itemsa. Items for Committee review may be submitted by faculty members at any time during an academic year. b. Items for a regular meeting must be submitted prior to the deadline established in the Call for Agenda Items. c. A faculty member from the sponsoring department will submit a Curriculum Maintenance Request for any item to be placed on the Committee Agenda.
i. All supporting items/materials must be submitted prior to the deadline established in the Call for Agenda Items. ii. Supporting items/materials may include, but not be limited to:
1. Annotated meeting minutes from the Division or Department demonstrating an affirmative vote for the item.
a. Technical programs should also include annotated minutes from their community boards.
2. Documents required for approval by the THECB, SACS, or College that may include, but not be limited to:
a. Course Syllabi b. Certificate/Program Documentation (if appropriate) c. Narrative on How the Course Addresses FCA Definitions d. Narrative on How Core Objectives are Addressed in the Course
D. Publishing of the Agenda & Review of Itemsa. Committee Agenda for Regular Meetings
i. The Agenda will include, but not be limited to: Officer Reports, Informational Reports, Old Business, New Business, and an Open Forum. ii. The Committee Agenda will be published no less than two (2) weeks prior to a regular meeting. iii. The Agenda will reflect all items submitted by the deadline specified in the Call for Agenda Items via the Curriculum Maintenance Request system.
b. Committee Agenda for Called Meetings
E. Meeting Proceduresa. At the meeting, a representative from the sponsoring department presents the proposal to the Committee and fields questions. b. A motion is made on the proposal. If the motion is to accept, discussion of the proposal between Committee members ensues. c. When a change is adopted, it is reflected in the minutes of the meeting d. When discussion is complete, a vote takes place. Only members of the Committee may vote.
Article V: Curriculum Maintenance System Workflow
A. Submission by Facultya. This is denoted by “Request Status 1” in the Curriculum Maintenance System. b. A faculty member will submit the proper request, with all suitable documentation. c. The faculty member is encouraged to consult all stakeholders, both in and out of their division; this may include, but not be limited to: their Dean, the Counseling staff, the Registrar, or any external programs impacted by changes to a course, certificate, or degree.
B. Division Approvala. This is denoted by “Request Status 2” in the Curriculum Maintenance System. b. The division chair shall certify that the proposal from a faculty member has passed an affirmative vote of their division.
C. Committee Reviewa. The CAAC will convene to review the request. The Committee may approve, reject, or table the motion as needed. b. If approved, the motion proceeds to the appropriate Dean.
D. Dean Reviewa. The Dean will convene to review the request. The Committee may approve or reject the request, but may not modify it without CAAC review. b. If approved, the motion proceeds to the VP of Instruction.
E. Vice-President of Instruction Reviewa. The VPI will convene to review the request. The Committee may approve or reject the request, but may not modify it without CAAC review. b. If approved, the motion proceeds to the Board of Regents and/or THECB for final disposition.
F. Board of Regents Review G. Submission to the THECBArticle VI: Schedule of Deadlines
A. Items Requiring Catalog Inclusiona. All items to be included in the next academic year’s Catalog will be submitted for review no later than the November meeting.
B. Items for Core Inclusiona. All items to be submitted to the THECB for review as a Core course must be submitted for review no later than the February meeting.
i. Core inclusion does not guarantee Catalog inclusion; if the course is new it must still be governed by the November deadline.
C. Non-Catalog Itemsa. All items that are not contingent on inclusion in the succeeding academic year’s catalog or for submission to the THECB may be submitted at any point during the academic year.
D. ACGM, WECM, or Other State Mandated Changesa. These informational items may be entered at any time for any meeting.
Article VII: Amendments to the CAAC Bylaws
A. Proposed amendments to the CAAC Bylaws shall be submitted (via the Curriculum Maintenance System’s Miscellaneous option) to the Committee Chair at the time of a Call for Items as specified in Article IV, B. B. Proposed bylaws will require a first and second reading.
a. The first reading will see the proposal entered into the CAAC meeting minutes. The members of CAAC will review the proposal until the next regular or called meeting. b. The second reading will take place and a vote on the proposal will take place.
i. All proposed changes must be by 2/3 majority of the Committee present and voting.
Article VIII: Publication of Bylaws
A. The Lee College Curriculum and Academic Affairs Committee Bylaws shall be published via the Lee College website.a. Any changes to the CAAC Bylaws must be updated on the Lee College website within 30 days.