Changes in campus representation

In an effort to make college government more efficient several proposals are currently under review. Two such proposals may do away with the College Council and the Community Assembly.

“The Faculty Organization Council has been looking at ways to streamline structures and responsibilities,” President Richard Torgerson said. “The proposal to move was an idea I presented to seek broader engagement and participation in matters of resource allocation.”

The College Council was formed in the late 1990s to provide counsel for the President and Dean of Luther on such matters as setting up search committees for administrative officers, having a voice in strategic planning and setting short and long-term goals for the college. The Council is currently made up of six faculty members, all of the college Vice Presidents and the Executive Director of the Diversity Center.

The proposed change would break the College Council into a Faculty Council and Staff Council. This separation would provide more engagement, making Luther College more efficient, according to Torgerson.

“I want to engage senior faculty in academic and resource allocation, which there isn’t much opportunity to do now,” Torgerson said. “Staff Council would have greater involvement in short and long-term goals and the whole proposal would broaden input to make Luther more efficient and responsive.”

To move forward from here, the proposal first needs approval from the Faculty Organization Committee. From there, the general faculty would have to vote its approval, since the proposal requires changes to the faculty handbook. This change could still happen before this year’s end.

The second proposal considered does away with the Community Assembly. The Assembly is a monthly gathering of students, faculty, staff and others which discusses and reports on the operations of Luther College.

The Community Assembly has become a fixture of Luther College life since it was started in 1971 to give a direct voice for student concerns to the faculty and administration. As of right now, students—most of whom already serve on the Student Senate—make up a majority of the Community Assembly, with faculty and staff composing the remainder.

The proposed change would redistribute the Community Assembly’s powers to the Community Life Committee, which already does much of the work of the Community Assembly.

Subsequently, the CLC would be responsible for bringing student policy matters to the attention of the President, approving charters for student organizations after review from Student Senate and creating a liaison between faculty and Student Senate.

This CLC would meet once or twice a week, significantly more than the Community Assembly. The CLC would be comprised of six faculty members, three students, the Director of Residence Life and the Dean of Student Life.

In addition to these changes, the President would meet with Student Senate at least once a semester to foster student-administration discussion.

“I will certainly be willing to meet with Student Senate [if this change passes],” Torgerson said. “I’m all for us having a dialogue and want this dialogue to continue.”