I.  Preface: Mission, History, and Organization of the University

A. Nondiscrimination Statement

Every University staff member, faculty member and student has the right to work and study in an environment free from discrimination and harassment and should be treated with dignity and respect. The University prohibits discrimination and harassment against applicants, students, faculty or staff on the basis of race, religion, national or ethnic origin, age, sex, sexual orientation, disability, status as a veteran or any classification protected by local, state or federal law. See Harassment and Discrimination Policy (including Sexual Harassment).

B. Diversity Statement

The University of Richmond is committed to developing a diverse workforce and student body, and to modeling an inclusive campus community which values the expression of differences in ways that promote excellence in teaching, learning, personal development, and institutional success.

C. Mission Statement

The mission of the University of Richmond is to sustain a collaborative learning and research community that supports the personal development of its members and the creation of new knowledge.  A Richmond education prepares students to live lives of purpose, thoughtful inquiry, and responsible leadership in a global and pluralistic society.

NOTE: The University Mission Statement replaces the Statement of Purpose adopted for the previous SACS review in 1997.

D. History of the University

In 1830 the Baptist General Association of Virginia created the Virginia Baptist Education Society to help young men become more effective ministers of the Gospel.  From October 1830 to August 1831 the Society supported six students who studied under the direction of the Reverend Edward Baptist.  Baptist and the students resided at Dunlora in Powhatan County, the estate of Mrs. Ann Hickman.  The following year there were twelve students.  Eight studied with Baptist and four with the Reverend Eli Ball at his residence near Richmond.

In 1832 the Society decided to establish a seminary and purchased a 220-acre farm four miles north of Richmond. The Reverend Robert Ryland, pastor of a Baptist church in Lynchburg, was chosen to be superintendent of the Virginia Baptist Seminary.  In 1834 the Society sold the farm and purchased the Haxall estate, Columbia, in the western part of Richmond and moved the school to that location.  The Columbia Building, now owned by The American Historical Foundation, is still standing (1986) and still being used. It occupies the lot at the corner of Lombardy and Grace Streets.

In 1840 the Virginia Baptist Education Society secured a charter from the General Assembly of Virginia which transformed the seminary into Richmond College.  Two factors prompted this action: one, there was a growing conviction among Baptist leaders that the students needed a general education before starting their religious studies; and two, since state law prohibited the chartering of seminaries, such institutions could not hold property and there was no way to enforce the payment of legacies.  By the mid-1840s a four-year liberal arts curriculum was adopted, and Richmond College awarded its first baccalaureate degree in 1849.

The outbreak of the Civil War in 1861 forced the college to suspend classes.  The trustees invested most of its $100,000 endowment in Confederate securities, and the campus and buildings were used by Louisiana troops as a hospital.  At the end of the war the buildings were plundered, and the small library was dispersed.

In October 1866, classes were resumed with the Reverend Tiberius Gracchus Jones as President of the college.  Jones resigned in 1869, and the trustees abolished the office of the President. The faculty was permitted to elect a chairman who served as the chief administrative officer of the college.  This form of administration continued until 1894, when Frederic William Boatwright, Professor of Modern Languages, was chosen President.

In 1898, women were admitted to Richmond College as day students.  A new campus site was acquired west of Richmond in 1910 and it was decided that a liberal arts college for women, to be known as Westhampton College, would be established there.  Following the purchase of additional acreage and the construction of buildings, the new campus was occupied in September 1914.  This is the present site of the University of Richmond.

The growth of the institution may be illustrated by the establishment of its divisions and schools:

When Frederic W. Boatwright retired in 1946 after 52 years as President, he was succeeded by George M. Modlin, who served as President for 25 years.  In 1971, E. Bruce Heilman was chosen as successor to Modlin and served for 15 years before becoming Chancellor.  Samuel A. Banks was elected the sixth President of the University in 1986. In 1987, Dr. Banks took an early retirement and was succeeded by Dr. E. Bruce Heilman, who served as Chancellor and Interim Chief Executive Officer during the interim.  In 1988 Dr. Richard L. Morrill was elected the seventh President of the University and was succeeded by Dr. William E. Cooper, who became the eighth President of the University in 1998.  Dr. Edward L. Ayers assumed the Presidency in July 2007.

E. Organization

1. General

The University's Articles of Incorporation, By-Laws, and information about the Board of Trustees may be accessed via http://president.richmond.edu/trustees/.

The key University administrative positions are President, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Vice President for Business and Finance, Vice President for Investments, Vice President for Advancement, Vice President for Student Development, Vice President for Information Services, and Vice President for Enrollment Management.  Administrative positions may be found on the Administrative Organizational Chart.

2. Academic

The University has five schools - Arts and Sciences, Business, Leadership Studies, Law, and Continuing Studies. The dean of each school reports to the Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs.   Academic positions may be found on the Academic Organizational Chart.

Individual schools award no degrees; all degrees for work done in any of the schools are conferred by the "University of Richmond."  Ultimate authority is vested in the Board of Trustees and the President of the University.

a. Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs
The Provost  and Vice President for Academic Affairs is the chief academic officer of the University, directly responsible to the President for the following areas; curriculum, instructional and research programs, faculty development, development of academic budget requests; and supervision of the activities of the Associate Provost, University Registrar, the Dean of International Education, the Director of the Office of Research Compliance & Integrity, the Director of the Office of Institutional Effectiveness, and the Executive Director of the Bonner Center for Civic Engagement.  This position is to be first among equals. The Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs serves as an ex officio member, with voice but not vote, of all school and University committees.

b. Deans
The Dean of each school is the executive officer and is responsible to the Provost in academic matters. The Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, the Dean of the Robins School of Business, the Dean of the Law School, the Dean of the Jepson School of Leadership Studies, and the Dean of the School of Continuing Studies are responsible for implementation of their respective curricula, for budgets and faculty recruitment, appointments, and reappointments. Each of these deans makes recommendations to the Provost for the continued improvement of his/her respective programs and is responsible for the general instructional excellence of academic personnel exclusively within his/her own school. The Deans of Arts and Sciences, Business, Law, Leadership Studies, and Continuing Studies have primary responsibility for recommending persons for tenure and/or promotion. In addition, these deans serve ex officio on all of his or her school committees, respectively. The Deans of Business, Law, and Leadership are responsible to the Vice President for Student Development in undergraduate student life matters.

c. Chairs of Departments
Department chairs are responsible for the normal operations of their departments, including scheduling of classes, assignment of instructors, preparation of annual budgets, and recommendation of employment, promotion, tenure and salary increases of faculty members in their departments. Chairs represent their departments to the administration as well as in the Academic Council and the University Senate and are expected to keep their departments informed of actions of both of these bodies.

All department chairs are appointed and removed by the President of the University.  In practice, however, and in the spirit of shared governance, the President delegates to the Provost, deans, and departments the responsibility of appointing and removing chairs in the manner prescribed below.

Department chairs in the School of Arts and Sciences and the Robins School of Business ordinarily are nominated by the regular full-time department faculty acting as a collective and deliberative body and voting ordinarily by secret ballot.  The person nominated will have the approval of at least half of the department's members.  The department's nomination will be in the form of a letter to the Dean of their school that explains the department's choice of a chair.  Although individual members of the department should be informed that they have the right to send a confidential letter of their own to the Dean, such letters should not be required or even solicited by the Dean. If the Dean does not support the department's nomination, the Dean meets with the department to explain his or her reasons for not supporting the nomination.  The department will then reevaluate its nomination and consider the Dean's objections.  Subsequently, the department will communicate its choice of candidate for chair to the Dean.

The Dean and the department will remain in consultation until a mutually agreeable candidate has been selected and has agreed to serve as chair.  A mutually agreeable candidate is a person who has the support of both the Dean and at least 50% of the regular full-time department faculty.  The consensus candidate's name is forwarded to the Provost and then to the President as a recommendation for appointment.  In rare instances when a consensus is not attained in a timely manner after protracted effort, the record of consultations and reasoning on all sides will be communicated to the Provost for resolution and recommendation to the President.  Chairs are appointed for a term of a specified number of years and normally are eligible for reappointment for additional terms.

A department chair may be removed before the end of her/his term, but removal should be a last resort to be used only if the chair is unwilling to modify her/his problematic behavior.  With two exceptions, explained below, a chair may not be removed unless both the Dean and a majority of the department's regular, full-time faculty agree to the removal.  Removing a chair can be initiated by either the Dean or by a majority of the department's regular, full-time faculty, but before any such attempt is made, the chair must be notified in writing by the concerned party (Dean or department faculty) of the problematic behavior and be given an opportunity to explain, defend, and/or modify it.  If the concerned party is not satisfied with the chair's response, it should request the chair to resign.  If the chair refuses to resign, the concerned party should meet with the other party (Dean or department faculty) to secure its support for removing the chair. If such support is not secured, the chair may not be removed, except in the following two situations.

First, when the alleged grounds for removing a chair are the chair's failure and likely continued failure to perform the officially prescribed duties of a chair, the party (Dean or department faculty) making the allegation may appeal to the Provost, who, after hearing the arguments and evidence presented by the Dean, department faculty, and the chair, will decide whether the chair should be removed on the grounds of failing to perform officially prescribed duties.  The second exception is when the Dean has clear and credible evidence that the chair, in the exercise of her/his authority as chair, has engaged in illegal activity.  In such a case, the Dean, with the concurrence of the Provost, may remove a chair without consulting with the department's faculty or making public the reasons for the removal. Whenever a decision has been made to remove a chair, for whatever reason, the chair will be given the option of resigning prior to being removed, except when that option is not allowed by law.

d. Academic Councils
In each school, except for the Jepson School of Leadership Studies and the Law School, there is an Academic Council. The functions of the several Academic Councils are similar in that they provide an avenue for faculty expression and influence. Among their duties each Council may (1) advise the Dean; (2) interpret faculty policy and consider any variations from requirements as listed in the catalogue; (3) recommend approval of new courses, majors, minors, and programs to the faculty; (4) consider certain recommendations of the Deans before they are presented to the faculty; (5) serve as a line of communication (each faculty member may request that a matter be brought to the attention of the Council); (6) recommend changes in academic policy to the faculty. Membership of the various Academic Councils is described below.

(1). Academic Council, School of Arts and Sciences
The Arts and Sciences Academic Council is composed of the Dean of Arts and Sciences, the Associate Deans, the chairs of the departments, directors of programs at the Dean's discretion, the Deans of Richmond College and Westhampton College, the University Registrar, and the University Librarian.  The Dean presides as chair of the Council. Meetings are held on a regularly scheduled basis.  Other than interpretation of policies and degree requirements, all actions are voted on by the faculty.

(2). Academic Council, The Robins School of Business
In The Robins School of Business, the Academic Council is composed of the Dean, the chairs of the departments, the Associate Deans, and the University Registrar.  Others are invited to meet with the Academic Council as non-voting ex officio members at the Dean's discretion.  The Dean presides as chair of the Academic Council.  The meetings are held monthly.

(3). Academic Council, School of Continuing Studies
The Academic Council for the School of Continuing Studies shall be members the Academic Councils and/or faculty members appointed by the deans of Arts and Sciences (3), The Robins School of Business (1), the Jepson School of Leadership Studies (1), and the faculty of the Law School (1).  The Dean, all associate and assistant deans with faculty status and rank, and all program directors who are full-time faculty members of the school are also included.  The Registrar and Provost are ex officio members, and the Dean with the approval of the Provost and consent of the Council may appoint other (non-voting) members to serve. The Council shall recommend to the Provost for approval all new offerings of the School of Continuing Studies, shall conduct periodic reviews of its various programs, and report its findings and recommendations to the Provost.  The Academic Council shall meet regularly and report relevant actions to the faculties of the University for information or approval as appropriate.

(4). Graduate Council, School of Arts and Sciences
The Arts and Sciences Graduate Council functions for the Graduate School in a manner very similar to the Academic Councils.  The Graduate Council is composed of the Coordinators for Graduate Studies, selected by and from the departments, one from each that offers a program leading to the M.A., M.S., or M.L.A. degree, and the University Librarian and a representative from the School of Continuing Studies.  The Director of the Graduate School is chair of the Graduate Council.  The Council studies and recommends to the Arts and Sciences Graduate faculty actions related to the establishment of new graduate courses and new graduate degree programs.  Significant exceptions to be made to the policies stated in the Graduate Catalog or the approved minutes of the Graduate Council are to be brought before the Arts and Sciences graduate faculty.

Note:  Faculty who have tenure or hold tenure-track positions in the University and have completed the highest degree in their discipline are eligible to teach in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, provided that their area of expertise fits programs offered by the Graduate School.  Persons without tenure or not on a tenure track or who have not completed the highest degree in their discipline may teach in the Graduate School only with the approval of the Director of the Graduate School.  Those faculty members in each program appropriately qualified to teach at the graduate level in the department constitute the graduate faculty.

(5). Graduate Council, The Robins School of Business
The Graduate Council functions for the Richard S. Reynolds Graduate School of The Robins School of Business in a manner similar to an academic council. The Graduate Council is composed of a faculty member from each of the academic departments, the Dean as an ex officio member, and the Director of The Richard S. Reynolds Graduate School as chair. The Council studies and recommends actions related to the establishment of new graduate courses, new degree programs, any exceptions to be made to the policies stated in the Graduate School Catalog, and rules on suspended and terminated students.

3. Committees and University Faculty Council

See Chapter III of this Guide.