Faculty Governance

The Bylaws of the Faculty of Medicine govern the Faculty of Medicine. The current form of governance was established when the bylaws were adopted in 1978. The bylaws describe the governance process and areas of responsibility of the council in detail. The current bylaws were last amended and ratified on March 31, 2025.

Faculty Council

The Faculty Council is the primary governing body. Faculty elect their department representatives for the Council; institutional representatives are selected by the faculty at each affiliated hospital; at-large representatives are elected by the full-time and part-time faculty.

The council meets at least five times each year, with an agenda set by the Faculty Council Steering Committee, composed of the past Council Chair, current Council Chair, and Chair-Elect, along with five members of the Council as elected by the rest of the Council. The Dean includes the Chair of the Faculty Council on his leadership committee, linking the faculty to the medical school's administrative leadership.

The Bylaws describe the governance process and areas of responsibility of the Council in detail. A roster of the membership of the Faculty Council and standing committees is published each summer. Alan Levine, PhD, Professor of Molecular Biology and Pharmacology, is the current 2024-2025 Chair of Faculty Council.

See Faculty Council Meetings & Minutes

Faculty Senate

The Case Western Reserve University Board of Trustees has delegated to the University Faculty certain powers and responsibilities concerning the University’s educational, research and scholarly activities. All powers of the University Faculty, not otherwise reserved for the University Faculty itself, are exercised by the Faculty Senate, which is elected by the constituent faculties. The Faculty Handbook in conjunction with the Faculty Senate By-Laws constitute the rules and regulations governing the conduct and procedures of the Faculty Senate.

CWRU Faculty Senate members are elected using a formula found in the Constitution of the Faculty Handbook. The School of Medicine has 10 members that currently serve on Faculty Senate for the 2024-2025 academic year. For more information on Faculty Senate, please refer to their webpage.

Standing Committees

The standing committees of the Faculty of Medicine and Faculty Council are listed below. Each reports at least once per year to the Faculty Council. While some meetings are closed, others are open to School of Medicine Faculty. You can view the meeting dates and times here.

Appointments, Promotions, and Tenure (CAPT)

Biomedical Research

Budget, Finance and Compensation

Bylaws

Lecture

Nomination and Elections

Program Review

Women and Minority Faculty

Ad Hoc Committees

Ad hoc committees carry out special tasks for the faculty or Dean, as needed, and may be appointed by the Faculty Council, by the Faculty Council and the Dean together, or by the Dean alone. Copies of the official charges to the standing committees are available in the Office of Faculty Affairs.

Faculty may find serving on committees rewarding. Service offers the opportunity to work together with other faculty members from different disciplines and hospitals. Faculty wishing to be nominated for election to a standing committee should notify their department chair and look out for the emailed announcement each spring soliciting those willing to stand for election. Please see the template for a one-page (maximum) Statement of Interest. The final selection of names to appear on the slate of candidates is made by the faculty's Nominations and Elections Committee. Each candidate's Statement of Interest is linked to the candidate's name on the ballot.