February 2026 Faculty Senate Newsletter

What’s New

Faculty Officers Nominating Committee elected

At the February 24, 2026 Faculty Senate meeting, the Faculty Officers Nominating Committee was elected. This committee consists of five members elected from the ranks of the elected members of the Faculty Senate. They will submit a slate of candidates for the Chair of the Faculty, Vice Chair of the Faculty, and Secretary of the Faculty officer positions. Election of the officers will take place at the April 28, 2026 Faculty Senate organizational meeting. Nominations for these positions can be sent to any member of the committee, and communications soliciting nominations will be forthcoming soon. The members of the committee are:

• Anna Froula, Department of English, Chair
• Stephanie Bae, College of Business
• Charity Cayton, College of Education
• Ron Cortright, Department of Kinesiology
• Melinda Doty, College of Engineering and Technology

Committee on Committees needs additional volunteers

As the Committee on Committees drafts the nomination rosters, they try to ensure representation across all colleges and units, and they need additional faculty volunteers. Specifically, they could use additional representation on the General Education and Instructional Effectiveness Committee from units such as Foreign Languages and Literatures, Mathematics, Sociology, Philosophy and Religious Studies, English, and History. The Committee also encourages any faculty member interested in committee service to contact them via email. If you missed the survey submission deadline, it is not too late to add your name to be considered for committee service.

Zero Textbook Cost tag in course registration system

As faculty prepare for selecting course materials for your fall courses, they will have the option to add the “Zero Textbook Cost” tag, an optional feature in the course registration system. The “Zero Textbook Cost” or “ZTC” tag may be applied to courses that do not require students to purchase or rent course materials. The designation may help students plan their semester costs. The “ZTC” designation informs students that they do not need to purchase required course materials such as textbooks (print or electronic) or learning/homework systems. Zero cost course materials may include resources like open educational resources, public domain materials, original content, some library materials, and more.

Students registering for courses will see the ZTC tag in the attribute column of the course schedule. The tag displays in the same area as other designations like “Writing Intensive,” “Quality Matters Certified,” and more. Please ask to flag your course with a the “Zero Textbook Cost” tag when your department submits the classes for the semester. The “Zero Textbook Cost” tag is optional and not required for courses with zero textbook costs. Fall 2026 will be a pilot semester for faculty to use the ZTC tag. Even if your course materials are free, please report course materials through the bookstore’s textbook requisition process.

Reminders

Unit Elections for Faculty Senate

Senate election results from units are due to be sent to the Faculty Senate office email by Monday, March 30, 2026.

Sustainability Award

The University Environment Committee is soliciting applications for East Carolina University’s Sustainability Award. The Sustainability Award recognizes a member of the ECU staff or faculty or a team of staff and/or faculty who have demonstrated their commitment to and leadership in campus sustainability. Sustainability efforts advance our Future Focused, Innovation Driven Strategic Plan by contributing to the University’s Mission and Vision Priorities. Nominees for this award contribute to campus sustainability and help the University reduce environmental impacts through academics, operations, or engagement related sustainability activities. The deadline for nominations is Sunday, March 1, 2026 by 11:59 PM. Please visit the East Carolina University’s Sustainability Award page for the link to the nomination form and application information.

Faculty Personnel Deadlines

Below are the deadlines for personnel actions that are coming up soon (see the full Faculty Manual Part X, Section II Schedule for Personnel Actions for more information):•

• Subsequent Appointment Timeline – Spring of Decision Year:
  • No later than 75 calendar days before term expires – Fixed-term faculty members request consideration of a subsequent appointment and submit portfolio required by unit code
• Advancement in Title Timeline – Fall and Spring of Decision Year:
  • 1st Tuesday in March – Dean’s recommendation is due to the Provost
  • 4th Tuesday in March – Provost decision
• Reappointment of Probationary-Term Faculty Members Timeline:
  • For 9 Month Faculty:
    • 1st Tuesday in March – Unit administrator recommendation to Dean (if applicable)
    • Last Tuesday in March – Dean recommendation to Provost
  • For 12 Month Faculty:
    • 3rd Tuesday in March – Committee recommendation to unit administrator
• Reappointment of Probationary-Term Faculty Members in 2nd Year of Employment with Credit for Prior Academic Service Timeline:
  • For 12 Month Faculty:
    • 4th Tuesday in March – Faculty member meets with unit administrator to verify that all required documents are in PAD (optional but recommended)
• Promotion and Tenure Timeline – Spring Before Decision Year:
  • 4th Friday in March – Tenure Committee submits list of external reviewers to the unit administrator and selects materials to be sent to reviewers
• Promotion and Tenure Timeline – Fall and Spring of Decision Academic Year:
  • 1st Tuesday in March – Provost decision/PAD to Chancellor
  • 3rd Tuesday in March – Chancellor decision

Policies, Rules, and Regulations Sent Out for Comment

Several policies, rules, and regulations (PRRs) have been circulated for open comment. The Faculty Officers consider the PRRs that are opened for comment and decide whether they should be assigned to committees for review. They agreed to send the East Carolina University Copyright Regulation to the Faculty Governance Committee. They decided that the following PRRs sent out for comment did not require review by a committee:

• University Investigative Responsibilities Policy
• Real Property
• Delegation of Authority to Sign Contracts

Faculty are encouraged to submit their own feedback on the policy through the system, but they will be required to sign in using their ECU credentials. If faculty wish for their feedback to be anonymous, they may send their feedback to Dr. Mark Bowler, Chair of the Faculty, and he will submit it on their behalf, or they may submit an anonymous comment to the Faculty Senate Contact Form.

Spring 2026 Commencement Regalia Rental

Faculty wishing to rent regalia for spring 2026 commencement may do so at the East Carolina University Faculty Regalia Rental link. The deadline to rent is March 13, 2026. Please direct any questions about regalia rental to John Palmer, General Merchandise Manager, Dowdy Student Stores, via email or phone at 252-328-6731.

February 24, 2026 Faculty Senate Meeting Recording

Chair Bowler's February 24th Remarks (PDF)

February 24, 2026 Faculty Senate Agenda

Upcoming

• The seventh regular Faculty Senate meeting is March 31, 2026.
• The Distance Education and Learning Technology Committee is working on a survey to send out to faculty in the next few weeks regarding AI usage.

Notice

East Carolina University® Faculty Manual Part IX.I.IV.G(2)(d) was editorially revised to copy language about voting from the preceding subsections on reappointment, subsequent appointment, and initial appointment to the subsection on promotion and tenure. The language was erroneously omitted from the subsection on promotion and tenure.

ADA Accommodation: 252-737-1018 or ada-coordinator@ecu.edu