Submitting Codes or Constitutions for Committee Review

Unit Codes

Unit codes should be developed and revised following the procedures described in ECU Faculty Manual, Part IV, Section I. Academic Code Units and Section II. Unit Codes. Review and approval of provisional codes involve the Educational Policies and Planning Committee, and review and approval of new or revised unit codes involve the Unit Code Screening Committee. Codes must be reviewed by the Unit Code Screening Committee at least once every five years to ensure they are regularly updated to be in compliance with university policies, rules, and regulations and the Faculty Manual. At the time of this mandatory review, any guidelines that are used by the unit in conjunction with their unit code must also be reviewed by the Unit Code Screening Committee.

Faculty are encouraged to contact the Chair of the Faculty, the Unit Code Screening Committee, or the Educational Policies and Planning Committee with any questions or concerns as they go through the drafting process.

Code Submission

First, please confirm that you began revisions with the correct version of your code (see Unit Code Listing). Submit the following materials to the appropriate committee (either Unit Code Screening Committee or Educational Policies and Planning Committee):

  1. New/revised/provisional code, drafted using the current approved Unit Code of Operation Format Template (docx).
    • Unit codes may include additional relevant sections, provided they conform in the same relative order as the format.
    • Do not convert the document to a different format (submit in Microsoft Word).
  2. All unit guidelines (including any unit handbooks or documents referenced in the code).
  3. Appropriate Cover/signature page (see templates below) with signatures through the level of the dean. Signatures indicate the approval of the unit faculty, unit head, and dean, and can be collected via DocuSign or inked signature.
  4. Appropriate memo (see templates below) requesting approval of the unit code.
    • Memo (docx) requesting approval of a new or revised unit code of operation
    • Memo (docx) requesting approval of a provisional unit code of operation
  5. Optional: additional explanatory documents (such as a table of changes)

After code submission, the committee’s chairperson will communicate the review timeline and placement on an upcoming committee agenda to the unit’s code committee representative and unit administrator. For unit planning purposes, scheduled committee meeting dates are available on the committee websites. The committee will conduct its review as soon as possible after receipt of the code materials. It is usually possible to complete an initial review during the semester in which the code materials are submitted, depending on the committee’s workload at the time.

School or College Constitutions or By-Laws

School or College Constitutions or By-Laws should be developed and revised following the procedures described in ECU Faculty Manual Part IV, Section II, Subsection XI. Review and approval of School or College Constitutions or By-Laws involves the Unit Code Screening Committee. If the School or College Constitution or By-Laws contains provisions for a School or College Promotion and Tenure Advisory Committee, the applicable policies and procedures must also be submitted to the Faculty Governance Committee for review and approval prior to ratification of the constitution or by-laws.

Constitution Submission

For review prior to ratification, submit the following materials to the Unit Code Screening Committee (note: applicable policies and procedures relating to a School or College Promotion and Tenure Advisory Committee must be submitted to the Faculty Governance Committee).

  1. New/revised School or College Constitution or By-Laws as a Microsoft Word document
  2. Cover/Signature Page (docx)

For review after ratification, submit the following materials to the Unit Code Screening Committee:

  1. Ratified School or College Constitution or By-Laws, as a Microsoft Word document.
  2. Previously submitted Cover/Signature Page updated with the date of ratification.
  3. Memo (docx) requesting approval of the ratified School or College Constitution or By-Laws.

Once the Unit Code Screening Committee approves the ratified School or College Constitution or By-Laws, it will be forwarded for review and approval by the Faculty Senate, and subsequently, the Chancellor.