Staff Councils play critical role in shared governance at CU
At CU, we recognize our people are our greatest asset. Our faculty and staff are essential to our mission and are critical members of the CU community. As such, it is important that you have input in the governance of this university.
A longstanding bedrock of CU – and one of the university’s guiding principles – shared governance fosters greater transparency, communication and ownership among all involved and in doing so, it strengthens the university for every member of our community. It’s also an important professional development opportunity for faculty, staff and students, cultivating skills that enable individuals to grow professionally and personally – again, something that ultimately strengthens CU.
Granted authority by the Board of Regents, CU’s elected staff councils represent the university’s more than 13,000 staff members to the administration and the regents. Staff councils communicate our staff members’ interests and concerns about issues ranging from tuition benefits, parental leave and diversity to safely returning to campus. We want and need to hear from our staff through these vital representative bodies.
We urge all supervisors with staff members interested in serving on staff council to consider the value they’re adding to their units – and to CU overall – by supporting their employees who volunteer for these important peer leadership roles. Service on a staff council, whether at the campus or system level, entails a minimal time commitment (three to five hours each month, on average) and enables employees to build skills that transfer back to – and benefit – their primary work.
We want all CU employees to have opportunities to voice suggestions, concerns and perspectives to us and to the Board of Regents. We want you to feel heard and seen and respected. In short, we want you to be as engaged with and passionate about CU as we are.
Learn more about shared governance at CU by visiting your campus website or cu.edu/ucsc.
Sincerely,
Mark R. Kennedy, CU President
Phil DiStefano, CU Boulder Chancellor
Don Elliman, CU Anschutz Chancellor
Michelle Marks, CU Denver Chancellor
Venkat Reddy, UCCS Chancellor