R. 4 Resolution to Establish Family Services Committee

Whereas, the University Assembly (the assembly) is the sole governing body at the university to have elected representation from all major campus constituencies: undergraduate students, graduate and professional students, employees, and faculty; and,

Whereas, Article I, Section 7 of the assembly’s charter (the charter) states “examine other matters which involve the interests or concern the welfare of a substantial segment of the University community and make recommendations thereon to the appropriate officers or decision-making bodies of the University”; and,

Whereas, a working group has been functioning under the Office of Human Resources for 17 years in an ad hoc capacity; and

Whereas, community oversight and feed back on issues related to family services is vital to the university’s continues efforts to improve community life at Cornell

Whereas, the university established a task force on working families in 1988 to investigate the problems faced by working families; and

Whereas, the task force on working families focused on issues facing staff employees;

Whereas, the task force recommended that the university establish committees similar to the task force to explore and address the work/education/family needs of academic staff and graduate student and to make recommendations that would help these individuals balance work, study and family needs;

Be it therefore resolved that the assembly establishes a standing committee called the Family Services Committee; and,

Be it further resolved that Section 3 be added to Article IX of the charter and read as follows:

[Charge, composition, etc. of committee — for example see other committees in Article 9 and Article 10, Section 7.5 (http://assembly.cornell.edu/UA/Charter)]

9.3 Committee on Family Services

The committee is charged to identify needs of non-academic staff, academic staff, graduate/professional students and undergraduate students with family responsibilities and to address issues related to work/study/life balance, to study proposals brought by members of the university community or administration to meet those needs, and to advise the assembly, Vice President of Human Resources, and other senior members of the university administration concerning such proposals.

The Committee on Family Services consists of fifteen voting members. The constituent assemblies appoint a total of eight voting members from their respective constituencies in the following number: Student Assembly may appoint one, the Graduate and Professional Student Assembly may appoint two, the Employee Assembly may appoint three, one employee representative who is part of a Cornell University collective bargaining agreement, and the Faculty Senate may appoint three. The President may appoint up to five voting members who shall be community or university experts in subjects related to family issues and the charge of the committee.

The following serve as non-voting members of the committee: one liaison appointed by the assembly from its members and up to three appointed by the President of the university to serve as liaisons from related administrative units.

Be it further resolved that copies of this resolution be distributed to Mary George Opperman, Vice President of Human Resources, and David J. Skorton, the President of the University; and,

Be it finally resolved that should this resolution be approved by the President, that the Chair of the assembly shall contact the leaders of the Student Assembly, Graduate and Professional Student Assembly, Employee Assembly, and Faculty Senate and the President of the university to request that the committee be staffed as promptly as possible.

Respectfully Submitted,

Abraham Stroock Faculty Representative, University Assembly