Board of Regents

Selected Statutes

Selected statutes of the State of Washington relating to the authority and duties of the Board of Regents:

RCW 28B.20.010. Designation. The state university located and established in Seattle, King County, shall be designated the University of Washington.
RCW 28B.20.020. Purpose. The aim and purpose of the University of Washington shall be to provide a liberal education in literature, science, art, law, medicine, military science and such other fields as may be established therein from time to time by the board of regents or by law.
RCW 28B.20.100. Regents–Appointment–Terms–Vacancies–Quorum.

1. (a) The governance of the University of Washington shall be vested in a board of regents to consist of eleven members, one of whom shall be a student, and one of whom shall be a full-time or emeritus member of the faculty.

(b) The members shall be appointed by the governor with the consent of the senate, and, except for the student member and faculty member, shall hold their offices for a term of six years from the first day of October and until their successors shall be appointed and qualified.

(c) The governor shall select the student member from a list of candidates, of at least three and not more than five, submitted by the governing body of the associated students. The student member shall hold the office for a term of one year from the first day of July until the first day of July of the following year or until a successor is appointed and qualified, whichever is later. The student member shall be a full-time student in good standing at the university at the time of appointment.

(d) The governor shall select the faculty member from a list of candidates, of at least two and not more than five, submitted by the faculty senate. The faculty member shall hold office for a term of three years from the first day of October and until a successor is appointed and qualified.

2. Six members of said board shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business. In the case of a vacancy, or when an appointment is made after the date of the expiration of a term, the governor shall fill the vacancy for the remainder of the term of the regent whose office has become vacant or expired.

3. Except for the term of the student member and the faculty member, no more than the terms of two members will expire simultaneously on the last day of September in any one year.

4. A student appointed under this section may not participate or vote on matters relating to the hiring, discipline, or tenure of faculty members and personnel. A faculty member appointed under this section may not participate or vote on matters relating to the hiring, discipline, or tenure of specific faculty members.

RCW 28B.20.105. Regents–Organization and Conduct of Business–By-Laws, Rules and Regulations– Open Public Meetings. The board shall organize by electing from its membership a president and an executive committee, of which committee the president shall be ex officio chair. The board may adopt bylaws or rules and regulations for its own government and shall follow procedures for open public meetings in chapter 42.30 RCW. The board shall provide time for public comment at each meeting. The board shall hold regular quarterly meetings, and during the interim between such meetings the executive committee may transact business for the whole board: PROVIDED, That the executive committee may call special meetings of the whole board when such action is deemed necessary.

RCW 28B.10.520. Regents and Trustees–Oaths.Each member of a board of regents or board of trustees of a university or other state institution of higher education, before entering upon his or her duties, shall take and subscribe an oath to discharge faithfully and honestly his or her duties and to perform strictly and impartially the same to the best of his or her ability, such oath to be filed with the secretary of state.

RCW 28B.20.110. Regents–Secretary–Treasurer–Duties–Treasurer’s Bond. The board shall appoint a secretary and a treasurer who shall hold their respective offices during the pleasure of the board and carry out such respective duties as the board shall prescribe. In addition to such other duties as the board prescribes, the secretary shall record all proceedings of the board and carefully preserve the same. The treasurer shall give bond for the faithful performance of the duties of his or her office in such amount as the regents may require: PROVIDED, That the university shall pay the fee for such bond.

RCW 28B.20.130. Powers and Duties of Regents–General. General powers and duties of the board of regents are as follows:

  1. To have full control of the University and its property of various kinds, except as otherwise provided by law.
  2. To employ the president of the university, his or her assistants, members of the faculty, and employees of the institution, who except as otherwise provided by law, shall hold their positions during the pleasure of said board of regents..
  3. Establish entrance requirements for students seeking admission to the university which meet or exceed the standards specified under RCW 28B.77.020. Completion of examinations satisfactory to the university may be a prerequisite for entrance by any applicant at the university’s discretion. Evidence of completion of public high schools and other educational institutions whose courses of study meet the approval of the university may be acceptable for entrance.
  4. Establish such colleges, schools, or departments necessary to carry out the purpose of the university and not otherwise proscribed by law.
  5. With the assistance of the faculty of the university, prescribe the course of study in the various colleges, schools, and departments of the institution and publish the necessary catalogues thereof.
  6. Grant to students such certificates or degrees as recommended for such students by the faculty. The board, upon recommendation of the faculty, may also confer honorary degrees upon persons other than graduates of this university in recognition of their learning or devotion to literature, art, or science: PROVIDED, That no degree shall ever be conferred in consideration of the payment of money or the giving of property of whatsoever kind.
  7. Accept such gifts, grants, conveyances, bequests, and devises, whether real or personal property, or both, in trust or otherwise, for the use or benefit of the university, its colleges, schools, departments, or agencies; and sell, lease or exchange, invest or expend the same or the proceeds, rents, profits, and income thereof except as limited by the terms of said gifts, grants, conveyances, bequests, and devises. The board shall adopt proper rules to govern and protect the receipt and expenditure of the proceeds of all fees, and the proceeds, rents, profits, and income of all gifts, grants, conveyances, bequests, and devises above-mentioned.
  8. Except as otherwise provided by law, to enter into such contracts as the regents deem essential to university purposes.
  9. To submit upon request such reports as will be helpful to the governor and to the legislature in providing for the institution.
  10. To offer new degree programs, offer off-campus programs, participate in consortia or centers, contract for off-campus educational programs, and purchase or lease major off-campus facilities in accordance with RCW 28B.77.080.
  11. To confer honorary degrees upon persons who request an honorary degree if they were students at the university in 1942 and did not graduate because they were ordered into an internment camp. The honorary degree may also be requested by a representative of deceased persons who meet these requirements. For the purposes of this subsection, “internment camp” means a relocation center to which persons were ordered evacuated by Presidential Executive Order 9066, signed February 19, 1942.

RCW 28B.10.528. Delegation of Powers and Duties by Governing Boards. The governing boards of institutions of higher education shall have power, when exercised by resolution, to delegate to the president or his or her designee, of their respective university or college, any of the powers and duties vested in or imposed upon such governing board by law. Delegated powers and duties may be exercised in the name of the respective governing boards.

RCW 28B.20.200. Faculty–Composition–General Powers. The faculty of the University of Washington shall consist of the president of the University and the professors and the said faculty shall have charge of the immediate government of the institution under such rules as may be prescribed by the board of regents.