Mission & Charter

The Undergraduate Academic Advising Council is a University of Washington Seattle advisory committee convened by the Vice Provost/Dean of Undergraduate Academic Affairs in response to the recommendations of the Provost's Committee on the Organization of Colleges and Students. The Council is composed of undergraduate academic advisers from a broad spectrum of advising units.

The Council's tasks include:

• Proposing and vetting advising initiatives and policy changes.
• Developing reliable lines of communication for advisers with campus advising units, the university's administration, and other university and off-campus groups.
• Advancing understanding of the purpose and function of academic advising.
• Identifying and promoting professional development opportunities for advisers.
• Providing a forum for assessing undergraduate advising and a venue for innovation and change.
• Ensuring that advisers are involved in university projects that impact their work.

We are committed to understanding differences within the advising community and to speaking of each other in supportive ways.

Council Structure

Membership: For its initial organizational period, January 2007 to June 2008, Council members were appointed by the Vice Provost/Dean of Undergraduate Academic Affairs. Beginning with membership transitions in August 2009, the Council has been restructured to include representation from the eight Advising Links, as well as from centralized advising units and At-Large positions.

Type of Position	Number of Positions
ArtsLink	1
BioLink	1
Business Link	1
EnviroLink	1
Math/PhysSci Link	1
SLink	1
TechLink	1
WordLink	1
Gateway Advising	1
Office of Minority Affairs/Diversity	1
UAA Assistant Dean	1
At-Large	4
Council Chair (The Vice Chair is also a representative from one of the above categories.)	1

Terms: Terms begin and end on the date of the annual UAAC retreat (in July or August). Council members will serve three year terms.

Chair and Vice Chair: The Council Chair and Vice Chair are appointed by the Vice Provost/Dean of Undergraduate Academic Affairs.

The Council Chair will hold this position for one year, typically in the third year of their Council term. The Council Chair will remain as an ex officio member of the Council for one year following the end of their regular term.

Candidates for the Vice Chair position will be solicited openly and interviewed by the current Chair and selected in consultation with the Vice Provost/Dean.

The Vice Chair will hold this position for one year, typically in the second year of their term, and will typically move into the Chair position in the following year.

Selection of Members: The Council will form a Transition Committee, chaired by the Council Vice Chair, to facilitate the process for selection of new members.

As members representing the eight Advising Links, Gateway and the Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity (OMA/D) rotate off the Council, replacements will be solicited to fill the vacant positions. Advising Links leaders, with input from their membership, will forward their nominations for new members to the Transition Committee. Leadership within Gateway and OMA/D will forward nominations to fill their vacant positions, as needed.

When replacing At-Large members, the Transition Committee will review the overall Council make-up and will solicit nominations for replacements from sources that will maintain a good balance for the Council.

In arriving at nominations for Council membership, leaders from the Advising Links and centralized units will be encouraged to seek a balance between adviser experience and leadership potential and the desire to have new voices heard.

Subcommittees and Work Groups: Subcommittees and work groups consisting of Council members and, as appropriate, members of the broader advising community will be formed on an as-needed basis.

Procedural Norms

Meetings: Meetings are held once each week for one hour. Each meeting will conclude with a call for: what needs to be communicated out to the advising community; topics on which feedback needs to be sought; and, identified next steps.

Quorum: Two-thirds of the members must be present for decision making. Decisions are made by this group only on issues that are on the agenda and that have been previously discussed.

Substitute Members: There are no substitutes, but an alternate may be appointed in the case of an extended absence, as needed.

Decision-making: The Council is advisory to the Vice Provost/Dean of Undergraduate Academic Affairs. Decision-making is by consensus. If no consensus is reached, the Vice Provost/Dean will take the issue under advisement.

Communications: The Council freely shares information with each other and with the larger advising community via our website, direct emails from the Vice Provost/Dean, and regular reports to Advising Links and centralized units. Members representing the Advising Links and centralized units will report back to the full Council about issues raised by their groups. Reporting is a standard agenda item.