Committees

Standing and ad hoc committees appointed at various levels support the mission of the University.

Board of Trustees Committees

The Board of Trustees convenes a number of committees to make recommendations and advise the Board.  These include both standing committees and special committees. For more information please visit the Board of Trustees website.

University Committees

Certain University-level committees formulate recommendations for policy (subject to the approval of the President) such as the Committee on Athletics, Physical Education and Recreation, the Committee on Environmental Health and Safety, the Committee on Faculty Staff Human Resources, and the Public Art Committee. The President writes the charges to these committees and appoints the members. The President receives faculty nominations from the Committee on Committees and student nominations from the ASSU Nominations Commission (NomCom). The President requests a recommendation from committee chairs on appointments and then confirms the final decisions regarding appointments.

Faculty Senate Committees

The Faculty Senate is the legislative body of the Academic Council and has responsibility for academic and research policy as well as the authority to grant degrees. In addition to formulating policy, the Senate reviews, via its committees,  several types of curriculum matters: proposals or reviews of degree granting programs, and, periodically, broad curriculum reforms resulting from ad hoc university level review committees which examine university wide curriculum issues such as general education requirements, writing requirements and other similar programs for all undergraduates. The Senate discharges its academic and research policy and oversight responsibilities via seven standing Committees of the Academic Council. These committees are charged by the Senate.  There are four Senate committees, the Committee on Committees, the Steering Committee, the Committee of Tellers and the Planning and Policy Board.

Standing Committees Sponsored by Vice Provosts

The Offices of the Vice Provost of Graduate Education, Undergraduate Education, and Student Affairs sponsor a variety of standing committees to advise on specific matters. Please see the attached description of the committees.

Ad Hoc Committees

There are many other committees and working groups that do not require a representative of the entire student body or Faculty Senate. However, the University leadership in its discretion may select individual students to assist the University on ad hoc committees from time to time depending on the nature of the matter. Students are selected for these committees through a variety of approaches. For example, the University recently selected both ASSU-nominated students and self-nominated students for each of the Long-Range Planning Area Steering Groups. (Similarly, faculty members were selected from a pool of Faculty Senate nominees and other nominees.)

School and Departmental Committees

Individual academic and administrative units have the discretion to develop processes tailored to the custom of the discipline and objective of the committee.

Student Participation on Stanford Committees

For all of these committees, appointees do not represent a particular stakeholder group or constituency. They provide guidance based on their personal experience and perspective and serve as fiduciaries to act in the best interests of the entire university.

In 2019, the ASSU collaborated with the Office of the President to develop guidance with respect to student engagement in committees. The collaboration produced the following reference documents:

• Best Practices for Student Engagement by ASSU President Shanta Katipamula and Vice President Rosie Nelson
• University Committees Student Member Selection Process
• Presidential and Provostial Ad Hoc Committees Student Member Selection Process

The Office of the President is grateful for the contributions of the ASSU leadership.

To learn more about student governance, visit the Associated Students of Stanford University website. View a list of committees NomCom regularly works with, and join the student representative pool for Stanford.

To learn more about university governance and university administration, visit the University Administration page on Stanford’s main website.