Senate Honours and Awards Committee Bylaws
1. The Honours and Awards Committee shall consist of: the President, the Provost and Vice-President (Academic), the Chair of the Senate Priorities and Planning Committee, the President of the UGAA(or designate), a faculty member from each college, two students (one graduate and one undergraduate), two external members, one of whom may be a member of the Board of Governors, and one staff member.
2. The mandate of Honours and Awards Committee shall be to recognize extraordinary achievement in the local, national and international community and to honour those individuals whose accomplishments demonstrate a standard of excellence and leadership that will inspire graduates of the University and the University community.
The Committee Shall:
a) Receive and review nominations for honours and awards within the purview of Senate, including: Honorary Degrees, Honorary Fellowships, University Professors Emeriti, John Bell Award, Medal of Merit, Lincoln Alexander Medal of Distinguished Service, W.C. Winegard Medal, D. F. Forster Medal and Walter Vaughan Medal.
b) Present to Senate nominations for the honours and awards listed in section 2.a) of these bylaws; with the exception of the W.C. Winegard Medal, D.F. Forster Medal and Walter Vaughan Medal, which shall be selected by the committee and reported to Senate for information.
c) Encourage the submission of nominations for the various Senate honours and awards from a wide-range of campus constituencies.
d) Determine award criteria and required supporting material for nominations; and, where deemed necessary by the Committee, seek additional information from nominators.
e) Develop a slate of honorary degree nominees for Senate’s consideration on at least an annual basis, such slate to be balanced among a broad range of categories of achievement, including: scholarly endeavours, professions, the arts, service to the larger community (local, provincial, national or international), or long-standing contributions of significant merit to the University, as well as a balance of individuals representing diversity.
f) Develop and maintain a pool of nominees for honorary degrees from which candidates may be drawn over time.
g) Recommend the forms to be used for presentation and admission to all certificates, diplomas and degrees, including those honours and awards under the purview of the Committee.
h) Recommend the forms to be used in the election of all candidates for all honours and awards requiring approval of Senate. After each election, the Secretary shall delete the results of the balloting and other supporting forms.
i) Recommend to Senate the design of academic regalia for the various degrees and fellowships conferred by the University, and the design of robes for officers of the University, including: Chancellor, President, Vice-Presidents, Deans, Members of t the Board of Governors.
j) Review and advise on the format and content of ceremonials such as Convocation and Installation.
k) Formulate recommendations on policy issues concerning convocation.
l) Make recommendations on such other matters as may be referred to it by Senate.
3. The Secretary of the Committee shall keep a confidential record of all nominations received by the Committee for all awards and honours within the Committee’s responsibility. Moreover, the Secretary shall record in the minutes, without naming the mover and seconder, the decision of the Committee to strike a name from the list, to hold a name, or to forward a name to Senate. The Secretary shall keep a confidential record of all candidates previously considered by the Committee and Senate.
4. It is extremely important that the Committee’s work be carried out with the highest level of confidentiality. Therefore, the Committee meets in closed session and all of its discussions and deliberations are considered confidential. Normally, only members of the Committee may attend meetings of the Committee.
The Committee will establish an annual schedule for the review of nominations, and will report at least annually to Senate.
5. While members of the Committee are free to nominate individuals for the awards and honours listed within these bylaws, they shall not participate in the Committee vote on the nomination and should recuse themselves from discussion during the Committee’s consideration of the nomination.
6. Full criteria including eligibility and the nomination process for honours and awards listed in section 2.a) of these bylaws are published in the respective guidelines and should be referred to when submitting a nomination to the Committee. Guidelines for awards and honours are approved by the Committee and approved guidelines will be made accessible to the University community. Nominations for Honorary Degrees, Honorary Fellow, University Professor Emeritus, John Bell Award, Medal of Merit and Lincoln Alexander Medal of Distinguished Service will be held active for a period of three years from the time of first nomination, or after approval by Senate. If a nomination is declined by the Committee or Senate, it may be resubmitted after a period of one year.
7. Senate will consider nominations recommended by the Committee in closed session. Factual information restricted to one page per nominee shall be given to each member of Senate. Support from a 3/4 majority of Senate is required for a candidate to be awarded the honour or award for which they have been nominated, as outlined herein.
Approved: November 29, 2010