Note: Although Staff Council serves as the voice and advocate for all staff, it does not have the same function as Collective Bargaining Units to which some members of the UVM staff belong. Those staff who belong to UE Local 267 are not permitted to participate in Staff Council at the request of their union.

There are many ways you can participate in Staff Council:

2023 - 2025 Staff Council Presdient Monika Donlevy

Voting closed on 5/11/23

What impact would you like to make as Staff Council President or Vice President?
As President I see myself in a supporting to move Staff Council initiatives forward, to identify areas of need and pathways for representing a voice for UVM staff in areas not covered by bargaining units.

How do you envision Staff Council supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives across campus, and your role in this?
Staff Council is working with DEI office to promote, grow and be culturally sensitive with our events.  I welcome the opportunity to add more culturally diverse events to our offerings, tapping into our UVM community.

Staff Council Involvement History (all the ways you have participated in Staff Council and the dates of service):
Staff Council Social Committee Member since 2021 and Social Committee Co-Chair since Fall/Winter 2021, Executuve Board member.

Transcript

HI. My name is Monika Donlevy. I'm running for President of Staff Council. Currently, I serve as vice chair on the Social Committee and work as an administrative assistant in the Department of Orthopedics and Rehabilitation at the Larner College of Medicine. Some of you may be wondering, what role does Staff Council serve at UVM today? We have a long standing, rich, collaborative relationship with senior administration. And I believe we have an opportunity to leverage this relationship to bring about positive change on operational essentials. I encourage you to share your thoughts and ideas and maybe even join Staff Council so that we can work together to make UVM a place where we all right.

2023 - 2025 Staff Council Vice Presdient Jennifer Main

Voting closed on 5/11

What impact would you like to make as Staff Council President or Vice President?
I look forward to working collaboratively with senior leadership, in a positive and mutually respectable way. We are an important voice on campus, and we offer great insight into current staff culture on campus.

How do you envision Staff Council supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives across campus, and your role in this?
I think that DEI initiatives are something that should be ongoing. I am committed to giving staff council opportunities to participate in DEI trainings and initiatives on campus and to bring DEI trainings, conversations, presentations, to Staff Council on a regular basis.

Staff Council Involvement History (all the ways you have participated in Staff Council and the dates of service):
Staff Council Personal & Professional Development Committee and Compensation, Benefits & Budget Committee Member since 2022 and Committee Co-Chair since Fall/Winter 2022, Executuve Board member.

Transcript

I started my career here at UVM in the President's office and I am now working in the College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences.  I am very passionate about staff culture here at UVM and how I can contribute my skills and energy to not only preserving the wonderful culture that we have, but building upon that culture so that we are continually growing in a positive direction.  Jon and Katherine did such an amazing job as president and vice president of Staff counsel for the last two years. They've provided me with an excellent model to follow and I look forward to making an attempt at filling. They're very big shoes as Staff Council Vice President, thank you.

Attend Meetings

A staff council meeting.

Staff Council Meetings are held on the first Tuesday of every month from 12:05 pm - 1:30 pm and are open to all members of the UVM community as well as the public. See the Calendar for full details of upcoming meetings.

Participate in a Standing Committee

You do not need to be an elected representative to be a Committee member! All you need is an interest in helping to make UVM a better place to work. 

The Staff Council has four Standing Committees (Personal and Professional Development; Community Engagement; Social, and Compenstion, Benefits & Budget), an executive board, the Staff Counil Professional Development Fund Committee (SCPDF) and a nominating committee. With the exception of the executive, nominating and SCPDF committees, membership is open to all staff members, faculty, retirees, and students. (Staff represented by UE267 are not eligible per their union's request)  If you would like to participate on a committee, please fill out the Committee Membership Application.

Serve as a Representative

Note: Although Staff Council Representative Elections take place each spring, we accept applications for vacancies on a rolling basis. Please check the list of Representatives (link) to find out if there is a current vacancy in your unit. Then fill out the Representative Nomination Form (PDF). You may self-nominate or nominate a colleague.

2024 Staff Council Representative Elections

Staff Council Representatives are elected annually in April and represent staff from all corners of the University of Vermont. We have established 23 Units which include all colleges and major divisions. Representation in these areas is determined annually by a staff census performed through the Office of Insitutionl Research and Adminstraion in accordance with our bylaws. Representative term years run from July 1st to June 30th, so representatives elected in Spring 2024 will commence serving on July 1, 2024.

Each representative is required to attend our monthly Staff Council Meeting and participate on one of four Staff Council Standing Committees.  In addition, each representative is also required to distribute information (generally provided by the Staff Council Office) regarding Staff Council business, activities, and communications to their units. Each representative serves a 3 year term, however, if changes occur in your personal or professional life that make it difficult to maintain this commitment, you can step down from your position at any time and a new election in the unit will be held. (If you are the only interested staff member in your unit, you may be confirmed without the need for an election.) On occasion, term lengths are less than 3 years if you are appointed to fill a midterm vacancy. 

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the total estimated time commitment for a Staff Council Representative?

It varies with your participation level. We estimate that most representatives spend two to four hours a month total on Council activities, including the Staff Council meeting, their committee meeting, reviewing materials, and working on any Staff Council projects. Some representatives choose to join more than one committee or to take part in many projects, and these individuals may spend more time. But if you choose to attend just the regular Council meeting and your committee meeting (as most representatives do), your commitment will be about three hours per month.

Do I have to use my personal time for Staff Council meetings?

No. The University's Leave Policy contains a provision for reasonable release time to attend Staff Council meetings and to do Council work. You do not have to use personal or vacation time for Council work. Your time on Staff Council is considered service to the University.

What if my position is grant-funded?

It is important to have grant-funded areas represented on Staff Council. Funds are available to reimburse grants up to 3.5% of a grant-funded employee's salary for time spent engaged in Staff Council activities. If you are a fully grant-funded employee and win an election for a representative position, the Staff Council Office will work with your unit to address any release time questions or concerns as they relate to your grant funding.

Still have questions?

We invite you to reach out to the Staff Council office by sending an email to staff.council@uvm.edu.

Serve as an Officer (President or Vice President)

The leadership positions of Staff Council President and Vice President are elected every two years during the month of May through a University-wide election. The next elections will take place in May 2023. The officer nomination period will end on April 9, 2023. All eligible UVM staff are invited to vote for these officers. 

Eligibility

To be eligible to run for either of these positions, you must be qualified to serve as a Regular member of the Staff Council whose record in Human Resources shows that you:

  1. are a regular full-time or part-time employee at the University of Vermont, and not on probation at the time of election;
  2. your job is part of the University’s Career/Pay System;
  3. you are not employed in the Staff Council Office.

In addition, the President and Vice President shall have a minimum of six months of Staff Council experience within the previous six years. The President's experience must be as an elected representative.

Why should I run for a position as officer?

You’ll develop as a professional in lots of different ways! Specifically, past officers credit their service as having improved their public speaking, time management, leadership, writing skills and organizational skills. Serving as an officer also expands your knowledge of other staff members, units, and our institution in general.

Your service will benefit your unit financially! If you are elected Staff Council President, the Staff Council Office pays 20% of your salary for the two years of your service. This allows you to spend that time on Council business, and also helps out your department. (However, note that your role will not always take 20% of your time every week – some weeks are quite busy while others are very light.)

You will get an “insider’s view” of administrative issues of all kinds and you’ll learn new things all the time.

You will build community and help take UVM in new directions!

You’ll get to directly bring forth the issues and concerns of UVM staff in meetings with the Cheif HRS Offcier anfd team as well as other UVM community stakeholders, and you’ll be a part of strategizing about how to resolve those issues. You can bring your passions to the role and develop new initiatives to improve the working lives of UVM staff members.

What characteristics make a good officer?

You see the big picture.

You’re willing to have tough conversations, when they’re called for.

You are a good listener, a collaborative team member, and have a passion for fairness.

If any of this sounds like you, please consider running for an Officer position. It's a chance to help steer and guide the Council as we continue working for the betterment of the staff at UVM and the entire UVM community.

The Officer Nomination Form (PDF) and the Responsibilities of Staff Council Officers (PDF) contain the application and the duties and responsibilities of the President and Vice President. If you have questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to the Staff Council Office. The Staff Council Administrator would be happy to talk through the expectations and time commitments involved with Council leadership and how the Office would support you during your service.

Please submit completed officer nomination forms via email to the Staff Council Office at staff.council@uvm.edu during the nomination period; the 2023 concludes on April 9.