Governance Committee Representation

Pitzer’s governmental structure makes it virtually unique among American colleges. Students along with faculty and staff are represented on all the standing committees of the College including those which deal with the most vital and sensitive issues of the College community.

Staff Council appoints staff members to each of these standing committees annually. Standing committees are responsible primarily for the formulation, review and implementation of policy relating to the educational program and student life.

In most instances, policy decisions of the standing committees are made in the form of recommendations to College Council, which is the primary legislative body of the school, made up of the faculty, staff representatives and 16 student representatives, eight of whom are elected by the student body and eight chosen from the student members of the standing committees.

Academic Planning Committee
Responsible primarily for the long-term planning of the educational program of the College and, as part of the task, for proposing new faculty positions and the formulation of new programs and majors.

Budgetary Implementation Committee
Responsible for constructing the annual budget of the College and recommending to College Council policy regarding enrollment, financial aid, annual increments in staff and faculty salaries, fringe benefits and expectations relating to inflation and investment income.

Campus Aesthetics Committee
This committee encourages the production of art on campus and reviews proposals for column art and other murals. There are four appointed student representatives to this committee. more…

Campus Life Committee
This Committee is responsible for working with relevant student, faculty, alumni and trustee groups to develop and implement annually, a comprehensive plan for enhancing the intellectual, cultural, artistic and social life of the campus. In addition, it oversees programs and support structures that foster the development of a closer intellectual community on campus.

College Council Agenda Committee
Serves as the main policymaking body at Pitzer. Generally, all policy recommendations made by the various committees are forwarded to College Council for discussion and eventual vote. If passed, these recommendations go to the President and as appropriate to the Board of Trustees for final approval. The College Council has the power to recommend requirements for academic degrees and honors, as well as make recommendations to the President regarding the establishment of new academic divisions and the creation of standing and ad hoc committees.

Diversity Committee
Responsible for assisting the College in meeting its commitment to affirmative action in student, faculty and staff recruitment and for assisting the College in creating an environment which is maximally supportive to students from underrepresented groups and which embraces and values diversity.

Sustainability Committee
Works in conjunction with relevant campus groups and institutions to propose projects and policies that promote reduced resource consumption and environmental sustainability at Pitzer College and the Claremont Colleges. It will create a comprehensive plan for enhancing campus sustainability and will oversee and evaluate programs and policies that foster the development of an environmentally sustainable campus. The committee reports directly to the President and will give annual sustainability reports, greenhouse gas emissions updates and work on STARS. The committee is made up of students, staff and faculty.

Emergency Preparedness
Monitor the status of the Emergency Preparedness Assessment for the College as well as communicate ongoing and future strategy and plans to the entire Pitzer Community. The committee attends the Claremont Consortium Emergency Preparedness Meetings and reports back to council.