STS Teaching Faculty

The STS Teaching Faculty is composed of all STS faculty and all other faculty who teach an STS course at least once every three years. STS Teaching Faculty elect committee representatives, review policy matters including course and curricula proposals prior to review by the STS Policy Committee, meet semesterly to discuss matters of importance involving the Graduate Program, and serve as one site for new initiatives. Responsibilities of individual of individual faculty include attending faculty and committee meetings and attending STS seminars.

STS Graduate Student Organization

The STS Graduate Student Organization (GSO) is composed of all full-time and part-time students pursuing MS or PhD degrees in STS. The GSO coordinates student participation in the administrative structure and serves as one site for new initiatives.

STS Director

The STS Director is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the STS Graduate Program, supervising and working with the STS Graduate Secretary, the STS Office Manager, and the Director of the STS Graduate Program-NOVA. Additional responsibilities include serving as chair of the STS Policy Committee and the STS Admissions and Review Committee; convening semesterly meetings of the STS Teaching Faculty; apprising unit leaders of the contributions made to the STS Graduate Program by members of their units; awarding graduate assistantships; meeting with the GSO as appropriate; and serving as liaison to other units on campus. From 1986-2003, the STS Director was also the Director of the Center for Science and Technology Studies; from 2003, the STS Director was also the Head of the Department of Science and Technology in Society.

Associate Director of STS, NCR

The Director of the STS Graduate Program-NOVA is responsible for program development and maintenance in Northern Virginia. Responsibilities include providing support for existing students, recruiting new students, serving as liaison to other programs and administrators in NOVA, serving as liaison to other STS programs in the region, and increasing the visibility of the STS Graduate Program in the D.C. area.

Policy Committee

The STS Policy Committee has final program authority on matters of policy, including curricula, and advises the STS Director on the operation of the graduate program. The Policy Committee is composed of nine voting members, including the STS Director (chair); the Director of the STS Graduate Program-NOVA; one STS Teaching Faculty member each from the Departments of STS, History, Philosophy, Political Science, and Sociology; one MS graduate student, one PhD student, and one student representative from the NOVA program. Each unit selects its faculty representative in consultation with that unit> '> s STS Teaching Faculty. The STS Teaching Faculty for a given unit can include faculty with adjunct or other part-time appointments. The GSO elects its student representatives.

Admissions and Review Committee

The STS Admissions and Review Committee is responsible for selecting new graduate students, providing advice to the STS Director regarding the funding and awarding of assistantships, and involving graduate students in decision making when appropriate. The Admissions and Review Committee consists of five voting > members, including the STS Director (chair) and one faculty member each elected by the STS Teaching Faculty from the fields of history, philosophy, politics and policy, and social/cultural studies.

Amendments

Substantive amendments to this structure require approval by all five units and a majority of six of the nine voting members of the Policy Committee. For those amendments that would alter student representation on committees, approval by the GSO is also required.