Elections by Congregation: Council (Humanities and Social Sciences) MT2023

Vacancy

One member of Congregation elected by Congregation from members of the faculties in the Divisions of Humanities and of Social Sciences, to serve until the start of MT 2027 [vice Fra’ John Eidinow]

The following nomination has been received. 

General Information about this constituency

This constituency is comprised of four members of Congregation elected by Congregation from members of the faculties in the Divisions of Humanities and of Social Sciences.

Elections to this constituency restrict candidates to members of the faculties in the Divisions of Humanities and of Social Sciences. This means that all members of Congregation are eligible to nominate a candidate or to vote, but prospective candidates who want to stand for election must be a member of one the faculties in the Divisions of Humanities and of Social Sciences. (A list of these can be found in Statute VII).

The full term of office is four years (or less, when a by-election is held to fill the residue of the term of office for an elected member who is standing down early).

Nominations from a diverse range of Congregation members are encouraged, particularly those from underrepresented groups. The terms of reference and membership of Council are set out in Statute VI . Council is chaired by the Vice-Chancellor and meets on Mondays of Weeks 1, 4 and 9 of each term (Week 8 in Michaelmas term) and in July and September. Meetings begin at 2pm and usually last for 2–3 hours. Members of Council are the University’s charity trustees and have a responsibility for ensuring that Council conducts itself in accordance with accepted standards of behaviour in public life, embracing selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership. They must also play an appropriate part in ensuring that the business of Council is carried out effectively, efficiently and in a manner appropriate for the proper conduct of public business. Key skills include the ability to see issues from all angles, to discuss and question without being adversarial, to accept collective responsibility for decisions and to exercise common sense across a broad range of matters.

The terms of reference and membership of Council are set out in Statute VI.

Elected members of Council will ordinarily be expected to serve on a small number of other committees (typically between one and three, usually including at least one of the main committees of Council i.e. PRAC, GPC, Education Committee, Personnel Committee, Research Committee).

For further information, please contact the Head of the Governance Secretariat.

General Notes

The elections on 8 June 2023 will be conducted electronically.

Nominations

Hard copies of nomination forms will not be processed. Nominations must be made on an official nomination form. Completed nomination forms must be sent as an email attachment to the Elections Office by 4pm on Thursday, 11 May. Please ensure that the nominators listed in section D are also copied into the email when the nomination form is submitted, as this will act as verification of the nomination in lieu of supplying original signatures.

General requirements and eligibility

All candidates are asked to note the general requirements which apply to all committee members, as set out in Council Regulations 14 of 2002 (General Regulations of Council for Committees). Current members seeking re-election are also asked to check for specific restrictions on consecutive service. For further information, please see the eligibility and amendments to nominations sections within the Information about University elections pages of the Elections website.

Candidate’s statement

Candidates are invited to include with their nomination forms a written statement of no more than 250 words, setting out their reasons for standing and qualifications for the office being sought. In the event of a contested election, these statements will be published both online and in the Gazette. 

Contested elections

In the event of a contested election, the successful candidates will be determined by an electronic ballot. An email with further instructions will be sent to eligible voters on Wednesday 24 May, using the email addresses provided in the electronic register of Congregation (NB with few exceptions, notably clinical staff, this will be the work address ending ‘ox. ac.uk’). Candidates’ statements will also be published in the Gazette dated 25 May. Voters may wish to read these statements before completing their electronic vote. The voting period will close at 4pm on 8 June.

Uncontested elections

If the number of nominations received by the closing date is no more than sufficient to fill the vacancies, the candidates nominated shall be deemed to be duly elected as of the close of the nomination period on Thursday, 11 May. When required, places will be allocated according to academic standing, as defined in Council Regulations 22 of 2002, Part 2: Academic Precedence and Standing. If the number of nominations received by the closing date is less than sufficient to fill the vacancies, those candidates nominated will be deemed elected unopposed, and the remaining vacancies will lapse, in which case, in accordance with the regulations, the places must remain vacant until appointments are made jointly by the Vice-Chancellor and Proctors.

Period of office

All vacancies are from the beginning of MT 2023 unless otherwise stated. In accordance with Congregation Regulations 2 of 2002, in any election where vacancies are to be filled for periods of different length, the elected candidates shall hold office so that the tenure of those who receive more votes shall be longer than that of those who receive fewer votes; but if the election is uncontested or if two candidates receive the same number of votes, the candidate senior in academic standing shall hold office for the longer period. 

Further information 

For further information, please contact the Elections Office (elections.office@ admin.ox.ac.uk).