DSS Committees

Constitution Committee

a. The Constitution Committee shall be chaired by the Chair of the Society.

b. The voting members of the Constitution Committee shall be:

i. The Chair;

ii. The President; and

iii. At least one (1) other councillor.

c. The Constitution Committee shall:

i. Advise the Council of necessary revisions to the Constitution;

ii. Supply the President with the most recent Constitution upon request, along with the previous document;

iii. Meet once within a month of electing the Committee and twice thereafter during the academic year; and

iv. Review Constituent Societies’ constitutions once during the academic year.

v. Submit a written report at the end of the academic year.

Nomination Committee

a. The Nominations Committee shall be chaired by the President of the Society.

b. The voting members of the Constitution Committee shall be:

i. The President;

ii. The VP Finance; and

iii. At least one (1) other councillor.

c. The Nomination Committee shall:

i. Review the applicants for the Vice-President of Finance; and

ii. Present Vice-President of Finance applicants at the Winter General Meeting to be voted on by the Membership.

iii. Submit a written report at the end of the academic year.

Executive Review Committee

a. The Executive Review Committee shall be chaired by an elected chair at the Fall General Meeting.

b. The voting members of the Executive Review Committee shall be:

i. The chair of the Executive Review Committee; and

ii. At least one (1) other councillor.

c. The Executive Review Committee shall:

i. Conduct a formal review of the Executive during the Fall and Winter Semesters

ii. Present to the Executive at an Executive Meetings once per semester.

iii. Provide recommendations for the Honorariums of Executives.

iv. Submit a written report at the end of the academic year.

Scholarship Selection Committee

a. The Scholarship Selection Committee shall only come into effect when scholarship funds are available.

b. The Scholarship Selection Committee shall be chaired by an elected chair at the Fall General Meeting who shall not by the President of the Vice-President.

c. The voting members of the Scholarship Selection Committee shall be:

i. The chair of the Scholarship Selection Committee;

ii. The President;

iii. The Vice President; and

iv. At least one (1) other councillor.

d. The Scholarship Selection Committee shall:

i. Create and manage a separate email for the Scholarship Committee to receive applications, which will consist of a cover letter, Curriculum Vitae, Letter of Support, References, and Supplementary Documents;

ii. Contact the Director of Marketing and Public Relations and ensure that advertising begins at the end of first semester.

iii. Review applications and create a shortlist of applicants to present to Council;

iv. Conduct interviews with individuals who have been chosen by Council.

v. Determine finalists based on the requirements stipulated in the DSS GIFT AGREEMENT (supplementary document).

vi. Submit a written report at the end of the academic year.

Social Committee

a. The Social Committee shall be chaired by the Director of Student Life.

b. The voting members of the Social Committee shall be:

i. The Director of Student Life;

ii. The Director of PR and Marketing; and

iii. At least one (1) other councillor.

c. The Social Committee shall:

i. Assist the Director of Student Life with regular tasks and to offer support at event set-up.

ii. Submit a written report at the end of the academic year.

First Year Committee

a. The First Year Committee shall be chaired by the First Year Rep.

b. The voting members of the First Year Committee shall be:

i. The First Year Rep;

ii. The DISP Rep; and

iii. At least one (1) other councillor.

c. The First Year Committee shall:

i. Meet a minimum of once per month at a time specified at the beginning of the academic year.

ii. Assist the First Year Rep with regular tasks including, but not limited to: advertising to first year students, being a liaison between first year students and the Society, and assisting and/or creating event which are relevant to first year science students.

iii. Submit a written report at the end of the academic year.

DSS Advocacy Committee

a. The DSS Advocacy Committee shall be chaired by the Vice-President.

b. The voting members of the DSS Advocacy Committee shall be:

i. The Vice-President; and

ii. At least one (1) other councillor.

c. The DSS Advocacy Committee shall:

i. Meeting a minimum of once per month.

ii. Collect end of term reports from Constituent Societies regarding the issues present in their respective departments.

iii. Assist the Vice-President with their regular tasks including, but not limited to: Advising the Society on issues that are relevant to the Society and advocating for the Society within the Dalhousie campus and within the community.

The Environmental Affairs Committee

a. The Environmental Affairs Committee shall be chaired by the Environmental Affairs Representative.

b. The voting members of the Environmental Affairs Committee shall be:

i. The Environmental Rep; and

ii. At least one (1) other councillor.

c. The Environmental Committee shall:

i. Meet a minimum of once per month at a time specified at the beginning of the academic year.

ii. Assist the Environmental Rep with regular tasks including but not limited to being a liaison between environmental organizations on and off campus, the Executive and the Council.

iii. Submit a written report at the end of the academic year.

The STEM Outreach Committee

a. The STEM Outreach Committee shall be chaired by the STEM Outreach Rep.

b. The voting members of the STEM Outreach Committee shall be:

i. The STEM Outreach Rep; and

ii. At least one (1) other councillor.

c. The STEM Outreach Committee shall:

i. Meet at least once per month;

ii. Facilitate projects and events related to bringing STEM to the Dalhousie community;

iii. Promote the science accomplishments of Dalhousie students, staff, faculty and researchers to the general public;

iv. Contribute to the planning of the DSS Symposium with the DSS Advocacy Committee.

The Peer Mentorship Committee

a. The Peer Mentorship Committee shall be chaired by the Professional Development Rep.

b. The voting members of the Peer Mentorship Committee shall be:

i. The Professional Development Rep; and

ii. At least one (1) other councillor.

c. The Peer Mentorship Committee shall:

i. Meet at least once per month.

ii. Assist the Professional Development Rep in matching mentors and mentees for the DSS Peer Mentorship program.

iii. Plan social or informative events for members of the program to improve engagement.

Faculty of Science Committees

Award for Excellence in Teaching

The Dalhousie University Faculty of Science Award for Excellence in Teaching honours faculty members who are recognized as having a comprehensive knowledge of their subject and possessing the ability to communicate their knowledge in such a way as to lead students to high academic achievement. The Selection Committee carefully assesses all the relevant written evidence provided by the sponsors. The Selection Committee may interview some or all the candidates and not more than two referees for each candidate. After the selection process is completed, the Dean will inform the successful candidate of his or her selection as soon as possible. This committee meets once a year and the meeting can last from 3-4 hours.

Faculty of Science Committee

The Faculty of Science meetings are held to approve committee members, approve items that have come from the Curriculum Committee and Faculty Council and to pass any other Faculty level business. There are generally only 1-2 meetings a year. One in October (if needed) and one on the 4th Thursday in May from 11:30am-1:30pm.

Academic Programs Committee

The Academic Programs Committee is a standing committee of the Faculty. It deals with aspects of academic programmes that are not solely the concern of individual departments including proposed changes in the structure of any Honours programme, major changes in the structure of any other programme, proposals for new or substantially altered classes and half-classes, proposals for the cross-listing of classes and half-classes, ensuring that the description of classes and programmes in the Science section of the Calendar is accurate and proposed new programmes and other major curricula initiatives. This committee meets monthly on the first Thursday from 11:30am-1:30pm.

Nominating Committee

The Nominating Committee nominates new members to fill the positions on Faculty of Science committees. This committee meets twice a year for about an hour each time. Once in the fall (usually September/October) to approve members for Unit Review Committees and again in the spring (April/May) to find replacement committee members.

Undergraduate Research Committee

This committee deals with issues pertaining to the involvement of undergraduates in research, particularly the allocation of resources in support of undergraduate research. The main function of the committee is the allocation of Faculty of Science summer research scholarships, including NSERC undergraduate research awards, Laing awards, Sobey, and Warr awards. This committee usually meets twice a year. Once in the fall (October/November) to go over the deadlines and requirements for awards and once in the winter (usually February) to give out the undergraduate research awards.

Student Appeals Committee

This committee hears appeals from students in relation to decisions or the refusal to make decisions by a faculty member or academic administrator regarding academic matters in accordance with the procedures approved by the Faculty. This committee only meets when there is an appeal. If there was a meeting to be held, it would run between 1-2 hours.

Strategic Enrolment Management (SEM) Operational Team

The Faculty of Science’ Strategic Enrolment Management (SEM) Operational Team is part of a network of interconnected working groups, advisory teams, and administrative units across the University working together to advance the goals of the Dalhousie’s institutional strategic enrolment plan. The SEM Operational Team is responsible for reviewing and contributing to outreach, marketing and recruitment materials, and to propose Faculty-level retention and student success activities. The Team also provides guidance and advice on the Faculty’s Undergraduate Teaching & Learning Strategy, Science For. Membership includes the Dean of Science, the Associate Dean, Academic, the Assistant Dean (Student Affairs) the Associate Registrar & Director (Recruitment & Admissions), and a number of faculty members. Operational Team is seeking an undergraduate Science student to serve as a member for the academic year (September - April). The student member should be engaged and interested in future goal setting and strategic planning for the Faculty of Science and be prepared to contribute ideas during team meetings. The time commitment is approximately 1 hour every 4-6 weeks throughout the academic year.