New Staff Council embraces shared governance with a focus on work-life balance

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The pandemic may have changed the way many of us work, but that hasn't kept the members of the University of Arizona Staff Council from pursuing their mission: enhancing the quality of career life for staff by providing advocacy, information and resources.

The Staff Council was established in May 2021 when members of the Appointed Professionals Advisory Council and the Classified Staff Council voted to merge into one unified governing body. The move reflected employment category changes made with the University Career Architecture Project. 

When the new career architecture was implemented, all appointed personnel – and most classified staff – moved under the university staff category.

"While some individuals in classified staff positions chose to remain in that employment category, no new positions will be created under classified staff, so it doesn't make sense to have two separate organizations going forward," said Jennifer Lawrence, a business-finance manager in the Department of Neuroscience who serves as chair of the Staff Council.

A role in shared governance

Like its predecessors, the Staff Council was formed to represent all university staff and classified staff employees by taking an active role in shared governance and advising the University administration and other University organizations on matters of concern to all staff. Also under the umbrella of shared governance are the Faculty Senate – representing faculty members – and two student government bodies, the Associated Students of the University of Arizona  and the Graduate and Professional Student Council.

"All of these organizations have different roles within shared governance, working with each other and with the administration to ensure that all aspects of the University are represented in decision making," Lawrence said.

The Staff Council has two representatives serving as voting members of the Strategic Planning and Budget Advisory Committee  – which is involved in strategic planning, assessment of institutional priorities, review of budgetary policies, and the evaluation of programs and services – and two serving as voting members of the Faculty Senate.

"It really is a way of integrating into the University's decision-making process, to give the staff insight into the administration's decision making and how that will affect the work and the work-life balance of University employees."

The first official Staff Council meeting was held in November, when officers were elected. The group's second meeting was held Jan. 25.

"Our goal is to eventually have a representative from every college, every unit and all of our campuses, in addition to our main campus," she said. "We would like to see more representation and more interaction with, for example, our College of Medicine – Phoenix, and our campuses with UA South."

Looking ahead

There are now about 50 members of the Staff Council.

Historically, APAC and the Classified Staff Council focused on enhancing professional development opportunities for their constituencies while also monitoring new policies and new decisions affecting staff, Lawrence said.

"We want to continue bringing staff perspective to those decisions, and then also look at the working conditions and work-life balance of employees and trying to continually respond as conditions change," she said. "The idea is to encourage people to bring their own ideas about topics they're interested in or concerned about."

The council sees its role as determining what the staff community as a whole wants to see and what is feasible, she explained.

One of the biggest goals this year is to better understand the priorities of staff members who face changing circumstances in how they work, Lawrence said.

"We are looking for guidance and for diverse perspectives from staff on how we should set up work relationships with the University, how we should develop guidelines around flexible work arrangements, remote work and such."

Since staff make up the majority of employees at the University, Lawrence said she thinks proper representation of that segment is a critical piece of shared governance.

"I think there is such a breadth of expertise and experience that we bring to our roles, and it's very important that we make our voices heard in the decisions and the practices that shape the University," she said. "All of us are here because we believe in the mission of the University, and the council is a way to get involved. It's also a great way to gain insight into other areas of the campus that are not directly related to our own work."

In her experience, Lawrence said, President Robert C. Robbins and other senior leaders have been exceptionally open to shared governance and have been "willing to listen to what we bring to the table."

Getting involved

Another goal for the year is to encourage staff members to get involved.

"We also want to strengthen our communication efforts to highlight the value that staff participation brings to shared governance, so it is embedded in the University culture and it becomes expected for staff to devote time to these efforts."

Convening the last Tuesday of the month, the Staff Council typically holds 90-minute meeting featuring guest speakers from around the University discussing issues and initiatives of broad interest.

Staff members interested in joining should be willing to invest about an hour per week, or two to three hours per month, Lawrence said.

Because holding meetings via Zoom has allowed the council to broaden its reach, it's likely that virtual meetings will become the norm, Lawrence said.

"It's sometimes easier to turn on your computer and join in the conversation than walk across campus. But we are also looking forward to resuming in-person activities and meeting face to face."

To learn more about the council and how to become a member, visit the Staff Council website.

The Staff Council's next meeting is Feb. 22 from 3-4:30 p.m. Find a schedule of upcoming meetings on the council's website.