By-laws

Lab hood

 

DEB ByLaws

Article I.  Objective

  A. Specialization:

The Designated Emphasis Program in Biotechnology (hereafter referred to as the DEB or the DE) is organized primarily to indicate a specialization in Biotechnology for established Ph.D. degree programs and is administered by the UC Davis Biotechnology Program, in conformance with the policy and procedures of the Graduate Council and the Office of Graduate Studies, of the University of California, Davis campus. Successful completion of this Program indicates that the recipient of the established Ph.D. degree has received additional training in Biotechnology. These individuals receive a DEB notation on their diploma and transcripts upon completion.

  B. Affiliated Ph.D. programs: 

Agricultural and Environmental Chemistry; Animal Biology; Biochemistry, Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology; Biological Systems Engineering; Biomedical Engineering; Biophysics; Biostatistics; Chemical Engineering; Chemistry; Civil and Environmental Engineering; Computer Science; Electrical and Computer Engineering; Entomology; Food Science; Horticulture and Agronomy; Immunology; Integrative Genetics and Genomics; Integrative Pathobiology; Materials Science and Engineering; Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering; Microbiology; Molecular, Cellular and Integrative Physiology; Neuroscience; Nutritional Biology; Pharmacology and Toxicology; Plant Biology; Plant Pathology; Soils and Biogeochemistry; and Statistics.

  C. Mission of the DEB:

  1. The DEB coordinates and provides cross-disciplinary training in critical areas of biomolecular research.
  2. The DEB promotes interdisciplinary research environments that integrate life sciences, engineering and computational disciplines.
  3. The DEB instills critical transferrable professional skills through experiential training activities and internships.

 

Article II.  Membership

  A. Criteria for Faculty Membership in the DE in Biotechnology

  1. The Program consists of faculty associated with the UC Davis campus qualified to guide candidates to degrees in biotechnology-related areas of research and willing to participate in the activities of the DE.
  2. All faculty members must be members of affiliated Graduate Groups or Programs, and have active research programs.

  B. Voting Rights

  1. All faculty members are eligible to vote.

  C. Application for Membership

  1. Faculty may apply for membership by self-nomination or be nominated by an existing member.  Applications must be submitted to the Executive Committee of the DE.  Admissibility is determined by a majority vote of the Executive Committee.
  2. New members are expected to participate in the following ways:

  a. Members play an active role in the administration of the DE by serving on the DEB Executive Committee or provide extramural funding for graduate students in the DE.

  b. Members provide graduate-level instruction, as appropriate, in addition to research training. Examples of DEB courses are: DEB 263, DEB 282; DEB/ECH 294 and GGG296 (or other approved bioethics courses or seminar series).

  c. Members serve on dissertation and examination committees.

  d. Members attend the annual biotechnology training retreat (at least once within a three-year period); informal chalk talks; and/or the Current Progress in Biotechnology seminar; etc.

  D.  Emeritus Status

  1. Emeriti/emeritae faculty associated with the DE may continue as voting members, and participate in teaching courses related to the DEB.  Continued membership in the DE is contingent upon their active status in one of the affiliated graduate groups or programs.

  E. Verification of Continued Membership

1.  The Executive Committee shall review faculty members once every three years to determine whether they meet the criteria for active status.  Continued membership in the DEB is contingent upon the following conditions:

a. Faculty membership in a DEB-affiliated graduate group or program

b. Active participation in at least one of the following activities:

i. Administration of the DE by serving on the DEB Executive Committee or by providing extramural funding for graduate students in the DE

ii. Provision of graduate-level instruction, as appropriate, in addition to research instruction

iii. Service on dissertation and examination committees

iv. Attendance at the annual biotechnology training retreat (at least once within a three-year period); informal chalk talks;  and/or the Current Progress in Biotechnology seminar; etc.

2. Termination of DEB faculty membership may occur:

a. At the request of the faculty member to the DEB program chair

b. In response to failure to meet the minimum requirements for DEB membership during the previous three-year period

c. At the end of a probationary period of up to six months, granted in response to a faculty member’s failure to meet the minimum membership requirements. 

          In all cases, a faculty member may reapply for membership after termination.

F. Membership Appeal Process

  1. Faculty denied membership or renewal of membership may appeal the decision by sending a letter to the DEB Executive Committee.  A majority vote by the DEB Executive Committee is required to reinstate the faculty member.
  2. Applicants denied membership or renewal of membership upon appeal to the DEB Executive Committee may enter a final appeal to the Dean of Graduate Studies.

 

Article III.  Administration

  1. The administration of the DE in Biotechnology and its activities are vested in the Chair and the Executive Committee.

 

Article IV.  DE Chair

  A. The Dean of Graduate Studies appoints Chairs of Designated Emphasis Programs, in accordance with the policies and procedures of the Office of Graduate Studies.

  B. The DEB Executive Committee acts as the committee for the Chair nomination process, soliciting nominations from DEB faculty, determining whether nominees are willing to serve, and soliciting comments from the DEB faculty on the suitability of nominees willing to serve.

  C. The DEB Executive Committee forwards candidates for Chair to the Dean of Graduate Studies, along with all comments received from the faculty during the nomination and consultation process. All comments solicited from DEB faculty are treated as confidential information by the DE’s Nominating Committee and by the Office of Graduate Studies.

  D. The DEB faculty membership may express a preference for Chair and, if so, should indicate the basis for determining that preference.  The Graduate Studies Associate Dean for Programs interviews the Chair nominees and consults with the lead dean for the DE before forwarding a recommendation to the Dean of Graduate Studies. The normal term of the Chair’s appointment is three years contingent on the nominee’s willingness to serve.

  E. Duties of the Chair are the following:

  1. The Chair verifies the faculty members of the DEB.
  2. The Chair serves as the Graduate Advisor.
  3. The Chair provides overall academic leadership for the DEB
  4. The Chair develops and implements policies for the DEB.
  5. The Chair represents the interests of the DEB to the campus and university administrators.
  6. The Chair calls and presides at the meetings of the Executive Committee and of the DEB faculty.
  7. The Chair coordinates all administrative matters with the Office of Graduate Studies.
  8. The Chair is responsible for the accuracy of all publications related to the DEB, including web pages and catalog copy.
  9. The Chair meets with chairs of affiliated graduate groups and programs as needed to conduct the business of the DEB.

 

Article V.  Executive Committee 

  A. The Executive Committee consists of the Chair, three DEB faculty members, a student representative, and the DEB Program Coordinator, who serves as an ex officio member.

  B. The faculty members of the Executive Committee shall be elected for a three-year term by a majority vote of the DEB faculty. The student representative shall serve as a non-voting student advocate on the Committee for a period of one academic year, which may be extended to a maximum of two years.

  C. To ensure broad participation, the Executive Committee shall have at least two members from two departments different from that of the Chair.  During Chair transitions, there may be a case in which only one Executive Committee member is from a department different from that of the Chair.  In this case, the requirement may be postponed until the election of another Executive Committee member from a different department has been achieved.

  D. DEB Faculty shall nominate members for service on the Executive Committee via email during the third year of the tenure of the Executive Committee members. Elections shall be conducted by email ballot and completed at least two weeks prior to the end of the Spring Quarter. The elected members shall assume their duties on July 1. Faculty member(s) selected by the Executive Committee fill any vacancies.

  E. The principal duties of the Executive Committee shall be to determine and implement policies for the good of the DE; review membership; develop curriculum and educational policy; and serve on fellowship selection committees for affiliated training grants. The Executive Committee shall conduct all business via email, meet at least once per year in conjunction with the annual DEB faculty meeting and schedule additional in-person meetings, as needed.

 

Article VI.  Student Representatives

  A. The Chair, upon recommendation of the DEB graduate students, appoints a student representative to the Executive Committee. The student representative is an advocate for the concerns of the students in the DEB program.

  B. The Committee Chair must excuse the student representative from meetings covering confidential personnel topics. The student representative may also be excused from some Executive Committee meetings, in which the discussion topic is not pertinent to student issues.

 

Article VII.  Graduate Advisors

  A. The Chair of the DE serves as the Graduate Advisor. The duties of the Graduate Advisor include the following:

  1. Approval of student applications for the DE and student course plans
  2. Assistance in the interpretation of requirements for the DE
  3. Maintenance of a file on the student’s progress in the DE
  4. Approval of the DE on the student Advancement to Candidacy forms
  5. Approval of a committee member examining a student on the DE for Qualifying Exams
  6. Approval of a committee member reading a student dissertation for the Designated Emphasis

 

Article VIII.  Meetings

  A. An annual meeting of the DE is held in during the Fall Quarter. The Chair of the DE shall call the meeting. Most communication to DEB faculty is conducted via email throughout the calendar year.

  B. The Chair or Executive Committee may call special meetings as deemed necessary, or by petition of five or more faculty members.

  C. Meeting notifications are sent to the DEB faculty via email, at least two weeks in advance.

  D. Faculty may participate in the annual meeting via conference call (from off campus via speaker phone).

 

Article IX.  Quorum

  A. Graduate Council has defined a minimum quorum and the DE in Biotechnology follows the established rules. All issues that require a vote must satisfy these conditions:

  1.     Issues are voted on by 50+% of the eligible members.
  2.     Issues only pass if a 50+% supporting vote is obtained.
  3.     Issues may be voted on by e-mail ballot.

In the absence of a quorum, any number shall be sufficient to adjourn to a fixed date.

 

Article X.  Amendments

  A. Amendments to the bylaws must be approved by a quorum vote and submitted to Graduate Council for review and approval.  The following procedures is used:

  1. Proposed bylaw amendments are developed by the Executive Committee or proposed by at least two DEB faculty.
  2. Bylaw amendments are circulated to the DEB faculty via email for review and balloted voting over a two-week period.