1. General
Senate establishes the educational policies of the University and holds powers as outlined in section 22 of University of Waterloo Act, 1972 (“the Act”), as amended. These Guidelines are intended to outline attendance expectations for visitors to meetings of the Senate and its standing committees and councils. It is the expectation that the business of these meetings can proceed appropriately and with full attention to a safe and secure environment for all meeting participants.
These Guidelines describe measures that are consistent with the Act, Senate Bylaws and other University policies and protocols addressing individual conduct, safety and security.1
2. Authority
Section 27(1) of the Act requires that meetings of Senate be open to the public
…the meetings, including committee meetings of the Board of Governors and of the Senate shall be open to the public, prior notice of the meetings of the Board of Governors and of the Senate shall be given to the members and to the public in such manner as the Board of Governors and the Senate by by-law shall determine, and no person shall be excluded therefrom except for improper conduct…
Senate Bylaw 1, s.6.02, provides that, “Non-members in attendance at meetings shall not disrupt the proceedings of the meeting nor cause any disturbance by unreasonable noise or vocal expression. The chair may remove any such person when, in the chair’s sole judgment, such person is engaging in improper or disruptive conduct that is detrimental to Senate carrying out its business.”
The Act, and Senate Bylaw 1, provide for circumstances in which a meeting of Senate or its committees and councils is held in closed session, “for the purpose of considering confidential financial matters of the university of where intimate financial or personal matters of any person may be disclosed”.2
3. Registration of Attendance
The Secretariat will establish and make public a registration process for visitors to attend and observe proceedings of the open session of a Senate or Senate standing committee/council meeting.
4. Representations to Senate
4.1 Members of the University community wishing to make representations to a meeting of Senate must file their request with the Secretariat, in writing, by noon on the day of the Senate Executive Committee meeting that precedes the scheduled regular meeting of Senate, as published on the Secretariat website, and include the nature of the proposed representation. Requests should specify how the subject of the proposed representation falls within the jurisdiction of Senate, and also include reference to other internal and/or governance bodies previously engaged in the matter, as appropriate. Any member of the University community may contact the Secretariat for assistance in filing their request.
4.2 Requests are considered by the Chair of Senate on advice of the Senate Executive Committee, and thereafter requests are confirmed via Senate’s approval of the meeting agenda.
4.3 Those making representations are normally required to limit their remarks to five minutes, with exceptions at the sole discretion of the chair.
4.4 All meeting participants shall avoid personal attacks or offensive references to any individual.
4.5 A maximum of fifteen minutes may be devoted to representations from individuals and groups who wish to address the members of Senate. These statements will normally be heard following dispensation of the minutes.
4.6 If more than three requests for representations are received for a given Senate meeting, they will be considered in the order received with priority to be given to recognized associations and groups from the University community, as well as to requests pertaining to items of business on the meeting agenda
4.7 An individual or group may request to bring a representation to Senate on a given subject normally once in a Senate year.
4.8 The Chair of Senate and/or Senate Executive Committee may exercise discretion to appropriately direct the request to a committee or council of Senate or to another governance body.
4.9 The Senate Executive Committee has the authority to adapt the process outlined in these guidelines in cases where its application is uncertain, or to consider exceptions
5. Representations to Senate Standing Committees and Councils
5.1 Senate Bylaw 1, s.9.01, provides that “Any members of the university community, or of the public-at-large, wishing to make representations to any meeting of a committee or council shall file with the secretary of the relevant committee or council, at least two full working days prior to the date of such proposed meeting, written notice to that effect with such notice to designate the nature of the proposed representations.”3
5.2 Requests for representations to a Senate standing committee or council will be considered by the respective chair and granted with approval from the committee when the agenda is considered.
5.3 The provisions in sections 4.3 to 4.8 of these guidelines shall also apply in the case of representations to a Senate standing committee or council.
6. Order and Decorum
6.1 As the presiding officer of the meeting, the Chair is responsible for maintaining order and decorum at meetings.
6.2 Only duly appointed and elected members of Senate and its standing committees and councils may participate in debate and/or sit at the table. Members of senior administration and/or resource persons who attend meetings of Senate or a standing committee or council to facilitate its work may be called upon to respond to questions. Visitors to meetings do not have speaking privileges unless otherwise provided by the Chair.
6.3 Interference with the progress of a meeting by a visitor will not be permitted and any visitor who attempts to impede the business of the meeting will be instructed by the Chair to leave.
7. Recording of Meetings
Audio and/or video recording or transmittal of meetings is not permitted except where required for participants to support accessibility and meeting participation. The Secretariat may cause the meeting to be recorded for minute- taking purposes. Such recordings will be held confidentially and securely on University-supported servers and destroyed following approval of the respective minutes. Exceptions may be made with permission and at the sole discretion of the Chair of Senate.
8. Contact
Questions related to these guidelines should be directed to the Secretariat at senate@uwaterloo.ca.
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1 https://uwaterloo.ca/secretariat/policies-guidelines-signing-procedures
2 Senate Bylaw 1, s.7
3 Senate Bylaw 1, s.9.01 is specific to standing committees and councils of Senate and does not apply to the body of Senate as a whole.
Approved by Senate – October 21, 2024
Amended by Senate – March 3, 2025