Honorary Awards Committee (Joint with Senate) Terms of Reference

HONORARY AWARDS COMMITTEE

Terms of Reference

Preamble:

In accordance with the Articles of Government, the following joint committee of the Board of Governors and the Senate is established with the membership, terms of reference and modus operandi as set out below and is subject to the general provisions of University Byelaws, Definitions, Policies, Procedures and Guidance.

1. Purpose

The purpose of the Honorary Awards Committee is to support the University of Northampton in the identification of individuals to be recommended for Honorary Degrees or Honorary Fellowships. The Honorary Awards Committee is established by the Senate and Board of Governors jointly and makes recommendations to both bodies.

2 Composition and Membership

2.1 Ex Officio Members

The Vice Chancellor

The Chair of the Board of Governors

The President of the Students’ Union

Director of Human Resources and Marketing (or nominee)

2.2 Governor and Senate Members

Three governors of the University appointed by the Board of Governors

Three members of the Senate appointment by the Senate

2.3 External Members

Two Members of the Court of the University of Northampton, co-opted to the Committee as external members and appointed by the Board of Governors for a maximum period of four years.

2.4 In attendance

Clerk to Board of Governors

Others by invitation

2.5 Secretary

Appointed by the Vice Chancellor after consultation with the Chair of the Board of Governors, (presently the Executive Officer to the OVC).

3. Quorum

The quorum shall be six of the twelve members of the Committee, or where there are vacancies, the same proportions, as rounded up, of those members eligible to be present.

4. Terms of Reference

4.1 To proposed criteria to the Board of Governors and the Senate for use in identifying those to be granted Honorary degrees or Honorary Fellowships of the University

4.2 To seek nominations from University students, staff, members of the Board of Governors, members of the University Court and the general public for individuals to receive Honorary Academic Awards of the University or Honorary Fellowships of the University.

4.3  To establish how such opportunities to propose nominations should be described, publicised and processes for suitable background information and any due diligence checks undertaken.

4.4  To consider nominations, and relevant evidence, with consultation as appropriate, and make recommendations to the Board and the Senate.

4.5  To recommend a specific award for each nomination proposed in line with approved criteria.

5. Delegated Powers and Authority

There are no delegated powers; recommendations are made to the Board of Governors and the Senate.

6. Chairing

A Chair and Deputy Chair of the Committee are selected from amongst the current membership and serve a three year term of office or until the end of their membership of the Committee, whichever is the sooner. The Chair of the Committee is appointed by the Board and is a member of the Board and the Deputy Chair is appointed by the Senate and is a member of the Senate.

7. Terms of Office

7.1 The term of office for the three members of Board of Governors, and the three members of Senate is three years or until the end of their term of office as a Governor or Senate member, whichever is the sooner.

7.2 External Committee members from the Court are appointed initially for a two year term of office with a reappointment process for a further two year term.

8. Frequency of Meetings

The frequency of meetings is determined by the Committee to allow it to discharge all of its responsibilities, with at least two meetings per year at appropriate times in the annual cycle, – normally in June and October, to allow conferment at Graduation Ceremonies in February and July each year .

9. Reporting & Clerking

9.1 The minutes of each Committee meeting are circulated to the Board of Governors and the Senate. The Committee prepares for the Board of Governors and the Senate details of those being proposed for Awards and the paper withdrawn following consideration

9.2 The Clerk to the Honorary Awards Committee is to be appointed by the Vice Chancellor in consultation with the Chair of the Board of Governors supported by the Clerk to the Board of Governors.

10. Mode of Operation

10.1 The regulations for the conferment and rescission of honorary award are approved annually by the Committee and are appended to these terms of reference.

11. Approved/Reviewed

Regulations for the Conferment and Rescission of Honorary Award

Preamble

The University recognises and honours distinctive achievements individuals have attained by conferring an Honorary Award. Recipients of honorary awards are ambassadors for the University and there is an expectation that recipients will espouse the University values and will develop long-term strategic and beneficial associations with the University. The award of an Honorary Award at an award ceremony adds spectacle and interest to the ceremony, particularly where the honorand is allied to the disciplines of the graduands attending the ceremony.

Principles

1  Honorary awards shall only be conferred on persons who will enhance the reputation of the University and strengthen its mission.

2  Honorary degrees shall be conferred on persons present at an appropriate conferment ceremony. Honorary awards shall not be conferred on persons in absentia. Exceptionally, the University may confer a posthumous honorary award.

3  Honorary awards may not be conferred on current Members of Parliament, current Governors of the University, on persons who are employed by the University at the time of conferment or on those who would adversely affect the reputation of the University or of the esteem in which it would wish its honorary awards and their recipients to be held.

Awards

4  There are eight types of honorary award available:

1. An Honorary Doctorate (D.Univ)
2. An Honorary Fellowship
3. An Honorary Master of Arts
4. An Honorary Master of Laws
5. An Honorary Master of Science
6. An Honorary Bachelor of Arts
7. An Honorary Bachelor of Laws
8. An Honorary Bachelor of Science

Approval Process

5  The Honorary Awards Committee shall consider the eligibility of candidates for the conferment of honorary awards against the agreed criteria. The Committee shall act as an award board for the purpose of recommending candidates to the Board of Governors and Senate for conferment of a particular award.

6  The approval process is detailed below.

Rescinding Honorary Awards

7  The Board of Governors and Senate have the power to rescind honorary awards from individuals who through their actions, in the opinion of the Honorary Awards Committee, have brought the University into disrepute.

8  The exercise of these powers shall be rare and may only be taken after thorough consideration of the relevant evidence at a meeting of the Honorary Awards Committee who would recommend the rescission to Board of Governors and Senate.

9  The holder of the honorary award should be given a full opportunity to respond to the University’s proposed action before a final decision is taken.

Procedure for the Conferment of Honorary Awards

10  All submissions shall be strictly confidential and must be made on the agreed University proforma and should be accompanied by:

1. a brief biography of the individual (or extract from ‘Who’s Who’)
2. a supporting statement from the proposer indicating how the nominee meets any of the University’s criteria.

11  Forms must be submitted to the Executive Officer before the next scheduled meeting of the Committee.

12  The submitted forms will be shared with Marketing and International Relations who will undertake research into the individual nominated and make recommendations to the Honorary Awards Committee.

13  Papers will be circulated confidentially to members of the Committee a week before the scheduled meeting takes place.

14  The Committee will consider each nomination using an agreed grading system and will decide whether the nomination:

1. Should be recommended for approval by the Board of Governors and Senate and the recommended level of the award;
2. Should be deferred to a future meeting of the Committee (due to the lack of information provided in the proposal or another reason);
3. Should be rejected and the nomination closed.

15  The Board of Governors and Senate will receive the list of the recommended nominees with a short biography.

16  Nominees will be approved once the Board of Governors and Senate approve the recommendations.

17  Once the nominees have been approved, the Vice Chancellor will write to the nominee and invite them to accept the award and invite them to attend a forthcoming conferment ceremony (usually at a University award ceremony).

18  If the nominee rejects the invitation, the matter will be closed.

19  If the nominee accepts the invitation, Marketing and International Relations will work with the nominee to ascertain the most appropriate ceremony at which the award is conferred. Where possible, award recipients will be linked to a relevant School ceremony.

20  Details of the nominees to be conferred honorary awards will be publicised by the Office of the Vice Chancellor as part of the press releases relating to forthcoming award ceremonies. Only at this point will be honorary award become public knowledge.

21  Nominees will be required to submit their acceptance speech to the University before the conferment of the award to ensure there is adequate acknowledgement of the achievement of students and that there are no comments which might be damaging to the reputation of the University.

Approved by Governing Council 25 November 2010

Approved by Senate 15 December 2010

Revised 9 November 2011

Revised 20 March 2013

Revised 15 October 2014

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Honorary Awards Committee Approved 2nd Issue V2 Aug 2015