Board of Trustees

As the seven appointed and two elected Trustees for Southern Illinois University, we share a mutual sense of affection, responsibility and stewardship for the only senior system of higher education serving the people of Southern Illinois. Our obligations apply equally to the University's two institutions, SIU Carbondale and SIU Edwardsville, and to their distinctive instructional, research, and service missions.

We believe that at the heart of every great university of character is an extraordinary group of men and women who teach with joy in their discipline, dedication to their students, and commitment to bold inquiry. Such faculty inspire students, spark their intellectual interests, and help deepen their experiences in new and creative ways. It is in a university of character where basic assumptions are examined and weighed against other options; where new concepts are developed; and where ideas are tested.

As non-paid public servants, we see our function as part of an unending commitment to the State and its People by ensuring that through SIU and its community of teachers, scholars, and students, we aspire to transmit our heritage, to move toward a more humane and caring world, to bring fresh vision and new discipline to the fund of human knowledge, to enliven curiosity, and to cherish the life of the mind in its fullest exploration and expression.

In fulfilling our appointed obligations, we are pledged to maintain the high quality of SIU's programs of instruction, research and public service; to monitor judiciously the development of and additions to those programs; and to sustain, through them, the University's diverse and comprehensive educational contributions to the people of Southern Illinois, the State, the nation, and the world. In the exercise of our authority and responsibilities, we are pledged to coordinate, advocate, and offer our stewardship for this university and its learning community. We are also pledged to be openly and appropriately accountable for the quality of the University's professional standards, the competence of its graduates--as both an informed citizenry and an educated workforce--and for the prudent and efficient use of the State's resources. In all our appointed obligations, we openly and willingly support an environment of effective and responsible participatory governance.

We are committed to supporting and sustaining a university of character that values quality undergraduate education in the highest traditions of the liberal arts; excels in its graduate and professional education; remains responsive to regional needs and priorities, including health care and health education; demonstrates its leadership in the enhancement of K-12 education; ensures a technologically competitive environment for students, faculty and staff; maintains a strong and unequivocal commitment to the achievement of diversity; invests our resources in creative ways reflective of institutional strengths and priorities; and nurtures within the University community those ethical standards which reflect the highest aspirations of our society.

We recognize that changing demographics within and outside the State continue to challenge the economic and political power of the People and institutions of Southern Illinois, including our striving for additional resources to address competitive salaries, technology infrastructure, maintenance of our physical facilities, and support for existing and emerging priorities. We also recognize that, increasingly, our needs and aspirations will be weighed against more effective cost controls and greater accountability for measurable results from teaching, research, and service. Responding to these and other challenges and opportunities will require new solutions as well as the building of a new consensus. As we, the Trustees of Southern Illinois University, rededicate ourselves to this great University, we invite all its members, friends, and supporters to join in this collective endeavor.

The Board of Trustees of Southern Illinois University consists of nine members, who have official votes. Seven members are appointed by the Governor for six-year terms, and two student trustees (one from each campus) are elected by campus-wide student election for one-year terms.

Elected officers of the Board of Trustees are Chair, Vice-Chair, and Secretary. Election of officers is held at its first regular meeting following the third Monday in each January.

Appointed officers of the Board of Trustees are Executive Secretary, Treasurer, and General Counsel and serve at the pleasure of the Board.

The members of the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees are Chair of the Board and two elected members. The Executive Committee has authority to transact such routine business as may arise during the recess of the Board and to act for the Board in all matters of an emergency nature upon which immediate decisions are necessary for the present welfare of the University.

The Board Chair appoints members to serve on committees of the Board. The Board Chair appoints one trustee to chair each of the committees for a one-year term. Standing committees of the Board of Trustees include the following:

• Academic Matters Committee
• Architecture and Design Committee
• Finance Committee
• Audit Committee

Trustees serve on boards of organizations related to the University as well as other organizations. Boards and organizations are listed following:

• State Universities Civil Service Merit Board
• Board of Directors, Southern Illinois University Foundation
• Board of Directors, Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville Foundation
• Joint Trustee Committee for Springfield Medical Education Programs
• Board of Directors, the Association of Alumni, Former Students and Friends of Southern Illinois University, Incorporated
• Board of Directors, Alumni Association of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville