STAFF COUNCIL ARCHIVES

An Ad hoc Committee was formed on July 2, 2009 to investigate the placing of materials that have accumulated over the years into the College Archives. Committee members include Sam Rush, Chris Gentes and Jinny Mason.

The College Archives document 40CommitteesStaffCouncil prepared in 2001 by Karen Eberhart includes Provenance & Access, Historical Note, Scope & Content, and a Folder Listing relating to the current items in the archvies. Portions of that document are below:

PROVENANCE AND ACCESS

The records of the Smith College Staff Council were delivered to the College Archives over several years by the various Chairs of the Staff Council.  The records are open for research without restriction subject to the regulations of the College Archives.
Accession #: 95A-129, 97A-146

HISTORICAL NOTE

The Smith College Staff Council was initiated in 1991 by administrative and support staff concerned about the lack of communication among the staff and administration.  Several Staff Council Conventions were held during the later part of 1991 and early 1992 to work out the mission and duties of the Staff Council.  The charter was approved by the Board of Trustees at their May 2, 1992 meeting. 

The mission of the Staff Council as stated in the charter is: “to give members of the administrative, administrative support, and service staff a focused and direct involvement in the governance of non-academic affairs and in the life of the Smith College community.”  The Staff Council works to enhance communication between employees and the College and examines policies that affect the workplace environment making recommendations to the College.  It accomplishes this task through six standing committees:  Steering, Nominations and Elections, Communication, Personnel Policy, Staff Development and Finance and Budget.  In addition to committee work the Staff Council also publishes a newsletter, currently called The Council Chronicle, as its vehicle to keep staff informed of issues and events. 

SCOPE AND CONTENT

The Staff Council records occupy .6 linear feet and consist primarily of agendas, meeting minutes of the Staff Council and its standing and ad-hoc committees and the attendant correspondence.  The materials range in date from 1984 to 2001 with the bulk of the materials concentrated in the years 1993-1996.  A complete set of the newsletter, The Council Chronicle, is also available in this collection of materials.