Committee Assignments
Academic Year: 2007-2008

»   Student Admissions and Recruitment Committee
»   Student Advisory Committee
»   Appointment/Promotions/Award Nominations Committee
»   Graduate Program and Curriculum
»   Department Advisory Committee
»   Student Awards Committee
»   General Examination Committee
»   Adjunct Faculty Review and Evaluation Committee 
»   Medical Course Curriculum Committee
»   Dental/Pharmacy Course Curriculum Committee
»   Department Seminar Committee
»   Grant Review Group
»   Student Orientation Commitee

»   Space Committee

I.  Student Admissions and Recruitment Committee:
Charge: This committee will be responsible for screening applicants for the Department’s Masters and Ph. D. Programs and recommending qualified applicants to the faculty for graduate program admission. It will also coordinate advertising of department graduate programs: design and printing of posters and brochures, and advertisements and listings in journals, databases and appropriate web sites. The Committee will make recommendations to the Program faculty, or, where appropriate, will itself implement the development of special recruiting efforts and programs, such as undergraduate research or orientation programs, or presentations at local Universities.

II.  Student Advisory Committee:
Charge: This committee will meet and counsel new students joining our programs and serve as their advisors until the students assemble dissertation committees. For advanced students joining the Ph. D. Program, the Committee will evaluate prior courses taken to determine the level at which the student will enter the program, what credits should be transferred to OUHSC, and what courses will be required.

III.  Appointment/Promotions/Award Nominations Committee:
Charge: This committee will annually review the credentials and progress of all nontenured, tenure-track faculty, who are eligible for promotion or tenure and those faculty who wish to be considered for either tenure or promotion in rank. A written summary of the Committee’s evaluation and recommendation is then forwarded to the Department Chair who may seek an appropriate action by the full-time faculty.  The Committee will also annually review and evaluate the progress of nontenured, tenure-track faculty (starting after their second year) and send a written summary to the faculty member and Chairman.  In addition, the Committee will review accomplishments of tenured and nontenured faculty and, based on this review, prepare nominations of eligible faculty members for University-sponsored awards.

IV.  Graduate Program and Curriculum:
Charge:  This committee reviews all policies and operating procedures of the BMB Graduate Program, as well as graduate course offerings by the Department and makes recommendations to the Chair and full-time faculty about changes in the program, the curriculum, addition of new courses and deletion of old courses, etc.  The elected Program Director chairs this Committee, whose membership may be expanded, as needed, to accomplish the necessary tasks.

V.  Department Advisory Committee:
Charge:  The Advisory Committee will meet with the Chair of the Department and provide input and advice on a wide range of Departmental matters.  This committee will generally be composed of at least one member from each faculty rank.

VI.  Student Awards Committee:
Charge: This Committee is responsible for reviewing and selecting student candidates for Department and University awards. Specifically, the Committee will review and act on applications for departmental travel awards. It will meet shortly after winter break to review departmental theses for the prior year and select possible candidates for the Outstanding Masters Thesis and Doctoral Dissertation Awards of the Graduate Student Association. The Committee will also meet each spring to review the achievements of all Ph.D. students using recent Dissertation Committee Reports and Graduate College Annual Evaluation Forms. From this pool, the Committee will identify 1-3 top candidates for the Fred & Marie Gray Research Award. For the Thesis/Dissertation Awards, the Committee will work with the mentor of the selected students to assemble and submit the nominations in a timely manner. For the Fred & Marie Gray Research Award, the Committee will solicit support letters from each candidate’s advisor and one other faculty member as well as other materials needed to complete the nomination process. Based on evaluation of the students’ academic achievement, publications, presentations, and other research accomplishments, the Committee will recommend a final candidate for the Fred & Marie Gray Award to the full faculty for their approval. In addition, the Committee will, from its annual review of student achievements, take appropriate action to nominate or select candidates for other graduate student awards given by the Department or the University that may become available. Advisors or other faculty members may also nominate a student for any of these awards at any time of the year by submitting a letter that draws the Committee's attention to that student's accomplishments.

VII.  General Examination Committee:
Charge: This Committee will help to develop guidelines for, and to administer the General Examination (Qualifying Examination), for the Biochemistry & Molecular Biology Graduate Program.  The Committee will assemble a bank of suitable questions for students’ proposals and will assign a faculty committee to oversee each student’s progress and grade the written and oral exam for each student.  The Committee will meet with graduate students who plan to take the General Examination in order to counsel them on how to prepare for the examination.   After the exam is graded, the Chair will forward a written recommendation to the Chairman regarding the pass/fail status of each student.

VIII.  Adjunct Faculty Review and Evaluation Committee:
Charge: On a 3-5 year rotating basis, this Committee will review and evaluate the following, according to the policies adopted 6/19/95: (i) requests from non-department members to be appointed as Adjunct Faculty, (ii) requests for Adjunct Faculty appointments to the Graduate Program, and (iii) the credentials and performance of current Adjunct Faculty whose three year appointment term will soon expire.  The necessary forms will be circulated by the Committee to be completed by these faculty.  Their credentials and the quality and amount of their participation will then be evaluated by the Committee.  Recommendations will be presented to the full-time faculty for appropriate action.

IX.  Medical Course Curriculum Committee:
Charge: This course committee will review the course curriculum at least annually and evaluate, review, and make recommendations to the Department Chair/faculty regarding course content.  The course director is responsible for decisions regarding the operation of the course.

X.  Dental/Pharmacy Course Curriculum Committee:
Charge:  This course committee will regularly review the course curriculum and evaluate, review, and make recommendations to the Department Chairman/faculty regarding course content.  Representatives from the Colleges of Pharmacy and Dentistry will also participate in the process at the invitation of the course director. The course director is responsible for decisions regarding the operation of the course.

XI.  Department Joint Seminar Committee:
JOINT COMMITTEE:  Charge: Coordinate and organize a program of invited speakers, based on input from faculty and students in Biochemistry & Molecular Biology and Cell Biology and the available budget for travel and other expenses.  This committee will work with similar representatives from CB.  BMB LECTURESHIP COMMITTEE:  Charge:  The BMB seminar committee will solicit suggestions from the faculty for the Johnson-Sokatch Lectureship and make recommendations to the Chair.

XII.  Grant Review Committee:
Charge: This group of senior investigators will help other faculty to prepare competitive grant applications by critiquing the introduction and specific aim sections of planned proposals prior to their development into a full grant application. They will also review the fully developed proposals.  The committee members function in an Ad Hoc manner initiated by the junior or other faculty member, who is writing a proposal.  Guidelines for the process were established in 1998.

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