1. Elections
  2. Elections to the Senate

Elections to the Senate

The Senate determines all matters of an academic character which affect the University as a whole, and is concerned with all matters which affect the welfare of the University.

Please review additional information about the Senate, including a Senator Role Description, prior to submitting an application.

Category Length of Term Eligibility Positions Available

Staff

 

 Three years All employees of the University who work a minimum of 14 hours per week and who are not faculty/librarians/archivists are eligible to nominate, to be nominated and to vote.

The next staff-at-large seat will be available in the 2025 election, and the term will run from September 2025 to August 2028.

The staff-at-large election is run by the University Secretariat.

Students

 

 Terms for students are two years except for two 1-year positions in Arts & Science, and two 1-year positions in Business. Eligibility is determined by student societies, which also run the elections for students to Senate. 

Faculty/Librarian/Archivist

 

 Three years

Faculty shall be elected by their respective Faculty or School, except for three Faculty-at-Large positions.

Faculty members falling into one of the categories below are eligible to nominate, to be nominated and to vote:

  • Tenured or tenure-track;
  • Term or continuing adjunct;
  • Non-renewable or special appointment, including Special Geographically Full-Time;
  • Librarian or archivist;or
  • Joint or cross appointment.

All of the above terms shall have the meaning ascribed to them, where applicable, by the terms of the Collective Agreement with the Queen's University Faculty Association, as in place from time-to-time. 

Those holding an appointment at the level of Associate Dean or equivalent are not eligible. Those holding an Adjunct 1 appointment are not eligible.

The next faculty-at-large seat will be available in the 2025 election, and the term will run from September 2025 to August 2028.

The faculty-at-large election is run by the University Secretariat.

If faculty members wish to be elected to a Senate seat by their Faculty/School, they should reach out to their Faculty Board.

Nomination Procedure for Staff and Faculty

Each Fall, Queen's Staff and Faculty are invited to nominate candidates for Senate. An email is sent to all eligible staff and faculty detailing the current opening(s) and where nomination forms are found on the web.

Nomination of a candidate shall be on a prescribed nomination form signed by 5 nominators. The agreement of the nominee to be a candidate for election shall be shown by the signature of the nominee on the nomination form. Any person nominated who is not available to sign the nomination form shall be permitted to notify the University Secretary by mail of the intention to be a candidate up until nominations close. The nominee may submit on the reverse side of the nomination form a biographical statement or other comments up to a limit of 90 words.

The completed nomination form must be submitted to the University Secretariat no later than the published date for the close of nominations. The University Secretary shall prepare a ballot containing the official list of valid nominations showing the name, title and department of each nominee, and a verbatim statement of each nominee as provided on the nomination form.

Election Procedures for Staff and Faculty

All eligible voters will be contacted with instructions to vote in the current election and provided with a link to the voting web site.

Requirements

Completed nominations include:

  1. The names and email addresses of 5 nominators, all of whom must meet the eligibility criteria.
  2. A biographical statement of not more than 90 words.
  3. A picture, if desired, which will be used during the election period.

Nomination Form

Nominations will be accepted from [dates to be provided] for the following positions:

  • Staff Senator - Term to run from September 1, 2025 to August 31, 2028
  • Faculty/Librarian/Archivist Senator - Term to run from September 1, 2025 to August 31, 2028

Completed Nomination Forms are due by [date to be provided].

Questions? Email univsec@queensu.ca.

Student senators are elected by their respective student societies. Term lengths are generally 2 years but may vary by society. Interested students should contact their student society.

Arts and Science Undergraduate Student Society (ASUS)

There are 5 senators elected by ASUS, and terms for students are for one year except for two 2-year positions.

Engineering Society (EngSoc)

There are 2 students elected by EngSoc, and both terms are for two years. 

Smith Commerce Students Society (ComSoc)

There are 2 students elected by ComSoc, and both terms are for two years. 

Concurrent Education Student Association (CESA)

There is 1 student elected by CESA, for a two year term. 

Law Students' Society (LSS)

There is 1 student elected by LSS, for a two year term. 

Nursing Science Society (NSS)

There is 1 student elected by NSS, for a two year term. 

Aesculapian Society

There is 1 student elected by the Aesculapian Society, for a one year term.

Rehabilitation Therapy Students Society (RTSS)

There is 1 student elected by the RTSS, for a one year term. 

Society of Graduate and Professional Students (SGPS)

There is one student elected by the SGPS, for a two year term. 

Results and Active Elections

Election Results

Staff and Faculty/Librarian/Archivist Elections to the Senate

The 2024 Staff and Faculty elections to Senate closed on February 29, 2024.

The successful candidates are:

Staff at Large: Jess Boland

Faculty/Librarian/Archivist at Large: Alicia Cappello

Newly elected Senators will begin their terms effective September 1, 2024.

Active Elections

There are no active elections at this time.