Senate Agenda: Sessions

Typical Agenda

A typical open agenda includes an open session and a closed session. A consent agenda occurs at the end of the open session.

Open Session

Open session is open to the public and all members of the University community.

The majority of Senate's business is conducted openly in these sessions. Examples of activities conducted in open session are reports from the president and senior administrators, reports from the committees and councils of Senate, and often with presentations from members of the University community on the exciting happenings and innovative scholarship taking place at Waterloo.

Closed Session

In closed session, only Senators and the required administrators and staff are allowed in the meeting.

This session of the meeting is necessary to handle some items of business which would be sensitive, private or otherwise confidential. Examples of activities conduced in confidential session include:

• approving individuals under consideration for an honorary degree,
• recommending the appointment of the senior academic administrator, or
• allowing for the President to consult with Senate on an operational matter where a discussion held publicly could be detrimental to the University.

Consent Agenda

You will also notice that within the open meeting agenda of Senate, there is a consent agenda containing reports for approval and for information. Senate utilizes the consent agenda to expedite the approval of routine items for which discussion is unlikely; however, any senator may ask for an item to be removed from the consent agenda and included in the open agenda for discussion.