About Us

Roles and Responsibilities 

The Advisory Council provides an avenue for staff feedback and input to provide recommendations regarding policy decisions that pertain to staff. The Advisory Council meets with and advises the Vice Dean of Administration and Finance of USC Dornsife regarding staff viewpoints on, but not limited to, planning, policy, priorities, the appointment of special committees and task forces that involve staff, and other general staff matters which may arise. The Advisory Council oversees the work of the standing committees, fills certain vacancies on these committees as necessary, and appoints special task forces to study issues and make recommendations on matters of staff concern.

Membership and Eligibility

The Advisory Council consists of permanent employees who are designated as staff in USC Dornsife and who work 20 hours per week or more. Postdoctoral scholars may serve on the Advisory Council at the discretion of their supervisor, provided that their contract is longer than the term they will be serving. Additionally, staff members must be past their probationary period (i.e. the first 90 days of employment) as of March 31st of the election year. Eligibility is limited to staff members who are performing their duties satisfactorily and are not under either disciplinary action or performance management.

Membership Terms

The Advisory Council terms run concurrently with the fiscal year (July 1 – June 30). For the first year, fifty percent of the seats in each representational group shall be filled through a general election. Thereafter, fifty percent of the seats in each representational group shall be filled each year through a general election.

The Advisory Council consists of 20 members, each elected for a two-year term, with the exception of a replacement term due to the vacancy of a seat. The replacement term does not count towards the overall service terms but the member will need to be nominated and voted in during the next election.