One of the most effective ways graduate students can contribute to the American University and influence policy making is through participation on university-wide councils and committees.

The core of self-governance at American University is comprised of these councils and committees. The committees and councils are an integral part of university administration.

The Graduate Leadership Council encourages you to serve on one of these committees or councils as a GLC representative.

Current Committees

• Strategic Planning Committee

• Civility Committee

• Administrative Operations Project Team

  • Mission:

    The Administrative Operations Project Team is charged with advancing service excellence through collaboration and enhanced communication. The team will meet regularly to share information about events, projects,and operational matters to coordinate these activities for the benefit of the university community.

  • Structure:

    Membership will represent a cross-section of the university, made up of student, faculty, and staff representatives. The team will report to the Vice President of Finance and will be chaired by Jorge Abud, Assistant Vice President for Facilities and Administrative Services.

  • Meetings will be held every two weeks, will be open to the public.

• Campus Beautification Project Team

  Campus Beautification Day is a university tradition set with many goals. It is a day for campus clean-up, landscaping, and most important, strengthening our community by bringing together students, faculty, and staff to work on common goals. Traditionally, Campus Beautification Day is scheduled before the first Freshman Day each Spring.

  The Campus Beautification Project Team is charged with (1) Planning and implementing activities that educate and build community; (2) Coordinating the logistics for participation, including promotion, registration, and delegation of site tasks on the day of the event. The team reports to the Vice President of Finance and Treasur and consists of university students, faculty and staff. It will be co-chaired by Mark Feist, Assistant Director of Grounds and Katherine Kirlin, Director of Special Events.

• Dining Services Project Team

  The Dining Services Project Team provides a representative forum for students and university administrators to ensure continuous improvement of the university's dinning program. The team focus is on sustaining a well defined vision for the dining program and a variety of dining choices for all community members.

• Environmental Issues Project Team

  The university will initiate programs to promote awareness of environmental concerns and offer alternative products and procedures to address those concerns.

  The Environmental Issues Project Team will develop ideas and approaches to increase the campus community's responsibility to protect the environment and will make recommendations to support that responsibility. The team will concentrate on developming proposals to increase environmental awareness, monintor and make recommendations for improvement of campus process such as recycling/solid waste disposal and purchasing in order to reduce campus trash volume, and increase the use of reusable packaging and environmentally-freindly products. It will also make recommendations for maintaining a "green" environment for our community to enjoy and support. The team will make recommendations to the Vice President of Finance and Treasurer, and the President's Cabinet will review them before they are forwarded to the President.

  The team will consist of AU Students, faculty, and staff and will be co-chaired by Willy Suter, Director of Facilities

• Sexual Harassment Prevention Project Team

  The Sexual Harassment Prevention Team is charged with: (1) Evaluating and facilitating the university's compliance with the sexual harassment policy; (2) Raising awareness and providing guidance to the university community regarding issues related to sexual harassment prevention; and (3) Providing information and education on sexual harassment and related university policies to members of the campus community.

• University Center Project Team

  The University Center Project Team willl serve as the advisory body for program development, facility design and improvement, space allocation and use, and information display and dissemination in the University Center.

• Wellness Project Team

• University Council