From the Constitution:
“The Common Council shall be the main, representative voice of personnel in shared governance.”
“The personnel of the university include the academic staff, faculty, and university staff. … The personnel commit to sharing leadership among themselves and with the chancellor and the students. This leadership shall be transparent, collaborative, inclusive, and mutually respectful. The Common Council shall be a unified body, with the core purpose of advancing the interests of the university, including the success of the students and the personnel.”
“The Common Council shall establish appropriate standing committees, standing subcommittees, and other committees as needed for the conduct of its business.”
Membership: There are 41 voting members of Common Council: 10 each of faculty, academic staff, and university staff, and 9 open seats; 1 academic dean; 1 member appointed by the chancellor. If a personnel constituency remains unfilled, the empty seats become open seats that may be filled by candidates from any eligible personnel category. Regardless of the manner of nomination, election, or appointment, members of the Common Council and its standing committees and subcommittees serve as representatives of the entire university. The Chair of the Common Council is a non-voting member of the Common Council and does not count against the quota for their constituency.
Common Council membership, 2025-2026
- Roth, Kristi: faculty, School of Education, Chair of Common Council
- Wahlquist, Emily: academic staff, School of Education, Vice Chair of Common Council
- Berry, James: faculty, English, chair of UPDC
- Beschta, Danielle: university staff, Conference and Event Services
- Bohm-Jordan, Maggie: faculty, Sociology and Social Work, chair of GEC
- Bowers, Jess: faculty, Sociology and Social Work
- Brackett, Andrew: faculty, Theatre and Dance
- Brindley, Chris: university staff, Facility Services
- Charron, Rachel: academic staff, School of Health Sciences and Wellness
- Chunyu, David: faculty, Sociology and Social Work, chair of AAC
- Collins, Jennifer: faculty, Political Science, chair of FC
- Gantz, Lauren: faculty, English
- Gerken, Stacey: academic staff, Counseling Services
- Halkowski, Timothy: faculty, School of Health Sciences and Wellness
- Heimonen, Tomi: faculty, Computing and New Media Technologies
- Herrman, Kyle: faculty, Fisheries and Water Resources
- Hess, Jennifer: academic staff, Continuing Education and Outreach
- Hilgart, Nathan: academic staff, Academic and Career Advising Center
- Kinslow, Beth: faculty, School of Health Sciences and Wellness, chair of CuC
- Kirschbaum, Kevin: academic staff, School of Health Sciences and Wellness
- Kline, Carrie: university staff, University Libraries
- Knipple, Rayvn: academic staff, School of Education
- Kopitzke, Grant: faculty, Mathematical Sciences, chair of WSC
- Larson, Tammy: university staff, Facility Services, chair of USC
- Liao, Yan: faculty, University Libraries
- Manske, Polly: faculty, School of Education, chair of GC
- Manzke, Rob: Chancellor’s representative
- Marchant, Tyler: faculty, Theatre and Dance
- Menningen, Ken: faculty, Physics and Astronomy
- Merchak, Patrick: university staff, Facility Services
- Mossholder, Jesse: academic staff, School of Education
- Nelson, Nerissa: faculty, University Libraries
- Neumann, Sandy: faculty, Psychology, chair of MSC
- Raymond, Libby: university staff, Academic Affairs
- Schlegel, Steph: university staff, Military Science
- Sommer, Rebecca: Deans’ representative, Dean of College of Professional Studies
- Speetzen, Erin: academic staff, Center for Inclusive Teaching and Learning
- Van Den Elzen, Brad: academic staff, Office of International Education
- Vedvig, Ashley: academic staff, School of Education
- Verona, Jeff: academic staff, English
- Victorey, Bridget: university staff, Student Experience and Transformation Office
- Open