ORU Advisory Committee Guidelines

An ORU Advisory Committee is mandated by UCOP and performs a vital function for an ORU and the VCRO by representing affiliated faculty, and assisting the ORU director and the VCRO.  Serving on an ORU Advisory Committee is recognized by the VCRO and the university as service for faculty members and will be recorded as such in their Academic Personnel file.

General duties Include:

  1. To be actively engaged in the work of the ORU; to be familiar with the working of the staff and the ORU climate.  
  2. To perform an oversight function; to work with the ORU Director in the formulation of unit objectives, policies and programs, including questions of extramural support, space, budget, and other resource allocations; to review the unit’s activities and recommend changes in direction and emphasis as well as new programs of action.
  3. To encourage interdisciplinary faculty and graduate student participation in the activities of the unit; to promote close articulation of the unit’s programs with teaching departments and ORUs in related fields.
  4. To meet at least 4 times a year, at the call of the Chair, in consultation with the ORU Director.
  5. Based on the ORU’s annual report and your engagement with the ORU, provide a brief addendum report of the ORU health: research relevance, culture, and budget
  6. To provide a perspective on the research unit’s intellectual contribution to UC Berkeley’s research enterprise, to be included in the unit’s 5-year Review.
  7. In the event of a Director search, to make nominations to a search committee. In the event of a reappointment case, make recommendations to the VCRO.
  8. To provide an evaluation of the unit’s effectiveness to an ad hoc review committee at the time of the unit’s five-year review.

Period of Service

Committee members can serve for an initial period of 5 years.

  • 5-year period starts one year after the ORU Director is appointed and extends one year into the next term of new director appointment. 
  • Committee members can serve a second 5-year term upon approval from the VCRO. 

Role of the ORU Advisory Committee Chair

The ORU Advisory Committee Chair is a Director-appointed person who serves for up to, but no more than, 5 years and is responsible for overseeing responsibilities of the committee and consults with the Director and VCRO on the unit’s behalf.

Responsibilities of the ORU Director relating to ORU Advisory Committees

  • Nominate Advisory Committee members, drawn from affiliated faculty
  • Report membership and chair updates to VCRO 
  • Meet with committee on regular basis
  • Seek advice from committee on emergent issues 
  • Consult with committee on the development of program agendas and activities

Considerations for Establishing your ORU Advisory Committee

  • Number of people: 5-10 depending on size and structure/complexity of ORU
  • Interdisciplinary: Membership should be representative of the scholarly activities of the ORU
  • Diverse in race, gender, scholarly rank
  • Representation from ORU sub-units
  • Student involvement as a possible option
  • May include Non-UCB affiliates 

This information can also be found in this ORU Advisory Committee Guide (slide-deck).