Red background, MSU Denver bird head, white text that says MSU Denver Staff Senate and a photo of the Staff Senate president, vice president, secretary and treasurer.
Red background, MSU Denver bird head, white text that says MSU Denver Staff Senate and a photo of the Staff Senate president, vice president, secretary and treasurer.

Metropolitan State University of Denver’s Staff Senate convened on Sept. 13 for the monthly Staff Senate meeting, led by Rebecca Reid, president of Staff Senate. The meeting was dedicated to forming committee goals and reviewing the current structure of Staff Senate. 

Staff Senate structure and ad-hoc task force 

Senators posed questions around reviewing the current structure of Staff Senate.  

  • Does the current structure contribute to MSU Denver being a best place to work for a diverse workforce that is representative of our student body? 
  • What does a structure look like that is representative of a diverse workforce? 
  • What would a structure look like that is sustainable into the future of higher education? 

Senators expressed support for exploring all options for alternative Senate structures, and the Elections Committee agreed to seek membership from all University staff for an ad-hoc task force to explore potential structures that are not tied to the University reporting structure. 

The task force will be led by Sen. Brian Gunther and Bridget Wetzel, secretary of Staff Senate. The task force’s goal is to ensure diverse, equitable Staff Senate representation that focuses on job duties/areas of expertise rather than a hierarchical reporting structure. There will be monthly meetings beginning the first week of October through December, and committee duties include offering perspective, researching, brainstorming and generating ideas for the draft proposal. Staff members who are interested in joining the task force should contact Wetzel.

Committee goals 

Budget Recommendation Committee 

  • Advocate for the needs of the staff community, including equitable compensation and transparency, in University Budget Recommendation Committee meetings. 
  • Empower staff members to feel knowledgeable and informed about the budget process at MSU Denver and able to bring feedback to the Staff Senate BRC members to take to the larger University Budget Recommendation Committee. 

Senate Policy Review Committee 

  • Encourage staff engagement in the policy review process. 
  • Educate on the structure of policy review committee and how it works. 

Communication Committee 

  • Empower senators and officers to share the Staff Senate story and encourage participation from constituents, team members, colleagues and connections across the MSU Denver community through improved and streamlined communication strategies. 
  • Improved external communications that communicate when Staff Senate meetings occur, passing on recaps/other content and sharing successes via Early Bird and social media. 

Elections Committee 

  • Determine if Staff Senate is going to explore alternative Staff Senate structures by Oct. 1.
    • Form ad-hoc committee as needed to develop a proposal.
    • Create a seat for new College of Health and Applied Sciences Staff Senate rep if needed.
  • Collaborate with the Communications Committee to promote nominations and elections in the Early Bird and via other internal channels. 

Recognition and Scholarships Committee

  • Classified Endowed Memorial Scholarship  
    • Collaborate with the Foundation to rework the description and  
    • Create a comprehensive communication plan to outreach Classified Staff to increase legitimate scholarship applications 
  • Community Shares of Colorado – Collaborating with Human Resources and Staff Senate senators to communicate this opportunity to MSU Denver employees to pledge a gift to local organizations. 

Staff Employment and Support Committee 

  • Evaluate student employee hiring process from start to finish to identify areas for improvement. 

Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Committee 

  • Professional development regarding bias and microaggressions. 
    • The committee will create a list of professional development opportunities on microaggressions and bias for Senate members to participate in.  
    • The committee will also coordinate a Senate meeting to discuss professional development opportunities and how the material might show up at MSU Denver.  
  • The goal is to recognize microaggressions and unintentional bias, and work as allies to highlight injustices publicly and to create a more inclusive working environment.
    • The committee will create a space and time to celebrate moments of allyship in Staff Senate meetings.

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