The UNM Staff Council founded in 1991, strives to be the voice and advocate for non-faculty staff at UNM. In 1989, the UNM Committee on Staff Recognition (CSR) was established by UNM President Gerald May in the wake of charges that there was low staff morale and a lack of staff input into University policies. Priorities cited by the CSR report included the establishment of a UNM Staff Council. The report also recognized that staff was in need of a representative body that served functions similar to those of the students and faculty. Because of that report, President May appointed a 12-member committee to draft rules for a Staff Council and to establish a series of committees and election and membership rules for the Council. On July 11, 1990, the very first Staff Council was inaugurated as sixty elected staff employees gathered for the very first Staff Council meeting.
The Council is divided in half, with one half representing job grades and the other half representing organizational precincts (or job areas). Representatives serve a two-year term with elections for grade positions held in even-numbered years and elections for precinct positions held in odd-numbered years.
The workforce behind the Staff Council are its three permanent committees, eleven standing committees and Staff Council representatives that serve on four University-wide joint faculty-staff committees. The permanent committees are the Rules and Election Committee, the Ethics Committee and the Executive Committee. The standing committees are the Career Development Committee, Communication Committee, Compensation Committee, Employee Rights & Policy Review Committee, Environs Committee, Government Relations Committee, Parking Committee, Rewards & Recognition Committee, Work+Life Committee, Student Success Committee and Retirement Committee. The joint faculty-staff committees are the Faculty Staff Benefits Committee, the Sustainability Council, the IT Cabinet and the KUNM Radio Board.
Any staff member employed by UNM in at least a regular half-time permanent status is eligible to run for membership on the Staff Council. The Council encourages full and equal participation and no staff member shall be denied full and equal participation for reasons of race, nationality, sex, sexual preference, religion, political belief, age or handicap. In addition, any staff member, regardless of status or FTE, is allowed to participate in any Staff Council standing committee, even if they are not a Council representative.
On March 7, 1990 UNM President Gerald W. May sent the following letter to all UNM Staff members: "We are very pleased that the Board of Regents has recently approved the formation of the UNM Staff Council. The Council will provide the mechanism for staff representation in University matters, and I urge you to become interested and involved in its activities. The Council will be most effective as a forum for UNM staff if there is broad participation. I hope that supervisors throughout the University will encourage employees to be active participants. Let me also take the opportunity to express my appreciation, on behalf of the University, to every staff member at UNM. I have served with staff members at this campus for many years and am continually impressed by the dedication of each of you. You have made this university a better place, and we appreciate your contributions."
