Chapter 3344 | Cleveland State University

Section 3344.01 | Appointment of trustees - term.

• Effective: March 31, 2005
• Latest Legislation: Senate Bill 224 - 125th General Assembly

(A) There is hereby created the Cleveland state university. The government of the Cleveland state university is vested in a board of eleven trustees, who shall be appointed by the governor, with the advice and consent of the senate. Two of the trustees shall be students at the Cleveland state university, and their selection and terms shall be in accordance with division (B) of this section. Except for the student members, terms of office shall be for nine years, commencing on the second day of May and ending on the first day of May. Each trustee shall hold office from the date of appointment until the end of the term for which the trustee was appointed. Any trustee appointed to fill a vacancy occurring prior to the expiration of the term for which the trustee's predecessor was appointed shall hold office for the remainder of such term. Any trustee shall continue in office subsequent to the expiration date of the trustee's term until the trustee's successor takes office, or until a period of sixty days has elapsed, whichever occurs first. No person who has served a full nine-year term or more than six years of such a term shall be eligible for reappointment until a period of four years has elapsed since the last day of the term for which the person previously served. The trustees shall receive no compensation for their services but shall be paid their reasonable necessary expenses while engaged in the discharge of their official duties. A majority of the board constitutes a quorum.

(B) The student members of the board of trustees of the Cleveland state university have no voting power on the board. Student members shall not be considered as members of the board in determining whether a quorum is present. Student members shall not be entitled to attend executive sessions of the board. The student members of the board shall be appointed by the governor, with the advice and consent of the senate, from a group of five candidates selected pursuant to a procedure adopted by the university's student governments and approved by the university's board of trustees. The initial term of office of one of the student members shall commence on May 2, 1988 and shall expire on May 1, 1989, and the initial term of office of the other student member shall commence on May 2, 1988 and expire on May 1, 1990. Thereafter, terms of office of student members shall be for two years, each term ending on the same day of the same month of the year as the term it succeeds. In the event that a student member cannot fulfill a two-year term, a replacement shall be selected to fill the unexpired term in the same manner used to make the original selection.

Section 3344.02 | Election and appointment of officers of board - bond of treasurer.

• Effective: September 23, 2008
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 562 - 127th General Assembly

The board of trustees of Cleveland state university shall annually elect from their members a chairperson and a vice-chairperson; and they may also appoint a secretary of the board, a treasurer, and such other officers of the university as the interest of the university requires, who may be members of the board. The treasurer, before entering upon the discharge of official duties, shall give bond to the state or be insured for the faithful performance of the treasurer's duties and the proper accounting for all moneys coming into the treasurer's care. The amount of said bond or insurance shall be determined by the board, but shall not be for a sum less than the estimated amount which may come into the treasurer's control at any time, less any reasonable deductible.

Section 3344.03 | Powers of board of trustees regarding employees and university.

• Effective: December 18, 1964
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 2 - 105th General Assembly

The board of trustees of Cleveland state university shall employ, fix the compensation of, and remove the president and such number of professors, teachers, and other employees as may be deemed necessary. The board shall do all things necessary for the creation, proper maintenance, and successful and continuous operation of the university. The board may accept donations of lands and moneys for the purposes of such university.

Section 3344.04 | Board of trustees to receive and hold property or funds.

• Effective: December 18, 1964
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 2 - 105th General Assembly

The board of trustees of Cleveland state university may receive and hold in trust, for the use and benefit of the university, any grant or devise of land, and any donation or bequest of money or other personal property, to be applied to the general or special use of the university, unless otherwise directed in the donation or bequest. The board of trustees of Cleveland state university may make and enter into all contracts and agreements necessary or incidental to the operation of such university.

Section 3344.05 | General assembly to support university - other sources.

• Effective: December 18, 1964
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 2 - 105th General Assembly

The general assembly shall support Cleveland state university by such sums and in such manner as it may provide, but support may also come from other sources.

Section 3344.06 | Acquisition of Cleveland-Marshall law school by Cleveland state university.

• Effective: June 24, 1969
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 20 - 108th General Assembly

The board of trustees of the Cleveland state university shall acquire all the property and assets of the Cleveland-Marshall law school and shall operate such law school as part of the Cleveland state university. The board of trustees of the Cleveland state university shall enter into a contract with the Cleveland-Marshall law school setting forth the terms and conditions of the transfer of the law school to the university. The contract and all arrangements for the transfer of the law school to the university are subject to the approval of the Ohio board of regents.

Section 3344.07 | Cleveland state university center for civics, culture, and society.

• Effective: October 3, 2023
• Latest Legislation: House Bill 33 - 135th General Assembly

(A)(1) The Cleveland state university center for civics, culture, and society is established as an independent academic unit within Cleveland state university, physically located in the Levin college of public affairs and education. The center shall conduct teaching and research in the historical ideas, traditions, and texts that have shaped the American constitutional order and society.

(2) The center shall establish bylaws requiring the center to do all of the following:

(a) Educate students by means of free, open, and rigorous intellectual inquiry to seek the truth;

(b) Affirm its duty to equip students with the skills, habits, and dispositions of mind they need to reach their own informed conclusions on matters of social and political importance;

(c) Affirm the value of intellectual diversity in higher education and aspire to enhance the intellectual diversity of the university;

(d) Affirm a commitment to create a community dedicated to an ethic of civil and free inquiry, which respects the intellectual freedom of each member, supports individual capacities for growth, and welcomes the differences of opinion that shall naturally exist in a public university community.

The requirements prescribed under divisions (A)(2)(a) to (d) of this section shall take priority over any other bylaws adopted by the center.

(3) The board of trustees of the university may name the center in accordance with the philanthropic naming policies and practices of the university.

(B) The center shall be an independent academic unit physically located at the college of public affairs and education with the authority to house tenure-track faculty who hold their appointments within the center. Faculty appointed to the center shall not be required, but may, hold joint appointments within any other division of the university. Not fewer than ten tenure-track faculty positions shall be allotted to teach under the center. No faculty outside of the center shall have the authority to block faculty hires into the center.

(C)(1) The center shall offer instruction in all of the following:

(a) The books and major debates which form the intellectual foundation of free societies, especially that of the United States;

(b) The principles, ideals, and institutions of the American constitutional order;

(c) The foundations of responsible leadership and informed citizenship.

(2) The center also shall focus on both of the following:

(a) Offering university-wide programming related to the values of free speech and civil discourse;

(b) Expanding the intellectual diversity of the university's academic community.

(D)(1) Not later than December 31, 2023, the board of trustees of the university shall appoint, with the advice and consent of the senate, a seven-member center academic council. An initial member shall not begin service until confirmed by the senate. Four members shall form a quorum.

(2) The academic council shall be comprised of scholars with relevant expertise and experience. Not more than one member of the council may be an employee of the university. Best efforts shall be made to have not fewer than three members of the advisory board be from Ohio.

(3) Three members of the academic council shall serve initial terms of two years and four members shall serve initial terms of four years, which the members shall determine at their first meeting, and select replacements for vacant seats.

(E)(1) The academic council established under division (D) of this section shall conduct a nationwide search for candidates for the director of the center and shall strictly adhere to all relevant state and federal laws. The academic council shall submit to the president of the university a list of finalists from which the president shall select and appoint a director, subject to approval by the board of trustees. Future directors shall be chosen in the same manner.

(2) The director shall have the protection of tenure or tenure eligibility. The director shall consult with the dean of the college of public affairs and education; however, the director shall report directly to the provost or the president of the university.

(3) The director shall have the sole and exclusive authority to manage the recruitment and hiring process and to extend offers for employment for all faculty and staff of the center, and to terminate employment of all staff. The director shall oversee, develop, and approve the center's curriculum. The center shall be granted the authority to offer courses and develop certificate, minor, and major programs as well as graduate programs, and offer degrees.

(F) The director of the center shall submit an annual report to the board of trustees of the university and the general assembly in accordance with section 101.68 of the Revised Code. The report shall provide a full account of the center's achievements, opportunities, challenges, and obstacles in the development of this academic unit.

Last updated October 4, 2023 at 5:40 PM