Board of Trust

Code of Bylaws

To you...I tender my personal expressions of extreme regard, trusting that the healthful growth of the institution may be as great as I know it is your desire and determination to make it. And if it shall, through its influence, contribute even in the smallest degree to strengthening the ties which should exist between all geographical sections of our common country, I shall feel that it has accomplished one of the objects that led me to take an interest in it.  

--Cornelius Vanderbilt, letter to Holland McTyeire, December 2, 1875  

As is so often the case, the path to greatness lies in knowing who we are. It lies in a clarity of purpose that guides us, and in the values that ground us. Purpose and values endure, but they need to be reimagined and newly understood in every age.  

--Chancellor Diermeier, Investiture address, April 9, 2022  

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A university’s obligation is not to protect students from ideas, but rather to expose them to ideas, and to help make them capable of handling, and, hopefully, having ideas.  

--Chancellor Heard, remarks to the Nashville Area Junior Chamber of Commerce at the Hermitage Hotel, September 21, 1965  

The social values of open forum and free inquiry cannot be realized without the political neutrality of the university as an institution, except where the university itself is the issue. 

--Chancellor Heard, remarks during a Vanderbilt Graduate School weekly seminar on “The Nature of the American University” in Furman Hall 114, October 18, 1971   

A college campus must be a proving ground where ideas can be tested and prevailing thoughts can be challenged. But to engage fully in a debate is not only about winning it. It also requires that we have the courage to allow ourselves to be convinced and to change our minds when presented with evidence we had not considered or insights we had not conceived. 

--Chancellor Diermeier, Commencement address, May 13, 2022   

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NASHVILLE  

Incorporating amendments through October 25, 2024 

CHAPTER I Core Purpose and Key Principles  

Our common purpose is the creation, preservation and dissemination of knowledge.   

Supported by government funding and private philanthropy, research universities in the United States have produced transformational breakthroughs in every domain, generating extraordinary benefits to society. The tremendous success of this distinctively American system of research, education, and innovation has garnered respect and admiration across the world.  

The most important condition for the enduring success of the American research university is the pursuit of truth solely through the use of reason, argument and evidence rooted in a culture of free inquiry and rigorous debate.   

If it is to pursue the truth wherever it lies, a research university cannot have a political ideology or pursue a particular vision of social change.  It contributes to the betterment of society not by pursuing an ideological agenda but through the research and innovation of its faculty and students, by producing educated and knowledgeable leaders, and by serving as a model for civil discourse grounded in critical reasoning.   

Vanderbilt University is committed to ensuring that this core purpose continues to govern its endeavors guided by three key principles:  

Excellence  

Vanderbilt University:  

• Commits to excellence in all aspects of its work, free of political criteria. That includes admissions and support of student success, faculty and staff hiring and promotion, the allocation of resources and the recognition of members of the Vanderbilt community. 

Academic Freedom and Free Expression   

Vanderbilt University:  

• Fosters an environment of unfettered inquiry and discovery where its faculty and students are free to pursue their academic interests; 

• Actively encourages opposing views across a broad spectrum of the human experience, including political, economic, social, religious and other aspects, and provides ample opportunities for open debate and dissent without censorship or retribution; 

• Lives by an ethos of civility and respect for the perspectives of others, guided by policies that support dialogue -- and enable research and education -- free from disruption; and 

• Commits to institutional neutrality whereby the institution and its leaders, including those in charge of academic units like schools, departments and research centers, do not take positions, through statements or actions, on political and social matters not directly connected to the core function of the university. For this reason, the endowment, and university funds more broadly, should be shielded from political pressures and reflect that neutrality. 

Growth and Development   

Vanderbilt University:   

• Seeks to assemble a broad range of perspectives, backgrounds, and expertise of students, faculty, and staff on our campuses as a core driver of excellence in everything it does;  

• Commits to minimizing financial and other barriers that impede students’ access to the University or that hinder their academic success, pursuit of excellence, and personal growth.  

• Commits to a vibrant campus community where all members can grow in their academic and professional pursuits; and, 

• Strives to prepare its students for purposeful and engaged lives and meaningful careers. 

By focusing on its core purpose and these key principles, Vanderbilt University will be positioned to continue providing its students with a transformational education, conducting pathbreaking research, and driving the field-defining agendas for international scientific learning and research.    

Amendment to any provision of Chapter I of these Bylaws shall require a two-thirds affirmative vote of all the voting members then in office and shall otherwise comply with Chapter IV (Amendments) of these Bylaws. 

Chapter II. Board of Trust

A. Membership and Procedures of the Board of Trust

B. Officers of the Board of Trust

C. Committees of the Board of Trust

Chapter III. Immediate Government of the University

General Provisions
The Chancellor
The Faculties
The Faculty Assembly and the Faculty Senate

Chapter IV.

Amendments
Charter
Appendix A