Staff Council 2026 Elections: Updated Process and Call for Nominations

As your Staff Council, our primary goal is to advocate for all staff members—both classified and non-classified—in the pursuit of the University’s mission. To better reflect this shared purpose, we are implementing a change to our election process.

Historically, our elections have been siloed: classified employees could vote only for classified representatives, and non-classified employees could vote only for non-classified representatives. While this ensured peer representation, it also reinforced divides and complicated the balloting process.

We believe that great leadership impacts us all, regardless of classification.

What Is Changing? (The Voting Process)
We are moving to a single, unified ballot. During election season, every eligible staff member will receive the exact same ballot and will have the opportunity to vote for every open seat on the Staff Council, across both classifications.

What Is Staying the Same? (Guaranteed Representation)
The proportional makeup of the Staff Council is not changing. We will maintain the exact same number of seats for classified staff and non-classified staff as expressed in our bylaws (i.e., one guaranteed representative and one additional representative for every 50 staff members in each classification). The unified ballot simply means that the entire staff body gets a say in who fills those dedicated seats.

Why Are We Making This Change?

• Encouraging Campus-Wide Collaboration: We want to encourage voters to support strong advocates and leaders across the aisle, including individuals they might not work with on a daily basis within their specific classification.
• Fostering a Unified Culture: By voting together on a single ballot, we reinforce that the Staff Council represents the collective voice of the staff, rather than separate factions.
• Simplifying the Election: A unified ballot drastically reduces the administrative complexity of managing split voting pools, streamlining the process and preventing the technical ballot oversights that can delay election results.

What This Means for Nominations
If you are considering running for Staff Council, this change means you will still be nominated for a vacancy that matches your specific classification. However, your platform will now reach the entire university community. You will be campaigning to—and ultimately elected by—the full breadth of the staff body, empowering you to advocate for the campus as a whole from day one.

Looking for New Non-Classified Members
Staff Council is now accepting nominations for ISU staff members from all campuses who would like to be on the ballot for the 2026 Staff Council Election. We have three (3) vacancies for non-classified staff. Representatives are elected to a three-year term beginning in May 2026 and ending in May 2029.

Duties of representatives include the following:

• Attend one monthly council meeting and committee meetings as needed
• Provide leadership in the development of University programs, policies, and procedures
• Promote an active role for staff in the University governance structure
• Make recommendations on behalf of staff in policy matters about personal and professional welfare
• Serve on internal and external committees as assigned  
• Provide professional development opportunities for staff
• Recognize and honor staff members for their service to ISU

Please use the Google Form below to submit nominations and upload a photo that will be posted on the election site. The deadline for receiving nominations is Friday, April 3, at 5 p.m. The election will be open in MyISU from April 6- 13.

Link to Nominations Form

For questions or concerns, please contact Staff Council at staff@isu.edu.