Student Leadership Advisory Council

SLAC will serve as an advisory committee to the Columbia Alumni Association (CAA) and its Board on how CAA activities and priorities influence the student experience, particularly in relation to interaction with alumni University-wide.

Each of Columbia’s 18 Schools will have two to three representatives on SLAC. Each School’s student council (or requisite governing body), in consultation with the coordinating student affairs office, can appoint a representative. The second representative for each School will be a self-nomination process. The call for self- nominations will be sent in July for the upcoming academic year.

All self-nominations will be reviewed by the CAA’s Recent Alumni and Student Relations Committee, which will rank its top candidates per School (no less than two and not more than four) and submit to the CAA Chair and CAA President for final review and selection.

Students who are studying abroad either for a semester or an academic year are not eligible to serve. Students enrolled in academic programs that are primarily online and/or remote must be able to demonstrate the capacity to be on campus for the majority of meetings and activities. 

Co-Chairs – The position of co-chair is an annual appointment and shall include a graduate/professional School student from the Morningside Campus, an undergraduate student, and a student representing the Columbia University Irving Medical Center (CUIMC).

Ex-Officio Members – The student representatives to the CAA Board, as well as the chair and co-chair of the Recent Alumni and Student Relations Committee (RASR), serve as ex- officio members of SLAC.

Committees – Ad hoc committees may be established from time to time.

All terms are for a single academic year.

SLAC members not graduating may seek re-appointment for an additional term, but no member shall serve more than two years.

Members must participate regularly in meetings, programs and events. The meeting schedule for the academic year will be set prior to the selection of members. Members who miss two consecutive meetings may be asked to step aside for another representative from their School.

Meetings will occur on a quarterly basis (two in the Fall semester and two in the Spring semester); however, the co-chairs, in consultation with the CAA, may call for additional meetings or convene ad hoc task forces to address specific issues or needs. 

Responsibilities for members of SLAC include: 

• Attend a minimum of three of four meetings
• Attend a majority of targeted events or programs
• Provide feedback on initiatives and potential activities
• Serve as an ambassador to students from your School and the University overall
• Collaborate across multiple Schools whenever possible