_____________________________________________________
ByLaws
of the University Senate
(Revised: 18 April 2012)
A. Quorum
1. One-half of all elected Senators or elected
Alternates shall constitute a quorum to transact Senate business requiring
action of all Senators. One-half of all elected faculty Senators or
Alternates shall constitute a quorum to transact Senate
business requiring action of faculty Senators only. One-half of
all elected professional staff Senators or Alternates shall constitute
a quorum to transact Senate busi-ness requiring
action of professional staff Senators only.
2. Elected Senators and Alternates are those
persons who have been elected by their constituent academic or
professional staff units.
B.
Executive Committee
1. The Executive Committee of the Senate shall
consist of the officers of the Senate and the chairs of the standing
committees.
2. The Executive Committee shall function as a
steering committee of the Senate. Normally, the Senate officers conduct the
daily business of the Senate.
3. The Executive Committee shall maintain the
lists of constituents and representation units. It shall use
the Constitution and Bylaws as guidelines in its deliberations. Its
recommendations for changes in the lists shall be submitted to the Senate
for approval.
4. The Executive Committee shall have the
authority to extend to a maximum of one calendar year the three-month period
for presidential approval or veto of proposals. This approval requires a
two-thirds majority vote of the Committee.
C.
Senate Standing Committees - Organization
1. Normally, each senator or alternate is
expected to serve on one standing committee of the Senate.
2. Only senators or alternates may vote in
Senate standing committees.
3. Each committee shall elect its own chair,
who shall be a senator or alternate.
4. Any member of the university community may
serve without vote on any Senate standing committee, subject to the
approval of the committee.
5. The full Senate must approve yearly the
membership of each standing committee before it begins to function.
6. Normally, the Senate officers and
officers-elect will draft a preliminary list of committee
assignments before the first meeting of the Senate in the fall term.
D. Senate Standing
Committees - Responsibilities
Authority for responsibilities
assigned to the standing committees are derived generally from the Constitution
and Bylaws, as noted in the following list (III-F-1-a-6 for example, refers to
Article III, section F, paragraph 1, part a, item 6 of
the Senate Constitution).
1. Academic Policy Committee
a. Appointment, promotion, tenure, dismissal,
and leaves of the academic faculty (III-F-1-a-6).
b. Criteria for positions that are to be
accorded academic rank (III-F-1-a-7).
c. Academic freedom: rights and
responsibilities (III-F-1-a-8).
d. Regulations concerning the awarding of
honorary degrees (III-F-1-a-9).
2. Administrative
Policy Committee
a. Selection of the University President, the
Provost, and other major university-wide administrators (III-F-4-b-7).
b. Administrative procedures and
organizational structure (III-F-4-b-8).
c. Evaluation of administrators (III-F-4-b-9).
3. Board
of Control Relations Committee
a. Represent the Senate at meetings with the
Board of Control.
b. Coordinate interaction between the Senate
and the Board of Control.
4. Curricular
Policy Committee
a. All curricular matters, including
establishment, dissolution, and changes in degree programs (III-F-1-a-1).
b. Requirements
for certificates and academic degrees (III-F-1-a-2).
5. Elections
Committee
a. Conducting ballot initiatives (VIII-D and
Bylaws)
b. Conducting Senate elections (Bylaws)
c. Conducting University-wide elections
(Bylaws)
d. Assisting Senate Officers in identifying nominees
for Senate representatives to various University standing and ad hoc
committees.
e. Providing a slate of nominees for Senate
offices
6. Finance
Committee
a. Allocation and utilization of the
university's fiscal resources (III-F-4-b-3).
b. Student financial aid (III-F-4-b-6).
7. Fringe
Benefits Committee
a. Fringe
benefits (III-F-4-b-1).
8. Institutional
Planning Committee
a. Institutional priorities (III-F-4-b-2).
b. Allocation and utilization of the
university's human and physical resources (III-F-4-b-3).
c. Admission procedures (III-F-4-b-5).
d. General admission standards (III-F-4-b-5).
9. Instructional Policy Committee
a. Regulations regarding attendance,
examinations, grading, scholastic standing, probation, and honors
(III-F-1-a-3).
b. Teaching quality and the evaluation of
teaching (III-F-1-a-4).
c. All matters pertaining to the academic
calendar (III-F-1-a-5).
10. Professional Staff Policy Committee
a. Policy on all issues of concern only to
professional staff (III-F-3-a-1).
11. Research Policy Committee
a. Policy on all research issues and
performance other than the allocation and distribution of resources
(III-F-2-a-1).
b. Policy and procedures on the allocation and
distribution of resources (III-F-2-b-1).
E. Senate Temporary and Ad Hoc Committees
1. Within
the areas of Senate authority but outside the responsibilities of the standing
committees, matters may arise
requiring committee action. The Senate shall establish temporary or ad hoc
committees in such cases.
2. Membership
of temporary or ad hoc committees
a. In those matters for which the Senate has
specific constitutional authority to establish and review
policy, membership of temporary or ad hoc committees shall conform to
the stipulations for membership in standing committees.
b. In other matters, the membership of
temporary or ad hoc committees shall be approved by the Senate.
3. After
the Senate approves the formation of a temporary or ad hoc committee, the
President shall read into the Senate minutes the charge to that committee.
F. Election of
Officers
1. Following
the annual spring election of senators by the representation units, Senate
officers shall be elected for the next academic year. The election shall be
held at a special meeting of the continuing senators and senators-elect,
chaired by the current President.
2. Before
the special meeting the Elections Committee, in consultation with the Executive
Committee, shall solicit nominees for Senate officers among the continuing
senators and senators-elect.
3. At the special meeting, the nominations shall
be presented, with a call for nominations from the floor. After any additional
nominations from the floor, the officers for the next academic year will be
elected at the meeting.
4. A
majority vote is needed for the election of an officer. If there are more than
two candidates and a majority vote is not obtained, the candidate with the
lowest number of votes shall be stricken from the list of candidates and
another vote shall be taken until a majority is obtained.
5. The
officers-elect of the Senate shall assume their duties on the Monday before the
first week of instruction in the fall term.
G. Qualifications of Officers
1. The
President and Secretary shall have tenure.
2. The
Vice President shall be from a unit other than an academic department.
H. Duties of Officers
1. The
President shall preside at all meetings of the Senate and of the Executive
Committee.
2. The
Vice President shall preside at meetings of the Senate in the absence of the President
of the Senate.
3. The
Secretary shall record and maintain the minutes of meetings of the Senate and
the Executive Committee.
4. The
officers shall perform other duties as described in the Constitution and these
Bylaws.
I. Replacement of Officers
1. In
the case of resignation or incapacitation of any officer, an election of a
replacement shall be held at the next regularly scheduled meeting of the
Senate.
J. Proposals
1. Definitions
a. The word "proposal" used in this
section shall be construed to comprise only those formally moved Senate actions
involving major considerations such as:
1) establishment of
University policy and pro-cedures
2) recommendations to
the University admini-stration,
3) measures affecting
organization or primary procedures of the Senate,
4) formal definitions
of Senate policy, and
5) establishment of
Senate standing commit-tees.
b. The word "proposal" as used in
this section shall be construed to exclude all operative motions and actions
pursuant to the normal routines of a deliberative body, such as:
1) moving appointment
of, appointing, approving, or discharging ad hoc committees, or
2) requesting,
hearing, or accepting business and committee reports.
c. In the event of question the presiding
officer of the Senate shall be empowered to rule, subject to usual
parliamentary controls, whether or not a motion constitutes a
"proposal" within the meaning of these definitions.
d. In these Bylaws, "full Senate"
refers to the entire body of senators, regardless of constituency. The term
"whole Senate" refers to the Senate acting as a body, as contrasted
with Senate committees.
2. Proposals
shall be submitted in writing to the Senate officers, who shall assign a number
to the proposal. Based on an initial determination (subject to amendment by
majority vote of the Executive Committee), they shall send the proposal
expeditiously to the appropriate body.
3. A
proposal may be submitted by any senator individually or on behalf of any
group. Such proposals may be sent to an appropriate Senate committee, or to the
whole Senate.
4. A
proposal submitted by a Senate Committee shall go directly to the whole Senate.
5. The
Executive Committee by two-thirds majority vote may send to the whole Senate
any proposal that has been previously sent to a Senate Committee.
6. At
least 10 calendar days before the Senate meeting in which any vote is taken on
a proposal, the Senate officers shall have provided copies of the proposal to
all senators, and shall have placed a copy of it in the J.R. VanPelt Library. (But see "Emergency Proposals"
below).
a. This requirement is intended to allow
senators to consult deliberately with their constituents on any proposal.
7. The
Executive Committee may attach recommendations with reasons therefore to any
proposal before its distribution to the senators and the Library.
8. Classification
of Proposals
a. Before any proposal is sent to all
senators, the Senate officers will determine its classification, following
Article III-F of the Constitution.
b. This determination will be based on a
reasonable interpretation of the Constitution, and may be amended by a majority
vote of the Executive Committee.
c. This classification will be attached to the
copies of proposals sent to Senators and to the Library.
d. All senators may enter the debate on any
proposal, without regard to its classification. Regardless of the
classification of a proposal being debated, passage of a motion to end debate
requires a 2/3 majority vote of the full Senate.
e. During debate on any proposal, any senator
may object, on constitutional grounds, to the classification of any proposal.
f. The classification of a proposal may be
altered by a two-thirds majority vote of the full Senate.
9. Emergency
Submission of a Proposal
a. A proposal which does not meet the
distribution requirements set forth above may be submitted from the floor of
the Senate at any meeting of the Senate.
b. A majority vote of the full Senate is
required to approve taking up any such proposal.
c. When the Senate approves taking up such a
proposal, the classification of the proposal shall be made by the Senate
President.
10. Amendment
of Proposals
a. A proposal which is not amended by the
Senate can be approved by the Senate provided it has met the above 10-day requirement
for distribution or is an emergency proposal.
b. A proposal which is amended by the Senate
shall be required to meet the 10-day requirement for distribution.
c. A proposal that has been changed only
editorially may be approved at the meeting during which the change is made.
d. An "editorial change" shall be
construed to be any minor change in wording that clarifies the meaning or
improves the grammatical structure of the proposal but that has no effect on
the substance, scope or application of the proposal. In the event of question,
the presiding officer of the Senate shall be empowered to rule, subject to the
usual parliamentary controls.
11. Administrative Changes of Proposals
a. When the University President or designated
representative suggests changes without veto in a proposal transmitted from the
Senate, the proposal and the suggested changes shall be considered by the
Senate in the same manner as a newly-submitted proposal, using the number of
the old proposal.
12. A proposal that has not been approved by
the Senate within one year of being assigned a number shall expire. An expired
proposal may be resubmitted in the same or modified form and will be assigned a
new number. An expired proposal submitted in the same form may be assigned its
original number with a majority vote of the Executive Committee.
K. Voting Procedures
1. Unless
specifically stated otherwise, the terms "majority" or
"two-thirds" vote refer to the number of individuals voting.
2. A
request for a secret ballot on the Senate floor shall take precedence over
calls for a roll call vote or a voice vote and shall be automatically granted
upon request.
L. Ballot Initiatives
1. A
Ballot Initiative (or referendum) can be placed before the eligible Senate
constituency (Article VIII). A Ballot Initiative is equivalent to action by the
Senate and can be used to repeal an action of the Senate.
2. A
Ballot Initiative may be required on some matters such as changes in the
promotion and tenure policies that must be approved by the Academic Faculty.
3. Procedures
a. If a Ballot Initiative is presented to the
Senate by petition of its constituents, then the originators of the initiative
shall select a spokesperson who has the authority to
represent them on all matters concerning the initiative.
b. In
matters that do not involve an attempt either to repeal a Senate action or to
require a vote on an agenda item, appropriate committees of the Senate
shall have the opportunity to review and discuss the petition with the
originators and/or their spokesperson. The wording of a Ballot Initiative shall
be reviewed by the Senate and the originators of the initiative to insure its
fairness and consistency.
c. The vote on the initiative shall be by secret
ballot.
d. The vote on the initiative will not have to
take place until after the next regularly scheduled Senate meeting. During
an academic year, a Ballot Initiative to repeal an action of the Senate
can be submitted during that same academic year up to two regularly scheduled
meetings after the action is taken. A petition to require a Ballot
Initiative on an Agenda item for a particular Senate meeting can also
be submitted at that same meeting. In either of these cases, the
initiative shall be held as soon as possible after the meeting where
it is submitted or proposed.
M. Special
Constituency Issues
1. Definition
a. Throughout the Constitution and these
Bylaws the term "Department" shall apply to and should be read as
"School" for the Schools of Business and Economics, Forest Resources
and Environmental Science, and Technology. For Senate purposes these three
units are considered equivalent to departments.
2. The following shall not be constituents of
the Senate:
a. Any Dean or equivalent Director (as
determined by the Executive Committee) who reports directly to any of the
following: President; Provost; any Vice Provost; any Vice President; Board of
Control.
3. Department Chairs, Associate Deans, and
Assistant Deans, despite their additional status as Academic Faculty members,
shall not serve as senators or alternates. They are considered constituents of
the Senate.
4. The following individuals may be
constituents of the Senate, but may not serve as senators or alternates:
a. Any Staff having significant influence
(as determined by the Executive Committee) with any of the following:
President; Provost, any Vice Provost; any Vice President; Board of Control.
5. The Senate’s professional staff
constituency consists of those persons so defined by the Senate Executive
Committee in consultation with the Senate Professional Staff Committee and the
University’s Office of Human Resources. The Senate Professional Staff Committee
will recommend the composition of individual professional staff constituencies
for approval by the Senate Executive Committee.
II. REPRESENTATION
UNITS (For a complete listing contact the Senate office)
A. Academic Departments
1. Army/Air
Force ROTC
2. Biological
Sciences
3. Biomedical
Engineering
4. Chemical
Engineering
5. Chemistry
6. Civil
and Environmental Engineering
7. Cognitive
and Learning Sciences
8. Computer
Science
9. Electrical
and Computer Engineering
10. Engineering
Fundamentals
11. Geological
& Mining Engineering Sciences
12.
13. Kinesiology & Integrative Physiology
14. Library
15. Materials
Science and Engineering
16. Mathematical
Sciences
17. Mechanical
Engineering - Engineering Mechanics
18. Physics
19.
20. School of Forest Resources & Environmental
Sci
21.
22. Social Sciences
23. Visual
and Performing Arts
B. Professional Staff Units
1. Academic
Services A
2. Academic
Services B
3. Academic
Services C
4. Administration
5. Advancement
6. Auxiliaries
7. Enrollment
8. Finance
9. Library
10. Research
11. Student Affairs
12. Technology
C. Other
Units having Official Non-Voting Liaison Senate Membership
Graduate Faculty Council
Graduate Student Government
Emeritus/Emerita Association