EEB GSA Bylaws

Bylaws of The Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Graduate Student Association of the University of Connecticut

The Bylaws of the Graduate Student Association shall serve as the operational rules of the G. S. A. and as a companion document to the Constitution of the G. S. A. Should any conflict exist between the two documents, the Constitution shall prevail.

Bylaw 1: The Executive

1.1 Purpose

1.1.1 The Executive shall:

a) uphold the Constitution and Bylaws for the Association;

b) administer the finances of the Association and implement the policies of the Association;

c) report to each meeting of the Association, and act in accordance with any decisions made at such meetings; and

d) be responsible for instructing and informing the members of the incoming Executive of their duties.

1.2 Membership

1.2.1 All members of the Executive shall be bondable, ordinary members of the G. S. A.

1.2.2 Membership of the Executive shall be defined in the Constitution (Article 4.2).

1.2.3 The Executive of the G. S. A. shall be elected in accordance with the procedures specified in Bylaw 4.

1.3 The Association Chairperson

1.3.1 The Association Chairperson shall:

a) act as signing officer of the Association in all financial transactions jointly with the Treasurer, in accordance with Bylaw 6.1.3;

b) organize all meetings of the Association in accordance with Bylaw 3

c) ensure that the minutes and documents of the G. S. A. and its committees are recorded and kept available for inspection by the Association’s members;

d) be responsible for the maintenance and distribution of an official, up-to-date list of all Association members;

e) act as moderator for all meetings of the Association, in accordance with Bylaw 3;

f) ensure that the Constitution and the Bylaws are kept up-to-date;

g) provide authoritative interpretation of the Constitution and Bylaws;

h) chair any committee that reviews and updates the Constitution and/or Bylaws;

i) ensure that any motions presented to Meetings are worded clearly and appropriately;

j) be responsible for instructing the incoming Association Chairperson as to his/her duties.

1.3.2 In the event that business must proceed in the absence of the Association Chairperson, the function of the Association Chairperson shall be assumed by a member of the Executive in the following order of precedence:

a) Treasurer

b) Secretary

c) Faculty Meeting Representative

d) Computer Committee Representative

e) Collections Committee Representative

f) Symposium Committee Representative

g) Seminar Committee Representative

h) Monday Evening Seminar Committee Representative

i) Graduate Student Senator

1.3.3 The term of office of the Association Chairperson shall be from September 1st to August 31st.

1.3.4 The records of the Association Chairperson are the definitive records of the Association. If there is conflict between the files on the Departmental Web Server and the Association Chairperson’s records, the Association Chairperson’s records shall prevail.

1.4. The Treasurer

1.4.1 The Treasurer shall:

a) perform any function of the Association Chairperson, in accordance with Bylaw 1.3.2;

b) supervise all financial transactions of the G. S. A.;

c) act as signing officer of the Association in all financial transactions jointly with the Association Chairperson, in accordance with Bylaw 6.1.3;

d) present monthly records of all financial transactions at Association meetings; and

e) be authorized to approve expenditures, as outlined in Bylaw 6.

1.4.2 The term of office for the Treasurer shall be from September 1st to August 31st.

1.5 The Faculty Meeting Representative

1.5.1 The Faculty Meeting Representative shall:

a) perform any function of the Association Chairperson, in accordance with Bylaw 1.3.2;

b) communicate the views of the Association to the Department at Faculty Meetings; and

c) ensure that the Association is informed of decisions made at Faculty Meetings.

1.5.2 The term of office of the Faculty Meeting Representative shall be from September 1st to August 31st.

1.6 The Computer Committee Representative(s)

1.6.1 In the event that there are Association members willing and able to fill this position, one representative shall be responsible for all operating platforms in the Department (PC/Sun/Macintosh).

1.6.2 Regardless of the operating platform, the Computer Committee Representative shall:

a) perform any function of the Association Chairperson, in accordance with Bylaw 1.3.2;

b) communicate the views of the Association to the Departmental Computing Committee;

c) ensure that the Association is aware of all new computing services and facilities in the Department at the University; and

d) ensure the maintenance of the files of the G. S. A. on the Department web site, as provided by the Association Chairperson.

1.6.3 The term of office of the Computer Committee Representative shall be from September 1st to August 31st.

1.7 The Collections Committee Representative

1.7.1 The Collections Committee Representative shall:

a) perform any function of the Association Chairperson, in accordance with Bylaw 1.3.2;

b) communicate the views of the Association to the Departmental Collections Committee; and

c) ensure that the Association is aware of all decisions made by the Departmental Collections Committee.

1.7.2 The term of office of the Collections Committee Representative shall be from September 1st to August 31st.

1.8 The Seminar Committee Representative

1.8.1 The Seminar Committee Representative shall:

a) perform any function of the Association Chairperson, in accordance with Bylaw 1.3.2;

b) communicate the views of the Association to the Departmental Seminar Committee;

c) ensure that the Association is aware of all pertinent seminars and colloquia; and

d) organize all aspects concerning speakers invited by the Association.

1.8.2 The term of office of the Seminar Committee Representative shall be from September 1st to August 31st.

1.9 The Graduate Student Senator

1.9.1 The Graduate Student Senator shall:

a) perform any function of the Association Chairperson, in accordance with Bylaw 1.3.2;

b) ensure that the Association is aware of all G. S. S. activities; and

c) accept the duties associated with the position of Graduate Student Senator for the G. S. A.

1.9.2 The term of office of the Graduate Student Senator shall be from September 1st to August 31st.

1.10 The Symposium Committee Representative

1.10.1 The Symposium Committee Representative shall:

a) perform any function of the Association Chairperson, in accordance with Bylaw 1.3.2;

b) be responsible for organizing the annual E. E. B. G. S. A. Graduate Student Symposium, and recruiting additional members of the Symposium Committee; and

c) ensure that the G. S. A. is aware of all activities of the Symposium Committee.

1.10.2 The term of office of the Symposium Committee Representative shall be from September 1st to August 31st.

1.11 The Monday Evening Seminar Committee Representative

1.11.1 The Monday Evening Seminar Committee Representative shall:

a) perform any function of the Association Chairperson, in accordance with Bylaw 1.3.2;

b) communicate the views of the Association to the Monday Evening Seminar; and

c) ensure that the Association is aware of all activities of the Monday Evening Seminar Committee

1.11.2 The term of office of the Monday Evening Seminar Committee Representative shall be from September 1st to August 31st.

1.12 The Secretary

1.12.1 The Secretary shall:

a) perform any function of the Association Chairperson, in accordance with Bylaw 1.3.2; and

b) be responsible for taking minutes at G. S. A. meetings.

1.12.2 The term of office of the Secretary shall be from September 1st to August 31st.

Bylaw 2: Meetings of the Association

2.1 Voting and Speaking Rights

2.1.1 All members of the Association with the exceptions noted below are voting members with one vote.

2.1.2 The Faculty member from the Department may speak on behalf of the Department, but he/she may not vote.

2.2 General Meetings

2.2.1 The Association Chairperson may call an Association meeting at any time, provided at least forty-eight (48) hours’ notice is given to all members.

2.2.2 Any ten (10) members of the Association may at any time have the Association Chairperson call a meeting.

2.2.3 An Association meeting shall be held at least twice during both fall and spring semesters. The regular meeting dates shall be arranged at the first official meeting of each semester.

2.2.4 Quorum shall be ten (10) voting members of the Association.

2.3 Rules for Meetings

2.3.1 The reference source for all rules of order not covered in these Bylaws shall be Robert’s Rules of Order.

2.3.2 Unless otherwise amended by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Association, the order of business for meetings shall be:

a) Approval of the Agenda

b) Association Chairperson’s Report

c) Approval of the Minutes (of the previous meeting)

d) Business Arising from the Minutes

e) Treasurer’s Report

f) Committee Reports

g) G. S. S. Report

h) Other Committee Reports

i) Question Period / Complaints

j) New Business

k) Adjournment

2.3.3 Any member of the G. S. A. wishing to have items placed on the agenda should give written notice to the Association Chairperson at least seven (7) days in advance of the next meeting.

2.3.4 If a motion is not submitted in time to be included in the agenda, or if Notice of Motion has not been given at a previous meeting, a motion may be submitted immediately prior to or during a meeting, but only if the matter is of sufficient urgency that it must be dealt with immediately. The motion shall proceed only with the consent of two-thirds (2/3) of the voting members present.

2.3.5 The agenda for a forthcoming Association meeting shall be distributed in time to reach each member of the Association at least twenty-four (24) hours before the meeting, and the agenda shall be made available at the same time to the public.

2.3.6 No meeting of the Association shall exceed two (2) hours in length except by a simple majority vote. If the meeting is extended, it shall be extended in half-hour increments.

2.3.7 The Association Chairperson may direct anyone who persists in irrelevance or repetition to discontinue speaking.

2.3.8 Prior to the consideration of any motion concerning an organization external to the G. S. A., voting members must declare to the Association Chairperson any conflict of interest.

2.3.9 All policy motions approved by the Association shall be kept by the Association Chairperson in a G. S. A. Policy Manual, which shall be appended to the Bylaws.

Bylaw 3: Elections

3.1 Nominations

3.1.1 At the second to last meeting in the semester, the Association Chairperson announces which positions are open for nominations and that he/she is accepting nominations for said positions.

3.1.2.Nominees for elected positions within the Association must be bondable, ordinary members of the Association.

3.1.3 Any member of the Association may nominate himself/herself for an elected position, provided another member of the Association is willing to second the motion. A motion to nominate a member must be seconded by another member of the Association.

3.1.4 At the last meeting in the semester, the Association Chairperson asks if there are further nominations. Such additional nominations must adhere to the guidelines above (Bylaw 3.1.3).

3.1.5 Any member of the Association may be nominated for more than one elected position.

3.2 Elections in General

3.2.1 The voting for the elected positions of the Association shall be by voice vote except in the event that a member specifically requests a secret ballot.

3.2.2 Ballots with names of the nominees and the corresponding position shall be distributed at the last meeting of the semester.

3.2.3 Ballots shall be collected and counted before adjournment of the last meeting. The newly elected members of the Executive will then be ratified by the Association.

3.3 Vacancy of Office

3.3.1 If the office of a G. S. A. Executive Member is vacated or will be vacated due to resignation, impeachment, end of term, or death, an election shall be held for the said office at the earliest possible convenience.

3.3.2 Until an election is held for a vacated office, the duties of:

a) the Association Chairperson shall be assumed in accordance with Bylaw 1.3.2; and

b) an Executive Member other than the Association Chairperson shall be divided among the remaining G. S. A. Executive members.

3.4 Impeachment of an Executive Member

3.4.1 Impeachment proceedings against an elected officer of the G. S. A. shall be undertaken only after the receipt by the Association Chairperson of a petition requesting impeachment and bearing the signature of at least two-thirds (2/3) of the ordinary members of the Association.

3.4.2 If the impeachment proceedings are against the Association Chairperson, or if he/she is deemed to be in conflict of interest with regards to the impeachment, then the petition requesting impeachment should be delivered to the Treasurer.

3.4.3 Upon receipt of a petition as defined by Bylaw 3.4.1, the Association Chairperson must call a Special Meeting solely for the consideration of the impeachment at the earliest possible convenience.

3.4.4 The motion for impeachment to be considered at the meeting must read: “Shall ... (name of Executive member) ... continue to serve as ... (office held) ... ?”

3.4.5 The incumbent Executive member shall be removed from office by a simple majority vote.

3.4.6 At least five (5) days’ notice must be given of any meeting that will consider the impeachment of an officer of the Association.

3.4.7 Once a petition requesting impeachment has been received, the person affected by the petition must take a leave of absence from his/her duties until the impeachment process is completed. The execution of those duties will be performed in accordance with Bylaw 3.3.2.

Bylaw 4: G. S. A. Committee Regulations

4.1 General

4.1.1 Committees are established for the purpose of examining specific questions, as determined by the Association Chairperson.

4.1.2 Membership:

a) G. S. A. Committee members must be ordinary members of the Association.

b) The particular members and the maximum number of members on the Committee will be determined by a resolution of the Association.

4.1.3 A Commitee shall be dissolved either:

a) by a resolution of the Association; or

b) following the presentation of its final report to an Association Meeting.

Bylaw 5: Financial Affairs

5.1 General

5.1.1 The financial year of the Association shall be from September 1 to August 31.

5.1.2 All income shall be deposited into the account(s) of the Association, and all expenses paid from the same.

5.1.3 The signing officers for the Association account(s) shall be the Association Chairperson and the Treasurer. Checks issued to one of the signing officers must be signed by the other.

5.1.4 The Treasurer of the G. S. A. shall be directly responsible for the administration of all Association account(s) and shall keep adequate records of all transactions

5.2 Accounts

5.2.1 There shall be a general account, which shall be used to carry out the normal business of the Association.

5.3 Expenditures

5.3.1 Expenditures shall be approved at Association meetings, by a simple majority vote.

5.4 Financial Records

5.4.1 All expenditures for Association account(s) shall be documented by appropriate receipts, invoices, check stubs, or other satisfactory evidence.