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Organization and Bylaws of the State University College at Oneonta Faculty (Revised October 1998)

Note on Faculty Bylaws: “Bylaws shall be consistent with and subject to the Policies of the Board of Trustees of State University of New York, the laws of the State of New York , and the provisions of agreements between the State of New York and the certified employee organization established pursuant to Article 14 of the Civil Service Law. Provisions of bylaws concerning consultation with the faculty shall be subject to the approval of the chief administrative officer of the college. All actions under bylaws shall be advisory upon the Chancellor and the chief administrative officer of the college.” [Article X, 5 (b)]

Article I: Name

§1. The name of this organization shall be the State University College at Oneonta Faculty, hereafter referred to as the Faculty.

Article II: Purpose and Responsibility

§1. The purpose and responsibility of this organization shall be to carry out the mandate of Article X, Sections 4 and 5 of the Policies of the Board of Trustees of the State University of New York through significant participation in the initiation, development, and implementation of the educational program of the College, and to assume such other responsibilities as the Board of Trustees may direct.

Article III: Membership

§1. Membership in the Faculty shall include the Chancellor of the State University, the appropriate University Vice Chancellor, the President of the College, all non-voting administrative officers of the College, the academic staff of the College, and those other members of the College professional staff in the Professional Services Negotiating Unit charged with responsibility for admissions and counseling of students or with responsibility for the service and research programs of the College, and librarians.

§2. Eligible to vote shall be those identified in Section 1, except those specifically noted as non-voting. Each eligible voter shall be entitled to one vote.

§3. Questions of eligibility for membership shall be decided by the presiding officer, in accordance with the published Policies of the Board of Trustees and the rules governing the listing of faculty in the Directory of College Faculties of the State University , and reported to the College Senate.

Article IV: Officers

§1. Chair, Presiding Officer, and Alternate Presiding Officer.

1. In accordance with the Policies of the Board of Trustees, the chief administrative officer of the College shall be the Chair of the Faculty.
2. The Presiding Officer and Alternate Presiding Officer of the Faculty shall be selected from and elected by the Voting Faculty for a term of one year with tenure from September to September. Both shall be eligible to succeed themselves. The Presiding Officer shall serve as Chair of the College Senate, and the Alternate Presiding Officer shall serve as Vice Chair of the College Senate.
3. Election of both the Presiding and Alternate Presiding Officers shall be conducted by the Faculty Business Committee.
4. The Presiding Officer of the Faculty shall preside at all meetings of the Faculty and the College Senate, and at Faculty Hearings. In his/her absence, the Alternate Presiding Officer shall assume all duties and responsibilities of the Presiding Officer. In the absence of both of these officers, a presiding officer pro tem for meetings and hearings of the Faculty and meetings of the College Senate may be designated by the Presiding Officer.

§2. Secretary. The Faculty shall elect one of its members to serve as Secretary of the Faculty and Secretary of the College Senate for a term of one year, with tenure from September to September. The Secretary shall receive suggestions for and prepare the agenda, which shall be sent to the faculty two days in advance of the meeting; record, distribute to the Faculty, and be custodian of the minutes of the Faculty and College Senate meetings; and exercise such other powers and duties as are delegated by the Presiding Officer.

Article V: Meetings

§1. The President of the College or the Presiding Officer of the Faculty shall call meetings of the Faculty, with an announced agenda.

§2. The Presiding Officer of the Faculty shall call a duly constituted meeting of the Faculty when he/she:

1. is requested to do so by the College President;
2. deems it necessary for the Faculty to meet;
3. is requested to do so by the Senate;
4. receives a petition signed by 10 percent or more full-time Faculty members requesting that the Faculty meet; or
5. receives a petition signed by 10 percent or more full-time students requesting that the Faculty meet.

§3. The quorum for all Faculty meetings shall be 1/3 of its total voting membership, when at least 48 hours lapses between the announcement of the meeting and the meeting time; but 50% when a meeting of an emergency nature is called on short notice.

§4. Any Faculty member or group of Faculty may place items on the agenda for a Faculty meeting by submitting the items in writing to the Secretary of the Faculty.

§5. The regular order of business for meetings of the Faculty, unless altered by majority vote of the members present, shall be: call to order, approval of minutes, president’s report, faculty senator’s report, committee reports, unfinished business, new business, program for the day, adjournment. Robert’s Rules of Order, Revised shall be the authority when questions arise concerning parliamentary procedure.

§6. Voting shall be by secret ballot if any faculty member requests it. Otherwise, voting shall be by voice vote.

Article VI: Standing Faculty Committees

§1. There shall be twelve standing committees as follows:

1. The Curriculum Committee
2. The Library Committee
3. The Committee on Student Life
4. The Committee on Public Events
5. The Faculty Business Committee
6. The Committee on Instruction
7. The Committee on Research
8. The Graduate Committee
9. The Committee on Administrative Review
10. The Committee on Academic Planning and Resource Allocation
11. The Committee on Technology
12. The Committee for Part-time Faculty Concerns

§2. The functions of standing committees shall be as follows:

1. Standing committees, when operating within the framework of accepted policy, shall have responsibility to:

i.        study problems;

ii.      consult with persons or groups affected, including students and/or student groups;

iii.    recommend plans for appropriate actions; and

iv.     suggest to the President of the College the names of persons to be designated by him/her to carry out the plans.

1. When policy is to be developed or revised, standing committees shall use as many of the following procedures as necessary to reach Faculty understanding and approval:

i.        make a tentative statement of policy;

ii.      revise the statement and present it to the whole Faculty for action.

§3. Committees shall keep the Faculty informed by using such procedures as:

1. holding open meetings; and
2. reporting frequently to the Faculty through appropriate media.

§4. Any individual or group may refer problems to a standing committee or to the whole Faculty.

§5. Each Standing Faculty Committee shall maintain communication with the Steering Committee.

1. Each committee will meet and select a chair for the following year who will be responsible for submitting:

i.        a list of planned meeting times and dates at the start of each academic year;

ii.      a copy of the minutes from each meeting; and

iii.    a written report of the committee's activities at the end of each academic year and an oral report to the Senate.

§6. The Curriculum Committee shall:

1. carry on a continuous study of the curriculum and of curricular and degree requirements;
2. inform the faculty on curriculum matters;
3. review proposals for additions, deletions and major modifications—including proposals for new programs;
4. study ways of evaluating all phases of the curriculum; and
5. consist of one voting member designated by each academic entity represented at the meetings of the Academic Council of Department Chairs and Program Directors, plus one voting member from the College library staff, and voting students as designated by the College Senate. The Vice-President for Academic Affairs, the Deans of the academic divisions, and a representative of the Admissions Office shall be eligible to participate as ex-officio non-voting members of the Curriculum Committee.

§7. The Library Committee shall:

1. assist the Associate Provost for Library and Information Services in guiding the development and growth of the College library; in formulating policy for use of the library; and in allocating library funds to be spent in academic areas;
2. serve as liaison to the faculty, students, and community; and
3. consist of the Associate Provost for Library and Information Services, one member from each academic department (chosen by the department), and two student representatives designated by the Student Association.

§8. The Committee on Student Life shall:

1. be concerned with policies, programs, issues, and services that affect the quality of student life and the campus environment of the State University of New York College at Oneonta;
2. make recommendations concerning student life policies; and
3. include an ex-officio non-voting member chosen from the Student Development Division staff by the Vice President for Student Development.

§9. The Committee on Public Events shall:

1. propose a well-rounded program of public events in keeping with desirable cultural and educational standards by distributing funds made available to the committee;
2. develop standards for the guidance of groups presenting public events funded by the committee;
3. produce an annual campus/community event to increase their positive interaction; and
4. include the President of the College or his/her representative and the person responsible for community relations.

§10. The Faculty Business Committee shall:

1. determine committee membership preferences of all Faculty members as a basis for preparing election ballots;
2. conduct elections for Faculty committee memberships and for representatives and officers. Voting shall be by secret ballot;
3. keep records of Faculty service in elected positions.

§11. The Committee on Instruction shall:

1. propose policy regarding standards for admission and retention of students;
2. formulate policy for the evaluation of student academic performance;
3. inform the Faculty of newer methods and technologies of teaching and recommend policy regarding their application to the academic program;
4. recommend policy concerning the improvement of the academic program (e.g., the Scholars Program); and
5. recommend policy regarding class attendance, extended absences, and related matters.

§12. The Committee on Research shall:

1. study and recommend means for enhancing research among students and faculty;
2. keep the faculty informed concerning sources of funds and opportunities for conducting research; and
3. be charged with overseeing the faculty/student research grant program that is offered twice a year and funded by the investment income of the College at Oneonta Foundation’s Unrestricted Endowment, made possible through charitable gifts and grants to the college.

§13. The Graduate Committee shall:

1. meet monthly (and more often as necessary) throughout the regular academic year to study graduate activities, including policies, curricular programs, and degree requirements. The first meeting of this committee shall be called by the Chair;
2. inform the Faculty on graduate matters;
3. review proposals for new graduate programs or changes in established programs and proposals for new policies or changes in established policies; review credentials for Graduate Teaching Faculty status;
4. study ways of evaluating the effectiveness of graduate policies and programs; and
5. consist of the Vice President for Academic Affairs (or his/her designee), up to two voting graduate students (appointed by the Chair upon recommendation of the committee), one Faculty member to be elected by and from each program offering a master’s degree (including one representative of the Cooperstown Graduate Program), and three Faculty members to be elected by the Faculty-at-large. Except for the three committee members to be elected by the faculty-at-large, only those who regularly teach 500/600 level courses shall be eligible for election to this committee. Any department or staff unit not represented in the voting membership may designate one non-voting observer to attend meetings and report to his/her department or unit on the committee’s activities.

§14. The Committee on Administrative Review shall:

1. be the chief body of the Senate for reviewing and evaluating administrative performance and proposed reorganizations; and
2. be consulted about and represented on all search committees at the level of Dean or above.

§15. The Committee on Academic Planning and Resource Allocation shall:

1. review budgetary procedures and priorities for planning and resource allocation in the Presidential, Provostial, and Vice Presidential areas;
2. be consulted by the Administration on these matters and on proposals for new programs;
3. during the budgeting process, gather and disseminate information about the college budget and plans for resource allocation in Academic Affairs, with a focus on staffing and infrastructure. It shall act as a two-way conduit between the Faculty Senate and administration about these matters; and
4. seek advice from other committees whenever appropriate.

§16. The Committee on Technology shall study, propose policy, inform the Senate, and advise the President on all matters of educational technology, computing, and electronic communication.

§17. The Committee for Part-time Faculty Concerns shall:

1. advocate for part-time faculty concerns
2. liaison with other campus groups on part-time concerns
3. present an annual report to the College Senate

§18. The following further specifications shall apply:

1. the standing committees, except for the Curriculum Committee, the Library Committee, and the Graduate Committee, shall consist of five Faculty members each;
2. except as otherwise prescribed above, committee members shall be elected. Terms of membership shall be for three years except for initial election following adoption of this organization;
3. each committee, except as otherwise stated, shall choose its chair. All such chairships shall be for one year;
4. a term of one year shall begin February 1 and expire January 31 of the following calendar year;
5. the Student Senate shall determine how the student representatives and their replacements shall be elected. Two students shall serve on: the Committee on Public Events, the Committee on Instruction, and the Committee on Research. Five students shall serve on the Committee on Student Life and the Curriculum Committee, and two on the Library Committee. Student appointees shall be full-time degree candidates not on academic or disciplinary probation. The expected term of membership for the individual student shall be from one semester to two years depending on the willingness of the student to serve. A student member may be recalled and replaced by the Student Senate for absenteeism or other failure to discharge committee duties; and
6. minutes of all standing committees shall be kept and distributed to the Faculty.

Article VII: Calendar Committee

§1. There shall be a joint Faculty-Administration Calendar Committee:

1. Its membership shall be composed of the President of the College, the Vice President for Academic Affairs, the Presiding Officer of the Faculty, the Faculty Senator, the President of the Student Association and the chairs of the remaining standing committees.
2. The President of the College or his/her designee shall serve as chair.
3. It shall meet at least once a year, and timely draft minutes shall be published.
4. It shall establish the local College calendar.

Article VIII: Relationship with Administrative Committees

§1. Elected Faculty governance shall be the administration’s first avenue of consultation on matters related to the initiation, development, and implementation of the educational mission of the college.

§2. Committees which operate outside the Faculty Committee structure: The Policies of the Board of Trustees of the State University of New York, Article IX, makes several references to provision for administrative officers, committees, and functions. Recognition is made, therefore, of the existence and activities of certain administrative advisory committees which operate outside the Faculty Committee structure. Among these are the Council of Department Chairs and the Council of Deans and Directors. The responsibilities of these groups are strictly advisory; membership is by virtue of position.

§3. “Consultation with the Faculty.” The Policies of the Board of Trustees of the State University of New York, 1998, makes several references to “consultation with the faculty.” Specifically, consultation shall mean:

1. in addition to statements included in Article IX, Title B, Section 2 of the Trustees’ Policies, appointment of academic officers such as Vice President for Academic Affairs, academic deans and others with similar responsibilities shall be made after consultation with the Faculty;
2. in addition to statements included in Article IX, Title C, Section 2 of the Trustees’ Policies, appointment or the renewal of appointment of a department or division chair shall be made by the President after consultation with the department’s or division’s members;
3. in addition to statements included in Article XI, Title A, Section 1 of the Trustees’ Policies, the President, the Vice President for Academic Affairs, the academic dean, and the department or division chair, in assessing faculty needs and in recommending appointments, shall consult with members in the department or division concerned; and
4. in addition to statements included in Article XII, Title A, Section I of the Trustees’ Policies, the President, the Vice President for Academic Affairs, the academic dean, and the department or division chair shall consult with Faculty in the department or division concerned in regard to promotions and continuing appointments.

§4. Department or Division Budget Requests. In the preparation of department budget requests, the chair shall consult with the members of his/her department on continuing appointment and in tenure-track positions and with such others as he/she may wish. In the preparation of division budget requests, the academic dean or head of the academic division shall consult with the department chairs, appropriate members of his/her division, and such others as he/she may wish.

Article IX: Students Voting at Faculty Meetings

§1. Eligibility. Students filling the following positions (up to the maximum numbers as shown in the brackets below) shall be given voting privileges at faculty meetings subject to conditions listed: Student Senate [25], Executive Board [4], Student Life Committee [5], Curriculum Committee [5], Library Committee [4], Public Events Committee [2], Research Committee [2], Committee on Instruction [2], Graduate Committee [2], Total Maximum Number [51].

§2. Jurisdiction

1. Eligible students shall be allowed to vote on issues that fall in the following areas: student affairs, library, curriculum, instruction, public events, research.
2. Voting matters concerning collective bargaining and grievances shall be reserved to the Faculty.
3. Students may not vote on changes in the Faculty Bylaws or in Faculty elections.
4. Any issue in a “fringe area” would be subject to a ruling of the chair (and overruled by a majority vote of the Faculty voting just as any other ruling of the chair might be).
5. Students shall be permitted to vote on questions of parliamentary procedure.

§3. Parliamentary Prerogatives

1. Quorum. voting students shall be counted in the determination of a quorum.
2. A voting student will be able to make or second a motion, call the questions, call for a quorum count, or exercise any of the parliamentary prerogatives of a voting member.

Article X: Amendments

§1. Initiation, Distribution, Consideration

1. Initiation. Any amendment to these Bylaws shall be initiated by either:

i.        approval by the Senate Steering Committee, or

ii.      approval by the Senate, or

iii.    petition by twenty-five (25) voting members of the Faculty.

1. Distribution. Upon initiation, any amendment to these bylaws shall be published and distributed to the Faculty by the Faculty Secretary.
2. Consideration. Upon distribution and the elapse of one (1) week, any amendment to these bylaws shall be placed on the agenda by the Secretary for the next Faculty or College Senate meeting for the Faculty’s consideration through discussion and possible amending.

§2. Voting

1. Following consideration, voting on amendments to these bylaws shall be conducted by the Faculty Business Committee.
2. Voting shall be by secret mail ballot.
3. Voting on amendments to these bylaws shall continue for a period of ten (10) academic business days. Votes received after the end of the tenth day shall not be considered as having been cast and shall not be counted.

§3. Adoption. Amendments to these bylaws shall be adopted by either:

1. The affirmative vote of a simple majority of those voting if eighty (80) percent or more of the total voting membership cast ballots, or
2. The affirmative vote of three fifths (3/5) of those voting if less than eighty (80) percent of the total voting membership cast ballots.

Article XI: College Senate

§1. Membership

1. Faculty. The Faculty shall have one representative for each five and any remaining major fraction of five full-time members of each of the College departments and professional programs but not less than one representative and one alternate for each department or program. Future changes in the list of departments and programs must be approved by the Faculty Presiding Officer. The present departmental list is shown in Attachment A, and the present program list is shown in Attachment B.* Chairs of academic departments and directors of represented professional programs shall present to the chair of the College Senate before the first College Senate meeting of the academic year a roster of all full-time Faculty members in the department or program. The roster shall indicate the department/program representatives to the College Senate and alternates, and it shall be the basis for determining the number of representatives to which the department/program is entitled. The President of the College and President of the Student Association shall be ex officio voting members of the College Senate.
2. Student. The student body shall have a student representation equal to 11 percent of the faculty membership in the Senate and at least one alternate.
3. Part-time Faculty. The faculty shall elect two part-time faculty representatives. These will be “teaching only” representatives who have no other full time position on campus. They will be at-large representatives and may come from any department.

* Attachments A and B not included in Faculty Handbook.

§2. Election

1. Faculty. Each College department and represented program shall elect its own representative(s) and alternate(s).
2. Student. The Student Senate shall determine how the student representative(s) and alternate(s) shall be determined.

§3. Terms. All Senate terms shall run for one year from September to September.

§4. Supervision. Faculty representatives shall be validated to the Chair of the Senate before the first meeting of the College Senate for the academic year, as described in Article XI, Section 1. Student representatives shall be validated to the Chair of the Senate by the President of the Student Association before the first meeting of the College Senate for the academic year.

§5. Removal for Excessive Absence. A representative’s seat will be declared vacant and the constituency represented will redesignate a representative if the representative misses more than two meetings per semester. A meeting would not be considered missed if a properly designated alternate attends in place of the absent representative.

§6. Officers

1. Election and Term. All officers shall serve one year from September to September. The Faculty Presiding Officer, Alternate Presiding Officer, and Secretary shall serve as College Senate Chair, Vice Chair, and Secretary, respectively. The College Senate shall, by a majority vote, elect an Assistant Secretary from the official roster of Senate representatives.
2. Offices and Duties

i.        Chair. The Chair shall preside at meetings (except as provided in b.ii. below) of the Senate and shall be the Chair of the Steering Committee of the Senate.

ii.      Vice Chair. The Vice Chair shall act for and assist the Chair at his/her request.

iii.    Secretary. The Secretary shall record, keep, and distribute to the College community a full and accurate account of the Senate’s proceedings, acts, and agendas.

iv.     Assistant Secretary. The Assistant Secretary shall act for and assist the Secretary at his/her request.

§7. Committees

1. Steering Committee

i.        Composition. The Steering Committee shall consist of the Senate Officers plus three at large members elected from the official roster of Senate representatives by a majority vote for one year terms from September to September. The Steering Committee shall include representatives from the Faculty, professional staff, and students.

ii.      Duties. The Steering Committee shall set the agenda for Senate meetings, create ad hoc committees as necessary, and coordinate work of the Senate. It shall determine problems for study, assign problems to the appropriate standing or ad hoc committees, and review and coordinate the work of all standing committees. It shall also function as a rules committee to formulate rules of procedure for the Senate’s consideration and to interpret rules established by the Senate.

1. Ad Hoc Committees. Both the Senate at large and the Steering Committee may create committees to carry out specific projects. Such committees need not but may be drawn from the Senate membership.

§8. Meetings

a.      Regular Meetings. The Senate shall meet regularly at a time and place established by its Steering Committee. Its meetings shall be publicly announced, open to the College community and governed by Robert’s Rules of Order, Revised. The standing committees of the Faculty shall bear the same relationship to the Senate that they bear to the Faculty. The Senate shall hear and pass upon their recommendations.

b.      Annual Organizational Meeting. The Chair of the Senate shall call the first meeting of each academic year. At that meeting the Assistant Secretary and Steering Committee members shall be elected.

§9. Purpose and Powers. The College Senate shall provide a forum for the campus community to participate in the initiation, development, and implementation of the educational mission of the College. The Senate is empowered to act for the Faculty of the State University College at Oneonta in all matters, procedures, and prerogatives reserved to said Faculty in its meetings, except that decisions of the Faculty meeting as a whole may overrule decisions of the Senate.