By-Laws
BY-LAWS OF THE FACULTY SENATE
Article I
MEMBERSHIP
Section 1.
The faculty Senate shall be composed of eleven (11)
faculty representatives and one (1) elected President.
Section 2.
The eleven (11) faculty representatives will be elected
from representative constituencies of the faculty as defined
in Article I Section 4 of the By-Laws.
Section 3.
Upon the election of officers of the Faculty Senate,
the constituency represented by the President will elect
another representative for the tenure of one (1) academic
year.
Section 4.
the faculty electorate is divided into the constituencies
in accordance with Article III, Section 3 of the Constitution.
The constituencies will be designated by the Executive
Committee of the Faculty Senate and presented to the entire
Senate for approval.
Section 5.
The election of a Senator from a particular constituency
will require a simple majority vote. The Secretary of the
Senate will prepare and distribute ballots listing all
eligible candidates who have expressed a willingness to
be elected. The outgoing Senator will provide the
Secretary with the names of the eligible candidates. Only
members of the electing constituency. Voting will
be by secret ballot which will be returned to the Secretary
of the Senate, who will count the ballots with the assistance
of two tellers from the electing constituency. One
of the appointed tellers will be the outgoing Senator from
the electing constituency.
Section 6.
Election of Senators will be held by the affected constituency
in a timely fashion so that the newly elected Senator will
be in attendance at the May meeting of the Faculty Senate.
Article II
DUTIES AND TERM OF OFFICERS
Section 1.
The President will have the following duties:
- To
call Senate meetings at his discretion and prepare and
distribute the agenda;
- To preside at all Senate meetings;
- To appoint all Senate ad hoc committees and
the respective chairpersons; and
- To call executive Senate meetings at their
discretion.
Section 2.
The Vice President will
have the following duties:
- To preside in the absence of the President;
and
- To coordinate the activities of the Senate
committees.
Section 3.
The Secretary will
have the
following duties:
- To keep appropriate records;
- To publish the minutes of meetings of the
Senate;
- To furnish sufficient copies of the minutes of all
Senate meetings to all members
of the electorate, the administration, and the Board of Trustees;
- To prepare and process all routine correspondence pertaining
to the Senate; and
- To process all matters of business pertaining to the
Senate.
Section 4.
The
officers
shall
be
elected
at the April meeting
of
the
Senate
for
a
term
of
one
(1) year.
Section 5.
New
officers
will
assume
duties
at
the
conclusion
of
the
May
meeting,
but
prior
to
the
September
meeting
will
act only
after
a
called
meeting
has
been
scheduled
by
the
President.
Article III
AGENDA
Section 1.
The agenda for all regular and special meetings will
be prepared and distributed to the members of the Senate
at least three (3) class days prior to the particular meeting.
Section 2.
Any member of the electorate may present items for
the agenda in writing to his Senator. The Senators will
deliver such items to the President, who will place them
on the agenda for the next regular meeting of the Senate.
Section 3.
All agenda items, including committee deliberations
and reports that are under the unfinished business agenda
shall be suspended during the interim between the May and
September meetings. Those unfinished business items
shall appear as new business on the September agenda.
Section 4.
Special meetings of the Senate may be called by the President
for consideration of business during the interval between
May and September.
Article IV
VOTING
Section 1.
All elected Senators share an equal vote on all matters
of the Faculty Senate. Duly elected Senators must be present
to vote.
Section 2.
To preclude double representation, the President will not
break a tie vote. A motion which results in a tie
vote will automatically fail for lack of a simple majority.
Article V
COMMITTEES
Section 1.
The Executive Committee will consist of the three (3)
officers of the Faculty Senate and two (2) Senators appointed
by the Senate.
Section 2.
The function of the Executive Committee will be to
serve as the Senate's designated spokesperson to the President
and Vice President for Instruction of Odessa College. The
Executive Committee will meet with the President and Vice
President for Instruction on a regular basis as needed.
Section 3.
Senate committees, with the exception of the Executive
Committee, will be ad hoc.
Section 4.
Chairpersons of the Senate committees will have authority
to appoint subcommittees and to call special meetings of
their committees at their discretion.
Section 5.
Each committee will maintain accurate, permanent records
of its proceedings and findings. Following presentation
of committee reports to the Senate, a copy of these reports
will be submitted to the Secretary of the Senate.
Article VI
ORDER OF BUSINESS
Section 1.
The order of business at Faculty Senate meetings will
be as follows:
Call to Order
Roll Call
Reading of Minutes
Announcements
Reports of Senate Committees
Unfinished Business
New Business
Adjournment
Article VII
SUSPENSION
Suspension of any part of the By-Laws will
require a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Senators present
Article VII
AMENDMENT
These
By-Laws may be amended at any meeting of the Senate by
two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Senators
present. Written notice of the proposed amendments
will be given to all Senators three (3) class days prior
to the meeting.
