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CONSTITUTION
of
the
SLIPPERY ROCK UNIVERSITY
FORUM
ARTICLE I. NAME AND MISSION
Section 1. Name. The name
of this organization shall be the Slippery Rock University
Forum.
Section 2. Mission. The
mission of the University Forum is to promote the welfare of
Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania and to enhance the sense
of community among students, staff, faculty, and administration
through direct communication and interaction. The Forum will
unite these diverse constituencies as common stakeholders in the
future of an institution in which we are all invested. The
Forum will actively construct, critique, and recommend policies for
the enhancement, development, and growth of the University.
Section 3. Functions. The
functions of the University Forum are:
A.
To be a representative, deliberate
body which participates in the governance of the University through
its meetings and through the work of its standing and special
committees,
B.
To discuss and express its views
about any matter affecting the University,
C.
To review and evaluate the
educational policies and practices of the University in order to
make specific recommendations concerning them to any individual,
administrative office, University official, or any group within the
University,
D.
To facilitate and encourage
communication within the University among students, faculty, staff
and administration,
E.
To assist in defining
policies and procedures to be applied in cases involving conscience
and academic freedom,
F.
To formulate and recommend to
the University President acceptance of the resolutions, reports or
results of the Committees of the Forum for the implementations
throughout the University,
G.
To encourage a friendly atmosphere
and fellowship among University students, faculty, staff and
administration.
ARTICLE II. MEMBERSHIP
Section 1. The University Forum
shall be chosen in the following manner.
A.
Each Academic Department (or its
equivalent) shall elect one representative for every fifteen
full-time equivalent members, calculated as of February
1st each year. (1-15 members = 1 representative,
16-30 = 2, 31-45 = 3, and so on). Faculty representatives
shall be elected for one-year terms and may be elected for
additional terms.
B.
Each Academic Department (or its
equivalent) shall select one student representative for up to fifty
majors or two representatives for each department whose major
exceed fifty, calculated as of February 1st each year.
(1-50 majors = 1 student representative, 51 or more = 2 student
representatives). Student representatives shall be selected
by the student majors and/or the faculty in that department.
They shall be selected for one-year terms and may be
re-selected.
C.
Each staff union or representative
organization (i.e. AFSCME, PNA, SPFPA, SCUPA, Coaches) shall elect
one representative for every fifteen full-time members, calculated
as of February 1st each year. (1-15 members = 1
representative, 16-30 = 2, 31-45 = 3, and so on). Staff
representatives shall be elected for one-year terms and may be
elected for additional terms.
D.
There shall be one graduate student
representative elected by the Association of Graduate students.
E.
The officers of APSCUF shall
serve ex-officio. (President, Vice-President, Secretary,
Treasurer, and two Executive Committee members-at-large.)
F.
The executive officers of SGA
shall serve as voting members of the Forum.
G.
The Administration of the
University shall be represented by any or all of the following: the
President, Vice-President, the Deans and Associate Deans, the
Associate Vice-President of Academic Affairs and the Director of
the Library.
H.
An Additional 8 faculty
representatives shall be elected “at large” each year
for 3-year terms and from the entire Faculty.
I.
Vacancies
occurring in Student or Faculty departmental representation shall
be filled immediately by the students or faculty of that
department.
ARTICLE III. OFFICERS OF THE UNIVERSITY FORUM
Section 1. Officers. The
Forum shall elect a Chairperson, a Vice-Chairperson, a Secretary,
and a Vice-Secretary.
A.
All officers of the Forum shall
serve for one year.
B.
All officers shall be elected by
and from the membership of the Forum after May 1st of
each year.
C.
A slate of officers shall be
presented by the Nominations and Elections Committee at the May
meeting, and additional nominations may be made from the floor with
the permission of those nominated from the floor.
Section 2. Duties of the
Officers. The officers of the Forum shall have these
duties.
A.
The Chairperson of the Forum shall
preside at all Forum and Executive Committee meetings and shall
appoint a parliamentarian who shall serve for one year. The
Chairperson shall oversee the creation of the agendas for each
Forum meeting.
B.
The Vice-Chairperson of the Forum
shall preside at the Forum meetings in the absence of the
Chairperson. The Vice-Chairperson shall oversee issues of
Forum promotion and publicity.
C.
The secretary shall keep the
minutes of the Forum and Executive Committee which are to be
published and distributed one week following each meeting; maintain
a permanent file of all correspondence and business of the Forum,
publish the minutes of the previous meeting; and prepare, publish
and distribute an agenda one week prior to each meeting.
D.
The Vice-Secretary shall assist the
Secretary of the Forum, provide an up-to-date roll of all members
and committees (maintained in conjunction with the Nominations and
Elections Committee), and take roll call at all meetings.
ARTICLE IV. ORGANIZATION OF THE FORUM
Section 1. Meetings of the Forum
A.
The first meeting of each year
shall occur in May at the call of the retiring Chairperson of the
Forum for the purpose of transferring records and for the election
of new officers and committees.
B.
Meetings shall occur on a regular
basis as determined by the University Common Hour schedule.
Locations shall be determined by the Executive Committee. The
Executive Committee may postpone or cancel any regularly scheduled
meeting whenever there is insufficient business to be brought to
the attention of the Forum.
C.
Meetings shall be open except when
in executive session.
D.
A quorum of the Forum shall be a
majority of the voting members of the Forum present at any meeting
at which a vote is taken.
E.
Meetings may be held in
executive session at the discretion of the Executive Committee or
by majority vote of the Forum in order to discuss matters of a
confidential nature.
F.
Special meetings shall be
convened at the discretion of the Executive Committee, the
President of the University, or upon the written request of twenty
percent of the members of the Forum. Notice must be received
by members twenty-four hours prior to the meeting.
G.
The Secretary of the Forum shall
distribute an agenda in advance of all regularly scheduled open
meetings of the Forum to all members of the Forum. The
Secretary shall also distribute minutes of each open meeting of the
Forum to all members of the Forum and to the Academic
Departments.
Section 2. Committees. The
Forum Chair shall be responsible for coordinating the duties and
activities of all Forum committees. The Forum shall have the
authority to request special committees. All committees shall
have the authority to create subcommittees and to call upon
consultants as they deem necessary in carrying out their assigned
functions. Committee members shall be elected from the Forum
and shall serve for one year, although reassignment to a committee
is highly desirable. The members of the Committees shall
elect their own Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, and Secretary unless
otherwise stipulated. Where vacancies on Committees occur,
the Executive Chairperson shall appoint replacements with
ratification by the Forum. The Committee shall appoint
replacements with ratification by the Forum. The Chairpersons
of all committees shall be expected to report on their committee
activities at each monthly meeting of the Forum. The
following committees are hereby created:
A.
The Executive Committee
(1)
The functions of the Executive Committee shall
be
a.
To coordinate the
activities and duties of the Forum,
b.
To fix the agenda for Forum
meetings,
c.
To consult with the
President of the University as needed to inquire about matters
which require the attention of the Forum.
(2)
The Committee shall consist of the
Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, Secretary, and Vice-Secretary of the
Forum. The previous chairperson shall serve in an advisory
capacity is she/he is no longer a member of the Forum. If the
previous Chairperson is not available, the previous
Vice-Chairperson, Secretary, or Vice-Secretary, taken in order,
shall serve.
(3)
The Chairperson and Secretary of the
Forum shall perform the same offices on this committee.
(4)
The meetings of the Executive Committee
shall be limited to those officers listed above and such other as
the committee may choose to invite.
B. Committee on Academic Environment
(1)
The function of this committee shall be
to consider all matters pertaining to the academic environment at
Slippery Rock University.
(2)
Membership
a.
The voting membership
of this committee shall consist of two Faculty members, two Student
members, two Staff members of the Forum and the SGA Vice-President
for Academic Affairs or his/her representative.
b.
The Vice-President for
Academic Affairs or his/her representative shall serve as an
ex-officio member.
C. Committee on Nominations and Elections
(1)
The functions of the committee are
a.
To supervise the
election of members of the Forum by
[1] Determining
the number of faculty and student Forum members to which each
department is entitled, notifying Department Chairpersons of those
numbers, and assuring that departmental members are selected by the
time of the department meeting nearest to April 1,
[2] Soliciting self-nominations
from faculty who wish to be elected at-large by April 15,
[3] Conducting by
mail a secret ballot election for at-large vacancies on the
Forum. At least seven school days must be allowed for return
of ballot. Counting of ballots is to take place prior to
April 30th,
[4] Submitting to
the secretary and all Forum members within three school days
following April 30th a list of those elected,
[5] Encouraging
that departments fill vacancies that occur between elections.
b. The membership of the
Committee on Nominations and Elections shall consist of two
Faculty, two Staff, and two Students Forum members as well as the
President and Vice President of Academic Affairs for SGA.
D. Recommendations Committee
(1)
The function of this committee shall be
to draft recommendations to appropriate student, staff, faculty and
administrative groups based upon Forum discussions, debates and
resolutions.
(2)
Membership
a.
The voting membership
of this committee shall consist of two faculty, two staff and two
student members of the Forum.
ARTICLE V. AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION
Section 1. Amendments to this
Constitution may be proposed at any regular or special meeting of
the University Forum providing
-
They are presented first in writing to the Executive Committee,
signed by at least fifteen members of the Forum and voted upon at
the following meeting.
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That voting shall be by written ballot with a two-thirds
majority of those present necessary for passage.
Revised 11/2/00
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