Staff Senate Bylaws

The Staff Senate of East Tennessee State University shall be governed by the following Bylaws in the conduct of its business.

ARTICLE I

The Senate shall establish committees to study and make reports on matters of concern to the university staff. Committees created by the Senate become committees of the Senate, receive their authority from the Senate, and shall report their findings and make their recommendations to the Senate.

• A. Policies and Procedures of the Senate Committees. Senate committees shall not act independently of the Senate, and all statements and actions of these committees shall be presented to the Senate for consideration. Committee work shall be done as a body and not by action of the Chair, either alone or following consultation with individual members of the committee. Actions taken shall be those of the committee as a whole representing a majority vote. Minority reports and recommendations may be submitted to the Senate if desired by dissenting committee members. A majority of the committee membership shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of all business of the committee.
• B. Standing Committees. The Senate shall elect members annually to the standing committees at the October meeting, or at a called meeting prior to the October meeting. Standing committees shall be maintained at full membership as necessary and shall file minutes and any other pertinent reports in writing with the Secretary of the Senate at least seven (7) workdays prior to each regularly scheduled meeting of the Senate when committee business is to be placed on the agenda. Except for the Executive Committee, the size of committees shall be limited to four (4) duly elected Senators appointed by the President. The Chair shall be appointed by the President at the same time. The standing committees of the Senate are as follows: Committee on Staff Concerns and Grievances, Committee on Staff Senate Elections, Committee on Staff Development and Evaluation, and Committee on Committees. (Amended 9/96)
• C. Duties of Standing Committees
1. Committee on Staff Concerns and Grievances. The Committee on Staff Concerns and Grievances shall:
• a. when appropriate, study and review university policies including but not restricted to such things as:
1. staff salaries and benefits;
2. staff personnel policies including those related to appointments, promotion, and dismissal.
The Committee shall also act as an appeals agency to hear grievances filed by individual staff members. The Committee is charged with developing procedures for this purpose, subject to Senate approval. (Amended 9/96)
2. Committee on Staff Senate Elections. Committee on Staff Senate Elections is charged with the following responsibilities:
• a. formulating a standardized procedure for elections to the Senate;
• b. supervising the conduct of said elections;
• c. conducting the annual election of Staff Senate officers and of the elected members of the Executive Committee;
• d. ruling on the eligibility of nominees and voters;
• e. formulating a standardized procedure for receiving nominations for Senate and other offices. These procedures will be governed by the following guidelines:
• (1) elections to the Senate shall be conducted annually during the month of July.
• (2) special elections, to fill Senate vacancies, shall be conducted as expeditiously as possible following certification of the vacancy (Amended 4/2001).
3. Committee on Staff Development and Evaluation. The Committee shall be concerned with the following staff developmental activities:
• a. Training: Encourage formal training, assist in formulating workshops and seminars, and provide information concerning outside training programs.
• b. Evaluation: Conduct periodic reviews of the evaluation process, including forms and make recommendations concerning evaluation.
4. Committee on Committees. The Committee on Committees shall receive from all standing Senate committees an annual report of the activities and recommendations of the committee. The Committee on Committees shall be concerned with but not restricted to such things as:
• a. staffing of Senate committees. Upon request by the President of the Senate, names of staff members will be submitted to the President of the Senate and to the Executive Committee, when appropriate, from which committee appointments will be made.
• b. making recommendations to the President of the University for staff appointees to Standing University Committees and for the formation of additional committees or changes in the scope of existing committees.
An annual report of the activities and recommendations of the Committee on Committees shall be made to the President of the Staff Senate, who shall submit the report to the President of the University.

ARTICLE II MEETINGS

The Staff Senate shall hold one (1) regularly scheduled meeting each month at such time as specified by the membership of the Senate. Special meetings may be called by the President upon petition of ten (10) members of the Senate with notification of such meetings being made, in writing, to all members of the Senate at least three (3) workdays prior to such meetings. Except for executive sessions, all meetings of the Senate shall be open to any member of the university community and such visitors as may be invited in advance by the President of the Senate. (Amended 9/96) The Senate may go into executive session by approval of two-thirds (2/3) of the members present.

ARTICLE III QUORUM

A majority of the elected membership of the Staff Senate shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of all business of the Senate.

ARTICLE IV ORDER OF BUSINESS

The following shall be the order of business at each meeting of the Staff Senate:

• A. Call to order and roll call.
• B. Reading and approval of minutes.
• C. Reports from officers and Senate committees.
• D. Unfinished business.
• E. New business.

ARTICLE V RULES OF ORDER

All business of the Staff Senate shall be conducted in accordance with Robert's Rules of Order. A parliamentarian shall be appointed by the Executive Committee and confirmed by the Senate at its September meeting each year and shall advise on matters of parliamentary procedure. (Amended 9/96)

ARTICLE VI AMENDMENT PROCEDURE

• A. Initiation. The Bylaws may be altered by an initiatory procedure begun in either of the following ways:
1. By a petition signed by one-third (1/3) of the full-time staff members of the University.
2. Through a proposal supported by one-third (1/3) of the Staff Senate members.
• B. Ratification. Any amendments shall be adopted and ratified by a majority of Staff Senators voting in an official Senate meeting to be held no sooner than one (1) week after the initiatory procedure has been completed.

1. This amendment, effective September, 1996, amends Article I, Section B., Standing Committees, to read:
• The Senate shall confirm members annually to the standing committees at the October meeting, or at a called meeting prior to the October meeting.
• Standing committees shall be maintained at full membership as necessary and shall file minutes and any other pertinent reports in writing with the Secretary of the Senate at least seven (7) workdays prior to each regularly scheduled meeting of the Senate when committee business is to be placed on the agenda.
• Except for the Executive Committee, the size of committees shall be limited to four (4) duly elected Senators appointed by the President. The Chair shall be appointed by the President at the same time.
The standing committees of the Senate are as follows:
• Committee on Staff Concerns,
• Committee on Staff Senate Elections,
• Committee on Staff Development and Evaluation, and
• Committee on Committees.
2. This amendment, effective September, 1996, amends Article I, Section C., Duties of Standing Committee, Subsection 1., to read:
• The Committee on Staff Concerns shall:
• a. when appropriate, study and review university policies including but not restricted to such things as:
1. staff salaries and benefits;
2. staff personnel policies including those related to appointments, promotion, and dismissal.
• b. Act as the appeal agency for violations of the Staff Senate attendance policy. The committee shall:
1. review the attendance records upon notice by the Staff Senate Secretary;
2. notify the Staff Senator, in writing, that his/her membership has been terminated and that he/she has a right to appeal within 30 days;
3. upon receipt of written appeal from the Staff Senator, meet with the Staff Senator to discuss mitigating circumstances;
4. report the Committee’s recommendation for upholding termination of membership or reinstating membership to the Senate for vote.
5. The decision of the Senate is final.
3. This amendment, effective September, 1996, amends Article II, Meetings., first paragraph, to read: The Staff Senate shall hold one (1) regularly scheduled meeting each month at such time as specified by the membership of the Senate. Special meetings may be called by the Executive Committee or by the President upon petition of ten (10) members of the Senate with notification of such meetings being made, in writing, to all members of the Senate at least three (3) workdays prior to such meetings. Except for executive sessions, all meetings of the Senate shall be open to any member of the university community and such visitors as may be invited in advance by the President of the Senate.
4. This amendment, effective September, 1996, amends Article V, Rules of Order, to read: All business of the Staff Senate shall be conducted in accordance with Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised. A parliamentarian shall be appointed by the Executive Committee and confirmed by the Senate at its September meeting each year and shall advise on matters of parliamentary procedure.
5. This amendment, effective April, 2001, amends Article I, C: 2. e. (2) to read: Each category will be ranked by number of votes received in the election. In order of votes received and in the appropriate category, alternates will be appointed to fill the remainder of the term of the Staff Senate vacancies. If less than six (6) months remain of a Senator's term, that space will not be filled but will be left vacant until the next election is held in July.