Alfred University Student Senate

AU Student Senate Constitution

This is the official version of the Constitution as of 30 January 2009.

Article I. Senate

Section 1. This body shall be called the Student Senate of Alfred University.

Section 2. This body shall be comprised of Senators and Representatives from the student body of Alfred University.

Article II. Membership

Section 1. All full-time and graduate students are eligible to be members of the Student Senate.

  1. The voting members of the Student Senate shall be called Senators.
  2. Non-voting members who attend meetings are called Representatives.
  3. It follows that all members of Student Senate, both Representatives and Senators, retain all of the same rights, with the exception of voting rights.

Section 2. Each Senator shall be nominated and elected by the people that they represent. Representation in Senate is based on population. A group containing one hundred and twenty (120) students or fewer shall have one (1) Senator and one alternate. A group with a population over one hundred twenty (120) shall elect two (2) Senators and one alternate.

  1. The residence areas are as follows:
    1. Upper Pine Hill Suites – Crawford, Norwood, Phillips, and Tredennick.
    2. Lower Pine Hill Suites – Davis, Kenyon, and Shults
    3. Barresi
    4. Bartlett
    5. Brick
    6. Cannon
    7. Kruson
    8. Openhym
    9. Reimer
    10. Tefft
    11. Ford Street Apartments – Athena, Bacchus Medusa, Mercury, Pegasus, and Thor
    12. Each special interest house registered with the Office of Residence Life may receive one (1) vote.
  2. All residence areas shall elect their own Senator internally from among residents of that area.
  3. All other Senate-recognized organizations shall elect their own Senator internally.
  4. The off-campus population is defined as those people registered with the University but not living in housing affiliated with the Alfred University. Off-campus Senators shall be elected as follows:
    1. All interested persons shall contact the Executive Board.
    2. In the event of two or more interested persons, a motion shall be raised on the floor to elect the representative for off-campus students or to replace the incumbent representative.

Section 3.

  1. Senators are required to attend Student Senate according to the Attendance Policy as described in the By-Laws. Failure to do so will result in punitive measures outlined in the By-Laws.
  2. In order for organizations to elect their Senator(s), there will be a two (2) week grace period at the beginning of each fall semester during which attendance at Senate meetings is not required. There will be a one (1) week grace period at the beginning of the spring semester during which attendance will not be required.
  3. No Senator may represent more than one (1) organization at any given time.

Section 4. All new student organizations that meet the following requirements shall have voting rights in the Student Senate, following the Student Senate Secretary’s notification, that this criteria has been met.

  1. Recognition from Alfred University.
  2. Have held regular meetings with steady membership for at least one (1) year
  3. Steady attendance at the Student Senate for one year

Section 5. All student organizations that have lost their voting rights shall regain their voting rights by meeting the following requirements:

  1. Meet all of the requirements outlined in Article II, Section 4.
  2. Petition the Executive Board of the Student Senate for reinstatement within two years after the loss of voting rights. Reinstatement is granted by a five sixth (5/6) majority of the Executive Board. After two (2) years, the organization will be deemed "new" and therefore subject to Article II, Sections 4 & 6 of the Constitution.
  3. Organizations whose voting rights have been reinstated may only receive a budget through regular budget hearings. They are not eligible for a temporary budget from Special Allocations.

Section 6. Only organizations that have voting rights and are open to all students are eligible to receive Senate funding.

Article III. Executive Officers

Section 1. The executive officers of the Student Senate shall be the President, Vice President, Treasurer, Secretary, Financial Committee Chairperson, Publicity Director and Diversity Director.

Section 2. The President and Vice-President shall be elected by a campus-wide election organized and run by the Elections Committee.

  1. Nominations shall be opened the first day of classes of the Spring semester to any full-time Alfred University student.
  2. Standardized nominating petitions with one hundred and fifty (150) names of fellow students shall be due four (4) weeks after the start of the spring semester. The Elections Committee shall validate all petitions.
  3. Voting shall be done by secret ballot and will occur no later than five (5) weeks after the start of the spring semester.
  4. The term of office shall run from the first Student Senate meeting after the election to the corresponding meeting the following year.
  5. No person may be elected to the office of the President for more than two (2) consecutive terms.

Section 3. The Secretary, Treasurer, and Publicity Director shall be elected by a majority vote of the voting members of the Student Senate at their first meeting following the elections of President and Vice-President.

  1. Vacancies and job descriptions shall be publicly posted throughout the campus.
  2. The Student Senate shall be notified of vacancies.

Section 4. The Financial Committee Chairperson shall be elected as follows:

  1. No later than five (5) weeks after the beginning of each Spring semester, candidates shall be reviewed for the position of Finance Committee Chairperson by the current President, the current Finance Chairperson (if s/he is not seeking reelection), and three (3) elected senators or representatives. This group shall nominate a candidate.
  2. Upon a majority vote of the full Student Senate in favor, the nominee selected in A. above shall become the Finance Committee Chairperson-Elect. The Finance Committee Chairperson-Elect:
    1. Shall have the right to be present at all budget hearings and proceedings of the Finance Committee, but may not vote unless s/he already holds membership in said committee.
    2. Shall assist the Finance Committee Chairperson in budget hearing preparations and other duties for the purpose of learning about the position.
    3. Shall not have the authority to act as the Finance Committee Chairperson until s/he assumes said office, as described in C below and elsewhere.
  3. The term of the previous Finance Committee Chairperson shall end and the Finance Committee Chairperson-Elect shall assume the office of the Finance Committee Chairperson upon the close of the normal annual budget hearing process or upon the end of the Spring semester, whichever is earlier. For purposes of this provision, the normal annual budget hearing process shall be deemed “closed” when all budgets from the normal annual budget hearing that were presented to the Student Senate floor have been approved and no appeals were filed by the due date or upon the constitutional resolution of any issues giving rise to appeals or votes of rejection.

Section 5. The Diversity Director shall be elected as follows:

  1. No later than five (5) weeks after the beginning of each Spring semester, applications for the position shall be reviewed by the President, the Diversity Director (if not seeking re-election), the Director of A.L.A.N.A. Affairs, and a committee of three senators. After review of applications, the committee shall interview each applicant. This group shall nominate a candidate.
  2. Upon a majority vote of the full Student Senate in favor, the nominee selected in A. above shall become the new Diversity Director.

Article IV. Duties of Officers

Section 1. The duties of the President shall be as follows:

  1. Preside and chair at all general meetings of the Student Senate.
  2. Establish the agenda of all general meetings of the Student Senate.
  3. Represent student interest and serve as a liaison between the student body and the faculty/administration.

Section 2. The duties of the Vice-President shall be as follows:

  1. Assume the position and duties of the President in case of the absence of that officer.
  2. Assist with the agenda.
  3. Act as a non-voting member of the Finance Committee.
  4. Conduct committee chair elections.
  5. Act as a non-voting member and oversee all operational and ad-hoc committees.
  6. The Vice-President must request reports from the committee chairs on a regular basis.
  7. Oversee operating conditions of the Recreation Center in Ade Hall.
  8. Organize and oversee the Block Party and Home Coming events.

Section 3. The duties of the Secretary shall be as follows:

  1. Record the minutes of the general meetings of the Student Senate.
  2. Prepare all written correspondence.
  3. Keep an up-to-date record of the constitution.
  4. Record at each meeting the attendance of each Senator.
  5. Act as parliamentarian.
  6. Notify the organization’s Senator, President, and advisor if a Senator has failed to maintain attendance.
  7. Prepare and distribute the weekly agenda.

Section 4. The duties of the Treasurer shall be as follows:

  1. Account for all Student Senate funds.
  2. Present a financial report to the full Senate at the beginning and end of every semester.
  3. Serve as a non-voting member of the Finance Committee.
  4. Pay all bills of regulated organizations up to the allocated amount by Student Senate, unless otherwise permitted by the Finance Committee.

Section 5. The duties of the Finance Chairperson shall be as follows:

  1. Preside over all Finance Committee meetings and Finance Hearings.
  2. Keep records of all financial investigations done by the committee. A copy of such records shall be kept in the office of the Student Senate.

Section 6. The duties of the Publicity Director shall be as follows:

  1. Be in charge of any publicity connected with Student Senate projects.
  2. Purchase necessary supplies needed for publicity for Student Senate.
  3. Act as director of the student-advertising agency.

Section 7. The duties of the Diversity Director shall be as follows:

  1. To work with student organizations to promote all forms of diversity on campus.
  2. To work with Admissions in encouraging a more diverse student body.
  3. To use any appropriate measures they see fit to encourage and promote awareness of current diversity issues.
  4. To organize and oversee programs which invite and encourage a more unified student body.
  5. To head the Diversity Education Committee.

Section 8. The Senate Executive Board shall function within the bounds of this Constitution. The Executive Board shall be subject to the orders of the Student Senate, and none of its acts shall conflict with action taken by the Student Senate as a whole.

Section 9. The President and Vice President are prohibited from holding any executive positions in any other organization represented in the Student Senate.

Section 10. The Treasurer and Finance Chair are prohibited from holding an executive financial position in any organization represented in the Student Senate.

Article V. Order of Succession

Section 1. Vacancies of Executive Offices

  1. In case of a vacancy in the office of the President, the Vice-President shall succeed the former’s position. The Senate will then elect a new Vice-President by a majority vote after having taken nominations for two (2) weeks following the vacancy.
  2. In the case of a vacancy in the office of President where the Vice-President does not wish to assume the vacant position, the following contingency election plan shall be enacted.
    1. At the first official Senate meeting in which the Vice-President has declined to accept the position of President, an announcement will be made by the Acting President that nominations for the position of President are open.
    2. Any student who wishes to become a presidential candidate must obtain a sponsorship form from the Student Senate Executive Board.
      1. These forms require that each candidate be sponsored by at least 6 recognized student clubs or organizations.
      2. Sponsorship is indicated by the signature of the club or organization President as well as the signatures of 3 active members on the sponsorship form.
      3. No limitation is placed on the number of candidates that each club or organization can sponsor.
    3. Nominations will close the following Tuesday at 5 pm. At that time all completed sponsorship forms will be due at the Student Senate Office.
    4. One week after the announcement opening nominations for the position of President, voting will be held during the normal Student Senate session.
      1. All attending senators representing recognized student clubs and organizations are eligible to vote in a contingency election.
      2. Voting will be conducted by secret ballot.
      3. A majority vote (51%) is required for the election of a President.
      4. Ballots will be tallied while Senate is in session, to allow for quick action if no candidate achieves majority.
      5. If no candidate achieves a majority vote, a run-off election will take place between the top two candidates of the previous vote.
  3. If the President and Vice-President vacate their position at the same time, the Secretary becomes the acting President until a campus wide election is held.
  4. If all three (3) offices are vacant at once, the Student Senate under the supervision of the elections committee shall appoint a temporary President, until elections are held. Such an appointment requires a majority vote by the Student Senate.
  5. In case of a vacancy in the office of the Vice-President, the Secretary shall assume the role of Vice-President.
    1. The position of Vice-President must be filled if it is to remain vacant for more than one (1) month during which regular classes are in session.
    2. If this position is to be filled, nominations and elections will be run as prescribed in Article V, Section 1, within three (3) weeks after the office is officially declared vacant.

Section 2. If the position of Secretary, Treasurer, or Publicity Director is vacated, the new officer will be selected by the following procedure:

  1. Nominations will be taken for two (2) senate meetings.
  2. The Campus must be made aware of the open position.
  3. The Student Senate shall vote on the nominees. Each nominee must be elected by a majority vote.

Section 3. In case of a vacancy in the office of the Finance Committee Chairperson, the Finance Committee Chairperson–Elect shall assume the office of the Finance Committee Chairperson. If the vacancy occurs when no Finance Committee Chairperson-Elect has been chosen, the Treasurer shall assume the Finance Committee Chairperson’s duties until a replacement Finance Committee Chairperson is

  1. Nominated by a committee consisting of the Student Senate President and three (3) members elected from the Student Senate floor.
  2. Confirmed by a majority vote of the Student Senate floor.

Section 4. If the position of Diversity Director is vacated, the new officer will be selected by the following procedure:

  1. A committee consisting of the Senate President, the Director of A.L.A.N.A. Affairs, and a committee of three Senators shall nominate a replacement Director.
  2. Upon a majority vote of the full Student Senate in favor, the nominee selected in A. above shall become the new Diversity Director, until the following Spring semester, in which the normal election process will take place.

Article VI. Impeachment

Section 1. All officers of the Student Senate are subject to impeachment under the following guidelines:

  1. Impeachment may be proposed by any member of the Senate for one (1) or more of the following reasons:
    1. Misrepresentation of the student body.
    2. Misuse of Senate funds.
    3. Failure to fulfill the duties stated in this constitution.
  2. The Student Senate must vote to approve the continuation of the impeachment process by a two thirds (2/3) vote via secret ballot. The Faculty Advisor of the Student Senate shall oversee the voting.
  3. The impeachment procedure may only be proposed by a Senator and or Representative, and shall be as follows:
    1. A proposal for impeachment must be made in open forum, or by a petition of one hundred and fifty (150) or more students.
    2. After the vote of continuation has been ratified, the officer has the right to hold office until proven guilty or to resign prior to the impeachment vote.
    3. The next general Senate meeting shall be devoted to the impeachment process. The Student Senate advisor shall moderate the proceeding. Roberts Rules of Order shall govern the proceeding.
    4. Immediately following the proceeding, the Student Senate shall take a vote. No person shall be removed from office without a three-fourths (3/4) vote of the Senate in favor of removal.

Article VII. Meetings

Section 1. The President must call the first meeting of the Student Senate by the third week of each semester.

  1. The agenda for each meeting shall be made available to the Senate Body at least twenty-four (24) hours in advance of the meeting.
  2. Minutes from a meeting must be made available to the Student Body no more than forty-eight (48) hours after the meeting.

Section 2. Special Meetings

  1. The President shall also have the power to call additional meetings of the Student Senate when deemed necessary.
  2. Special meetings require a minimum of twenty-four (24) hours notice to the public. During this time, it is the Secretary’s duty to inform all senators of this meeting.
  3. All Special Meetings shall adhere to the same standard rules that guide regular meetings.

Section 3. Voting

  1. A majority of those qualified to vote shall constitute a quorum.
  2. In the event of a tie vote, the President or designee may vote to break the tie.

Section 4. Closing Procedures

  1. The Student Senate or a Senate committee reserves the right to close a meeting to the public by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of its members.
  2. Senators are not allowed to leave a meeting until ninety minutes (90) after the call to order, or adjournment, whichever comes first. Senators may vote to extend the meeting by a majority vote, but are not required to stay.

Article VIII. Committees

Section 1. Standing committees are the Finance and Elections committees.

Section 2. Operational committees

  1. Standing committee chairpersons will be elected by the floor for the Food, Buildings & Grounds, and Telecommunications committees.
  2. The Vice President will serve as the standing committee chairperson of the Miscellaneous Concerns committee.
  3. Concerns shall be expressed during open forum or to the committee chairperson. If necessary, committee meetings will be held prior to the Senate meeting the following week.
  4. All major concerns presented on the floor that fall under a committee and do not require a committee meeting will be addressed by the appropriate chairperson and results will be reported to the Vice President.
  5. Senators who express a concern that leads to the conduction of a committee meeting are expected to attend the committee meeting about the concern.
  6. After a committee meeting has occurred, a report will be presented to the floor.

Section 3. All committees that are formed as they are needed shall be called Ad-Hoc Committees.

  1. Members of the committee will elect a chairperson. Other members shall consist of any students who are interested.
  2. Ad-Hoc Committees shall be run according to Robert’s Rules of Order. If the chairperson relinquishes their duties then a new chair will be appointed.
  3. During active semesters, a member of an Ad Hoc Committee must give a progress report to the Vice-President of Student Senate at the end of the semester.
  4. The Student Senate may dissolve any Ad Hoc Committee by a majority vote.

Article IX. Parliamentary Authority

Section 1. The parliamentary procedure of the Student Senate meetings shall be run as prescribed in this Constitution and By-Laws. Robert’s Rules of Order shall settle issues with points of order.

Article X. Amendments to the Constitution

Section 1. An amendment may be proposed by: any voting Senator or by the Senate Executive Board.

Section 2. A proposed amendment to the Student Senate Constitution shall be submitted to an ad-hoc committee entitled the Constitution Rules Committee.

  1. The amendment must be investigated for at least one (1) week. At the end of the investigation the amendment shall be presented before the Student Senate with the committee’s findings.
  2. The following votes will be overseen by the Rules Committee:
    1. A vote will be taken to determine if Senators want the amendment to be ratified by the student body.
    2. At the request of thirty-three percent (33%) of the Student Senate, the amendment is taken to the student body and must be ratified by a majority of the students who voted.
    3. Otherwise the amendment is passed by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Student Senate.

Article XI. Special Allocations

Section 1. Senate Allocations

  1. Requests for funding must be presented to the Executive Board first. The Senate Executive Board, as a whole, shall review all requests for money from Senate Allocations, and reserve the right to veto a request if it does not support the mission of the Student Senate or is in violation of the constitution.
  2. Once reviewed by the Executive Board, the proposal must be approved by a majority vote of the Senate.
  3. Senate Allocations are used for:
    1. Senate’s working budget.
    2. Sponsoring a Senate or Student initiative that benefits the entire campus.
    3. Paying for unforeseen opportunities or situations.

By-Laws

Section 1. Elections

  1. All full-time undergraduate and graduate students in good academic standing with the university are eligible to run for executive positions.
  2. All funding for campaign publicity shall be provided by Senate Allocations:
    1. The elections committee shall set the Campaign Budgets.
    2. All publicity shall be done through the Poly-Pro office.
    3. Campaigning for an office cannot commence more than three (3) weeks prior to the set election date.
    4. No campaigning materials can be located within 200 feet of any voting station.
  3. The Elections Committee will secure two (2) locations at either end of campus for voting purposes.
  4. The election ballot must allow for a write-in candidate, for each position available.
  5. Abstentions will not be considered when tallying votes, but must be recorded in the records.
  6. A majority vote is defined as receiving fifty percent plus one (50% + 1) of the eligible ballots.
  7. In order for a candidate to be elected to a position a majority vote is required. If no candidate receives a majority, vote a run-off election will take place between the top two candidates, from the previous vote.
    1. Write-in votes will not be counted in a run-off election.
    2. If no candidate can receive a majority vote, one (1) week prior to the last official Senate meeting of the fiscal year, the Student Senate shall vote a candidate into office by a quorum vote.
  8. The President and Vice President must be installed at the same meeting, which shall occur the week immediately following the election.
  9. The electoral process for President and Vice President, are governed by the Elections Committee, in which no standing member may run for either of the offices.
  10. The electoral processes for all other positions are to be governed by the presiding President.

Section 2. Finance Regulation

  1. All official Senate Financial Regulations appear in the Alfred University Student Senate Finance Policies & Procedures.
  2. Amendments to the Alfred University Student Senate Finance Policies & Procedures will follow the same process as amending the By-Laws described in Section 4, A.

Section 3. Attendance Policy

All organizations eligible for voting rights as described in Article II, Sections 4 & 5 of the Student Senate Constitution are subject to the policy described below.

  1. The attendance year begins the day the Budget Hearings start and continues until the next Budget Hearing a year later.
  2. Any organization missing five (5) senate meetings in a year, without prior notification as defined by the Student Senate Secretary, will be placed on probation and lose twenty-five percent (25%) of their budget for the following year.
  3. An organization on probation will begin the following year with no infractions of the attendance policy provided they miss no additional meetings, since going on probation.
  4. Any organization missing six (6) senate meetings in a year, without prior notification as defined by the Senate Secretary will not submit a budget at the next Budget Hearing.
  5. An organization that misses seven (7) or more Senate meetings in a year shall have their voting privileges revoked. These organizations are then subject to Article II, Section 5 of the Constitution.

Section 4. Amending of By-laws

  1. An amendment may be proposed by: any voting Senator or by the Senate Executive Board.
  2. A proposed amendment to the Student Senate By-Laws shall be submitted to an ad-hoc committee entitled the By-Laws Rules Committee.
    1. The amendment must be investigated for at least one (1) week. At the end of the investigation the amendment shall be presented before the Student Senate with the committee’s findings.
    2. The following votes will be overseen by the Rules Committee:
      1. A vote will be taken to determine if Senators want the amendment to be ratified by the student body.
      2. At the request of twenty-five percent (25%) of the Student Senate, the amendment is taken to the student body and must be ratified by a majority of the students who voted.
      3. Otherwise the amendment is passed by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Student Senate.

Section 5. Amendments to the By-laws

  1. The voting privileges of all Residence Halls shall be reinstated at the beginning of every school year.
  2. Residence Halls are ineligible for regular Senate funding.

Section 6. Finance Hearings

  1. The hearing date must be established by one (1) week after the Finance Chair has been installed.
  2. All budgets must be submitted two (2) weeks prior to the set hearing date.
  3. Money raised through fundraising events must be recorded and submitted, but cannot be included as part of the organizations operating budget.
  4. The Finance Committee reserves the right to cut any budget up to ten percent (10%) in the event of financial limitations on the Student Senate. Locations for the cuts within a particular budget are open to negotiation.
  5. The Student Senate of Alfred University following Budget Hearings must approve all budgets.
    1. A full outline of every organizations budget request must be made available to the student body prior to the Senate Meeting where the vote is to take place.
    2. Every budget up for vote must include the requested budget, that year’s current budget, and at minimum the previous two (2) years budgets, for reference purposes.
    3. The Student Senate reserves the right to veto a proposed budget(s) by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Senate. The Senate can choose to veto individual budgets, or all of the budgets, but once a budget has been approved it cannot be vetoed.