I - 2.00(A) - UMB FACULTY SENATE BY-LAWS

(Approved by the UMB Faculty Senate on November 18, 1998)

ARTICLE I

The Officers of the Faculty Senate shall be the President, the VicePresident, and the Secretary. Officers must be members of the Faculty Senate and terms of office begin on July 1st. The President shall be elected for a term of two years and, upon completion of this term, shall serve two additional years on the Senate Advisory Council. The Vice President and the Secretary shall be elected for one-year terms and may serve two consecutive terms. In the event that one of the officers resigns from the Senate, an election will be held to fill the remainder of the officer's term.

1. The President shall have the duties of administering the policies of the Faculty Senate, generally supervising all activities and presiding at all meetings of the Senate and the Senate Advisory Council. If the President must act in behalf of the Faculty Senate before a Faculty Senate meeting is feasible, the President should consult with the Advisory Council. Upon completion of the two-year term as President, the immediate Past-President will continue as a member of the Advisory Council for two more years.
2. The Vice-President shall have the duties usually assigned to this office, including such tasks as may be delegated by the President. In the absence of the President, the Vice-President shall preside over meetings of the Faculty Senate and the Senate Advisory Council.
3. The Secretary shall arrange for the taking and distribution of minutes of all proceedings of the Faculty Senate and the Senate Advisory Council, for compiling and indexing the measures formally adopted, and for such other tasks as are designed by the President. The secretary also establishes and maintains efficient communication with the members of the Faculty Senate, including such information as meeting notices, minutes and special announcements designated by the President. And the Secretary shall also find or develop means, including e-mail and Web-resources, to communicate to the entire constituency of the Faculty Senate such information as shall be designated by the President.
4. The President may wish to appoint a Parliamentarian who, using an accepted manual of parliamentary procedure, shall be responsible for advising the President and the Faculty Senate on parliamentary procedure and shall arbitrate conflicts over procedures and the order of business during Faculty Senate meetings.

ARTICLE II

There shall be a standing Advisory Council consisting of the elected officers of the Faculty Senate, the Past-President and one Senator from each of the six UMB Schools not already represented by one of the elected officers. A representative to the Advisory Council shall be a Senator with at least a year of experience and shall be elected by the Senators from the School to be represented. The Advisory Council shall:

1. Provide recommendations to the Senate President when important issues requiring urgent attention arise between Faculty Senate meetings.
2. Act as a nominating committee for the election of officers subsequent to the May 1st election (or reelection) of Faculty Senators. To obtain interested and concerned Senators who are willing to become candidates, the Advisory Council shall publicize that nominees for officers are being solicited and shall include on the slate any nominations made from the floor of the May Faculty Senate meeting. Immediately following the May Faculty Senate meeting, the Advisory Council shall complete and mail to the Senate membership a ballot consisting of a slate with at least two candidates per office and with at least one candidate from each of the six UMB Schools other than the Graduate School.
3. Perform other such functions as may be delegated by the Faculty Senate.

ARTICLE III

The Faculty Senate may establish other standing committees and special committees and provide for participation in joint campus committees as may be appropriate for the performance of its functions. Except for the Advisory Council, the members of all committees shall be appointed, or elected, by the Faculty Senate, or pursuant to its direction, from the faculty, students and employees of UMB. Except for the Advisory Council, the membership of committees shall be determined in such manner as the Faculty Senate may decide. In the absence of Faculty Senate action, the Advisory Council may make nominations or, in the case of need for prompt action, appoint members of committees subject to revision by the Faculty Senate. When the Faculty Senate is to vote on the membership of any committee, nominations from the floor shall be allowed.

ARTICLE IV

The meetings of the Faculty Senate shall be conducted as follows:

1. Generally, the Faculty Senate will meet monthly. There shall be a minimum of six meetings of the Faculty Senate each year. Special meetings may be called by the President of the Senate, by the Advisory Council, by resolution of the Faculty Senate, or by petition signed by at least one-fourth of the Senators.
2. An agenda shall be prepared by the Senate President. Copies of this agenda shall be sent by the President to all Senators at least five days before the meeting, or as much in advance as possible for a meeting called in an emergency.
3. Any Senator may require that a proposal be placed on the agenda.
4. At any meeting, the Faculty Senate may consider a proposal that is not on the agenda, but an affirmative vote of two-thirds of the Senators present shall be necessary to adopt any such proposal.
5. A quorum shall consist of a majority of the Senators. Unless otherwise specified in this Constitution, an affirmative vote of a majority of the Senators present and voting shall be necessary to adopt any motion, resolution or other action. Notices to Senators are properly given when placed in the regular or campus mail addressed to the Senators' listed campus address.
6. Except when the Faculty Senate decides to meet in executive session, all members of the campus community may attend meetings of the Senate without voice or vote, subject to requirements of space and good order.
7. Permanent records, such as minutes, of all proceedings shall be maintained by the Secretary and the records of the Senate shall be available for reasonable inspection by all members of the academic community.
8. All procedures not otherwise regulated by this Constitution or by rules adopted by the Faculty Senate shall be in accordance with the latest revised edition of an accepted manual of parliamentary procedure.

ARTICLE V

Responsibilities of Faculty Senators:

1. Senators are elected for three-year terms beginning on July 1st of the year elected and are expected to attend all meetings of the Faculty Senate. Any Senator with three or more unexcused absences in an academic year will be considered to have resigned.
2. Senators are expected to share information with faculty members from their schools and to bring issues of concern for their schools' faculty to the attention of the Senate.

ARTICLE VI

Nomination and election of Senators, Senate Officers and additional Advisory Council members shall be conducted as follows:

1. The number of Senators from each School, as specified in the Constitution of Faculty Senate, is based upon the number of full-time faculty members (not full-time equivalent) in each School. Prior to each Senate election, the Executive Coordinator from the UMB President's Office shall examine each School's faculty count to determine if any change in the number of Senators per School is necessary. Election of the Senators shall be staggered so that approximately one-third are elected from each School each year.
2. To provide an opportunity for all eligible faculty of each School to elect Senators who might represent different viewpoints, both the nomination and election ballot forms should be designed to be mailed directly to faculty requiring/providing the candidates': (1) full name, (2) degrees, (3) position or title, (4) name of School, (5) primary appointment by department or appropriate unit, and (6) current campus phone number. Nominations from each School shall be solicited by March 1st and ballots shall be sent to faculty of each School by April 1st; election of Senators shall be completed prior to May 1st (Senate member elections must be completed prior to nomination of Senate officers). Mailing labels will be provided to the Senate by the campus administration.
3. If so desired, each School's Faculty Council may specify that two or more groups within the School must be represented by one or more of the School's Senate seats. These School-specific criteria should be described in the School's Faculty Handbook and reinforced at the School level. Instructions on the School-specific nomination and ballot forms should include a reference to the School and UMB Faculty Handbooks for Senate Constitution and Bylaws, and any School-specific instructions to identify the criteria for eligibility to be a Senator, length of term, and general purpose of the Senate. Instructions must include the number of Senate seats to be filled for each School for the current election.
4. The nomination form should provide spaces for signatures of both the nominee and the nominator to ensure the willingness of the former to serve.
5. The election ballot should be considered valid only if the mailing label and signature of the voter are present and consistent.
6. The ballot for Senators will list all nominations received.
7. Newly elected Senators are welcomed to the May and June Senate meetings for orientation prior to their July 1st beginning of the three year term.
8. The Senate's year begins on July 1st and ends on June 30th of each year.
9. Unexpired terms vacated by resignation or any other reason shall be filled by a special election within 30 days. A person elected to fill a vacancy shall serve only for the remainder of the unexpired term.
10. After election of Senators is completed (by May 1st), the Advisory Council shall solicit nominations for each of the Faculty Senate offices and shall include all nominations from the floor at the Senate's May meeting. Immediately following the May Senate meeting, the Advisory Council shall complete a slate with at least two candidates per office with at least one candidate from each of the six UMB Schools other than the Graduate School, and mail ballots to Senators with a return deadline prior to the June Senate meeting. Results of this election will be announced at the June Senate meeting. Prior to July 1st, the Senators from each School not already represented on the Advisory Council by an elected officer shall elect a continuing Senator with at least a year of Senate experience to become that School's Advisory Council member.