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By-Laws of the Faculty Assembly
University of Colorado at Colorado Springs

Sections I - VIII of these By-Laws refer to the corresponding Articles of the Constitution. Succeeding sections contain miscellaneous By-Laws necessary for the smooth functioning of academic governance.

Section I: Faculty Assembly

A. In addition to the regular members as described in the Constitution, the Representative Assembly may designate additional regular members by amending these By-Laws.

B. Following nomination by any member of the Representative Assembly, an individual may be elected by the Representative Assembly to special membership in the Faculty Assembly for a specified term.

C. Vacancies in Offices

1. If the office of the President becomes vacant, the Vice-President/President-elect shall become President for the remainder of the term. The new President will continue in office the following year, as scheduled.

2. If the Vice-President/President-elect assumes the office of President prior to the scheduled term, the office of Vice-President shall remain vacant until the next scheduled election. If the office of Vice-President/President-elect becomes vacant for any other reason, the Elections Committee shall nominate new candidates and hold an election of the Faculty Assembly as soon as possible.

3. If the office of Secretary becomes vacant, the Executive Committee shall appoint a new candidate, subject to approval of the Representative Assembly, to fill the remainder of the term.

4. If the office of Past-President becomes vacant, it shall remain so until the term of the current President expires.

D. Responsibilities and Duties of Officers

1. President.

a. Preside over all meetings of the Assembly, the Representative Assembly, and the Executive Committee.

b. Appoint all standing committee members, in consultation with other officers.

<> c. Nominate faculty for service on other University committees.

d. Nominate faculty to serve the interests of the Faculty Assembly in administrative or other relationships.

2. Vice-President/President-elect.

a. Perform the duties of the President when he or she is unable to do so.

b. Serve as alternate representative to Faculty Council. 

3. Secretary.

a. Keep and distribute accurate minutes of all meetings of the Faculty Assembly, the Representative Assembly, and the Executive Committee.

b. Distribute agendas, proposed motions, resolutions and actions of the Representative Assembly.

c. Keep an up-to-date record of the status of all resolutions and actions taken by the Representative Assembly or the Executive Committee.

d. Serve as parliamentarian for meetings of the Faculty Assembly and the Representative Assembly.

e. Maintain the official files of the Faculty Assembly, the Representative Assembly, and the Executive Committee, and assume responsibility for transferring these complete files to the incoming Secretary.

E. Officers and committee chairs shall assume their duties on the first of June.

Section II Representative Assembly

There shall be 23 members of the Representative Assembly, distributed as follows:

A. Four officers of the Assembly. 

B. Six chairs of standing committees.

C. Three at-large members, who shall:

1. Each shall serve a three year term as campus representatives to the system-wide Faculty Council.

2. Vacancies shall be filled by vote of the Faculty Assembly in the annual Spring election.

D. Ten members providing proportional representation from the colleges and schools.

1. The number of representatives from each academic unit shall be:

a. College of Business - two
b. School of Education - on

c. College of Engineering and Applied Science - two

d. College of Letters, Arts, And Sciences - four

e. Library - one

Selection of college representatives for the academic year shall occur during the prior Springs semester as part of the general election

3. The representation specified in II.D.1. shall be reviewed and revised periodically in order to maintain equitable proportional representation.

E. The size of the Representative Assembly (approximately 10% the size of the Faculty Assembly) should be reviewed and revised periodically, as needed.

Section III Executive Committee  

The Executive Committee is responsible for the day-to-day operation and the long-term continuity of faculty governance. All members of the Executive Committee should have a strong commitment to the principles of faculty governance and the willingness to assure its success.

Section IV Meetings

A. The Faculty Assembly. 

1. The regular annual meeting of the Faculty Assembly shall normally be held near the beginning of the Fall semester, following the first meeting of the Representative Assembly

2. Special meetings, as specified in the Constitution, require one week's prior notice.

3. A petition from the Assembly membership for a special meeting requires the signatures of at least 25 members of the Assembly. (This number represents approximately 10% of the Assembly membership, and should be reviewed and revised periodically, as needed.)

B. The Representative Assembly shall meet the second Friday of every month, September through May.

C. The Executive Committee shall meet at least twice between meetings of the Representative Assembly.

Section V Conduct of Business 

A. Conduct of Business of the Faculty Assembly

1. All meetings of the Colorado Springs Faculty Assembly shall be conducted according to the latest edition of Robert's Rules of Order.

2. The annual regular meeting of the Faculty Assembly shall have as its primary purpose the discussion of issues and agenda items for the year, as developed by the Executive Committee and the Representative Assembly.

3. Special meetings of the Faculty Assembly shall have as their primary purpose discussion of issues raised by the callers of the meeting.

4. Background information for any issue to be introduced for discussion at a Faculty Assembly meeting shall be distributed five working days in advance with the agenda for that meeting.

5. The Secretary shall duplicate and distribute the minutes of each Faculty Assembly meeting within two weeks after each meeting.

6. All votes of the Faculty Assembly, conducted by mail or electronically according to appropriate procedures, shall be considered official and binding, regardless of the number of votes cast.

B. Conduct of Business of the Representative Assembly.

1. All meetings of the Representative Assembly shall be conducted according to the latest edition of Robert's Rules of Order, which stipulates the following order of business:

a. Approval of minutes

b. Reports of visitors

c. Report of President

Reports of Standing Committees

e. Reports of special committees

f. Unfinished business

g. New business

h. Announcements and questions

2. For all items requiring action by the Representative Assembly, a quorum shall be defined as those present and voting

3. All motions or resolutions to be voted upon at a Representative Assembly meeting shall be distributed five working days in advance with the agenda for that meeting.

4. Any By-Law may be temporarily suspended by a two-thirds majority of the Representative Assembly present and voting.

5. The Secretary shall duplicate and distribute the minutes of each Representative Assembly meeting within two weeks after each meeting.

C. Conduct of Business of the Executive Committee

All meetings of the Colorado Springs Executive Committee shall be conducted according to the informal rules for committees as specified in the latest edition of Robert's Rules of Order.

Section VI Committees

A. Standing Committees 

1. Executive Standing Committees as specified by the Constitution.

a. Committee on Educational Policy and University Standards (EPUS).
b. Committee on Personnel and Benefits (P&B).
c. Faculty Advisory Committee on (the) (UCCS) Budget

2. Regular Standing Committees

">a. Minority Affairs Committee
b. Committee on Women
c. Committee on Academic Computing Policy

">B. Standing Committees - Membership

1. Standing Committees shall consist of six to eight members.

2. Standing Committee membership shall be broadly based, with at least one member from each college or school.

3. The term of membership for all Standing Committees shall be three years, with two or three terms expiring each year.

4. All vacancies shall be filled by appointment of the President, with consultation and approval of the Executive Committee.

5. Members have a responsibility to attend regularly and participate.

C. Standing Committees - Chairs 

1. The membership of each Standing Committee shall elect a chair who shall assume office on the first of June.

2. The chair of each Standing Committee has the following responsibilities:

a. ensure that the committee meets regularly.

b. notify committee members of agenda and meeting times.

c. submit written reports to the Executive Committee.

d. inform the President of any vacancies that should be filled.

3. Membership on Representative Assembly and Executive Committee.

a. All Standing Committee chairs are voting members of the Representative Assembly.

b. All Executive Standing Committee chairs are also members of the Executive Committee.

D. Standing Committees - Meetings

1. Committees shall meet once or twice each month during the academic year.

2. All committee meetings shall be conducted according to the informal rules for committees as specified in the latest edition of Robert's Rules of Order.

3. The following priority shall be observed in the conduct of business:

a. Issues referred to the committee by the Executive Committee.

b. Issues from the committee membership.

E. Standing Committees - By-Laws 

Each Standing Committee shall establish a set of By-Laws, which must:

1. Be consistent with the Constitution and By-Laws of the Faculty Assembly.

2. Be approved by the Representative Assembly.

3. Address at least the following issues:

a. Membership
b. Meetings
c. Scope of responsibility

F. Special Purpose Committees

1. The Faculty Assembly President, with the concurrence of the Executive Committee, may identify special purpose committees (such as the Teachning & Research Awards Committee) and appoint their members.

2. Such committees may or may not have a limited term of existence.

3. When necessary and appropriate, a special purpose committee may become a regular standing committee by amendment of these By-Laws.

Section VII By-Laws 

A. The phrase "majority vote of the Faculty Assembly" means that a majority of votes cast is required for initial approval of the By-Laws.

B. The phrase "majority vote of the Representative Assembly" means that a majority of those present and voting is required for amendment of the By-Laws.

Section VIII Amendments to the Constitution 

A. The phrase "majority vote of the Representative Assembly" means that a majority of those present and voting is required to propose an amendment to the Constitution.

B. The phrase "two-thirds vote of the Faculty Assembly" means that two-thirds of votes cast is required to amend the Constitution.

C. Amendments to the Constitution shall be voted on in a regular annual election.

Section IX Faculty Assembly Elections 

A. Elections Committee

1. The Elections Committee is composed of one member from each of the colleges, schools, and Library.

2. Terms will be for two-years. Each year, half of the membership will continue.

3. New terms begin on June 1.

4. Committee members shall be appointed by the President of the Faculty Assembly.

Responsibilities:

1. Give notice of elections and call for nominations.
2. Accept and verify nominations.
3. Prepare ballots.
4. Count ballots and certify results

B. Election Procedures

1. Elections shall be conducted from the Faculty Assembly Office.

2. Faculty Assembly members may vote by either mailing a signed ballot to the Faculty Assembly Office or bringing the ballot personally.

3. In the case of a mailed ballot, the sender’s signature will be marked out before depositing the ballot into the ballot box.

4. The administrative assistant shall maintain a public record of all members who have voted.

5. Ballots shall be counted and results verified by the Elections Committee. 

C. Regular Annual Election

1. Notification of the annual election for officers and at-large members of the Representative Assembly shall be distributed to all members of the Faculty Assembly on March 1 or the first business day thereafter.

2. This notification shall announce the upcoming election dates and call for nominations.

3. A second notice and call for nominations shall be distributed on the Monday before Spring break.

5. Nominations shall be sent directly to any member of the Elections Committee.
1. Self-nominations are permitted.

6. Nominations shall be officially closed two weeks prior to the election.

7. No name may appear on the ballot without the candidate's permission.

8. The election period shall begin on the second Monday in April at 8:00 a.m. and extend until 5:00 p.m. on the following Friday.

9. Members of the election committee shall meet to count ballots and verify results.

10. By no later that 5:00 p.m. on the third Monday (?) of April, these results shall be reported to the Secretary of the Faculty Assembly, who will notify the Faculty Assembly of the outcome.

D. Special Elections 

1. Special elections may be held for the following reasons:

a. To fill a vacancy in the office of Vice-President/President-elect.

i. The call for nominations shall be distributed to all members of Faculty Assembly.

ii. The nominating period shall be no less than five and no more than ten working days.

b. When called for by a majority vote of the Representative Assembly.

c. When called for by petition of the Assembly membership.

i. A special election of the Faculty Assembly on any issue may be called by petition of the membership.

ii. A valid petition from the Assembly membership for a special election requires the signatures of at least 25 members of the Assembly. (This number represents approximately 10% of the Assembly membership, and should be reviewed and revised periodically, as needed.)

iii. The circulators of the petition and the Executive Committee shall cooperatively determine the ballot language.

2. Special elections shall be conducted as follows:

a. Notice of the election dates and ballot language shall be distributed at least one week prior to the election period.

b. The election period shall consist of five working days, from Monday, 8:00 a.m. until the following Friday, 5:00 p.m.

c. All provisions of By-Law IX.B. shall apply.

 

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