Bylaw Amendment:
That the following take effect immediately:
Article IV, Section 7
The Lead Senator shall act as advisor to the President for the appointment of any additional GSA
Senators and any Senate Council Representatives. Senators and Senate Council Representatives
shall be responsible for attending Senate meetings, the meetings of their assigned Senate Council
and for attending any required sub-committee meetings; as well as submitting regular reports on
the deliberations and actions of their assigned Senate Council to the Lead Senator.
*for our vote at the Assembly meeting on March 4th
Constitutional Amendments:
*To be forwarded for a student-wide vote during the general election
ARTICLE VII: EXECUTIVE BOARD
Section 1: Positions: The Executive Board shall consist of six executive officers: the President,
the Vice President, the Treasurer, the Multi-Cultural Affirmative Action Officer, the
Programming Committee Chair and the Grants Committee Chair. No member of the Executive
Board shall be permitted to hold a second office within the GSA, or to act as an officer or
Assembly Representative of a RGSO.
(a) President: The President shall act as Chief Executive Officer of the GSA and as its chief
spokesperson and representative. The President shall have the power to appoint GSA members as
the Grants Chair, Programming Chair, University Council Representative, Lead Senator, and to
remaining seats on the University Senate consistent with the University Senate’s charter. These
appointments are subject to approval by the GSA Assembly, but appointees may serve actively
until a confirmation vote passes or fails. The President has signature power on all vouchers.
ARTICLE IX: ELECTIONS
Section 4: Elected Officers: The General Election shall serve to elect four members of the GSA
Executive Board: the President, Vice President, Treasurer, and MCAA Chairperson. All four
elected officers serve one year terms beginning on June 1. Additionally, the GSA shall elect from
its membership a Lead Senator and a University Council Representative. The elections of the
Lead Senator and University Council Representative shall take place concurrently with the
election of the Executive Board. The terms of office for the Lead Senator and the University
Council Representative shall be concurrent with those of the Executive Board. The Lead Senator
shall hold a seat on the University Senate in accordance with the University Senate’s charter and
shall be responsible for attending all sessions of the Senate, serving as the chief point of contact
for other GSA Senators, and reporting to the GSA Assembly on the deliberations and actions of
the University Senate. The University Council Representative shall hold a seat on the University
Council in accordance with the University Council’s bylaws and shall be responsible for
attending all meetings of the University Council and reporting to the GSA Assembly on the
deliberations and actions of the University Council.
Rationale for University Council Representative
The University Council bylaws do not require that we elect our designee. In fact, we have access
to vote for the overall student representative. Our designee is actually a supplemental non-voting
representative because of the unlikeliness of a graduate student getting elected by an
undergraduate population.
(University Council Bylaws)
ARTICLE V:
Membership
1.The Council shall consist of ten voting members, nine appointed by the Governor and one
elected by and from the University’s students.
2.The Representative of the University Senate, President of the Alumni Association, and a
Graduate Student designated by the Graduate Student Organization shall serve as ex-officio,
non-voting members of the Council.
3. Only Council members in good standing shall be eligible to vote on matters before the
Council, or to serve in any of its elective or appointive positions. To be in good standing, a
member shall have a good record of attending Council meetings and University events. Excused
absences shall be noted in the minutes of the meetings of the Council.
4. Council members receive no compensation for their services, but should be reimbursed by the
University at Albany for expenses actually and necessarily incurred in the performance of their
duties
Rationale for both of these positions –
1- The work of these two positions reflect that of an executive cabinet, not that of an elected
office. Electing a University Council Rep is like electing a Secretary of State or UN
Ambassador. Electing a Lead Senator is like electing a Chief of Staff for a President
rather than allowing them to select their own. The function of a Lead Senator is really
like a Chief of Staff of the Senate Team because the Senate team is so large. It’s similar
to having the Lead Office Manager. The President is still responsible for both the Senate
Team and the Office Staff but we allow them to hire one extra set of hands to help but we
elect a different set of hands for another.
2- This may seem as if it centralizes power for the Office of the President but that power is
more in check through an appointment process because the Assembly does not need to
confirm an appointment. In practical terms this places more power in the Assembly’s
hands.
3- Reducing the number of elected positions increases the competition for positions which
legitimizes our organization. Currently, our low voter turnout and uncontested elections
are a threat to our legitimacy.
4- From a practical standpoint, having these appointed positions available to those who lose
elections is valuable. It may help us with recruitment and retention of interested and
passionate people.
ARTICLE VI: THE GSA ASSEMBLY
Section 3: Assembly Speaker: The GSA Assembly shall elect from its voting membership an
Assembly Speaker to serve for the same term as the Executive board (June1-May31) that
academic year (Fall and Spring). The election of the Assembly Speaker shall take place at the
first last Assembly meeting of the Spring Fall semester. The Assembly Speaker shall act as the
chairperson for Assembly meetings and shall have the power to call a special session of the GSA
Assembly. Additionally, the Assembly Speaker shall be responsible for attending all GSA
Assembly meetings and Executive Board meetings. The Assembly Speaker shall be responsible
for being the voice of the Assembly during the Strategic Planning process every summer. The
Assembly Speaker shall not cast a vote at GSA Assembly meetings. The Assembly Speaker shall
no longer represent their RGSO at Assembly Meetings; the Assembly Speaker’s RGSO shall
appoint a new voting representative to the GSA Assembly. Should the office of Assembly
Speaker become vacated or the Assembly Speaker be rendered incapable of his or her duties, a
new Assembly Speaker shall be elected at the next Assembly Meeting.
Rationale –
The Assembly needs to have input on a strategic plan in the summer and the Vice President
needs support in organizing the Assembly at the September meeting. Currently, electing the
Speaker in September delays much Assembly business and places them in a position to have to
take up Assembly business without any orientation or Robert’s Rules training. Also, there should
be an Assembly representative (someone outside the Executive) helping to recruit people for the
Judicial Board over the summer.