G
raduate
s
tudent
O
rganization
Campus Center 165B ● University at Albany, SUNY ● Albany, New York 12222
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BYLAWS
Updated spring 2009
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ARTICLE I. The GSO Assembly: Membership, Responsibilities and Conduct
Section A. Assembly Leadership
1. The President: The President is elected by the GSO membership and is responsible for GSO relations
with the university administration, and for overseeing the general running of the GSO, per the constitution.
The President will also serve as Assembly Speaker, leading monthly meetings of the GSO Assembly. If
he/she so chooses, the President may appoint another Executive Board member to fulfill this role. There
will be no additional compensation for this position as the Assembly Speaker will already be receiving a
stipend as an E-board member.
2. The Vice-President: The Vice-President is responsible for overseeing the RGSOs and chairing the
RGSO committee. The Vice President is also the person who steps in for the President should the
President be incapable of performing his/her duties, or should he/she resign, per the constitution.
3. Assembly Liaison: At the first Assembly meeting of the year, the Assembly will nominate a
representative to serve as Assembly Liaison for that year. The nominee will then be approved by a
majority vote of the Assembly. This person will advocate for RGSO concerns in the event of a
disagreement between and RGSO or representative and the Executive Board.
The E-Board welcomes and encourages representatives and groups to contact them directly with
concerns, but the Liaison will be available if issues remain unresolved if initial attempts to talk to the EBoard are unsuccessful.
After nomination and approval, the Liaison will provide their contact information which will be
provided to the GSO via the website.
In the event that the Liaison can no longer fulfill their obligations, the Assembly will nominate
another representative to the position. There will be no financial compensation for this position.
Section B. Assembly Members Responsibilities:
Departmental representation will be based on the previous semester’s enrollment for which the GSO
activity fees were collected. All departments with 40 or more GSO members will qualify for two
Assembly representatives. All departments with less than 40 GSO members shall have one Assembly
representative. Assembly voting membership is restricted to elected representatives and alternates.
1. Departmental and Student Group Obligations:
a. It shall be the duty of each Assembly Representative or Alternate to attend each Assembly
meeting.
b. Departmental Representatives are obligated to post GSO flyers distributed by the GSO.
c. Both departmental representatives and student group representatives are obligated to post to the
departmental list-serve, in a timely but summary form, the majors issues that are discussed at GSO
Assembly meetings.
2. Committee Obligations:
a. It shall be the duty of at least one member of each Recognized Graduate Student Organizations
(RGSO) to sit on and actively participate in at least one of the GSO Committees and/or one
University Council. Committee and Council participation is not limited to RGSO members.
GSO -1Revised 6/29/2016
b. Any committee member representing an RGSO must actively participate in the committee to the
satisfaction of the committee Chair for their participation to count towards their RGSO’s
committee requirements. The committee Chairs maintains the right to remove committee or
council members who do not perform their duties satisfactorily.
c. In the event that a committee member or council representative is unable to fulfill their
attendance obligation to the committee(s)/council(s) upon which they sit, they shall notify the
committee chair that they will be absent.
3. Assembly Obligations:
a. Each RGSO representative/alternate must attend all GSO Assembly meetings. If they miss more
than one GSO Assembly meeting each semester the RGSO’s allotted funding (the funding given for
years of consecutive recognition) will be frozen for the following funding period. Missing the May
GSO Assembly meeting will result in the RGSO losing their GSO recognition effective immediately.
Section C. Assembly Conduct:
1. Motions may only be proposed to the GSO Assembly by an elected GSO Representative or alternative
or a GSO Officer.
2. Any motion(s), which concern the allocation or disbursement of funds over $1000, require a majority
vote of the Assembly before they may be enacted.
3. All committees will update the General Assembly at GSO Assembly meetings.
ARTICLE II. GSO Recognized Student [RGSO] Groups: Recognition, Funding and Responsibilities
Section A. Seeking GSO Recognition:
1. The Recognized Graduate Student Organization (RGSO) Committee is charged with recognizing and
allocating funds to recognized student groups. Any graduate group at the University, which is seeking
official GSO recognition for the purposes of gaining GSO funding, the right to post on the podium, etc.,
must follow and meet the criteria outlined below as well as the criteria in the GSO Financial Guidelines:
2. Any group seeking GSO recognition must fulfill all of the following requirements (see the RGSO
Guidelines for more detailed explanations):
a. Provide a Constitution
b. Provide a signed statement of non-discrimination by the organization’s officers.
c. Provide a list of officers including their point of contact (i.e.: department address and email).
d. Provide itemized budget for the upcoming year (if Applicable).
e. Provide a list of at least five active members.
g. Designate a GSO Representative and Alternate.
3. Once the RGSO Committee recognizes an organization, it becomes eligible for funds. Allocated funds
are for the specific purpose of promoting campus-wide educational, cultural, social and recreational
development activities.
Section B. Periods of Recognition and/or Funding:
GSO -2Revised 6/29/2016
There will be two periods for recognition and or funding for RGSO groups:
a. Fall Funding/Recognition Period: September 20th-February 9th
b. Spring Funding/Recognition Period: February 10th –September 19th
Section C. Deadlines to Apply for Recognition and/or Funding:
RGSOs will submit a budget application for both funding periods.
The deadlines for submission are:
a. By 5pm on the final Monday in September to be funded for the first funding period.
b. By 5pm on the fourth Monday in January to be funded for the second funding period.
The total available budget will be distributed evenly between the two funding periods. I.e., half of the total
amount of funding available for RGSOs in the annual budget will be spent during the fall funding period
and the remaining funds (the second half) will be distributed during the spring funding period. This allows
more opportunity for new groups to form and for existing groups to plan activities on a semester basis
rather than trying to plan for the entire academic year in advance.
Section D. Responsibilities:
One representative from each funded group shall be required to attend a Multi-Cultural Affirmative Action
event each semester. The Multi-cultural Affirmative Action (MCAA) Officer shall forward the names of
those groups in attendance to the GSO Vice-President. Any group not in attendance shall have their
funding frozen for the following semester (summer not included).
ARTICLE III. The GSO Multi-cultural Affirmative Action Activities
Section A. MCAA requirements for Assembly:
The GSO is committed to the elimination of discrimination because of age, race, ethnicity, color, creed,
gender, sexual orientation, marital status, economic status, veteran status, physical ability, or national
origin.
1. At least one representative from each RGSO will be held responsible for attending at least one (MCAA)
event each semester. An event given by a recognized group on campus, which is approved by the MCAA
Officer, may be substituted.
Section B. MCAA requirements for Executive Board:
1. The Executive Board members shall be held responsible for attending at least one MCAA event each
semester presented by the Multi-cultural/Affirmative Action (MCAA) Committee. An event given by a
recognized group on campus, which is approved by the MCAA Officer, may be substituted.
2. Any Executive Board member who does not attend an MCAA event in a given semester will have their
stipend reduced by $1.00.
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1. The Grants Committee chair will be responsible for creating or revising the grant guidelines as
necessary. The grants guidelines should include the following:
a. Procedures for applying and qualifying for grants not otherwise specified in the Constitution,
Bylaws, or Financial Guidelines.
ARTICLE IV. The GSO Grants Chairperson
b. The process by which the Grants Committee will be created and operated.
c. Grant deadlines for submissions, reports and reimbursements.
d. The grant review process.
e. How funding will be allocated.
f. The format in which the procedures will be presented to the Assembly.
g. Any other pertinent materials deemed necessary by the Grants Committee Chair that will
expedite the grant application and review procedures.
2. The Assembly must approve the Grant Guidelines, by a simple majority of the vote (51%) of the
members in attendance.
ARTICLE V. The Programming Chairperson
Section A. General
1. The President elect will appoint a Programming Chair for their administration prior to the last Assembly
meeting of the academic year prior to taking office. The Appointee must be approved by the Assembly at
the last scheduled Assembly meeting of the spring semester.
2. The Programming Committee Chair is responsible for organizing social, cultural, professional, and
recreational activities for the graduate student body and the following:
a. planning (catering, room reservations and etc) for each specific event,
b. advertising for events (email, flyers and etc),
c. creating tickets and sign-up lists for events,
d. keeping the Office Manager informed and up-to-date of activities.
e. The GSO Programming Chair is able to co-sponsor any other events as the chair deems
appropriate.
ARTICLE VI. GSO Finances
Section A. Treasurer
The treasurer is elected by the GSO membership and is responsible for keeping the accounts for the
organization, and is personally responsible, per the constitution, for their accuracy.
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Section B. Executive Committee stipends:
1. The President will receive a stipend of $4500 for the academic year. The Vice-President, $3500, and
$3500 for the Treasurer, $3000 MCAA Officer, Grant Committee and the Programming Chair. The
stipend shall be paid in 8 equal installments (4 per semester) over the course of the academic year
(September, October, November, December, February, March, April and May)
2. The GSO Senators shall receive a stipend of $100 for each of the two funding periods in which the
University at Albany Senate meets. The lead senator shall receive a stipend of $200 for each of the two
funding periods in which the University at Albany Senate meets. The Senators stipend shall be payable
December 15th and May 15th.
Section C. GSO Budget
Any funds that are not disbursed as of the last day of a fiscal year will be rolled over into the next fiscal
year July 1st –June 30th. If it becomes evident that funds will not be spent by the end of the current fiscal
year, a proposal should be submitted to the Treasurer who may then include the remainder of the undisbursed funds as a separate line in the following year’s budget.
Section D. RGSO Funding:
1. Maximum funding to any group is $2500 a year, realizing each group applying may get all of that
money, a fraction thereof, to nothing at all. Ten percent of the RGSO Committee budget should be set
aside for appeals. Appeals will be presented to the Justice Board who has final say. If any members of the
Justice Board have a conflict of interest, he/she must recuse himself or herself. If the majority of the Justice
Committee recuse themselves, the GSO Assembly shall decide the matter.
2. RGSOs have the right to fund raise
3. Any physical property that exceeds $50 in value, purchased with GSO funds, must be kept in the GSO
office, space permitting.
4. RGSOs funding shall be allocated based on the following criteria:
a. Number of graduate students and members of the university community who will benefit from the
RGSO group activity.
b. Reasonability of group's budget.
c. Similarity of purpose with other RGSO groups.
d. Agenda for the year.
e. Clarity of application.
5. The payment of allocated funds shall be based on the following criteria:
a) Whether postings were made according to the GSO posting policy
-Timely (at least 5 business days before the event)
-In proper locations (GSO office etc)
-In proper format (containing the statement: YOUR GSO FUNDS AT WORK).
b) Activities were open to entire university community.
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