Staff Advisory Council
College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences

By-Laws

Policies and Procedures

OFFICERS

Past Chair
Chair (moves to past chair)
Vice Chair (moves to chair)
Communications Director
Secretary/Treasurer

Terms will be for one year. Officers shall have been a member for at least one year.

A. Elections

  • Elections shall occur at the meeting prior to the annual organization meeting to be held in October;
  • Nominations Committee shall put forth a slate of officers at the meeting prior to the election of officers;
  • Vice Chair shall chair the nominating committee (nominating committee to meet with candidates and secure interest in the office);
  • Nominations will also be open from the floor;
  • All officers will be elected positions;
  • Secret ballot will be held for any contested offices (i.e., more than one candidate for any office);
  • Ties will be decided by a coin toss;

    At least two-thirds of the membership must vote on the officer team. A simple majority elects each position. Absentee ballots will be accepted in the event members cannot be present.

  • Officers can be reelected to the same office with the exception of the Chair and Vice Chair;
  • Resignations by officers must be submitted to the Chair. Chair must submit resignation to the Vice Chair and to the Vice President/Dean of the College;
  • Officer vacancies will be filled by special election of the council. A Chair vacancy will be filled by the Vice Chair with a new Vice Chair elected by council.

B. Officer Duties

CHAIR:

  • The Chair shall preside at all meetings of the FAES Staff Advisory Council and Executive Committee, in accordance with Roberts Rules of Order,Newly Revised, unless otherwise indicated.
  • The Chair will be spokesperson for the council in any official matters.
  • The Chair will be the official link with any other college committees or will make an appointment to represent the FAES Staff Advisory Council on that committee or at the meeting.
  • The Chair will provide leadership to the Executive Committee and full council.
  • The Chair of the full committee shall be an ex-officio members of all committees and task forces except the Nominating Committee.

VICE-CHAIR:

  • Vice-Chair will act in place of the chair when the chair is absent.
  • The Vice-Chair will act as a liaison between designated task forces and/or standing committees and the SAC.
  • Vice-Chair will assist the Chair with task force and/or committee report(s).
  • The Vice-Chair will be responsible for any other tasks or duties as assigned.
  • The Vice-Chair shall act as issues coordinator to insure exploration of and on issues brought to the Council.
  • The Vice-Chair will serve as Chair of the Nominating Committee.

SECRETARY/TREASURER:

  • The Secretary shall be responsible for preparing and distributing the agenda of all full council regular or special meetings.
  • The Secretary will be responsible for recording the minutes of all regular and special full council meetings and submitting them for approval at the next full council meeting.
  • The Secretary will distribute to each new council member a packet of materials including the Committee's charge from the Dean/Vice President, a brief summary outlining how the Council and Standing Committees function, and copies of all major reports from the previous year.
  • The Secretary will be responsible for any other tasks or duties as assigned by the Chair, including correspondence. The Secretary/Treasurer will act as a liaison between designated task forces and/or standing committees and the SAC.
  • The Treasurer shall be responsible for monitoring the Staff Advisory Council budget, submitting requests for expenditures to the Executive Committee for approval of all expenditures, and reporting to the full council on the status of the budget. At the end of each council year, the Treasurer will collect from each Committee/Task Force Chair estimates of expected expenses for the coming year and will assist the chair as necessary with the preparation of the budget for the coming year.
  • The Secretary will maintain the membership list and information on terms of office and will notify unit/department heads when new appointments or vacancies are to be filled.

COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR:

  • Serves as chief correspondent of external communication for the Staff Advisory Council.
  • Chairs the Communications Committee and makes recommendations to Council on formation of Communication Task Force(s) as needed. Serves in an administrative/resource capacity for coordination of task force(s) activities.
  • The Communications Director will act as a liaison between designated task forces and/or standing committees and the SAC.

II. MEETINGS

A. Frequency - Regular meetings will be held at least four times per year at various locations in the state.

B. Duration - The length of the meeting will average 2-3 hours at the discretion of the Chair.

C. Attendance - Members will notify Chair if unable to attend.

Special meetings may be called by the Chair.

III. STANDING COMMITTEES

A. Executive Committee will include the slate of officers plus the past chair as a non-voting member. The administrative liaison to the council will be an ex-officio member of the Executive Committee.

B. Communications Committee will be chaired by the Communications Director.

C. Nominating Committee will be chaired by the Vice Chair of the Council.

Once established, the Executive Committee will be responsible for drafting functional parameters for the standing committees and will present this for a vote by the full Council before inclusion in the Bylaws. A quorum of 50 percent of the membership must be present to hold a business meeting.

IV. TASK FORCE

A. A task force (TF) will be formed at the discretion of the council on a voluntary basis.

B. The TF chair shall be a council member chosen from within the TF.

C. Each TF should be composed of a minimum of three SAC members. If additional TF members are required (including those outside of SAC), they may be appointed by the TF.

D. All TFs shall report to the SAC.

V. MEMBERSHIP

A. Terms - Terms of membership shall be three years, with one-third of the membership rotating off the SAC each year. A maximum of two consecutive terms (including the appoint to an unexpired term) can be served. There shall be a minimum 12-month waiting period before a member who has served two consecutive terms can be eligible for reappointment.

B. Eligibility - Any College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences staff member with at least two years of regular staff (CCS, A& P or senior A& P) service, who is not covered by a bargaining agreement, nor is a member of a union represented at the University, is eligible for membership.

C. Appointments - Membership/nominations will come from the 25 unit/ department heads as established by the Vice President of Agricultural Administration for each term to be served. A member who transfers to another unit/department within the College while serving on the Council continues to serve out his/her term, but once the term has expired the new appointment comes from the originating unit/department.

D. Resignations - Any member wishing to resign from the Staff Advisory Council shall submit his/her resignation in writing to the Vice President of Agricultural Administration, the Chair of the Staff Council, and their unit/department head.

E. Vacancies - Council shall notify the Vice President to solicit an appointment from the vacating unit/department head to fulfill the remainder of the vacated term. All subsequent terms will be served following the above specifications. Former members who have been off the Council for 12 months are eligible for appointment.

VI. AMENDING BYLAWS

These bylaws may be amended at any regular meeting of the SAC by a two-thirds majority vote. Suggested amendments must be distributed to the full membership no later than three working days prior to the meeting.

Bylaws as of 2-28-02

Policies and Procedures

College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences
http://cfaes.osu.edu/staffadvisorycouncil