Constitution

CONSTITUTION of the FACULTY SENATE OF
SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY and A&M COLLEGE
BATON ROUGE, LOUISIANA

Preamble

Throughout this document, the term faculty refers to those faculty members employed at Southern University and A&M College, Baton Rouge, Louisiana (hereinafter called SUBR), (1) who hold academic rank in full time positions, (2) who do not hold a temporary position, (3) who do not hold an administrative position higher than department chair, and (4) who are not undergraduate or graduate students enrolled at Southern University. Persons who hold academic rank are not considered as students in this document.

ARTICLE I NAME
The name of this organization shall be the Faculty Senate of Southern University and A&M College, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

ARTICLE II PURPOSE
The purpose of this organization shall be to serve as the official voice of the faculty in University governance, to promote faculty welfare with regard to professional growth, freedom and security, and to promote and sponsor activities of academic and cultural interest to the University community.

ARTICLE III POWERS OF THE FACULTY SENATE
The Faculty Senate of SUBR acts with the advice and consent of the faculty. The Senate is thus the authorized voice of the faculty and acts in an advisory capacity regarding University governance, administration and management.

ARTICLE IV MEMBERSHIP OF THE FACULTY SENATE
Section 1. Make-Up of the Senate The Faculty Senate shall consist of members of the Faculty elected by each college and school (hereinafter called colleges) of the University and the following officers elected by the faculty: President, Vice- President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Parliamentarian. Officers shall be members of the faculty.

Section 2. Academic Units in the SenateAll colleges shall have representatives on the Senate. The University Library, Military Science Departments, University College and the Laboratory School shall also be considered as colleges to facilitate language usage in this document, but may have only one (1) representative on the Senate.

Section 3. Number of SenatorsEach college shall be eligible for one (1) senator for each twenty (20) members of its faculty or a fraction thereof. In determining the number of representatives in a college, the word faculty as used in this document shall be applied.

ARTICLE V OFFICERS
Section 1. Duties of Officers

A.The President of the Faculty Senate of Southern University shall preside over all meetings of the Senate, the Executive Board, and the faculty. The President shall be an ex-officio member of all committees, and shall represent the Senate or faculty at all occasions where representation is requested. The President shall exhaust all means available within the limits of powers given by the Constitution, to obtain stated goals of interest and concern to the faculty. At the first fall meeting of the faculty, the President is required to present to the faculty all major objectives of the year, which are deemed important and of interest to the faculty. The President is required to make reports at the semi-annual meetings of the faculty. The President or persons designated shall serve as the official link in communication between the administration and the faculty or the Senate.
B. The Vice- President of the Senate shall assume the duties of the President during the President's absence. The Vice- President is ex- officio member of all committees and is charged with the responsibility of coordinating committee activities. The Vice- President shall make a report at the semi-annual meetings of the faculty.
C. The Secretary shall record all transactions at meetings of the Senate, the Executive Board, or the faculty. The responsibility of making permanently secure such records, including, but not limited to minutes, correspondence and reports, will be that of the Secretary in a facility that the Senate will provide. The Secretary is required to make available --upon request-- copies of the proceedings of any meeting to any faculty.
D. The Treasurer shall receive all money for the Senate, giving proper receipts and keeping accurate records of the same. The Treasurer shall pay all authorized expenses of the Senate, and make monthly reports in writing, of the financial status of the Senate. The Treasurer shall serve as a member of the Budget Committee.
E. The Parliamentarian shall interpret the Constitution and the By- Laws of the Faculty Senate and ensure that the meetings are carried on according to the proper parliamentary procedure.

Section 2. Election of Officers

A. Any faculty member is eligible to have his/her name placed in nomination for an office of the Senate. Names of nominees shall be submitted to the Elections Committee on the official nomination form. Names of nominees shall be made public by the Elections Committee through print or electronic media.
B. Elections shall be held in April during even numbered years. All elections must be concluded before the first day of final examinations. Names of candidates shall be placed on a ballot and a secret vote taken. Candidates shall provide the faculty with pertinent information about themselves. It is the responsibility of the Elections Committee to supervise the election of officers.
C. Officers shall be declared elected by the Elections Committee by a simple majority of votes cast by the faculty. If no candidate for an office has a simple majority, then a run- off election shall be held within two (2) weeks of the first election between the two candidates for an office with the highest number of votes.
D. Officers elected in the spring shall take office at the end of the spring semester and shall serve two years thereafter.
E. An officer may not serve in the same office for more than four consecutive years. An officer may place his/her name into candidacy for the same office after an expiration of one term following his four years in that office. However, an officer may place his/her name into candidacy for an office different from that which he/she held in his previously expired term. No Faculty shall serve simultaneously in more than one office in the Senate.
F. If the office of the Presidency is vacated, the Vice-President shall assume the presidency. In the event of all other vacancies, the Senate may appoint members of the faculty for the remainder of the term. A faculty appointed to complete an unexpired term may then run for two (2) additional two-year terms. If the unexpired term is for six (6) months or more, a special election shall be called by the Elections Committee to fill the vacancy.
G. In the event that the services of an officer are terminated with SUBR or in the event that an officer loses status as a faculty member as defined in this document, the Senate shall declare that office vacant. The vacated seat shall be filled by appointment of the Senate.

ARTICLE VI EXECUTIVE BOARD
The Executive Board of the Faculty Senate shall consist of all officers of the Senate and the chair of the Program Committee. It shall be the duty of the Executive Board to

(1) plan all meetings,
(2) communicate Senate actions to the appropriate public, and
(3) to act for the Senate between semesters when the Senate is
not in session.

At the first regular meeting of the Faculty Senate, the Executive Board is required to issue a full report of any and all actions taken on behalf of the Senate while the Senate is not in session. The Senate has the power to review, retroactively approve, or to reverse all such actions taken by the Executive Board.

ARTICLE VII SENATORS
Section 1. Election of Senators

A. Any faculty member of a college is eligible to be nominated as a senator from that college. Names of nominees shall be submitted to the Election Committee.
B. Election of senators shall take place in April in even numbered years. All elections must be concluded before the first day of final examinations. For each college, names of candidates shall be placed on a ballot and a secret vote taken by the faculty of that college. Candidates should provide the faculty of their respective colleges with pertinent information about themselves. Each faculty is entitled to vote once for each senatorial position in his/her college. It is the responsibility of the Elections Committee to supervise the election of senators.
C. Senators for a specified college shall be declared elected as follows: Those candidates with the highest number of votes shall be declared elected by the Elections Committee, provided that the totality of votes received by such candidates is a simple majority and the number of such candidates does not exceed the number of senatorial positions allotted to that college during the election. Otherwise, there shall be a run- off election within two weeks of the first election among those candidates receiving the highest number necessary to obtain a totality of votes, which is a simple majority of those cast. Those candidates with highest number of votes in the run- off election will be declared elected by the Elections Committee, if their number does not exceed the number of senatorial positions allotted to their college during the election.
D. Senators elected in the spring shall take office at the end of the spring semester.
E. No faculty member may serve as a senator for more than four consecutive years. A faculty member having served four consecutive years as a senator may, however, run again for the position of senator in the Faculty Senate one year after his four years have expired. The senator, however, may place his/her name into candidacy for an office immediately following the term limits imposed on the office of senator.
F. In the event a senator vacates his office for six months or less, the Senate may appoint a faculty member from that senator's college to fill the unexpired term. If the vacancy is for more than six months, a special election within the college is to be called by the Elections Committee.
G. In the event a senator's services with SUBR are terminated, or in the event a senator loses status as faculty, as defined in this document, then the Senate shall declare that office vacant.
H. Any senate member who has three (3) consecutive unrepresented absences from Senate meetings shall be automatically dropped from membership in the Senate and shall be replaced by appointment of the full Senate.
I. Senators shall maintain regular contact with faculty in the colleges they represent to inform their constituency of the actions and work of the Senate.

Section 2. Dual Office Holding Dual office holding is prohibited in the Senate.

ARTICLE VIII COMMITTEES
Section 1. Standing CommitteesThe Faculty Senate shall have the following standing committees: Program Committee, Elections Committee, Faculty-Student Liaison Committee, Academic Welfare Committee, Policy Committee, Budget Committee, and Curriculum Committee.

1. Committee on Committees

A. Duties

1. To make appointments to all Senate standing committees.
2. To assist the Senate Vice- President in the coordinate of activities of Senate committees and to assist in the effective operations of committees by:

a. Scheduling along with committee chairman, committee meetings on a regular basis at the beginning of the academic year and making the time and place for such meetings known to the Senate and the general faculty
b. Formulating a committee reporting plan (reports to the Senate)

3. To recommend persons to serve on University committees and to recommend replacements when vacancies occur.
4. To fill vacancies on the- Faculty Senate and University Committees with Senate approval (and where not provided in the constitution.)

B. Membership

2. Academic Welfare Committee

A. Duties

1. To review and to make recommendations regarding policies that affect conditions of employment, salary, leaves, promotion, tenure, insurance, retirement, and other fringe benefits, and all other matter affecting the welfare of faculty.
2. To research and report its findings on matters of academic welfare referred to it by the Senate
3. To form and maintain a file of current documents relative to tenure, leaves, retirement, and other faculty welfare matters.
4. To present to the faculty seminars on faculty welfare matter and to coordinate the use of administration in the dissemination of this information.
5. To include honors and awards among faculty welfare items

B. Membership

C. Sub/ Ad Hoc Committee

1. Tenure and Post Tenure Review Review policy, trends, etc., develop, and propose policy and recommendation
2. Faculty Evaluations, Policy and Practices Review policy and procedures related to faculty evaluation, develop and propose policy and recommendations
3. Faculty Salaries, Compensations and Merit
4. Research, Grants and Sponsored ProgramsReview policy, trends etc., develop, and propose policy and recommendations
5. Summer Faculty: Employment Practices and SalariesReview policy, trends, etc., develop, and propose policy and recommendations

3. Communications Committee

A. Duties
1. To assist in the improvement of communications among faculty members, between faculty an administration, between faculty and students by:a. Releasing Senate news and mass media as directed in a described mannerb. Regularly reporting Senate activities and matter of faculty concern to the all appropriate public bodies.
2. To publish and distribute a faculty newsletter whenever finds are provided. (Committee on Committees suggested that this be assigned to a newly created committee.)
3. To provide procedural information to the faculty or the source of information. (Procedure relating to legitimate faculty concerns, such as how to file a grievance or how to deal with grants, etc.)

B. Memberships

4. Elections Committee

A. Duties
1. To secure nominations for officers or senatorial positions at the expiration of terms or when necessary, according to constitutional demands.

a. A listing by colleges of eligible faculty members shall be distributed to each faculty member along with a nomination form
b. The nominations form shall contain provisions for the nominee to sign a statement attesting to his or her acceptance of the nominations and a statement relative to the voiding nominations that do not have the required signatures.

2. To conduct the election of Senate officers senatorial positions.
3. To publish immediately the results of elections and to the Senate on the details of elections procedures.

B. Membership

5. Budget Committee

A. Duties

1. To secure form each committee and from the officers an itemized estimate of that committee's or officer's budget for the year.
2. To prepare an itemized budget for the Senate, subject to Senate approval.
3. To plan and coordinate procedures for the collection of dues and for the expenditure of funds.

B. Memberships: Chairpersons- Treasurer

6. Policy Committee

A. Duties

1. To samplings or surveys of faculty opinion on matter that may be of interest to the faculty, with the necessary documentation for validity of the sampling or survey.
2. To conduct a survey of faculty opinion on a particular topic at the request of the Executive Committee or the Senate President.

B. Memberships

7. Program Committee

A. Duties

1. To plan and carry out plans for activities of cultural or scholarly interest to the general University community.
2. To plan and execute plans for a program of faculty involvement in community affairs.
3. To plan and execute plans for programs of consumers, recreational, financial, or the local area.
4. To plan and execute plans for social activities for the faculty.
5. Involvement with Honors Day Program.

B. Membership

8. Curriculum Committee

A. Duties

1. To conduct continuing studies of courses, programs of study, and to make recommendations concerning desirable alterations, additions, or deletions
2. To determine and study the implications of suggested changes in courses, curricula or academic requirements for degrees and to make recommendations based on this study to the appropriate academic and administrative officers.
3. To assist the Council of Deans or other appropriate administrative body in the coordination of the efforts of departments and colleges in the implements of approved changes in the curricula.

B. Membership

9. Faculty/ Student Liaison Committee
Section 2. Service on Committees by Non-Senate Faculty Non-Senate faculty members are eligible to serve on any committee. Non-Senate faculty are not eligible to serve on the Executive Board. Appointments to standing committees shall be made by the full Senate.

Section 3. Special Committees The President of the Faculty Senate shall have the power to appoint special committees as needed.

ARTICLE IX RECALL OF ELECTED OFFICIALS
Section 1. Recall of Officers

A. To initiate recall procedures, a recall petition shall be signed by twenty per cent (20%) of the faculty at the time the recall petition is initiated. To initiate a recall petition, a copy of the document must be filed with the President of the Faculty Senate and the Chair of the Elections Committee. Once the petition is filed, the petitioners have forty-five (45) calendar days (excluding Saturdays and Sundays) with which to gain the requisite number of signatures to force a recall election.
B. It shall be the responsibility of the Elections Committee to verify the signatures on the recall petitions. The Elections Committee will be required to inform the petitioners, the officer targeted for recall, and the full Faculty Senate in writing as to whether or not the petition drive succeeds in acquiring the requisite signatures within the prescribed time limit. Once a petition is declared successful, the Elections Committee shall be required to hold an election no later than thirty (30) days from the date the declaration is made. Recall of an officer requires sixty percent of the faculty voting affirmatively for recall.

Section 2. Recall of Senators

A. To initiate recall procedures, a member of a senator's college must initiate a recall petition. Once a recall petition is initiated, it must be filed with the President of the Faculty Senate and the Chair of the Elections Committee. Once a recall petition is filed, the petitioners shall have ten (10) calendar days (excluding Saturdays and Sundays) in order to obtain the requisite number of signatures necessary to force an election.
B. A recall petition shall be signed by twenty percent (20%) of the senator's college constituency. It shall be the responsibility of the Election Committee to verify the signatures on the recall petitions. The Elections Committee shall be required to inform both the petitioners, the senator targeted for recall, and the full Faculty Senate in writing as to whether or not the petition drive succeeded in acquiring the requisite number of signatures within the prescribed time limit. Once a petition is declared successful, the Election Committee is required to hold an election no later than fifteen (15) days from the date the declaration is made. Recall of a senator requires sixty percent of the senator's college constituency voting affirmatively for recall.

ARTICLE X AMENDMENTS
Section 1. Amending the ConstitutionThis constitution may be amended by the following procedure:

A. Any faculty may present a proposed amendment to a senator or the President of the Senate. The proposed amendment must be submitted in writing.
B. The proposed amendment is then referred to the Executive Board, which will review the proposal and present its findings to the Senate.
C. The Senate must vote upon the proposed amendment within thirty (30) days from the date of submission by the proposer.
D. The proposed amendment together with the findings of the Executive Board and the result of the Senate action on the proposed amendment must be circulated to each member of the faculty within ten (10) days from the date of Senate action proposal.
E. Faculty must vote upon the proposed amendment. Two-thirds of the total votes by the faculty shall be necessary for the adoption of the proposed amendment.

ARTICLE XI. RATIFICATION
After approval by the Faculty Senate, the Constitution and By-Laws shall be submitted for the approval of the full Faculty at the next general election. This Constitution must gain the support of a two-thirds majority of the Faculty Senate in order to be placed on the ballot for a general vote of the Faculty. Once the Constitution is placed on the ballot, it will require the support of a simple majority of the Faculty in order to be declared ratified. This Constitution shall take effect immediately upon ratification. Officers and senators elected prior to the ratification of this Constitution shall maintain their positions until the Spring, 2008, election.

BY- LAWS OF THE FACULTY SENATE
OF SOUTHERN UNIVERSITY, BATON ROUGE

ARTICLE I MEETINGS
Section 1. Frequency of Meetings

A. The Faculty Senate of Southern Universty shall meet once per month. The Senate, at the first regular meeting in the fall semester, will approve by a majority vote, the regular meeting time and location for the academic year. The Senate may revisit either the regular meeting time or location at its first regular meeting during the spring semester.
B. The Faculty Convocations held in the fall and spring semester shall constitute the Faculty Senate's Semi-Annual Meetings with the faculty at-large.

Section 2. Non-Senate Faculty
Any faculty member may attend Senate meetings as an observer, but not as a voting participant.

Section 3. Summer Sessions
The Faculty Senate shall be active during the academic summer sessions.

Section 4. Special Meetings
The Executive Board shall call special meetings at such times as deemed advisable. The Executive Board shall convene the Senate or the Faculty upon the request of five percent (5%) of the Faculty. This meeting shall be called within ten (10) days of the Board's receipt of a letter stating the purpose of the meeting and body to be convened. Special meetings shall transact only the business as is specified in the call.

Section 5. Quorum at Faculty Senate Meetings
Fifty- one percent (51%) of the membership of the Faculty Senate or of any committee shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of Senate or committee business.

Section 6. Quorum at Faculty at-Large Meetings Twenty- five percent (25%) of the membership of the faculty shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business at meetings of the faculty at-large.

ARTICLE II FLOOR PRIVILEGES FOR NON-SENATE FACULTY MEMBERS
Section 1. Participation Non-Senate faculty may participate in discussions at Senate meetings. Non-Senate faculty shall not have voting privileges. The Senate has the right to limit the time for discussion on any agenda item.

Section 2. Non-Senate faculty desiring to have an item placed on the agenda of any Senate meeting should submit such an item to any senator, in writing, at least two (2) weeks before the meeting at which the item is to be discussed.

ARTICLE III PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY

The Senate shall be governed by the latest revised edition of Robert's Rules of Order in matters not provided for in the Constitution and BY- LAWS of the Faculty Senate.

ARTICLE IV AMENDMENTS

The BY- LAWS of the Faculty Senate of SUBR may be amended by a simple majority of the Faculty Senate.---Submitted March 28, 2006 by Constitution Committee