UNIVERSITY OF MASSACHUSETTS BOSTON

GRADUATE STUDENT ASSEMBLY

BY-LAWS

ARTICLE I - DUTIES OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

A. Officers

1. Will be comprised of the above Officers.

2. Will execute the day to day business of the GSA.

3. Will have the power to hold meetings in order to coordinate its internal functioning.

4. Shall operate as the GSA's steering committee and as the nominal GSA during the summer session.

5. Shall make recommendations concerning the job description, shall participate in the hiring process and shall contribute to the performance review of the

GSA Program Coordinator and all other GSA funded personnel.

1. Meetings shall be conducted using Robert's Rules of Order as a working guide. The structure and procedures shall be determined by the Executive Committee.

2. There shall be at least three meetings of the GSA during the Fall and Spring semesters. There shall be at least one meeting of the GSA or the Executive Committee during the Summer semester.

B. General Meetings of Graduate Students

1. Upon petition of 5% of the enrolled graduate students, or upon the vote of the GSA, the Executive Committee shall coordinate and make public an agenda for a general meeting of all graduate students. Such meetings shall be subject to the following rules:

a. The meeting will be chaired by the President of the GSA under rules set forth by the Election Committee of the GSA and using Robert's Rules of Order as a working guide.

b. The Election committee may set forth specific rules of participation such as requiring speaker registration and time limits.

The initiation of an amendment to these By-Laws will require a 2/3 vote of a GSA meeting with at least 50% of the elected members attending.. Approval of a By-Laws amendment may only take place during an academic year meeting and shall again require a 2/3 vote of those present at a meeting which satisfies the quorum requirements.

The GSA may remove an elected member if such members behavior is deemed grossly detrimental to the functioning of the GSA. This removal shall require a 2/3 vote of the elected representatives to the GSA, the evidence for such removal must have been presented at a meeting preceding the one at which the vote is taken, and the notice for such a meeting must include the removal motion and be circulated at least two weeks prior to the meeting. An automatic recall will be initiated if a GSA member is absent from 3 regular meetings in one semester. A majority of elected representatives may overturn this recall.

The recall of an officer must be an agenda item of either a general Graduate Student Meeting or a GSA meeting with at least two weeks notice. The removal motion must be approved by a 2/3 vote of a GSA meeting with at least 50% of the elected members attending. Reasons for removal shall be negligence of duties or gross misconduct and evidence of such negligence or misconduct must be presented prior to the recall vote. Recall shall be by either 1) a 2/3 majority vote of the elected members of the GSA or 2) a minimum of 50 votes or a two-thirds majority of the students present at a general meeting, whichever is larger. Replacement procedure are those detailed in the GSA Constitution.

Appointees to internal and external committees may be recalled for negligence of duties or failure to represent in good faith the decided opinion of the GSA. Recall must be a published agenda item and will require a 2/3 votes of those present at a meeting satisfying the 50% quorum requirement.

The GSA shall be comprised of a number of members equal to or less than 1% of the enrolled graduate student body as determined in the Spring semester in which the election is held. No unit as described in Article III of the GSA Constitution shall hold more than 1/3 of the seats on the assembly under any circumstances. as a result of the election if the 1% level can be met by the number of persons duly nominated and placed on the ballot.

If the 1% level can be exceeded by the number of persons duly nominated and placed on the ballot, no unit as described above shall be entitled to more than 1/4 of the seats on the GSA and the election results shall be adjusted to insure this - i.e., lower vote recipients may replace higher ones to the extent that the higher vote recipients are members of units with more than 25% representation. In addition, no unit with an enrollment greater than 5% of the total graduate student enrollment shall be denied a seat on the Assembly if an eligible representative appears on the ballot. The remaining votes shall be adjusted first with regard to the 1/4 rule and then with regard to proportional representation of the remaining units in the assembly. The Dean of Graduate Studies shall be the final arbiter of the election results.

Nominating procedures and time periods will be determined by the Elections Committee but in no case shall less than two weeks be available for nominations to be submitted and at least two weeks shall elapse between the close of nominations and the election.

Election and By-Laws 3

Budget and Finance 3

Academic 3

Programs 2

Members shall nominate themselves or fellow members for the posts of GSA Officers, with participation limited to new GSA members who have voting privileges. A one-paragraph introductory statement from each nominee must be received by the GSA Program Coordinator at least 8 days before the election date (or other deadline set by the GSA). Statements must be compiled by the Program Coordinator and forwarded to all members one week before the election date.

Elections will be conducted by the sitting GSA President (or his/her designee), and minutes of the meeting will be taken by the sitting Secretary (or other designated member). Nominations, followed by elections, will be held in succession for each office in the following order: President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer. After nominations for an office are called out, the nominees confirm (or rescind) their nominations. Additional nominations can be made by the floor at this time. Nominations need not be seconded. New nominees will be allowed a 3-4 minute introduction. All nominees have to be present at the meeting to be eligible for nomination. Pre-declared nominees will be considered eligible in absentia only if they explain to the GSA in writing the valid reason for their absence.

Once nominations for an office are closed, voting will take place by ballot, irrespective of the number of nominees. If there are two nominees, a simple majority (51% of votes) will prevail. In the event of three or more nominees, balloting will be repeated with only the top two contestants being retained. In the event of a tie vote, the nominees may restate their positions, open to debate. If the tie is not broken by another round of balloting, The GSA can take one of two options: a) arrive at a consensus candidate, or b) opt for shared office by the two nominees.

If re-election of an officer is required during the course of the year (under conditions specified in Article VI.D of the GSA constitution), the GSA may elect either a pro-tem officer or a permanent replacement either by simple voice vote or by the nomination/voting procedure