Academic Senate Rules

Spring
2015
Topic
Academic Senate
Committee
Executive Committee

Amended November 9, 2019

  1. Election Rules and Procedures

    1. Election of Officers
      1. Officers. The President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer will be elected to the Board of Directors by balloting from all delegates.
    2. Elections of Representatives
      1. Area Representatives. Each Area Representative shall represent one of the geographical areas designated as Area A, B, C, or D in the current Academic Senate directory. The Academic Senate shall publish a list of community colleges and districts comprising each area. Each Area Representative will be elected to the Board of Directors by balloting only from delegates from their respective Area colleges.
      2. Two North Region representatives. The North Region consists of all those community colleges and districts comprising Areas A and B. North Region Representatives will be elected to the Board of Directors by balloting only from delegates from the North Region.
      3. Two South Region representatives. The South Region consists of community colleges in Areas C and D. South Region Representatives will be elected to the Board of Directors by balloting only from delegates from the South Region.
      4. Two At-Large representatives. At-Large Representatives represent community colleges in areas A, B, C, and D. At-Large Representatives will be elected to the Board of Directors by balloting from all delegates.
    3. Terms of Office
      1. Terms for Officers shall be one year.
      2. Terms for representatives shall be two years.
      3. Terms for representatives shall be staggered as follows. Even-numbered year elections will select the Area B and C representatives, one representative each from the North and South regions, and one of the At-Large representatives. Odd-numbered year elections will select the Areas A and D representatives, one representative each from the North and South regions, and one of the At-large representatives.
      4. The officers shall serve no more than three consecutive elected one-year terms in the same office.
      5. All members except the officers are limited to two consecutive two-year terms in any position. In the event that a representative or officer is elected to a position mid-cycle due to a resignation or election by prior incumbent to a different office or position within a normal cycle, the representative or officer may pursue re-election and be entitled to serve a full term of a normal cycle in the same position despite the previous mid-cycle service. For the purposes of this section and article, At-Large positions are considered the same position despite their staggered terms for election, and all North/South positions are considered the same position despite their staggered terms.
    4. Schedule
      1. The annual election shall take place on the last day of the Spring Plenary Session.
      2. If there is a vacancy on the Board of Directors, a special election to fill that vacancy may be held on the last day of the Fall or Spring Plenary Session. Any special election will be held following all regularly scheduled elections.
      3. The time at which balloting will begin shall be announced in the printed agenda. The first ballot shall not be held earlier than the announced time.
    5. Nominations
      1. Nominations may be made in two ways:
        1. In writing and delivered to the Academic Senate Office;
        2. From the floor at a general session designated for such floor action, regularly on Thursday of a plenary session but on Saturdays only if no candidates have declared intent to seek any given position. The general session for floor nominations should be published in the agenda, and all nominations other than those noted above will be closed at the end of that general session.
      2. Nominations may be accepted only with the consent of the nominee.
      3. Nominees may be nominated for at most two positions for which they are eligible. In the case that the nominee consents to two nominations during the same Plenary session, the first election in which the candidate prevails will be the position the candidate subsequently assumes.
      4. The Academic Senate Office shall provide, at the time of the elections, an announcement board that indicates the Elected Officers and other members of the Board of Directors. This announcement board will be updated as new Board of Directors members are elected, and as vacancies occur.
    6. Delegates Registration
      1. Delegates must sign in by Saturday morning no later than 8:15 a.m.
    7. Elections Procedures
      1. The process by which the election will be conducted shall be distributed in writing prior to the day of the election.
      2. Each ballot shall proceed as follows: Tellers shall distribute ballots to those delegates eligible to vote for the specific office being contested.
        1. The ballot for each position will include the names of all candidates for the position.
        2. The delegate shall indicate a preference for the candidate that the delegate most desires by marking that candidate’s name with the number 1. The delegate shall also indicate a different candidate as a second choice with the number 2, and so on for all candidates as the delegate desires, in the order that the delegate prefers.
        3. The delegate shall mark the ballot, sign it, seal it, and return it to the tellers.
        4. The tellers shall retire to a separate room and shall compare the signatures on each ballot against the signatures on the list of delegates eligible to vote, setting aside any ballots not submitted by a delegate eligible to vote. Any ballots which do not adhere to the rules or the published process shall be disqualified. All ballots shall then be counted.
        5. If any candidate receives a majority (greater than 50%) of number 1 votes, that candidate will be declared the winner. If none of the candidates for a position receives a majority of number 1 votes from the delegates present and voting, the candidate with the fewest number 1 votes will be removed from consideration. The number 2 vote on the ballots of those delegates who gave preference to the candidate no longer under consideration will then be applied. This iterative process will be applied from the ballots until one of the candidates reaches a majority.
        6. If the final two candidates are tied as the result of preferential balloting, the candidate from the shared majority to whom the delegates bestowed the most number 1 votes will be declared the winner. Iteratively, in the event that both of the candidates with the shared majority receive the same amount of number 1 votes, the candidate with the highest amount of number 2 votes will be the winner, and so on.
        7. The specific process by which the election will be conducted, including the grounds and process for appeal of specific ballot results, shall be distributed in writing prior to the day of the election.
      3. To be elected, a candidate must receive a vote from a majority of those delegates present and voting. A majority is greater than 50%.
      4. In the event no candidate for a position receives a majority through the process in I.G.2.f, a run-off will be conducted but will be limited to the top two candidates with the largest number of votes, including all ties.
      5. The order of the election shall be as follows: President, Vice-president, Secretary, Treasurer, At-Large Representative, North Representative, South Representative, and Area Representatives.
      6. Any candidate may observe or select someone to observe the counting of votes for the ballot or ballots on which the candidate’s name appears.
      7. A candidate for election may not chair the Elections Committee or participate in the distribution, collection, or tallying of votes.
      8. If a candidate runs unopposed, the candidate may be elected by acclamation. The motion to be elected by acclamation must be moved and seconded by delegates from the floor and must be approved by the body.
      9. Ballots shall be kept in the Senate archives until the next election.
  2. Vacancies on the Board of Directors

    1. If the Presidency is vacant, the Vice President will become the President.
    2. Vacancies for all other positions on the Board of Directors may be filled by interim appointment. Appointees shall be selected from nominations submitted by eligible Member Senates specified in Sections I.A and I.B of the Senate Rules. Nominees must meet the requirements for serving on the Board of Directors as defined in Article IV, Section 2 of the Bylaws.
    3. Any vacancy filled in accordance with these rules shall be filled by election at the next plenary session.
    4. Failure to attend either two successive meetings or six days total of Board of Directors meetings per year may be deemed a resignation, pending review by the Board of Directors and subject to the Academic Senate’s Policy on the Removal of a Member of the Board of Directors.
  3. Recall of a Member of the Board of Directors

    1. A proposal to recall an elected member of the Board of Directors must be in the form of a resolution from a Member Senate that satisfies the eligibility requirements in sections I.A and I.B of the Senate Rules.
    2. The resolution must include a signature of support from 1/3 of the delegates eligible to vote for the Board member being recalled.
    3. Upon receipt of the recall resolution, the President shall distribute ballots on the recall to each eligible delegate within 15 days of receiving the resolution requesting removal.
    4. Ballots must be returned within 30 days from the day the ballots were distributed. The recall shall be approved if 2/3 of eligible delegates vote in favor of it.
    5. If the recall is approved, then the Board vacancy may be filled in accordance with the section II of the Senate Rules.
  4. Relationship between the Academic Senate and the Academic Senate Foundation

    1. The Foundation shall exist at the will of the Academic Senate Board of Directors.
    2. The Academic Senate shall serve as the sponsoring association for the Foundation, and any action undertaken by Academic Senate Foundation may be reviewed and discussed by the Academic Senate Board of Directors.
    3. The Foundation shall report at each regularly schedule meeting of the Academic Senate Board of Directors.
    4. The Foundation shall submit an annual fiscal report to the Academic Senate Board of Directors.
    5. The Foundation may seek and utilize administrative support from the Academic Senate.
    6. No section of these rules shall be construed to authorize or acknowledge any control by the Academic Senate over actions taken by the Foundation or to impose any responsibilities or duties upon the Academic Senate of the actions taken by the Foundation or its members during their terms in office.
    7. In the event that the Academic Senate terminates the Foundation, all the remaining assets and property of the Foundation, after payment of all liabilities and necessary expenses, shall be distributed to such organizations consistent with the purposes stated in its bylaws, and subject to statutory or other legal requirements of the State of California. Such final distribution shall be made by a majority vote of the Foundation Board.
  5. Committees

    1. There shall be standing committees for topics related to accreditation, curriculum, educational policy, professional development, standards and practices, and other topics as identified by the Board of Directors.
    2. There shall be three operational committees: Budget and Finance, Elections, and Resolutions Committees.
    3. The Board of Directors may create other committees, task forces, and ad hoc groups as needed to address the adopted positions of the Academic Senate.