Our By-Laws

1. Standing Committees
   There will be five standing committees in the Senate, each composed of three members excluding members of the Executive Committee who, however, may serve ex-officio without vote. The standing committees shall be lettered A, B, C, D, and E.
2. Procedure for Making By-Laws
   All By-Laws except those considered at the June 9, 1966 meeting of the Faculty Senate are introduced in writing at one meeting and voted on at the next meeting. The By-Laws introduced are not referred to a committee. It takes a 2/3 majority of senators present to accept them. The Secretary of the Senate in his/her notification of the time and place of the next meeting will include copies of the proposed By-Laws to the Faculty Senate members.
3. Resolutions
   Regardless of source, all resolutions must be given to the President of the Faculty Senate before a regular meeting of the Senate is called to order. The President will place all resolutions in a box and these will be well mixed. The Secretary of the Faculty Senate will blindly draw each resolution from the box and each resolution will automatically be referred to the standing committee which is due, by rotation of letters, for a resolution. This process will continue until all resolutions introduced at a meeting are assigned to committees. Resolutions determined as emergency matters by the Executive Committee will not be referred to a standing committee.
4. Committee Procedures
   
   1. The Committee will determine the time, place, and nature of all of its meetings. The Committee will hold one open hearing at which any faculty member has the right to appear and/or testify, unless it is the unanimous decision of the Committee that no open hearing is needed. In the latter case, if the majority of the Faculty Senate does not concur with the judgment of the committee, the Senate may require the Committee to hold an open hearing.
   2. A committee must report on resolutions no later than the second regular meeting of the Senate following the referral date, or the first regular meeting if the committee decides no open hearing is needed.
   3. A committee will submit a written report containing the following: (1) the exact resolution as proposed; (2) the dates of referral, open hearings, and other committee meetings; (3) the unsigned written report of the committee containing both the majority and minority report (if there is one) will be read by the chairperson. The reports will state the recommendation of the committee.
5. Meeting Procedures
   The fundamentals of Robert's Rules of Order will be followed except when they conflict with the Constitution and By-Laws.
   
6. New Business
   The order of business for each of the meetings will provide for the introduction of resolutions from the floor of the Senate.
7. Voting
   Votes will be by show of hands for routine matters except on demand of 1/5 of the senators present, in that case the vote will be by secret ballot. All votes on resolutions will be by secret ballot.
8. Definition of Meetings
   At the end of each regular meeting the Senate will set a date for a meeting the following month which will be known as the regular meeting. The Executive Committee may call other meetings which will be known as special meetings. All meetings, regular or special, must be publicized to the general faculty in advance.