The Constitution of the Faculty Organization
of Eastern Washington University
Preamble
We, the faculty of Eastern Washington University, in order to establish ourselves as a self governing body, do create and establish this constitution.
Article I. Name of Organization
Section I. The name of this organization shall be the Faculty Organization of Eastern Washington University.
Article II. Purpose
Section I. The Faculty Organization's primary purpose shall be to benefit the faculty and the institution of Eastern Washington University. Specifically, the aims are:
1.To advance faculty standards, with emphasis on continued learning in order to constantly improve knowledge and teaching.
2.To advance faculty welfare by the implementation of academic freedom and by constantly endeavoring to strengthen tenure.
3.To advance faculty welfare by working for improved salary schedules, professional leaves, sick leaves and improved working conditions for the faculty.
4.To advance faculty welfare by the consideration of problems or grievances related to academic freedom, academic rank, tenure, professional leave, sick leave and salary schedules.
Section II. The organization shall endeavor to maintain and strengthen the concept of shared governance and to represent the views of the faculty in all matters pertaining to shared governance.
Article III. Membership
Section I. The membership of the Faculty Organization shall consist of regular members and special members:
1.Regular members are full-time employees of Eastern Washington University whose principal responsibilities are as academic instructors, academic researchers, professional librarians, teachers in the Robert Reid Laboratory School, department chairs and/or elected officers within the Faculty Organization or any combination of the above.
2.Special members of the Faculty Organization are members who do not qualify as regular members but who have been admitted to membership under Section IV, to follow.
Section II. Any employee of Eastern Washington University who performs administrative functions as the principal part of his/her assignment, and who has authority to hire, fire and discipline other employees, is excluded from membership in the Faculty Organization.
Section III. An official roster of the Faculty Organization indicating regular membership and special membership shall be established and maintained by the secretary of the Faculty Organization. This roster shall be available on request, to any member of the Faculty Organization.
Section IV. Full time employees of Eastern Washington University not qualifying as regular members may appeal for special membership status to the Academic Senate, the legislative arm of the Faculty Organization. The Rules Committee shall place matters of membership, exception, appeals or changes on the agenda of the Academic Senate for its action.
Article IV. Officers
Section I. The officers of the organization shall consist of a president, a vice president, a secretary, a treasurer and immediate past President of the Academic Senate, ex officio (amended 10/26/98). The vice president is the president-elect for the following year. The president of the Faculty Organization shall serve as chair of the Academic Senate and the vice president of the Faculty Organization shall serve as the vice chair of the Academic Senate. The secretary of the Faculty Organization is responsible for preparing public announcements for distribution on behalf of the Faculty Organization.
Section II. Elections of officers for the following academic year shall be conducted during the spring quarter of each academic year. Nominations for officers may come from:
1.The nominating committee;
2.Nominations from the floor at a meeting of the Faculty Organization to be held two weeks prior to this election; and/or
3.A petition signed by at least five percent of the Faculty Organization membership and presented to the secretary at least one week prior to the election.
The nominating committee, with a membership of twelve to fifteen, shall be selected by the president of the Faculty Organization, with the consent of the Rules Committee, and shall be chosen so that each major academic division of the university has appropriate representation on it. The report of the nominating committee will be forwarded to the faculty three weeks prior to the election. Only regular members of the Faculty Organization are eligible for election to faculty office.
Section III. Officers of the Faculty Organization are subject to recall. A petition to recall any officer of the Faculty Organization signed by at least twenty percent of the members of Faculty Organization asking for a recall will require a recall election be conducted. This recall election shall be conducted by members of the Rules Committee of the Academic Senate, excluding that officer whose tenure is being contested, and shall be completed within twenty-one faculty working days of receipt of the petition. If a majority of the ballots cast in such a recall election favor recall of that officer, then the office shall be declared vacant by the Rules Committee within five days of the completion of the recall election. In case of a recall of the president, the vice president will succeed him and an election will be held to replace the vice president. In case of the recall of any other officer, there will be an election to fill the office for the remainder of the term.
Article V. Dues and Assessments
Section I. Faculty Organization membership dues shall be payable by the sixth Friday of fall quarter each year or by the fourth quarter of employment, whichever is later.
Section II. Dues are for ordinary expenses of the Faculty Organization.
Section III. Dues shall be changed only by:
1. A majority vote at a meeting of the Faculty Organization; or
2. A majority vote in a secret mail ballot.
The dues, once set, shall remain in effect until changed by a subsequent vote of the Faculty Organization.
Section IV. Special assessments to cover extraordinary expenses of the Faculty Organization may be levied by a two-thirds vote at a meeting of the organization.
Section V. The treasurer shall keep a current record of dues and assessments paid by members of the Faculty Organization. Copies of this record shall be available to any member on request.
Article VI. Meetings
Section I. Meetings of the Faculty Organization shall be held on:
1.The call of the president;
2.A petition of at least ten percent of the membership of the Faculty Organization; or
3.The petition of a majority of the membership of the Academic Senate.
The date and agenda of meetings shall be announced in writing to all members of the Faculty Organization at least one week in advance of the meeting; however, proposed amendments to the constitution and changes in the senate regulations must be announced in writing to all members at least two weeks prior to the meeting.
Section II. Official business of the Faculty Organization can be enacted only by:
1.A majority vote at a meeting of the Faculty Organization; or
2.A majority of those voting by secret ballot conducted by the organization.
Section III. A quorum of a meeting of the Faculty Organization shall be ten percent of the members of the Faculty Organization; however, if a constitutional amendment or a change in senate regulations is to be acted on, then a quorum of forty percent of the membership of the Faculty Organization is required.
Section IV. Meetings of the Faculty Organization and meetings of any subcommittees of the organization, including the Academic Senate and councils, shall be conducted in accord with Robert’s Rules of Order.
Article VII. Voting
Section I. Only members of the Faculty Organization are eligible to vote in any meeting of the Faculty Organization, in any committee, council or subcommittee of the Faculty Organization or in any ballot conducted by the Faculty Organization.
Section II. When official business is conducted by secret ballot, those secret ballots shall be distributed by the executive committee with the date of distribution marked on each ballot and those ballots must be returned to the secretary of the Faculty Organization within ten faculty working days of the date on the ballot; ballots returned after this time period will not be valid.
Section III. In addition to secret ballots, polls of the Faculty Organization may be conducted by the executive committee from time to time.
Article VIII. Standing Committees
Section I. The following shall constitute the standing committees of the Faculty Organization:
1.Academic Senate. The Academic Senate; together with its councils, committees, and subcommittees; is the legislative arm of the Faculty Organization.
2.Executive Committee. The executive committee shall be composed of the four elected officers of the organization and the most recent past-president; the president of the Faculty Organization is the chair of the executive committee. The past president’s role is advisory/non-voting. (Revised 10/26/98, Academic Senate)
3.Social Committee. The president of the Faculty Organization shall appoint a chair of the Social Committee. The president of the Faculty Organization, in consultation with the chair of the Social Committee, will name the membership of this committee.
4.Faculty Values Committee. The Faculty Values Committee is charged with maintaining our values and working with the administration to resolve communication difficulties and charged with these essential tasks: (1) issuing an annual report card, like the State Department report on human rights around the world, evaluating the university's degree of success achieving faculty values, (2) developing viable methods--with the approval of the senate as a whole--to ensure substantial faculty input in university decisions, and (3) identifying and implementing an annual academic theme, with the assistance of the Provost, for campus-wide attention, including visiting speakers and curricular materials. (new language implemented spring 2005)
Article IX. Regulations Governing the Academic Senate
Section I. Regulations governing the Academic Senate are currently delineated at Section 300-060-040 (former Appendix IV) to the bylaws of Eastern Washington University, published in the Eastern Washington University Policies and Procedures Manual.
Section II. Changes in senate regulations must be announced in writing to all members of the Faculty Organization at least two weeks prior to the meeting. Changes in regulations governing the Academic Senate can only be accomplished in one of the following three ways:
1.A two-thirds vote at a meeting of the Academic Senate;
2.A majority vote in a meeting of the Faculty Organization with at least forty percent of the members present; or
3.A majority vote in a secret ballot conducted by the Faculty Organization.
Article X. Amendments of the Constitution
Section I. The constitution of the Faculty Organization can be amended in only two ways:
1.By a two-thirds vote at a meeting of the Faculty Organization attended by at least forty percent of the membership; or
2.By a two-thirds vote in a secret ballot conducted by the Faculty Organization.
(Formerly Bylaw Appendix IV; Amended 6/83)
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