REVISION 2
ARTICLE I
NAME AND PURPOSE
Section 1. Name
The name of the organization shall be the Staff Council of University of Central Florida. The Staff Council shall be referred to as the “Staff Council” or “Council,” Staff Council Members shall be referred to as “Staff Representatives” or “Representatives.” University Support Personnel System employees will be known as “USPS Staff” or “Staff.” The University President or any other University official will be preceded with the term “University.”
Section 2. Purpose
a This charter establishes guidelines and procedures under which the Staff Council will function. The University Vice President for Administration and Finance and Chief Financial Officer or designee, is the Council sponsor. The Associate Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer is the Council advisor.
b The Staff Council serves at the request of the University to encourage and promote a spirit of unity and open communication between the University Support Personnel System (USPS) employees and the administration of the University of Central Florida.
c The Staff Council will provide a regular, open forum to facilitate communication among employees and University administration with regard to identifying, discussing, and making recommendations regarding the interests and concerns that affect Staff as well as exchanging information about policies.
d The Staff Council shall act on behalf of USPS Staff in presentations to the Staff Council sponsor concerning University policies affecting USPS Staff or upon requests from USPS Staff after appropriate research has been completed.
ARTICLE II
MEMBERSHIP
Section 1. Eligibility The Representatives shall be regular full-time employees of University of Central Florida who have completed at least seven months of continuous employment.
Section 2. Participation and Support
a Supervisors and management are encouraged to support participation, including permitting reasonable release time for Council activities, including committee meetings, Staff Council Representatives will engage in communication with their supervisors regarding release time for Council activities.
b All UCF employees are encouraged to assist and participate in Staff Council functions and to contact the Council committee members in their area of interest.
c Honorary Members. The Council may choose to bestow honorary membership to individuals in recognition for outstanding support and service to USPS Staff.
Section 3. Staff Representation
a The Staff Council shall make every effort to have representation from each division of the University. These may include, but not limited to, the Orlando Main Campus, the Western Region Campuses, the Central Region Campuses, the Eastern Region Campuses and the Southern Region Campuses. The Staff Council shall maintain a tracking mechanism to ensure that all divisions are assigned a representative. If a division does not have a representative, Staff Council will assign a representative.
b Membership will be determined by application of the formula: One elected member for each fifty USPS employees. The number of eligible members will be determined by an official count to be provided by Human Resources to the Council President periodically throughout the Council year.
Section 4. Term of Service
a Newly elected Staff Council Representatives will serve a term of two years beginning the first of July.
b The terms will be staggered so that approximately half of the seats will be up for election each year.
ARTICLE III
ELECTIONS & APPOINTMENTS OF STAFF COUNCIL REPRESENTATIVES
Section 1. Election Procedures for Staff Council Members
a Formation of the Election Committee. The Staff Council President shall appoint an Election Committee consisting of a minimum of a chair and two committee members. These committee members shall not be running for reelection during their service on the committee. This committee is charged with developing a Representative slate of candidates from each area, if possible, by actively soliciting open nominations.
b Election Process to Approve Candidates. The Election Committee shall finalize a list of nominees in March. This list of nominations shall be forwarded to the Staff Council advisor or his/her designee who will ensure that all nominees have been employed for least seven months at the University of Central Florida. The Election Committee will then present the nominees to the Staff at the annual Staff Assembly in April.
c Reelection of representatives. If a council member wishes to serve for a second term, he or she must submit a new nomination form and participate in the established election process.
d Nomination Forms/Ballots. The Election Committee will design and distribute nominations, voting, counting of ballots and notification of elected members.
e Nomination Process. Nomination forms must be signed by the nominee and the nominee’s supervisor and submitted by the published deadline.
f Voting Process. USPS Staff members are eligible to vote if they have had at least seven months of continuous service at the University. Elections will be conducted by secret mailed ballot addressed to each voting member of the USPS Staff. The ballots are returned to the Staff Council advisor or his/her assigned designee and tallied by the Staff Council Election Committee.
g Run-off Elections. In case of a tie in the general election, a run-off election will be made public by the chair of the Election Committee.
Section 2. Appointments
a Election Appointments. If there are not enough candidates to fill all the open positions during the annual elections, the candidates shall then be appointed to the Council after having been verified as eligible by Human Resources, with no election process. A vote will be taken by Staff Council to approve membership.
b Appointments to Staff Council during the Council Year. To fill vacancies during the Council year, the election committee chair shall first contact unelected candidates, if any, to determine interest in serving on Council. Those candidates who have met eligibility requirements shall be presented at the next meeting. A vote will be taken by Staff Council to approve membership.
c Process to add Staff Members. Other USPS Staff wishing to join the Staff Council during the Council year after the annual election shall be considered for membership when openings occur under the following process:
1. The candidate shall complete the nomination form and obtain his or her supervisor’s approval to serve on the Council. The supervisor’s approval will be indicated by his/her signature on the nomination form. The form is then given to the Staff Council President.
2. The Council President will submit the candidate’s name to Human Resources for verification of eligibility for membership.
3. Eligible candidates are presented to the Staff Council at the next meeting where a vote is taken to determine membership.
4. Names of the newly appointed members are to be forwarded to Council sponsor and advisor.
ARTICLE IV
OFFICERS
Section 1. Office Designations, Responsibilities and Term of Service
a Staff Council Officers shall be elected at the June meeting, assume office on July 1 and serve until June 30 of the second year. Officers shall meet quarterly or as needed. The officers shall meet with the committee chairs at least twice a year.
b The Staff Council officers and their Responsibilities are as follows:
President. The President shall be the chief executive officer of Staff Council and shall chair all Staff Council meetings. The President shall be the liaison between Staff Council and the Staff Council advisor, as well as the chief spokesperson for the Staff Council. The president shall work with the Vice President to represent Staff Council in relations with other University Committees. The President shall work with the Vice President in an advisory capacity with all committees as needed. During the voting process, the President shall only vote in the event of a tie. The President shall serve as a back-up for the Treasurer in the Treasurer’s short term absence. The President shall set up the annual schedule of meeting locations and arrange for guest speakers. The President has the authority to cancel a meeting when deemed necessary for the welfare and safety of Staff Council members. The President is responsible for purchasing and disturbing special occasion cards and gifts deemed appropriate, with a $50 limit on such gifts. The purchase of such items shall be from the Council Credit Union account and in accordance with Council policies. If University funds were requested and allowed for such purchases, the usual University purchasing policies would apply.
Vice President. The Vice President shall be the chief executive officer of Staff Council meetings in the President’s absence and assume other duties as necessary. The Vice President shall work with the President in an advisory capacity with all committees as needed. The Vice President shall ensure that the Staff Council web site information is updated on a regular basis.
Secretary. The Secretary shall be the chief recording officer. The Secretary shall be responsible for: tracking attendance at the monthly meetings, annual attendance statistics, maintaining and disturbing correspondence, the agenda and minutes of the monthly meetings, and conducting special business or election meetings, as needed. The Secretary shall make purchases as requested by any member and authorized by the Treasurer in the amount of $25.00 or less without Council’s approval. The Secretary and Parliamentarian shall be responsible for the Outlook e-mail account. The Secretary shall record the quorum status in all meeting minutes and related reports.
Treasurer. The Treasurer shall be the chief financial officer of the Staff Council. The Treasurer shall be responsible for the receipt and disbursement of all Council funds and for the establishment and maintenance of appropriate records of fiscal transactions. The Treasurer shall ensure all expenditures are within approved budget and have been properly approved under the policies of the Staff Council. The Treasurer shall authorize funds for supplies purchased by the Secretary as requested with a limit of $25.00 or less without Council approval. The Treasurer shall authorize funds for the President, if needed, for up to $50.00 without Council approval. The Treasurer shall chair the Budget Committee. The Treasure shall make all financial records available for review by Council Representatives.
Parliamentarian/Historian. The Parliamentarian shall ensure proper parliamentary procedures are followed and meetings are run in an orderly and timely manner. Roberts Rules of Order shall be used by the Parliamentarian/Historian as the basis for meeting protocol. The Parliamentarian shall ensure that a quorum is present for any voting process. Votes taken by e-mail in accordance with operating procedures will be certified by the Parliamentarian/ Historian. The Parliamentarian /Historian shall assist the Secretary with the Outlook e-mail account. The Parliamentarian/Historian is responsible for maintaining historical records and items for storage including, but not limited to, historical copies of the charter, records of all election results, Council photos that are taken at Council events, and maintain the digital camera.
Section 2. Election of officers
Officers shall be elected to a two year term. Officers shall be limited to a total of two terms. The Election Committee shall produce ballots and have them available for election of officers at the June meeting of the second year of officers’ term. Officers shall be elected by a majority vote of the Staff Council. No one may be removed from the ballot without her/his consent. Officer candidates shall notify the chair of the Elections Committee at least one week before the June meeting. Candidates may also be nominated from the floor with their permission before voting begins for each office. Voting shall be by written ballot and tallied immediately by the Election Committee with the winners announced at the meeting. The results of the officer election shall be recorded in the meeting minutes and made public. If the current Council President is running for office, the Vice President shall abstain from voting, in order to break a tie. If both the President and, the Vice President are running for the same office then the Secretary shall abstain from voting to be available to break a tie.
Section 3. Order of Succession
If an officer resigns from office, he or she shall inform the Council President of the resignation in writing. The positions shall be succeeded as described below, effective immediately: The Vice President shall succeed the President. The Secretary shall succeed the Vice President. The Parliamentarian/Historian shall succeed the Secretary or Treasurer. The President shall have authority to designate a new Parliamentarian/Historian. All successions/appointments are subject to ratification by the entire Council at the next meeting. A special election shall be held to fill positions in accordance with established procedures for electing Council officers. If an Officer does not wish to succeed the vacated position, the remaining officers shall fulfill the duties of the position until the next Council meeting and special election.
ARTICLE V
OPERATING PROCEEDURES
Section 1. Official Staff Council Year
The official Council year shall be concurrent with the university’s fiscal year; July 1–June 30.
Section 2. Council Responsibility
As part of the Council’s purpose to foster communication, the Council will, if applicable, present suggestions, comments and recommendations to the Council Advisor for referral to the appropriate department for review and timely action.
Section 3. Representative Responsibilities
a It is the responsibility of each Council Representative to represent a portion of the USPS Staff, as assigned, and to be available to communicate with other USPS Staff as needed. Council Representatives should endeavor to be aware of the needs and concerns of those whom he or she represents and present items to the Council, Names of Council Representative shall be posted in easily accessible places throughout the campus to ensure that Staff members are aware of who they are and how they can contact them.
b All Council Representative have the following responsibilities: To attend Council meetings and to inform the Secretary or the Council President if they are unable to attend a meeting. Notification of an excused absence will not be accepted through a third party. To serve on at least one committee, which entails attendance at committee meetings and active participation to further the goals of that committee. To inform the Secretary of any contact information. To make formal, written reports on their activities for the purpose of continuity of information for their successor as well as end-of-year committee chair and officer reports. These reports shall include accomplishments, budget information, and contact information of pertinent parties, vendor information, procedural instructions, helpful tips and the status of ongoing projects.