Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC)

“The voice of the student-athlete”

Constitution

Article 1. Student-Athlete Advisory Committee Description, Purpose, and Philosophy

With support from The Ohio State University Department of Athletics and Student-Athlete Support Services Office (SASSO), the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) consists of representatives from each of the varsity teams and has an active Executive Council that aims to lead discussions in support of current topics and issues affecting student-athletes here at The Ohio State University and nationally. The representatives act as liaisons for the Varsity teams, facilitating connections with the Athletic Department, SASSO, and the Ohio State University Office of Student Life.

Additionally, SAAC creates, organizes and discusses events and while providing opportunities for Buckeyes to be involved in all areas of student-athlete development (personal, academic, involvement, inclusion, and professional).

SAAC is recognized as an official Ohio State University student organization, as defined by the Office of Student Life.

Monthly meetings are held for the SAAC membership and serve to provide opportunities for the SAAC Executive Council to update the SAAC membership on current issues, SAAC-sponsored events, and university-wide programming. Additionally, monthly meetings provide opportunity for the SAAC team representatives to communicate to the membership regarding any current issues, concerns, or questions from their team. Lastly, time is built into the monthly meetings to allow for discussion and work in the area of student-athlete welfare.

The purpose of SAAC is to:

  1. Promote effective communication between the Athletic Department Administration and the student-athlete population;
  2. Provide the student-athletes with an opportunity to have input into the educational, personal, and athletic development programs that serve the needs of today's student-athletes both on a school and national level;
  3. To actively encourage more involvement of the student-athletes on campus and within the community;
  4. To design and implement programs which will encourage academic achievement, health promotion, social responsibility, and general awareness.

The Philosophy of SAAC:

To facilitate and maintain an open forum for student-athletes to discuss concerns and help in planning programs and activities. Decisions are made at monthly SAAC meetings, and are made by consensus when possible.

Article 2. Membership

All Varsity teams at The Ohio State University have a team representative (“SAAC Rep”) that acts as a liaison between their team and the SAAC membership. Each team is responsible for having one voting representative. During the first SAAC meeting of the year, the representative will sign a contract, acknowledging that they understand his or her responsibility.

SAAC Reps may be chosen by team discretion, however are responsible for attending all meetings, with only the exceptions listed below. Representatives may hold their position for the remainder of their eligibility, pending unsatisfactory performance that will be decided upon by the Executive Board.

SAAC Reps are responsible for attending monthly SAAC meetings and communicating updates to their team, and back to SAAC, when needed.

●Each of the 36 teams has representation in the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.

●Determination of SAAC membership is made by either the Coach of the team or by student-athletes volunteering their time to represent the team.

oWhen the student-athlete may no longer represent their team, due to loss of athletic eligibility or can no longerperform the responsibilities of a representative, they are asked to nominate a member of their team to fulfill their role.

Article 2-A Attendance Policy

●Attendance at all SAAC meetings is required.

●Meetings are held once a month for both fall and spring semesters, resulting in only a few meetings per semester.

●Due to the importance and frequency of meetings the following attendance policy is in place:

oA student-athlete is only allowed one (1) unexcused absence per semester. If he/she exceeds the limit they will have two options:

▪Write an appeal stating why they missed and why they believe they should stay on SAAC. The executive board will have the option to keep him/her on SAAC if they feel the appeal is appropriate and convincing.

▪If they choose not to write an appeal, they will lose their spot as a representative and a new representative will be selected through the process outlined in the “Membership” section of the bylaws.

oExcused absences are acceptable and not a means for ejection from SAAC. No more than two excused absences per semester. A representative must communicate an excused absence and receive approval by the SAAC President or the SAAC advisor at least two (2) hours before the scheduled time of the meeting. Failure to receive approval in time will result in an unexcused absence. The following are acceptable excused absences:

▪Class Conflicts

▪Scheduled Practices or Competition

▪Family or Other Related Emergency

▪Other Serious Situation or Event

Article 2-B Removal

In the event that a current SAAC representative requires removal from SAAC, a majority vote by the Executive board is mandatory to remove the representative.

Additionally, the following action incurs immediate removal from SAAC

1)Missing one or more meetings per semester without excuse

2)Lack of demonstrating commitment to SAAC goals and operations

3)Loss of eligibility solely for disciplinary reasons.

Note: In the case of loss of eligibility for disciplinary reasons, affiliates will be automatically excused from their responsibilities. Voting representatives will be offered a meeting with the Executive Board, who will then decide upon appropriate course of action on a case-by-case basis.

The following steps should be taken to remove the General Assembly member or executive member:

●If the member holds a voting representative position, an executive board member will alert them of their removal, after which that member will be removed from the official list of SAAC Representatives for the remainder of the school year.

●If the team has non-voting representatives, the executive board will choose an appropriate replacement for the voting representative. If the team does not have affiliates, and no other interested student-athletes apply, then the coach must nominate an athlete to fill their spot.

Article 3. SAAC Leadership and Method of Selecting The Executive Board

SAAC is led by a group of student-athletes, called the Executive Board, who have been members of SAAC in the prior year and were elected at the last meeting of the prior academic year. Students interested in Executive Board positions will submit an application and personal statement that will anonymously be voted on during the second to last meeting. If there are no candidates running for a position, the SAAC President may appoint interested student-athletes to these roles. Terms last one year with the exception of Vice President becoming President following current President’s graduation.

The Executive Board is composed of the following:

oThe Chair – Serves as presiding officer of SAAC; attends Athletic Council meetings; attends phone conferences and in-person meetings with B1G Ten and Division I SAAC groups as necessary; meets with SAAC advisor on monthly basis

oVice-Chair – Serves as Chair in the event the presiding Chair is unable to fulfill responsibilities; typically fulfills role as Chair the following year

oSecretary – Maintains all SAAC records and disseminates monthly meeting minutes to the SAAC membership

oTreasurer – Maintains all SAAC financial records and transactions; assists with financial requests and budgeting

oEvent Management—Organizes committees and executes all of SAAC sponsored events throughout the calendar year

oSocial Media—Responsible for all social media accounts and promotional efforts for various SAAC events

oCommunity Outreach— Establishes relationships with organizations in order to create and organize community outreach opportunities for SAAC members

Article 4. Advisor Criteria

SAAC’s advisor is the Student-Athlete Development Coordinator in the Student Athlete Support Services Office. Other SASSO and Athletic Department staff may serve as advisors if desired. Advisor(s) will attend all general membership meetings as well as executive council meetings. Advisor(s) should be available via phone and e-mail if questions, concerns, or ideas arise.

Article 5. SAAC Meetings

SAAC Meetings will be held the first Sunday of each month in Younkin Success Center. Locations and dates are subject to change pending room availability and the academic calendar (i.e. holidays, breaks). SAAC members and Executive Council are expected to be present at each meeting. SAAC will not have meetings over the summer.

SAAC meetings will be led by the Chair and Vice Chair, with assistance from the SAAC Advisor(s) as needed. Discussions may focus on current student-athlete topics and issues, Athletics Department and SASSO policies and programming, and student-development/leadership/service opportunities in the campus or greater Columbus communities.

SAAC Executive Board meetings will be held one week prior to the general body meetings, as determined by the officers.

Article 6. SAAC Functions and Responsibilities

Academic Welfare – SAAC works closely with SASSO to help improve internal motivation of student-athletes to increase the value of the educational experience.

oAnnual SAAC Sponsored Event – Faculty & Staff Appreciation Event

▪Typically held in November, SAAC membership has an opportunity to invite a faculty member to an appreciation event. The event allows student-athletes to show appreciation to faculty/staff on campus while aiming to educate those in the daily life of a student-athlete.

Community Service – SAAC works to take an active role in the Ohio State community, including on and off campus initiatives and programming.

oThe SAAC organization will take part in monthly community outreach events, mandatory for all members. The goal of these events will not only be to serve our community, but also to establish better relationships between our student-athletes and various outreach organizations.

oSAAC also announces community service activities to its membership at monthly meetings and via email.

Internal Student Athlete Relations – SAAC representatives also help to recruit student-athletes to attend SASSO/Athletic Department events and support all athletic teams.

External Student-Athlete Relations – SAAC aims to create and update student-athlete communication outlets, including updates to website and social media. The SAAC Chair will attend and give reports at Ohio State Athletic Department Coaches Meetings as well as Athletic Council meetings. Various student organizations and campus groups may be invited to SAAC meetings to discuss collaboration efforts and involvement opportunities.

Student-Athlete Welfare – SAAC encourages student-athletes to become more involved and accountable in their personal, academic, and athletic pursuits. SAAC focuses on and helps promote academic and professional development activities and programs; SAAC membership is involved in the planning and promotion of SASSO and Athletic Department student development-based programming; SAAC.

Chair will attend Athletic Council meetings and will participate in APPLE Conference, NCAA-sponsored events, and Big Ten Conference events as available.

Article 7: Amendment of Bylaws

  1. A representative of the SAAC and/or SAAC Executive Board may propose changes to the SAAC bylaws by submitting a written proposal to the SAAC.
  2. A two-thirds (2/3) majority vote of the SAAC is needed to pass a proposal.
  3. If the two-thirds (2/3) majority is achieved, the Executive Board will apply the change to the bylaws accordingly.
  4. The modified bylaws will be presented at the next monthly SAAC meeting and two-thirds (2/3) majority vote will need to be achieved to finalize the proposed change.

Article 8: Non-Discrimination Policy

This organization and its members shall not discriminate against any individual(s) for reasons of age, color, disability, gender identity or expression, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or veteran status.