Purpose and Authority
The Standard Operating Rules assure that the conduct of elections and committee business
remains consistent and legitimate by following the points below. In areas of difference between the Standard Operating Rules and committee bylaws, the bylaws shall take precedence.
Robert’s Rules of Order
Meetings of UWM’s governance committees are conducted under Robert’s Rules of Order.
Standing Committee and Senate Membership, Charges, and Functions
The Academic Staff Senate and each standing committee has its own unique set of responsibilities and membership as specified in its bylaws which are located at:
Membership on more than one committee of the academic staff is not allowed except that
members of the Instructional and Research Academic Staff Review Committee (IRASRC) and the Non-Instructional Academic Staff Review Committee (NIASRC) may serve concurrently on
another committee of the academic staff. In no case, however, may an individual serve concurrently on the Academic Staff Hearing and Appeals Committee (ASHAC) and one of the
Review Committees. Senators may hold concurrent committee membership.
If a committee or Senate member’s status changes, rendering them ineligible to serve
according to the applicable bylaws, their membership status is immediately discontinued and
vacancy procedures will be followed.
For the purpose of conducting the business and representing the interests of the academic staff at UWM, the academic staff excludes those individuals in limited appointments whose concurrent (backup) positions are in the faculty or the university staff. Such individual members may not vote at meetings of the academic staff, may not be elected, or appointed to committees as academic staff members, and are not eligible for awards designated for the academic staff.
Limited title appointees who hold sole or concurrent appointments as academic staff may
serve on governance committees. The status of the concurrent appointment determines the
eligibility for a given committee. For example, an assistant dean with an indefinite status
concurrent appointment may serve on one of the review committees that requires all
members hold indefinite status.
Standing Committee Chairs
Chairs of standing committees are elected by the committee membership and serve a one-
year term with the possibility of consecutive terms if specified in the bylaws. Chairs have the
responsibility to schedule meetings, create and disseminate committee agendas and minutes,
record attendance (if there is no secretary), and serve as the representative of the committee
to other standing committees as well as to the Academic Staff Senate.
Initial Meetings of Each Academic Year
As soon as reasonable after the start of the fall semester, the Office of the Secretary of the
University (hereafter SecU) sends a convener letter to each standing committee chair (if known) or senior committee member to call the first meeting and provides all conveners with
guidelines on filing meeting notices and sending agendas and minutes to secofunv@uwm.edu.
Notice of Meetings
To comply with Wisconsin’s Open Meeting Law, all governance meetings must be noticed
(publicly announced). Information on Wisconsin’s Open Meeting Law and instructions for filing
the public notification can found on the Open Meetings page.
Standing Committee Agendas and Minutes
Agendas should include information indicating day, time, and location of meetings as well as
the following:
- Approval of previous meeting minutes
- Unfinished business
- New business
Agendas should be circulated to members at least one week prior to the meeting (where
possible). They should be sent using the committee’s electronic distribution list which is
available through the SecU. Minutes should contain the date of the meeting, members and guests present, and members absent as well as the following:
- Time of call to order
- Approval of previous meeting minutes
- Listing and discussion of unfinished business items
- Listing and discussion of new business items
- Listing and discussion of other business or announcements
- Time of adjournment
Approved minutes should be sent electronically to the SecU where they will be placed on the
committee’s website. Should meetings need to be cancelled, please inform the SecU so that a notation may be made on the webpage.
The SecU posts agendas and minutes on each committee’s website.
Attendance Records
Attendance records for the Senate and all standing committees are published in the minutes of each meeting.
Meeting Quorum
A quorum of one-half of the voting committee members is required for the transaction of
business at meetings of academic staff committees except as otherwise specified in the
bylaws of a standing committee.
Voting on Motions
Ex-officio members on a standing committee are not allowed to vote. All other members of
the committee have the obligation to register their vote on a formal motion. Votes may be
taken by voice, a show of hands, or any member has the right to call for a roll call vote.
Members of the committee are not permitted to vote in abstentia. The record of the vote
should be noted in the minutes.
Standing Committee Reports
Each standing committee must submit an annual report to the Academic Staff Senate.
Normally, the request for the annual report, with a template, will be issued by the SecU in May
or June. Reports are presented at the following September meeting of the Senate. The format of these reports includes a listing of the members of the committee, the committee’s charge, and a summary of the business conducted at the committee meetings.
Additionally, chairs of the standing committees are encouraged to provide updates at each Senate meeting.
Placing Business Before the Senate
Any standing committee may submit items for consideration to the Senate by forwarding
them to the Academic Staff Committee (ASC) which will then place items on the agenda of the
Senate. Depending on the request, it normally appears on the agenda for the next scheduled
Senate meeting.
Nominations and Elections
Term of Office and Membership Rotation
Members of the Senate and standing committees are elected to three-year terms on a
staggered basis so that one-third of the seats become vacant each year. The term of office
begins on the first day of the fall semester contractual period as it appears in the academic year calendar published on the SecU’s website and ends the day before the next fall contractual period begins.
Ballot Preparation
- In November, the Nominations Committee prepares a preference form to ascertain interest in serving on the Senate and standing committees. The SecU distributes the preference form to eligible academic staff members on behalf of the Nominations Committee.
- By February 15, the Nominations Committee identifies at least two eligible candidates for
each vacant Senate and standing committee position with the exception of the Nominations Committee. In doing so, it will give preference to those who have completed their candidate’s statement. - If the Nominations Committee is not able to fill the slate of candidates with at least double the number of vacancies for a given committee from the submitted preference forms, the Nominations Committee will solicit nominations from the floor for that committee at the spring general meeting of the academic staff. This will be done as the first order of New Business. Only those who have agreed to serve can be nominated.
- The slate of candidates is distributed with the spring general meeting agenda.
- There should be at least two nominees for each vacant position on the Nominations
Committee. - The SecU prepares the ballots based on the work of the Nominations Committee.
Elections
- The SecU distributes ballots to all eligible members of the academic staff. Those on limited appointments having academic staff titles, but with concurrent faculty or university staff positions are not eligible to vote.
- A primary election will be held only if there are more than two candidates for each vacancy on the Academic Staff Committee. If a primary election is necessary, a final election for the ASC will be held as soon as possible.
- Ties in elections are decided by a device of chance under the supervision of the SecU.
- All academic staff members should be informed of election results according to the timeline established for that year.
Members-Elect
Following the annual election, members-elect of the Senate and committees are invited to attend meetings but may not vote on motions before the body until their term begins.
Amendments to the Operating Rules
Proposals for amendments to these Standard Operating Rules may be submitted to the
Academic Staff Committee by any member of the academic staff. The approval process will be the same as that for standing committee bylaws (review by the Academic Staff Committee,
review by the Codification Committee, approval by the Academic Staff Committee, approval by the Academic Staff Senate). The changes will be sent to campus administration for information only.
(AS Doc 143, 11/23)