Student Senate Constitution
Article I Title
A. The title of this organization shall be Student Senate of Heidelberg College.
A. The purpose of the Student Senate shall be:
1. To represent the student body of Heidelberg College through the initiation, organization, and regulation of various administrative, social and academic concerns.
2. To act as a governing body attending to relevant issues and protecting the rights of all students.
3. To maintain, administer, and review the funding process for recognized student organizations.
A. Membership eligibility
1. All full-time undergraduate students of Heidelberg College (Tiffin Campus) shall be eligible to serve as members of Student Senate.
2. A candidate must be in good standing (in accordance with the current college catalogue) at the time of his/her election to the Student Senate and may serve the term of the position unless there is a subsequent change in academic or judicial standing. All members of the Student Senate are subject to review by the Executive Council of the Student Senate.
3. The term of membership in the Student Senate shall be one academic year; any Student Senate member may run for additional terms.
B. The composition of the Student Senate shall consist of the following:
1. Five representatives from each of the freshman, sophomore, junior, and senior classes elected in compliance with eligibility requirements and the proper election proceedings.
2. The Executive Council which shall consist of the five officers, as well as the chair of the Campus Concerns committee, the chair of the Elections Committee, the chair of the Publicity Committee, and the chair of the Liaison for Student Organizations Committee. The five officers do not also sit as class representatives, however, the committee chairs are also class representatives.
3. There shall be at least one advisor from the Dean of Students’ Office who shall hold non-voting status on Student Senate.
4. One faculty advisor, selected by the Executive Council in consultation with the Dean of Students or designee, holding non- voting status on Student Senate.
A. Duties of the Executive Council
1. The Executive Council shall meet on a weekly basis.
2. The Executive Council shall have the following responsibilities:
a. Review the work of all committees and Senators of the Student Senate.
b. Carryout any responsibility that is considered by Student Senate to be a concern of the Executive Council.
c. Make any decisions that must be made before a full Student Senate meeting can be convened.
d. Review the Treasurer’s financial records on a periodic basis.
e. Monitor Senators attendance records and to evaluate excused absence proposals.
f. Verify Senators membership eligibility.
g. Check that Student Senators are adhering to their constitutional duties.
h. Review “New Student Organization Forms” and report them to the entire Student Senate.
B. Duties of a Student Senator
1. Attend all meetings and must be present for two-thirds of the meeting or it will be considered an unexcused absence. Senators shall be allowed two unexcused absences from the Student Senate meetings per semester. In the event that a Student Senator is unable to attend a meeting or must leave a meeting early, he/she must personally notify the Secretary at least four hours prior to the meeting. Should a pattern of absences develop, the Executive Council may review the individual’s circumstances. All reasons for missing a meeting will be evaluated by the Executive Council in order to determine whether the absences are excusable. Any absences which are deemed unexcused may be appealed to the Executive Council. A third unexcused absence will result in the dismissal of the Student Senator.
a. In the event of two unexcused absences, the Executive Council shall send a letter to the member informing him/her of his/her attendance record.
b. In the event that a second unexcused absence occurs, the Senator in violation will have to meet with the Executive Council for validation of the absences that have occurred during the semester. If the senator in question fails to appear at the meeting, there will be no chance for an appeal of the absences and the member will be removed from Student Senate if a third unexcused absence occurs.
c. Regularly scheduled academic or extracurricular activities will not be considered excused absences.
2. Attend all Student Senate sponsored events and activities.
3. Bring problems and concerns of other Heidelberg students to the Student Senate.
4. Encourage faculty and administrative support of Student Senate programs.
5. Serve on at least one standing committee and one faculty/administrative based committee.
a. No member of the Student Senate is allowed to hold more than two college Governing Committee/Faculty Committee positions concurrently.
b. Attend all committee meetings in accordance with the individual committee’s attendance policy.
c. Update Student Senators about the committee’s activity after each meeting at the Student Senate meeting and report to the committee concerns that Student Senate may have that would be of interest to a given faculty committee.
Article V Class Representative Elections
A. Election of students to the Student Senate
1. Electorate: All full-time undergraduate students (Tiffin campus) shall be eligible to vote in elections to the Student Senate. The student body shall vote according to their current class standing as determined by the College Catalogue and Registrar’s Office.
2. Calendar for elections: The Elections Committee shall determine the calendar for elections and report this to the entire Student Senate.
3. Elections of class representatives: Each of the first-year, sophomore, junior, and senior classes shall annually elect to the Student Senate five representatives from their class. Class standing will be determined by the Registrar’s Office.
1. Sophomore, Junior, and Senior Class representative elections: Petitions are available in the Office of Student Affairs at the beginning of office hours on the Monday following elections for officers and Standing Committee chairs. They must be returned to the Office for the Vice-President for Student Affairs by the end of office hours on Friday of the same week.
2. First-year petitions: Petitions are available the first week of class and must be returned to the Office of Student Affairs by a time selected by the Elections Committee, but no later than two weeks after the first week of class.
3. Signature requirement: All petitions must be returned with 25 signatures of class members for class representative petitions.
4. Student Senate Executive Council and the Elections Committee will review the fall and spring calendar and determine dates for both fall and spring elections.
5. The Elections Committee of the Student Senate shall conduct both the spring and fall elections for student representation in the Student Senate if needed.
6. In the event an insufficient number of petitions are returned to fill senator vacancies, the Elections Committee will extend the deadline for petitions until the vacancies are filled.
Article VI Executive Council Elections
A. Student Senate Officers and Executive Council Election Procedures
1. The floor will be open for nominations beginning at the Student Senate meeting following Spring Break and close five days later.
2. The final nominations for the positions will be included with the agenda for the Student Senate meeting where voting occurs.
3. Executive Officers will be elected at the meeting following the close of nominations.
4. Officers are to be elected, by ballot, beginning with the position of president, to be followed by the election of the vice-president, secretary, treasurer and parliamentarian for the Student Senate.
a. The election of officers shall be conducted by the Elections Committee.
b. Election to an office shall be by simple majority of the entire Student Senate.
c. If there are three of more candidates running for an office, and one candidate receives a simple majority, then that candidate shall win the election.
d. If there are three or more candidates running for an office, and no one candidate receives a simple majority, then a run-off election between the candidates receiving two highest percentages of votes shall be held. The winner shall be the Senator who receives a simple majority.
e. All ballots shall be counted by the Elections Chair, and both advisors.
f. If a member of the Elections Committee is running for an office or chair position, the he/she shall not be permitted to assist in the election process of the seats for which he/she is nominated If this incident occurs, the President shall collect and count the ballots in the place of the Elections Chair.
5. The terms of the new officers shall begin at the last meeting of the current year and will continue until the last meeting of the following year. Before new officers take their positions at the last meeting of the year, the President shall pass on his/her gavel to the newly elected President thus signifying the start of a new Student Senate taking office.
6. If a Senator is unable to attend the meeting in which voting occurs, that Senator forfeits his/her right to vote in the election process.
A. Officers of Student Senate
1. The Officers shall be President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Parliamentarian.
2. The treasurer must have been a member of the Finance Committee for at least one year prior to his/her election and/or have taken an accounting course.
3. In order to be elected as an officer, the chair of the Campus Concerns Committee or the chair of the Liason for Student Organizations, a senator must have served a minimum of a one year term, defined as two concurrent semesters, and be a current member of the Student Senate.
4. In order to be elected as a chair of either the Elections or Publicity Committees, a senator must have served a minimum of a one semester term, and be a current member of the Student Senate.
5. The President and one Senator shall attend faculty meetings as liaisons to the student body.
6. Emergency or special meetings shall be called by a Student Senate officer and/or the President of the College and/or the Dean of Students and/or a Student Senate Advisor or any of these people’s designees.
B. The duties of the officers of the Student Senate shall include:
a. Call and preside over all meetings of the Student Senate in accordance with standard parliamentary procedure (Robert’s Rules of Order).
b. Act as a liaison between the Student Senate and the Office of the President of Heidelberg College.
c. Prepare an agenda before each meeting and will distribute that agenda to each member of the Student Senate along with any other material which he/she deems necessary to the decision- making process of the Student Senate.
d. Inform all Senators of their responsibilities as Student Senate members during the first Student Senate meeting of the academic year.
e. Serve as nonvoting observer of the Board of Trustees and Faculty meetings.
f. Serve as chairperson of the Executive Council.
g. Interpret the Constitution to the Student Senate for clarity pending a 2/3 affirmative vote of the Student Senate.
h. Vote only in the case of elections or to break a tie.
i. Call an unscheduled election to fill a vacant Student Senate position when deemed necessary.
j. Choose to allocate money with the consent of a Student Senate Advisor while the senate is not in session.
k. Choose to adjourn a meeting if quorum is not present.
l. Train the succeeding President regarding the responsibilities and operational procedures involved in Student Senate.
a. Preside over meetings of Student Senate in the absence of the President.
b. Serve as assistant to the President in performance of his/her responsibilities and duties.
c. Provide a list at the beginning of each semester identifying the responsibilities and the individual meeting times of each Faculty Committee associated with the Student Senate. The Vice-President shall then act as a liaison between Faculty Committee chairs and the Executive Council regarding the participation and attendance of senators at Faculty Committee meetings.
d. Oversee the chairs all standing committees.
e. Train his/her successor regarding the duties of the position.
a. Record and distribute the minutes and other pertinent information on a weekly basis to all Student Senate members and other relevant parties.
b. Conduct roll call at all meetings. After roll call, he/she will determine if a quorum (2/3 of the voting members) is present and shall inform the President of this fact.
c. Inform the Executive Council of any members who fail to meet the attendance requirements.
d. Distribute the Student Senate office hours and directory any time changes deem an update necessary.
e. Train his/her successor regarding the duties of the position.
a. Serve as the chair of the Finance Committee and shall convene Finance Committee meetings when necessary.
b. Serve as an advisor to organizations seeking financial support.
c. Conduct Treasurer-training sessions for all organizations within the first month of each semester.
d. Keep records of the Student Senate’s financial standing, have records present at all Student Senate meetings, and will give a report at every meeting regarding the semester balance from the Business Office.
e. Train his/her successor regarding the duties of the position.
a. Know and understand the Constitution and insure that Robert’s Rules of Order are followed.
b. Distribute and explain the Student Senate Constitution at the first meeting following the election of first-year senators.
c. Train his/her successor regarding the duties of the position.
Article XIII Adopting an Amendment
A. Amendment Procedures
1. Any nomination for a new amendment to the constitution must be submitted to the Executive Council one week prior to it being voted upon.
2. Any amendments to this constitution shall, for its passage, have an affirmative vote of ¾ of the quorum. A quorum will be determined at the time of the vote.
3. By-laws may be passed, repealed, or modified by a majority vote of the quorum.
4. Any amendments to this constitution should be added to an amendment section.
A. Meetings of the Student Senate
1. Meetings of the Student Senate shall be convened weekly when classes are in session.
2. A Student Senate is defined as beginning at the time of roll call and ending at adjournment.
3. A meeting is not to exceed two hours.
4. A quorum of 2/3 of the members must be present for voting to occur.
5. A motion or item of business may be presented to the Student Senate without prior acceptance by the Executive Council, under “New Business.”
A. Voting privileges of Student Senators
1. All members of Student Senate shall have voting privileges during a Student Senate meeting.
2. Only members of the Executive Council may vote at Executive Council meetings.
3. The President may vote only in the case of elections or to break a tie.
A. Standing Committees of the Student Senate
1. The Elections Committee consists of three Senators: two representatives, and one chair, which is elected during the Executive Council election. The committee is responsible for conducting elections within the student body, including but not limited to, the fall and spring Senate elections.
2. The Finance Committee consists of three Senators: two representatives, one of which must be of first year or sophomore status, and the chair, which is the Treasurer elected during the Executive Council election. The committee is responsible for guiding Student Senate recognized organizations through the funding request process. The committee shall also determine whether or not the organization requesting funds is recognized by the Student Senate. The committee shall meet on an as needed basis but not less than monthly during the academic year to review the financial records of campus organizations receiving funding from the Senate.
3. The Publicity Committee shall consist of six Senators: with at least one each from each respective class and the chair, which is elected during the Executive Council elections. The committee is responsible for alerting the campus media about important Student Senate events and issues as well as designing campus publicity for and about the Student Senate. The committee will also create and distribute a monthly Student Senate newsletter.
4. The Liaison for Student Organizations Committee shall consist of five Senators; one from the first year, sophomore, junior, and senior classes, and the chair, whom is elected during Executive Council elections. The Committee of the Liaison for Student Organizations will be assisting all up coming and current student organizations. This shall be done by appointing a member of the LSO committee to represent a student organization in all aspects, but not limited to; publicity, funding, treasury, parliamentary procedure, and president advisory all of which are aimed at assisting the student organization. The committee must work in correlation with the Office of Student Activities.
5. The Campus Concerns Committee shall consist of four Senators: three Senators, one of which must be of first year or sophomore status, and the chair elected during the Executive Council elections. This committee will be responsible for addressing issues relating to Food Focus, “What’s Your Beef”, and any other related campus concerns.
Article XII Group Funding and Recognition
A. Recognition and Funding of Student Organizations
1. Only student organizations that are recognized by Student Senate can be funded by Student Senate
2. In order for Student Senate to recognize a new student organization, the newly proposed group must submit a “New Student Organization Form” to the Liaison for Student Organizations Committee. Once the proposed group has all of the necessary parts to become an organization, the Liaison for Student Organizations Committee will present this proposed group to the Executive Council. The Executive Council will review this and present it to the entire Student Senate, for a vote, upon proper completion.
3. Once a student organization has been recognized by Student Senate, it will continue to be recognized as long as it is recognized by the Office of Student Activities.
4. To receive funding from Student Senate, an organization must:
a. Submit a Funding Request Form to the Treasurer of the Student Senate.
b. Submit a follow up report at the end of each event to the Student Senate Treasurer including receipts.
A. Impeachment and dismissal of a Senate Member for Misconduct
1. Any current Senator may start the impeachment proceedings, however, he/she must bring the request to the Executive Council meeting before it is brought before the entire Student Senate.
2. After a Senator has requested the procedure, the Executive Council will investigate the situation and decide whether to continue with the impeachment hearing before the entire Student Senate.
3. A 2/3 affirmative vote is required to impeach an individual.
4. The process for an impeachment is as follows:
a. The accused individual will be able to speak before the Executive Council, prior to speaking before the entire Student Senate.
b. If the Executive Council feels that this case needs to be brought before the entire Student Senate, the President will bring forth the issue at the next meeting. Here the President will state why this individual is thought to be unworthy of being a Student Senator. After this the accused will have a chance to make a statement before the entire Student Senate. After the accused finishes his/her statement, they will be asked to leave the room while the remaining senators discuss the issues at hand. After the discussion a vote will be taken, and the accused will be asked to come back into the room. After the accused takes his/her seat, the result from the vote will be read and if found guilty, the accused will be asked to leave immediately.
5. Any student previously impeached from Student Senate may not seek re-election for a Student Senate position.