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Program Bylaws

Auburn University's Africana Studies Program

Revised Spring 2016

I.  Professional Affiliates

  1. Membership
    1. The membership of the Africana Studies Program is open to all faculty, professional personnel and students who have an interest in Africana Studies.
    2. The list of active professional affiliates is composed of those who indicate an interest in being affiliated with the program. Annually, the director will canvas university faculty as to their interest in being affiliated with the program.
    3. All professional affiliates of the program will have voting status.
  2. Duties
    1. Professional affiliates will be responsible for teaching and outreach activities sponsored by the program.
    2. Voting members will establish and amend program policies and procedures.

II.  Director

  1. Selection and Term
    1. The date, time and location of the election of the director and the mechanism for obtaining absentee ballots will be advertised by the nominating committee three weeks prior to the election.
    2. The director will be elected by a majority vote of the program professional affiliates.
    3. The term of office of the director will be for three years, renewable once with a simple majority, twice with a majority of two-thirds of the voting professional affiliates.
    4. Nominations for the position of director will be solicited by the nominations committee no later than October 15 of the third year of the director's term.
  2. Duties
    1. The director has general administrative responsibility for all aspects of the program. Activities of primary importance include proposing and managing the program's budget; preparing an annual report; representing the program to university administrators; promoting facilitative context for teaching, research and outreach; promoting effective relationships with other units within and beyond the university; advising students; supervising support personnel; writing letters of recommendation; and convening and chairing advisory committee meetings.
  3. Evaluation
    1. The program will be evaluated by the professional associates at least bi-annually in the spring semester so that the results of the evaluation can be used for planning.

III.  Committee Structure

  1. Standing Committees
    1. The standing committees of the Africana Studies Program will include the advisory committee and the nomination committee. Additional standing committees may be established by a majority vote of the professional affiliates. Ad hoc committees may be established by the director, the advisory committee, or a majority vote of the professional affiliates.
    2. Committees that fail to meet in any twelve-month academic year will be considered to have been abolished.
    3. Staggered terms of membership on standing committees will be for three academic years; committee membership will be recommended by the director to the professional affiliates early in the fall semester for ratification.
    4. All committees will have an uneven number of members.
  2. Advisory Committee
    1. Membership
      1. The advisory committee will be composed of the director, the chair of the nominations committee, two professional affiliate representatives (one of whom may be the past director), and a student representative who will serve ex-officio. The student member will not participate in discussions of personnel.
      2. The chair of the advisory committee will be elected annually by secret ballot from among its members.
    2. Duties
      1. A meeting of the advisory committee will be called by the director at least once annually.
      2. The director will provide the advisory committee with a draft of the budget and annual report for comment.
      3. The evaluation will be designed by and administered by the advisory committee chair. The advisory committee will oversee the process of evaluating the program and the director.
  3. The Nominating Committee
    1. Membership
      1. The nominating committee will be composed of three professional affiliates.
      2. The chair of the advisory committee will be elected annually by secret ballot from among its members.
    2. Duties
      1. The nominating committee will be responsible for identifying no more than two nominees for director and for conducting elections and counting ballots. The results of elections will be given to the director who will announce them. The nominating committee will also assist in identifying nominees for committee appointments.

IV.  Program

  1. Meetings
    1. The Africana Studies professional affiliates will meet at least once a year, in the fall. The budget will be presented at this meeting.
    2. Program meetings will be called at least two weeks in advance.

V.  Voting

  1. Procedures
    1. All motions will be adopted by a simple majority of those voting unless otherwise specified in the bylaws.
    2. Voting will be by show of hands, except when the vote is on a personnel or policy issue or when requested by any active voting member present at the meeting. Under such circumstances voting will be by secret ballot.
    3. Absentee ballots will be counted with the advice and consent of the advisory committee.

VI.  Approving and Changing the Bylaws

  1. A new article of the bylaws or an amendment of a previously-approved bylaw cannot be proposed and/or approved in a single meeting of the professional affiliates.
  2. A new article of the bylaws or an amendment of a previously approved bylaw will be adopted by a two-thirds vote of the active members of the professional affiliates who vote on it.