UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN -
LA CROSSE
ACADEMIC STAFF COUNCIL BYLAWS
TABLE OF
CONTENTS
I.
INTRODUCTION
II.
LOCAL PERSONNEL RULES
SUPPLEMENTARY TO THE UWS AND BOARD MANDATED UW-L PERSONNEL RULES
III.
MEMBERSHIP
ACADEMIC STAFF COUNCIL (UWL 9.01, UWS & UL 9.02)
IV.
ELECTIONS
V. OFFICERS
VII.
MEETINGS
Bylaws, Elections
and Policies/Procedures Committee, Professional Development
Committee, Salary and Personnel Policies Committee, Search and
Screen Appointments Committee, Title Review Committee, Joint
Legislative/Regents Relations Committee, Non-Instructional Hearing
Committee, Instructional* Hearing Committee, Consultative Layoff
Committee, Non-Instructional Grievance Committee, Ad Hoc Committees
Parking Appeals
Committee
Student Misconduct
Committee
XI.
JOINT FACULTY SENATE/ACADEMIC
STAFF/STUDENT ASSOCIATION
Planning and Budget
Committee
Minority Affairs
Committee
Physical Facilities
Committee
Information Technology
Services Committee
XII.
STUDENT ASSOCIATION COMMITTEES-
Athletics
XIII.
FACULTY SENATE COMMITTEES-
International
UNIVERSITY OF
WISCONSIN - LA CROSSE
ACADEMIC STAFF
COUNCIL BYLAWS
I.
INTRODUCTION
These Bylaws and
subsequent amendments function in the context of the Wisconsin statutes,
chapter 36.09 (4m) and the UW System academic staff policies and
procedures:
The academic staff of
each institution, subject to the responsibilities and powers of the
board, the president, the chancellor and the faculty shall be active
participants in the immediate governance of and policy development for
such institution. As such, the academic staff shall have primary
responsibility for the formation and review of policies and procedures
of concern to the academic staff, including personnel matters. The
academic staff of each institution shall have the right to determine
their own organizational structure and to select their representatives
to participate in institutional governance.
Academic staff,
represented by the Academic Staff Council at UW-La Crosse, is defined as
general academic support professional staff, and does not include
faculty, classified staff, limited term employees, employees-in-
training, and student assistants.
Instructional* academic staff and academic librarians are represented by the Faculty Senate for university governance purposes. (Articles of Faculty Organization, http://www.uwlax.edu/FacultySenate/bylaws.html)
Academic staff whose assignment prior to March 10, 2005 included classifications as both instructional* academic staff and academic staff shall make a one-time choice between the Faculty Senate or the Academic Staff Council to represent them for governance purposes.
Academic staff with a new contract that includes classification as both instructional academic staff and academic staff shall, at the time of their appointment, make a one-time choice between the Faculty Senate or the Academic Staff Council to represent them for governance purposes.
All references in this document to instructional* academic staff refer to those individuals who made a one-time choice to be represented by the academic staff council as stated above.
Amendments to the UW-L
Academic Staff Council Bylaws may be adopted at any regular Academic
Staff Council meeting by a two-thirds vote, of members present, provided
that any proposed amendment has been read at the preceding regular
council meeting.
II. LOCAL PERSONNEL
RULES SUPPLEMENTARY TO THE UWS AND BOARD-MANDATED UW-L PERSONNEL RULES.
A. "OPERATIONAL
AREAS" DEFINED (cf UW-L 10.01)
The operational areas, except when specific skills are identified for an area (such as licensure or special degree requirements), shall be determined by the official UW-L Organizational Chart. The official UW-L Organizational Chart is updated annually in January by the Chancellor's Office and is found on the UW-L web site at http://www.uwlax.edu/hr/orgchart.pdf . Operational areas include Student Development and Academic Services, the Colleges, and the Administrative area. The Administrative area includes those administrative offices that report directly to the Chancellor or the Provost, except for colleges and student development and academic services
The Salary and Personnel Policies Committee in conjunction with the Office of Human Resources shall determine those positions where specific skills are required. Within each operational area, appointments are made to units and/or departments by position (see Section UW-L 10.01 and UW-L 10.02).
III. MEMBERSHIP OF THE
ACADEMIC STAFF COUNCIL (9.01, UWS & UWL 9.02)
A. MEMBERSHIP
Council members must
have an academic staff FTE appointment of .50 or above.
B. COMPOSITION
The Council shall
consist of eleven members. Eight members shall be elected from the
operational areas of the university. Three members shall be elected
at-large. The representation shall be as follows:
Colleges 2 members
Administrative Coalition 3 members
SDAS 3 members
At-Large 3 members
The composition of the
Council shall be reviewed annually. The at-large positions are open to
non-instructional academic staff member and instructional* academic
staff without faculty status.
C. LENGTH OF TERM
Term of service shall
be three years, beginning with the first Council meeting following the
completion of the election process. The terms shall be staggered, with a
minimum of three members elected each year. A minimum of one at-large
member will be elected each year. Elected members who change operational
areas will be allowed to complete their term.
D. REPLACEMENTS
Elected members who resign, or are terminated from the university or resign from the Council prior to the expiration of their terms shall be replaced by the person receiving the next highest number of votes when the vacating member was elected. In the event that more than one person receives the second highest number of votes, the Academic Staff Council shall appoint the replacement to serve the unexpired term from among the tied candidates. If the person receiving the second highest number of votes is no longer with the university or chooses not to serve, a special election shall be held, administered by the Bylaws, Elections, and Policies/Procedures. If an elected member was unopposed at the previous election, a special election shall be held, administered by the Bylaws, Elections, and Policies/Procedures Committee.
IV. ELECTIONS
A. FREQUENCY
Annual Election
process shall begin during the month of February.
B. ELIGIBILITY
All non-instructional
academic staff and instructional* academic staff without faculty status
are eligible to vote in Council elections.
C. ELECTION
PROCEDURES
1. The Bylaws,
Elections, and Policies/Procedures Committee shall conduct elections and
shall serve as a final arbitrator in all election disputes.
2. Candidates for
positions representing operational areas are required to obtain
petitions with at least three signatures from academic staff members in
their operational areas.
3. Candidates for
at-large positions are required to obtain petitions with at least three
signatures from eligible academic staff members in the university.
4. Candidates must
return petitions to the committee within 10 working days following
distribution of petitions.
5. Members of the
academic staff in areas electing Council members shall receive ballots
for the elections within 5-7 working days following the petition
deadline. Academic staff members may vote only for candidates
representing their respective operational areas. For at-large positions,
all academic staff members may vote.
6. Should any seat
representing an operational area remain open following an election, that
seat may be converted to an at-large position. This position shall be
elected by all operational areas for a one-year term. The seat will
revert to the unrepresentative operational area at the end of the
one-year term for election of a representative for the remainder of the
three-year term.
7. Voting shall be by electronic ballot. Information Technology Services will provide results of voting to the By-laws, Elections and Policies/Procedures Committee for verification within 3-5 business days from close of voting.
8. If three or less
candidates are nominated for any represented position, the person
receiving the most votes shall be declared elected. If more than three
candidates are nominated for any category, a special runoff election
shall be conducted no later than five (5) working days following the
announcement of results of the first election. The three persons
receiving the most votes for the positions shall be included in the
runoff election.
V. OFFICERS
A. ORGANIZATION
The Council shall
elect three officers annually from its membership: chairperson,
vice-chairperson, and secretary. This election shall take place and take
effect during the first meeting following the completion of the election
process. The candidates receiving the most votes shall be declared
elected.
B. CHAIRPERSON
FUNCTIONS:
1. To preside over the
meetings of the Council.
2. To represent the
Council to the university community.
3. To nominate for
Academic Staff Council approval an UW-System AS Representative and an
alternate. Chair will also nominate one member at-large to serve on the
executive committee.
4. Nominate or appoint
candidates for ad hoc university committees in absence of the Executive
Committee.
5. Other duties as the
Council may designate.
C. VICE-CHAIRPERSON
FUNCTIONS:
1. To take the place
of the chairperson when unable to perform his/her functions.
2. Serve as
parliamentarian.
3. To serve on the
Joint Planning and Budget Committee (See Bylaws XI.A)
4. To oversee the Academic Staff Council committee selection process.
5.
Other duties
as the Council may designate.
D. SECRETARY
FUNCTIONS:
1. To record and
maintain accurate minutes for each meeting.
2. To maintain records
of past elections.
3. Other duties as the
Council may designate.
VI. EXECUTIVE
COMMITTEE
A. MEMBERSHIP:
The Executive Committee shall consist of the chairperson,
vice-chairperson, secretary,
UW-System academic staff representative, and one at-large member.
The UW-System AS Representative and At-Large member will be nominated by
the Council Chair and approved by the Academic Staff Council.
B. RESPONSIBILITIES
1. Recommend members
for Council committees, subject to Council approval.
2. Nominate or appoint
candidates for ad hoc university committees as requested.
3. Advise the
chairperson on Council meeting agendas, as appropriate.
4. Act on behalf of
the Council, as appropriate.
5. Other
responsibilities as the Council may designate.
VII. MEETINGS
A. PROCEDURES
Roberts Rule of Order
(latest edition) shall determine procedures, unless those rules conflict
with these bylaws.
B. OPEN MEETINGS
Meetings shall be held
in accordance with the provisions of the Wisconsin open meeting law.
(See 66.77 Wis. Stats. Open Meeting Law.)
C. FREQUENCY
The Council shall meet
regularly at dates and times set by a majority of Council.
D. GENERAL MEETINGS
There shall be a
minimum of one general meeting per year for all academic staff.
1. The date and time
of general meetings shall be set by the Council.
2. Additional general
meetings may be called at the discretion of the Council.
VIII. POWERS AND
DUTIES OF THE ACADEMIC STAFF COUNCIL
A. COUNSEL AND
ADVICE
The Council shall
counsel, advise, and make recommendations to the chancellor on issues
concerning academic staff, including:
1. Administrative
appointments.
2. Budget allocations.
3. Professional
development and research programs.
4. Salaries, personnel
policies and procedures.
5. Any other issues
the chancellor or the Council deems appropriate.
B. GENERAL FORUM
The Council shall
serve as a general forum for academic staff affairs. To this end, it
will receive grievances and complaints from academic staff, channel them
to the appropriate offices and/or committees, and serve as a
clearinghouse for information.
C. INFORMATION
The Council shall
serve as a repository of information concerning academic staff issues,
past and present.
D. COMMITTEES
The Council shall
appoint members to committees as described by Bylaws IX, X, XI and XII.
All Academic Staff without faculty status regardless of percentage of
appointment status may be appointed to committees.
E. BYLAWS
The Council may write
additional Bylaws for the Academic Staff Council.
F. POLICIES AND
PROCEDURES
The Council shall add
to or amend the policies and procedures for academic staff subject to
the approval of the chancellor and the Board of Regents.
IX. ACADEMIC STAFF COUNCIL COMMITTEES
A. BYLAWS,
ELECTIONS, AND POLICIES/PROCEDURES COMMITTEE
1. Membership: The
membership of the committee shall consist of at least four persons
recommended by the Executive Committee and approved by majority vote of
the Academic Staff Council. One member shall be a member of the Council.
The four members should represent at least two operational areas. A
chairperson and a recording secretary shall be elected by the committee
from its membership.
2. Term: Each term
shall be three years in length, except the term of the member who
represents the Council. That member's term is a yearly appointment.
3. Responsibilities of
the Committee are to:
a. Recommend Bylaw
changes to the Council for approval.
b. Conduct Council
elections as described in Bylaws IV.
c. Recommend changes to the Academic Staff Policies and Procedures web pages linked from the Human Resources web site.
B. PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE
1. Membership:
Membership shall consist of six persons appointed by the Executive
Committee and approved by majority vote of the Academic Staff Council.
Membership will include one member of the Council; one member each from
the three operational areas represented by the Council; and two at-large
members from any group represented by the Council, see III, B., At-Large
Member. The committee shall elect a chairperson and a recording
secretary from its membership.
2. Term: Each term
shall be three years in length, except the term of the member who
represents the Council. That member's term is a yearly appointment.
3. Responsibilities of
the Committee are to:
a. Develop and
maintain institutional plans for the administration of Academic Staff
professional development funds.
b. Receive and review
academic staff professional development proposals and recommend funding.
No member of the Professional Development Committee shall participate in
the approval of his or her own request for professional development
funds.
c. Review UW-La Crosse
and UW System professional development policies and procedures and
recommend changes.
d. Review UW-La Crosse
and UW System policies on fee reimbursement for employment-related
course work and recommend changes.
e. Disseminate
professional development information to the academic staff.
f. Develop additional
professional development opportunities for academic staff through
research of additional funding mechanisms and consultation with the
UW-La Crosse Foundation.
g. Receive and review
Academic Staff Excellence Award applications. Committee members
nominated for the award are excused from the committee for the duration
of the process. If a majority of committee members are nominated the
Academic Staff Council shall appoint additional members to complete the
process.
C. SALARY AND
PERSONNEL POLICIES COMMITTEE
1. Membership:
Membership shall consist of six persons recommended by the Executive
Committee and approved by majority vote of the Academic Staff Council.
Membership will include one member of the Council; one member each from
the three operational areas represented by the Council; and two at-large
members from any group represented by the Council, See III, B., At-Large
Member. A chairperson and a recording secretary shall be elected by the
committee from its membership.
2. Term: Each term
shall be three years in length, except the term of the member who
represents the Council. That member's term is a yearly appointment.
3. Responsibilities of
the Committee are to:
a. Recommend changes
in UW-La Crosse academic staff policies and procedures for consideration
by the Council.
b. Review UW-La Crosse
and UW System salary guidelines as requested by the Academic Staff
Council and recommend procedures for distributing salary and
discretionary funds for academic staff salary adjustments.
c. Review procedures
and develop criteria for evaluating academic staff personnel. Recommend
policies for staff titles, length of contracts, probationary leading to
indefinite appointments, evaluation, retention, and promotion.
d. Review employment
conditions and policies and make recommendations concerning changes.
D. SEARCH AND
SCREEN APPOINTMENTS COMMITTEE
1. Membership:
Membership on this Committee shall consist of four academic staff, one
from each of the operational areas See Bylaw II (A), who are not
currently serving on Academic Staff Council and one representative
appointed from the Council membership.
2. Term: The term of
each regular member shall be staggered two-year terms.
3. Responsibilities of
the Committee are to:
a.
Seek nominations
from all academic staff for each Administrative Search and Screen
Committee or other University-wide search.
b.
Review and
recommend a pool of candidates for each search and screen committee to
the Academic Staff Council Executive Committee.
E. TITLE REVIEW
COMMITTEE
1. Membership: The
Title Review Committee will consist of a representative from Human
Resources and six members of the academic staff who either have titles
in the director series (assistant, associate or no prefix), Program
Manager III or have a senior designation in the professional titles
including those who are at comparable title levels.
2. Term: The six
academic staff members shall serve a staggered three-year term.
3. Responsibilities of
the Committee are to:
a. Advise the Academic
Staff Council on the administration of the academic staff title and
salary structure.
b. Annually conduct
reviews of the title assignments for changes within a title and across
title. The chair of the Academic Staff Council and the chair of the
Title Review Committee present recommendations resulting from the annual
review to the Chancellor. The chair of the Council shall report the
results of the annual review to the Council.
c. Ensure
that the academic staff title and salary structure is applied fairly and
equitably across the UW-La Crosse campus.
F. JOINT
LEGISLATIVE/REGENTS RELATIONS COMMITTEE
1. Membership:
Membership shall consist of nine persons recommended by the three campus
governance bodies. The Academic Staff on the committee shall include the
UW System AS Representative and two academic staff members approved by
the Academic Staff Council. The Faculty on the committee shall include
the UW-System Faculty Representative and two faculty members approved by
a majority vote of the Faculty Senate. The Students on the committee
shall include three students approved by a majority vote of the Student
Senate. Ideally, membership will represent a variety of operational
areas, departments and classes (Freshmen-seniors). However, interest in
this aspect of governance should have a higher priority than ensuring
representation from all areas. The committee shall elect a chairperson
and a recording secretary from its membership.
2. Terms: Terms for
UW-System AS Representative shall be one year. Other appointees a term
staggered three years in length.
3. Responsibilities of
the Committee:
a. Increase awareness
of legislators/regents of the contributions of academic staff, faculty
and students to the university and issues of concern for academic staff,
faculty and students.
b. Increase awareness
among academic staff, faculty and students about legislative and regent
issues that affect the university in general, and academic staff,
faculty and student governance groups specifically.
c. Assist campus
governance groups in researching legislative or system-related actions
that potentially impact academic staff, faculty and students, and make
recommendations to the campus governance groups.
d. Actively advocate
on legislative and regents issues.
e. Coordinate efforts
with other campus legislative activities.
f. Encourage
information-sharing and joint activities with academic staff, faculty
and students at other campuses.
G.
NON-INSTRUCTIONAL HEARING COMMITTEE
1. Authorization: The
Academic Staff Council shall appoint a Non-Instructional Hearing
Committee, as authorized by UWS and UW-L 11.03, UWS and UW-L 12.04, and
UWS and UW-L 13.03.
2. Membership: The
committee shall consist of nine regular and three alternate
non-instructional academic staff members. As discussed in UW-L 11.13,
the committee shall elect its own chairperson and recording secretary.
3. Term: The term for
regular members shall be three years in length. Three regular members
shall be replaced each year. Alternate members may be replaced each
year. They shall serve no more than three consecutive years as alternate
members. Regular members shall continue beyond their three-year term for
any cases initiated during their term of office. For such cases they
shall serve until all hearings and reports are completed. Alternate
members shall replace regular members who resign from the committee,
resign from the university, or are not renewed by the University. They
shall also replace, temporarily, regular members who are disqualified
for a particular hearing, due to bias, conflict of interest, extended
illness or leave of absence. The Academic Staff Council may assign new
members or other temporary appointees to the hearing with the consent of
both parties.
4. Responsibilities of
the Committee are to:
The committee shall
participate in dismissal for cause hearings (as
discussed in UWS and
UW-L 11.03), layoff appeals (as discussed in UWS
and UW-L 12.04), and
complaint hearings (discussed in UWS and UW-L
13.01) for members of
the non-instructional academic staff. Procedures
for these activities
are discussed in the following sections.
5. Dismissal for cause
hearings.
a. Indefinite academic
staff appointments (cf UWS 11.01) If a dismissal for cause hearing is
held, the administrator engaged in the investigation shall be at the
level specified in UWS 11.03. Appeals shall comply with the rules in UWS
11.02; UWS and UW-L 11.03-11.07; and the other applicable provisions in
the Academic Staff Bylaws. (1) "Just Cause" Considerations (cf UWS 11.01
(2)) "Just cause" for a dismissal shall be related directly and
substantially to the fitness of the academic staff member in
professional capacity.
b. Fixed term or
probationary academic staff appointments (cf UWS 11.11). If a dismissal
for cause hearing is held, it shall follow the procedures of the
reconsideration meeting specified in UWS and UW-L 10.04. The
administrator engaged in the investigation shall be at the level
specified in UWS 11.11. Appeals shall accord with the rules in UWS
11.11; UWS and UW-L 11.03-11.07; and the other applicable provisions in
the Academic Staff Council Bylaws. Any notification of dismissal shall
include a report of the adverse decision, the reasons for it, and
specific evidence in support of them.
6. Layoff Appeals: If
a layoff appeal is held, it shall follow the rules and procedures
specified in UWS and UW-L 12.01 through 12.11.
7. Complaints: If a
complaint hearing is held, it shall follow the rules and procedures
specified in UWS and UW-L 13.01. A sanction shall be any of the
sanctions specified in section 5a(3) above. A minor penalty shall be any
of the minor penalties specified in section 5a(3) above.
H. INSTRUCTIONAL*
HEARING COMMITTEE
As authorized by UWS
11.03, the Faculty Senate Hearing Committee shall hear dismissal for
cause hearings for academic staff that teach in credit-producing
courses. Such hearings shall be governed by UWS and UW-L 4.03 and UW-L
Faculty Senate Bylaw I. Layoff appeals (cf UW-L 12.04) and complaints
(cf UW-L 13.01) for academic staff that teach in credit-producing
courses shall also be heard by the Faculty Senate Hearing Committee. See
Faculty Senate Bylaw I.
I. CONSULTATIVE
LAYOFF COMMITTEE
1. Authorization: As
authorized by UWS and UW-L 12.01, a Consultative Layoff Committee shall
be appointed.
2. Membership:
Committee shall consist of six academic staff members. The Academic
Staff Council shall appoint three members, and the chancellor shall
appoint three members. The six members should represent as many
operational areas as possible. The committee shall elect a chairperson
and a recording secretary.
3. Term: The term
shall be three years in length. Two members (one selected by the
chancellor and one selected by the Academic Staff Council) will be
replaced each year. The committee shall be convened at least six months
prior to appropriate notice periods for layoffs.
4. Responsibilities of
the committee are to:
a.
The committee
shall consult with the chancellor, to give consideration to layoff
decisions for reasons of budget or of program, to make recommendations
regarding the necessity of layoffs, and to recommend possible methods of
avoiding layoffs.
b.
The chancellor
shall make available to the committee financial and other needed
information. If the Faculty Consultative Layoff Committee is meeting on
layoff problems, the two committees shall interchange information and
ideas through a liaison representative. For exceptions to layoff
procedures, see UWS 12.03.
J.
NON-INSTRUCTIONAL GRIEVANCE COMMITTEE
1. Authorization: The
Academic Staff Council shall appoint a Non-Instructional Grievance
Committee as authorized by UWS and UW-L 13.02.
2. Membership: The
committee shall consist of nine academic staff members, and three
alternate academic staff members, none of whom shall be a dean or
director, nor a member of the instructional* academic staff, nor a
member of the Academic Staff Council. A minimum of six committee members
will hear the grievance. The committee shall elect a chairperson and a
recording secretary from its membership.
3. Term: The term
shall be three years in length. Two members shall be replaced each year.
4. Responsibilities of
the Committee are to:
The committee shall
investigate and conduct hearings on grievance following procedures
delineated in UW-L 13.02. If the committee finds that administrative
action is warranted, it shall recommend to the chancellor one of the
following: (1) warning, (2) private, formal apology; (3) public, formal
apology; (4) temporary letter of reprimand (removed from personnel file
within twelve months); (5) permanent letter of reprimand; (f)
reassignment of duties, including a change of supervisor and/or change
of physical environment; (6) correction of personnel benefits; (7)
salary adjustment, including appropriate retroactive adjustments; (8)
award of personnel benefits.
5.
Freedom from Reprisals