Background:
The Fondren Library Staff Association Bylaws and Operations and Procedures Manual (available on the Fondren wiki here) were last updated in 2007. David Bynog, member of the 2007 ad hoc committee for revisions, shared that the 2007 revision was related to bookplates/remembrances. He added: “I believe the intention was always to update the manual fairly regularly, and this happened for a few years, but it has not happened since 2007.”
Ad hoc committee:
The Chair of the Staff Association Executive Committee (SAEC), Da’Vian Smith, appointed an ad hoc committee to examine these documents and suggest revisions to the Bylaws to reflect current principles and procedures.
The ad hoc committee members are Joanna Bell, David Bynog, Andy Damico, and Jeanette Sewell.
This ad hoc committee went through the two documents and submitted their suggested revisions to SAEC. The suggested revisions to the Staff Association Bylaws are available in full on the Staff Association wiki, under the 2018 proposed revision heading.
(The suggested revisions to the Operations and Procedures Manual will be presented after proposed amendments to the Bylaws are voted upon. We are going over these suggested revisions with chairs of our standing committees and other individuals.)
Proposed revisions:
After considering the proposed edits from the ad hoc committee, we wrote a new draft of the bylaws with six changes and Da’Vian sent a Google Form poll in April 2018 to gather input on these proposed changes.
After the May 2018 Staff Association general meeting, SAEC agreed that we should take more time to go through the proposed revisions with staff, to ensure that everyone is fully aware of these proposed changes. The Bylaws provide amendment procedures:
Article XII – Amendment Procedures
These Bylaws may be amended by three means:
- A proposed amendment may be presented and seconded at a meeting and voted upon at a specially called meeting or by secret ballot.
- The Executive Committee may present a proposed amendment, in writing to the membership at least ten days prior to a staff meeting. The amendment shall then be voted upon at a general meeting of the Staff Association.
- Two or more members may sign a petition presenting a proposed amendment to the Executive Committee at least fifteen days prior to a staff meeting. If a majority of the Executive Committee approves, the committee shall submit the proposed amendment, in writing, to the membership at least ten days prior to a staff meeting, and a vote on the amendment shall take place at that meeting.
A two-thirds majority of the votes cast is required for passage of amendments to the Bylaws.
We plan to go through the process using the second option: “The Executive Committee may present a proposed amendment, in writing to the membership at least ten days prior to a staff meeting. The amendment shall then be voted upon at a general meeting of the Staff Association.”
Printouts of the current Bylaws and Operations and Procedures Manual are available in the staff lounge so all staff members will have an opportunity to familiarize themselves with our guiding documents.
SAEC will distribute the proposed amendments via email when they are finalized. We will go through each of these amendments at our next general meeting and vote on the proposed changes using Robert’s Rules of Order. In order for the amendments to pass, a two-thirds majority vote is required. Attendance and participation at our next general meeting will be greatly appreciated!
We also welcome any petitions or additional proposed amendments from staff, as detailed in the Bylaws.
We appreciate your input and are dedicated to this being a democratic process. If you have any questions please feel contact a member of the Staff Association Executive Committee.
Da’Vian Smith (Chair)
Mauricio Prado (Liaison to A&E Committee)
Amanda Thomas (Treasurer)
Heidi Vieira (Secretary)
