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Subject
S-74-31
SiMON FRASER UNIVERSITY
(Former S.74-12)
MEMORANDUM
From
SENATE COMMITTEE ON AGENDA AND RULES
RECOMMENDED RULES OF SENATE
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Date
_JANUARY 23,1974
MOTION: ?
"That Senate adopt the Rules of Senate as set
forth in Paper S.74-31, to supersede its
previous Rules of Procedure on the matters
covered herein, effective immediately."
Note: It will be seen on page 9 that recommendation is made that
parliamentary authority be 0. Garfield Jones, Parliamentary
Procedure at a Glance, etc. Copies of this publication are
distributed with this material to Senators.
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b-7431
December 21, 1973
SRECOMMENDED RULES OF SENATE
I. PREAMBLE
These rules of Senate are intended to be in accordance with
the Universities Act, as amended from time to time. In the event
of any conflict the Universities Act shall prevail.
II. OFFICERS
A.
Chairman: The Chairman of Senate Is empowered and expected
to take the actions he deems necessary to ensure the orderly
advancement of the legitimate business of the Senate. In case
the President is unable to chair a meeting of Senate, the Academic
Vice-President will take the chair. If both the President and the
Academic Vice-President are unable to chair, the Chairman shall be
the Dean of the Faculty of Arts,or the Dean of the Faculty of
Science, or the Dean of the Faculty of Education, or the Dean of
the Faculty of Interdisciplinary Studies, in that order.
B.
Secretary: In the absence of the Registrar, the Chairman shall
appoint a Secretary pro tern.
III. MEMBERS (To be recommended later to Senate)
IV. ELECTIONS (To be recommended later to Senate)
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V. MEETINGS
A. ?
Regular:
1. With the exceptions stated here and in (2) and (3) below,
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Senate shall meet once a month on the first Monday of each
month. When the first Monday of the month is an academic
holiday, the regular meeting of Senate shall be held on the
second Monday. At the commencement of each semester, in
January, May and .September, the regular monthly meeting of
Senate shall be held on the Monday when classes are scheduled
to begin.
2.
In exceptional circumstances, the Chairman may postpone a
regular meeting and instruct the Secretary to inform the
members as to the new date.
3.
If in the opinion of the Chairman, there is insufficient
business to justify a regular meeting, he may cancel the
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meeting and instruct the Secretary to so inform the members.
4.
The Secretary of Senate will mail the notice of meeting,
the agenda, and all available supporting papers to members
of Senate at least ten days before the meeting.
5.
In order to make copies of the material pertaining to
open sessions available to members of the University Community,
copies of the agenda and supporting papers shall be distributed
to Departmental Chairmen and shall be placed In the University
Library at the time of their distribution to members of Senate.
6.
Meetings will be called to order at 7:30 p.m.
B. ?
Special:
1. The Chairman may, when he deems it necessary, call a special
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meeting of Senate for the purpose of considering urgent items
of business.
2.
Upon receipt of a written petition from eleven members
of Senate, at least six of whom shall be members of faculty
elected to Senate, the Chairman shall call a special meeting
of Senate to consider the items stated in the petition.
3.
Only such items of business as are contained in the notice
of meeting shall be discussed at a special meeting.
4.
The Secretary of Senate shall, at least seventy-two hours
before the scheduled time of the meeting, notify members of
Senate, by mail, telephone or telegraph, of the special meeting
indicating the nature of the business for which the meeting is
being called. Notice of meeting, including the agenda, will be
mailed to members of Senate.
C. ?
Open and Closed Sessions
1.
Meetings of Senate shall be divided into two sessions: an
open session to which qualified observers may be admitted; a
closed session for the discussion of business deemed by Senate
to be of a confidential nature and to which observers shall not
be admitted.
2.
The agenda for the open session shall be public; the agenda
for the. closed session shall be confidential to members of
Senate.
3.
An item on the agenda of the open session can be placed into
the immediately following closed session, at any time prior to
or during discussion of the item, by successful motion to have
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it so placed, such motion requiring only a simply majority.
This motion may be spoken to only by the mover and by one other
person who wishes to speak against the motion. An identical
procedure shall be followed if it is wished that an item be
moved from the closed to the following open session.
D. ?
Observers:
1.
Provision shall be made for a limited number of qualified
observers at open sessions of Senate meetings.
2.
The Chairman shall designate the number of seats to be
made available for observers; observers shall not exceed the
number of seats provided for them.
3.
Qualified observers shall be students, faculty or staff of
Simon Fraser University, save where Senate or the Chairman of
Senate may invite or permit other persons to be present as
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4.
Observers shall conduct themselves in such a manner as not
to interfere with the business of Senate.
5.
At the discretion
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of the Chairman, or on the vote of Senate
by simple majority without prior notice of motion, observers
may be required to leave the meeting.
6.
The editor of The Peak, or his designate, is permitted to
attend the open sessions of Senate, as an observer.
7.
At the discretion of the Chairman of Senate, closed circuit
audio coverage and/or closed circuit television coverage of
open sessions of Senate may be provided to other areas of the
University. No provision shall be made for closed circuit
coverage of closed sessions of Senate meetings.
E. ?
Quorum: Eleven members, at least
six
of whom shall be members
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of faculty elected to Senate, shall constitute a quorum for
the transaction of any business at any regular or special
meeting of Senate.
F. ?
Minutes:
1.
Minutes of meetings shall be a brief summary of points made
in debate and a record of decisions taken. The part played by
any member in the closed session, other than the mover and
seconder of motions, should not be recorded in the minutes.
2.
Shorthand transcripts of open and closed sessions shall be
made and retained by the Secretary of Senate. Members of
Senate shall have access to these transcripts.
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3. Open sessions shall be recorded on audio tape by the Secretary
of Senate. A copy of the audio tape shall be placed in the
University Library.
4.
Copies of the minutes of the open session with supporting
papers shall be placed In the University Library and shall be
open to the University community. Copies of the minutes shall
be distributed to members of Senate, Departmental Chairmen, and
to the Secretary of the Academic Board. At the discretion of
the Chairman of Senate, or the Secretary, copies may be made
available to other officers of the University or appropriate
authorities.
5.
Copies of the minutes of the closed session, with appropriate
supporting papers, shall be placed in the University Library
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Archives. Access to this material may be authorized by the
Chairman of Senate.
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G. ?
Order of Business:
1.
Items for open and closed sessions of Senate are determined
by the Chairman of Senate upon the advice of the Senate
Committee on Agenda and Rules.
2.
The order of business for open and closed sessions of
regular meetings of Senate shall be:
Approval of Agenda
Approval of Minutes of Previous Session(s)
Business arising from the Minutes
Report of Chairman
Reports of Committees
Reports of Faculties
Other Business
Notices of Motion
Information
3.
The order of business of special meetings shall be that
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transmitted in the Notice of Meeting.
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Conduct of Meetings:
1.
Motions from the floor: Motions from the floor may be
made orally; however, at the request of the Chairman the mover
may be required to put the motion in writing.
2.
Debate: A member of Senate who desires to speak in debate
must first obtain recognition from the Chair. A Senator who
has spoken twice on a particular question has exhausted his
right to debate that question for that session.
3.
Voting: Elections shall be by ballot. All other voting
shall be by show of hands, unless a motion to vote by ballot
is carried.
4.
Except as otherwise specified in these rules the use of
cameras and recorders is not permitted after a meeting has
been called to order.
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VI. COMMITTEES
A.
The Senate shall appoint such standing and ad hoc committees
as it, from time to time, shall determine necessary and Senate shall
determine the membership and the method of appointment or electing
members to said committees.
B.
Any member of a Senate Committee who plans to be away for one
semester or more, shall so inform the Secretary of Senate in order
that a substitute may be elected for the period of the absence.
C.
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1. Reports to Senate:
a.
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A Committee whose first function is regularly to place
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items on the agenda of meetings of Senate shall not present a
regular report to Senate beyond the submission of agenda items
and the necessary supporting materials.
b. ?
A standing committee with delegated responsibilities to
perform duties on behalf of Senate shall report to Senate at
twelve-monthly intervals, except where otherwise stipulated in
the charge to the committee; the first report shall be on a date
to be agreed upon by the Chairman of the committee and the
Chairman of Senate.
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Where Senate ratification of decisions made
by a committee is required it shall be sought at the time of
submission of the committee's report; in the event of Senate
failing to ratify such decision or decisions of a committee, the
decision or decisions shall stand, and the Senate's failure to
ratify shall be interpreted as an instruction to the committee
involved that actions of that type shall not be repeated.
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c.
A temporary committee established by Senate to perform a
limited specified task shall report to Senate by the date stated
in its charge.
d.
Existing committees of Senate shall be assigned to categories
a, b, or c above by the Chairman of Senate on the date of promul-
gation of this rule; the categories of committees to be established
in future shall be specified in the charge to each committee.
e.
Any Committee of Senate may, on motion of Senate or on call
of the Chairman of Senate, be required to present a report to
Senate.
2. Form of Reports of Committees to Senate:
Committee reports to Senate shall normally include the following:
a.
A statement of Senate's charge to the committee.
b.
A statement of actions taken by the committee under the charge.
C.
Where Senate has delegated powers to the committee, a list of
the actions that have to be ratified.
d. Recommendations if any. Any recommendation shall be In the
form of a motion and handled in accordance with normal Senate
procedures for placing motions on the agenda.
3. Consideration of Reports: Upon the advice of the Senate
Committee on Agenda and Rules, the Chairman of Senate shall
allocate a period of time for informal consideration of committee
reports. Any recommendation arising from the discussion shall be
presented as a motion in accordance with the regular practice of
Senate.
VII.
PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY
The rules contained in 0. Garfield Jones, Parliamentary
Procedure at a Glance (New York; Meredith Press - 1971) shall govern
Senate in all cases to which they are applicable, and in which they
are not inconsistent with the Standing Rules of Senate.
VIII.
METHOD OF AMENDING
Alterations of these rules of Senate shall require written
notice at a regular meeting of Senate prior to the meeting at which a
vote on the proposed alteration is taken, which vote shall require an
affirmative vote by two-thirds of the voting members present to carry.
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IX. SUSPENSION OF THE RULES
A motion to suspend these rules of Senate shall require an
affirmative vote by two-thirds of the voting members present to carry.
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EXPLANATORY COMMENT ON THE RECOMMENDED RULES
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I.
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An edited version of the existing rules.
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I.I. ?
A. ?
First sentence is an edited version of an old rule previously
found in the section on observers.
The third sentence constitutes a revision. Previously the Dean
to Chair was selected on a seniority based on date of appoint-
ment. This was considered to lead to ambiguity arising from
items such as initial appointment, subsequent appointments,
acting, and the like. The definite order was preferred.
B. ?
Editorial change of "may" to "shall."
III.
Members (This section to be recommended later to Senate).
IV.
Elections (This section to be recommended later to Senate).
V.
An edited version of the existing rules intended to separate
and clearly distinguish among regular meetings, special
meetings, and open and closed sessions. Substantive changes
are noted below:
VA2 To permit greater flexibility, deletion of the requirements
that the Chairman can only postpone one week.
VB2 It would now be mandatory to call a special meeting upon
written petition of a number of Senators sufficient to meet
quorum requirements - rather than the previous option to call
upon petition of five Senators.
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Addition of the words "elected to Senate" to remove any
ambiguity as to whether Deans were to be counted, in this
context, as members of faculty.
VF4,5 Clarifies procedures for distribution and placement of
minutes and papers from Open and Closed Sessions.
VG2 ?
Standardization of the order of business for Open and
Closed Sessions and clarification of "Other Business,"
"Notices of Motion," and "Information."
VH1 ?
Editorial change of "Secretary" to "Chairman."
VH2 ?
Codification of present practice.
VH4 ?
Includes past rulings of the Chairman concerning photography
and use of recorders.
VI.
An edited version of existing rules intended to clarify
existing rules and to eliminate redundancy.
VII.
The recommended rule is a standard clause suggested in
Robert's Rules of Order.
Robert's Rules of Order is a reference book, not a manual of
parliamentary procedure. The Committee is of the opinion that
Senators, and Senate, would be better served if a manual was
designated as the parliamentary authority and if each Senator
had a copy of a manual. The Committee recommends Jones,
Parliamentary Procedure at a Glance.
VIII.
Adopted by Senate at its meeting of September 10, 1973.
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Rules cannot be suspended unless the rules provide for
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suspension. The Committee recommends an affirmative vote
by two-thirds of the voting members present.
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SiMON FRASER UNIVERSITY
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MMORMDUM
-*TO
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ALL MEMBERS OF SENATE
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From
H. N. EVANS
SECRETARY OF SENATE
Sub j
ect
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RECOMMENDED RULES OF S
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Date FEBRUARY 27, 1974
PAPER S.74-31
J. P. Daem has indicated that he will be submitting the
following amendments relating to Paper S.74-31 - Recommended Rules
of Senate. At his request, these are circulated for the information
of Senators.
Section II. A.
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Last sentence, after "Faculty of Interdisciplinary
Studies" add "or the Dean of Graduate Studies, in
that order."
Section V. C.
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Second line - omit the word "qualified."
Section V. C. 2.
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Change to read "The agenda for the open and closed
sessions shall be public."
Section V. C. 3.
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Omit the last sentence on page 3 - "This motion may
be spoken to only by the mover and by one other
person who wishes to speak against the motion."
Section D. 1.
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First sentence - omit the word "qualified."
Section D. 3. ?
Omit the word "qualified" in the first sentence
and change to read "Observers may be students,
faculty or staff of Simon Fraser University, or
members from the community at large."
Section D. 5.
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Change to read, "No observers shall be required to
leave the open meeting of Senate except if such
observers fail to maintain proper conduct."
Section D. 6.
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Change to read, "Members of the press are permitted
to attend the open sessions of Senate and do all
things normally commensurate with their. duties."
Section F. 1.
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Last clause, the word "shall" instead of "should not
be" - so that it will read, "and the seconder of
motions shall be recorded in the minutes."
Section F. 4.
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4th line after "Departmental Chairmen," add "President
of the Student Society, President of the Faculty
Association, and to the Secretary of the Academic
Board." Omit the sentence, "At the discretion"
through to "authorities" and replace with, "By request,
copies of minutes may be available to any concerned
individual."
OWM
Section H. 4.
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Omit completely.
Section VI. C.l.b. 8th line, after "submission of the committee's report"
add "(minority reports will be received by Senate);"
HDN /rn
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H. M. Evans
