ByLaws
The name of the organization shall be the President's Commission on the Status of Women (herein called PCSW). PCSW shall represent and reflect the diversity of all women students, staff, faculty, and administrators at California State University, Long Beach.
For the purposes of this document women will be understood to include women and women-identified individuals.
The mission of PCSW is to:
Serve as a liaison between the President's Office and the University community;
Advise the President's office and the campus community on policies and practices of concern to, and affecting women's opportunity, full participation, and advancement at CSULB;
Initiate, advocate, implement, and support actions that address the concerns of CSULB women;
Promote identification of the needs of campus women and encourage the University to respond to those needs by removing inequities and by providing a supportive educational, working and social environment for women;
Advocate for the enhanced status of campus women and continually provide and support opportunities for their equal and fair treatment.
Section 1. Classification of Members.
PCSW shall have three general classifications of members as follows:
1.1 Elected Members
1.1.1 Two tenured or tenure-track faculty
1.1.2 Two lecturer faculty
1.1.3 Three staff members
1.1.4 Two Management Personnel Plan (MPP) employees
1.2 Appointed Members
1.2.1 Three University Presidential appointees
1.2.2 Two student ASI Presidential appointees
1.3 Ex Officio Voting Members
1.3.1 University President or designee
1.3.2 Administrative/Fiscal Assistant, Office of the President
1.3.3 The CSULB Administrator with oversight for the Women’s & Gender Equity Center as designated by the Vice President for Student Affairs
1.3.4 Director of Equity and Diversity
1.3.5 University Ombudsperson
1.3.6 The Chair of Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies
1.3.7 Chair of Academic Senate
1.3.8 ASI President
1.3.9 ASI Commissioner for Women & Gender Equity Affairs
1.3.10 CSULB Title IX Coordinator
1.4 Designees
Only 1.3.6 Chair of Women's, Gender and Sexuality Studies, 1.3.7 Chair of Academic Senate, and 1.3.8 ASI President may appoint a designee to serve in their place. The designee would serve one academic year at a time. Designees would have voting privileges.
Section 2.
2.1 Requirements for Members. Members are expected to attend all PCSW meetings. If a member cannot continue membership, or after three absences per academic year, a replacement will be sought. Exceptions may be made under extenuating circumstances.
2.2 The replacement will be from the same constituency as the outgoing member, whenever possible, and will be appointed by the Chair after seeking recommendations from the Commission. The replacement will complete the term of the person she/he is replacing.
2.3 Substitutes: A commissioner who will miss a PCSW meeting may send a substitute to the meeting once each semester. The substitute would have full speaking privileges, but would not have voting privileges. The absence of the commissioner who sent the substitute would not be counted as one of the three absences for the year.
Section 3. Rights and Privileges.
All members of PCSW are entitled to vote, hold office, and serve as Chairs of PCSW Standing and Special Committees.
Section 4. Election Process (regarding Article III, 1.1)
4.1 Nominations are solicited from the campus community on the 15th of February of each year. A call for nominations will be posted on the PCSW website and will be printed or posted in the appropriate campus publications. Nominations may be solicited via electronic means.
4.2 When the published deadline for nominations has passed, if the number of nominees for the vacancies in a particular category is equal to, or less than, the number of positions to be filled, there will be no elections for those positions. Instead, the individuals nominated will automatically fill the available positions for the designated term.
4.3 Elections may be conducted online or by using paper ballots. Ballots shall be provided to all employees, including those of CSULB auxilliaries.
4.3.1 Online elections shall be supplemented by the use of a paper ballot if requested by: a) voters who decline to provide a preferred email address to Academic Personnel, Staff Human Resources or their auxiliary human resources department, or b) voters who report technical difficulties with accessing the online ballot.
4.3.2 Requests for paper ballots permitted by Article III Section 4.3.1 above must be received by the PCSW in writing or via email by the published deadline.
4.4 If paper ballots are used, the PCSW Administrative Secretary will be responsible for mailing all election ballots to all employees by the 15th of March each year.
4.4.1 If an election is conducted entirely by paper ballots, ballots shall be returned to the Academic Senate for tabulation of the final results by the 15th of April each year.
4.4.2 Paper ballots cast under the provisions of Article III, Section 4.3.2 above shall also be returned to the Academic Senate PCSW Administrative Secretary for tabulation. The results will be added to the tabulation described in Article III, 4.4 below.
4.5 For online elections, the PCSW Secretary will be responsible for distributing the electronic ballot. Electronic ballots may be cast for a publicized period of two weeks, and the Secretary shall tabulate the ballots by the 15th of April each year.
4.6 Elected members shall be determined by plurality vote. Alternates will be selected in rank order of votes received.
4.7 If, after a call to the campus community for candidates to an elected position on the PCSW, no candidates apply or are nominated, no election will be held for that position. Any position that was to be filled by that election shall be considered vacant after the last PCSW meeting of the year. The position shall be filled from the same constituency as the outgoing member and will be appointed by the Chair after seeking recommendations from the Commission. The person will serve the full three-year term of the position.
Section 5. Appointment Process.
(Regarding Article III, 1.2) PCSW Members and others may recommend potential appointees to the Chair, the University President, and the ASI President. Appointments shall be made by the end of the spring semester for the following fall semester. Appointments shall be made in an effort to enhance diversity among PCSW members (e.g., race, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation).
Section 6. Terms of Membership.
All newly elected and appointed members shall serve three-year terms, which begin at the first meeting of the fall semester. All Ex Officio members of the Commission shall remain on the commission while serving in that position. The ASI President and ASI Secretary for Women's Affairs shall serve on a year-to-year basis during the term of office. Student appointees shall serve on a year-to-year basis. Should a member become a Chair, Co-Chair or Chair-Elect with only one year of term remaining or during the last year of membership, the member's term on the Commission shall be extended to fulfill the sequence and terms of office.
Section 1. Officers
The officers shall be the Chair, Co-Chair, Chair-Elect, Recording Secretary, Administrative Secretary, and Treasurer. The officers shall be members of the Executive Board.
Section 2. Duties of Officers
The officers shall perform the duties assigned to them in the Bylaws and other such duties applicable to the office as prescribed by the parliamentary authority adopted by the organization.
2.1 Chair
The Chair shall be the principal executive officer of the PCSW and shall supervise all of the business and affairs of the organization. More specifically, the Chair shall:
2.1.1 Preside at all meetings of the members and Executive Board.
2.1.2 Develop the meeting agenda with input from members.
2.1.3 Be an official voice for the organization.
2.1.4 Maintain an informational exchange with the President or Designee.
2.1.5 Develop an annual communique calendar that will be shared with all Board members and Committee Chairs. Work with the Executive Committee and the Committee chairs about communiques and updates to the website.
2.1.6 Work with the Office of the President to coordinate the vetting and transmittal of communiques and website changes.
2.1.7 Submit to the President at the end of the spring semester a budget and request for resources to conduct PCSW programs.
2.1.8 Present a written report to the membership at the last regular meeting of the spring semester regarding achievements and the goals for the next year.
2.2 Co-Chair
The Co-Chair assumes the Chair's duties in the absence of the Chair at a meeting, University function, or when requested to do so by the Chair. The PCSW Co-Chair shall serve as Chair or Co-Chair of the Colloquium Committee and shall oversee the Women's Research Colloquium. The Co-Chair shall also:
2.2.1 Work closely with the Chair to assure a smooth transfer to the Chair position.
2.2.2 Develop plans and projects for her term of office that provide continuity with current PCSW goals.
2.2.3 Perform other duties as assigned by the Chair or the Executive Board.
2.3 Chair-Elect
The Chair-Elect assumes the Co-Chair's duties in the absence of the Co-Chair at a meeting. The Chair-Elect shall serve on the Colloquium Committee and work closely with the PCSW Co-Chair on the Women's Research Colloquium. The Chair-Elect shall also:
2.3.1 Work closely with the Co-Chair to assure a smooth transfer to the Co-Chair position.
2.3.2 Develop plans and projects for her term of office that provide continuity with current PCSW goals.
2.3.3 Perform other duties as assigned by the Chair or the Executive Board.
2.4 Recording Secretary:
The CSULB Administrator with oversight for the Women’s & Gender Equity Center as designated by the Vice-President for Student Affairs shall serve as the Recording Secretary. The Recording Secretary shall:
2.4.1 Deliver the call to meetings and the previous meetings minutes, as appropriate, to each member not less than 7 days prior to the meetings.
2.4.2 Keep the minutes of the meetings of the members and Executive Board (or designate an assistant to do so).
2.4.3 Send copies of approved minutes to the PCSW Chair for uploading to the PCSW webpage.
2.4.4 Keep a file(electronic or otherwise) of PCSW documents less than seven (7) years old.
2.4.5 Arrange for the storage (electronic or otherwise) and archiving of PCSW documents more than seven (7) years old.
2.4.6 Be the custodian of the seal of the organization.
2.4.7 Perform other duties as assigned by the Chair or the Executive Board.
2.5 Administrative Secretary:
The Administrative Secretary shall be elected from among the PCSW commissioners by the final spring meeting for a two-year term. The Administrative Secretary assumes the Recording Secretary's duties in the absence of the Recording Secretary at a meeting. The Administrative Secretary shall:
2.5.1 Maintain full and complete membership records for the Organization.
2.5.2 Coordinate, with the help of the Operations and Bylaws Committee, the election of PCSW commissioners.
2.5.3 Coordinate, with help of the Operations and Bylaws Committee, the spring elections of the PCSW officers
2.5.4 Reserve rooms for meetings and coordinate meals for meetings, if needed.
2.5.5 Perform other duties as assigned by the Chair or the Executive Committee.
2.6 Treasurer
The Treasurer shall:
2.6.1 Manage all money allocated to and acquired by PCSW.
2.6.2 Present a Treasurer's report at each regular meeting.
2.6.3 Assist the Executive Board in analyzing budget proposals from committees.
2.6.4 Perform other duties as may be assigned by the Chair or the Executive Board.
Section 3. Officer Elections and Appointments
3.1 The Chair-Elect shall be elected annually by the members by ballot after the Spring general membership elections are completed.
3.2 The Administrative Secretary shall be elected biennially by ballot after the Spring general membership elections are completed.
3.3 Elections for Chair-Elect and Administrative Secretary shall be conducted in the following manner:
3.3.1 The Operations and Elections Committee shall canvass the membership for nominations and prepare a slate for the election of the Chair Elect and Administrative Secretary.
3.3.2 The Committee shall mail or email to each voting member a ballot containing the slate of candidates, together with instructions for voting.
3.3.3 The election shall be determined by plurality vote.
3.4 The CSULB Administrator with oversight for the Women’s & Gender Equity Center as designated by the Vice-President for Student Affairs shall be the Recording Secretary; an Administrative Assistant in the office of the President shall be the Treasurer. The same persons shall serve as officers as long as they hold the aforementioned University positions.
Section 4. Officer Eligibility
4.1 All officers must be members of PCSW.
4.2 No two offices may be held by the same person at the same time.
Section 5. Sequence and Term of Office
5.1 Immediately following the last meeting of the Spring semester, the Chair completes the term as an officer and the Co-Chair assumes the Chair position. The Chair-Elect shall assume the newly vacated Co-Chair position.
5.2 The Administrative Secretary shall take office immediately following election in the spring.
5.3 The term of office for the Chair, Co-Chair and Chair-Elect is one year. The term of office for the Administrative Secretary is two years. The term of office for Recording Secretary and Treasurer is ongoing.
Section 6. Officer Vacancies .
6.1 In the event of a vacancy of the office of the Chair, the position will be filled by the Co-Chair who will complete the term of the person she/he is replacing.
6.1.1. If the Co-Chair declines to assume the office of the Chair, the position will be filled by the Chair-Elect who will complete the term of the position she/he is replacing. 6.1.2 A Chair-elect who assumes the Chair position, upon completion of that term as Chair, will be entitled to remain on the commission in order to fulfill the original membership term when she/he was first elected or appointed to the commission.
6.2 In the event of a vacancy of the office of the Co-Chair, the position will be filled by the Chair-Elect who will complete the term of the person she/he is replacing.
6.3 In the event of a vacancy of the office of the Chair Elect, there will be an election from the body of the Commission. The elected commissioner will complete the term of the person she/he is replacing.
6.4 In the event of a vacancy in the office of Administrative Secretary, there will be an election from the body of the commission. The elected commissioner will complete the term of the person she/he is replacing.
Section 1. Attendees
Meetings are closed meetings; only PCSW members shall have voting rights.
Section 2. Regular Meetings
Regular meetings shall occur on the 2nd Friday monthly during the Fall and Spring semesters. The Secretary shall confirm the meeting time, date, and attendance in advance via mail or email.
Section 3. Special meetings
Special meetings of the entire membership (e.g., retreats) may be called by the Chair as necessary. Members will be notified of the meeting prior to the meeting via mail, email, or telephone. No other business should be transacted in a special meeting except that for which the meeting was called.
Section 4. Quorum
A quorum, consisting of no less than 10 voting members, must be present to conduct business.
Section 5. Cancellation of meeting
In the event that a meeting must be canceled, the Chair or Administrative Secretary must notify the members via email as soon as possible.
Section 1.
Board Composition . The Executive Board shall consist of the Chair, Co-Chair, Chair-Elect, Recording Secretary, Administrative Secretary and Treasurer.
Section 2.
Meetings . The Executive Board may meet if necessary prior to regular meetings. General members may be invited to share input regarding important decisions, however, only executive board members may vote.
Section 1. Standing Committees . The Standing Committees of the PCSW shall be Colloquium, Awards, Scholarships, Publicity and Public Relations, Access and Equity, Operations and Elections, and Sponsorship.
1.1 Purposes
1.1.1 Colloquium Committee:
Organizes and conducts the Fall and Spring Research Colloquia.
1.1.2 Awards Committee:
Organizes the nominations and selections associated with the annual awards given by PCSW to recognize faculty, staff, students, and administrators.
May suggest additional categories for awards, to be voted upon by the PCSW membership.
1.1.3 Scholarship Committee:
Develops and implements the structure and processes to review scholarship applications.
Selects the scholarship award recipient.
Makes recommendations for fundraising opportunities to increase scholarship endowment.
1.1.4 Publicity and Public Relations Committee:
Develops strategies to advance the visibility of PCSW on campus and in the local community.
Plans strategies for publicizing current issues impacting women of the campus community.
Publicizes special events of relevance to the mission of PCSW.
Reviews the PCSW webpages on a regular basis and notifies the PCSW Chair when corrections to the webpages or uploaded documents are needed.
1.1.5 Access & Equity Committee:
Assists with the evaluation of the campus climate as it pertains to the status and advancement of women.
Assists with the assessment of the campus employment status/ conditions of women.
1.1.6 Operations and Elections Committee:
Studies the Bylaws for possible revision according to the needs of the organization, and initiates action accordingly.
Organizes the nomination and election processes.
1.1.7 The Sponsorship Committee:
Reviews and awards PCSW sponsorships
Membership: The Sponsorship Committee is comprised of the following members
PCSW Chair: 1 year, designated
PCSW Chair-Elect: 1 year, designated
PCSW Treasurer: ongoing, designated
PCSW Recording Secretary: ongoing, designated
PCSW non-EC member: 1 year term, volunteer, any Commissioner
PCSW non-EC member: 1 year term, volunteer, any Commissioner
1.2 After first asking for volunteers from the membership the incoming PCSW chair shall appoint Standing Committee Chairs. If there is more than one interested candidate, the Chair shall call for a vote of the membership, which may take place at a regular meeting, by email, or mail.
1.3 The Chair of a Standing Committee must be a PCSW member.
1.4 The Chair of each Standing Committee shall serve a one-year term and may be reappointed.
1.5 The Chair of each Standing Committee shall ask for volunteers or invite members and other interested persons, including non-PCSW members, to serve on her committee. Dates and times for meetings shall be decided by each committee.
Section 2. Special Committees
2.1 The Chair, Co-Chair, or Executive Board can authorize Special Committees with the approval of the membership.
2.2 When the work of the Special Committee has been completed to the satisfaction of the Chair and membership, the committee will be dissolved.
2.3 The PCSW Chair, with approval of the Executive Board, shall appoint the Chair of the Special Committee after first asking for volunteers to serve.
2.4 The Chair of a Special Committee must be a PCSW member.
2.5 The Chair of each Special Committee shall ask for volunteers or invite members and other interested persons, including non-commission members, to serve on her committee. Dates and times for meetings shall be decided by each committee based on the availability of members.
Section 3. Duties of Committee Chairs.
The duties of Chairs of both Standing and Special Committees shall be:
3.1 To conduct meetings and coordinate meeting activities, and request funding.
3.2 To present a verbal report outlining the Committee's completed work and work in progress at each regular meeting.
3.3 To present a written report at the last regular meeting of the spring semester outlining achievements and future goals, if applicable.
Section 1.
PCSW Guidelines. At the beginning of each academic year the Commission will discuss and adopt a brief set of guidelines to promote mutual respect, effective communication and collaborative decision-making. The guidelines shall not be in conflict with the Bylaws, rules of order, or other rules of the organization.
Section 2.
Robert's Rules. When consensus cannot be reached or it is necessary to move the agenda forward, the rules contained in the Robert's Rules of Order: Simplified and Applied, shall govern the proceedings, unless the rules are in conflict with By-laws, rules of order, or other rules of the organization.
Section 1.
Procedure. These Bylaws can be amended and new Bylaws adopted at any regular or special meeting provided that notice was given as provided in Section 2 below and then sent to all members of the organization by the Secretary.
Section 2.
Notice. Notice is given in the same manner as notices of meetings, not less than 7 days before the date of the meeting. An amendment shall be adopted if approved by the majority of the PCSW membership.
Rules of Order
Order of PCSW Regular Business Meetings
Call to order
Approval of Agenda
Approval of Minutes
Announcements
Reports of Officers
Treasurer
Chair, Co-Chair, Chair-elect, Secretary (as needed)
Reports of Committees
Standing Committees (committees listed in the Bylaws)
Colloquium
Awards
Scholarships
Publicity & Public Relations
Operations & Elections
Access and Equity
Special Committees: Committees created for a particular purpose and are not listed in the bylaws; they cease to exist when they have completed their work and made their final report.
Unfinished Business Motion (or business) that was under discussion at the time that the previous meeting adjourned & motion that was
postponed to the current meeting.
New Business An issue that is new to this meeting; it may be something not discussed before or something that was defeated at a past meeting.
Adjournment
