Student Government Association Bylaws
Article I. Legislative Branch (General Assembly)
- Membership - The Student Government Association General Assembly shall consist of a minimum of one and a maximum of two voting representatives from each student club officially registered with the Student Government Association Executive Board of Officers and Student Activities Director. Selection or election of General Assembly Representatives shall be determined by each student club advisor. These representatives shall have full voting privileges during the Student Government Association meetings. Their names shall be submitted to the Executive Board of Officers and the Student Activities Director prior to the first meeting of the Fall Semester and updated as often as necessary.
- Attendance - Representatives of the General Assembly must maintain regular attendance at all Student Government Association Meetings. In order for a club to be eligible to receive seed money, at least one representative must attend 50 percent of the Student Government Association Meetings. Any representative who is not accounted for during the roll call by the Executive Board Secretary will be counted as non present for that meeting.
- Representative Votes - Proxy votes shall be accepted at the discretion of the Executive Board of Officers if they are typed and signed by both the student representative and the student’s advisor prior to the start of the Student Government Association Meeting.
- Quorum - At least 1/3 representation from the General Assembly must be present during SGA meetings in order to conduct a vote.
- Vacancies - All vacancies should be filled within 30 days of the announcement of the vacancy by the club or club advisor.
- Grade Point Average - All General Assembly Representatives shall maintain a minimum overall cumulative GPA of 2.00. Club advisors will be responsible for obtaining and keeping an accurate record of representatives’ GPA averages. If a representative’s GPA falls below the minimum 2.00 requirements, the club advisor must remove the representative from the General Assembly and replace him or her with a new representative who meets the minimum qualifications. These changes must be presented in writing within thirty days to the Executive Board of Officers and the Student Activities Director.
- Code of Conduct - Because General Assembly representatives are in a leadership capacity, they should conduct themselves in a proper manner at all times. Any action on the part of a representative that would bring discredit to the General Assembly, Student Government Association, student body, faculty, staff, administration or Wayne Community College in general, whether he or she is serving in an official capacity or not, could result in dismissal from office by action being brought before the Executive Board of Officers, advisors, and WCC administration.
Article II. Executive Branch (Executive Board of Officers)
- Membership - The Executive Board of Officers is made up of the President, Vice President, Secretary, standing committee chairpersons, and advisors. These officers and advisors are considered the Executive Board of the full Student Government Association and ex-officio members of all committees.
- Attendance - The Executive Board of Officers is expected to attend all Executive Board and Student Government Association meetings. Officers must have all absences approved by the SGA advisors.
- Term of Office - Each officer is elected to office for a term of one academic year and may not serve more than two consecutive years.
- Duties, Powers, Responsibilities, Privileges
- President - The President shall:
- be the official spokesperson for the SGA.
- preside over all meetings of the Executive Board and Student Government Association.
- serve as a non-voting member of the Board of Trustees of Wayne Community College.
- not serve as an officer of any other organization and or club, while in office.
- appoint all committee chairpersons except chairperson of the Nominating Committee.
- meet with the advisor(s) of the SGA on a regular basis.
- receive a scholarship in the form of a stipend equal to one-fourth of the in-state tuition reimbursed monthly during the term of office. This amount does not include student fees.
- not vote in either the Executive Board or Student Government Association meetings unless to break a tie vote.
- attend all state and district SGA meetings.
- be responsible for items appearing on the agenda to come before the Executive Board and Student Government Association.
- be responsible to assume all deadlines are being met by all committee chairpersons.
- foster a spirit of unity among the General Assembly and Executive Board, committees, and the student body in general.
- perform all other duties assigned by the General Assembly and/or Executive Board.
- Vice President - The Vice President shall:
- serve in any capacity the President is unable to attend.
- serve as parliamentarian for the Student Government Association and Executive Board of Officers.
- assume all duties, responsibilities, powers, and privileges of the President, if the President’s office is vacated.
- receive a scholarship in the form of a stipend equal to one-fourth of the in-state tuition reimbursed monthly during the term of office. This amount does not include student fees.
- assist the President in his or her duties and responsibilities.
- be ex-officio member of all standing committees.
- be responsible for all physical arrangements at all Student Government Association and Executive Board meetings.
- meet with the President and advisors on a regular basis.
- attend all state and district SGA meetings.
- foster a spirit of unity among the General Assembly and Executive Board, committees, and the student body in general.
- perform all other duties assigned by the General Assembly, Executive Board and/or President of the SGA.
- Secretary - The Secretary shall:
- be responsible for all written communication, maintenance of records, and the publication of minutes online for the Student Government Association and the Executive Board.
- record attendance and minutes at both Student Government Association and Executive Board meetings.
- attend all state and district SGA meetings.
- receive a scholarship in the form of a stipend equal to one-fourth of the in-state tuition reimbursed monthly during the term of office. This amount does not include student fees.
- meet with the President, Vice President and advisors on a regular basis.
- perform all other duties assigned by the General Assembly, Executive Board and/or President of the SGA.
- Standing Committees
- Public Information Chairperson shall:
- solicit help and support from other members of the SGA and student body to create posters and informative literature for upcoming events.
- submit for publication all necessary SGA news to be printed on the CamNet in a timely matter.
- communicate with WCC public information officer to develop effective media releases before submission to media sources.
- chair any committee meeting deemed to be a public information related project.
- give a report at all SGA meetings on committee activities.
- receive a scholarship in the form of a stipend equal to 1/4 of the in-state tuition reimbursed monthly during the term of office. This amount does not include student fees.
- Special Populations Chairperson shall:
- recognize all special populations on the WCC campus, and give a report at all meetings related to the status of special needs students. Special populations includes, but is not limited to minorities, single parents, physically impaired, visually impaired, and those with various mental or physical disabilities.
- reaffirm, through planning of student activities, WCC’s policy related to equal opportunities: (Wayne Community College is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action College and accommodates the needs to individuals with disabilities/)
- chair any committee meeting deemed to be a special populations concern.
- relay any information to the public information officer that is deemed necessary to report to the student body of WCC related to special populations.
- receive a scholarship in the form of a stipend equal to one-fourth of the in-state tuition reimbursed monthly during the term of office. This amount does not include student fees.
- Local Interactions Chairperson shall:
- chair any committee meeting deemed to be a local interaction concern.
- be aware of and report on situations and opportunities available both on campus and in the community at large that are deemed advantageous or of importance to the student body of WCC.
- maintain communication with the Goldsboro Chamber of Commerce related to identifying service opportunities in the Goldsboro/Wayne area.
- identify, plan, and organize participation in events on and off campus that are related to the service of the community population as well as the WCC student body.
- relay any local interactions information to the public information officer that is deemed necessary to report to the student body.
- receive a scholarship in the form of a stipend equal to 1/4 of the in-state tuition reimbursed monthly during the term of office. This amount does not include student fees.
- Vacancies - Vacancies may occur automatically due to voluntary withdrawal from the College, suspension from the College, failure to register as a student, written resignation, cannot meet the minimum GPA requirements, any violation of the Student Code of Conduct, and/or cannot uphold their oath of office to WCC. Any vacancy in the President, Vice President, or Secretary position must be filled within 30 days of the vacancy. Chairperson vacancies will be filled at the discretion of the Executive Board of Officers and SGA advisors. The following procedures will be taken to fill a vacancy.
- The vacancy must be announced to all students via official college e-mail, student notification systems, posters and flyers around campus.
- Once the vacancy is announced, all interested applicants who meet the minimum qualifications for the position will be given one week to fill out and return the SGA application packet. Applications will be available in the Student Activities office to pick up the day the vacancy is announced and must be returned to the Student Activities office by 5:00 p.m. on the application deadline.
- Interviews will be scheduled by the Executive Board. The Executive Board has 48 hours to vote and announce who will fill the office. A majority vote is required to make the decision official. The SGA President will vote only to break a tie or split decision.
- Grade Point Average - All Executive Board Officers shall maintain a cumulative and semester grade point average of 2.50.
- If the semester GPA falls below 2.50, the officer will be placed on probation for one academic semester.
- If the semester GPA falls below 2.00, the officer must be removed from office.
- All officers shall maintain a minimum of nine semester hours each academic semester. If an officer drops below nine hours, the officer will be removed from office.
- Code of Conduct - Because Executive Officers are in a leadership capacity, they should conduct themselves in a proper manner at all times. Any action that would bring discredit to the General Assembly, Student Government Association, student body, faculty, staff, administration or Wayne Community College in general, whether he or she is serving in an official capacity or not, could result in dismissal from office by action being brought before the Executive Board of Officers, advisors, and WCC administration.
- Candidates, Filing Procedures, Election
- Candidates
- All Executive Officer candidates must have a 2.50 cumulative grade point average at the time of petitioning for an office.
- All candidates must have been enrolled as a curriculum student at least one semester prior to date of petition.
- Filing Procedures
- All candidates must complete an SGA Officer Application which can be picked up in the Student Activities office. Applications must be submitted by 5:00 P.M. on the day of the application deadline. No applications will be accepted late.
- Eligible candidates who meet the minimum requirements to run for an office will be notified within 72-hours following the application deadline. Eligible candidates will have two weeks to campaign for office.
- All eligible candidates must participate in an open forum which will be open to the student body and scheduled by the SGA advisors.
- Elections
- SGA advisors will determine the date for the election. Elections must be completed by the end of the last week in April in case a runoff election is required.
- Election results will be announced within 48 hours following the conclusion of the election
- Oath of Office
- Executive Officers- Executive Officers shall take their oath of office after the Board of Trustees meeting in March but prior to the last day of the spring semester. The President cannot take their oath of office until after the Board of Trustees Meeting in May.
- The oath of office shall be as follows: I pledge to uphold the Student Government Association’s Constitution and Bylaws and to abide by the regulations and policies as prescribed by the Trustees and Administration of Wayne Community College. I pledge to be fair in all my endeavors and to promote goodwill for Wayne Community College. I pledge to carry out the responsibilities for my office to the best of my ability and to promote harmony among all segments of the student body.