Drafted by: Giacomo Vecia, Chairperson of the MASU

Drafted for: Mount Allison Student Union

January 2013

ROOM TO GROW

RE-ENVISIONING THE MASU CHAIRPERSON

1

ROOM TO GROW

RE-ENVISIONING THE MASU

CHAIRPERSON

INTRODUCTION

The Mount Allison Student Union (MASU) has experienced growth over

the last decade both in membership and in the number and extent of

services offered. The Health and Dental Plan, the Bike Co-operative, and

the position of Social Justice Coordinator are a few examples of the

many areas which have seen development in the MASU.

One position that has remained relatively static over the same period is

that of the MASU Chairperson. As is seen by the author of this report, a

Chairperson can be an extremely useful resource that can act to fulfill a

number of different roles and responsibilities based on the needs of their

parent organization. This report aims to present an objective comparison

of other university student union Chairpersons alongside providing more

subjective proposals for the evolution of the roles and responsibilities for

the MASU Chairperson.

Alongside these aforementioned proposals are a number of incidental

changes that may or may not accompany a re-envisioned MASU

Chairperson. Together, these proposed changes attempt to provide

options for the MASU to evaluate the current utility of the Chairperson

and the potential for the growth of the position.

THE MASU CHAIRPERSON

The MASU Chairperson has a number of responsibilities, as outlined in

the MASU By-Law 4, Section 14. Those responsibilities are as follows:

(a) serve a term of office from the first of May to the thirtieth day of the

following April;

(b) call and chair all meetings of both Council and the MASU using

Robert’s Rules of Order as a guide;

(c) act as the spokesperson of Council;

(d) hold office hours within forty-eight (48) hours of all regular Council

meetings;

(e) administer Executive and Councilor evaluations;

(f) set the agenda for all meetings of Council and the MASU;

A LITTLE

ABOUT THE

AUTHOR

Giacomo Vecia is the

current Chairperson of

the MASU. He has also

chaired the Mount

Allison BioScience

Society, MountApps

Productions Inc., and the

St. Catharines Mayor’s

Youth Advisory

Committee.

2

(g) keep accurate records of attendance at Council meetings and enforce the MASU Bylaws pertaining

to attendance;

(h) perform such duties as may be assigned by the President, Council or the MASU;

(i) there is an honorarium with this position; and

(j) a final report is required to be submitted to Council.

METHODS

The roles and responsibilities of a number of other universities’ Chairperson or Chairperson-like staffs

were researched. Notes were made on the similarities and differences between the two aforementioned

positions. Comparisons of student union membership (estimated to be roughly that of the university

enrollment) and student representative/administrative council size (excluding the Chairperson and

Secretary of the Union) were also made to provide context for findings.

‘Vacant’ responsibilities (those that are not fulfilled by the MASU Chairperson but fulfilled by other

universities’ Chairpersons or Chairperson-like staffs) were considered and Chairperson Development

Proposals were drafted.

COMPARISONS

Table 1 summarizes the main differences between the roles and responsibilities of the MASU

Chairperson to those of other universities’ Chairperson or Chairperson-like staffs’ roles and

responsibilities.

Table 1. Notes on comparisons of MASU Chairperson roles and responsibilities to other universities’

Chairperson or Chairperson-like staffs’ roles and responsibilities.

St. Thomas University Enrollment: 2600

Council: 23

Differences:

Does not conduct reviews

Does not set agenda

Does not hold office hours

Supervised by the Vice-President Administration

Does not act as spokesperson

Acts as Chief Appeal Officer of the Union

Sits as Chair of the Appellate Board

Acadia Enrollment: 4200

Council: 19

Differences:

Acts to maintain integrity of Constitution, By-laws, and regulations

of the Union

3

Sits ex-officio on all Union committees and sub-committees

Sits as Chair of the Review Board

Conducts extensive reviews on the fulfillment of mandates of

numerous bodies and individuals

Keeps records of committee membership

Proposes tangible goals for Council to ratify and achieve

Serves as poll supervisor for all Union elections

Does not act as spokesperson of Council

Cape Breton University Enrollment: 3300

Council: 21

Differences:

Oversees activities of all standing and ad-hoc committees

Acts as recording secretary for Executive Council

Does not act as spokesperson of Council

Does not hold office hours

Saint Francis Xavier University Enrollment: 5200

Council: 25

Differences:

Sits ex-officio on all Union committees and sub-committees

Appoints all Councilors to Council subcommittees

Updates and keeps records of the by-laws

Upholds by-laws authorities

Works with ‘house presidents’ to maintain residence constitutions

Responsible of day-to-day management of Executive (limited to

sick day/vacation day/office hour management)

Oversees Returning Officers

Takes minutes at Executive Board meetings

Sits as Chair of the Bylaw and Policy Committee, Students’ Union

Awards Committee

Supervises activities of any office of the Union

Can order Chairs of committees and officers of council to report

to Council

Mount Saint Vincent University Enrollment: 4000

Council: 16

Differences:

Drafts new ‘Speaker’ job description yearly

4

ANALYSIS OF COMPARISONS

There are significant differences in the amount of administrative, managerial, and officiating duties of

Chairpersons across different student unions. This range does not appear to be consistent with changes

in university enrollment or council size. Some comparative differences between the MASU Chairperson

and other Chairpersons are, however, observed more than once. These differences include:

1. Sitting ex-officio on all Union committees and sub-committees;

2. Acting as secretary or recording officer of the Executive Committee;

3. Sitting as chair of a review or appeals committee of the union;

4. Overseeing some or all actions of the Elections Office or Returning Officers;

5. Overseeing the upholding of Union by-laws and regulations; and

6. Verifying or reviewing activities of council members.

A number of the above differences can be rationalized by reviewing the internal operating structure of

the MASU. These rationalizations include:

- The MASU Vice-President Finance and Operations oversees the activities of all Union

committees and sub-committees (1). This may be explained by noting that many other

Universities’ comparative executive position to the MASU Vice-President Finance and

Operations is often a Vice-President Finance or Chief Financial Officer;

- The Vice-President Communications acts as recording officer of the Executive Committee (2);

and

- There is an independent Elections Office under the MASU by-laws (4).

As such, three of the aforementioned differences remain (items 3, 5, & 6). For the purposes of this report,

these three differences have been identified as ‘opportunities for Chairperson development’.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR RESPONSIBILITIES DEVELOPMENT

There are a number of different possibilities for growth within the Office of the Chairperson.

Opportunity 1 – MASU Chairperson as Review Committee Chair

This opportunity envisions adding to the role of Chairperson the role of Review Committee Chair. As

there is no Review Committee under the S.A.C. of the MASU, the form, function, and description of the

Review Committee would need to be identified. Below is one possibility for defining and structuring the

MASU Review Committee.

Membership

1) The Review Committee shall consist of:

a. The Chairperson of the MASU, who shall act as Chair of the Committee;

b. The Secretary of the MASU, who shall act as recording secretary for the Committee. The

Secretary shall be a non-voting member of the Committee;

c. The MASU President;

d. The MASU Ombudsperson. The Ombudsperson shall be a non-voting member of the

Committee; and

5

e. Three non-executive, voting members of Council, to be nominated by the Chairperson

and appointed by Council at the first regular meeting of Council in October.

2) If a member of the Review Committee conducts him or herself in a manner so as to reflect

poorly on the Review Committee, or misses two consecutive, or three overall meetings without

adequate justification, said member may be removed and replaced according to the following

procedure:

a. The Chairperson will present a motion to remove said member to Council at the earliest

convenience. Council may remove the member from the Review Board through a two-

thirds majority vote.

b. At the same meeting at which the member is removed, Council must make all

reasonable efforts to replace him or her.

Rights and Responsibilities

3) The Review Committee shall:

a. Act impartially, in good faith, and in the best interests of the MASU;

b. Enforce and interpret the Constitution, the By-laws, and the motions of the S.A.C., as

well as act as a resource for the Chairperson in performing their duties;

c. Review all relevant reports concerning the performance and undertakings of Executives,

Councilors, Committees, and Officers of the MASU in regards to their responsibilities

and mandates;

d. Any member of the MASU may submit a performance review for the Committee’s

consideration. The Committee must consider each performance review individually; and

e. The Review Committee may present to Council any performance reviews which may aid

the operation of Council.

Meetings

4) Regular meetings of the Review Committee shall be held bi-weekly, at a regular time

determined by the Chair in coordination with the members of the Committee.

5) Special meetings of the Review Committee shall be held at the request of the Chair or President

and must relate to the upholding of the Constitution, By-laws, or motions of Council.

6) Quorum for meetings of the Review Committee is four voting members, one of which must be

the Chair.

7) All discussions and documentation regarding the performance review of Executives, Councilors,

Committees, and Officers of the Union shall be considered confidential. The minutes of such

discussions shall be sealed. Council may unseal the minutes and related documentation for

their reference through a majority vote of Council. The contents of any unsealed minutes and

documents shall only be referred to while Council is in-camera, and shall be resealed after

leaving in-camera.

Orders

8) The Review Committee may, at any time, administer an Order to any Executive, Councilor,

Committee, and Officer of the Union to attend a meeting of the Committee. The individual

receiving the Order must:

a. Attend a meeting of the committee within three (3) weeks of receiving an Order; and

6

b. Make available to the Committee any reports or documents as requested by the

Committee related to the Order.

Opportunity 2 – MASU Chairperson as Operations Committee Vice-

Chair

This opportunity envisions restructuring the roles of the Chairperson and the Operations Committee. In

place of creating a Review Committee, the Operations Committee mandate would be expanded to include

some or all of the review processes listed above. Below is one possibility for the restructuring of the

Operations Committee.

Operations Committee

(a) There shall be an Operations Committee with the purpose of updating and recommending

amendments to the Constitution, Bylaws, and Operating Procedures of the MASU, as well as for

each MASU club and society. It is also responsible for the creation and maintenance of an

Operating Procedures manual.

(b) The Operations Committee shall consist of the following members:

i. the Vice-President, Finance and Operations, who shall chair the committee;

ii. the Chairperson of the MASU, who shall sit as a non-voting member;

iii. three SAC Councillors; and

iv. two students

Opportunity 3 – MASU Chairperson as Manager of an Expanded ‘Office

of the Chairperson’

This opportunity envisions tasking the Chairperson with the management of Executive, Councilor,

Committee, and Officer mandate fulfillment insofar as ensuring that any motions passed by Council are

followed. In addition, this opportunity expands the current Office of the Chairperson to make it an

independently operating and functioning body within the MASU. Below is one possibility for the expansion

of the Office of the Chairperson.

Office of the Chairperson

1) The Chairperson of the MASU shall:

a. serve a term of office from the first of May to the thirtieth day of the following April;

b. abide by and maintain the integrity of the Constitution, By-laws, and motions of Council

and the MASU.

c. call and chair all meetings of both Council and the MASU using Robert’s Rules of Order

as a guide;

d. chair the MASU Review Committee;

e. act as the spokesperson of Council;

f. hold a minimum of two office hours per week during the academic year;

g. set the agenda for all meetings of Council and the MASU no later than forty-eighty (48)

hours prior to the date of the meeting;

h. supervise the work of the Deputy Chairperson and Chief Returning Officer;

i. perform such duties as may be assigned by the President, Council or the MASU;

j. there is an honorarium with this position; and

k. a final report is required to be submitted to Council.

7

2) The Deputy Chairperson of the MASU shall:

a. serve a term of office from the first of May to the thirtieth day of the following April;

b. maintain and distribute minutes for all meetings of Council and the MASU;

c. assume the duties of the Chairperson in the event of the absence or incapacity of the

Chair;

d. aid the Chairperson in the preparation and distribution of the agenda and related

documents for all Council meetings;

e. keep accurate records of attendance at Council meetings and enforce the MASU Bylaws

pertaining to attendance;

f. Serve as the Deputy Chief Returning Officer of the Union, as outlined in By-Law IV,

section 16.

g. Perform other duties as assigned by the Chairperson and Council;

h. There is an honorarium with this position; and

i. A final report is required to be submitted to Council.

3) Regular meetings of the Office of the Chairperson shall be held weekly, at a time determined by the

Chair in coordination with the members of the Office.

4) The Office of the Chairperson shall enforce and interpret the Constitution, the By-laws, and the

motions of the S.A.C. through regular review of Executive, Councilor, Committee, and Officer

performance via submissions to the MASU Review Committee.

THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME TO READ THIS REPORT.