Constitution

Article I: Name

The name is the Geoduck Student Union.

Article II: Scope

The Geoduck Union is the official representation of the student body of The Evergreen State College.

Article III: Membership

All registered students at The Evergreen State College are members of the Geoduck Union.

Article IV. Representation

The student body will elect 21 student representatives, called Geoduck Union Representatives.

Article V: Elections

Representatives are elected by a student election held each Spring Quarter. Every student may vote for 21 candidates. The 21 candidates receiving the most votes will be the Geoduck Union Representatives. One representative seat is reserved for a student from the Tacoma Campus and one seat is reserved for a student from the Reservation-Based Campuses.

Amended in Spring 2012

Should the GSU ever fall below the maximum number of members, if there were more candidates for the most recent election and than there were slot available, the candidate with the next highest number of votes who did not become a GSU rep will be come a GSU rep if they so choose. This process will continue will until either the GSU is at the maximum number of members or there are no more candidates who were not elected. No person may fill the slot for which a group they are not apart of.

Article V – Amended in Spring 2009 Election

Representatives are elected by a student election held each Spring Quarter. Every student may vote for 21 candidates. The 21 candidates receiving the most votes will be the Geoduck Union Representatives. One representative seat is reserved for a student from the Tacoma Campus and one seat is reserved for a student from the Reservation-Based Campuses. Two representative seats will be reserved for freshman students who wish to join in winter quarter. Elections for freshman representatives will be held by referendum week eight (8) of fall quarter.

The Geoduck Union will reserve money to be used for at least one all-student online referendum per quarter. Non-representative students may request a referendum by petition carrying the amount of signatures equal to the minimum amount of votes needed to elect a representative. Referendums must be held before the end of week 8 of the quarter to allow for adequate implementation and planning. Referendums are recognized with 10% student participation in a vote with simple 50% +1 majority deciding.

Article VI: Procedures for Removal

Representatives may be removed by consensus minus one of the Geoduck Union Representatives.

Article VII: Meetings and Quorum

Geoduck Union Representatives meet weekly at a publicly-announced time and place, and these meetings are open to the public. To conduct business, Geoduck Union Representatives must reach quorum, which is fifty percent plus one of the current representatives. The Geoduck Union Representatives will choose one Representative to facilitate the meeting(s).

Article VII – Amended in Spring 2009 Election

Geoduck Union Representatives meet weekly at a publicly-announced time and place, and these meetings are open to the public. Meetings should be held in the CAB, Library Lobby,Red Squareor Lecture Halls for visibility and easy access. To conduct business, Geoduck Union Representatives must reach quorum, which is fifty percent of the current representatives. Whenever possible, meetings should be facilitated by students who are not elected representatives in order to help create a fair dynamic. Simple majority confirms any facilitator.

Meetings will begin with student-only recognition to discuss business without influence for approximately one hour. Advisors are exempt from this policy. At least thirty minutes will be reserved for business with other parties. Representatives may invite administrators, faculty, or other parties to meetings prior to their allotted time by a two-thirds majority vote in favor.

Article VIII: Decision-Making

Geoduck Union Representatives make decisions by consensus. If Geoduck Union Representatives fail to reach consensus, they may suspend consensus by a two-thirds majority vote. While consensus is suspended, Geoduck Union Representatives may make decisions by two-thirds majority vote.

Article VIII – Amended in Spring 2009 Election

Geoduck Union Representatives make decisions by a two-thirds majority vote.

Article IX: Amendments

Amendments to this constitution may be proposed by Geoduck Union Representatives or by students who present a petition signed by 10% of the student body. Proposed amendments come before the student body for a vote. To pass, amendments must be approved by two-thirds of those voting, with a minimum of 10% of students voting.

Article IX – Amended in Spring 2009 Election

Amendments to this constitution may be proposed by Geoduck Union Representatives or by students who present a petition signed by 10% of the student body. Proposed amendments come before the student body for a vote. To pass, amendments must be approved by two-thirds of those voting, with a minimum of 10% of students voting.

Article X – Passed By Amendment in Spring 2009 Election

Geoduck Union Representatives will elect a historian amongst themselves once per quarter. No elected historian may serve for two consecutive quarters. The role of the historian is to chronicle the important discussions, issues, and problems that the Geoduck Student Union faces in the quarter, and to create a narrative document at the end of the quarter. This narrative document should not surpass seven (7) pages and will be advertised to the public. Physical copies of the year’s historical narratives, resolutions, statements and other important documents will be compiled in a binder to be held in the Geoduck Union office and on the internet. It shall be the duty of the Geoduck Student Union to compile and advertise an independent end-of-the-year report for students.

This report shall contain pertinent information and evaluations to address at least the following subjects:

  • The years resolutions
  • Tuition/Budget
  • Student social access to education
  • Sexual violence, campus safety and emergency preparedness
  • Administrative issues
  • Sustainability & Food-Labor (with an emphasis on student labor)
  • Anti-oppression

The Evergreen State College

Geoduck Student Union by Laws

Article One:

MissionStatement:

All decisions made by the Representatives of the Geoduck Union must be made in accord with the Mission Statement:

“The Geoduck Union is the official representation of the student body at The Evergreen State College. TheUnionis committed to unifying students across all Evergreen campuses, serving their interests at the local, state, and national levels, and empowering all the students to participate in positive social and political change while fostering a fair and diverse community. TheUnionworks to improve students’ quality of life by advocating for students’ rights and needs, facilitating communication among students, and ensuring a fair balance of power among faculty, staff administration and students.”

Article Two:

Membership:

All registered students of the Evergreen State College are members of the Geoduck Union. As all Geoduck Representatives are also student members of the Geoduck Union, they have the full freedom to participate in student committees and groups but hold no privilege in status or power.

Article Three:

Positions:

Positions may be proposed and must be ratified by consensus. Positions can be changed and or removed by consensus minus one. Positions will be made to rotate weekly and or quarterly in order to share leadership and responsibility equitably. If the holder of a position is absent at a meeting, a temporary replacement can be chosen by consensus.

Article Four:

Committees:

  • Committees cannot meet quorum.
  • Open Committees: All members of the Geoduck Union may propose and participate in an open committee. Geoduck Union Representatives are not granted any special privileges in status or power on open committees. Representatives are also not granted power to control or limit the practices or organization of student run committees.
  • Internal Committees: Are only open to representatives of the Geoduck Union

Article Five:

Meeting:

Process:

  • Agenda is to be sent to the representatives of the Geoduck Union at least 24 hours before scheduled meeting time. The agenda should also be made open to the public at this time.
  • Making proposals: (waiting for the official document from the agenda committee) All students of the Geoduck Union may present proposals to the Representatives of the Geoduck Union.
  • Quorum: In accordance with Article VII of the constitution, quorum shall be met when more than half of all currently existing representatives are present at an official Geoduck Union meeting. (An official meeting is either a regular weekly meeting or an emergency meeting.)
  • Consensus: As detailed in Article VIII of the constitution, decisions shall be made on consensus and this process may be suspended.
  • There must be a time for student input during regularly scheduled meetings Emergency Meetings: In addition to regular weekly meetings, 5% of the students or 1/3 of the representatives may call an emergency meeting with 24 hours notice to representatives. Decisions made at emergency meetings can take interim action but must be ratified at the next regularly scheduled meeting. Emergency meetings are to be called only under extreme circumstances.

Article Six:

Budget/Record Keeping:

  • All decisions made by the Geoduck Union about the use of students’ funds must be recorded and made accessible to all members of the Geoduck Union.
  • Attendance: If a representative has 2 unexplained absences in a row, or 4 explained and/or unexplained absences total, a subcommittee of at least 3 members will be formed to address the issue. This committee will try to contact the absent representative and then make a recommendation to the GSU about what should be done.
  • All minutes, proposals, and official business are to be recorded and archived. This information can be accessed by the public.

Article Seven:

Communication:

  • All minutes, proposals, and official business are to be made public on the Geoduck Union website.
  • Office Hours: The Geoduck Union Representatives have office hours during governance times.

Article Eight:

Conflict Resolution:

All members of the Geoduck Union shall actively work to resolve conflicts. If a conflict cannot be resolved between individuals or small groups representatives may seek a third party mediation service. Materials are to be made available regarding conflict resolution practices at the end of year report so that resources are available to future groups of representatives.

Article Nine:

End of Year Report:

The end of the year report shall assess the effectiveness of decisions and policies implemented by the Geoduck Union. It should also provide a basis for future groups of representatives to organize themselves and get things done. All materials pertaining to positions and committees, decision-making and conflict resolution must be included in the end of the year report.