Article I. Name
The name of this organization shall be the Erb Memorial Union of the University of Oregon (hereinafter EMU).
Article II. Mission and Purpose
Section 2.01 Mission
The mission of the Erb Memorial Union is to provide an open, inclusive, and resource-rich community where students and staff collaborate to inspire and sustain extraordinary programs and services that promote diversity, social interaction, and growth.
Section 2.02 Purpose
The EMU, through full and complete utilization of its personnel, both students and staff, facilities and services, shall provide such programs that
(a) complement and supplement the academic program of the University;
(b) provide relevance and unity to the student's educational experience;
(c) encourage a commitment to effective participation in the community at large;
(d) offer opportunities for the development of creative talents and encourage an appreciation for the arts;
(e) aid in the development of recreational and physical skills which have carry-over value into later years;
(f) provide opportunities for the development of democratic principles, ideals, and organizational skills; and
(g) define and maintain basic business and service functions which complement campus life.
Article III. EMU Board
Section 3.01 Purpose
The EMU Board (hereinafter EMUB) shall have the responsibility for making general policy decisions and long-range plans for the EMU. The EMUB shall also advise the staff of the EMU in the day-to-day management and administration of the EMU. The EMUB supports and endorses the purpose as set forth in Section 2.02.
Section 3.02 Membership
The membership of the EMUB shall consist of:
(a) Four student members elected at-large from the student body for two-year terms in the ASUO spring term election
(i) Two of those members shall be elected in odd-numbered years.
(ii) Two of those members shall be elected in even-numbered years.
(b) Three Finance Senators elected at-large from the student body to seats 4, 5, and 6
(i) Seat 4 shall serve a term of one year.
(ii) Seat 5 shall serve a term of two years and be elected in even-numbered years.
(iii) Seat 6 shall serve a term of two years and be elected in odd-numbered years.
(c) Two student members representing EMU areas, (hereinafter EMU Representative) appointed by the EMUB for one-year terms, appointed during spring term for the following year.
(d) Two student members representing ASUO programs, (hereinafter ASUO Representative) appointed by the EMUB for a one-year term appointed during spring term for the following year.
(e) Three non-EMU faculty or staff members appointed by the President of the University or their designee for one-year terms, appointed during fall term to a maximum of three consecutive terms.
(f) One member appointed by the newly elected ASUO Executive for a one-year term appointed in the spring term following the change of the ASUO Executive.
(g) One member from the EMU staff, elected by the eligible staff in odd-numbered years to serve a two-year term. For purposes of this section, staff eligible to vote shall be defined as any permanent employee.
(i) Staff eligibility is defined as any member of the EMU that has been working for a department funded by the EMUB.
(ii) The staff member must have completed at least two years of work experience within the EMU and have some proficiency with policy within the EMU.
(iii) The staff member must be in good standing with University of Oregon and must not have any pending action being taken against them.
(h) The Director of the EMU, the EMU Business Manager and the Associate Director will serve as ex officio, nonvoting members of the EMUB. Their duties are defined in Section 3.10
(i) To be consistent with the ASUO Constitution Section 13.3, all EMUB members shall serve a term of office commencing on May 25 and ending on May 24 including elected EMU staff member. Faculty members begin fall term.
Section 3.03 Criteria for Selection of Representatives to the EMUB
(a) Persons wishing to apply for the EMU Representative positions on the EMUB must have at least two terms experience in one of the programs or service areas of the EMU. The EMUB is strongly encouraged to appoint one EMU Representative from EMU programs and one from EMU areas in order to have equal representation.
(b) Persons wishing to apply for the ASUO Representative Positions on the EMUB must have at least two full terms experience in one of the ASUO registered or recognized program. For the purposes of this section, ASUO programs do not include the ASUO Executive, the Student Senate, The EMUB, or the Constitution Court.
(c) The EMUB, in an attempt to vary the representation will consider which programs or service areas have been represented in a prior year.
Section 3.04 Vacancies
(a) Vacancies in student-elected positions to the EMUB shall be filled by the ASUO President per ASUO Constitutional guidelines.
(b) Vacancies in EMU and ASUO Representatives to the EMUB shall be filled by the EMUB per their bylaws.
1) A special committee shall be formed in order to handle this following the guidelines set forth in Section 5.02(a)
(c) Persons filling vacancies shall serve out the balance of the term vacated, except for an elected position, in which case the second year of an elected term shall be filled in the ASUO elections.
(d) Vacancies in positions appointed by the ASUO President or the President of the University shall be filled by those individuals, respectively, to fill out the vacated term.
(e) A vacancy in the EMU elected staff position shall be filled by election among the eligible staff of the EMU for the remainder of the term.
Section 3.05 Recall and Remove
(a) Any EMU and ASUO Representatives of the EMUB and/or committees of the EMUB may be recalled upon a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the voting membership of the EMUB.
(b) Recall of elected members of the EMUB shall be as indicated in the ASUO Constitution, Section 14.
(c) An EMUB member who misses one full EMUB or committee meeting per academic term without excuse and notification to the chairperson or ombudsperson, will result in a meeting with the Ombudsperson. An appointed committee member who is not a member of the EMUB, who misses one meeting per academic term of the committee without excuse and notification to the chairperson or ombudsperson, will result in a meeting with the Ombudsperson.
(d) In case of non-performance of duties by a faculty member, the EMUB shall by a two- thirds (2/3) vote ask the President of the University to appoint a replacement.
Section 3.06 Meetings
(a) The EMUB will meet regularly, at least twice per month, or at the discretion of the EMUB. All regular or special meetings shall be publicly announced at a minimum by posting the information on OrgSync. EMUB meetings are to be normally scheduled in consideration to student schedules as well as community members from week one through week nine of each term.
1) The EMUB shall revise the meeting date and time only by a two-thirds (2/3) vote including all members of the EMUB including ex-officio members. The EMUB will take under advisement the community members.
(b) Any EMUB members that know they are going to be absent from a meeting must notify the Vice Chair at least 48 hours notice before the meeting
1) The absence will be noted in the meeting agenda to ensure quorum is met as per (Section 3.07(a), Section 6.02(b)(i))
(c) All EMUB meetings shall be open to the public and physically accessible to interested parties, give at least 48 hours notice to the public in advance of each meeting, and provide a record of content and decisions on Orgsync.
(d) Special meetings may be called by
(i) the EMUB Chair, or
(ii) a written petition to the Director of the EMU and the EMUB Chair.
1) The petition or call shall state the time, place, and exact purpose and must be given to all members of the EMUB at least 72 hours prior to the meeting. If, at a special meeting, it becomes urgent to take action for which no notice was given, that action, to become legal, must be ratified by the EMUB at a regular meeting (or, if ratification also cannot wait, at another special meeting properly called for that purpose.)
Section 3.07 Quorum and Voting
(a) A quorum for the EMUB or its Committees shall be a majority of the voting members. Voting by proxy shall not be allowed unless process set forth in (ii) takes place.
(i) A majority of the voting members is defined as a two-thirds (2/3) majority for all committees.
(ii) Voting by proxy can be allowed only by a unanimous decision by the EMUB and must be noted in the meeting minutes per Article VI(b)
(b) Any substantive action voted upon by the EMUB in one election year may not be overridden in the next year except by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the new EMUB.
(c) Any conflicts of interest must be disclosed to the EMUB before the vote takes place and the other members on the EMUB shall determine if the conflict of interest prohibits that member from voting. The conflict of interest must also be disclosed following the regulations in Article VI(a)
(i) A conflict of interest is as stated: A situation in which a person is in a position to derive personal benefit from actions or decisions made in their official capacity or via the vote taking place.
(ii) If a conflict of interest is deemed present then that member of the EMUB may be asked to abstain from the vote by the Chair, or a motion may be made by any member of the EMUB to require the member with the conflict of interest to abstain. That vote for mandatory abstention must pass with a two-thirds majority excluding the member with the conflict of interest from that vote.
Section 3.08 Officers of the EMUB
(a) Chair: The EMUB, by the end of the second week of Fall Term, shall elect a chair from the student membership of the EMUB. The Chair shall serve for one year and may be reelected. The chair of the EMUB shall:
(i) Preside at all meetings of the EMUB; which will be announced as set forth in Section 3.06(a) of this document.
(ii) Prepare and distribute agendas to all EMUB members at least 24 hours before each scheduled meeting with the information outlines in Article VI(b). These agendas shall consist of items suggested to the Chair from University students, community members, EMUB members, and the Director and their staff.
(iii) Be responsible in seeing that the business of the EMUB is carried out.
(iv) Represent the EMUB to the wider campus community including serving as the EMUB representative to ASPAC, (Associated Students Presidential Advisory Council).
(v) Hold two additional office hours, reference Section 3.09(d) for the base number of office hours.
(vi) Be responsible for ensuring all members have had the required training as per Section 8.03(a).
(vii) Meet regularly with the EMU Director.
(b) Vice Chair: The EMUB, by the end of the second week of Fall Term, shall elect a vice chair from the student membership of the EMUB, to assist the Chair, serve in the absence of the Chair, and conduct such other business as requested by the Chair. The Vice Chair of the EMUB shall:
(i) Serve as EMUB Ombudsperson.
(ii) Maintain a working relationship with a specified staff member of the Oregon Daily Emerald and any other campus media as might be required.
(iii) Manage and coordinate all promotional materials concerning EMUB events as requested.
(iv) Submit an overview of the EMUB for publication in the ASUO Programs Guide and ASUO Election packet.
(v) Maintain a record of unexcused absences from EMUB or Committee meetings. Notify EMUB Chair of unexcused absences.
(vi) Monitor office hours. Compile EMUB office hours each week of the academic term. Notify office hours to EMUB Listserv, ASUO Executive and OrgSync. Notify EMUB Chair of delinquent office hours.
(vii) Bring non-fulfillment of duty charges to the EMUB pursuant to this Governance Document and ASUO Constitution 14.3.
(viii) Hold one additional office hour, reference Section 3.09(d) for the base number of office hours.
(ix) Sit as chair to the EMUB personnel committee.
Section 3.09 Duties of EMUB Members
(a) Must attend full EMUB meetings.
(b) Must serve on either the Budget or House Committee.
(c) Must attend committee meetings of which individual is a member.
(d) Student members of the EMUB are required to hold at least three office hours a week.
(i) Hours are required to be in the ASUO office or EMUB office.
(ii) Hours must be completed during the hours of 9am-5pm Monday thru Friday week 1 through week 9 (excluding university recognized holidays).
(e) EMUB Finance Senators must hold their office hours in addition to those as necessitated by ASUO Senate Rules. All members must post office hours and locations on OrgSync.
(f) Attend EMUB orientation and training sessions.
(i) Reference 8.03(a) for policy regarding absences.
Section 3.10 Duties of Ex-Officio Members
(a) Must attend full EMUB meetings
(b) Serve as advisors to the EMUB
Section 3.11 Absences from Meetings Related to Academic Schedule
(a) Student EMUB members shall be allowed to absent from a single term per year of full EMUB meetings if their classes conflict.
(i) Student EMUB members must submit an official class schedule from duckweb to the EMUB chair, and EMUB ombudsperson showing the conflict.
(b) Student EMUB members that are absent are required to read the meeting minutes and agendas before the meeting and share their information with another member of their choosing.
(c) Student EMUB members must also meet with the EMUB/Committee chair or EMUB/Committee vice chair to get caught up on the missed material.
(d) Members that are absent must complete 2 additional office hours
Section 3.12 Summer EMUB
Members of the EMUB who are on campus during the summer may conduct the business of the EMUB during the summer.
(a) A review and approval of the minutes of summer meetings and ratification of any substantive decisions will take place at the EMUB’s first Fall term meeting unless at least eight (8) members were present at a summer meeting and at least eight (8) voted in support of a motion.
(b) A Summer EMUB Chair shall be elected at the EMUB’s June meeting.
(c) Permanent committees may be suspended only for the purpose of Summer EMUB. This must be voted on for each of the permanent committees individually and pass by a two- thirds (2/3) vote.
(d) The Summer EMUB is optional and will exist if there are enough members to meet quorum as per Section 3.07.
Article IV. Director of the EMU
Section 4.01 General Duties
The EMU Director (hereinafter Director) shall uphold the mission of the EMU, administer the facilities, business operations, personnel, and programs of the EMU consistent with respective State, Federal and University of Oregon Policy Statements.
Section 4.02 Coordination of Staff Efforts toward Goals
The Director shall guide and coordinate student and staff effort to effectively realize the goals of the EMU in relationship to the total educational enterprise of the University.
Section 4.03 Service in other Capacities
The Director shall serve in other administrative capacities as may be assigned by the Vice President for Student Life or the President of the University.
Section 4.04 Implementation of Policies and Plans
The Director and their staff shall implement policy and long-range plans established by the EMUB in compliance with the ASUO GTN, State, and Federal Law.
Section 4.05 Administrative Responsibility and Evaluation
(a) The Director shall be administratively responsible to the Vice President of Student Life.
(b) Yearly evaluations of Director's performance shall be made by the Vice President of Student Life
(c) The EMUB may directly contact the Vice President of Student Life regarding the Director’s performance.
Section 4.06 Appeal by Director
The Director may appeal any policy decision of the EMUB to the President of the University or their designee.
Section 4.07 Director’s Report
(a) At each meeting of the full EMUB, the Director shall report on the following items:
(i) Financial condition of the EMU.
(ii) Anticipated problems in the Department.
(iii) Significant management actions taken since last meeting.
(iv) Items which require EMUB action.
(v) Expenditures from all EMU reserves.
(b) At the EMUB’s first Fall term meeting, the Director’s report shall include an update on the year-end balance from the previous fiscal year (also known as the “period 14” report), outlining the year-end balances of each department.
(i) Reference Article VI for regulations regarding the inclusion of this information within meeting minutes and agendas.
Section 4.08 Vacancy in Director’s Position
In the event of a vacancy in the position of Director, the EMUB will be represented on the search committee created by the University. The full EMUB will be invited to interview all final candidates and provide the search committee information as requested.
Article V. Committees
Section 5.01 Permanent Committees
There shall be three permanent committees, the House Committee (Section 5.03(a)) the Budget Committee (Section 5.03(b)),and the Personnel Committee (Section 5.03(c))
(a) Regulations
(i) No EMUB member may serve on more than one permanent committee, with the exception of the chair
(ii) Each permanent committee shall meet at a regular time, at least once per month, or at the discretion of the committee.
(iii) The personnel committee is exempt from Section 5.01(a)-i and Section 5.01(a)-ii.
(b) Special committees may be established and governed by the rules and regulations set forth in Section 5.02
Section 5.02 Special Committees
Special committees may be designed to deal with special issues arising in the EMU. The committees will be designed to research problems and make recommendations to the EMUB for future long-range and planning goals.
(a) Formation
(i) Special committees can be formed by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the EMUB
1) The membership of special committees is nominated and voted by the EMUB by a majority vote.
(ii) The purpose of the special committee must be distinctly different from that of any other committee or subcommittee that already exists within the EMUB or the ASUO.
(iii) The special committee is bound by the rules and regulations within these bylaws
(b) Regulations
(i) Special committees shall not last longer than the ending of each year, lasting only as long as the end of spring term, or summer if a summer EMUB exists.
1) Except when put to a vote by two-thirds (2/3) majority, however an end date must be set at the time of the motion.
2) Each subsequent time that the special committees end date is revised it must pass with a two-thirds (2/3) vote.
Section 5.03 Committees
The goal of these committees is to facilitate and recommend long range plans and policy to the full EMUB and the EMU Administrative Staff. Membership should be split evenly between the two committees with the correctly appointed members on the correct committees, and reallocation of members shall be split between the two committees based on workload.
(a) House Committee
(i) Purpose: The House Committee is responsible for developing, on its own initiative and upon the request of the Director, recommendations in the development, maintenance, upkeep, utilization, and assignment of spaces in the EMU. The House Committee has the specific responsibility of reviewing student organization office assignments and making adjustments in those assignments when necessary. The committee gathers information about new or changing conditions at the University, identifies future trends in both retail and programs, researches changing student demographics, and assesses student needs and interest.
(ii) Membership: The advisor of the House Committee shall serve as an ex-officio, non- voting member of the House Committee. Appropriate staff can be asked to be a member of the EMUB as an ex-officio member. The Director will nominate staff for appointment by a majority vote of the EMUB. The following shall be considered in the composition of the committee:
1) The majority of the Committee shall be students.
2) The majority of the Committee shall be EMUB members.
3) The Committee shall involve both programs and operations staff.
(iii) House committee must publish policies on OrgSync and other relevant locations that dictate their processes for EMU Space Allocation and Revocation and all other pertinent areas.
(iv) House Committee Chair: By the end of the second week of Fall Term, the full EMUB shall elect the House Committee Chair from the student membership of the EMUB. The Chair of the House Committee:
1) Shall preside at all meetings of House Committee; which will be announced as set forth in Section 3.06 of this document.
2) Shall prepare and distribute agendas or, at a minimum, notify all members ahead of time of the issues to be discussed by the Committee.
3) Shall be responsible for seeing that minutes of each Committee meeting are prepared for distribution to the full EMUB.
4) May be a member of Search Committees created to fill non-classified positions on EMU staff.
5) Shall hold one additional office hour.
6) Meet with the advisor to the House Committee regularly.
7) Shall sit on the EMU policy committee.
(b) Budget Committee
(i) Purpose: The Budget Committee assists the Director and their staff in the development of the budget for the EMU, including priorities for funding. The Budget Committee shall be involved in the initial goal setting and review of the Budget and shall recommend the budget to the full EMUB for action prior to submission to the Student Senate. The Budget Committee may advise the managers of the retail services as to the type and variety of services, pricing, and method of operation and goals. The membership shall include the three Finance Senators, the member appointed by the ASUO Executive, and two at-large members of the EMUB. The advisor of the Budget Committee shall serve as an ex-officio, non-voting member of the Budget Committee.
(ii) Policies regarding Surplus Requests
1) All EMU Program and Departments must receive approval from the EMUB to make a surplus fund request to the Student Senate.
2) When submitting a surplus request to the student senate, all EMU Programs must submit a copy of the surplus request to the EMUB within 24 hours of submitting said surplus request to Senate
a) Should said EMU Program fail to submit said surplus request within the required 24 hours, that surplus request shall be considered automatically denied by the EMUB, and a will be noted in the meeting minutes as per Article VI(b)
b) The EMUB may overturn such an automatic denial by way of a simple majority.
c) The EMUB may deny an EMU Program surplus fund request by way of a simple majority vote at any time before the respective request is to be presented to the ASUO Student Senate.
d) If a Special Meeting is called for the purposes of such a vote, rules outlined in 3.06(c) apply.
(iii) Budget Committee Chair: By the second week of Fall Term, the full EMUB shall elect the Budget Committee Chair from the student membership of the EMUB. The Chair of the Budget Committee:
1) Shall preside at all meetings of Budget Committee, which will be announced as set forth in Section 3.06 of this document.
2) Shall prepare and distribute agendas and/or schedule of hearings or, at a minimum, notify all members ahead of time of the issues to be discussed by the Committee.
3) Shall be responsible for seeing that minutes of each Committee meeting are prepared for distribution to the full EMUB.
4) May be a member of Search Committees created to fill non-classified positions on EMU staff.
5) Shall hold one additional office hour.
6) Shall meet with the advisor to the Budget Committee regularly.
(c) Personnel Committee
(i) The personnel committee will be comprised of EMUB Vice Chair, EMU Director, and at least one member from each other permanent committee.
(ii) The EMUB Vice Chair shall be the chair of the Personnel Committee with the EMU Director as the advisor to the committee.
(iii) The personnel committee in conjunction with the ex-officio advisors shall be responsible for conducting performance reviews on all members of the EMUB once per term.
1) All members of the committee shall be excluded from and preceding regarding their own performance.
2) Recommend grievances for non-fulfillment of duties to EMU Ombudsperson by a two-thirds (2/3) majority vote of its committee members and shall follow the GTN Guidelines for grievances.
(iv) The personnel committee shall be responsible creating its own procedures consistent with the ASUO GTN.
1) The procedures upon completion will be presented to the full EMUB upon the next meeting to ensure that all members are aware of the procedure.
(d) Search Committees
(i) The EMUB and the EMU Director (or Vice President of Student Life for the EMU Director search process) will be involved in establishing the composition and membership for search committees to fill all non-classified positions in the EMU staff. Search committees for these positions must always include a variety of interested parties, including but not limited to EMUB members, EMU staff, affected students and related university entities.
1) The selection process for the Search Committee shall follow all currently adopted Affirmative Action guidelines.
2) The EMU Director will appoint a chair who will assist in the selection of the rest of the search committee. The Vice President for Student Life will appoint a chair for EMU Director search processes.
3) The EMU will provide whatever clerical assistance needed to assist the committee in its function.
4) The search committee shall give the designated appointing authority requested information.
(ii) Additional Guidelines for Search Committees created to oversee the search process for EMU Unit Heads and EMU Director
1) Search committees for unit coordinators and the Director of the EMU must have two student members of the EMUB named to search committees.
2) Campus interviews for unit coordinators must provide the opportunity for student involvement in that specific area (either the unit’s student employees or student advisory group) to meet each candidate in a dedicated interview. These groups shall provide a prioritized list of candidates to the appropriate naming authority.
3) Searches for the Director require the EMUB be provided the opportunity to have a dedicated interview with each candidate invited for a campus interview. This group shall provide a prioritized list of candidates to the appropriate naming authority.
Article VI. Minutes and Agendas
Minutes shall be kept of all EMUB meetings. Official copies shall be filed on OrgSync.
Section 6.01 Minutes
(a) Regulations:
(i) If there are conflicts of interest as defined in 3.07(c)-i, that must be noted in the official meeting minutes to ensure transparency of process. The recorded conflict of interest must contain the name of the member and the conflict that exists.
(b) Minutes shall contain the following:
(i) All EMUB Members and Community Members in attendance
(ii) All motions, proposals, resolutions, order, and measures proposed along with their descriptions as per Article VII.
(iii) The result of all votes
(iv) The substance of any discussion on any matter
(v) A reference to any document discussed at the meeting
(vi) The EMU Directors report as per Section 4.07(a)
Section 6.02 Agendas
(a) Regulations:
(i) Any member of the EMUB shall be allowed to add items to the agenda
(ii) Agenda items should be sent to the EMUB chair at least 48 hours before the scheduled meeting time
1) If the agenda items do not pertain to the full EMUB send the agenda items to the chair of the committee that it pertains to directly.
(iii) As per Section 3.08(a)(ii), EMUB chair will distribute agendas
(b) EMUB agendas shall contain the following:
(i) Members known to be absent based on Section 3.06(b)
(ii) All proposed discussions, topics, and votes.
(iii) The amount of time that is allocated to each of the items listed in 6.02(a)-ii.
(iv) Any important documents or information that pertains to items listed in 6.02(a)-ii.
Article VII. Parliamentary Policy
Section 7.01 Unless otherwise set forth in these rules, the EMUB, and the EMUB committees and subcommittees shall follow Robert’s Rules of Order during all meetings. The presiding chair of the committees shall rule on all questions of parliamentary procedure.
(a) The EMUB may suspend all or parts of Robert’s Rules of Order by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of all members. The vote must take place at the beginning of each meeting and will remain until the ending of that current meeting.
Article VIII. Amendments
Section 8.01 This document should be reviewed at the end of each academic year. Section 8.02 This Governance Document may be amended by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the voting membership of the EMUB and approved via Con Court.
Section 8.03 This document shall be reviewed in a training that takes place at the beginning of the year.
(a) Any members that are not able to be present or were not appointed at the time of the mandatory trainings shall go through a personal training with the EMUB chair or qualified appointee.
Section 8.04 All position titles for EMU faculty are the stated position or an equivalent position for the purposes of this document. Changes shall be made to the Bylaws during the normal review process.
Section 8.05 Required Training:
(a) The EMUB will be responsible for organizing bylaw competency training at the beginning of the academic year. Reference Section 8.03.
(b) The EMUB will be responsible for organizing cultural competency trainings (to address but not be limited to homophobia, racism, sexism, ableism, classism, ageism) once per term for the EMUB.
Amendment History: Approved in Fall 1976. Amended Spring 1995.
Amended Spring 1996.
Amended Spring 1997.
Amended Spring 1998.
Amended Spring 1999. This document has been forwarded to the Constitution Court and Vice President for Administration for their approval.
Amended Winter 2004.
Accepted by Constitution Court 4/9/04. Amended Spring 2004.
Amended Spring 2008.
Amended Spring 2009.
Amended Spring 2016.
Amended Fall 2017.
Amended Fall 2018.