Update
Because the ADSA Board is proposed to grow from 18 to 19 members and has come close to losing quorum this past year, on Feb 27 the Board endorsed changing the threshold for quorum from a two-thirds majority (normally 12/18) to a simple majority (normally 10/19). The proposed language for 4.8 is now “quorum will be achieved with the attendance of a majority of the sitting members of the ADSA Board at any time.” The documents and summary below have been updated with the new language. Note also that the responsibilities of the new positions may change as the new graduate centre comes into being, which is why for maximum flexibility the titles of the new positions are short and somewhat vague.
Documents
Current ADSA Constitution (PDF)
ADSA Constitution with Proposed Changes to Section 4 (PDF)
ADSA Constitution Section 4 – Current and Proposed Language Side by Side (PDF)
Summary of Proposed Amendments
4.2 Specifies a maximum number of voting members (19).
4.2.1 Replaces the current Vice-President with three new Executives: a Vice-President Academic who would sit on the TST Graduate Council like our current Advanced Degree Council representatives; a Vice-President Conferences who would sit on the new TST Conferences and Lectures Committee and lead in planning our annual conference; and a Vice-President External who would liaison with basic degree student associations, affiliated schools, and the University of Toronto student unions. Also changes the Administrator to be a Secretary like other bodies.
4.2.2 Removes the three Advanced Degree Council (ADC) representatives, clarifies that ADSA will still elect representatives from each department even if there are no longer departmental committees, and creates a new position for a dedicated Master of Arts or Master of Theology representative while their programs are being revised.
4.2.3 Deletes an extra “from.”
4.2.4 Creates a new position to elect the representative on the TST Library Committee.
4.3 Creates a new Vice-President Internal, who will also sit on the Graduate Council like our current ADC representatives but be appointed to the Executive each year like the current “Fifth Executive.”
4.3.1 Removes the Communications Officer.
4.4 Limits the maximum time in a position to two years, to encourage new people to join the Board.
4.5 Replaces “outlined in detail” with “defined.”
4.5/4.6 Clarifies that elected Board members must be appointed to fill vacant executive positions.
4.7 Clarifies that only students from the college, department, or program to be represented may be appointed to fill other vacancies, and only with the consent of the ADSA Board.
4.8 Clarifies that quorum needs only a simple majority of the Board, not two-thirds of the entire student body.
