Constitution

ARTICLE I.  NAME

The name of this organization shall be the Black Faculty and Staff Association (BFSA) at The Johns Hopkins University (JHU).

ARTICLE II.  PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVE

The mission of this organization is to be a visible and viable agency dedicated to promoting and enhancing identity, sense of community, professional welfare and development among Black faculty, staff and students of The Johns Hopkins University. Accordingly, this organization exists to:

  1. Serve as a unified and collective voice to represent the concerns of the Black community at The Johns Hopkins University,  including all campuses, to the executive offices of the university;
  2. Foster collaboration, communication, and engagement within the JHU Black community, and with those in the broader JHU community;
  3. Advocate for the employment of a more representative number of Black faculty and staff (in particular senior staff and senior administrators) at The Johns Hopkins University;
  4. Promote professional excellence, scholarship and cooperative research among Black faculty, staff and students;
  5. Provide resources and support to increase the utilization and realization of upward mobility opportunities for the Black JHU community;
  6. Urge the JHU to provide equal educational and careers opportunities for professional growth for all members of the Black community;
  7. Provide both leadership and supportive service on the administrative and academic levels to facilitate the delivery of efficient and effective service to all elements of the JHU;
  8. Provide social and educational opportunities to heighten cultural awareness, stimulate a sense of social responsibility, and improve outcomes within our broader university community.

Section 1. Election of Executive Board

Each officer of the Executive Board, except for the President, President Elect, and Past President, shall be elected every two years by a simple majority vote of the membership eligible to vote either online or who are present at an election meeting and are in financially good standing (at least 45 days). The President Elect shall be elected every year. Elections should be held in December.  Elections should be held at least 6 months prior to assuming office but if that is not possible, elections can be held at a time to be determined by the Executive Board following the process described in Article V.

Election of Officers.

The President, President Elect, and Past President will serve a term of one (1) year in each office. The President-Elect should have served on the Executive Board prior to running for office, and shall move to the office of President and the President shall move to the office of Past President when the President’s term has concluded.  Following the election, new officers will shadow and receive training until assumption of their duties on July 1.

Section 2. Terms of Office

All elected officers, except for the President, President Elect, and Past President, shall serve a term of two (2) years. The President, President Elect, and Past President will serve a term of one (1) year in each office. All Executive Board positions will be limited to two (2) consecutive terms in the same office. In the event there are no candidates identified for an office, with the majority vote of the existing Executive Board, an incumbent may stay in office until the next election or the Executive Board may make temporary appointments until the next election.

ARTICLE III. MEMBERSHIP

Membership is open to all faculty and staff employed at The Johns Hopkins University and Hopkins affiliates, regardless of religion, age, race or color, marital status, national origin, disability, or sexual orientation. Membership enrollment is one year from July 1 - June 30th, to align with the fiscal year.

SECTION 1. TYPES OF MEMBERSHIP

Membership in the Association is of two types: (1) active membership and (2) associate membership.

SECTION 1.1. ACTIVE MEMBERSHIP

  1. Active membership shall be limited to persons who are employed by The Johns Hopkins University.  Specifically, member campuses are Homewood, East Baltimore, and the Applied Physics Laboratory.  Members from Bayview, the Columbia, Downtown, and Montgomery County centers are encouraged to join their nearest campus.
  2. Active members in good standing, as defined in Section 1.1 Number 1, shall be entitled to one vote in any Association business presented to the membership for a vote. No voting by proxy or absentee ballot will be permitted for any Association business.
  3. Active members in good standing, as defined in Section 1.1 Number 1, are eligible to hold office in the Association, in accordance with Section 1, Election of the Executive Board.

SECTION 1.2. ASSOCIATE MEMBERSHIP

  1. Associate membership shall be open to any Johns Hopkins University student, employees of Johns Hopkins Hospital or Johns Hopkins University affiliates, and invited persons not currently employed by The Johns Hopkins University.
  2. Associate members, in good standing as defined in Section 4, can attend regular meetings and voice opinions, but may not hold office or vote.

SECTION 2. DUES

Members of the Association are considered to be in good standing so long as payment of annual membership dues, collected electronically  through an online payment service, is current. Membership is from July 1 - June 30th.

ARTICLE IV.  OFFICERS OF THE ASSOCIATION

SECTION 1. OFFICER

The Officers of the Association shall be Past President, President, President-Elect, Caucus Chairs, Caucus Representatives, Recording Secretary, Membership Coordinator, Treasurer, Parliamentarian, Faculty Representative and Communication Director.

  1. All Officers of the Association must be in good standing before and during the time of their nomination and throughout their tenure in office.
  2. All Officers of the Association shall be nominated by the Election Committee from among the active membership.
  3. The Officers of the Association shall be elected by majority vote of all active members in good standing.

SECTION 2. THE EXECUTIVE BOARD

The Executive Board shall be composed of elected officers enumerated in Article IV Section 1.  Note, there are four Caucus Chairs, one representative for each campus (Carey, Homewood, East Baltimore and Applied Physics Lab).  Each Caucus Chair may be assisted by two elected Caucus Representatives.

  1. The Executive Board shall function to carry out the administrative responsibility of the Association. The Board will work in the conceptual and strategic phase of the Association to assist in developing annual goals and objectives. The Board shall serve to assist in developing policy statements. The Board must give two-thirds (2/3) approval on each such statement to be issued on the part of the Association.
  2. In addition to representing their member campuses, Caucus Chairs and Representatives will facilitate and preside over local campus Association meetings while representing and promoting the Association on their respective campuses.

SECTION 3. DUTIES OF OFFICERS

  1. The President: The President shall preside at the General Body meetings of the Association and shall be chairperson of and preside at meetings of the Executive Board. The President shall perform duties customary to that office and such additional duties as necessary to assure progress of the Association. The duties of the President are as follows:
    1. Enforce and execute policy set by the Association and shall be ultimately responsible for executing decisions of the Executive Board and General Body;
    2. Serve as spokesperson of the Association;
    3. Appoint all necessary committee chairpersons;
    4. Appoint ad hoc committees to handle special concerns and implement programs as directed by the Executive Board;
    5. Delegate the responsibilities to each standing committee;
    6. Administer the business of the Association between regular Executive Board meetings;
    7. Designate Board members as liaisons to each ad hoc and standing committee as deemed appropriate;
    8. Attend conferences and meetings of other associations at the expense of the Association with the approval of the Executive Board;
    9. Appoint individuals to the Executive Board when a vacancy occurs;
    10. Sign all contracts with the approval of the Executive Board.
  2. The President-Elect: The President-Elect shall perform the duties of the President in his/her absence or incapacity of the President. The President-Elect will compile monthly reports for caucuses and all standing committees. As such, he/she will oversee and supervise the programs as outlined in the current BFSA Operations manual.
  3. The Past President: At the conclusion of his/her term, the President shall remain on the Executive Board as the Past President. As such, the Past President’s role is to serve as an advisor to the President and perform appropriate duties assigned. The Past President shall support the President-Elect as in the execution of the programs as outlined in the current BFSA Operations manual.
  4. The Recording Secretary: The Recording Secretary shall serve as the official designated Secretary of the Association. The duties of the Recording Secretary are as follows:
    1. Maintain accurate records and minutes of all General Assembly meetings and Executive Board meetings;
    2. Receive and mail the agenda to all members before association meetings.
  5. The Membership Coordinator: The Membership Coordinator shall serve as the official source of communications of the Association. The duties of the Membership Coordinator are as follows:
    1. Document and maintain a current listing of active and associate members;
    2. Contact members when instructed to do so by the President or the Executive Board;
    3. Work with Caucus Chairs and Representatives to promote faculty and staff participation in the Association across campuses.
  6. The Treasurer: The Treasurer shall work with the SAP administrator to execute the duties essential to the disbursement of funds and to the maintenance of accurate and up-to-date fiscal records. The duties of the Treasurer are as follows:
    1. Assume fiscal responsibility in tracking funds received via the organization’s PayPal account and follow up accordingly to resolve any issues.
    2. Draft and send a written report concerning the Association’s financial status to the Executive Board on a quarterly basis. The Treasurer shall also make available a Board-approved quarterly report to the General Body.
    3. Be prepared to give an accurate account of the receipt and management of the Organization’s funds to JHU.
    4. Request the SAP administrator to disburse funds for the payment of debts incurred by the association in the course of its operation.
  7. The Parliamentarian: The Parliamentarian shall define all rules of order governing the process by which the business of the Association is to be conducted. The Parliamentarian shall:
    1. Advise the President on all questions of conflict relating to Robert Rules of Order.
    2. Be responsible for documenting and updating a procedures manual for the organization.
    3. In the absence of the Parliamentarian, the said authority shall reside with the President.
  8. The Events Director will be responsible for keeping track of all BFSA sponsored events, noting all caucus events and leading main BFSA Events (Juneteenth, Meeting with the President, Listening Sessions, End of the Year Celebration, and Meet and Greet.)
  9. The Chaplain will provide spiritual and emotional support for BFSA members.
    1. Communicating Bereavement announcements.
    2. Liaison with the interfaith community and student groups.
    3. Provide inspirational programming.
  10. Caucus Chairs: The Caucus Chairs represent the members on each of four campuses – Carey, Homewood, East Baltimore and APL. Caucus Chairs:
    1.  Conduct the monthly meetings.
    2. Promote the Association on their respective campuses.
  11. Caucus Representatives: There can be up to two Caucus Representatives assisting the Caucus Chair. Caucus Representatives:
    1. Schedule the meetings.
    2. Order food and other tasks as needed to ensure meetings run smoothly.
    3. Take attendance.
    4. Conduct meetings in the absence of the Caucus Chairs.
  12. Faculty Representatives:
    1. Brings issues related to Faculty to the attention of the E-Board
    2. Shares with faculty discussions and issues arising
    3. Strengthens relations between faculty, staff and student
    4. Coordinate and chair a round table meeting with faculty on behalf on the BFSA annually.

ARTICLE V. ELECTION OF OFFICERS

SECTION 1. NOMINATION

The nomination process shall be the responsibility of the Election Committee. The Election Committee shall be appointed three months prior to the election and charged to prepare a slate of nominees for each office to be voted on during the election proceeding.

SECTION 2. ELECTION

The biennial election proceeding shall be conducted by the chairperson of the Election Committee and will be conducted via electronic ballot. If desired, a biennial election meeting shall be held at a time to be determined by the Executive Board.

SECTION 3. VOTING

  1. The election of officers shall be conducted via electronic ballot and determined by majority vote.
  2. Each financially current member (in good standing at least 45 days) is entitled to one vote.
  3. Voting will occur over a five day period to insure that every active member can participate as there is no voting by proxy or absentee ballot.
  4. Should the University encounter a system failure during the voting period lasting more than 5 days, paper ballots, due on a date to be specified by the Election Committee, will be considered in the vote.
  5. The Election Committee will announce the results of the election via email and on the Organization’s website no later than a week after the election.

ARTICLE VI.  MEETINGS

SECTION 1. GENERAL BODY MEETING

  1. A General Body meeting is a meeting for all active and associate members in good standing.
  2. A General Body meeting requires a quorum, of no less than 15% of the active membership, and at least three members of the Executive Board to be present, before proceedings may begin.
  3. The meeting requires a prior notice and tentative agenda to be circulated to the membership not less than five working days prior to the date of the meeting.
  4. General Body meetings will be held annually, but may be called at any time by the President to address pertinent campus and Association issues, including those listed in Articles IX and X.

SECTION 2. CAUCUS MEETINGS

Caucus Meetings shall take place on the respective campuses of Caucus Chairs and Caucus Representatives. These meetings will focus on professional growth activities and pertinent topics throughout the academic year.

ARTICLE VII. RULES OF ORDER

 SECTION 1. ROBERT RULES OF ORDER

This text (by Sarah Corwin Robert, et al., 1970: Scott-Foresman, Illinois) shall be the parliamentary authority for all proceedings of the Association unless otherwise specified in the Constitution.

ARTICLE VIII. COMMITTEES

SECTION 1. STANDING COMMITTEES

  1. Standing Committees of the Association shall be determined by the Executive Board.  Current standing committees include:  Communications Committee, Professional Development, Community Outreach, Student Affairs and Indispensable Role of Blacks Project. Committees should be documented in the BFSA Operations Manual.
  2. The committees are tasked with ongoing responsibilities and shall meet as deemed necessary by the chairpersons.
  3. All committee chairs will report periodically to the Past-President on their progress with planned events and abide by the responsibilities outlined in the BFSA Operations manual.
  4.  Committee chairs will be invited to specific meetings of the Executive Board.
  5.  Committees should provide written and/or photographic documentation of their events.

Section 2. COMMITTEE RESPONSIBILITIES

2.1 COMMUNICATIONS COMMITTEE

  1. Serve as liaison to campuses and other agencies under the direction of the Communication Director.
  2. Facilitate the publication and distribution of all BFSA documents;
  3. Supervise the distribution of the Association information  and the publication of the association website.
  4. Coordinate social and political activities approved by the Executive Board.

2.2 PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE

  1. Collect and analyze all information that may assist the BFSA to make a positive impact on Hopkins policies and procedures, particularly those that affect the quality of life of faculty, staff and students.
  2. Expose the BFSA membership to pertinent work being done by faculty on campus in disciplines such as psychology, sociology, science, business, literature, political science, history, etc.;
  3. Expose the BFSA membership to pertinent work in the above stated disciplines from area universities and organizations.

2.3 COMMUNITY OUTREACH COMMITTEE

  1. Identify and determine community (JHU and Baltimore) needs;
  2. Identify interest of BFSA membership in supporting the community;
  3. Recruit members to serve in outreach endeavors;
  4. Recognize and reward volunteers (certificates, letters, plaques, etc.).

2.4 STUDENT AFFAIRS COMMITTEE

  1. Serve as liaison to student groups, as requested;
  2. Research opportunities for and implement joint BFSA and student activities;
  3. Build connections with BSU and their student advisor.

2.5 Indispensable Role of Blacks Project

  1. Develop the project's annual budget in conjunction with the Office of the President and Office of Diversity and Inclusion.
  2. Develop policies and procedures to meet the goals of the project.
  3. Handle the nomination process, identify eligible individuals and plan the annual induction ceremony.
  4. A member of the Indispensable Role of Blacks Project will also participate in regular BFSA executive board meetings.

2.6 UNIVERSITY ENGAGMENT COMMITTEE

  1. The University Engagement Committee will be responsible for addressingiues surrounding HR, equity, diversity, and inclusion.
  2. The committee chair will be appointed by the BFSA President.

SECTION 3. AD-HOC COMMITTEES

  1. The Ad-Hoc Committees shall include the Election Committee, Access and Equity Committee, Juneteenth and others to be established by the President as deemed necessary.  Ad-Hoc Committees will be described in the BFSA Operations Manual.
    1. The Election Committee shall be appointed three months prior to the election and charged to prepare a slate of nominees for each office to be voted on at the election meeting.
    2. The Access and Equity Committee will identify and review issues of concern and review/make recommendations on policies and actions that impact recruitment and retention of faculty and staff.
    3. Juneteenth Committee will handle the logistics of the annual celebration.
  2. The President shall appoint the chairpersons and in consultation with the chairperson appoint members of Ad-Hoc Committees.
  3. The Committee Chairs will report to the Executive Board.

ARTICLE IX. IMPEACHMENT

SECTION 1. GROUNDS

Any Officer who commits malfeasance in office or other acts that may impugn the integrity of the Association shall be removed from office immediately.

SECTION 2. PROCEDURE

  1. A petition may be presented from the membership of the General Body to the Executive Board for action. The petition must have valid signatures (virtually or in –writing) from at least 25% of the active members with a statement of grounds for removal.
  2.  Any member may initiate a call for removal by issuing a written statement of the charges against the accused Officer to the Executive Board.

 SECTION 3. IMPEACHMENT

The Executive Board shall move to initiate impeachment proceedings upon a one-third (1/3) acceptance of the Executive Board.

SECTION 4. REMOVAL

  1. The Executive Board shall appoint an active member of the Association to investigate the Statement of Impeachment and forward findings to the Executive Board with recommendations.
  2. If the findings corroborate the Statement of Impeachment a special General Body meeting shall be called. The Statement of Impeachment will be presented in addition to the findings of the investigator. At this time the accused officer shall have the opportunity to refute the allegations.
  3. A secret ballot vote will be conducted to vote for any removal from office.
  4. The officer shall be removed only upon a two-thirds (2/3) affirmative vote of the General Body.
  5. Officers impeached cannot run for elective office.

ARTICLE X. CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENT

SECTION 1. INITIATION

  1. Proposals to amend this Constitution may be initiated by the Executive Board, Standing Committees and/or any individual active member(s) of the Association in good standing qualifying for membership under ARTICLE III, SECTION 1.1.  A unanimous vote by the Executive Board, including Past-Presidents who are still employed by the University, is needed to allow a proposal to proceed through the amendment process.
  2. The proposed amendment should be emailed to and received by the Recording Secretary at least 5 days before action can be expected.
  3. The Recording Secretary shall make the proposed amendment available for review by the General Body for at least 5 days before any vote can be taken. After this time, the proposed amendment will automatically become a part of the earliest business meeting or online voting for ratification.

SECTION 2. APPROVAL

Action on amendments to the Constitution requires a majority vote by the membership.

SECTION 3. IMPLEMENTATION

Amendments to this Constitution shall become effective upon ratification.

Last Revised 02/2021