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PORTLAND STATE UNIVERSITY American Association of
University Professors

EC Standing Rules

Executive Council Standing Rules

1. Conflict of Interest Code
2. Electronic Discussion and Voting
3. Authority to Give Final Approval to all Agreements
4. Confidentiality and Closed Meetings
 



1. Conflict of Interest Code

Adopted June 30, 2009 / Revised March 02, 2023

Executive Council members are obligated to always discharge their duties and act in the interests of the Association. An Executive Council member who stands to benefit from any issue before the council shall not participate in any decision-making process related to that issue.

  1. A member’s conflict of interest may be brought to the attention of the Executive Council in two ways:
    1. The member declares a conflict of interest and recuses themself from the decision-making process; or
    2. Another member raises the possibility of a conflict and requests a proceeding before the council.
  2. Conflict-of-interest proceedings:
    1. Conflict-of-Interest proceedings before the council shall be closed.
    2. The member with the possible conflict shall have an opportunity to make a statement about the matter, after which the member will be excused from the proceeding.
    3. The finding of a conflict of interest requires a majority vote of the remaining council.

Revisions:

March 2, 2023: Simplified language and removed additional steps about members with a conflict leaving and re-joining the proceeding.

 

2. Electronic Discussion and Voting

Adopted June 30, 2009 / Modified August 13, 2020 / Revised March 2, 2023

The business of the Association at times requires that the Executive Council make decisions when a physical meeting cannot be convened in a timely manner. The Executive Council shall use the following procedure to conduct business via email or any other suitable electronic means. If circumstances will prevent a member from receiving and responding to electronic communications for more than 7 days, they should notify the President/designee and the Secretary of their unavailability.

  1. Any Executive Council member may present an issue to the council for consideration via email if that issue is time-sensitive and cannot wait for the next scheduled meeting.
  2. The presentation of the issue may contain commentary, attachments, and links to web sites that the member considers necessary to convey the issue. The presentation should include a motion and a request that the motion be seconded.
  3. Should any two Executive Council members feel that a synchronous discussion is required, the motion will be tabled to the next Executive Council meeting or, if the President feels the matter is both time-sensitive and requires immediate resolution, the President may call a special session of the Council.
  4. The original presenter of the motion shall state the deadline by which the electronic review and vote shall be conducted; this timeframe cannot be less than 3 days.
  5. Robert’s Rules of Order will be observed to the extent possible during electronic deliberation.
  6. If a majority of the Executive Council has not voted by the deadline, the motion shall be tabled for lack of quorum.

Revisions:

March 2, 2023: Removed the word Email from title and replaced with Electronic. Used Electronic terminology throughout document as other means of voting and communication may exist. 

 

3. Authority to Give Final Approval to all Agreements

Adopted June 30, 2009 / Revised March 2, 2023

Any agreement with any party concluded on behalf of the Association shall only be effective with the approval of the Executive Council.

 

4. Confidentiality and Closed Meetings

Adopted September 21, 2015 / Revised March 2, 2023

Executive Council meetings are open to all members per the Association’s Constitution.

At times, however, there may be review, discussion, and/or decisions considered by the Executive Council that must be discussed in closed session. These include, but are not limited to, Association personnel matters and sensitive issues involving individual members of the bargaining unit.

Only Executive Council members and staff participate in a closed session, unless it concerns an Association personnel matter, in which case no staff shall participate. Deliberations held during closed sessions, including any documentation presented, are confidential and cannot be shared with anyone outside of those present during the meeting.

The agenda will note in advance, whenever feasible, that a closed session will be held.

Revisions:

March 2, 2023: Removed signature requirement acknowledging the practices above.