WAC STUDENT COMMITTEE (WACSC) STATUTES

(adopted at WAC-6)

 

STATUTE 1: CHAIR

The WACSC will have one (1) Chair who is the leader of the committee. The Chair shall be nominated either by him/herself or by (an)other member(s) from current WACSC members. If two (2) or more persons are nominated for the Chair, the decision shall be made by a majority vote of current WAC student members. The Chair shall serve for a term of two (2) years and shall be eligible to serve for more than one period of office but only if re-elected by WACSC members.

 

The Chair is responsible for the following duties:

- To lead and moderate WACSC discussions both over e-mail and in person at meetings of the WACSC;

- To oversee and advise sub-committees;

- To encourage the participation of WACSC members in WACSC projects and discussions;

- To report WACSC activities to the Executive Committee on a regular basis;

- To contact WAC students about important notices or events pertaining to student involvement in WAC,

- To uphold the stated goals of the WACSC as listed in the Mission Statement.

 

STATUTE 2: VICE-CHAIR

The WACSC will have one (1) Vice-Chair who will take over the duties of the Chair in the case of the Chair's absence or inability to proceed with her/his duties. The Vice-Chair shall be nominated either by him/herself or by (an)other member(s) from current WACSC members after the chair has been nominated and selected. If two (2) or more persons are nominated for the Vice-Chair, the decision shall be made by a majority vote of current WAC student members. The Vice-Chair shall serve for a term of two (2) years and shall be eligible to serve for more than one period of office but only if re-elected by WACSC members.

 

The Vice-Chair's responsibility is:

- To assist the Chair in upholding the WACSC's missions and overseeing its communication and course of work,

- To act on behalf of the chair in the case of absence, especially for meetings and congresses.

 

STATUTE 3: MEMBERS

The WACSC will ideally have ten (10) to twelve (12) members. The members shall be selected from WAC student members, who are either self-nominated or nominated by a member of the WACSC, the WAC Executive or the WAC Council, and elected by a majority vote amongst current WACSC members.

 

Members should be elected by current WACSC members by an open vote. The selection should consider each candidatefs: 1) readiness to commit him/herself to WACSC discussions and activities, as well as WAC activities in general, 2) academic performance, and 3) communication skills. The nominated candidates should supply a CV, and a statement explaining why he/she would like to serve the WACSC, and a reference email from his/her academic advisor.

 

In the selection of new members, the following types of balance in the WACSC membership shall be considered: regional representation, economic situation, gender, graduate/undergraduate students, and indigenous representation. The members shall serve for a term of two (2) years and shall be eligible to serve for more than one period of office but only if re-elected by WACSC members.

 

The responsibility of members is:

- To participate in all WACSC discussions and activities;

- To vote for the election of the Chair, the Vice-chair and members of WACSC,

- To participate in WAC congresses and meetings wherever possible

 

The Chair and the Vice-Chair together retain the right to request a member to resign from the WACSC on one of the following conditions:

 

1)      The member concerned fails to respond to an email from the Chair or the Vice-Chair asking for his/her individual reply regarding WACSC discussions and activities for a period more than 1 month without a reason deemed valid by the majority of current WACSC members (without advance notice of absence from discussions)

2)      The member concerned fails to renew his/her WAC membership for a period more than 1 month without a reason deemed valid by the Chair.

 

In case of disagreement between the Chair and the Vice-Chair, the decision shall be made by a majority vote of current WACSC members. This request for resignation shall be made only after the member concerned fails to adequately respond to reminders sent by the Chair and/or Vice-Chair. Either the Chair or the Vice-Chair may also be requested to resign if a majority vote amongst current WACSC members decides resignation is necessary.

 

STATUTE 4: VOTING

WACSC decisions requiring a vote (including the election of members, Vice-Chair, and Chair) will be conducting according to the following rules:

1)      A majority vote will constitute a winning decision.

2)      A majority will be defined as a number of voting members greater than half of the total members in the WACSC.

3)      If certain members abstain from an official vote for 2 weeks from the first announcement, their person will not be counted toward the total number of WACSC members in the process of reaching a majority.

4)      Any WACSC member can call for a vote on an issue.

5)      Votes will be made in public (not anonymously in private) either through e-mail communication to the WACSC or in personal meetings at Congresses.

 

STATUTE 5: MEETINGS

The WACSC shall meet at every WAC Congress to discuss current and future business and discuss any potential changes to the WACSC Statutes. Between Congress meetings, business for the WACSC shall be conducted over e-mail or during Inter-Congresses if a majority of members of the WACSC are present.

 

STATUTE 6: STATUTE CHANGES

Changes to the WACSC Statutes must be discussed with WAC student members either in person at a Congress or over e-mail. Changes to the Statutes shall be made official by a majority vote amongst current WACSC members.

 

 

[ANNEX: WACSC list of suggestions]

Balance of the WACSC membership:

When Possible,

- No more than 2 WACSC members should represent the same region as defined by the WAC;

- Either men or women should not account for more than 70 percent of the WACSC membership;

- Either graduate or undergraduate students should not account for more than 70 percent of the WACSC membership,

- There should be at least 2 WACSC members representing indigenous groups.

 

Mix of new and old members

It would be desirable to have new members with old members together and not leave the new ones alone (at least during one year).

 

Liaison of each member with other WAC standing committees

Each member should liaise with a different WAC standing committee.