GPSC Internal Page

Per the GPSC Bylaws, GPSC Representatives are responsible for the following:

• Be familiar with expectations as outlined in the governing documents;
• Attend most GPSC General Council meetings. A representative is expected to miss no more than two (2) meetings of the council in each semester;
• Serve on internal committee(s) as established by the GPSC Executive Board;
• Serve on University committee(s) (external committee);
• Host at least one meeting per year with the students in the representative constituent unit;
• Serve as a GPSC Travel Grant judge at least once during the academic year;
• Submit one representative report per semester;
• Attend/Organize meeting(s) with the Representative’s College Dean once per semester;
• Inform their constituents about GPSC activities and events;
• Volunteer at the GPSC Orientation in August;
• Participate in at least two (2) GPSC events per academic year.

Attendance

Attendance at GSPC Meetings is mandatory. 

If you are unable to attend a meeting, please try to designate a proxy. It is important for each member to advocate on behalf of their constituents. Note that proxies count toward meeting quorum, but not for attendance. Representatives may proxy for at most 2 other representatives. Proxies and Absentee Ballots shall be sent to both the Assembly Chair and Secretary prior to the start of the meeting.

Representatives may also choose to participate via conference call, Zoom, or Skype, or other live means. Participation through these means may count toward attendance once per semester. Exceptions can be made for representatives located outside of Tucson.

Agenda Items

All members are expected to come fully-prepared to participate. This includes reviewing the agenda and any supplementary material provided. Agenda materials for the Academic Year 19-20 can be found here.

GPSC members are encouraged to submit discussion or approval topics to be added to the agenda. This is a way for representatives to bring topics up for discussion. All proposed agenda items should be sent to the Assembly Chair prior to the final meeting notice. Per Robert’s Rules, all proposed agenda items need to be seconded. Earlier submissions will allow other voting members more time to review the items.

In addition, all members of GPSC are encouraged to provide regular oral reports of their activities/efforts on behalf of GPSC or their constituents. This can include any committee/events you have attended or anything you were able to accomplish for your constituents. Please notify the Assembly Chair if you would like to give an oral report

Unless specified in the Governing Documents, General Council meetings operate based on Robert’s Rules ( www.robertsrules.com ). It is the Gold Standard for running an organized meeting.

General Rules:

• Don’t bring up technicalities for the sake of nitpicking
• Must enter Executive Session to talk about individuals or personnel
• The Assembly Chair has full authority over the meetings.
• Be Professional. Avoid directing comments at individual members.
• Keep discussions to the motion on the table. If you’re not sure, ask!

Motions:

• “I move …” “I second”
• Any voting members can make a motion
• Any voting members can propose amendments to the motion
• Resolve motions in order from most recent to oldest motion

Five Classes of Motions:

• Main Motions: Bring business before the assembly when no other motion is pending
• Secondary Motions: Affect the main motion being considered
  • Postpone indefinitely—to end consideration of the main motion for the balance of that session, without a direct vote on the main motion.
  • Amend—to change the main motion. (May also be applied to certain other motions).
  • Commit or Refer—to send the main motion and any pending subsidiary motions to a committee for consideration.
  • Postpone to a certain time (or Postpone Definitely, or Postpone) -- to delay consideration of the main motion and any pending subsidiary motions.
  • Limit or extend limits of debate—to change limitations on number or length of speeches from those previously adopted.
  • Previous Question—to close debate, preclude any further amendments and vote immediately. (May apply to any motion or pending series of motions.)
  • Lay on the Table—to suspend consideration of the main motion and any pending subsidiary motions to allow for immediate consideration of more urgent business.
• Privileged motions: which are urgent matters that must be dealt with immediately, even if they interrupt pending business.
• Incidental motions: which relate in different ways to the business at hand.
• Motions that bring a matter again before the assembly.

Debate:

• A member shall make a motion which, after being seconded, the chair then asks: “Are you ready for the question?” The question is then open to debate.
• No member shall speak more than twice during the same day the same question
• Discussion shall be limited to the motion on the table. When an amendment is pending, the debate must be confined to the merits of the amendment
• The member upon whose motion the subject was brought before the assembly, is entitled to close the debate with a speech. The maker of a motion, though can vote against it, cannot speak against his own motion.
• If you’re sick of the current topic, you can “Call the question” or “Move to end discussion when you get called on.
• The Assembly Chair is allowed to enforce limits on discussion.

Voting:

• “All in favor” … “All opposed…”
• Alternatively: “Are there any objections?”
• If you’re unclear on the motion, ask!
• Simple Majority: More than 50% in favor vs. opposed to pass
• Two-Thirds Majority: More than 2/3 in favor vs. opposed to pass
  • Required for all motions that puts limits on things (i.e. debate, privileges)
• Abstentions are the same as not voting and are not considered in the results.
• Votes cannot be invalidated after the meeting concludes

Contacting Deans

It is important to meet regularly with the Dean or Head of your constituency. It’s a good way to communicate the needs of your constituents. To start, it may be useful to schedule initial meetings to introduce yourself a the newly elected representative and start to build a rapport with follow-up meeting to discuss the needs of constituents.

Contacting Constituents

It is important to reach out to your constituents regularly to keep them informed about things happening at GPSC around the UA campus.

Contacting Program Coordinators

Sometimes it may be fairly difficult to obtain a list of graduate students within your constituency. An alternate way to reach out to your constituents is through graduate coordinators. They are usually in regular contact with their students and can often reach out to their students individually. A list of graduate Coordinators can be found on the GPSC Internal Page. If the list is unavailable, please reach out to the GPSC Vice President

Constituency Meetings

Representatives are encouraged to hold meetings with constituents at least once a semester. Each representative is allotted a small budget to provide food and refreshments at these meetings. Please contact the GPSC Vice President if you question, including making room reservations in the Student Union. Note that meetings held in the Student Union must go through Arizona Catering for food.

It is often beneficial to hold constituency meetings earlier in the semester/year. This not only helps your constituents get to know you, but it can help set your agenda and priorities for the rest of the year. Sometimes it can be beneficial to hold joint constituent meeting other GPSC representatives.

Handling Constituent Concerns

When a constituent approaches you with a concern, it is often hard to know how to handle these situations. In many cases, these concerns can be handled directly by reaching out to the program coordinators, directors or even the college dean. Particularly with larger policy issues that may affect multiple departments or colleges, it may be more advantageous to raise those concerns to the General Council or Executive Board. When in doubt, please reach out to the GPSC President or Vice President(s) for guidance

GPSC Internal Committees

GPSC Internal Committees are an integral part of the organization.  Each representative is required to serve on one internal committee, but may choose to attend as many as they choose. Standing Committees are established by the GPSC Executive Board. Standing Committees may include (but are not limited to) the following:

• Appropriations: Overseas Travel, REAP and POD Grant Programs. This includes judging, approving, and proposing changes to each of the programs.
• Social and Marketing: Plans social events (including happy hours) and advertises GPSC on social media and other marketing means.
• Budget and Policy: Addresses student needs/concerns at the University, State and Federal Level. Responsible for overseeing the budget and any changes.
• Governing Docs: Experts on the Governing Docs. Proposes changes to and clarifies language in the governing documents.

All committees make recommendations to be approved by the GPSC General Council.

University-Wide External Committees

GPSC members represent GPSC on various standing committees around campus. It is one of our main mechanisms for advocating for our constituents. Types of committees include, fees, shared governance, policy, and advisory boards. The time commitment for each committee can vary drastically. However, a majority of committee will meet roughly once a month. A list of standing committees can be found on the GPSC Internal Page.

UPDATED COMMITTEE ASSINGMENTS

GPSC Grant Programs

• Club Funding: Funding provided to graduate student club to hold events. To be phased out.
• Professional Opportunities Development: Grants to hold professional development events. Awards available to cover costs of the event, including speaker fees
• Research and Project: Grants for research and projects done by Graduate Students. Awards available for research supplies or other related expenses
• Travel Grant: Grants for Professional Development Travel. Awards available to cover transportation, hotel, per diem, and registration expenses.

GPSC Events

Events are great ways to reach out and show appreciation to our students. In order for our events to be successful, we need all members of GPSC to help out. As such, each member is required to participate/volunteer in at least one event per year. Our standing events are as follows:

• Socials: Usually held once a month, these gatherings are to provide a venue for grads to meet up with colleagues and/or make new acquaintances.
• Professional Development Workshops: GPSC aims to provide skills-based trainings that pertain to graduate life, academics, or professional careers.
• Graduate Orientation: (Time: Typically, Wednesday before classes start)
• GradSlam: 3-Minute Presentation Competition.
• Student Showcase: A poster session to showcase the research and projects graduate and undergraduate students are working on. Prizes awarded to student decided by volunteer judges.
• Graduate and Professional Student Appreciation Week (GPSA): A week of events to show our appreciations for graduate and professional students around campus. Specific events TBD. (Time: First Week of April)

National Association of Graduate and Professional Students (NAGPS)
Student Advocates for Graduate Education (SAGE)

DOCUMENTS BOX FOLDER

Conference Travel

GPSC will typically send representatives to Arizona, NAGPS and SAGE Conferences. If you are interested in advocacy at either the state or federal level, this is a good opportunity to get involved. Travel typically happens around the middle of the Fall and Spring Semesters. If there are other travel opportunities you would like to pursue on behalf of GPSC, please reach out to the GPSC Vice President.

Compensation

GPSC Representatives will be given a stipend for being an active member of GPSC. Stipends will be disbursed quarterly (Sept., Nov., Feb., and Apr.).  Stipends will be determined based on months served. The stipend levels will be determined annual during the budget approval process prior to the start of the term.