01.01 Texas
State University-San Marcos recognizes and respects the right of its faculty, staff,
and students to organize and express themselves and understands that the
exercise of this right sometimes leads to the establishment of faculty and
staff organizations.
01.02 This UPPS establishes policies for
recognition of faculty and staff organizations.
02.01 To
be eligible for recognition, an organization's members must be any combination
of Texas State faculty, staff, students, or their families.
a.
A
faculty or staff organization is an association of individuals in which a
majority of its members are Texas State faculty, staff, or their families.
b. The
university attorney’s Web site will include a current list of currently
recognized faculty and staff organizations and the contact information for the
organizations’ liaisons.
02.02 The
university will recognize faculty and staff organizations that:
a. are
established for lawful purposes;
b.
affirm
in advance their willingness to adhere to federal and state law as well as
policies of the Board of Regents and the university;
c.
will
not disrupt university classes or other programs;
d.
do
not discriminate on any basis prohibited by law; and
e. are
compatible with the mission of the university.
02.03 A
faculty or staff organization may not state or suggest that it acts with the
authority as an agent of Texas State. Each organization is a separate entity
and not a part of the university itself. The university will act as a
co-sponsor of an organization's activities only upon express written agreement
to act as co-sponsor. Members of an organization should state or imply
university co-sponsorship of an activity only with the express written
permission of the university. A faculty or staff organization may not use the
university’s tax identification number for its purposes.
02.04 Each
recognized organization will designate a member as its liaison with the
university, and university representatives may assume that the liaison has
authority to speak for the organization and to bind the organization to
agreements with Texas State.
02.05 The
special assistant to the president will distribute annually, at the beginning
of the fall semester, a list of approved faculty and staff organizations to the
LBJ Student Center (Information/Reservations Center), Housing and Residential
Life, the Registrar's Office, Office of Sponsored Programs, Mail Services, vice
president for Information Technology, and any other offices that receive
on-campus space/service requests.
02.06 Texas
State is not responsible for any obligation, including legal and financial
obligations of any faculty or staff organization, even if the organization is
recognized under this policy.
03.01 The
advantages of official university recognition of faculty and staff
organizations include:
a.
use
of campus facilities in accordance with the Regents’ Rules and university
policies;
b.
use
of designated campus bulletin boards to post notices in accordance with the
manner authorized in Regents’ Rules and university policies;
c.
authorization
to hold meetings and functions on campus in accordance with the manner
authorized in Regents’ Rules and university policies, including limitations on
joint sponsorship as outlined therein;
d.
solicitation
privileges as provided in the Regents' Rules and university policies;
e.
use
of the campus mail and e-mail systems in a manner consistent with state law and
university policy, including the prohibition of the use of state resources for
political activity; and
f. authorization to host a Web site for
the organization, in accordance with campus acceptable use relevant university
policies, including
UPPS No.
04.01.07, Appropriate Use of Information Resources, and UPPS No.
04.01.08, Texas State Internet Domain Name Policy.
03.02 Official
university recognition of faculty and staff organizations does not authorize
employees who are members to receive release time from their positions to
attend the organization’s meetings or to conduct the organization’s business
during work hours nor does it authorize financial support from the university
for the operations of a recognized organization. Members of the President’s Cabinet may invite
recognized organizations to participate in projects sponsored by the university
and may, at their discretion, authorize appropriate support for those projects.
04.01 A
faculty or staff organization may apply for official university recognition to
the special assistant to the president. The special assistant will review the
application to determine whether the organization appears to meet the minimum
criteria for recognition outlined in this UPPS and will refer the application
to President’s Cabinet for consideration and comment. Following a satisfactory review by the
President’s Cabinet, the special assistant will approve the application and
inform the organization of the decision. The university will not disapprove an
application unless the organization or its activities violate law or university
policies or are incompatible with the university’s mission.
04.02 Attachment
I is the form that an organization will use to apply for initial recognition
and to apply annually for continuing recognition.
04.03 Recognition
is subject to annual renewal. An application for renewal of recognition must
include updated information about the organization’s liaison and verification
of continuing compliance with federal and state law as well as policies of the
Board of Regents and the university. The university may, by written notice,
withdraw recognition of an organization that fails to maintain the requirements
for recognition or that abuses the privileges noted in Section 03.01.
04.04 The
special assistant may withdraw recognition of a faculty or staff organization
if he or she determines that the organization has violated an applicable law or
a rule of either the university or its Board of Regents. Before determining whether to withdraw
recognition, the special assistant will provide the organization with notice of
the violation and an opportunity to respond.
05.01 Reviewers of this UPPS include the following:
Position Section
University Attorney August 1 E10Y Director, LBJ Student Center August 1 E10Y Chair, Faculty Senate August 1 E10Y Chair, Staff Council August 1 E10Y
This UPPS has been approved by the
following individuals in their official capacities and represents Texas State
policy and procedure from the date of this document until superseded.
University
Attorney; senior reviewer of this UPPS
Special
Assistant to the President
President