SAAC Constitution

Student Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC)

The Mission of Paul Smith’s College Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) is to enhance the

student-athlete experience through communication and opportunities in athletics. Representatives are

responsible for representing the interests of their respective teams and acting as student-athlete

liaisons to the administration of the athletic department and college as a whole.

PURPOSE

I. To serve as a liaison between the student-athletes and the athletics administration.

II. To provide a forum for the student-athletes to voice their concerns and ideas to the athletic

administration.

III. To serve as advocates for the welfare of fellow student-athletes, as a team, or as individuals.

IV. To encourage the student-athletes to foster the relationship between athletics, the Paul Smith’s

College community, and the local communities.

V. To promote athletics as a valuable part of the college experience, and to help create a positive image

of student-athletes and athletics on our campus.

VI. To design and implement programs which encourage community relations, school spirit, and

sportsmanship, as well as boost attendance and excitement at Paul Smith’s College athletic events.

VII. To encourage and facilitate involvement of student-athletes in campus and community service

projects, including local volunteerism.

VIII. To disseminate information to student-athletes and to solicit student-athlete responses to

proposed YSCC and USCAA guidelines.

IX. To provide on-campus and off-campus activities and opportunities for cultural enrichment to the Paul

Smith’s College athletic teams and the campus community as a whole.CONSTITUTION

Preamble

We, the participants of Intercollegiate Athletics, as means to enhance communication, to increase

cooperation with all persons concerned, to maintain the preservation of individual rights, and, further,

to abide by all YSCC, USCAA, USCSA, USBA, AAU, USCCTL, NSCRO, ECAC and Paul Smith’s College

regulations, do hereby establish this constitution of the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC).

Article I (Name)

SECTION 1.

The name of the advisory body of students within the program of Inter-collegiate Athletics at Paul

Smith’s College shall be the Student-Athlete Advisory Committee.

Article II (Membership)

SECTION 1.

The Student-Athlete Advisory Committee shall be composed of the following: a minimum of 2

representatives elected each semester with the option of staying for the academic year, or the

possibility in which a replacement must be found. Alternates are encouraged to attend meetings but will

only vote in the absence of the regular representative(s).

SECTION 2.

Qualifications for members:

A. Team Representatives: Each representative of a varsity team shall compete in that sport the year

he/she is a member.

B. You must be in good academic standing to be eligible to be a student representative. The minimum

GPA requirement being 2.0 as that is the minimum GPA to be eligible to compete for the school.

SECTION 3.

Responsibilities of all members:

A. Attendance: Each representative should make every effort to attend each meeting. At minimum one

representative should be at every meeting, with the expectation that both attend. In the event that a

representative cannot attend a meeting, they shall designate someone from their respective team to

attend on their behalf.

B. Permanent Absences: Where circumstances cause the permanent absence of the: Team

Representative(s): Their team or coach shall have the responsibility to select a new representative.C. Improper Behavior: In cases of improper behavior of any representative, the Committee has the right

to impeach as described in Article III, Section 3. The representative being impeached is entitled to a

hearing in order to present their case for remaining on the Committee.

D. Committees: SAAC members can serve on various committees, including departmental committees,

as necessary throughout their term.

1. The membership of SAAC will consist of at least two representatives from each team from the

PSC athletic community.

2. Selections are held at the beginning of every semester (Volunteering, Fundraising, Student

Engagement and Outreach, etc); Committees will be formed based on voluntary decisions.

3. Any member from intercollegiate teams may be present but will not receive a vote.

4. In the event that a representative terminates his/her participation on a team, that

representative must relinquish his/her official status as a SAAC representative immediately and

delegate that responsibility to a current teammate.

5. Each representative will elect one proxy who will serve as a voting representative at meetings

when a representative is unable to attend.

Advisors

A. At least one member of the athletics dept. (appointment by the Athletic Director) will act as the SAAC

Staff Advisors.

B. A faculty member will be appointed by the Athletic Director to serve as the SAAC Faculty Advisory.

C. The advisor(s) shall be an advocate for student-athletes and support the ideas of SAAC while serving

as non-voting member(s) except in votes for impeachment of members.

D. The advisor(s) shall work with other faculty, administrators, and coaches to help student-athletes

have their voices acknowledged and heard.

E. The advisor(s) shall act as a sounding board for SAAC in order to help the members best articulate

their concerns, while at the same time ensuring a safe environment for discussing various issues.

F. The advisor(s) shall educate the student-athletes about all conferences for Paul Smith’s College and its

governance structure and make every effort to provide administrative support and the securing of the

necessary resources to help accomplish its goals.

Article III (Election of Members)

SECTION 1. Procedures: Election of members for the Student-Athlete Advisory committee is at the

discretion of the coaches and team membersSECTION 2.

Each member of SAAC shall serve a term of one semester and shall be eligible for re-election.

SECTION 3.

Impeachment: Upon the request of any athlete, SAAC shall conduct a hearing for impeachment of a

representative involved in improper behavior. Impeachment procedures will be conducted if there is at

least half of the members in agreement, including the faculty advisor, among SAAC members. The

representative shall be given the opportunity to present their case to the SAAC.

Article IV (Powers and Responsibilities)

SECTION 1. The Student-Athlete Advisory Committee shall:

A. Call general meetings of the athletic body when necessary or when requested by at least 10 athletes

or by at least three staff members.

B. Provide opportunities for new student-athletes to meet SAAC representatives and staff early in the

fall semester.

C. Hold elections for team representatives before the first fall meeting. Preferably elections will be held

before the end of spring semester.

D. Form committees to study any issues concerning the Intercollegiate Athletics program.

E. Vote on Intercollegiate Athletics matters to represent the concerns of the general athletic body.

F. Invite guest speakers to speak on Intercollegiate Athletics concerns, policies, and procedures.

G. Serve on committees to interview and select prospective Inter-collegiate Athletics staff members.

H. Announce all meeting times to Intercollegiate Athletics staff and athletes.

Article V (Meetings)

SECTION 1.

1. The Committee shall meet at least twice each month during Fall and Spring semesters, or when

deemed necessary by the SAAC. A meeting shall be called at the request of three members of SAAC.

Regular meeting times shall be established at the beginning of each semester.

2. The schedule is to be determined, based on the availability of the student athletes at Paul Smith’s

College.Article VI (Voting

SECTION 1.

All members of SAAC shall be eligible to vote.

SECTION 2.

Voting on a Motion:

1. Obtaining the floor

a. Wait until the last speaker has finished.

b. Rise and address the committee by saying, “I move that we ..."

2. A SAAC member must second the motion.

4. If there is no second to the motion, it is lost.

5. The coach advisor states the motion

a. The advisor will state, "It has been moved and seconded that we…

”

b. The membership then either debates the motion or may move directly to a vote.

c. The advisor then states “All in favor… all opposed…"

d. The vote is tallied with majority rule.

Article VII (Advisor)

SECTION 1.

The faculty athletics representative shall be a faculty member of the college.

Article VIII (Amendments)

SECTION 1.

Proposed amendments shall be submitted in writing and read at the following regular meeting and shall

be acted upon at the following regular meeting.

SECTION 2.

This constitution may be amended by a majority vote of two-thirds of the Student-Athlete Advisory

Committee.Article IX (Ratification)

SECTION 1.

A two-thirds vote of the SAAC shall be necessary to ratify this constitution.

Article X (Meetings)

A. This meeting schedule is meant to be a guideline and is subject to change.

B. Meetings will be in a room TBD.

C. Committees will have additional meetings as needed and will be responsible to meet once a month.

D. Attendance

1. Attendance is mandatory for all members. Alternates shall be notified as far in advance as

possible.

2. Attendance will be recorded and reported to coaches and SAAC members. After a third

absence, the representative will be replaced by a different member from their team.

3. When a team representative cannot be present, the team’s alternate must be present.

E. Voting Procedure

1. 66% of SAAC will suffice for a quorum; a full quorum of members must be present in order to

vote.

2. Decisions shall be made by a simple majority vote of 51% of the members present.

3. This constitution may be amended by two-thirds vote of the total membership of the

committee.

Article XI (Committees)

A. General

1. Committees will be determined each academic year.

2. Each committee will have a chairperson who will be responsible for calling meetings and

making every effort to adhere to the goals and purposes of the committee.

3. It may be determined that there exist standing committees and annual committees: this is

dependent upon the evolution of SAAC and its functions, issues within the community, and/or

service projects that arise in the future.Article XII (General Agenda)

Organizations using parliamentary procedure usually follow a fixed order of business. Below is a typical

example:

1. Call to order

2. Attendance

3. Approval of minutes of last meeting

4. Committee reports

5. Team Reports

6. Special orders --- Important business previously designated for consideration at this meeting.

7. Unfinished business

8. New business

9. Announcements

10. Adjournment