COA Bylaws – SUNY Computing Officers Association (COA)

Adopted November 2002 – Amended January 2017

NAME
1. The name of the organization is the State University of New York (hereafter referred to as SUNY) Computing Officers Association (hereafter referred to as COA).
PREAMBLE
1. The principle of COA is to collaborate with our SUNY campuses to proactively promote and improve technology across SUNY. To fulfill this, principle representation will be drawn from individuals whose primary responsibility is technology at each of SUNY’s campuses.
  1. Academic Computing
  2. Administrative Computing
  3. Telecommunications/Networking
2. Pronominal and other references to gender in these by-laws are intended to include both male and female members of the COA
OBJECTIVES and PURPOSE
1. Disseminate information of common interest to its membership.
2. Coordinate SUNY computing and technological activities with those taking place on a regional, national, or international basis.
3. Coordinate computing and technological activities within the SUNY system.
4. Communicate and participate in, or administer (as requested), cooperative programs with campuses and offices within SUNY.
5. Promote and participate in cooperative programs with institutions of higher education and other agencies external to the SUNY system.
6. Assist, advise, and support the various organizations within the SUNY system, in particular the offices within SUNY Systems Administration responsible for Educational Technology and Administrative Systems.
7. Achieve the above objectives by actively participating and collaborating in the planning, evaluation, and review of SUNY’s computing and technological resources and services.
COA MEMBERSHIP/COMMITTEE REPRESENTATION
1. Membership
  1. The SUNY COA membership is open to all individuals within the SUNY system responsible for computing/technology in their job performance.
  2. The association will look to the membership to provide expertise and assistance in SUNY initiatives as they are being developed, defined, evaluated, planned, implemented, etc. Each member and all members collectively will be instrumental in achieving the objectives of the SUNY COA.
  3. Annually each campus CIO will be requested by the COA Chairperson to designate a representative responsible for campus membership management, including recruitment.
GOVERNANCE
1. Oversight
  1. The governing body of COA that will provide the oversight for its committees and all COA participating activities is its Executive Council. Additional standing or ad hoc committees may be created by the Executive Council as needed, and membership of these committees may be comprised of Executive Council members and/or non-voting participatory members drawn from COA’s general membership. The Executive Council will assume all responsibility for designating COA liaison representation in the various SUNY organizations.
2. Executive Council
  1. The Executive Council shall be structured according to the following formula:
    1. Doctoral Degree Granting Institutions – three members
    2. University Colleges – four members
    3. Technology Colleges – two members
    4. Community Colleges – four members
3. Where the categories are determined as follows:
  1. The University College and Community College lists are comprised of those institutions that have been historically considered in those categories.
  2. The Technology Colleges will include Alfred State, Canton, Cobleskill, Delhi, Morrisville, Farmingdale, and Maritime.
  3. The Doctoral Degree Granting institutions include Albany, Binghamton, Buffalo, Stony Brook, Brooklyn, Syracuse, ESF, Optometry, SUNY Polytechnic Institute, the Statutory Colleges at Alfred University and Cornell University, and SUNY System Administration.
4. There shall not be more than one Executive Council member from any one institution. An institution is defined to be a SUNY university or college governed by a single President. Exceptions may be made by the executive council if left with vacant positions and no candidates after election announcements.
5. Ex-Officio representation from offices within the SUNY Systems Administration will be requested to serve on this Council. This may include but is not limited to ITEC, SICAS, Administrative Systems, CPD, CCIO, and other applicable groups.
ELECTION PROCEDURES
1. Vacancies for the upcoming term in the COA Executive Council will be identified and communicated to the COA membership at the annual Fall meeting. Nominations to fill these vacancies for the upcoming term will be solicited from the COA campus membership. The incumbent Executive Council will request these nominations two months prior to the SUNY Technology Conference (STC) Meeting.
2. A slate of candidates will be developed from the nominations received.
3. The Secretary of the Executive Council will issue voting ballots to the general COA membership. Members can only be voted on by their respective groups (noted in 5b and 5c above).These ballots will be issued one month prior to the STC Meeting.
4. Completed ballots should be returned to the Secretary of the Executive Council no later than one week prior to the STC Meeting. The ballots will be counted by the incumbent Executive Council. The election results will be disseminated to the full COA membership at the STC general meeting.
5. Alternating year elections – each year an alternating half of the Executive Council shall be elected.
6. During even numbered years the following council positions shall be filled:
  1. Doctoral Degree Granting Institutions – two members
  2. University Colleges – two members
  3. Technology Colleges – one member
  4. Community Colleges – two members
7. During odd numbered years the following council positions shall be filled:
  1. Doctoral Degree Granting Institutions – one members
  2. University Colleges – two members
  3. Technology Colleges – one member
  4. Community Colleges – two members
EXECUTIVE COUNCIL OPERATIONAL PROCEDURES
1. Duties and responsibilities
2. Members elected to the Executive Council shall serve according to the following criteria:
  1. Term of Office – two years beginning July 1st of the year in which elected.
  2. Tenure – no individual may be elected to more than three (3) full consecutive terms on the Executive Council. Exceptions may be made by the executive council if left with vacant positions and no candidates after election announcements.
  3. Attendance – if a member of the Executive Council does not attend two consecutive meetings of that Council, or is absent from a total of five meetings of the Executive Council during his/her term of office, the Executive Council may request this person resign their position.
  4. Appointments by the Executive Council (when necessary) will be continued only to the next STC meeting when elections are held.
ELECTION OF COUNCIL OFFICERS
1. At the conclusion of the annual election, the Executive Council will elect a slate of officers. The officers of the Executive Council and specific duties follow:
2. Executive Council Chairperson
  1. shall be the Executive Officer
  2. calls and presides over all regular and special meetings of COA
  3. calls and presides over all meetings of the Executive Council
  4. will place appointments to fill vacancies on the Executive Council in consultation with the Executive Council
  5. will appoint COA members to ad hoc committees as deemed necessary by the Executive Council
  6. will present an Annual Report to COA at its annual Fall Meeting.
3. Vice Chairperson
  1. presides in the absence of the Chairperson
  2. assists the Chairperson
  3. assumes such special assignments as may be ordered by the Chairperson or the Executive Council.
4. Secretary
  1. keeps the minutes of the regular and special meetings of COA and the Executive Council
  2. carries out required correspondence.
5. COA Treasurer
  1. The Executive Council shall annually designate a Treasurer for COA.
  2. The Treasurer is responsible to record and account for all income and expenses.
  3. The Treasurer will serve as an ex- officio, non voting member of the Executive Council.
CALENDAR
1. There will be a general meeting held in the Fall at SUNY Wizard.
2. There will be a general meeting held at the annual STC, where the Executive Council Chairperson will provide an update of COA activities. It is at this meeting that the election results of the Executive Council are announced and the new Officers of the incoming Executive Council are announced.
3. The Executive Council at their first meeting each year will request volunteers to work on the following ad hoc committees whose membership may be comprised of Executive Council members and/or non-voting participatory members drawn from COA’s general membership:
  1. SUNY Technology Conference Planning Committee
  2. Election Committee
  3. Regional Forum Committee
  4. Others as deemed necessary
COA FUNDS
1. COA reserves the right to levy nominal annual dues and/or fees of a one-time nature upon the membership.
2. Determination to levy dues and/or fees upon the membership requires a two-thirds majority vote of approval by the voting campus membership.
AMENDMENT OF THE BYLAWS
1. These by-laws may be altered or amended by a two-thirds vote of the COA Executive Council at any regular or special meeting of the Executive Council, provided that there shall have been a distribution (or reading) of the proposed amendment(s) to the COA membership not less than ten days prior to the meeting at which the amendment(s) shall be voted on. Amendments may be proposed by any member of the COA Executive Council after verification by members of the executive council other than the proposing member. Such amendment verification activities may be conducted during periods outside of a regular or special meeting of the Executive Council.