CoSIDA Members:
This spring, there have been two rounds of proposed amendmenta to the CoSIDA constitution. The first round of three proposals is currently being voted upon online during the Capital One Academic All-District baseball voting. The CoSIDA Board of Directors introduced this new voting procedure to the members this year. The voting period for these three amendments below (Article 15, Article 17, Article 19, below) is April 18-29. Current CoSIDA members who vote for the Academic All-District baseball teams are prompted to go the ballot once they log in to vote - and before casting their baseball votes.
The other two proposed amendments (Article 3- Membership and Article 7 - Directors and Election of Directors) are listed below for membership review and comment.
These amendments will be discussed and voted upon during the annual CoSIDA business meeting on June 10 (2:20 pm Eastern) during the CoSIDA convention in Orlando.
We thank you in advance for taking the time to vote on the three online amendments and to review the other two listed below.
If you have any questions, please contact Barb Kowal, CoSIDA Director of External Affairs, at barbkowal@cosida.com.
Here are the constitutional articles to for review and comment, prior to the CoSIDA business meeting conducted during the June convention
Constitutional amendments/Summer, 2014:
Article 3 – Membership
Proposal by Paul Carson, University of Toronto
Additions to Section 1:
D. Retired member: Any person who has retired from a career engaged in the administration of a collegiate sports public relations and communications program at an accredited institution of higher learning, an intercollegiate athletic conference, a national athletics governing body, or of similar organizations devoted to the administration of collegiate athletics.
E. Honorary member: A person so designated by vote of the Board of Directors.
Rationale: Article 3 (Membership) defines 3 classifications of CoSIDA members in Section 1--Active, Associate and Student--but then in Section 2 there is reference to "honorary" members, and nowhere is there any reference to my category--"retired". It might be appropriate to a) expand Section 1 to include definitions of "Honorary" and "Retired" membership, and b) to give the Board specific authority to appoint "Honorary" members...an important category which is currently unexplained.
Article 7 - Directors and Election of Directors
Proposal by Shelly Poe, Auburn University on behalf of the CoSIDA Board of Directors
Currently reads:
Section 1: There shall be a Board of Directors consisting of all officers of the Association, six college division members, four members at-large and the three immediate past presidents who continue to be active members of the Association.
Revision would read: There shall be a Board of Directors consisting of all officers of the Association, six college division members, four members at-large and the most immediate past president who continues to be an active member of the Association.
Rationale: Current officers serve a seven-year term on the Board from the time they enter as third vice-president until they have served as third past president. With people changing positions within and out of athletics, as has been the case with our two most recent past presidents, we have had frequent gaps in the rotation and may continue to do so. It is not considerate to pressure those who have ably served CoSIDA through their presidential term to continue to participate in Board activities when their professional obligations are now in other areas, and it is not practical to ask past presidents who have already served seven years to rejoin the Board. Also, some potential candidates for the officer rotation have stated the term is too long for them to consider serving.
The duties currently assigned to the third past president could easily be assigned to the immediate past president. All past presidents are welcome to remain involved in the work of CoSIDA in whatever most interests them.
Here are the constitutional articles voted on, online, from April 18 - April 29 during the Capital One Academic All-District baseball voting
UPDATED INFORMATION AS OF MAY 5
Each of the year proposed amendments below have passed, after tabulating the CoSIDA membership voting during the baseball Academic All-District voting period.
The final tabulations: 605 voted
Article 15 amendment: Yes (296); No (119); Abstained (190)
Article 17 amendment: Yes (441); No (11); Abstained (153)
Article 19 amendment: Yes (505); No (8); Abstained (92)
Article 15: Affiliations
(Proposed by Paul Carson, University of Toronto)
Need to add NACDA, CIS and NJCAA to the list of affiliations in the current document.
Article 17: Parliamentary Authority
(Proposed by Paul Carson, University of Toronto)
Now reads: “Roberts’ Rules of Order shall govern all proceedings…”
Revision would read: "The most current edition of Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised shall govern...”
Rationale: There is a minor typo at the start of the Article...Roberts' should be Robert's...the author was U.S. Army General Henry M. Robert. Also, the current wording could inadvertently create a procedural problem...Robert's Rules of Order was published in 1876 but has been revised at least twice; the edition I use was published in 1970 and the editor, Sarah Corbin Robert, describes it as "essentially a new book, with a new title" -- Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised. Moreover, in her preface, she writes that the title "Robert's Rules of Order" ... "properly refers only to the three earliest editions--the last of which was superseded in 1915." Thus, the existing wording of Article 17 legally refers to a book which is now officially obsolete and has been since 1915. There are several versions of Robert's RoO in print, but they are abridgements of the 1970 work. As the Robert family trust has made a series of very clear statements regarding the various editions of the book, I'd suggest that CoSIDA should position itself in the camp of strict adherence to the family's position.
Article 19: Additional Positions
(Revision proposed by Steve Flegel, Whitworth)
Now gives the job descriptions of all full-time staff
Revision would read: CoSIDA may employ full-time staff members, including an Executive Director, Director of External Affairs and Director of Internal Operations, who report to the Board of Directors. Their duties shall be outlined in CoSIDA’s procedural manual.
Rationale: It is inefficient as an organization to have to change the Constitution each time there is an adjustment in staff duties and responsibilities. This would allow the Board to enact such changes during its monthly meeting conference calls.