Chapter 4. Student Government Association

Subchapter 4-100. General Provisions

Sec. 4-101. Purpose
a. The Student Government Association has as its primary purpose to serve as a recognized forum for student opinion. Originally formed as the UT Tyler Student Association, the Student Government Association is elected by the student body annually.

b. The Student Government Association shall operate within the laws of the State of Texas, the Rules and Regulations of The Board of Regents of The University of Texas System, and follow the procedures established and/or adopted by The University of Texas at Tyler.

Sec. 4-102. Definitions

As used in this chapter, unless the context requires a different meaning,

1. “University” means The University of Texas at Tyler;
2. "Vice President" means Vice President for Student Affairs and External Relations or the vice president's delegate or representative;
3. ”Student” means a person who is currently enrolled in residence at the University, or who is accepted for admission or readmission to the University, or who has been enrolled at the University in a prior semester or summer session and is eligible to continue enrollment in the semester or summer session that immediately follows, or who is attending an educational program sponsored by the University while that person is on campus;
4. “Elections” refers to any election held by the Student Government Association, including officer and senator elections;
5. “Student body” includes those individuals who are currently enrolled in residence at the University in the semester that a particular election is taking place;
6. “Officers” means the Student Government Association President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Parliamentarian, as outlined in the SGA constitution and by-laws.

Sec. 4-103. Introduction
a. The activities of the Student Government Association include, but are not limited to the following:

1. Assisting The University of Texas at Tyler in identifying the interests, programs, and goals of the majority of students.
2. Communicating to The University of Texas at Tyler those interests, programs, and goals which are of interest to the majority of students; and
3. Assisting The University of Texas at Tyler in providing students with programs to meet students’ needs.

Subchapter 4-200. Elections

Sec. 4-201. Elections
a. Five officers, three senators from each college, five senators from the freshman class, and two senators from each on-campus student housing facility are elected annually by the student body.

b.The elections are conducted according to the Election Code of the Student Government Association, which are found in the Student Government Association by-laws.

Subchapter 4-300. Officer Compensation

Sec. 4-301. Purpose

a. The officers of the Student Government Association are to be compensated in accordance with Section 4-302. Officers are financially compensated in order to:

1. Partially compensate officers for time involved in performing their duties.
2. Elevate the level of accountability of officers.

Sec. 4-302. Amounts and Payments

a. As part of the annual University budget process, the Student Government Association Advisor will recommend a payment structure to the Chief Student Affairs Officer. The payment structure will be presented to the Student Services Fee Committee as part of the proposed SGA budget.

Currently, the SGA President and Vice President are paid on an hourly basis at a rate of $14.00/hour for 15 hours of work each week.  They are paid for up to 35 weeks of work during their terms of office (15 weeks each fall and spring semester and 5 weeks during the summer months).  They are expected to hold weekly office hours to be accessible to students and submit bi-weekly time sheets in order to receive payment.

The SGA Secretary, Treasurer, and Parliamentarian are paid stipends at the end of the fall and spring semesters.  Each stipend is $1,260 per semester, with a total of $2, 520 awarded to each of these officers annually.

Subchapter 4-400. Advisor

Sec. 4-401. Appointment

The SGA Advisor shall be appointed by the vice president. He or she shall provide support and serve as a resource to the Student Government Association.

Revised: 1/16/07

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