Ramapo College of New Jersey Ramapo Staff Association Bylaws

(Revised April 2025)

Statement of Purpose 

The purpose of the Ramapo Staff Association (RSA) is to enhance connectivity among its membership while supporting institutional quality and organizational cohesion. 

The RSA is an advocacy and community-building group designed as a resource to share information about the institution, support our interests as staff, provide social events and discuss trends in higher education as well as new techniques, policies, and procedures as they affect our work. 

RSA participates in the shared governance system of Ramapo College. The RSA membership is composed of unionized and non-unionized staff, however, it does not engage in matters that are the purview of collective bargaining. 

 

Ramapo Staff Association Membership 

Members include all staff employees (including part time) at Ramapo College, except those who are faculty or are considered a member of Senior Administration. Senior Administration includes: Mission Element Team (MET), President, Provost, Vice Presidents, Associate and Assistant Vice Presidents, Vice Provost, and Deans.

A staff member who serves as adjunct faculty shall not be excluded from the Membership.

Executive Board: The Executive Board of the RSA is composed of seven individuals (RSA Members) in the following positions: President, Vice President, At-Large Officers (four), and Past President (ex-officio).

Roles of the President 

• Create agendas and lead weekly Executive Board meetings 
• Present RSA updates at Board of Trustee meetings
• Attend Shared Governance Meetings with College President
• Coordinate meetings with the College President and Administration, as needed 
• Provide leadership for the organization
• Delegates executive board membership to campus/all College committees as invited 
• Monitor the RSA email address
• Meet with the Ramapo College President as an executive board to provide updates, communicate concerns, propose collaborations and seek feedback 
• In collaboration with the executive board, establishes At-Large Officer roles
• In collaboration with the executive board, update and revise bylaws as needed 

Roles of the Vice President 

• In the event that the RSA President is unavailable, lead Executive Board meetings
• In the event that the RSA President is unavailable, present RSA updates at Board of Trustee meetings 
• Attend Shared Governance meetings with College President
• In the event that the RSA President is unavailable, assume Presidential duties 
• Monitor the RSA email address
• Meet with the Ramapo College President as an executive board to provide updates, communicate concerns, propose collaborations and seek feedback 

Roles of the RSA At-Large Officers 

• Meet with the Ramapo College President as an executive board to provide updates, communicate concerns, propose collaborations and seek feedback 
• Serve on College committees as needed and as determined by the RSA President
• In the event that the RSA President and Vice President are unavailable, attend Board of Trustee meetings 
• Serve on and attend Board of Trustee Committee meetings 
• Create social events and/or workshops​ every semester 
• Promote personal and professional achievements/contributions of the Board and membership through communications
• Draft/edit meeting minutes and record attendance, and post to website upon Executive Board review and approval 
• Maintain website 
• Manage the membership email list 
• Fill in for President/Vice Presidential duties if those individuals are not available 
• Communicate any staff concerns and report back at Executive Board meetings 
• Draft emails to membership providing campus information and updates
• Manage the budget (as allocated via the President’s Office)
• Maintain Google Drive files and Executive Board access

Roles of the Past President 

• Serve as historian and manage archives 
• Responsible for managing the election processes for the RSA Executive Board 
• Serves in ex-officio capacity; only votes in the event of a tie with voting board members

At the discretion of the board, board officer titles and responsibilities may be altered.

Election of Officers 

The Executive Board holds a two-year term, running from July 1 until June 30.

Executive Board Election Timeline* 

• February–April: Host informational sessions about serving as an Executive Board Officer
• May: Nominations and election of Executive Board Officers are held
• July: New Board members take office; Executive Board elects a President and a Vice President

*This Election Timeline may be amended to ensure that all positions are filled. 

Election of Executive Board Officers 

Nominations for the six Executive Board Officers will be solicited in May, followed by the election. 

Executive Board Officers are elected for a two-year renewable term, not to exceed four consecutive years in that role, by a majority of voting members during the May voting period. Voting members for the Executive Board Officers consist of RSA’s full membership. 

Should an Executive Board Officer position become vacant, it will be at the discretion of the current Executive Board if the position should be filled. If the Executive Board chooses to move forward and fill the position, nominations should be solicited and the timeline for the election are to be communicated with the Membership. The replacement will finish the current term only. Whoever is elected to the position will be eligible to take the maximum amount of terms following the term they were elected to fill.

Election of President

A new President is voted on by the incoming Executive Board in July of the new Board’s first year in term. The Past President will only vote in the event of a tie.

Should no current Executive Board members wish to serve as President, the President may serve one additional year with the process repeating itself in May of that additional year. 

No individual may serve consecutive terms as President, except as noted above. 

Should the President’s position be vacated during their term, the Vice President will assume that role for the remainder of the term. They will be eligible to run for the President’s role for the next term. 

Election of Vice President

A new Vice President is voted on by the incoming Executive Board in July of the new Board’s first year in term. The Past President will only vote in the event of a tie.

Should no current Executive Board Officers wish to serve as Vice President, the immediate past Vice President may serve one additional year with the process repeating itself in May of that additional year. No individual may serve consecutive terms as Vice President, except as noted above. 

Should the Vice President’s position be vacated during their term, the Past President will oversee a vote for a new Executive Board Officer.  The Executive Board will then elect a new Vice President from all Executive Board Officers.

Leave of Absence

Should an Executive Board Member need to take a personal leave of absence from the Ramapo Staff Association Executive Board for greater than a three month period, it will be at the discretion of the current Executive Board if the position should be replaced. 

Statement of Executive Board Professional Responsibility

As an Executive Board Member of the RSA, there is an expectation of professional discretion and active participation. Executive Board Members are expected to advocate and communicate concerns for their members, follow up appropriately with projects and assignments, and actively participate in RSA functions and meetings. 

Should evidence be found that an Executive Board member of the RSA (regardless of position) is not fulfilling the duties of their position or meeting the Professional Responsibilities of the RSA effectively, any member of the Executive Board may motion to remove the officer from the position. This would occur at an Executive Board meeting. In order for proceedings to begin, one additional Executive Board officer must second the original motion. Proceedings will be determined by the Executive Board as needed.

Should a staff member who is not on the Executive Board wish to request an Executive Board member be removed, they must speak to the RSA President to make their request. If they wish to request to remove the President, they will speak to the Vice President. 

Amendments

Amendments to the Ramapo Staff Association Bylaws are set forth by the current Executive Board to be voted on by the full RSA Membership. The Executive Board will present the updated Bylaws to the RSA Membership via email and open up electronic voting for at least ten business days. Majority vote of responding members will decide outcomes of amendments.

RSA Bylaws (PDF)