Policy Manual (Updated 20210311)

As an advocacy-based organization that serves as the representative body for Western’s undergraduate students, it is incumbent upon the University Students’ Council to convey principles, concerns, and recommendations (PCR’s) to the University’s administration, staff, and faculty.

In order to do so, the USC must be able to effectively organize, develop, and represent students’ beliefs. The Advocacy Papers Policy empowers Council to select, prioritize, research, and articulate those PCR’s. This policy outlines the process, participants, and parameters of creating these advocacy papers.

SCOPE

This policy applies to the process whereby the Executive Council, Advocacy Standing Committee, and USC Council select, prioritize, research, articulate, debate, and approve official stances of the University Students’ Council relating to the on-campus experience and quality of life for students at Western University.

References in this document to “standing policy” or “standing policies” shall refer to policy papers authored via the process contained in this document that have been approved by Council; and

A paper that is in the process of being approved shall be referred to as an “advocacy paper”.

Individuals eligible to submit proposals and otherwise instigate the writing of a standing policy shall be all Voting, Ordinary Members as defined in Bylaw 1.

Members of the community may submit proposals for advocacy papers to the Advocacy Standing Committee via a member of that committee.

PROPOSING PAPERS

In order for an advocacy paper to be commissioned, a proposal must be submitted to Council via the Advocacy Standing Committee. All efforts shall be made to ensure that paper proposals for the legislative year are submitted to Council via the Advocacy Standing Committee in time for Council’s consideration to be given at its September meeting.

Paper proposals may come in the form of either an oral presentation or a written submission to the Advocacy Standing Committee by the proposer(s), which shall contain:

A brief description of the topic;

Reasons why the topic is of significance to undergraduate students; and

How the topic relates to the USC mission statement.

Standing policies requiring reconsideration based on the review cycle outlined in its Legislative History may be submitted as topics.

The Advocacy Standing Committee shall send to Council a list of no more than five (5) approved advocacy paper topics for consideration.

COMMISSIONING PAPERS

Upon receiving advocacy paper topics, Council shall approve, reject, amend, or refer back to committee; and

Should an advocacy paper topic be rejected by Council, or consideration of topics be referred back to committee, revised topics shall be presented to Council no later than its next Duly Called Meeting.

Should a simple majority of Council approve topics as written or as amended, papers on those topics shall be considered Duly Commissioned.

Council shall never commission more than three (3) papers in a given year.

Standing policies requiring reconsideration based on the expiration date outlined in its Legislative History may count towards the limit of three (3).

The limit of three (3) Duly Commissioned papers shall not apply in instances where more than three (3) standing policies require reconsideration as per Section 7.00 of this policy.
All papers commissioned by Council shall be due from the Author or Authors in its final form no later than the Annual General Meeting in March of the following calendar year.

Council shall never commission papers at a time later than its November meeting.

WRITING PAPERS

Papers shall be written by an Author or group of Authors, at least one (1) of whom shall be an original proposer of the topic; and

Either the President, Vice-President External Affairs, or Vice-President University Affairs (or a delegate of either position) shall be responsible for writing or supervising the writing of each paper.

The Author, or Authors, shall have the following responsibilities:

Research the assigned paper topics;

Consult stakeholders and conduct interviews, when necessary;

Develop principles, concerns, and recommendations for the paper topic;

Produce a draft advocacy paper;

Amend the draft advocacy paper based on commentary and input from Council and community members; and

Provide updates on the paper-writing process as requested.

APPROVING PAPERS

Council shall, no later than the USC’s Annual General Meeting, discuss and decide whether to grant approval to a draft advocacy paper or to withhold approval.

Council shall receive draft advocacy papers via the Advocacy Standing Committee, which must approve of the papers prior to Council consideration.

Upon receiving draft advocacy papers, Council shall approve (either as written or amended) or reject the draft advocacy papers on Council floor through a simple majority; and

Papers that fail to receive approval of Council forfeit status as Duly Commissioned; and

Papers that have forfeited status as Duly Commissioned must be re-approved by Council in a manner consistent with sections 3.00 and 4.00 of this policy.

Should a simple majority of Council approve topics as written or as amended, papers on those topics shall be considered Duly Approved.

Duly Approved papers take immediate effect as standing policies of the organization.

RENEWING, REPLACING, OR RETIRING PAPERS

Each standing policy of the USC shall expire three (3) years from the date upon which it was Duly Approved.

Policies facing expiration shall be Duly Commissioned automatically, at which time Council shall:

Renew the paper as-is, should its primary objective be incomplete;

Task the Executive Council to rewrite the paper, should its primary objective be deemed still relevant though in need of alteration;

Amend then renew the paper; or

Retire the paper should its primary objective be successfully completed or deemed of little significance to undergraduate students.

EXECUTIVE ACTION

In years where a standing policy is active, including years in which it requires reconsideration, the President or respective Vice-President shall report to Council in September and March on the status of organizational advocacy efforts directly relating to the topic addressed in each standing policy.

Agenda and Council Operations Terms of Reference

Authority: Council	Date Ratified: 14 September 2016
	Previous Amendments:

1.00 Mandate

The Agenda and Council Operations Committee shall be a standing committee of Council responsible for preparing, reviewing, and approving the Council agenda. The Agenda and Council Operations Committee has a mandate to ensure Council has the appropriate information to make informed decisions. The Agenda and Council Operations Committee also directs the use of the Council budget.

2.00 Membership

Speaker of Council, ex-officio as chairperson.^[1]
Council Clerk and/or Deputy Speaker, ex-officio, secretary.^[2]
Three (3) Committee Chairs as Elected by Council, voting.
Chair of the Board of Directors, ex-officio, non-voting.
President of the USC, ex-officio, non-voting.
Vice-President Governance and Finance (Secretary Treasurer)of the USC, ex-officio, non-voting.
Any members of the Western undergraduate student body as observers appointed by the chair at the discretion of the committee, non-voting.
Any Ordinary Member, Executive Officer, Director, and Officer of the corporation may attend any public sessions of the Agenda and Council Operations Committee and shall be afforded speaking rights at the discretion of the Chair.

3.00 Responsibilities

The Agenda and Council Operations Committee shall,

Be a Standing Committee of the Council.
Receive all items for review before they are presented for information or consideration by Council.
Organize the business of the Council through the preparation of the Agenda and the dissemination to members of the Council of information pertinent to the Agenda.
Determining the time and location of meetings and the allocation of relevant budget and resources for Council operations as outlined in the USC budget.
Identify training and development needs of Councilors and oversee the implementation of an effective training and development program.
Exercise the authorities and perform any duties delegated to it by the Council.

4.00 Special Rules of Procedure

No voting member of the Senior Operations Committee shall assign a proxy for voting or attendance purposes.
Due to the nature of some of the issues the Senior Operation Committee can preside over, all meetings of the Senior Operations Committee shall be open to the public unless dealing with matters deemed sensitive by any of the following:

i. The President of the USC.

ii. Vice-President Governance and Finance (Secretary-Treasurer) of the USC.

iii. The Speaker of Council.

iv. The Chair of the Board of Directors.

v. A majority of the Directors.

vi. A majority of Voting Members of the Committee.

vii. A majority of the Ordinary Voting Members of Council.

5.00 Context and Enactment

Documents Repealed –
Supporting/Related Documents – Standing Committees of Council, Standing Orders of Council
Date Passed – 14 September 2016
All previous Amendments – 19 July 2015

Associate and Coordinator Selection Directive

Authority: Council	Date Ratified: 31 October 2018
Previous Amendments: 26 October 2011, 29 February 2012	Date Review: September 2018
	Next Review Date: September 2021
Review Committee(s): Governance & Finance Standing Committee, USC Council
Delegates: Speaker of Council Associate Governance Senior Manager, Government Services

PREAMBLE

The volunteer involvement of Associates and Coordinators is fundamental to the proper and effective functioning of the University Students’ Council. Applicants to these positions must be accountable to the Executives they report to, and it is therefore appropriate that the Executives be responsible for their selection.

SCOPE:

This directive affects the selection of USC Associates and Coordinators.

For the purposes of this Directive, “Associates and Coordinators” includes all USC positions that are defined as an “Associate” or “Coordinator” in the Policies and Procedures, with the exception of the Orientation Coordinator.

DIRECTIVE

The President, in consultation with other Executive Officers, is directed and authorized to develop and maintain a process for associate and coordinator selection that meets the following criteria:

Each position must be open to all undergraduate students at the University;
Each interested applicant for a given position must have an equal opportunity to submit an application and receive an interview;
Decisions must be made fairly, based on the merits of each applicant and the demands of each position; and

Interviewing panels must contain no fewer than one (1) Executive Officer.

The Government Services Department, in consultation with the Human Resources department, is directed and authorized to establish and oversee a complaints process, which accomplishes the following objectives:

Participants in the selection process must have the opportunity to submit complaints if they suspect impropriety in the selection process.

An independent committee, containing Government Services Department staff, must be established to review complaints.

Executive Officers shall not be permitted to participate in the committee.

Executive Officers must be held accountable to selection procedures.

Impropriety in the selection process must be addressed.

RATIFICATION

All Policies, Procedures, Terms of Reference, Guidelines, and other documents drafted under this Directive, and any amendments thereto, must be ratified by the Executive Council at an Executive Council meeting before taking effect.

If the Manager of the Government Services Department believes that recommended changes to the complaints process have been unreasonably rejected, she may shall report this to the Agenda and Council Operations Standing Committee.

Any documents drafted under this Directive that contradict this Directive or fall outside the scope of this Directive are invalid.

Council may require the Executive Council to modify documents made under this Directive through a resolution of Council, or through amendments to this Directive.

Bus Pass Policy

Authority: Council	Date Ratified: 31 October 2018
Previous Amendments:	Date Review: September 2018
	Next Review Date: September 2021
Review Committee(s): Governance & Finance Standing Committee, USC Council
Delegates: Speaker of Council Associate Governance Senior Manager, Government Services

INTERPRETATION

“Administrator” shall mean the USC Bus Pass Administrator. This Administrator must be a full-time employee of the USC and shall be designated as such by the Chief Operating Officer. The Individual may have other duties in addition to administering the Bus Pass.

“LTC” means London Transit Commission.

“Bus Pass” means a LTC bus pass issued by the USC in accordance with the USC-LTC Agreement.

APPLICATION

Any full-time undergraduate student at Western shall be entitled to the use of a Bus Pass as issued by the USC under agreement with the LTC.

Possession and use of this Bus Pass will be governed and regulated by this policy, the terms and conditions on the reverse of the Bus Pass issued, and the LTC.

This policy shall apply to any undergraduate student at Western, regardless of whether or not she has acquired her Bus Pass, and whether or not she is entitled to a Bus Pass.

CONDITIONS OF USE

The user will be deemed to have accepted the terms and conditions of the Bus Pass upon her first use of the Bus Pass.

Each full-time undergraduate student must use her Bus Pass in accordance with the following guidelines:

A Bus Pass must be presented in conjunction with the student’s own UWO Photo ID Card to the LTC bus driver upon each boarding. The student number on the Bus Pass must match the student number on the UWO Photo ID Card;

The Bus Pass shall not be used in contravention of this policy, any USC-LTC agreement pertaining to the Bus Pass, or any regulation of the LTC;

A student must not make fraudulent use of a Bus Pass which includes, but is not limited to:

Allowing, either directly or indirectly, another individual to use her Bus Pass, regardless of whether or not the other individual is a student, and whether or not the other individual is entitled to a Bus Pass;

Failing to present both her UWO Photo ID card and Bus Pass concurrently and in an unobstructed manner to the driver of any LTC bus;

Altering her Bus Pass or UWO Photo ID Card for the purpose of obtaining fraudulent access to LTC services;

Attempting to make use of, or using, another student’s Bus Pass for the purposes of using a LTC bus transportation service; and

Possessing or using an unauthorized Bus Pass; and

A student shall report any lost or mutilated Bus Pass to the Administrator who will proceed in accordance with Article 5.00 and Article 6.00; and

The student must report a stolen Bus Pass to the London Police Services and/or the Campus Community Police Services, whoever is more appropriate. The student must submit a copy of this report to the Administrator.

NON-COMPLIANCE WITH THIS POLICY

A student will be subject to penalties for not complying with this policy.

Penalties shall be as follows:

Warning;

Loss of Bus Pass;

Levying of administrative costs; and/or

Suspension of their Bus Pass for three (3) academic months; this three (3) month period need not fall within the same academic year.

PROCEDURES

Reprint

Only lost, stolen, or mutilated cards will be reprinted;

The Administrator shall reprint any mutilated Bus Pass, which will be subject to costs and an administrative fee, the total of which is not to exceed $15 plus applicable taxes. The mutilated Bus Pass must be returned to the Administrator prior to the student receiving the reprinted Bus Pass;

The Administrator may reprint any Bus Pass if she reasonably believes the Bus Pass is lost. This decision shall be at the sole discretion of the Administrator. Reprinting any lost Bus Pass will be subject to costs and an administrative fee, the total of which is not to exceed $35 plus applicable taxes; and

The Administrator may reprint a stolen bus Pass without levying an administrative fee. This is at the sole discretion of the Administrator. The Administrator must first be presented with a copy of the report that the student filed with the London Police Services and/or the Campus Community Police Services.

Notification of Infraction

Where there is an alleged infraction, either the USC or the LTC will confiscate the Bus Pass in question from the student;

Notification of all confiscations shall be sent to the Administrator. If the alleged infraction involved a student and/or the Bus Pass of a student, the Administrator shall notify any involved student.
This notification will include an explanation of the confiscation and the petition procedure, and shall occur within five (5) business days of the Administrator receiving notice of the alleged infraction;
Any confiscated Bus Pass in possession of the USC will remain in possession of the USC unless it is returned to the student in accordance with this policy;

Any involved may write a petition to the Administrator to have the penalty waived in return for the Bus Pass;

Any petition must be made within twenty (20) business days of notification by the Administrator, and should include:

All relevant facts and matters of which the petitioner is aware that may has led to the confiscation; and

Any consideration that may be beneficial to the Administrator in rendering a decision upon any student; and

If no petition is made; then

Upon first infraction, the student may pay a fee to have the Bus Pass returned to her. This fee is subject to costs and an administrative fee, the total of which is not to exceed $35 plus applicable taxes; and

Any subsequent infraction may result in the student being denied access to the Bus Pass for a period not exceeding three (3) academic months. At the end of the three (3) month suspension period, the student will be assessed a fee. This fee is subject to costs and an administrative fee, the total of which is not to exceed $35 plus applicable taxes.

DECISION OF THE ADMINISTRATOR

Upon receiving a petition, the Administrator must respond to the alleged infraction within fifteen (15) business days after receiving the petition;

The Administrator will forward a copy of the petition to the Legal Affairs Officer who may be included in subsequent discussions and meetings regarding the particular petition; and

The Administrator will decide upon the appropriate action in accordance with the following provisions, including:

The Administrator may return the Bus Pass without levying a penalty;

Any penalty levied is subject to Article 5.00 of this policy;

APPEAL PROCESS

The decision of the Administrator shall be final.

By-Law #1: Corporate By-Law

Authority: Council	Date Ratified: 27 January 2021
	Next Review Date: ---
	Previous Amendments: 24 February 2009; 11 March 2018
Related Document(s): Standing Orders of Council Standing Resolutions of Council
Review Committee(s): Governance & Finance Standing Committee, USC Council Governance and Finance Sub-Committee, USC Board of Directors
Delegates: Senior Manager, Human Resources Associate, Governance

General

Common Definitions

The list of common definitions here shall apply to this Bylaw and all other USC bylaws, policies, and procedures:

i) Academic Year means the period from September 1st of any calendar year until August 31st of the following calendar year.

ii) Board Term means the annual term of the Board, which shall coincide with the corporation’s fiscal year commencing June 1st and ending May 31st.

iii) Bylaws means the bylaws relating to the transactions and affairs of the Corporation, including any bylaw adopted by the Corporation.

iv) Building on Campus means any building owned/operated by the University of Western Ontario, except for student residence.

v) Chief Operating Officer or General Manager means the most senior member of the permanent administrative staff, reporting directly to the Board of Directors and fulfilling duties as per the Chief Operating Officer Policy.

vi) Collective Agreement means the agreement between the University Students’ Council of The University of Western Ontario and Canadian Union of Public Employees and its Local 2820.

vii) Corporation means the University Students' Council of the University of Western Ontario.

viii) Director of the Corporation means a voting member of the Board of the Corporation, as outlined in Bylaw #1.

ix) Ex-officio means a member by virtue of their office.

x) General Meetings means a Duly Called Meeting of a committee, or a Council meeting that is not the Annual General Meeting.

xi) Letters Patent means the letters patent of the Corporation, as amended and supplemented by supplementary letters patent.

xii) Observer means any individual who is not a Member and who is in attendance at a meeting of Council.

xiii) Proxy means an authorization of which a member has appointed a proxyholder to attend and act on the member’s behalf at a meeting of the members.

xv) Signing Officer means an employee of the Corporation who has authority to execute contracts and other documents on behalf of the Corporation pursuant to Bylaw #1.

Bylaw #1 Definitions

The following definitions shall apply to this Bylaw and shall take precedence over definitions appearing in the list of Common Definitions found within Section 1.1 or in any other bylaws or policy.

i) Act means the Corporations Act, R.S. 1990, as amended from time and every statute that may be substituted for it.

ii) Board means the board of directors of the Corporation.

iii) Council means the Members of the corporation and the legislative branch of the Corporation.

iv) Day means any day of the week, except for Saturday, Sunday, statutory holidays, the

Corporation's winter holiday and any day on which the Corporation is closed, as determined by

the Corporation.

vi) Duly Called Meeting means a meeting of the Board, Council, or a committee called pursuant to the Bylaw or Terms of Reference, regardless of whether or not a quorum has been met.

vii) Duly Constituted Meeting means a duly called meeting where quorum is met pursuant to the Bylaw or Terms of Reference.

viii) Executive Officers means the President, Vice-President External Affairs, Vice-President University Affairs, Vice-President Governance and Finance (Secretary Treasurer), Vice-President Communications and Public Affairs, and Vice-President Student Support and Programming.

xi) Member refers to an individual holding any membership class of the Corporation:

Ordinary Member means a member of Council entitled to vote at Council meetings.
Resource Member means an individual entitled to attend meetings of Council but is not entitled to a vote.

xii) Simple Majority means more than half the votes cast, excluding blanks and abstentions.

xiii) Special Majority means at least Two-Thirds (⅔) of the votes cast, excluding blanks and abstentions.

xiv) Student means any individual undergraduate student of Western University, or an Affiliate University College, regardless of part-time status, special status, or if they are on exchange at another academic institution.

xv) University means Western University, or University of Western Ontario.

1.2 Interpretation

Other than as specified, all terms contained in this Bylaw that are defined in the Act shall have the same meaning as they do in the Act. Words importing the singular include the plural and vice versa, and words importing one gender include all genders.

1.3 Severability and Precedence

If any provision of this Bylaw is found invalid or unenforceable, this shall not affect the validity or enforceability of the remaining provisions. If any of the provisions contained in the bylaws are inconsistent with those contained in the Articles of Incorporation or the Act, the relevant provisions contained in the Articles or the Act, shall prevail.

1.4 External Affiliations

The Corporation may not be a member of any external organization in which the bylaws of the external organization, would supersede and/or conflict with the bylaws or core values of the Corporation.

1.5 Seal

The seal of the Corporation, if any, shall be in the form determined by the Board.

1.6 Elections, Referenda, and Plebiscites

Unless stated otherwise, all elections, referenda, and plebiscites conducted by the Corporation shall be conducted in accordance with Bylaw #2.

1.7 Books and Records

The Board shall ensure that all necessary books and records of the Corporation required by law are regularly and properly kept.

1.8 Purchasing, Contracts, and Signing of Cheques and Instruments

The Board shall enact a Purchasing Policy that shall delegate its authority to Officers, employees, or other agents to execute specific contracts or documents on behalf of the Corporation.

All contractual matters relating to employees, except the Chief Operating Officer, are under the purview of the Chief Operating Officer with the following exceptions:

Any termination packages exceeding $100,000, shall be presented by the Chief Operating Officer and approved by a Simple Majority of the Board.

The removal of an individual from an Executive Officer position, which shall be subject to the procedures contained within the Executive Officer Accountability and Discipline Policy.

The Board shall, at its first opportunity following the Annual General Meeting, approve a list of Officers, employees, or other agents who are authorized to execute documents during the coming fiscal year in relation to signing cheques, bills of exchange, or other orders for the payment of money on behalf of the Corporation and shall approve any changes thereafter.

1.9 Confidentiality

Employees, Agents, Officers, Members, and Directors owe a duty of confidentiality to the Corporation as detailed in the Confidentiality Policy.

1.10 Long-Term Plan

The Corporation shall maintain a long-term plan in accordance with Section 3.1. The President shall be responsible for initiating long-term planning and the Long-Term Plan shall be presented to, and require the approval of, Council.

Adoption and Amendment of Bylaws and Policies

2.1 General

The Board and Council shall enact or amend bylaws and policies in compliance with the procedure provided herein, and not contrary to the Act and the Letters Patent.

2.2 Policy Jurisdiction of the Board and Council

The Board and Council may enact, amend, or repeal policies that are in line with their jurisdiction.

The jurisdiction of the Board shall be:

Policies that relate to the authority granted to it by the Act to supervise the management of the Corporation with a focus on human resources, labour-management relations, internal controls, audit, legal and insurance, leases and contracts, purchasing and capital expenditures, banking and investment, physical plant, UCC space usage, any other general corporate policies, and The Gazette.

The jurisdiction of the Council shall be:

Policies that relate to the democratic legitimacy granted to it through election to represent the interests of Western’s undergraduate students. This shall include policies that establish the Terms of Reference, salaries and discipline and accountability of Executive Officers, and advocacy and student interest positions and policies.

If jurisdiction over a policy is unclear, the Vice-President Governance and Finance (Secretary-Treasurer) shall make a recommendation to the Speaker of Council and the President for their joint decision. If agreement can’t be found, both the Council and the Board shall be required to enact, amend, or repeal the policy.

2.3 Adoption and Amendment of Policies

The Board and Council shall establish their own procedures to govern the adoption and amendment of policies that are within their jurisdiction.

2.4 Adoption and Amendment of Bylaws

2.4.1 Amendments by the Council

If an Ordinary Member wishes to amend a bylaw, they must submit proposed amendments to the Agenda and Council Operations Standing Committee (ACOSC). If an Ordinary Member introduces a proposed amendment at a Council meeting, it shall be stood down by the Speaker and referred to the ACOSC.

The ACOSC shall review proposed amendments in consultation with the USC Chief Operating Officer and the Chair of the Board or their designates, who may engage USC legal counsel for review and comment. The Chair of the Board may also refer the matter to the Board for comment if, in their opinion, the amendment could conflict with the best interests of the Corporation.

The ACOC shall review the proposed amendment and make every effort to forward a recommendation to the Council within ten (10) days of the proposed amendment being referred to it. If it cannot make a recommendation within this timeframe, it shall provide Council with an estimated timeline at its next meeting.

The ACOC shall not decisively confirm or reject any proposed amendment, and shall provide a report to Council that includes:

i) precise wording for the proposed bylaw amendment;

ii) precise wording for any other sections of the bylaw that are affected by the proposed amendment;

iii) summary of any legal opinion sought to ensure the amendments are not in conflict with the Act, or any other laws or regulations;

iv) analysis from the SOC of the merits or ramifications of the proposed amendment; and

v) analysis from the Boardif the proposed amendments are in the best interests of the Corporation, unless this requirement has been waived by the Chair of the Board.

A motion to approve the bylaw amendments, accompanied by the report from the ACOC, shall be posted at least six (6) calendar days prior to the next Duly Called Meeting.

The Ordinary Members may approve or reject the amendments, or may amend the proposed amendments or other sections of the bylaw that are directly affected by the proposed amendments.

Amendments to the bylaws shall be approved by a Special Majority of the Ordinary Members.

2.4.2 Amendments by the Board of Directors

As per the Act, the Board may amend the bylaws. If a Director wishes to amend a bylaw they must submit the proposed amendment to the Board’s Agenda Committee with a review from the relevant subcommittee, including a rationale for the change. The Agenda Committee shall ensure that the Board has the information and advice it needs at its meeting to make a well-informed decision related to the proposed amendment.

Bylaw amendments come into force immediately upon a Simple Majority vote by the Board, but must be ratified by a Special Majority vote of the Ordinary Members at the first Duly Constituted Meeting of Council following the Board meeting in which the amendments were introduced. If the amendments are not ratified at said Council meeting, the bylaw shall revert to its previous reading.

3. Organizational Planning

3.1 Long-Term Planning

The Corporation shall maintain a Long-Term Plan that will serve as the foundation to all its operations. The package shall be comprised of:

i) Foundational document to indicate the mission, vision and values of the Council to be reviewed by Council and Board every 10 years starting from the year 2020.

ii) Series of frameworks (no limit) to outline the lenses the organization is to utilize in all operations to be reviewed by Council and Board every 4 years starting from the year 2020.

iii) Library of policy papers based on the foundational document and frameworks that outline the stances on specific files and subjects of the organization to be reviewed by Council.

3.2 Tactical Planning

The Corporation is to complete a yearly tactical plan based on the compilation of all executive mandates and goals to be approved by Council and released publicly for all relevant stakeholders.

4. Financial

4.1 Banking

The Board shall by Simple Majority designate the bank in which the money, bonds, or other securities of the Corporation shall be placed for safekeeping.

4.2 Borrowing

The Board shall by resolution have the authority to borrow money on the credit of the Corporation; limit or increase the amount of money borrowed; issue, sell, or pledge securities of the Corporation; and borrow against the assets of the Corporation.

4.3 Investments

The Board shall by resolution have the authority to direct the investments of the Corporation. It may also enact an Investment Policy that delegates its authority to other individuals to manage the investments of the Corporation.

4.4 Financial Year

The financial year of the Corporation ends on May 30 in each year or on such other date as the Board may determine. Changes to the financial year require a Simple Majority of the Board.

4.5 Annual Budget Process

The Corporation shall maintain a one (1) year operating budget and rolling three (3) year capital budget that shall be updated annually no later than March 15th of each year as per the approval process detailed within the Operating and Capital Budget Approval Policy and Procedure.

5. Directors

Subject to the Act, the directors of the Corporation shall supervise the management of the Corporation and shall be composed of:

i) Eight (8) Western undergraduate students-at-large, voting;

ii) President/CEO, ex-officio, voting;

iii) Secretary-Treasurer, ex-officio, non-voting.

5.1 Election and Term

The Board Nominating Committee shall nominate a slate of Directors for the Members to elect at the Annual General Meeting, as per the Board Nominating Committee Terms of Reference.

Directors shall be elected for two (2) year terms, with the term starting at the end of the Annual General Meeting in which they are elected and expiring at end of the AGM that occurs in their second year of service.

Directors who are elected by the Members to fill a vacancy on the Board that occurs in-between AGMs shall serve a term that expires at the next AGM.

Should a Director cease to meet the qualification requirements as per the Act or the bylaws they, shall cease to be a Director.

5.2 Removal or Discipline of Directors

The Members may remove any Director before the expiration of their term of office as per the Board of Directors Accountability, Discipline, and Removal Policy. This requires a resolution passed by a Special Majority of Ordinary Members at the General Meeting. Six (6) days’ notice of that General Meeting specifying the intention to pass the resolution must be given.

5.3 Vacancies - Directors

Should a Director resign or cease to meet the qualification requirements, the Board Nominating Committee shall nominate a replacement to the Members for election as per the procedures established within its Terms of Reference.

If there are three (3) or more vacancies, the Board shall strike a Nominating Committee to nominate a replacement to the Members as soon as possible.

If the vacancy does not result in three (3) or more vacancies and it occurs between January and the next AGM, the Board shall strike a Nominating Committee, which may recommend to the Members that the Director not be replaced until the AGM. If the vacancy results in a loss of quorum the Members shall not wait until the next AGM to fill the vacancy.

5.4 Responsibility of Directors

Every Director, when exercising their powers and discharging their duties, must:

i) act honestly, in good faith, and in the best interests of the Corporation;

ii) carry out their duties as a reasonable person would in the circumstances; and

iii) comply with the Act, all other applicable laws; and the Articles, bylaws, and policies of the Corporation.

5.5 Qualification

A Director shall meet all the requirements as