1. SGA BylawsSGA Bylaws
Article I. Essential Functions of the SGA Student Senate
Section I. Responsibilities
Section II. Proportions of Constituency
Section III. Senate Procedures
Article II. Essential Functions of the General Assembly
Section I. Purpose
Section II. Appropriation of Funds
Article III. Membership in the General Assembly
Article IV. Meetings of the General Assembly
Section I. Regular Business
Section II. Membership Responsibility
Article V. Eligibility and Membership in the Executive Cabinet
Article VI. General Procedures for the Executive Cabinet
Article VII. General Procedures for the Campus Activities Board
Article VIII. Elections and Appointments
Section I. Timing
Section II. Procedure
Article IX. Compensation
Article X. Grievance and Petition Policy
Article XI. Additional Policies
Edited by Vance Stegman SGA Vice President of the Student Senate 2/29/12

2. Article I. Student Senate
Section I. Responsibilities
A. Promote and facilitate close cooperation and communication between the Student body and
the staff, faculty and administration of Sterling College to contribute to the decisions and
processes of the college.
B. To identify and be responsive to changing student needs.
C. Establish equitable representation and participation for the students of the college
community.
Section II. Proportions of Constituency
A. Each class will have no less than two senators representing them.
B. Class population will be determined by completed hours recognized by the Registrar.
C. In order to keep the representative body accurate, for each class that has over 100 students,
a new Senator will be elected for every additional 40 students.
D. Should constituent volume increase, reapportionment will take place after each semester as
to keep with accurate representation.
E. Each dormitory and commuters will only have one Senator from each corresponding
constituency.
Section III. Senate Procedures
A. Senate meetings will take place at least once a month during the academic year with a two-
thirds quorum at each meeting.
B. The Moderator of the Senate will call special meetings as needed with at least 3 days notice.
C. The agendas for both regular and special meetings will be sent to all senators no less than
three calendar days before the meeting.
D. Executive Cabinet will give reports to the Student Senate.
E. The Senate shall elected officers as deemed necessary. A Moderator pro tempore shall be
selected at the beginning of the term.
F. The Executive Secretary will record the minutes of the meetings and submit them to the
SGA Executive Cabinet, the Vice President of the Student Senate and all other Senators
within 3 days of the meeting.
G. The Senate will follow Parliamentary Procedure.
H. The Senate recommends policy through resolutions.
I. All resolutions passed by the Senate shall be subject to the veto of the SGA President within
one week.
J. A veto from the SGA President may be overridden by a two-thirds vote from the Senate.
K. All Senators are required to attend a training session during the first three weeks of the
Senates term.
L. Each Senator will communicate with their constituents at least once a month through
electronic means or through called meetings with additional meetings as necessary.
Edited by Vance Stegman SGA Vice President of the Student Senate 2/29/12

3. Following the Senators monthly meetings a summary will be submitted to the Moderator of
the Senate.
Article II. Essential Functions of the SGA General Assembly
Section I. Purpose
The purpose of the General Assembly is to serve as the overall assembly for the various
organizations under the Association. Organizations are to improve the quality of life of all
students attending Sterling College. They also exist to provide an avenue of entertainment
and education.
Section II. Appropriation of Funds
A. For funding, any person or organization within the Student Association must submit a
budget to the Executive Cabinet of the Student Government Association as outlined in
the Constitution.
Article III. Membership in the General Assembly
A. All student organizations may be granted membership and be represented by a voting
delegate to the General Assembly.
B. Criteria for provisional student organization membership in the General Assembly shall be
determined by the following:
1. Each organization must have at least five active members, in addition to the officers, who
have regular participation in organization activities.
2. Each organization must be represented at all General Assembly meetings. A
representative needs to be on record with the Director of Campus Activities.
3. Each organization must have a faculty or staff advisor that is kept informed at all times.
4. Each organization must present a constitution and current list of all officers, and they
must have these on file with the Executive Cabinet and their own files.
5. Each organization must agree to abide by all guidelines set forth in their organization
constitution and the SGA Constitution.
6. Members of the Executive Cabinet may not represent an organization at the General
Assembly meeting.
C. All Organizations must:
1. Be instructed and guided by the Sterling College Mission and Vision Statements.
2. Be committed to initiating services that will benefit the entire Sterling College
community through the cooperative effort of interested students and a faculty or staff
advisor.
3. Be aware of and intentional about how it represents Sterling College to the
constituencies, which it serves.
Edited by Vance Stegman SGA Vice President of the Student Senate 2/29/12

4. Article IV. Meetings of the General Assembly
Section I. Regular Business
A. The General Assembly shall meet at least twice a semester, as outlined in the Constitution.
B. All meetings shall include Christian prayer and should also include a Christian devotion.
Section II. Membership Responsibility
A. All members of the General Assembly have a responsibility to attend all meetings or send an
alternate in his/her place.
B. An organization missing more than one meeting per semester will be subject to dismissal
from SGA or the termination of SGA funds at the discretion of the General Assembly and the
Student Senate upon recommendation of the Executive Cabinet.
Article V. Eligibility and Membership in the Executive Cabinet
A. All members of the Executive Cabinet must have and maintain a cumulative grade point
average of at least 2.7.
B. Executive Cabinet members must have been a full-time student at Sterling College for at
least one completed semester.
C. All members of the Executive Cabinet must be students in good standing with the college.
(No suspensions or expulsions from Sterling College on record from the previous year and
not currently on disciplinary or academic probation.)
Article VI. General Procedures for the Executive Cabinet
A. All members of the Executive Cabinet are required to maintain regular, posted office hours
totaling no less than six hours per week.
B. The Executive Cabinet shall meet no less than once per week to discuss issues relating to
the Student Association.
Article VII. General procedures for Campus Activities Board
A. The Campus Activities Board shall meet no less than once a week to discuss issues relating
to campus activities.
B. An officer of the Campus Activities Board must be a student in good standing and good
academic standing with the college. (No suspensions or expulsions from Sterling College on
record from the previous year and not currently on disciplinary probation.)
C. All members of the Campus Activities Board must have and maintain a cumulative grade
point average of at least 2.5.
Edited by Vance Stegman SGA Vice President of the Student Senate 2/29/12

5. Article VIII. Elections and Appointments
Section I. Timing
A. The Executive Cabinet shall be elected and functioning by early April. Executive Employees
should be hired within 5 calendar days and approved by the Student Senate in May.
B. Delegates to the General Assembly will be elected by the Monday of the second full week of
the new school year. The Director of Campus Activities is to make sure that each
organization in the General Assembly has selected a delegate by the deadline.
C. Student Senators are to be elected before the May Student Senate meeting with the
exception of the freshman class. These names are to be reported to the Vice President of the
Student Senate.
D. The Executive Cabinet’s term of service shall begin in early April and shall end the day after
elections in the following school year, while acting as advisors to the new Executive Cabinet
for the remainder of the semester. Executive Employees will continue working and training
until the end of the academic year. The final Spring semester paycheck will be withheld until
the advising/mentoring process for new Cabinet members has been completed as
determined by the newly elected President.
Section II. Procedure
A. Election Convention
1. An election convention will be organized and implemented by the Executive Secretary
prior to the general election for the purpose of familiarizing the candidates to the student
body.
2. All candidates for elected positions on the Executive Cabinet must give a speech at the
Election Convention Forum.
B. General Election
1. The general election shall consist of the entire student body’s vote on the offices of
President, Executive Secretary, the Campus Activities Director, and the Student
Chaplain.
2. All candidates for the general election must file a petition with the Executive Cabinet,
provided by the Executive Secretary, consisting of 25 student signatures no later than
one week prior to the election.
3. The general election shall be held in the beginning of April.
4. The Executive Secretary must post in the Student Union and advertise in The Stir and
any other publication or place requested by the Executive Cabinet all names of eligible
candidates as soon as possible after the petition-filing deadline.
C. Voting and Counting of Ballots
1. All students enrolled at the time of any Sterling College Organization election are eligible
to vote.
2. The polls for the general election shall be near the entrance doors to the Student Union
cafeteria during the noon and evening meals of the cafeteria.
3. Individuals appointed by the Executive Cabinet shall be the only authorized personnel to
count ballots. This count will take place in the immediate presence of the Staff Advisor.
4. Authorized personnel are responsible for handling ballots and enrollment lists in such a
way as to prevent anyone from tampering with the election results.
5. Candidates gaining the majority of the votes cast shall be declared the winner. In case of
a tie, there shall be a runoff election within one week of the general election, where only
the candidates who had tied appear on the ballot.
6. Results shall be made available to candidates immediately upon completion of the count.
If there is only one eligible candidate for an office, the name of the unopposed candidate
will appear on a ballot unopposed. This will allow for a fair election in the case of a
write-in-candidate. The lack of an eligible candidate for any office shall be reported to
the new President, who shall appoint a student to the position in question immediately
Edited by Vance Stegman SGA Vice President of the Student Senate 2/29/12

6. following the general election, subject to approval by the Student Senate. The appointee
must meet the eligibility requirements as outlined in Article V. of the SGA Bylaws.
D. Protests
1. Any protests concerning any part of the election or appointment process shall be made
in writing to the Student Government Association advisor within one week of the
completion of the election and appointment process.
2. When rendering a binding decision concerning a specific protest, the advisor will take
into account the Constitution, Bylaws, and the specific circumstances involved.
3. All elections and appointments not protested within one week of said election or
appointment shall be considered valid.
Article IX. Compensation
A. Annual compensation of the Executive Cabinet are as follows:
President $2,200
VP of Student Senate $1,500
Executive Secretary $1,500
Director of Campus Activities $1,500
Student Chaplain $1,500
Executive Treasurer $1,500
Office Consultant $1,500
Total Compensation for Executive Cabinet $11,200
B. Annual compensation of the General Employees is subject to change in accordance with the
circumstances of the given year. However, the total compensation is not to exceed the
following:
Stir Positions: $1300/year
Yearbook Editor: $900/year
Yearbook Staff (4 positions available): $600/year
Sterling College Online Radio (SCOR) Positions: $1000/year
C. Annual compensation of Campus Activity Board Members are as follows:
President $1500
Secretary $900
Treasurer $900
Publicist $900
Coordinator $900
D. Failure to perform duties as outlined in the Constitution and Bylaws (as deemed by a
majority vote of the General Assembly) shall result in withholding of compensation based on
recommendation by the SGA President and the SGA Advisor.
Edited by Vance Stegman SGA Vice President of the Student Senate 2/29/12

7. Article X. Grievance and Petitioning Policy
Part of SGA’s goal is to facilitate relations between students and other parts of the college. SGA
has developed a formal policy for hearing student concerns and bringing them before the
administration. Legitimate questions, concerns, and recommendations shall be brought before
the Student Senate utilizing the following format:
A. Obtain the Formal Petitioning Guide from the SGA office and complete all required
information.
B. Return the completed form to the SGA executive cabinet at least 2 weeks prior to the
next Student Senate meeting for preliminary review and approval. Within one week of
being submitted, SGA will respond concerning the status of the petition.
C. If approved, the person(s) filing the petition will be placed on the agenda for the next
general assembly meeting and will be expected to present a short summary outlining
their question, concern, or recommendation, including a proposed solution. SGA will
endeavor to ensure the attendance of the appropriate administrative representative at
/that meeting to provide input, explanation, and possible solutions.
D. SGA will follow up with the original filer of the petition within 30 days of the general
assembly meeting to ensure that progress has been made toward resolving the
grievance.
Article XI. Additional Policies
A. Additional policies regarding campus organizations are located in the SGA Sourcebook.
The policies and procedures specified by the SGA Sourcebook should be considered
subsidiary to the SGA By-Laws. Amendments to the SGA Sourcebook must be made in
accordance with the policy for amending the SGA By-Laws.
Edited by Vance Stegman SGA Vice President of the Student Senate 2/29/12