Approved: July 15, 2020
Next review: September 2020
1. General Purpose
1.1. To support and represent graduate students in the Department of Art History.
1.2. To cultivate a collegial social and academic environment among students, faculty, and staff.
1.3. To foster equity, inclusion, and diversity within GUStA’s internal practices and events, and to support and promote these values in the academic community.
1.4. To seek and maintain fair representation of graduate students in the administration and decision making of the Department of Art History, particularly with regards to matters that may affect the interests of graduate students.
1.5. To provide channels for communicating and cooperating with other organizations within the University.
1.6. To advocate on behalf of the graduate students to the Department, School of Graduate Studies, and Graduate Student Union, as well as assisting in accessing formal procedures in resolving grievances through other offices such as the Anti-Racism and Cultural Diversity Office, Sexual and Gender Diversity Office, and the Office of the Dean at the School of Graduate Studies.
1.7. To represent the interests of graduate students in relevant academic matters, particularly the form and content of the graduate programs in the Department of Art History.
1.8. To represent the interests of graduate students in the provision of facilities and other resources for graduate students.
2. Membership
2.1. Membership includes all people registered in the School of Graduate Studies as full- or part-time graduate students in the Department of Art History.
2.2. All members have voting rights.
2.3. Incoming students who are not yet registered in the School of Graduate Studies may participate in GUStA activities and meetings at the discretion of the Executive but will not have voting rights.
3. Executive
3.1. The Executive is the governing body of GUStA and is composed of four (4) positions. These include:
a) President or Co-Presidents
b) Vice-President(s)
c) Treasurer
d) Secretary
3.2. Should an Executive position become vacant mid-term, the remaining members of the Executive may appoint another member to the position until an official election is possible. The length of this interim appointment may be no longer than 1 month during the academic Fall/Winter terms.
3.3. Should the President or Co-Presidents need to be away during the academic year for personal or professional responsibilities, the President or Co-Presidents must appoint a Deputy President for the duration of the absence.
3.4. All powers not explicitly devoted to the members of the Executive belong to the body politic.
4. Officers
4.1. Officers are elected representatives of GUStA. There are fourteen (14) Officer positions:
a) Graduate Students’ Union (GSU) Representative(s)
b) CUPE 3902 Steward(s)
c) Faculty-Student Liaison(s)
d) Inclusivity, Equity, and Diversity (IED) Officer(s)
e) Graduate-Undergraduate Student Liaison
f) Social Coordinator(s)
g) Wollesen Symposium Chair(s)
h) Wollesen Symposium Committee Representative(s)
i) Academic/Advancement Events Representative(s)
j) Editor(s)-in-Chief, University of Toronto Art Journal
k) Editorial Committee Representative(s), University of Toronto Art Journal
l) Writing Group Representative(s)
m) Library and Image Services Representative
n) Website and Social Media Representative(s)
4.2. All Officers are accountable to the Executive.
4.3. All Officers of GUStA are elected, and all members of GUStA are eligible to be Officers.
4.4. With the exception of the Faculty-Student Liaison, which is filled by a PhD candidate or student, the Officer positions are open to members of both the MA and PhD programs. Priority for the Inclusivity, Equity, and Diversity (IED) Representative(s)* will be given to self-nominating members of GUStA who self-identify as BIPOCQT. In the absence of self-nomination from a BIPOCQT member, the position may open to a non-BIPOCQT candidate who must be nominated by other members of GUStA based on the candidate’s demonstrated interest in inclusivity, equity, and diversity. Any candidates running for the position of Wollensen Symposium Chair(s) must have attended at least one Symposium in any capacity.
4.5. Should one of these positions become vacant mid-term, the Executive may appoint another member to the position until an official election is possible. The length of this interim appointment may be no longer than one (1) month during the academic Fall/Winter terms.
5. Elections
5.1. All elections are held at a general meeting. Elections for President, Vice President, and Wollesen Symposium Chair are held in April. All other Executive and Officer positions are elected in September.
5.2. Nominations are invited by the President two weeks before elections and are accepted until the election. Nominations and self-nominations must be seconded by another member present at the meeting before the election.
5.3. Voting will be by show-of-hands of those present at the general meeting.
5.4. Within three days of the general meeting a list of the elected officers’ names and their program registrations (MA or PhD) will be publicly announced.
5.5. Newly elected Executives and Officers shall assume their official duties as delineated in the following two items (5.6 and 5.7).
5.6. The term of office for the President or Co-Presidents and Vice President is twelve (12) months and will commence May 1 following the election.
5.7. The term of office for all other Executive and Officer positions will commence immediately following the election in September and will terminate August 31 of the following year.
5.8. Executive and Officers may be recalled by a 2/3 vote at any general meeting.
6. Meetings of GUStA
6.1. General meetings will be publicly announced and held at least four (4) times per year. General meetings must be announced at least two weeks in advance.
6.2. A general meeting may be called by ten members petitioning the Executive.
6.3. A quorum is constituted by an attendance of ten percent of the members of GUStA.
6.4. General meetings and Executive/Officers meetings will be chaired by the President or Co-Presidents.
7. Financial Responsibility
7.1. Any funds held by GUStA are deposited in an account in a nearby bank and are the Executive’s responsibility.
7.2. The Executive may not contract debts on behalf of GUStA.
7.3. At least two Executive members must approve spending of these funds and sign all checks.
7.4. Should the GUStA fail to elect a Treasurer, the Executive has the responsibility to supervise the management of all financial assets.
7.5. Should the GUStA fail to elect an Executive, and thereby become dormant, signing authority for GUStA funds shall be held in trust by the Department of Art History.
8. Responsibilities of the Executive and Officers
All Executives and Officers agree to abide by the GUStA Policy* which is guided by the Ontario Human Rights Code, and take part in creating a welcoming and safe environment for all members of GUStA.
8.1. President or Co-Presidents
a) Call for and chair GUStA meetings. Prepare meeting agendas and circulate at least one (1) week prior to each meeting.
b) Meet with the Director of Graduate Studies and Department Chair once per semester to discuss GUStA initiatives or problems on behalf of GUStA members.
c) Hold signing authority with the Treasurer. Co-sign all GUStA cheques.
d) Oversee GUStA activities and ensure plans made at meetings are completed.
e) Administer the distribution of study carrels and lockers in the Graduate Study Space and Common Room.
f) Organize some means of welcoming new graduate students to the Graduate Department of Art, and give a presentation about GUStA at the new student orientation.
g) Call for and preside over the election process for President at the end of the academic year and for all other Executive and Officer positions at the start of the academic year.
h) Prepare a written report of completed and ongoing projects at the end of the term.
8.2. Vice-President(s)
a) Provide support and assistance to the President or Co-Presidents.
8.3. Treasurer
a) Create GUStA’s annual budget and present it for approval by the Executive and Officers at the second general meeting.
b) Monitor all income and expenses by maintaining GUStA’s ledger.
c) Complete and submit the GSU Head Grant application.
d) Hold signing authority with the President or one Co-President. Co-sign all GUStA cheques.
e) Make deposits into the GUStA bank account.
f) Provide support to Executive and Officers who are completing funding applications for GUStA initiatives.
g) Present a budget of all income and expenditures incurred since September at GUStA’s year-end meeting in April. He or she must also distribute a written financial statement on the GUStA listserv at the end of the term.
8.4. Secretary
a) Take minutes at GUStA meetings and distribute them on the GUStA listserv.
b) Maintain GUStA’s electronic archive on Google Drive.
8.5. Graduate Students’ Union (GSU) Representative(s)
a) Attend a minimum of three (3) out of four (4) Graduate Students’ Union Council monthly meetings. If the Representative cannot attend a meeting, he or she must arrange for another GUStA member to attend on their behalf.
b) Speak on behalf of GUStA members at the Graduate Students’ Union Council meetings.
c) Forward the weekly GSU Digest to GUStA members via the GUStA listserv.
8.6. CUPE 3902 Steward(s)
a) Attend meetings held by CUPE and represent the interests of GUStA and its members at those meetings.
8.7. Faculty-Student Liaison(s)
a) Represent the interests of GUStA members at Graduate Committee meetings (in cases which graduate student attendance is permitted), and report back to GUStA. The Faculty Committee Representative must be in the PhD program.
b) Work closely with the Inclusivity, Equity, and Diversity Representative to ensure that the resolutions of the Equity and Diversity Committee** are reflected in the conduct of the Graduate Committee meetings.
8.8. Inclusivity, Equity, and Diversity (IED) Representative(s)***
a) Attend all meetings of the Department’s Equity and Diversity Committee meetings and represent the interests of GUStA members, and report back to GUStA; plan and moderate internal GUStA meetings to discuss the needs of graduate students.
b) Work closely with the Faculty-Student Liaison to ensure that the Graduate Committee meetings align with the interests of equity and diversity.
c) Work with the Executive to develop and issue an annual review of work completed in the interest of equity, inclusivity, and diversity, as well as an updated annual anti-discrimination statement.
8.9. Graduate-Undergraduate Student Liaison
a) Represent GUStA at HASA meetings and encourage coordination of events.
8.10. Social Coordinator(s)
a) Plan and advertise social events, such as parties, pub nights, and museum visits, for graduate students in the Department.
8.11. Wollesen Symposium Chair(s)
a) Organize all aspects of the annual symposium, including conceiving of a theme and writing a call for papers, distributing the call for papers, inviting a keynote speaker, reviewing submissions and selecting graduate student speakers, booking space and catering for the event, fundraising and managing the budget, advertising, providing direction to the Symposium Committee Representative(s), and other required duties.
8.12. Wollesen Symposium Committee Representative(s)
a) Provide support and assistance to the Symposium Chair(s) on tasks related to the annual symposium.
8.13. Academic/Advancement Events Representative(s)
a) Coordinate all aspects of inviting guest lecturers on behalf of GUStA, including selecting and inviting a speaker, room and equipment booking, advertising, coordinating with the speaker on travel arrangements, and accommodations, managing the budget, and planning a reception as required.
b) Coordinate all aspects of GUStA’s Brown Bag Lunch speaker series, including corresponding with faculty members or other invited speakers from the University of Toronto, room and equipment booking, advertising, and other required duties.
8.14. Editor(s)-in-Chief, University of Toronto Art Journal
a) Coordinate all aspects of publishing the University of Toronto Art Journal, including attending GUStA’s symposium, selecting papers, corresponding with the authors, publishing the journal online, and providing direction to the Editorial Committee Representative(s).
8.15. Editorial Committee Representative(s), University of Toronto Art Journal
a) Provide support and assistance to the Editor-in-Chief on tasks related to publishing the University of Toronto Art Journal.
8.16. Writing Group Representative(s)
a) Coordinate regular graduate writing group meetings and retreats; send out regular email reminders before each meeting or retreat.
b) Survey the needs of the graduate students to propose, schedule, and facilitate workshops, and liaise with faculty members involved in the graduate writing group to contact workshop facilitators as needed.
8.17. Library and Visual Resources Representative
a) Communicate with Margaret English (Art Librarian) and Nicholas Westbridge (Curator, Visual Resources) and express graduate student questions, concerns, and suggestions.
8.18. Website and Social Media Representative(s)****
a) Maintain the GUStA website and all social media (Facebook, Twitter, Instagram) accounts. Initiate and complete updates to website design and content as necessary
9. Amendments of the Constitution
9.1. Amendments may be passed at a general meeting by a 2/3 vote of those present at a general meeting.
10. Accessibility
10.1. The Constitution will be made available to anyone upon request.
10.2. Reasonable effort will be made to ensure the spirit and content of this constitution are known to the members of GUStA.
10.3. A paper copy of the constitution will be available in the GUStA archives, held in the Department of Art Library office. An electronic copy will be made available on GUStA’s website: https://uoftgusta.wordpress.com/about/constitution/
11. Notes
* Currently in development as of summer 2020; scheduled vote to ratify in September 2020
** The name and structure of the Committee/working group are subject to change
*** The responsibilities of this role will be reviewed annually at the year-end review of work completed in the interest of equity, inclusivity, and diversity
**** This role is being reviewed in the summer of 2020; scheduled vote to ratify in September 2020
GUStA 