Name
The name of the organization shall be called the “Group on Student Affairs” (herein after referred to as the GSA) of the Association of American Medical Colleges (herein after referred to as the AAMC).
Purpose
The purpose of the GSA is to advance medical education and, specifically, to represent the interests of medical schools and medical students in the areas of admissions, student affairs, financial aid, diversity affairs, and student records. The functions of the GSA are to provide a means of communication among, and to facilitate interaction of, the AAMC with members with responsibilities in the above-named areas. The GSA shall advise the AAMC on matters of policy relating to the GSA's areas of interest and expertise and may recommend such policy to the Board of Directors for consideration. The GSA shall also engage in activities involving project analysis, program development, and data-gathering about emerging trends in order to assist the GSA and the AAMC to anticipate and respond effectively to changes as they affect medical education, medical schools, and medical students in the areas of the GSA's interest and expertise.
Membership
1. Members of the GSA shall be of three types:
a. Institutional members who are appointed annually by the deans of the medical schools, including provisional medical school members of the AAMC, shall serve at the pleasure of their respective deans. Each member medical school may appoint six institutional members, one in each of the GSA's five areas of interest and expertise and in addition the dean of a member medical school may appoint an additional institutional member, a member-at-large, who shall be an administrator in one of the five areas of the GSA's interest and expertise.
b. Individual members who may be self-nominated or nominated by other GSA members. They shall be administrators who work in one or more of the five areas of the GSA's interest and expertise at member medical schools and they serve without vote.
c. Affiliate members who may be appointed by the deans of medical schools that are affiliate medical school members of the AAMC (e.g., the Canadian medical schools) who shall serve without vote.
2. Institutional members shall be entitled to cast one vote per member medical school. This vote shall be cast by the institutional member so designated by the dean of each member medical school (hereinafter referred to as the "voting representative") or his/her designee.
Officers
1. The GSA officers shall consist of the GSA Chair, the GSA Chair-Elect, the GSA Vice-Chair, the GSA Immediate Past Chair, and the GSA Previous Past Chair and shall function as a coordinating body of the GSA Steering Committee. The GSA Steering Committee shall be staffed by the AAMC GSA Group Program Leader.
2. The GSA Chair will appoint annually the chair of the GSA Nominating Committee. The Immediate Past Chair of the GSA will usually serve as chair of the GSA Nominating Committee; the current chairs of regional Groups on Student Affairs (hereinafter referred to as regional GSAs) will usually constitute the membership of the GSA Nominating Committee. Prior to the July Steering Committee meeting, the GSA Nominating Committee will solicit nominees from each region. During the July GSA Steering Committee meeting, the GSA Nominating Committee will identify two finalists and provide those two nominees annually to the membership at large for purposes of selecting a GSA Vice-Chair. The names, brief biographies, photographs, and personal statements of the nominees will be provided to all GSA institutional members to familiarize them with each nominee's goals and purposes for his/her tenure as an officer. One ballot containing the names of nominees provided by the GSA Nominating Committee will be sent by mail or electronically to the GSA voting representative at each member medical school. The GSA voting representative will vote after consultation with the full GSA delegation at his/her medical school. Balloting will be completed by October 1 of each year. Voting will be done by mail or electronically as arranged by the GSA Group Program Leader. The results of the election will be announced at the GSA Business Meeting at the AAMC Annual Meeting. Election to the position will be by simple majority of voting representatives.
3. The person elected as the GSA Vice-Chair shall serve a five-year term of office on the GSA Steering Committee under the assumption of automatic progress through the offices of GSA Vice-Chair (one year), GSA Chair-Elect (one year), GSA Chair (one year), GSA Immediate Past Chair (one year) and GSA Previous Past Chair (one year).
4. The term of office of the elected GSA officers shall extend from the end of the GSA Business Meeting at the AAMC Annual Meeting, at which time each officer will assume the appropriate office in the progression, until the end of the GSA Business Meeting at the AAMC Annual Meeting of the following year, at which time each officer will move to the next office in the progression.
5. If a vacancy occurs during the term of office of the Vice Chair, Chair-elect or Chair, those officers holding positions will be advanced to fill the vacancy. A GSA Vice-Chair will be selected by the GSA Steering Committee to serve until the next GSA Business Meeting at the AAMC Annual Meeting, at which time the GSA Nominating Committee will either forward the name of the interim officers as a nominee or nominate two other candidates for the position of GSA Chair-elect, as well as nominate other candidates for the position of GSA Vice-Chair. If a vacancy occurs during the term of office of the Immediate Past Chair or Previous Past Chair, the other officers will not be advanced to fill the vacancy. The office will remain vacant until filled by the normal progression. The GSA National Chair will appoint a regional chair to sit on the GSA Committee that the Immediate Past Chair would be sitting on. The other officers will assume any other duties normally assigned to the Immediate Past or Previous Past Chairs.
6. Eligibility for GSA offices will be limited to institutional GSA Members. Should a GSA Officer leave his or her medical school for a position at another member medical school, he or she could continue on in his or her office as long as he or she was now the institutional GSA member for that school. If a GSA officer, any member of the GSA Steering Committee or one of the national GSA committees leaves their current medical school and are no longer serving as the institutional GSA member, they are expected to resign from their position.
7. The GSA Group Program Leader shall be an AAMC staff member appointed by the AAMC President. Contact with major related organizations the GSA shall be coordinated by the Group Program Leader.
Committees
1. GSA Committees
a. The GSA Steering Committee shall be composed of the five G SA officers, the four regional GSA chairs, and the chairs of the five national GSA committees:
i. Committee on Admissions
ii. Committee on Student Diversity Affairs
iii. Committee on Student Affairs
iv. Committee on Student Financial Assistance
v. Committee on Student Records
b. In addition the GSA Steering Committee shall have liaison members from the Council of Deans Administrative Board, the Organizations of Student Representatives, and the National Association of Advisors for the Health Professions. All members of the GSA Steering Committee shall be voting members. Appropriate AAMC staff may also be ex-officio, non-voting members of the GSA Steering Committee. The meetings of the GSA Steering Committee are closed. Only members and invited guests should attend. The GSA Steering Committee shall have the duties of an executive committee for the GSA, including assistance in the planning for GSA national and regional meetings and advising the GSA Chair on GSA committee appointments and working group assignments.
c. Other GSA committees and working groups may be appointed as needed for the work of the GSA by the GSA Chair in consultation with the GSA Steering Committee and with the concurrence of the AAMC President. The meetings of the GSA committees are closed. Only members and invited guests should attend.
d. Any institutional GSA member and any individual GSA member who has the permission of the dean of the member medical school at which he/she holds an administrative position in (an) area(s) of the GSA's interest and expertise shall be eligible for membership on GSA committees. Eligibility for the position of chair of one of the GSA committees shall be limited to institutional GSA members.
e. Appointments of national chairpersons and regional representatives on GSA national committees shall be made annually as terms expire by the GSA Chair with the advice of the GSA Steering Committee and input from leadership, membership and constituents represented by the respective national committees. An individual may not be appointed to the same committee for more than three consecutive years except to serve for a maximum of three additional years as chair of a committee or, at the discretion of the GSA Chair with the advice of the GSA Steering Committee, to serve additional consecutive years to retain special expertise.
f. The selection process:
i. At the July GSA Committee meetings, the GSA Chair, with assistance from AAMC staff, will identify national committee chairpersons and regional representative positions for which the term of the existing chair or representative is set to expire at the Annual GSA Business Meeting. The GSA Chair will notify the regional chairs of their need to submit names for consideration for anticipated regional representative vacancies.
ii. For national committee chairmanships, by August 1st the GSA Chair will send an email announcement to all members of the existing committee, respective constituency, and GSA Steering Committee soliciting names of potential candidates for consideration to fill the upcoming vacancy to be submitted by September 1st. Candidates must be the Dean-designated, institutional representative in the respective constituency. A brief description of the position and its responsibilities will accompany the announcement.
iii. For regional representatives to national committees, by August 1st the respective GSA Regional Chair will send an email announcement to all regional members of the respective constituency soliciting names of potential candidates for consideration to fill the upcoming vacancy to be submitted by September 1st. A brief description of the position and its responsibilities will accompany the announcement.
iv. For national chairmanships, the GSA Chair will take the submitted names into consideration and seek advice from the existing national committee members and the GSA Steering Committee.
v. For regional representatives, the regional chair will take the submitted names into consideration and seek advice from the regional steering committee to determine the names to be forwarded to the GSA National Chair for the final selection.
vi. By October 1st, the final appointees should be named.
vii. Vacancies for unexpired terms shall be filled by the GSA chair for national chairmanships, regional chair for regional representatives. Respective steering committee, regional, and constituency leadership will be consulted.
g. The number and functions of GSA committees shall be reviewed annually by the GSA Steering Committee. As appropriate, GSA committees no longer needed may be dissolved by the GSA Chair, in consultation with the GSA Steering Committee and the GSA Group Program Leader, or on the recommendation of the AAMC Board of Directors.
h. GSA committee appointments shall extend from the November GSA Business Meeting one year to the subsequent GSA Business Meeting the following year.
2. GSA committees shall include representatives from each regional GSA. GSA committees may, from time to time, invite, as guests, representatives from other appropriate organizations (e.g., health professions advisors and the OSR) to meet with the committee. The GSA Group Program Leader will assign appropriate AAMC staff members to GSA committees.
3. Minutes should be kept of all GSA committee meetings and circulated to committee members and to others appropriately concerned. Official records of all GSA committee meetings will be maintained at the AAMC.
4. The role of all GSA committees shall be advisory to the GSA Steering Committee and the AAMC. Accordingly, they shall obtain approval for any major projects from the GSA Steering Committee and from the AAMC. Contacts with major organizations outside the GSA (e.g., the Federation of State Medical Boards, the medical specialty boards, etc.) shall be undertaken through AAMC channels, including communications with appropriate AAMC Councils, and in accordance with policies and procedures approved by the GSA Steering Committee. Descriptions of the purpose and function of each current GSA committee shall be on file at the AAMC and should be distributed to each new member of each committee.
Meetings and Quorums
1. At least one meeting of the GSA membership shall be held annually. All GSA members (institutional, individual, and affiliate) are invited to the annual GSA meeting. The GSA Steering Committee meetings and other GSA committee meetings are open only to committee members and invited guests. Additional meetings may be called by the GSA Steering Committee or by the voting representatives at 25 percent of member medical schools.
2. A majority of the voting representatives of member medical schools (as defined in Section III.2) shall constitute a quorum.
3. Formal actions other than the election of GSA officers may be taken at meetings in which a quorum is present. At such meetings, decisions will be made by a simple majority vote of voting representatives present.
4. In the conduct of meetings, the order of business shall be under the direction of the GSA Chair who shall make all parliamentary decisions. The Chair's decisions may be reversed by a two-thirds majority of voting representatives present.
Regional Groups on Student Affairs
1. The purpose of the regional GSAs shall be to encourage communication among GSA members with common regional interests and to provide a forum for discussion of matters to be acted on at national GSA meetings.
2. The total number and geographical names of the regional GSAs, as presently constituted, shall be continued unless changed by action taken at a national GSA meeting. The presently constituted regional GSAs are:
a. Central,
b. Northeast,
c. Southern, and
d. Western.
3. Any institutional GSA member and any individual GSA member who has received the permission of the dean of the member medical school at which he/she holds an administrative position in (an) area(s) of the GSA's interest and expertise shall be eligible for membership in the appropriate regional GSA. Eligibility for the position of chair of regional GSAs shall be limited to institutional GSA members.
4. Each regional GSA shall have a chair and chair-elect and other such officers as are necessary to carry out regional GSA business. Regional GSA officers will be selected by the voting representatives of the member medical schools located in that region.
5. Each regional GSA shall hold at least one meeting annually unless a simple majority of all of the voting representatives at the member medical schools located in the region vote (by mail or at a previous meeting) to postpone or cancel a meeting.
6. Regional GSAs shall appoint such committees as are necessary to carry out regional GSA business. Institutional and individual GSA members will be eligible for appointment to regional GSA committees.
7. Regional GSAs shall have rules and regulations which are in conformity with these rules and regulations and which have been approved by the GSA Steering Committee.
Amendments
Subject to approval by the AAMC President and the AAMC Board of Directors, these rules and regulations may be altered, repealed, or amended or new rules and regulations adopted by a two-thirds vote of the voting members representatives present at any annual national meeting of the GSA membership for which 30 days' written notice of the proposed rules and regulations change has been given, provided that the total number of votes cast for the changes constitute a majority of the voting representatives.
Appendix:
Original GSA Bylaws adopted Fall, 1965, AAMC Annual Meeting
Approved September 15, 1972, AAMC Executive Council
Amended March 26, 1981, AAMC Executive Council
Amended September 12, 1985, AAMC Executive Council
Amended February 16, 1995, AAMC Executive Council
New GSA Bylaws approved February 27, 1997, AAMC Executive Council
Rules and Regulations Amended by GSA Steering Committee July 16, 2010
Rules and Regulations Amended by GSA Membership at GSA Business Meeting, San Francisco, CA, November 3, 2012
Rules and Regulations Amended by AAMC Board of Directors, August 23, 2013