About SFHR

Art. 1

The association's name is Stúdentafélag Háskólans í Reykjavík (hereafter "the association" or "SFHR"), in English The Student Association of Reykjavik University. Its domicile and legal venue are in Reykjavík. The board's term of office and the association's financial year run between annual general meetings.

Art. 2

The purpose of the student association is to safeguard the interests of students at Reykjavík University, strengthen unity among members and promote informed academic discussion among members.

Art. 3

All students enrolled at Reykjavík University are members of the association.

Art. 4

The annual general meeting holds supreme authority in the association's affairs. The annual general meeting of the Student Association of Reykjavík University shall be held at the end of the spring semester each year. It shall be convened in a lawful manner at least two weeks before the scheduled meeting date, failing which it is deemed unlawful, and the agenda shall accompany the notice of the meeting. All members of the student association are entitled to attend the annual general meeting. The President opens the meeting and appoints a chair of the meeting, who directs the discussion. The annual general meeting shall follow rules of procedure approved by the board.

For a motion at the annual general meeting to pass, it requires the approval of a majority of those present; this does not, however, apply to motions to amend the association's bylaws, which are governed by these bylaws. Motions on matters not listed in the meeting notice shall not be put to a vote unless two-thirds of those present have approved taking up the motion.

At the annual general meeting, two examiners shall be elected to review the association's accounts. The examiners shall not sit on the association's board and may not have been directly involved in the association's finances during the financial year under review. The review shall be completed no later than three days after the annual general meeting. The examiners shall report on their work at the annual general meeting under the agenda item "The Director of Finance presents the annual financial report."

Art. 5

The outgoing Vice President writes the minutes of the annual general meeting.

The agenda of the annual general meeting is as follows:

• i. Election of the chair of the meeting.
• ii. The President of the Student Association of Reykjavík University reviews the year's work.
• iii. The Director of Finance presents the annual financial report.
• iv. Amendments to the bylaws.
• v. The election committee reports the election results.
• vi. Handover to the new board.
• vii. Other business.

Art. 6 The board of the association

The board of the student association (hereafter "the board") shall consist of seven students at Reykjavík University. The board comprises the President, Vice President, Director of Finance, Director of Communications, Director of Student Interests and Quality, Director of Marketing and Director of Committees.

Art. 7 President

The President of the student association chairs the board, directs its meetings and represents the student association in dealings with parties both within and outside Reykjavík University. The President oversees the association's activities and bears ultimate responsibility for its affairs. The President sits on the Executive Committee of Reykjavík University and attends meetings of the University Council. In addition, the President sits on the association's Representative Council together with the Vice President. The President also represents the association on the board of representatives of the National Union of Icelandic Students for at least one year, and may choose to serve for two. The President holds power of procuration and signs on behalf of the association. The President is responsible for preparing the annual report, which shall be presented at the annual general meeting each year and published on the association's website. In the President's absence, the Vice President performs these duties. The President oversees the association's finances together with the Director of Finance.

Art. 8 Vice President

The Vice President shall write the minutes of board meetings and ensure that minutes are approved by the board of the student association. The Vice President also handles the main communications with the association's Representative Council. In the President's absence, the Vice President chairs board meetings and represents the student association in dealings with parties both within and outside Reykjavík University. Should the former President decide to serve only one year as the association's representative on the board of representatives of the National Union of Icelandic Students, the Vice President shall serve in their place or find another representative.

Art. 9 Director of Finance

The Director of Finance has sole oversight of the association's funds. The Director of Finance prepares the student association's budget and submits it to the board for approval before the end of September. The annual accounts shall be available to members at least three days before the annual general meeting. The Director of Finance holds power of procuration.

Art. 10 Director of Student Interests and Quality

The Director of Student Interests and Quality shall work on matters concerning students' interests and the quality of education at Reykjavík University, and take the initiative on improvements as needed, whether in cooperation with the university's teaching and learning services or individual departments. The Director of Student Interests and Quality shall also be available to assist all students of the university as well as the student-interest officers of the member associations. In addition, they act as the board's liaison with the association's student-loan-fund representative, who sits on the board of the Icelandic Student Loan Fund (Menntasjóður námsmanna, hereafter "MSNM"). The Director of Student Interests and Quality is furthermore responsible for reviewing the association's bylaws when needed, and sits on Reykjavík University's ethics committee.

Art. 11 Director of Communications

The Director of Communications is responsible for and oversees all of the association's publishing. The Director of Communications oversees responses to incoming correspondence, the association's website and all of its social media accounts. The Director of Communications shall work closely with the information officers of the student associations, or holders of comparable positions, to ensure a good flow of information so that students are kept as well informed as possible at all times.

Art. 12 Director of Marketing

The Director of Marketing shall ensure that agreements and partnerships with companies are followed through, both by SFHR and by the companies. The Director of Marketing shall maintain effective communication with partners. The Director of Marketing also oversees the production of student cards at the start of the school year and contacts companies to collect discounts for the student card. The Director of Marketing works closely with the Director of Finance on planning. The Director of Marketing chairs SFHR's Marketing Committee.

Art. 13 Director of Committees

The Director of Committees oversees the committees operating within SFHR at any given time and ensures that they are active and work in line with SFHR's values. Committees are advertised at the start of the fall semester. If committees are not fully staffed, the Director of Committees advertises open positions at the start of the school year and interviews applicants in consultation with sitting committee members. The Director of Committees keeps the committees' work organized and regularly updates the SFHR board on their activities. The Director of Committees assists committees in holding events and raising sponsorships.

Art. 14 International Students' Representative

The International Students' Representative is SFHR's liaison with international and exchange students at Reykjavík University. The representative is nominated by the Vice President and appointed by the board following interviews. The Vice President shall aim to have the position filled in both the fall and spring semesters. The International Students' Representative shall sit on SFHR's International Committee.

Art. 15 Other representatives

The board may appoint other representatives to serve as specialists in particular areas. The board shall define these representatives' roles, duties, rights and remuneration in more detail through regulations.

Art. 16

For a board meeting to have a quorum, a majority of the board must be present. For board decisions to be binding and lawful, they require the approval of a majority at a quorate board meeting, with particular regard given to the opinion of the President of SFHR.

Art. 17

The board of the student association shall appoint one board member to the Academic Council of Reykjavík University. That person shall not, however, be the association's President.

Art. 18

A board member wishing to step down shall notify the SFHR board in writing at least two weeks before their intended departure. They shall use those two weeks to wrap up the SFHR matters in their care.

Art. 19

If two-thirds of the board of the Student Association of Reykjavík University vote to remove another board member from their seat, that decision stands provided there is a good and objective reason — for example, if the board member neglects their duties or fails to respond to the board's communications over an extended period. A board member who steps down shall wrap up their affairs in accordance with Article 18. The board member against whom a motion of no confidence is directed shall not have voting rights when the vote on their continued service is held. The board shall consult the Rector and the university's legal counsel and may turn to them to resolve the matter. Members of the association may put forward a motion of no confidence against an SFHR board member. They must gather signatures from at least 10% of members, upon which a general members' meeting shall be held. At that meeting, a final vote is taken on the motion of no confidence and on whether the board member should be removed from office.

Art. 20

Should a board member step down, the board shall appoint a replacement no later than two weeks afterwards. A call for interested candidates to join the board shall be advertised reliably among SFHR members no later than one week after the board member steps down, and the board shall appoint one of those who express interest in serving on the SFHR board.

Art. 21

If two-thirds of the board of a member association declare no confidence in another board member within the same association, they shall first contact the President and the Director of Student Interests and Quality and invite them to a meeting. SFHR's representatives will then chair the proceedings that follow. A motion of no confidence must be supported by a good and objective reason. A board member who steps down shall wrap up their affairs in accordance with Article 18.

Art. 22

The President of SFHR, in consultation with the board, shall appoint one new board member of Byggingarfélag námsmanna (the student housing association, hereafter "BN") at least two weeks before BN's annual general meeting. That person need not be an SFHR board member. The term of office is two years. The two people serving as BN's alternate representatives shall be members of the SFHR board.

Art. 23

The association's board may convene a general members' meeting to discuss the association's affairs. The President opens the meeting and appoints a chair of the meeting, who directs the discussion. A motion put forward at a general members' meeting passes if two-thirds of those present vote in its favor. All members of the student association are entitled to attend general members' meetings.

Members of the Student Association of Reykjavík University may demand a general members' meeting, to discuss matters concerning the student association, by written request stating the subject and reason for the meeting and bearing the signatures of at least 10% of members. The board of the student association is obliged to hold such a meeting within two weeks of the request being submitted. The meeting shall be convened with at least one week's notice in a reliable manner, e.g. by email, stating the subject of the meeting. The agenda shall accompany the notice of the meeting. No matters other than those stated in the meeting notice may be taken up at a general members' meeting unless two-thirds of the members present agree to take up the matter.

Art. 24

A student association shall operate within each academic department of Reykjavík University, and those associations shall be member associations of SFHR. Students of other departments are permitted to establish comparable associations.

Art. 25

Member associations shall advocate for all students within their department. The associations shall work towards a better social life and strong advocacy within their department.

Art. 26

In the event that the bylaws or codes of conduct of member associations conflict with the bylaws or code of conduct of SFHR, the latter prevail.

Art. 27

All amendments to bylaws concerning SFHR's member associations shall be discussed at a meeting of SFHR's Representative Council before an annual general meeting or a bylaw-amendment meeting.

Art. 28

The SFHR board or individual board members may put forward regulations or rules of procedure concerning member associations, provided they do not conflict with SFHR's bylaws and are approved by a majority of the Representative Council.

Art. 29

Member associations shall operate in line with SFHR's values.

Art. 30

Member associations shall submit their annual accounts to SFHR's Director of Finance no later than one week before SFHR's annual general meeting.

Art. 31

SFHR's member associations shall hold an annual general meeting. After the meeting, member associations shall submit the minutes of the meeting, their membership register, bylaws, information about changes to their board, and their annual report to SFHR. The SFHR board is permitted to send observers to the annual general meetings of member associations.

Art. 32

The Representative Council of the Student Association of Reykjavík University consists of the chairs of Atlas, Lögrétta, Markaðsráð, Pragma, Mentes, Technis and Tvíund.

Art. 33

The role of SFHR's Representative Council is to strengthen unity between the departments of Reykjavík University and to assist the SFHR board in decision-making on major matters.

Art. 34

The President of SFHR shall convene a meeting with the Representative Council at least every 14 days. A Representative Council meeting has a quorum on the matters under discussion when two-thirds of the council's members are present. The board of the student association shall be guided by the council's resolutions in its day-to-day decision-making.

Art. 35

The Advocacy Council of the Student Association of Reykjavík University consists of the student-interest officers of SFHR's member associations. SFHR's Director of Student Interests and Quality chairs the council and leads its work. If no one on the board of a given member association holds the role of student-interest officer, the board of that member association shall appoint one of its board members to the council. That person shall not be the chair of the member association, except in exceptional cases approved by SFHR's Director of Student Interests and Quality.

Art. 36

The Director of Student Interests and Quality may appoint other members to the council, such as SFHR representatives in the areas of equality, the student loan fund or the student housing association, SFHR's permanent representatives on the Advocacy Council, student representatives on various boards, councils and committees, SFHR's confidential representatives, or representatives of other advocacy groups within RU.

Art. 37

All members shall sign a confidentiality declaration at their first meeting. SFHR's Director of Student Interests and Quality shall write the minutes of the Advocacy Council. The council's minutes are confidential and its meetings are closed.

Art. 38

The role of SFHR's Advocacy Council is to strengthen cooperation between SFHR's member associations on student-interest matters and to assist the SFHR board in decision-making on major matters. The council oversees teaching and quality matters within RU, students' rights, matters relating to the Icelandic Student Loan Fund and RU student housing, equality matters and other student-interest issues.

Art. 39

SFHR's Director of Student Interests and Quality convenes a meeting at the start of the school year and may convene further meetings with the Advocacy Council as needs and projects require. An Advocacy Council meeting has a quorum on the matters under discussion when two-thirds of the council's members are present. The board of the student association shall be guided by the council's resolutions in its decision-making.

Art. 40

A bylaw-amendment committee shall operate as a permanent subcommittee of the Advocacy Council. The Director of Student Interests and Quality, together with the SFHR board, shall appoint the committee to review the association's bylaws before the annual general meeting each year. The committee shall have at least two members. The bylaw-amendment committee works in cooperation with the SFHR board and shall submit a proposal with an explanatory report to be presented at a convened annual general meeting or bylaw-amendment meeting. SFHR's Director of Student Interests and Quality sits on the committee and is responsible for its communications with the board.

Art. 41

The standing committees of the SFHR board assist the board in its work and report directly to it. The Director of Committees oversees their work. SFHR's Director of Finance manages the standing committees' funds. The standing committees of the SFHR board are:

• The International Committee — works on SFHR's international matters in line with the board's policies. SFHR's International Officer chairs the committee and appoints its members.
• Birta, the sustainability committee — works on sustainability and other community matters. Among other things, the committee runs SFHR's charity week. The Director of Committees appoints the chair and other members of the committee in consultation with the board.
• The Marketing Committee — works on marketing and promotion in cooperation with the board. The Director of Marketing chairs the committee and appoints its members; the Director of Communications serves as vice chair.
• The Editorial Committee — works on SFHR's publications and shall publish Háskólablaðið and Háskólafréttir annually. The Director of Committees appoints the committee's chair, who also serves as editor, and appoints the other committee members in consultation with the board.
• Sproti, the innovation and entrepreneurship committee — handles SFHR's innovation and entrepreneurship matters. The Director of Committees oversees the committee's work and appoints its members.
• The Events Committee — works on SFHR's events in cooperation with the board. The Director of Committees oversees the committee's work and appoints its members.

Art. 42

The Director of Committees shall put forward a regulation with more detailed descriptions of the roles, duties and action plans of SFHR's committees, within the limits set by these bylaws, before the start of each school year.

Art. 43

The Director of Committees may establish other committees with the approval of the SFHR board.

Art. 44

Elections to the board of the Student Association of Reykjavík University shall take place before the annual general meeting, cf. Chapter III. Elections shall be announced with at least three weeks' notice, advertised in a reliable manner including by email to students, failing which the elections are deemed unlawful. The candidacy deadline is ten days before the annual general meeting. Voting shall remain open for three full days: it opens at noon three days before the announced annual general meeting and closes at noon on the day the meeting is held.

Art. 45

All SFHR members have the right to vote. All members who intend to continue their studies at the university are eligible to run. Candidacies shall be in writing and signed, or confirmed via the candidate's university email address. Candidacies shall be called for at least three weeks before the annual general meeting. The candidacy deadline is ten days before the annual general meeting.

Art. 46

The board of the student association shall appoint seven people to the election committee. Care shall be taken to balance representation among the member associations when appointing the election committee. The election committee shall elect its own chair; in the event of a tie within the committee, the chair's vote counts double. Those who sit on the election committee forfeit their right to run in the elections concerned. The election committee shall be appointed at least four weeks before the annual general meeting. The election committee shall organize the elections and oversee their conduct in cooperation with the SFHR board. The election committee shall remain impartial and is bound by confidentiality regarding the conduct of the elections.

Art. 47

Elections shall be held electronically, and the election committee shall ensure that all requirements for security and efficiency are met. Voting shall be secret.

Art. 48

If a candidate runs unopposed, they need two-thirds of the votes cast to be elected. If not all positions have been lawfully filled, candidacies for the open positions shall be called for no later than 10 days after the election results are available. In other respects, the conduct of those elections shall follow the provisions of these bylaws.

Art. 49

The board of the student association shall appoint three people to an election appeals committee, plus two alternates — five in total. The appointment of the appeals committee shall be completed at least one week before voting closes. Those who sit on the appeals committee forfeit their right to run in the elections concerned. When selecting members of the appeals committee, care shall be taken to appoint people from different departments, and one member shall be appointed who is not a student at Reykjavík University. The appeals committee shall include at least one person who has completed an undergraduate degree in law. Committee members shall remain impartial and are bound by confidentiality about the committee's work beyond what has been made public. Should doubt arise about the eligibility of individual committee members, the full appeals committee, including alternates, shall decide on that person's eligibility. In making that decision, the committee shall have regard to the eligibility rules of the Administrative Procedures Act No. 37/1993.

Art. 50

Election complaints shall be submitted to the appeals committee in writing no later than three working days after voting closes. The appeals committee shall rule on the substance of a complaint no later than one week after the complaint deadline expires. The appeals committee has final authority to rule on the substance of complaints.

Art. 51

If the appeals committee finds that an election, in whole or in part, was not conducted in accordance with the provisions of these bylaws on the conduct of elections, the election committee shall call new elections. Candidacies submitted for the earlier elections remain valid in such elections. New elections shall be called no later than one week after the appeals committee delivers its ruling. In other respects, the same rules apply to the conduct of by-elections as to regular elections.

Art. 52

If candidates receive an equal number of votes, the outgoing SFHR board shall call a new election for that position.

Art. 53

Should a motion be put forward to dissolve the association, it shall be handled in the same way as a motion to amend the bylaws, cf. Article 54. Upon dissolution, the association's assets pass to Reykjavík University for safekeeping until students establish another association with the same purpose, which is considered the successor of the student association and therefore receives its assets.

Art. 54

The association's bylaws may be amended at an annual general meeting or a specially convened bylaw-amendment meeting, called with at least 10 days' notice; an amendment passes if two-thirds of those attending the meeting vote in its favor. The board is obliged to convene a bylaw-amendment meeting if 10% of members request it. The board may convene such a meeting on its own initiative. All members have the right to propose amendments to the bylaws. Proposed amendments shall be submitted to the board no later than 7 days before the convened meeting. Proposals shall be advertised in a reliable manner. The meeting notice shall state specifically that a proposed amendment to the bylaws will be considered at the meeting, and its substance shall be described. At an annual general meeting or bylaw-amendment meeting, it is permitted to propose changes to a lawfully submitted amendment, as long as the meeting's proposal does not fundamentally alter the substance of the original amendment; the President of SFHR has the authority to rule on when a meeting's proposal is considered to alter the substance of the original amendment. An amendment takes effect from the time it is approved at an annual general meeting or other bylaw-amendment meeting. A bylaw-amendment meeting shall follow rules of procedure approved by the SFHR board.

Art. 55

These bylaws shall at all times be available on SFHR's website and accessible to all members in that way.

Art. 56

These bylaws take effect immediately, and SFHR's older bylaws are hereby repealed.

Art. 57

At the start of the fall semester, the board of the student association is obliged to hold a clean-up meeting. At this clean-up meeting, the SFHR board shall ensure that at least two board members from each student association attend. The purpose of the meeting is to tidy up the student associations' office, the student association's office and all storage spaces used by the student associations.