The board of trustees for Coastal Carolina University is composed of the Governor of the State or his designee, who is an ex officio member of the board, and sixteen members, with fifteen of these members to be elected by the General Assembly and one member to be appointed from the State at large by the Governor. The General Assembly shall elect and the Governor shall appoint these members based on merit regardless of race, color, creed, or gender and shall strive to assure that the membership of the board is representative of all citizens of this State.

Of the fifteen members to be elected by the General Assembly, two members must be elected from each congressional district and the remaining three members must be elected from the State at large.

The term of office of the at-large trustee appointed by the Governor is effective upon certification to the Secretary of State and is coterminous with the term of the Governor appointing him.

Each position on the board constitutes a separate office and the seats on the board are numbered consecutively as follows: for the First Congressional District, Seats One and Two; for the Second Congressional District, Seats Three and Four; for the Third Congressional District, Seats Five and Six; for the Fourth Congressional District, Seats Seven and Eight; for the Fifth Congressional District, Seats Nine and Ten; for the Sixth Congressional District, Seats Eleven and Twelve; for the at-large positions elected by the General Assembly, Seats Thirteen, Fourteen, and Fifteen. The member appointed by the Governor shall occupy Seat Sixteen.

The General Assembly shall elect those members of the board of trustees it elects during its 1993 Session. Members initially elected from Seats One, Three, Five, Seven, Nine, Eleven, Thirteen, and Fifteen shall be elected for two-year terms and members initially elected from Seats Two, Four, Six, Eight, Ten, Twelve, and Fourteen shall be elected for four-year terms. Thereafter, their successors shall each be elected for four-year terms.

The General Assembly shall hold elections every two years to select successors of the trustees whose terms are expiring in that year. Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, no election may be held before April first of the year in which the successor's term is to commence. The term of office of an elective trustee commences on the first day of July of the year in which the trustee is elected and all members shall serve until their successors are elected or appointed and qualify.

If an elective office becomes vacant, the Governor may fill it by appointment until the next session of the General Assembly. The General Assembly shall hold an election at any time during the session to fill the vacancy for the unexpired portion of the term. A vacancy occurring in the appointed office on the board must be filled for the remainder of the unexpired term by appointment in the same manner of the original appointment.

HISTORY: 1993 Act No. 69, Section 1.