Fall 2025 GEO Election Guidelines
The Graduate Employee Organization (GEO) is holding elections to fill FOUR assistantship positions (0.5 FTE) on the Organizing Committee. The GEO is your union, which is composed of a group of Graduate Assistants working collaboratively to advocate for Graduate Employee rights and enrichment opportunities for Graduate workers at UMass Boston. Graduate employees currently holding full-time assistantships – including international students – are also eligible to run and, upon being elected, will receive a stipend in lieu of an additional assistantship.
Again: if you have a 1.0 FTE, you are still eligible to run in the GEO elections, and still eligible to receive the 0.5 FTE support. This goes even if you are an international student! If you have any questions or concerns, you should email us at geo@umb.edu.
Spring 2025 GEO Election Process
I. Nominations: The self-nomination period runs from Tuesday, September 16th, until the end of the day, Tuesday, September 24rd.
Your nomination should include:
- Your completed nomination form (attached here),
- Evidence that you are an active dues-paying member (your most recent paystub, accessed through HR Direct) or a Dues Authorization Form (attached here; or filling out the online version of the dues form),
- Complete all sections of the nomination form. We strongly recommend including a headshot photograph for the official GEO nominee PDF.
- Nominations must be emailed to geo@umb.edu on or before Tuesday, September 24th (by 11:59 p.m. EST).
II. Campaigning: The campaigning period starts on Wednesday, September 24th, or as soon as you submit your nomination, and lasts until the last voting day. During this time, nominees are expected to reach out to fellow graduate students and share their campaigning platform.
The GEO will distribute a package including Fall 2025 nominees’ information (name, picture, bio, program, and platform) on the website and social media platforms. Please note that the GEO Organizing Committee cannot campaign for nor endorse any candidate nor grant any advantage to one candidate above others. The GEO Organizing Committee can send out information from candidates to membership!
To campaign, you should talk to graduate classmates/friends about:
- the importance of being active in your graduate student union,
- what your target topics of action while on the committee would be if elected,
- why they should vote for you to be part of the GEO Organizing Committee
- use any means you like (including platforms such as WhatsApp, Facebook, X, Instagram, and email) to spread the word!
III. Voting: Voting will be open for two days from Thursday, October 9th to Friday, October 10th, at 11:59 p.m. EST. Votes will be collected using online ballots distributed to our members early on the first voting day (Thursday, October 9th). Only dues-paying GEO members are eligible to vote. However, graduate employees who have not yet joined the GEO and would like to will be able to sign up and cast their votes during the voting period (by Friday, October 10th, at 5:00pm EST).
The voting process will be as follows:
- All active dues-paying members will receive their ballots on Thursday, October 9th, at 8 a.m. EST at their umb.edu inbox.
- Graduate employees who are not active dues-paying members wanting to sign up and vote in this election should fill out the following dues authorization form (click here) by October 10th, at 5 p.m. EST.
- Ballots will be available from Thursday, October 9th, at 8 a.m. until Friday, October 10th, at 11:59 p.m. EST. Voting will close on October 10th at 11:59 p.m. EST regardless of the ballot receipt time.
- The nominees with the four highest vote counts win.
- In the event that the number of eligible candidates does not exceed 4, such candidate will be deemed elected by acclamation and no election will be held.
- Results will be announced to nominees by Saturday, October 11th, and to all members on Monday, October 13th (via email and our social media platforms).
A GEO committee member will be online at geo@umb.edu in case of any technical difficulties.
Election FAQ
Am I eligible to run for the GEO Organizing Committee?
These positions are available to dues-paying GEO members – graduate employees – interested in becoming actively involved in the union. That means that you must have at least one Graduate Assistantship on campus currently and be a dues-paying member of the GEO in good standing. If you are not a dues-paying member, you will need to fill out our dues-paying membership form and send it to us along with your nomination documents. Graduate employees who currently hold full-time assistantships are still eligible to run. For detailed information about payments and benefits, see the GEO contract, which can be found here https://geoumb.org/contract.
What does the GEO do?
Some of the projects on which the Organizing Committee is currently working include:
- Engaging with graduate employees and community members of UMass Boston to organize collective action and increase membership engagement
- Administering Scholarly Support Funds (SSF) for students seeking funding to present at or attend conferences, and the Emergency Support Fund (ESF) for emergency situations
- Mediating member grievances
- Attending and helping organize coalition efforts within the community
- Developing communications content for the website, social media, and e-newsletters
- Bargaining a new contract with UMB’s administration to address labor concerns affecting graduate employees. We are currently in the middle of negotiations for the 2024-2017 GEO contract.
What does the position entail?
Each position is a half-time assistantship requiring 9 hours per week, equivalent to a 0.5 FTE assistantship. Every member of the Organizing Committee is responsible for attending weekly meetings of the Organizing Committee and keeping up with organizing and maintaining the union. Tasks are assigned upon committee consensus based on interest and expertise. The half-time assistantship includes a stipend and tuition remission.
How do I vote?
On Thursday, October 9th, at 8 a.m. EST, all dues-paying members will receive an email with a unique ballot link including voting instructions. Voting will close on Friday, October 10th, at 11:59 p.m. EST.
Do I need to register before voting?
No. You do not need to register before voting. If you are an active dues-paying member, you will receive your ballot on the first day of voting. Whereas if you are not yet an active dues-paying member or if you are not sure, you should sign a dues form here by October 10th at 5 p.m. EST. Signing the form will not incur extra charges if you have already signed it in the past and, for some reason, did not make it to our membership list.
Can I become a dues-paying member while voting is open?
Yes. You can become a dues-paying GEO member on October 9th and 10th and vote in this election! However, you should sign up by Friday, October 10th, at 5 p.m. EST at the latest. Sign up to become a dues-paying member here, and you will receive your ballot shortly after.
What if I experience technical difficulties before or on the day of voting?
GEO members will be available for questions and tech support around voting on Thursday, October 9th (8:00 a.m. – 8 p.m.) and Friday, October 10th (8 a.m. – 6 p.m. EST). Voting will still be open via the link until the end of the day on Friday, October 10th, but be aware there will be no tech support past 5 p.m. EST. These dates and hours are exclusively for tech support around elections which are time-sensitive, but remember that you can always reach out with general and/or election questions at geo@umb.edu.
Does the GEO send a list of voters to nominees?
No. We do not share membership/members’ personal information with anyone outside the GEO Organizing Committee.
Is voting anonymous?
Yes. Voting is anonymous. We will use Election Buddy, an automated third-party software, to run the Fall 2025 elections. This platform is secure, anonymous, and ensures the integrity of the process.
Graduate Employee Organization 