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Constitution and
By-Laws of the
Liberal Arts
Student Council
Purdue University
Article I
Name and Purpose
The name of this organization
shall be the Liberal Arts Student Council. The
purpose of this group shall be to: (1) Promote a
closer relationship between the students, faculty,
and administration of the School of Liberal Arts;
(2) to serve students of the College of Liberal Arts
by providing programs, events, and information to
aid in education and career development; (3) to
initiate and promote positive public relations
between the College of Liberal Arts and the rest of
Purdue University's academic community.
Article II
Membership
Membership on the council will
be open to all students in any department of the
College of Liberal Arts at Purdue University. As an
equal opportunity organization, membership and
participation are free from discrimination based on
race, religion, color, sex, age, national origin or
ancestry, marital status, parental status, sexual
orientation, disability, or status as a disabled or
Vietnam-era veteran. . Membership is structured in a
Senior/Junior Board format and will be granted by a
selective petitioning process. The Senior Board
candidates will petition after the twelfth week of
the Fall semester with the Junior Board petitioning
no later than the third week of the Spring semester.
Article III
Officers
Senior Board members shall
include: the President, Vice President, Secretary,
Treasurer, Career Opportunities Director, Assistant
Career Opportunities Director, Publicity Director,
and Technical Facilitator. These officers must be
active members of the council, and in good academic
standing with Purdue University. In order to
petition for a position on the Senior Board, members
must have completed one full semester in good
standing as a Junior Board member. Senior Board
members will hold office from January through
December; a term of two semesters beginning with the
Spring semester.
Duties of Officers
Section 1. The President shall:
(1) Preside over all meetings
of The College of Liberal Arts Student Council
(2) Encourage and maintain
Senior Board projects and relations
(3) Be the authorized
representative of the organization
(4) Meet regularly with the
Faculty Advisor to maintain good relations
(5) Director of Liberal Arts
Round Table; represent the Liberal Arts Student
Council at the President's Round Table meetings
(6) Perform other duties as may
reasonably fall within his/her office
Section 2. The Vice President
shall:
(1) Fulfill any obligations in
the absence of the President
(2) Distribute a copy of the
Constitution and By-Laws to the entire Liberal Arts
Student Council each semester
(3) Organize and execute a
minimum of two community service projects each
semester
(4) Organize one all-council
retreat each semester after the election of new
Junior Board members to include and promote
team-building activities
(5) Perform other duties as may
reasonably fall within his/her office
Section 3. The Secretary shall:
(1) Take minutes at all Student
Council meetings and transfer those minutes to a
permanent record
(2) Take attendance records at
all Student Council meetings and mandatory functions
(3) Complete the annual Liberal
Arts Student Council Newsletter in the Spring
semester
(4) Design and organize a new
edition of the Liberal Arts Student Council
scrapbook each year; to include pictures and
mementos of all Student Council sponsored events and
activities throughout the school year
(5) Perform other duties as may
reasonably fall within his/her office
Section 4. The Treasurer shall:
(1) Keep accounts, deposit
organization funds, and make expenditures in a
manner approved by the Business Office of Student
Organizations
(2) Develop a minimum of two
fund-raisers each semester for the purpose of
increasing the Council's funds
(3) Perform other duties as may
reasonably fall within his/her office
Section 5. The Career
Opportunities Director shall:
(1) Take responsibility for
planning, preparing, and coordinating the annual
Career and Internship Fair and the annual Graduate
School Fair
(2) Work with the Center for
Career Opportunities to publicize job and academic
opportunities for Liberal Arts students
(3) Perform other duties as may
reasonably fall within his/her office
Section 6. The Assistant Career
Opportunities Director
(1) Assist Career Opportunities
Director in all of the above outlined duties
including, but not limited to planning, preparing,
and coordinating the annual Career and Internship
Fair and the annual Graduate School Fair
(2) Perform other duties as may
reasonably fall within his/her office
Section 7. The Publicity and
Recruitment Director
(1) Take responsibility for the
proper upkeep and decoration of the Liberal Arts
Display case in the basement of the Liberal Arts
building
(2) Coordinate all planned
publicity for the council and council-sponsored
events
(3) Coordinate the petitioning
and recruitment process of all new members as
detailed in Article V
(4) Perform other duties as may
reasonably fall within his/her office
Section 8. The Technical
Facilitator shall:
(1) Be responsible for the
maintenance and updating of the Liberal Arts Student
Council web page
(2) The design, printing and
sale of Student Council T-shirts each year
(3) Perform other duties as may
reasonably fall within his/her office
Article IV
Voting
Section 1. Each member present
at the time of a vote, shall have the right to one
vote
Section 2. The President shall
only vote in the case of a tie
Section 3. The Faculty Advisor
shall n vote during the election process
Article V
Election of Junior Board
Members
Section 1. All Purdue Students
with four or more semesters left within the College
of Liberal Arts in good academic standing with
Purdue University, may petition for a position on
Junior Board during any semester where Junior Board
membership is below 20.
Section 2. Each member will be
elected by the Senior Board after a thorough
interview process. Candidates will be elected on the
basis of a petition and interviews. The Liberal
Arts Student Council Faculty Advisor shall not vote
during this process, but is invited to attend. In
addition to Senior Board members, two Junior Board
members shall participate in the interviewing
process and both members will be able to vote.
Section3. The petitioning
process shall consist of three parts: a callout,
application, and an interview.
Article VI
Election of Senior Board
Meetings
Section 1. Candidates for each
office shall be those in good academic standing with
Purdue University, who petition the Council for
office. Candidacy must be announced at a Student
Council meeting after the twelfth week of the Fall
semester. Candidates must have served on the Council
for one full semester prior to petitioning. No
petitioner will be elected to a Senior Board office
unless he/she will be a full-time student in
good-standing with the University for one full year
after the election.
Section 2. Each member will be
elected by the non-petitioning members of the
previous Senior Board in the conjunction with two
volunteer Junior Board delegate. The Advisor is not
allowed to vote, but is invited to attend. Thorough
interviews will be held. The candidates will be
elected on the basis of these interviews.
Section 3. Each non-petitioning
member conducting interviews will write down which
candidate he/she feels best for the office based on
the interview, and will have a chance to discuss
his/her preference. After deliberation, a vote will
be held. Each non-petitioning interviewer will have
one vote. Simple majority rules when electing
members to the Senior Board positions.
Article VII
Amendments
Section 1. This Constitution
may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the Senior
Board and then a two-thirds vote of the council in
its entirety. All amendments to the constitution and
bylaws are subject to approval by the Office of the
Dean of Students
Section 2. Any member in good
standing with the Council may propose Constitutional
Amendments. Amendments must be proposed at a
meeting, seconded by another voting member in order
for the amendment to be discussed at the meeting.
Amendments may not be voted on during the meeting in
which they are proposed. The discussion must be
tabled by the President and then brought to the
Council's attention at the next meeting for a vote.
A two-thirds vote is required to pass an amendment
to the Constitution.
By-Laws
Article I
The Director of Counseling and
any administrators, faculty, and staff chosen by
that official shall serve as ex-officio members of
the Liberal Arts Student Council. Ex-officio
members cannot vote or hold office.
Article II
The Senior Board may veto any
action of the President by a two-thirds vote.
Article III
Vacancies in any Senior Board
office shall be filled by opening petitions to any
Council member who has served at least one full
semester on the Junior Board.
Article IV
Impeachment of any officer or
members of the Council may be achieved by a
two-thirds vote of the Council in its entirety.
Failure to comply with Article III of the
Constitution or excessive failure to attend Council
meetings as per Article V of these By-Laws is the
only grounds for impeachment. An impeachment hearing
will be held with open notice to all Council
members.
Article V
Absence from two meetings (All
Council, Senior Board or Committee) without an
acceptable excuse will result in disciplinary action
by the Senior Board; a hearing will review each
individual situation. All absences must be excused
by the Secretary at least twenty-four hours in
advance of the proposed absence. The Secretary is
given the right to interpret which absences are
considered excusable and include, but are not
limited to: academic commitments, other Purdue
University sponsored events and medical/family
emergencies.
Article VI
All Junior Board members shall
serve from the date of their installation until the
date of graduation provided that they meet
membership requirements within this period.
Article VII
All Senior Board members shall
serve from the date of their installation until the
date of the subsequent installation of Senior Board
members.
Article VIII
The By-Laws may be amended by a
two-thirds vote of the Senior Board and then a
two-thirds vote of the Council and it's entirety.
Article IX
The advisor of the Council
shall be a current Liberal Arts faculty member or
advisor. They will be interviewed and voted on by
Senior Board.
Article X
Each member of the Liberal Arts
Student Council shall pay nonrefundable membership
dues of thirty dollars ($30.00) at the beginning of
his/her term; this fee will cover two semesters of
Council activity. If a member chooses he/she may pay
twenty dollars ($20.00) each semester to cover that
semester's dues. Beginning the first week of Junior
Board, members will have two weeks not including the
week Junior Board first convenes to pay his/her
dues. Failure to comply with this will result in a
disciplinary hearing by the Senior Board members who
are not in violation of this by-law.
Article XI
The Constitution will be
reviewed by a Constitution committee every Fall
semester. The committee will be run by the current
Student Council President and will consist of active
Student Council members.
Article XII
All active members are required
to attend all meetings and mandatory events, unless
given prior approval by the secretary as per Article
V of the By-Laws. Additionally, each member must
attend a minimum of three (3) non-mandatory, Council
sponsored activities per semester.
Article XIII
Questions of procedure shall be
decided based on the Senior Board's interpretation
of "Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised."
Article XIV
In order to form a better
relationship between Purdue Student Government and
Liberal Arts Student Council, two seats on Senior
Board shall be created. The two seats shall be open
to the current Purdue Student Government Senators
from the College of Liberal Arts. The seats are
only to be filled by the mentioned Senators, but
s/he has the option to deny the position or joining
of Liberal Arts Student Council. In which case the
Senator(s) choose not to be an active member of the
board, the position shall remain unfilled until the
next serving Senator decides to fill the position.
The process of election for the Senators shall
differ from the rest of the officers on council.
The Senators shall be elected through the election
process as outlined in the Purdue Student Government
Constitution Article X, Section .03. The candidates
for the Senate need not be a member of Liberal Arts
Student Council , but her/his election or
appointment to the Purdue Student Government Senate
shall automatically render him/her and member of
Senior Board. In the event of removal from office
by Purdue Student Government, the student shall
resign their position on Senior Board and may be
asked to leave the council. The council cannot
impeach, ask for a resignation, or pressure a
Senator out of the Senate. In the case that the
Senator is not reelected, the student shall step
down from Senior Board but have the right to
petition the council as a whole for a spot on Junior
Board, unless already having been on Council.
Article XV Senior Privilege
Liberal Arts Student Council
members who have attained their eighth semester and
actively participated in the Liberal Arts Student
Council for two or more semesters can invoke senior
privilege. Senior privilege shall be the freedom of
the qualifying member to not attend non-mandatory
events. Senior Board members are disqualified for
senior privilege. Senior privilege shall not excuse
the member from:
1. Attending mandatory events such as fair,
fundraisers and other events deemed mandatory by the
Senior Board
2. Paying dues
3. Regularly weekly
meetings
4. More than one
semester of point one and two
Article XVI Election of
Junior Board Members
Section1. The petitioning
process shall consist of four parts: a callout,
application, a pre-interview gathering and an
interview. In order to become a member, a person
must be in attendance for all gatherings. The
callout shall be held during the second week of the
semester, with the petitions due the third week of
the semester. The pre-interview gathering and
interviews shall be held the fourth week of the
semester
Section2. The application for
membership shall consist of two parts. The first
part will be the questions, which will consist of
two short answer essays to be attached to the
information form. The essay questions will not have
the name of the applicant anywhere on them, but
rather a number in order for the essays to be read
objectively. In addition, a resume must be attached
with each application. Each year the applications
shall be reviewed to determine the relevance and
quality of the essay questions.
Section3. Petitions will be
reviewed on the basis of proper completion, grammar,
writing ability and content/creativity of answers.
The interviews will be scored on the basis of
presentation, effective communication and answers in
the categories of leadership, experience/diversity
and dedication/motivation.
Section4. The number of Junior
Board members should not exceed 25 based on the
number of members that will be present for fall
semester.
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