SU-SHPE Constitution

ARTICLE I: NAME OF THE ORGANIZATION

The name of the organization is The Society Of Hispanic Professional Engineers, Syracuse University Student Chapter. Henceforth, the organization shall be referred to as "SU-SHPE".

ARTICLE II: PURPOSE AND OBJECTIVES

Mission

1. Promote the advancement of Hispanic engineers and scientists in education and in future employment.
2. Improve the retention and enrollment of Hispanic students in engineering and science.
3. Develop and participate in programs with the university and industry, which benefit students seeking technical and science degrees.
4. Provide a forum for the exchange of information pertinent to the development of future Hispanic professionals.
5. Develop opportunities in the local Hispanic community.

ARTICLE III: ASSOCIATION

SECTION I: AFFILIATION

SU-SHPE is a not-for-profit organization affiliated with the Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers, Inc. (SHPE Inc). SU-SHPE possesses the right to adopt its own rules and regulations.

SECTION II: NON-DISCRIMINATION

No person shall be denied membership in SU-SHPE because of race, color, sex, disability, nationality, religious affiliation, sexual orientation, or course of study, even though the name "Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers" was chosen.

ARTICLE IV: MEMBERSHIP

1. College students pursuing a degree in any course of study are eligible for membership.
2. Active Members are those members that:

• A. Attend no less than 60% of the general meetings from the time they attend their first meeting.
• B. Pay the dues established by SHPE Nationals and are registered online
• C. Take active part in SHPE sponsored activities as specified in a policy developed by the Board at the beginning of each academic year.

ARTICLE V: BOARD OF OFFICERS

The SU-SHPE Board (Board) consists of the President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Public Relations Chair, Information Resources Coordinator, SHPE Representatives, and Conference Coordinator.

The SU-SHPE Board shall decide how to implement the purpose and objectives of SU SHPE, and ensure a timely implementation. The Board shall subSU votes for regional and national offices, and for any other issues for which SU SHPE is eligible to vote. At the beginning of the semester, the Board shall produce an Active Member policy, as per Article IV, Section 2, part C.

Each officer shall prepare a list of goals within the first two weeks of each semester. Officers shall report their activities at each Board Meeting.

Board meetings shall take place prior to general meetings. At the beginning of the semester, the board shall choose the date, time, and location of Board meetings in a manner that accommodates the needs of all of the officers.

Board members must ensure that their duties are carried out at all times. Board members are ultimately responsible to the membership.

SECTION I: PRESIDENT

The President shall represent SU SHPE as the chapter's official spokesperson, and shall oversee all SU SHPE functions and activities. The president shall oversee the officers and SU SHPE's day-to-day affairs. The president shall serve as the liaison for the OSA (Office of Student Activities) and PRIDE (Programs Rooted In Developing Excellence) as well as be responsible for compiling the SHPE agenda for board meetings.

SECTION II: VICE-PRESIDENT

The Vice-President shall assist the President in all SU SHPE business, and shall act as President Pro Tempore in the latter's absence. The Vice-President shall oversee the Treasurer,Secretary, the Public Relations Chair, and Information Resources Coordinator which oversees the Freshman Representative. The Vice-President shall be responsible for ensuring that each person under his/her supervision is fulfilling their responsibilities.The Vice-President shall also be responsible for the preparation of the Mid-Year Report and the End-of-Year Report that are submitted to SHPE, Inc.

SECTION III: SECRETARY

The Secretary shall scribe the minutes of each SU SHPE meeting and publicly post them within one week of said meeting. The Secretary shall compile the SHPE agenda for general meetings. The Secretary shall register the organization with the Undergraduate Association each academic year. The Secretary shall compile and distribute the student chapter directory. The Secretary shall record the attendance of members at meetings, and shall be responsible for tallying the votes during elections and any other time the Board or the chapter votes. The Secretary shall reserve meeting rooms for the academic school year and shall be responsible for keeping track of points earned by members.

SECTION IV: TREASURER

The Treasurer shall maintain books and records of all monies received or disbursed by SU-SHPE. The Treasurer must approve all SU SHPE expenditures, and shall provide reimbursements in a timely manner. The Treasurer shall coordinate the preparation of a yearly budget for approval by the Board. The Treasurer shall keep records of members who have paid their dues. The Treasurer shall make monthly reports listing all SU SHPE transactions, liabilities and assets to the Board. The Treasurer shall prepare thank-you letters to organizations that provide unsolicited, general funds or assistance to SU SHPE. The Treasurer shall prepare a funding request to the Undergraduate Association Finance Board each semester. The Treasurer also will request ACE funding from SHPE National each year when applicable.

SECTION V: PUBLIC RELATIONS CHAIR

The Public Relations Chair shall keep in constant contact with its membership through social networks (FB), texting and email. The Public Relations Chair shall be the head of recruitment events such as tabling and speaking in freshman engineering classes. The Public Relations Chair shall also make flyers to effectively advertise SU-Sponsored events and recruit members for SU-SHPE. The Public Relations Chair shall maintain SU SHPE resources on the campus computer network, including the mailing lists and the SHPE desk in the LCS Society Office. The Public Relations Chair shall also compose and forward any emails that needs to sent to the general members.

SECTION VI: INFORMATION RESOURCES COORDINATOR

The Information Resources Coordinator shall be responsible in disseminating information pertinent to SU SHPE. The Information Resources Coordinator shall submit articles to other publications, such as the SHPE Regional and National Newsletters. The main responsibility of the Information Resources Coordinator is serving as Webmaster and Historian of SU-SHPE by maintaining the chapter website and FB page. The Information Resources Coordinator shall take pictures at SU-SHPE sponsored events to be posted on the SHPE-FB and SHPE chapter website.

SECTION VII: SHPE REPRESENTATIVE(S)

The SHPE Representative(s) shall be someone that presents his/her fellow peers for the academic year. The SHPE Representative shall attend all executive board meetings and give his/her opinion just as other executive board members. The SHPE Representative shall assist in devising tactics for recruitment alongside the Public Relations Chair. The SHPE Representative shall assist the Public Relations Chair with his/her tasks. The SHPE Representative position shall be recommended for a higher position on the executive board for the following academic year upon satisfactory work as the SHPE Representative.

ARTICLE VI: MEETINGS

SECTION I: QUORUM

A quorum shall consist of two-thirds of the officers and two-thirds of the active membership.

SECTION II: BOARD MEETINGS

SU-SHPE active members may attend Board meetings. The time and location of the Board meetings shall be announced to the general membership.

SECTION III: GENERAL MEETINGS

General membership meetings shall be held approximately once every two weeks. The SHPE calendar shall list the scheduled general meetings.

ARTICLE VII: ELECTIONS

SECTION I: NOMINATIONS

• A. Only Active Members in good academic standing are eligible to be nominated for office.
• B. Nominations shall take place at the second to last scheduled meeting. Nominations may also be subSUted, in writing, to the Secretary two days prior to the nominations meeting.
• C. In order to be considered, nominations must be seconded.
• D. Nominations for President shall be held first, followed by nominations for the other offices, in the order listed in Article V of this constitution.

SECTION II: VOTING

• A. Annual elections shall take place during the last scheduled meeting of the academic year.
• B. Only Active Members are eligible to vote.
• C. Elections may be held only in the presence of a Quorum of members. If a Quorum is not present at the elections meeting, elections shall be held before the end of the semester at an emergency meeting.
• D. An absentee vote shall be accepted if subSUted in a sealed and signed envelope to the Secretary prior to the elections.
• E. Voting shall be by secret ballot, and a plurality of votes shall constitute a win. The Secretary shall tally the votes and disclose the winner.

SECTION III: INSTALLATION OF OFFICERS

• A. Newly elected officers shall assume office as soon as they have been successfully installed.
• B. Officers shall be installed no later than the end of the semester.
• C. Installation shall take place upon completion of the Officer in Training Workshop. Both the outgoing and newly elected officers shall attend this workshop. In the course of this workshop, newly elected officers shall be briefed on their duties and responsibilities, and shall be given materials and documents relevant to their office.
• D. The outgoing president shall install the newly elected president. The newly installed president shall then the install the other officers, in the order listed in Article V.

ARTICLE VIII: RESIGNATION AND REMOVAL FROM OFFICE

SECTION I: RESIGNATIONS

• A. An officer wishing to resign shall subSU a letter of resignation to the President or Vice-President at least two weeks prior to the date of intended resignation.
• B. The resignation shall be presented at the subsequent board meeting. After discussion amongst the Board, the letter of resignation shall be read before the general membership.

• i. For any of the following offices, President, Vice-President, or Secretary, the vacancy shall be filled by order of succession, as defined in Article V. If the next officer in line is unable to succeed the vacancy shall be filled as follows: a) The positions of President and Vice-President must be filled by a current board member at the board meeting in which the resignation is made known. b) The positions of Secretary and Treasurer may be opened up to the general membership at the next general meeting, but should be temporarily filled by a current member of the board until the new election is held.
• ii. For any of the offices not mentioned in part i, nominations shall be accepted, as per Article VII, Section 1, at the general meeting. Elections shall be held, as per Article VII, Section 2, at the same general meeting.

SECTION II: REMOVAL FROM OFFICE

• A. When any member feels that an officer is not fulfilling their duty, the following steps will be taken:

1. The officer in question shall meet with the member within seven days after the member contacts the officer. At the meeting, both the officer and the member shall make a sincere effort at resolving the situation. If either the member or officer do not agree on a resolution at said meeting, the action in Step 2 shall be taken.
2. The member shall present the matter to the President, or to the Vice-President if the President is the officer in question. The President or Vice-President and the member shall meet within seven days after the member speaks with them. At said meeting, the President or Vice-President, and said member, will make a sincere effort to resolve the matter. If either the member or the President or Vice-President do not agree on a resolution at said meeting, the action in Step 3 shall be taken.
3. The matter shall be placed on the agenda for discussion at the next Board meeting. The Board shall make a sincere effort to resolve the situation, possibly by assigning another officer to assist the officer in question with their duties and responsibilities. The Board must take action within seven days of said Board meeting. If either the Board or the member do not agree on a resolution at said Board meeting, the action in Step 4 shall be taken.
4. At the next Board meeting, the Board shall decide whether to remove the officer in question from office by a secret-ballot vote. If two-thirds of the Board members are in favor of removal, the officer will be removed from office, and the office will be filled as per Section I, Part B. If the Board does not remove the officer, the action in Step 5 shall be taken.
5. A resolution shall be chosen via arbitration. The arbitrator shall be SU-SHPE's SU sponsor, or any unbiased individual agreed upon by both the member and the officer in question. Arbitration will taken place within ten days of the last Board meeting, or at the earliest possible time that the arbitrator is available. The arbitrator's decision shall be final.

ARTICLE IX: AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION

1. Proposed amendments must be submitted in writing to the Board. In order to be considered by the general membership, the amendment must either be passed by the Board, or must be endorsed by twenty percent (20%) of the active membership. The Board will review the amendment at the next Board Meeting. The proposed amendment will be subsequently presented to the membership at the next general meeting. A three-fourths majority of the active membership is required to amend the constitution.
2. The SU-SHPE Chapter agrees to abide by the rules and regulations of the PRIDE and OSA Office. This constitution, amendments to it, and the by-laws of this organization shall be subject to review by the PRIDE and OSA Office to ensure that they are in accordance with the aforementioned rules and regulations.

ARTICLE X: RATIFICATION

This Constitution will be ratified by a two-thirds majority of the active membership present at the designated Constitutional general meeting.

ARTICLE XI: Not-for-Profit Statement

This is not-for-profit organization

Article XII: Financial Obligation

A majority of voting members of this organization may determine reasonable dues and fees assessed to each member at the beginning of each semester. A specific member or members, designated by this organization shall be responsible for payment in full of all debts accumulated by the organization not covered by funds on deposit

Article XIII: Statement of Non-Discrimination

Syracuse University is an equal-opportunity, affirmative-action institution. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, gender, national origin, religion, marital status, age, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity and gender expression, or status as a disabled veteran or a veteran of the Vietnam era to any extent discrimination is prohibited by law. This nondiscrimination policy covers admissions, employment, and access to and treatment in University programs, services, and activities.

Article XIV: Statement of Non-Hazing

This organization will not conspire to engage in hazing , as defined by the New York Penal Law 120.16 and New York Penal Law 120.17, or commit any act that causes or is likely to cause bodily danger, physical harm, or personal degradation or disgrace resulting in physical or mental harm to any fellow student or person attending the institution.

Article XV: Statement of Compliance with Campus Regulations

This organization shall comply with the Syracuse University Code of Student Conduct