The Constitution
Article 1
Name
The name of this organization shall be the Filipino Student
Association of the Florida State University (FSA).
Article 2 Purpose
The purposes of the Filipino Student Association are:
A. To promote the culture and heritage of the Philippines;
B. To serve as an educational resource and channel for the
community;
C. To unite all students of Philippine ancestry and encourage
camaraderie among them;
D. To conduct educational and cultural activities that promote and
showcase the arts and culture of the Philippines.
Article 3 Membership
Section 1 Membership in FSA shall be open to all students of
Philippine ancestry.
Section 2 Membership in FSA shall be extended to students and
individuals possessing a genuine interest in the culture and
heritage of the Philippines.
Section 3 Membership in FSA shall be extended to students of
Tallahassee Community College and Florida A & M University in
accordance with Article 3, sections 1 and 2.
Section 4 Membership shall be granted without regard to race,
creed, religion, gender, age, sexual orientation, national origin,
marital status, parental status, disability, social class, the
inability to pay dues, or any combination of the aforementioned
items.
Section 5 Applicants for membership shall complete a membership
form to be submitted to the Secretary for registration purposes.
Article 4 The Executive Council
Section 1 The Executive Council shall be the policy and
implementing body of FSA. It shall be composed of the
elected officers as provided in Article 5.
Section 2 The additional functions of the Executive Council, which
are legislative in nature, may be described and provided in the
by-laws.
Section 3 - The
Executive Council shall consist of nine officers (see Article 5)
and the advisory committee (see Article 7).
Article 5 Officers
Section 1 The officers of FSA shall be a President,
Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, two Public Relations
Officers, two Activities Coordinators and a Historian.
Section 2 The duties and responsibilities of the officers shall be
outlined in the by-laws.
Article 6 Terms of Office, Succession and Vacancy
Section 1 All officers of FSA shall serve a term of one academic
year.
Section 2 The rules governing succession and vacancy of office
shall be provided in the by-laws.
Article 7 Advisory Committee
Section 1 The Executive Council, upon recommendation of the
President, shall choose a Faculty/Staff Advisor, Community Advisor
and Student Advisor (if applicable). In the event when more
than two recommendations are made for one advisory position, the
Council shall choose the advisor by plurality vote.
Section 2 The Faculty/Staff Advisor must be a member of the
faculty or staff of the Florida State University.
Section 3 The
Community Advisor must be a current or past officer of the Big
Bend Filipino-American Association.
Section 4
The Student Advisor must be a past President or Vice-President of
the Filipino Student Association of the Florida State University.
The Student Advisor will be chosen by the Executive Council, upon
recommendation by the President.
Article 8 Compliance with University Regulations
The Filipino Student Association shall adhere to the policies and
regulations outlined in the Student Organizations Handbook as well
as to all rules and regulations of the Florida State University,
the Board of Regents, the state and federal governments.
Article 9 Amendments
This Constitution may be amended by a 2/3 vote of the members
present at a meeting called for that purpose.
The By-Laws
Article 1
Meetings
Section 1 The membership shall meet no less than once a month at
such time and place to be designated by the Executive Council.
Section 2 The Executive Council shall meet no less than twice a
month at such time and place to be designated by the President.
Section 3 The Executive Council may call as many special meetings
as are deemed necessary by the President or by at least three
officers of the Council.
Section 4 Notices of meetings shall be sent to the membership
and/or Executive Council no less than two days in advance of the
designated meeting time.
Section 5 Order of Business for Meetings
A. Meeting called to order
B. Reading of minutes
C. Determination of quorum (see Article 4)
D. Old business
E. New business
F. Announcements
G. Adjournment
Article 2 Duties and Responsibilities of the Officers
Section 1 The President shall:
A. Serve as the executive head of the Filipino Student Association
and shall preside at all meetings of the membership, Executive
Council, at any special meetings and at all FSA functions and
activities.
B. Represent the interests of FSA at Florida State University in
accordance with the Statement of Purpose.
C. Create ad hoc and standing committees as are deemed necessary
by the Executive Council.
D. Serve as an ex-officio member of all committees.
E. Execute decisions on policy, procedure and activities, as
prescribed by the Executive Council.
F. Act as the official liaison between FSA and the Big Bend
Filipino-
American Association.
G. Co-sign all financial documents with the Treasurer.
H. Have the right to call a special meeting.
Section 2 The Vice-President shall:
A. Perform the presidential duties and exercise the presidential
powers in the absence of the President.
B. Oversee all ad hoc and standing committees.
C. Be responsible for assuming any duties that cannot be fulfilled
by the
other members of the Executive Council.
Section 3 The Secretary shall:
A. Record the minutes of all Executive Council and membership
meetings.
B. Maintain a collective set of minutes to be given to the new
Secretary
following officer elections.
C. Maintain an accurate membership roster and accurate contact
information.
D. Be responsible for all FSA correspondence.
Section 4 The Treasurer shall:
A. Be responsible for all funds of FSA
B. Be responsible for the swift deposit of said funds into FSAs
checking and/or savings accounts.
C. Ensure that all FSA financial transactions are properly
conducted.
D. Maintain accurate financial records of FSA account(s).
E. Report monthly on the financial status of FSA to the Executive
Council.
F. Disburse FSA funds as directed by the Executive Council.
G. Co-sign all financial documents with the President.
Section 5 The Public Relations Officers shall:
A. Be responsible for the advertisement and promotion of all FSA
meetings, activities and functions.
B. Be responsible for all external FSA communication.
C. Gather information on issues concerning the Filipino community.
Section 6 The Activities Coordinators shall be responsible for the
organization of all FSA functions and activities.
Section 7 The Historian shall:
A. Be responsible for keeping a visual record of all FSA meetings,
functions and activities.
B. Be responsible for the FSA webpage.
Article 3 Elections
Section 1 Elections of officers shall be held at the end of the
academic year at a meeting designated specifically for that
purpose.
Section 2 Nominations shall be taken at the regularly scheduled
meeting preceding the elections. Members may nominate
themselves or may nominate another person for any office. All
nominations shall be duly seconded.
Section 3 Rules of Order for the Election Meeting
A. Meeting called to order.
B. Reading of minutes
C. Determination of quorum (see Article 4)
D. Old business
E. New business
F. Election
G. Presentation of new Executive Council
H. Announcements
I. Adjournment
Section 4 Procedure of the Election
A. Voting shall be by secret ballot.
B. Officers must be elected by plurality vote of the quorum.
C. There shall be created a committee on election to manage and
conduct the election. It shall be composed of three members
appointed by the President. However, no member or officer
running for office shall be appointed to the committee.
D. A candidate for office may choose to run for any lower office
(i.e. slide).
Article 4 Quorum
Section 1 A quorum for conducting business and conducting
elections shall be 40% of the membership.
Section 2 Quorum shall be determined by roll call or by an
attendance sheet.
Article 5 Succession and Vacancies
Section 1 In case of vacancy or incapacitation of the President,
the Vice-President shall assume all duties and responsibilities of
the President.
Section 2 In the event of vacancy or incapacitation of any other
office, there shall be held a special election. The elected
officer shall serve only for the unexpired term.
Article 6 Removal from Office
Section 1 Any officer may be removed from office upon the
following grounds:
A. Gross misconduct
B. Immoral behavior
C. Abuse of power
D. Expulsion from school
Section 2 There shall be a hearing to be conducted by the
Executive Council upon which the charges shall be addressed and
evaluated. The Executive Council shall vote to pass judgment
on the charges against the officer. If the charges are
supported by a preponderance of evidence, the officer shall be
removed from office.
Article 7 Transition of Administration
The summer semester following the elections shall be a period of
transition. The outgoing and incoming Executive Council
shall meet during this time to coordinate the transition of
administration. All Executive Council materials shall be
turned over to the new Executive
Council. However, all old business must be taken care of
prior to the installation of the new Executive Council.
Article 8 Amendments to By-laws
Section 1 These by-laws may be amended, revised, or repealed by a
2/3 vote of the members present at a meeting designated for that
purpose.
Section 2 Procedure for amending, revising, or repealing the
by-laws
A. A written request must be submitted to the Executive Council
for review prior to being presented to the membership.
B. Presentation of the request shall take place at the next
scheduled meeting of the membership where copies shall be
distributed to the membership.
C. There shall be a period of debate and discussion followed by
the vote.
Article 9 Parliamentary Authority
The Filipino Student Association shall be governed by Roberts
Rules of Order in all cases where they are consistent with these
by-laws and any special rules of order the organization may adopt.
Authored by
Rizcion Dagani and Maves Ranola, co-founders of the Filipino
Student Association of the Florida State University, 1999.
Revised by Rizcion Dagani and Krystle Tabangcura, 2000.
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