The Recognised Constitution of:
UBCO Political Science Student Association
The Constitution shall take precedence over all previous constitutions effective:
February 2, 2011 (date)
Article 1: The Name of the UBCSUO Course Union shall be: Political Science Students’ Association, hereafter it will be referred to as the “Association.”
Article 2: The Purposes of this Association are:
- To provide an organization to represent, promote, and advocate for the academic welfare and interests for all members of the Association
- To promote member-professor relationships
- To promote student unity
Article 3: the Membership of this Association shall comprise of:
3.1) Active Members: all students currently enrolled at UBCO who are taking at least (1) course in the Department of Political Science, International Relations, and/or Politics, Philosophy, and Economics (PPE) per semester.
3.2) Associate Members: any student at UBCO who wishes to join and has a genuine interest in politics.
Article 4: The Executive of this Association:
4.1) The Executive shall be a non-hierarchical body with all members of the Executive as coequal.
4.2) All members of the Executive shall be in good standing of the organization.
4.3) The powers and duties of the Executive shall be to:
a. officially represent the Association and its members.
b. assemble all necessary meetings, with proper notice to the membership.
c. make sure that the membership is kept well informed of all matters affecting the Association.
d. carry out the day-to-day operations of the association.
e. appoint members of the association to undertake special projects as required.
4.4) The Executive of the Association shall comprise of the following:
4.4.1) President
4.4.2) Executive Vice President
4.4.3) Vice President Communications
4.4.4) Vice President Finance
4.4.5) Member at Large
4.4.5) Member at Large
4.5) If an Executive is to graduate or leave mid-year, their position on the Executive is revoked, and a bi-election run by the Executive is to take place.
4.6) Removal from Executive Office
a) any member of the Executive may be dismissed from their functions for violation of the Constitution and its by-laws, delinquency of duties, or misappropriation of funds AND/OR just cause.
b) a motion to remove an Executive must be signed by at least three (3) members of the Executive and presented to the Chair
4.7) Absence from two of the previous three Executive and/or General Meetings of the Association regardless of sending regrets will result in the position being considered to have been abandoned.
Article 5: All financial dealings shall be done through the UBCSUO Financial Office. The Signing Officers of the Association Shall be:
- ____________________________________ Chief Signing Officer
- ____________________________________ Signing Officer
- ____________________________________ Alternative
By-Laws:
General Meetings
- There shall be a minimum of one General Meeting during the University Term.
- A General Meeting shall be called by the President at the request of the Executive.
- A General Meeting shall be called by the President on receipt of petition representing at least forty percent (40%) of the active membership. The date must be no later than seven (7) days after receipt of petition.
- Notice of General Meeting shall be posted in an obvious place at least seven (7) days before the meeting is to take place.
- All General Meetings are open to all the Association’s members.
Elections
2.1) The election of the executive officers shall take place during March.
2.2) Voting shall be by secret ballot.
a) the person receiving the most votes shall be elected.
2.3) The President may accept nominations from the floor.
2.4) The new executive shall take office at the second executive meeting after the election.
2.5) Results of the election shall be submitted to the UBCSUO executives no later than seven (7) days after the election.
Eligibility of Executive Officers:
3.1) Only active members of the UBCSUO and who adhere to the membership requirements of the Association are eligible to hold executive offices.
Membership Privileges:
4.1) Only active members of the Association shall vote, sign petitions or be elected to the Associations’ executive.
Executive Duties:
5.1) President
- Responsible for ensuring smooth running of the PSSA
- Call meetings, spokesperson, signatory
5.2) Vice President
- Organize and facilitate everyday association matters
- Ensure progress in non-academic events
5.3) Vice President Communications
- Communications, includes maintaining the gmail account
- Minutes, attendance at meetings
5.4) Vice President Finance
- Maintains an accurate and up-to-date account for the organizations assets, prepare the annual budget for general meetings, and be the main signing authority.
5.5) Member at Large
- a person who has some standing authority, but no responsibility
- represents the association
Procedural:
6.1) All procedural matters shall be governed by Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised.
a. in times of tie decisions, a coin toss shall be the determinant if no suitable agreement is reached.
6.2) Any further discrepancies shall be decided by the Associations executives, which is the final authority.
Quorum:
7.1) The Quorum for all meetings shall be twenty five percent (25%) of the active membership of the Association.
a.) this should include a minimum of 3 Executives.
Membership Fees:
8.1) Fees are non-refundable.
8.2) The executive may amend the fees at the first executive meeting of the winter season.
8.3) Membership fees shall be: $________
Committees:
Committees may be appointed by the executive or at a General Meeting, but the executive still shall take responsibility to supervise and control the activities of all committees. Appointed executives or committee members shall not have a vote in executive decisions, but shall have regular voting privileges at the Annual General Meeting.
Budget:
10.1) All funds shall be submitted to the UBCSUO Executive or Financial Assistant.
10.2) An annual report including a ‘Statement of Proposed Expenditures and Expected Revenues’ shall be submitted to the UBCSUO by request of the executive.
Amendments:
All amendments must be adopted by a 2/3 majority of the Quorum at a General Meeting.
Interpretation: Nothing in these bylaws shall be interpreted in a manner contradictory to the UBCSUO Constitution, Code Rules and Regulations or Policies enacted from time to time by the Union.
Superseding Clause: This UBCO PSSA Constitution repeals and supersedes all previous constitutions
