CONSTITUTION OF UNITED STUDENT PRIDE
ARTICLE I: NAME AND PURPOSE OF THE ORGANIZATION
Section 1 The name of this organization shall be United Student
Pride (of California State University, Fresno). The initials USP, U.S.P. or
U.S.P. (C.S.U.F.) shall be designated as the abbreviations of the association's
name.
Section 2 The purposes of this organization are to provide an
opportunity for people interested in the concerns of primarily gay, lesbian,
bisexual, and transgender, intersexed and questioning people to plan and
implement activities and programs of both an educational and social nature.
These activities and programs will allow people to meet and interact with one
another and provide education with regard to the various gender identities,
sexual orientations and lifestyles. Most importantly, these activities and
programs will provide the opportunity for people to meet and interact with one
another, in order to reach a better understanding of others and ourselves.
Section 3 This organization is recognized by California State University, Fresno and adheres to all regulations as set forth in the Handbook
for Student Organizations and Use of Campus Facilities and Grounds.
ARTICLE II: REQUIREMENTS FOR MEMBERSHIP AND MEANS
OF SELECTION OF MEMBERS
Section 1 Membership in this organization shall not be denied
to any student of California State University, Fresno on the basis of race,
religion, national origin, ethnicity, color, age, gender, marital status,
citizenship, sexual orientation, or disability.
Section 2 There shall be two types of membership in the
organization: voting and allied.
Section 3 Voting membership is limited to regularly enrolled
students at California State University, Fresno.
Section 4 All individuals who attend meetings will be voting or
allied members for that meeting to be noted in the minutes.
Section 5 Any person who has tendered outstanding service to
the organization may be conferred with allied membership upon a majority vote
of the organization.
Section 6 Any member may be suspended or expelled from the
organization for conduct obviously contrary to the Constitution of the
organization or for conduct, which grossly impairs the rights of the members to
enjoy the benefits of the organization. The alleged offense must be in writing
and submitted by a member. After the alleged offense has been submitted to the
organization, the accused member shall have a right to a hearing before the
organization at a regular meeting and may be suspended or expelled only upon
the affirmative vote of three-fourths of the voting members present. The
accused member has the right to appeal an adverse decision at a regular
meeting, and the accused member shall be reinstated unless the suspension or
expulsion is again approved by three-fourths vote.
Section 7 Any member removed by such a vote may file a
grievance with the University Student Grievance Board by contacting the Dean of
Student Affairs Office. A member of the Dean’s staff will review the
procedures with the student.
ARTICLE III: OFFICERS
Section 1 The elected officers of the organization shall be the
President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Secretary and others deemed necessary -
see provisions for amending.
Section
2 Powers and Duties of
Officers:
a. The
President shall preside at all meetings of the organization. He/She shall be
the official spokesperson of the organization, representing the policies,
views, and opinions of the organization in its relations with the campus and
community at large. He/She shall have such further powers and duties as may be
prescribed by the organization.
b. The
Vice-President shall preside at the organization meetings in the absence of the
President. He/She shall perform all legal duties assigned by the President.
He/She shall notify all members of the organization meetings.
c. The
Treasurer shall handle all financial affairs and budgeting of the organization,
maintaining all necessary accounting records. Said records shall be maintained
in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. He/She shall
maintain bank accounts in the organization’s name, requiring signatures of both
the treasurer and the President for authorized disbursements. All disbursements
in excess of $50.00 require the majority approval of the organization.
d. The
Secretary shall take minutes at all meetings of the organization, keep these on
file, and submit required copies to all organization members. He/She shall be
responsible for all organization correspondence and shall keep copies thereof
on file. He/She shall also act as historian and shall maintain all records of
the organization.
Section 3 Qualifications necessary to hold office in this
organization are as follows:
The president and treasurer of the student
organization are required to meet the minimum requirements established for
Minor Student Representative Student Officers.
Minimum Academic Qualifications
Students must be matriculated and enrolled at a CSU
campus and maintain a minimum overall 2.0 grade point average each term. The
students must be in good standing and must not be on probation of any kind.
Incumbent Unit Load
This requires undergraduate students to earn six
semester (nine quarter) units per term while holding office. Graduate and
credential students must earn three semester (four quarter) units per term
while holding office. Students enrolled at quarter campuses must attend a
minimum of two quarters during the academic year to maintain eligibility.
Incumbent Maximum Allowable Units
Undergraduate students are allowed to earn a maximum
of 150 semester (225 quarter) units or 125 percent of the units required for a
specific baccalaureate degree objective, whichever is greater. Graduate and
credential students are allowed to earn a maximum of 50 semester (75 quarter)
units or 167 percent of the units required for the graduate or credential
objective, whichever is greater. Students holding more than this number of
units will no longer be eligible for minor student government office.
Section 4 Petition by one-third of the total number of members
shall be cause for recall election. The offense must be in writing and
submitted by a member. After the offense has been submitted to the
organization, the accused officer shall have at least 48 hours before the
hearing. A recall election shall be held at the next regular business meeting
after the presentation of the recall petition and shall be conducted as a
special election. Recall will require a favorable vote of three-fourths of the
voting membership in attendance.
Section 5 In the event that an elected officer is unable to
fulfill his/her term of office, there shall be a special election to fill the
vacancy. Any eligible member, including those already holding office, may be
nominated for a vacant office.
ARTICLE IV: MEETINGS
Section 1 Regular meetings shall be scheduled at least
bi-monthly during the academic year.
Section 2 Special meetings may be called by any elected officer
(i.e., President, Treasurer, etc.) or by 5% of the voting members of the
organization. All members must be given a minimum of 24 hours notice, weekends
and holidays excluded, prior to the meeting time.
Section 3 Business cannot be conducted unless a quorum of the
membership is present. A quorum for this organization is defined as 50% + 1 of
the voting membership.
ARTICLE V: ELECTIONS
Section 1 Officers are elected once a year. Elections are held
at the end of spring semester and shall take place at a regularly scheduled
meeting of the organization at which a quorum is present.
Section 2 At least one week’s notice shall be provided for any
meeting at which an election is to be held.
ARTICLE VI: ADVISORS
Section 1 An individual employed on a more than half-time basis
by California State University, Fresno, and not a University Auxiliary
employee, will serve as advisor to this organization as required by University
guidelines.
Section 2 The advisor(s) shall serve a term of one year and
will be selected at the same time as the officers of the organization.
Section 3 If an advisor is deemed to be ineffective by the
organization, the advisor(s) may be removed from their role by majority vote of
a quorum of the membership at a regularly scheduled meeting. A minimum of
seven days notice must be given prior to such a vote.
ARTICLE VII: DUES
Section 1 This organization has the ability to assess the
membership. Assessments shall be determined by a quorum of the membership
annually at a regularly schedule meeting.
ARTICLE VIII: METHOD
TO AMEND THE CONSTITUTION
Section 1 Proposed constitutional amendments or changes shall
be presented to the organization, in writing, one meeting before it may be
voted on.
Section 2 Approval by two-thirds of the voting members present
at a regular meeting shall pass a proposed change. The change shall be put
into effect immediately unless otherwise stipulated in the amendment.
Section 3 A copy of any alteration to this document must be
filed within 90 days after any substantive change or amendment in the Student
Activities Office at California State University, Fresno.
ARTICLE IX: DISBURSAL OF ORGANIZATION ASSETS
Section 1 In the event the United Student Pride should become
defunct, all assets will be turned over to the Women's Alliance, to be used to
promote education and understanding of LGBT+ issues on campus at California State University, Fresno.
ARTICLE X: STATEMENT OF AFFILIATION
Section 1 This organization is not affiliated with any outside
organization.
ARTICLE XI: RULES OF ORDER
Section 1 The United Student Pride accepts “Robert’s Rules of
Order” (newly revised) as its rules of order.
Section 2 Any issue not directly spoken to in this document
will be resolved by referring to the Rules of Order.
This
constitution was approved on January 16, 2008.
