Cleveland State Community College
College Democrats
Constitution
Preamble
In order to promote a better America, with equality, opportunity, and freedom within a just and strong society, we dedicate ourselves to organizing the participation of Democratic college students at the Cleveland State Community College. In this mission, we call for full participation of all Cleveland State Community College students, regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, physical handicap, socioeconomic status, or sexual orientation.
Statement of Purpose
The Cleveland State Community College College Democrats pledges itself to support the philosophy and candidates of the Democratic Party. Furthermore, the Cleveland State Community College College Democrats declares its intention to support all efforts to increase the participation of college students in Democratic affairs. To these ends, the College Democrats shall educate and train its members so that they may be better able to:
- Educate students about the philosophy of the Democratic Party
- Assist in the election of local, state, and national Democratic candidates
- Affect political change on the local, state, and national level
Name
The name of this organization will be the Cleveland State Community College College Democrats, hereafter referred to as the CSCC College Democrats.
The CSCC College Democrats will be chartered with and affiliated with the Tennessee Federation of College Democrats, and by and through the Tennessee Federation of College Democrats, shall be affiliated with the College Democrats of America
The CSCC College Democrats will be chartered with the Bradley County Democratic Party and work as closely as possible with all levels of the Democratic Party.
Membership
Membership requirements for the CSCC College Democrats will be the same as those of the College Democrats of America, except that members must be a student of the Cleveland State Community College.
Membership will not be affected by race, color, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, or physical handicap.
Officers
The CSCC College Democrats will consist of the CSCC College Democrats Executive Board and the remaining members. The Executive Board will consist of the officers of the CSCC College Democrats. The organization will have three (3) officers.
The three (3) voting officers will be: President, Vice President, Secretary/Treasurer.
Officer Duties
The President will be the chief executive officer for the organization. He or she will preside over all chapter meetings. The President shall have all of the following duties and powers. The absence of a specific power or duty from this list is not necessarily a denial of its existence.
Establish administrative procedures not otherwise provided for by the Constitution or By-Laws of this chapter.
Act for and on behalf of the chapter when they are not in session.
Attend all meetings of the State College Democrats. When the attendance of the President is not possible he or she will appoint a suitable replacement and give said person his or her voting proxy.
Establish the agenda for each meeting of the chapter (general and executive).
Serve as delegation chair to the State College Democrats convention.
Have a two hundred dollar ($200) transaction limit without approval of the Executive Board.
Appoint chairpersons and vice chairpersons of all committees, standing and adjunct, except that the President shall not appoint the chairpersons of the Recruitment and the Fundraising Committees. However if the President gives consent these positions may be voted on by the general members.
Be an ex-officio member of all committees.
Remove anyone from any appointed position without the approval of the Executive Board or the general body.
The Vice President will have all the following duties:
Chair the Recruitment Committee.
Appoint a co-chairperson of the Recruitment Committee, pending the approval of the Executive Board.
Act as President Pro-Tempore in the absence of the President. In a case where the President’s office becomes vacant, the Vice President will become the President automatically and will assume all powers, duties, and responsibilities associated with that position. The office of the Vice President then is vacant and will be filled by an appointment by the new President, pending the approval of the Executive Board and the general body.
Assist the President.
Assist the Secretary/Treasurer as needed.
The chapter Secretary/Treasurer will be the chief executive officer of the organization and shall have all the following duties:
Keep accurate minutes of all chapter meetings (general and Executive Board).
Assure publicity for all upcoming events and meetings.
Keep an accurate mailing list and phone directory of all members.
See to all correspondence of the chapter as directed by the President.
Chair the Fundraising Committee.
Appoint a Director of Fundraising, pending the approval of the Executive Board.
Be responsible for developing fundraising ideas and soliciting donations.
Maintain accurate financial records for the organization.
Coordinate all financial activities, including any tax responsibilities with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
Advise the chapter President and the Executive Board of the financial condition of the chapter.
If deemed necessary by the Executive Board, the Treasurer will file any reports for the State Democratic Party of the State Ethics Commission in a timely manner.
Write checks and make deposits as directed by the Executive Board. The Treasurer will not have the power to make financial transactions without the approval of the Executive Board.
Executive Board
The CSCC College Democrats Executive Board will determine the agenda of and be the chief policy making body for the chapter and shall coordinate all activities and events .
The Executive Board will have all the powers necessary for the proper and legal execution of all duties of the CSCC College Democrats.
The Executive Board will meet no less than twelve (12) times during the course of one (1) year.
General Body
The CSCC College Democrats general body will meet no less than eight (8) times during the course of one (1) fiscal year.
Elections
Elections of officers will be held at the second meeting in September of each year. All terms are for one year.
The order of elections will be as follows: President, Vice President, Secretary/Treasurer.
Standing Committees
There will be two (2) standing committees. These committees shall be the Fundraising and Recruitment Committees. Each of these committees shall have three (3) or five (5) members depending upon the preference of the committee chair.
Forming New Committees
The President of the Executive Board can form adjunct committees at any time for any reason they deem necessary.
Constitutional Amendments
Amendments to this constitution must be submitted in writing to the chapter President and chapter Secretary at least two weeks (14 days) prior to the meeting at which the amendment will be considered. The President is obligated to place the amendment on the agenda for that meeting. The amendment will be considered approved if two-thirds (2/3) of the Executive Board and two-thirds (2/3) of the general body (in attendance) vote in favor of the amendment.
Number of Offices
No one person may hold more than one office in the CSCC College Democrats organization.
Impeachment
Only the elected offices may be subject to impeachment. The President reserves the right to remove anyone from an appointed position. Procedures for impeachment will be as follows:
Any person holding an elected office within the chapter may be impeached if found guilty of failure to adequately perform his or her duties.
The person will be notified of the charges against them no less than thirty days (30) prior to the meeting in which the impeachment will be discussed.
Members of the Executive Board who are not charged with negligence of their duties will appoint a committee and chairperson to hear the testimony of the person or persons charged. The findings of the committee will be final.
Sponsor
The chapter will select a member of the faculty to serve as a sponsor of the organization. The sponsor will aid in the operations of the chapter and see to it that the chapter operates within the limitations that may be imposed by the Cleveland State Community College on campus organizations. The sponsor will serve as a liaison between the chapter and the administration of the Cleveland State Community College. Every two years the chapter may vote to retain or select a new sponsor.
Amendment I. Dues
- Be it enacted that the President, with the approval of the chapter Vice-President and Secretary/Treasurer may impose reasonable semester dues for the purpose of sponsorship of events organized by and for the College Democrats. Dues will be collected at the second meeting of each semester from all members present and at each subsequent meeting from each person in attendance that has not previously paid that semester’s dues. Failure to pay dues will result in a dismissal from due-funded meetings/events, loss of ability to run for office, and a forfeiture of general voting rights.
- No member may run for an office that has not been a paying member of the College Democrats for two (2) semesters.
- Reasonable is defined as no more than $10 dollars per semester.
- Dues may be lifted for any member of the CSCC College Democrats by a unanimous agreement of the Officers if and only if said member’s financial circumstances prevent them from paying.
- The aforementioned amendment, with the exception of Section A.02, will become valid and enforceable upon the filling of the office of Secretary/Treasurer.
- Section A.02 will become valid and enforceable with the completion of two (2) semesters of CSCC College Democrats activities.
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