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Constitution of the Carleton University Student Branch of the IEEE

Article I: Name and Purpose

     
 

Sec.1. This organization shall be known as the Carleton University Student Branch of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), and herein after shall be referred to as the Organization.

Sec.2. The purpose of the Organization shall be the dissemination of knowledge of the theory and practice of all aspects of electrical engineering, computers, electronics, radio, allied branches of engineering or the related arts and sciences, as well as the professional development of members.

Sec.3. The Organization and its operation shall be in accordance with the Constitution and Bylaws that govern the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE), and with the provincial laws of Ontario, Canada.

 

Article II: Structure

     
 

Sec.1. The General Membership shall be the legislative body of the Organization and shall be composed of all fee-paying members from the Carleton student and professor population.

Sec.2. The Executive Committee shall be the administrative body of the Organization and shall be composed of members from the General Membership.

Sec.3. The Branch Counselor shall be the official representative of the IEEE (Region 7) that will oversee the Organization's activities and the decisions of the Executive Committee.

  

Article III: Membership

     
 

Sec.1. Full Membership shall be limited to undergraduate and graduate students of Carleton University, who are under full-time academic status as defined in the Carleton University undergraduate and graduate calendars.  

Sec.2. Associate Membership shall be limited to faculty and staff who are members of the IEEE.

Sec.3. Membership and participation in Organization activities shall be free from discrimination based on gender, race, nationality, religion, disability, or sexual orientation.
 

  

Article IV: Dues

     
 

Sec.1. Nonpayment of annual IEEE membership fees will automatically result in suspension of membership in the Organization. Suspension of membership will result in the loss of voting rights and the right to hold office.
 

  

Article V: Officers

     
 

Sec.1. The Officers of the Organization shall be a Chair, a Vice-Chair, a Treasurer, and a Secretary.

Sec.2. Only Full Members in good standing shall be eligible to hold office.

Sec.3. The Term of Office shall ordinarily be one year and shall begin on May 1st of each year.
 

  

Article VI: Duties of Officers

     
 

Sec.1. The Chair shall be the official representative of the Organization. The Chair shall be in charge of all meetings and exercise general supervision of the affairs of the Organization in accordance with the policies and instructions of the Executive Committee. The Chair shall also preside over the Executive Committee.

Sec.2. The Vice-Chair shall perform all functions of the Chair in the latter’s absence or upon the request of the Chair.

Sec.3. The Secretary shall keep an accurate record of the Organization’s activities and shall record the number of members at each meeting or activity. The Secretary is responsible for filing the Annual Plan of Activities and the Annual Report of Activities with the IEEE Student Services, in a timely manner. The Secretary shall carry out all other communications necessary and ensure that all activities are in accordance with this Constitution.

Sec.4. The Treasurer shall be responsible for budget planning and proposal, shall receive all money and pay all debts of the Organization authorized by the Executive Committee, and shall keep an exact account of receipts and expenditures. The Treasurer shall also complete the year-end Financial Statements for inclusion in the Annual Report of Activities.
 

  

Article VII: Executive Committee

     
 

Sec.1. The Executive Committee shall consist of the Officers and other positions that are described in Article VII, sec.2.

Sec.2. Other Executive Committee positions shall be agreed upon by the current Executive Committee.

These positions shall:
(1)  Have a duty relevant to the objectives of the Organization and,
(2)  Hold a title agreed upon at the time of election or at the beginning of their Term of Office.

Sec.3. All Executive Committee positions must be elected and filled by one member from the General Membership.

Sec.4. The Term of Office shall begin May 1st and end April 30th of the following year.

Sec.5. The Executive Committee shall be the administrative body of the Organization and shall transact all business it deems advisable, including the filling of vacancies in the Organization and authorization of expenditures.
 

  

Article VIII: Elections

     
 

Sec.1. All Executive Committee positions must be filled by elections unless only one person runs for a position. In this case the person shall be appointed by a 2/3 vote of the current Executive Committee.

Sec.2. General elections shall be held no later than the second last meeting of the current Term of Office. By-elections can be held at any time provided the General Membership is notified.

Sec.3. The General Membership shall be notified of the available positions, as well as the election dates, no later than one week prior to any election.

Sec.4. Eligible candidates for all positions must:

(1) be full-time students at Carleton University,
(2) be attending instructional classes at Carleton University during the Carleton University Fall/Winter Session,
(3) be a Full Member in good standing, and
(4) have volunteered at the McNaughton Resource Centre for at least one Carleton University Fall/Winter session,
(5) complete a nomination form containing the name, membership number and signature of ten members from the General Membership.

Sec.5. Eligibility requirements may be waived upon a two-thirds vote of the current Executive Committee or by approval of the Branch Counselor.

Sec.6. The Branch Counselor must endorse candidates for the position of Chair.

Sec.7. Election candidates shall be announced at the Annual General Meeting (AGM) and may present speeches at this time.

Sec.8. General Membership voting must be held for at least two days during regular office hours. 

Sec.9. An impartial third party, who is to be appointed by the Branch Counselor, shall count election ballots in the presence of the current Chair and Vice-Chair.

Sec.10. If an Officer position becomes vacant during the current Term of Office, a member of the current Executive Committee shall be appointed to the position and will hold office for the remaining time.  

Sec. 11. An outgoing executive officer or a previous executive should be selected to be the Elections Officer (EO). This individual must not be running for re-election and should ensure that all election procedures are followed with fairness. Votes will be counted at the end of the polling period by the elections officer in the presence of the branch counselor, chair, and vice-chair.

Sec. 12. Campaigning is not allowed within 25 meters of the polling station.

Sec. 13. Election results will be posted within a week and all candidates shall be notified of the final results.

Sec. 14. Students who will be on a co-op work term anytime during the coming academic year may not run for an executive position if their work placement is outside of Ottawa.

Sec. 15. A student who was elected/appointed during the last election, then later found a co-op placement outside of Ottawa for all or part of the academic year must resign from his/her position as soon as he/she find a placement.

Sec. 16. An eligible candidate may only run for one position per election.

Sec. 17. Only one candidate may fill an executive position at any given time.

 

Article IX: Meetings

     
 

Sec.1. The Organization shall hold regular and special meetings at such places and time as designated by the Executive Committee, with a minimum of 8 meetings during the Carleton University Fall/Winter Session year and 2 meetings during the Carleton University Summer Session.

Sec.2. Representative(s) of the Executive Committee shall attend IEEE Ottawa Section meetings at least once during the current Executive Committee’s Term of Office

Sec.3. An Annual General Meeting (AGM) shall be held. The General Membership shall be notified of said meeting at least one week in advance.

Sec.4. Voting quorum is defined as all Executive Committee members. If an Executive Committee member cannot attend a meeting, voting by proxy is required.
 

  

Article X: Impeachment

Sec. 1. An executive member who is not fulfilling his/her duties or behaves inappropriately leading to a misrepresentation of the goals and values of the Organization may be removed from his/her position by a 2/3 vote of the remaining Executive Team, with the endorsement of the Branch Counselor.

Sec. 2. A formal warning can be issued to any executive committee member by a 2/3 vote of fellow officers. A warning is an indication that the Executive member who is not fulfilling his/her duties may be impeached. Circumstances that may be a basis for a warning include: missing 3 consecutive meetings, losing IEEE membership, or losing full-time student status at Carleton University.

Sec.3. An executive member who receives a warning has 10 (ten) days to take corrective measures to fulfill his/her duties. If no action is taken after this period, a motion of impeachment may be called by the Executive Committee.

Sec. 4. During a motion of impeachment, the executive member in question shall be given the opportunity to speak to the motion. The executive member being impeached shall not be present when the impeachment motion is voted.

Article XI: McNaughton Resource Centre

     
 

Sec.1. The McNaughton Resource Centre (IEEE Office) shall be a place where students may come to use the services provided by the Organization. The current Executive Committee shall decide on the prices of all services provided.

Sec.2. Volunteers and Executive Committee members hold the right to ask any person in the McNaughton Resource Centre to leave if he/she is disturbing other individuals and refuses to stop. If further security and control measures are deemed necessary, the Department of University Safety at Carleton University will be called. The McNaughton Resource Centre shall be a place where all well-behaved IEEE members feel welcome.

Sec.3. The Executive Committee holds the right to ban any individual from the McNaughton Resource Centre who has willfully, and hurtfully, mistreated any other person.
 

  

Article XII: Amendments

     
 

Sec.1. The Organization is empowered to adopt Bylaws consistent with this Constitution.

Sec.2. The Constitution may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the General Membership present and voting, provided the amendment has been proposed at least one duly publicized meeting previous to the time of voting. Amendments become effective upon the approval of the Executive Committee and the Branch Counselor, but such approval shall not be unduly withheld.
 

Adopted on March 25th, 2002

(signed)

Kavita Patel, 2001-2002 Chair

(signed)

Calvin Plett, Branch Counselor

  

Reformed on February 9th, 2005

(signed)

Maimuna Chawla, 2005-2006 Chair

(signed)

Calvin Plett, Branch Counselor