UofT EBS - UofT Erindale Biology Society

“Constitution 2011 - 12”

Article 1.0: Name

The name of the organization is the Erindale Biology Society (at the University of Toronto at Mississauga) referred to as EBS.

Article 2.0: Purpose

The organization exists to serve the many needs of the students on campus, in pursuit of higher learning, especially those enrolled in Biology courses
The organization is a Non-Profit organization, and none of the executives have paid positions
The organization will serve to voice issues faced by Biology Students on campus.
The organization will serve its members by helping them choose careers they can work towards with a degree in biology, in association with other clubs and organizations at UTM such as the career center
The organization will provide biology past tests and exams for as many courses as possible, to its members, to aid in the learning process.

Article 3.0: Membership

All full time University of Toronto students, i.e those who have paid their incidental fees, are eligible to become voting members of the club. Part-time and alumni may receive associate memberships, which shall not have voting right.

Although most of the services provided by the Erindale Biology Society will be designed to meet the needs of Biology students, all U of T students are invited to join.

Article 4.0: Membership Fees

Each member must pay a $5 membership fee to join the club.
A membership lapses when a member is expelled from the University or upon failure to pay the annual membership fee.
Membership will also expire at the end of the school year, which is the end of the spring term

Article 5.0: Executive Council

All executive members are required to provide an advisory role to EBS members.
All executive members are required to hold a minimum of two hours of office hours per week.

President

Decides upon number and types of events taking place during the year with the entire executive board
Allocates work to each executive member
Coordinates monthly executive council meetings
Audits club accounts
Must have one year experience as an active member of the Executive prior to being nominated to this position
Must emphasize the need for equal participation and assumption of responsibility by each member of the Executive Council
Must chair all Executive and General Meetings

Vice President

Ensure smooth functioning of the club and advise the president
Must assume Presidential duties in the absence of the president
Must maintain the membership list through out the year with the secretary
Must emphasize the need for equal participation and assumption of responsibility by each member of the Executive Council
Must oversee the activities of the Public Relations officer and the Webmaster
Must attend all Executive and General Meetings

Secretary

Responsible for taking minutes for all Executive and General Meetings and emailing them to each council member
Must provide every document demanded by the clubs commissioner and be the main link between her/him and the club
Must check club mail at least twice a week; read mail directed to EBS and discuss it during the meeting. Forward any urgent mail to the President or the Vice-President
Must keep a record of every letter etc, except bank statements
Must prepare schedule at beginning of each term and contact information for executive council (i.e. e-mail list and phone list)
Must make test packages for first year
Must buy any needed office supplies
Must understand the need for equal participation and assumption of responsibility
Must attend all Executive and General Meetings

Public Relations

Primary responsibility is to promote the EBS at the University of Toronto in order to attract a large number of members and to maintain contact with the members, including with other organizations
Must coordinate publicity activities, making event announcements, and communicating with members
Must attend all meetings set up by ECSU and SAC
Must inform the President about the concerns of members
Responsible for maintaining contact with other student groups at the university and coordinating joint activities
Must understand the need for equal participation and assumption of responsibility
Must attend all Executive and General Meetings.

Events Manager

Responsible for organizing EBS events. This includes booking rooms, setting up equipment, ordering food, decorating the room etc.
Responsible for thinking of new events for the club to hold during the year
Responsible for arranging the best possible event with the least possible financial expenditure
Responsible for ensuring that each executive knows the date and time of the event
Responsible for all volunteers working for EBS
Must understand the need for equal participation and assumption of responsibility
Must attend all Executive and General Meetings.

Director of Finance

Primary responsibilities include the collection of membership fees and management of all EBS funds in an efficient and ethical manner (serious penalties instituted by the university for people in the club who misappropriate funds)
Will assume co-signing status of the EBS business account with president
Must keep accurate records of all transactions and provide financial statement at the end of each semester
Must manually check the cash box entries, made during office hours, at least once a week and do the calculations to ensure that all information is correct.
Must prepare SAC request when necessary
Must attempt to find new ways of funding (either sponsorships or grants)
Must keep track of previous sponsorship relationships
Should work with Events Manager to brainstorm on fundraising ideas
Should justify prices for all EBS events and expenditures (with the help of other executive members)
Must understand the need for equal participation and assumption of responsibility;
Must attend all Executive and General Meetings.

Advertising Manager

Primary responsibility includes designing and making flyers, poster, and presentation boards
Must prepare posters by the meeting preceding the event, so that they can be looked over by all the executives
Must distribute all posters and flyers at least three days before the event but not more than a week before the event
Must remove all posters within 24 hours after the event has ended
All posters should show at least the name of the club, the name of the event, the place, date, time and the EBS email address
Must ensure that the message to be delivered is written clearly and visibly
Must put posters on the clubs wall, and on any authorized ECSU boards, especially those near Biology Laboratory and Lecture Rooms
Must understand the need for equal participation and assumption of responsibility;
Must attend all Executive and General Meetings.

Student Coordinator/Webmaster

Primary responsibility includes the creation and maintenance of the EBS website
Must keep in contact with members via email and ensure that their complaints, suggestions etc are being discussed during meetings
Must reply to any email sent on the EBS email account
Must inform all executives about any important email, and discuss it during the meeting
Must email all members about upcoming events twice: i.e. a week ahead of the event and then two days before the event
Must understand the need for equal participation and assumption of responsibility
Must attend all Executive and General Meetings.

Article 6.0: Meeting Date

The Executive Council shall have the power at any time to call a general meeting of the members of the organization to be held at least once a year on such a date and at such a time and such a place as the Executive Council may decide.

The club will have monthly executive meetings to coordinate its activities. But the frequency of meetings may vary depending upon the number of events being held at that given period of time.

Article 7.0: Elections

The following election procedure must be adhered to by the club:

The club must hold an election by the second Friday of March
Elections are open to all interested candidates who are able to get the nomination form signed by 15 EBS members and any other 5 full-time undergraduate students
Advertising for elections are mandatory and must be visible throughout the campus
All elections advertisements must be submitted for approval and signature to the Clubs Commissioner
The election must have a CRO (Chief Returning Officer) supervising electoral process. The CRO must be non-biased and must be approved by the club executive and the Clubs Commissioner
A nomination period following the advertising period should be set for a period of one week
A campaign week will be held in the week following nominations close
Elections are to take place at an executive council designated place in the week following campaigning, consisting of a period of two days
In the case of a by-election, clubs must still follow the above regulations
Any complaints that arise during the course of elections, or as a result of elections, must be bought to the attention of the Clubs Commissioner, in written form, within 72 hours of the elections

Article 8.0: Re-elections

1. A new position on the Executive Council can only be created as a result of a majority vote by the Executive Council
2. If a member of the Executive Council leaves the council within one month of the elections, re-elections will be held, following the procedures of the elections defined.
3. Re-elections are to be held in the case of a vacancy created on the Executive Council. The President and Vice President form the Election Committee in this case.

Failure to comply with the requirements of the club by a member of the executive council will lead to expulsion from the council by the joint consent of the executive council. A joint consent is deemed appropriate if it is the consent of the majority of the council.

Article 9.0: Removal from Office

An executive can be removed from office for failing to perform her/his duties as defined by the club constitution, and by-laws. Two procedural options would be available to the club to remove an executive - one to be followed by the club members and/or the other to be followed by the club executives. To remove an executive the following procedure must be followed:

1. For club members: A request for removal, signed by no less than 30% of the membership shall be submitted to the Clubs Commissioner. Upon receipt of request, the executive council shall be required to hold a said referendum within the next twenty days. The majority of the votes cast must indicate a desire to have the member in question removed from the Council; OR

2. For club executives: Each executive member shall receive three warnings from the clubs executive council. The warning will have to be signed by at least 60% of the executives to become effective. On the third warning, a club meeting shall be held where all the club executives will vote upon removing the executive from the council. A 70% majority would be needed for the executive to be removed.

In case of a council member being removed from office, a by-election should be held, according to the election rules.

Article 10.0: Amendments

In case of amendments a club meeting will be held where all executive must be present. There the amendment in question would be voted upon. To pass the amendment must be ratified by at least 2/3 of the executive council.

All the articles of the constitution are open for amendments