This is organizational Constitution for the 2008-2009 academic year
CONSTITUTION OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL OF NEGRO WOMEN AT
Section 1 : The name of the organization shall be The National Council of Negro Women at The College of New Jersey
Section 1: The general purpose of this organization is to help women improve the quality of life for themselves, their families and the community. The National Council of Negro Women seeks to fill the gaps which exist in our communities, particularly meeting the concerns of minority women.
Section 2: The National Council of Negro Women sponsors educational, economical, social, cultural and scientific self-help projects nationally and in specific communities.
Section 1: Membership is open to all students and staff of The College of New Jersey.
Section 2: It is hereby acknowledged that the National Council of Negro Women at The College of New Jersey insures that the policies and practices pertaining to membership of our organization do not discriminate based on sex, race, religion, color, ancestry, national origin, marital status, handicap, age and life style.
Officers of the Organization
Section 1: The elected officers of this organization shall be President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Community Service/Activism Liaison, Promotions Coordinator, and Chaplain/Artist in Residence.
Section 2: Term of office should be 1 academic year.
Section 3: In order to be eligible to run for office, the candidate must be an active member of The National Council of Negro Women at The College of New Jersey for at least one academic year- Effective Election 2005. Candidate must also satisfy The College of New Jersey leadership criteria.
Section 4: It shall be the duty of the president to preside over executive board members, oversee all activities and decisions. It is also the president’s responsibility to inform advisors of all meeting, activities, and decisions. The president shall also keep direct contact with National Headquarters. The president is responsible for setting the vision of the organization, and coordinating the executive board in reaching organizational goals that are congruent with the National mission and community needs.
It shall be the duty of the executive vice president to assist the president in the fore mentioned duties and be prepared to step in as president when the president is not able to perform his or her duties. The vice president will also be responsible for informing the president of all new changes in the section and keeping track of member attendance and participation.
It shall be the duty of the secretary to keep records of all activities and programs. The secretary is responsible for recording and maintaining the minutes of all meetings, write all formal documents needed by the executive board, mail maintenance, disburse all necessary information and documents to the appropriate parties, and maintain the organizational website established by the Executive Board.
It shall be the duty of the treasurer to collect all monies, take sole responsibility for the section’s account by recording all transactions, co-signing disbursements, maintaining financial reports, updating the board members of financial status. The treasurer is also responsible to be knowledgeable of institutional policies relevant to organization fundraising. It is also the responsibility of the treasurer to initiate and organize all creative monthly events or activities, which will generate constant revenues for The National Council of Negro Women at The College of New Jersey.
It shall be the duty of the promotions coordinator to publicize organizational events and meetings, execute all publication requests of the executive board, ensure implementation of policies and procedures of publicity and posting as outlined by The Office of Campus Activities, which extends to being knowledgeable of all available sources of publications and the roles and regulations of The College in regards to publicity, posting and duplication. Promotions coordinator is also responsible for the creation and maintenance of archives of the organization’s portfolio, in which they collect all forms of organizational advertisements, written articles and capture all pictorial documentation of programs and events planned by The National Council of Negro Women.
It shall be the duty of the community service/activism chair to actively engage, inform and organize members of the National Council of Negro Women in community service projects and activism initiatives that coincide with the mission to improve the lives of minority women on The College campus and the community at large.
It shall be the duty of he chaplain/artist in residence to provide spiritual and emotional encouragement as well as cultural insight to the members of The National Council of Negro Women at TCNJ. It is also the responsibility of the chaplain/artist in residence to be the spiritual beacon within the organization and preside over all things spiritually related. The chaplain/artist in residence shall also act as a parliamentarian at all meetings to make sure order is kept in a mature and mannerly fashion to ensure everyone’s questions, concerns, and opinions are heard, addressed, but above all respected.
Though not an elected position, but appointed position, the duty of the faculty advisor is to oversee all activities The National Council of Negro Women at The College of New Jersey is participating in to ensure they are congruent and in accordance with The College policy on programming. The faculty advisor is also responsible to co-sign vouchers, obtain van(s) from the school in order to execute The National Council of Negro Women community service ventures, serve as a visible resource for student members in regards to organizational programming and informant of any campus or community programs that will aide in the personal growth and success of the membership of The National Council of Negro Women.
It shall be the duty of the entire executive board to be responsible for the functioning of The College of New Jersey section; To enforce all orders and expectations of national headquarters and represent the National Council of Negro Women as a successful service organization.
Section 5: In the event of the loss of the president, the executive vice president shall assume his or her duties. Election of a new vice president is at the discretion of the new president.
Section 6: All members, including the executive board, are subject to adhere to all the conditions of this organization’s by-laws.
BY-LAWS
ARTICLE I
Membership
Section 1: Membership is open to all College of New Jersey students. Candidates must be strong-minded and have the determination and will to help others.
Section 2: In order to remain active, a member must attend at least three functions each year. Active recruiting of at least three new members is also required. The new members should be diversified by classs.
Section 3: There is no limitation of the number of members
ARTICLE II
Committees
Section 1: The Executive Board reserves the right to create, by appointment, any committees as deemed necessary.
Section 2: The committee chairperson shall be appointed by the Executive Board and affirmed by 2/3 majority vote.
Section 3: It shall be the committee chairperson’s duty to preside over the committee members, oversee all committee activities and decisions. The committee chairperson must keep in close contact with the Executive Board and give periodic updates on the committee’s progress.
ARTICLE III
Financial Provisions
Section 1: There shall be no section dues.
Section 2: National dues for each individual member are paid to National Headquarters. Notification of these dues will come to each member personally from nationals.
Section 3: National dues are paid to National Headquarters by the chapter. Notification of these dues will come to the current president of the chapter.
ARTICLE IV
Meetings
Section 1: Meetings will be held when programs are scheduled. The date, place and time will be determined by the executive board in office each academic year. Members will receive notification of these meetings from the secretary.
Section 2: Executive Board meetings will be held weekly, essentially prior to every general board meeting or program/event.
ARTICLE V
Voting
Section 1: The president shall have no vote except in the case of a tie
Section 2: All members that have adequately participated in events hosted or co-sponsored by The National Council of Negro Women, at the discretion of the executive board are entitled to one vote.
Section 3: No vote will be counted unless quorum has been established
Section 4: Quorum will be counted as ½ of the members of the organization plus one.
Section 5: Voting for Executive Board officers will take place during the last meeting in April.
ARTICLE VI
Termination of Membership
Section 1: Members are expected to attend every meeting. If a person in not able to attend a meeting, she or he must notify and Executive Officer at least 4 hours before the meeting.
Section 2: Excused absences will be accepted at the discretion of the Executive Board.
Section 3: Three unexcused absences will be grounds for termination. Termination will be initiated by the Executive Board.
Section 4: The member being terminated must be notified of his or her termination in writing.
Section 5: An appeal can be requested within 48 hours of termination. Appeals will be heard by the Executive Board.
ARTICLE VII
Impeachment
Section 1: Any Executive Board member can be impeached
Section 2: Impeachment proceedings can be brought because of:
A. Excessive excused of unexcused absences
B. Ignoring responsibilities
C. Failing to perform his or her required duties
Section 3: A written letter of impeachment must be submitted 1 week prior to the next meeting.
Section 4: The board member that is under impeachment must be able to address the organization membership before a vote is taken.
Section 5: A vote of 2/3 majority must be given to affirm impeachment.
Section 6: An appeal can be requested within 48 hours of impeachment.
ARTICLE VIII
By-Law Stipulations
Section 1: Suspension of any part of this organization’s by-laws must be by a 2/3 majority vote.
Section 2: Amendments to the constitution and by-laws must be by a 2/3 majority vote.