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TURKISH STUDENT ASSOCIATION CONSTITUTION (2007)
The constitution of the Turkish Student
Association states the purpose, structure and operation of the
organization and outlines the privileges / responsibilities of
the association’s members.
DEFINITIONS
TSA:
Turkish
Student Association.
Constitution:
The
body and fundamental principles of all TSA’s law.
Bylaws:
Specific rules
of guidance provided by the Executive Committee concerning TSA’s
own affairs; and they prescribe specific, exclusive details of
The Constitution explicitly to operate TSA.
Regular Member:
All registered Texas Tech students, staff and
faculty
Associate Member:
Any TSA member other than a regular member.
General Assembly:
All TSA members.
Eligible Person:
A person who fulfills the requirements of any
office as stated under Code of Student Conduct.
PREAMBLE
The purpose of the Turkish Student Association in Lubbock is to
communicate understanding of the contemporary Turkish world and
its culture to other international societies and to promote
social/cultural activities for friendship and interaction
between Turkish students, faculty/staff, and Turkish friends.
ARTICLE I –
NAME
The name of the organization shall be TURKISH
STUDENT ASSOCIATION at Texas Tech University, hereafter referred
to as the TSA.
ARTICLE II – PURPOSE
TSA shall be a nonprofit independent organization and shall
serve the following purposes:
1.
Raise
public awareness on contemporary issues, and build a common
understanding of Turkish culture among Texas Tech personnel and
the Lubbock community by social and cultural activities;
2.
Address the problems encountered by current and prospective
members, and support the members in overcoming these problems,
and
3.
Coordinate and cooperate with other organizations and other
Turkish associations in activities of common interest.
ARTICLE III - MEMBERSHIP
Section 1. Membership and Annulment
1.
Active
membership of TSA shall be open to all registered Texas Tech
Students. Others who are not eligible for regular membership can
be Associate Members.
2.
Students in the nearby colleges and universities where a TSA
does not exist can also be Associate Members.
3.
TSA
shall not discriminate on the basis of religion, race, sex, or
national origin.
4.
All
members of TSA have equal rights, and Executive Committee
members serve as liaison among TSA members.
5.
Honorary membership may be bestowed upon individuals who have
become distinguished for their achievements and contributions to
the goals of the TSA.
6.
Annulment of Associate and Honorary Member candidates requires
approval of the Executive Committee.
Section 2.
Membership Dues
-
Payment
and amount of annual membership dues shall be determined by
TSA Executive Committee members and shall be declared in the
ByLaws.
-
Honorary
members are not required to pay annual dues.
Section 3.
Termination, and/or Suspension of Membership
1.
TSA
reserves the right to cancel the membership of any
Regular/Associate member at any time if that member’s activities
harm the name or the purposes of TSA. This can be done by
approval of ¾ of all votes of Regular Members.
2.
Membership is terminated by written request of the member or if
the member does not pay the dues specified in the Bylaws.
3.
Membership of any student who does not participate in TSA
activities for two long consecutive semesters shall be suspended
by Bylaws and shall be terminated accordingly if this action
continues for a third long semester.
ARTICLE IV –
STRUCTURE OF THE ORGANIZATION
Section 1. Constitution and Bylaws
TSA operates
according to its Constitution and Bylaws.
Section 2. Bodies of the Association
TSA shall
consist of the Executive Committee, the General Assembly, and
the Faculty Advisor.
2.1
Executive Committee
The Executive
Committee consists of President, three Vice Presidents, two Web
Masters three secretaries, Treasurer officers. The Executive
Committee shall have all of the duties, responsibilities, and
powers that are determined in the constitution and ByLaws.
2.2
General Assembly
The General
Assembly consists of the Advisor, the Regular and Associate
Members, and the Executive Committee.
2.3
Advisor
The Advisor
shall be elected by the Executive Committee.
Section 3 Duties and Responsibilities
All officers and members shall strive toward an increase in
Turkish Student Association membership and perform other
specific functions stated in Section 3 of the Bylaws.
3.1
The President
The president
shall control the operation of TSA, organize social, cultural
and fundraising activities, preside in meetings especially in
funding request forum, serve as spokesman and/or liaison for
TSA, arrange a secure place for meetings, conduct the elections,
and appoint Executive Committee members or advisor to the
offices.
3.2 The Vice-President
The
Vice-President shall organize subcommittees if necessary,
coordinate with the President in fulfilling the duties of the
TSA, place President Office if President unable to perform his
duties until the next election, preside at meetings in the
absence of the president.
3.3 The Treasurer
The Treasurer
shall be responsible for financial affairs of TSA and submit a
budget report to the executive Committee each semester. The
Treasurer shall handle all membership dues, accounts and the
budget of TSA and also shall disburse and invest funds as
authorized by Executive Committee.
3.4 The Secretary
The Secretary
shall maintain the minutes of all official meetings, records of
activities, membership lists, dues, post notices and
information, help as necessary to yearbook organizers, give
advertisements to newspapers, radio, and TV as necessary and
make other matters essential to the operation of TSA, assist to
The President in conducting the elections, and submit an annual
activity report to General Assembly using information provided
by the other officers.
3.5 Advisor
Advisor must
be a faculty of Texas Tech, should provide advice to members on
pertinent cases, should be aware of all meetings, should approve
any activities, and advisor’s signature must be on all official
organizational documents.
ARTICLE V –
RESIGNATION AND EXPULSION
Section 1 Resignation
1.1 Resignation of the President
The President
shall notify TSA of his resignation by a written notice, and the
resignation shall be approved by TSA as validation. The senior
Vice President shall assume The President’s office thereafter.
1.2 Resignation of Other Executive Committee Members
Any Executive
Committee member other than the President shall notify TSA of
his resignation by a written notice, and the resignation shall
be approved by the President. The President has the authority to
appoint any eligible person to fill any office as stated under
Article IV Section 3.1.
1.3 Resignation of Advisor
The vacancy
shall be filled by nominating a new advisor and by approval of
Executive Committee. In cases when there is no faculty nominated
for the Advisor position, The President can nominate a staff or
another eligible person by using his authority as stated under
Article IV, Section 3.1.
Section 2
Expulsion
2.1 Removal
of the President
If the President does not fulfill his duties, he shall be
removed from the office upon approval of ½ of the TSA members.
2.2
Removal of Other Executive Committee Members
If any
Executive Committee Member other than The President does not
fulfill his duties, he shall be removed from his office upon
request and/or The President will as stated under Article IV
Section 3.1.
2.3
Removal of Advisor
If the Advisor
does not fulfill his duties, he shall be removed from the office
upon approval of ½ of the Executive Members.
Section 3 Vacancies
The President
has the authority to appoint an eligible person to any vacant
office as stated under Article IV, Section 3.1.
ARTICLE VI – AMENDMENTS
Any member can submit an amendment draft regarding the
constitution and/or Bylaws to Executive Committee at any time.
This bill requires approval of Executive Committee. Any changes
shall be notified by mail or letter to all members and Campus
Activities and Involvement immediately.
ARTICLE VII – MEETINGS
Section 1 Time
Official
Meetings shall be held each long semester, unless otherwise
determined. The Executive Committee shall meet twice in each
semester. Date and time shall be determined by Executive
Committee in the Bylaws.
Section 2 Special Meetings
Special meetings shall be approved by the Executive Committee or
1/3 of active members and shall be held at approved time. All
members shall be notified of such meetings at least one week
ago.
Section 3 Quorum
No business
shall be transacted unless a quorum present. 1/3 of active
members shall constitute a quorum. An exception to the quorum
shall be election meetings as stated By Law.
ARTICLE VIII – AUDITING
Auditing of all accounts of TSA shall be done by
any active member upon his request at any time.
ARTICLE IX - ELECTIONS
Section 1 Time
Elections of
Executive Member Committee shall be held annually on the last
week of September. If the ¼ of the active members shall submit a
written request to postpone the election date for reasonable
matters, The President shall determine a further date for the
elections within a month.
Section 2 Voting Eligibility
All active members shall be granted for voting and eligibility
of running for any Executive Member Offices.
Section 3 Process
The current
President shall call for elections one week before the election
date as stated under Article VII Section 1. Self-candidacy or
member nomination can be submitted till the 3rd week
of September to The Secretary. Elections shall be done by secret
ballot. The President shall be elected by a majority votes of
all members present at the meeting. Ballots shall be collected
and tabulated after elections either by Advisor or the
subcommittee organized by The Vice-President as stated under
Article IV Section 3.2. This election subcommittee shall not
consist of any President candidates. The President shall select
his cabinet and declare the cabinet to TSA members and Office of
International Office within a week.
ARTICLE X – ACTIVITIES
TSA shall organize 29 October celebration
gatherings, and annual Turkish Picnic. Other social and cultural
activities shall be regulated By Laws.
ARTICLE XI – FINANCES
The funds shall be membership dues, Campus
Activities and Involvement. Funding, International picnic fund
raising, donations and other sources. The funds of TSA shall be
kept by The Treasurer on behalf of TSA. Checks and other
documents shall be signed or endorsed by The Treasurer and/or
The President. All kinds of transaction require advance approval
of the Treasurer.
ARTICLE XII – AFFILIATION
TSA shall have no affiliation with or be
controlled by any other organizations.
BYLAWS OF TURKISH STUDENT ASSOCIATION (2007)
Bylaws are prepared in consistency with Code of Student
Conduct Parts VI and VII and other Texas Tech Regulations.
DEFINITIONS
TSA:
Turkish
Student Association.
Constitution:
The
body and fundamental principles of all TSA’s law.
Bylaws:
Specific rules
of guidance provided by the Executive Committee concerning TSA’s
own affairs; and they prescribe specific, exclusive details of
The Constitution explicitly to operate TSA.
Regular Member:
All registered Texas Tech students, staff and
faculty
Associate Member:
Any TSA member other than a regular member.
General Assembly:
All TSA members.
Eligible Person:
A person who fulfills the requirements of any
office as stated under Code of Student Conduct.
A.
Membership: There are other colleges and
universities in Lubbock besides Texas Tech. Since we have a few
Turkish students in these colleges/universities and friends in
surrounding areas, TSA accepts these friends under the name of
“Associate Member”. An Associate Member can NOT run for any
offices and can NOT vote, but an associate member can submit an
amendment and can request expulsion of any officer.
B.
Dues: A member who does not pay his dues by the
deadline set by the Executive Committee shall receive a
notification by the Secretary. If no response is received from
the member within fifteen days, the Secretary shall drop that
person’s membership till the amount dues paid in full.
C.
Duties of Officers/ Officer Candidates: All
officers shall attend all Executive Committee meetings. Failure
to attend two consecutive meetings without an acceptable excuse
prior to meeting shall be subject to expulsion from his office.
Officer candidates have to participate to Texas
Tech Leadership Program held annually in September.
D.
Executive Board:
The main duty of Executive Committee is to protect the benefits
of TSA and organize the activities set by its constitution.
President should know the details of funding in Texas Tech,
student conduct and other regulations set by the Texas Tech
University. The President should also register TSA every year
before April. The Vice-President shall organize subcommittees
for international Olympic games during Fall and Spring Term and
keep the TSA Web page updated. The Secretary shall follow the
Yearbook Processes and contact and provide any information
and/or documentation with the responsible person in yearbook.
Treasurer shall make a budget plan along with The President to
submit to Executive Committee for approval. Executive Committee
shall review the actions of subcommittees set by The
Vice-President, approve or deny budget and membership, propose
amendments in special cases not foreseen by the constitution and
By Law, determine membership fee each year. As of year 2000
there is no due for membership.
E.
General Assembly: Every member is required to
inform The Secretary about their address and telephone numbers
changes. Also each member shall strive towards an increase in
membership and give much effort to introduce Turkish Culture to
Lubbock Society.
F.
Committees:
Budget/
Funding Committee:
The president and The Treasurer. The Budget Committee shall
prepare a budget plan and submit this to Executive Committee for
approval and Texas Tech Student Government Association for
funding.
G.
Order of
business:
Standard
Agenda for conducting Meetings:
The Secretary
shall arrange the time of meetings and this shall approve by
Executive Committee. Special Meetings can only be requested by
1/3 of total number of active members.
Bulletin
of an official TSA meeting:
Attendance for the quorum, reports, vote for decisions, and
closing the meeting by The President. |
