Speech and Debate Team Constitution and Bylaws

(last updated 2/2/99)

Article I. Name: Speech and Debate Team.
Section 1. All business of this organization will take place according to these bylaws.

Section 2. If any part of said bylaws in any way is in conflict with any university policy, that section of the bylaws shall be null and void.

Article II. Purpose.
Section 1. The purpose of this organization is to provide all University of Florida students the opportunity to further their education through forensic activities and competition with other colleges and universities throughout the United States.

Section 2. Funding will be provided through UF Student Government.

Section 3. Activities include travel to several state, regional and national tournaments; campus and community involvement; including but not limited to hosting tournaments including but not limited to the annual Gator Invitational Forensics Tournament.

Article III. Membership.
Section 1. General membership is limited to UF Students, undergraduate and graduate.

Section 2. Any student in good standing with the university will be eligible for general membership.

Section 3. Active membership is defined as follows: To be an active member, one must participate in a minimum of one (1) tournament per semester or at least five (5) meetings/activities per semester. Membership is established in this manner and must be maintained in the same way for subsequent semesters.

Section 4. There will be no dues. Additional costs to team members will vary according to specific activities.

Section 5. The Speech and Debate Team is an equal opportunity organization.

Section 6. The Speech and Debate Team adheres to the Student Guide as well as the other laws, rules, and regulations governing the University of Florida and its students, including the prohibition of any hazing activities.

Section 7. Any member of the Speech and Debate Team shall be free to leave or disassociate with the team without fear of harassment or reprisal.

Article IV. Meetings.
Section 1. Meetings will be held weekly throughout the fall and spring semesters.

Section 2. Weekly meeting day and time will be voted upon at the beginning of each semester by the team.

Section 3. Emergency meetings may be called by the president of the team or by the advisor. For an official meeting to take place under these circumstances, a quorum need be present. For all purposes regarding quorums within this constitution, a quorum shall be defined as thirty percent (30%) of the active membership for that particular semester.

Section 4. Meetings are guided by Robert's Rules of Order.

Article V. Elections.
Section 1. Elections will be held during the final meeting of the semester. The two meetings prior to the election will be reserved for nominations to be made.

Section 2. Voting for President, Vice President and Secretary/Treasurer shall be reserved for all members active during the Spring Term. Voting for the Policy Debate Captain shall take place at the end of each semester (Fall/Spring) and shall be reserved to only those who had actually competed in policy debate during the respective term. Voting for I.E. Captain shall be reserved to only those who actually competed in I.E. in the Spring term. Any member expected to graduate at the conclusion of the spring term shall remain eligible to vote in election. Voting for Parliamentary Debate Captain shall be reserved to only those who actually competed in Parliamentary Debate in the Spring Term.

Section 3. During the election, the order of the vote shall be as follows: President, Vice President, Policy Debate Captain, I.E. Captain, Parliamentary Debate Captain, Secretary/Treasurer. Downslating will be permitted. No proxy voting shall be allowed. Each vote must be done in person at the time of the vote.

Section 4. In the case of a vacancy of the Presidency, the Vice President will become President and a special election of the Vice Presidency will take place the meeting following the one week at which nominations are made and two weeks following the vacancy.

Section 5. In the case of a vacancy of any office other than President, the office in question shall be filled by special election to take place the meeting following the one week of nominations are made and two weeks following the vacancy.

Section 6. All elections shall be determined by a simple plurality with a quorum of the active members.

Article VI. Officers and Duties.
Section 1. The Executive Board shall be defined as consisting of the following: President, Vice President, Secretary/Treasurer, Policy Debate Captain, Parliamentary Debate Captain and I.E. Captain. Any action called for from the executive board must have the involvement of all members. All officers, except Policy Debate Captain, serve one school year, which will begin at the start of summer and conclude and the end of the spring term. The Policy Debate Captain's term will be divided in two: one term is from the start of summer through the fall semester, the second is for the spring term. In the absence of the President, duties fall down the chain of command. The order of succession shall be as is the order below.

Section 2. President - The President shall preside over all general team meetings, conduct team business and assist the advisor with team matters. The President may also set up temporary administrative committees or positions if necessary.

Section 3. Vice President - The Vice President shall preside over team meetings and assume responsibility of conducting team business in the absence of the President. This office shall also coordinate community and campus activities as well as oversee any temporary administrative committees or positions. This office shall also be responsible for representing the team in any meetings where representation is deemed necessary or important by the executive board.

Section 4. Secretary/Treasurer - The Secretary/Treasurer will be responsible for all team documentation, including but not limited to, phone lists, notes of weekly meetings, recording team and individual awards, and recording weekly meeting attendance for the purpose of determining active membership. This office shall be responsible for collecting information from new members as well as organizing team socials. In addition, this office shall inform members about the team's financial status. This office shall assist the Director of Forensics in preparing and defending the budget proposal each spring.

Section 5. Policy Debate Captain - The Policy Debate Captain will be in charge of all debate specific activities including debate meetings. This office should work with the advisor, Parliamentary Debate Captain, and I.E. Captain to develop a yearly travel schedule. The captain may delegate duties with respect to policy debate-specific activities.

Section 6. Individual Events Captain - The I.E. Captain will be in charge of all I.E. Specific activities including I.E. Meetings. This office should work with the advisor, Policy Debate Captain and Parliamentary Debate Captain to develop a yearly travel schedule. The captain may delegate duties with respect to I.E.-specific activities.

Section 7. Parliamentary Debate Captain - The Parliamentary Debate Captain will be in charge of all parliamentary debate specific activities including Parliamentary debate meetings. This office should work with the advisor, Policy Debate Captain, and I.E. Captain to develop a yearly travel schedule. The captain may delegate duties with respect to Parliamentary debate specific activities.

Section 8. The above officers will establish office hours at the beginning of the semester for the purpose of assisting members with team matters on an individual basis.

Section 9. Chair Positions - All chair positions shall be appointed. Candidates should submit letters to the executive board. The executive board will choose the best qualified candidate for each of the positions. Each appointment must have the approval by the advisor. Removal from chair position shall be done by executive board vote. As appointed positions, these chairs will have no voting power at executive meetings. The chairs will have no voting power at executive meetings. The chairs of Student Government Relations, Alumni Affairs, Alumni Newsletter and Historical Affairs shall be filled at the beginning of each fall term.

a. Chair of Student Government Relations - This chair shall keep Student Government abreast of all team activities and tournament results as well as informing the team of Student Government issues. This chair must attend Student Government meetings with no more than three (3) absences per semester.

b. Chair of Alumni Affairs - This chair shall be responsible for contacting alumni of the team, organizing the Homecoming Barbecue and activities off the UF campus in connection with alumni. This chair will also assist the Chair of the Alumni Newsletter.

c. Chair of the Alumni Newsletter - This chair shall be responsible for the production and mailing of the Alumni Newsletter. This chair shall be responsible for updating the alumni mailing list with assistance from the Chair of Alumni Affairs.

d. Chair of Historical Affairs - This chair shall be responsible for public displays of the team. This chair shall also create a yearly scrapbook documenting the activities of the team over the course of the year to be complete with photos of the team.

e. Temporary Chair Positions - Temporary chair positions may be established by the executive board. These chair positions shall be dissolved at the end of the spring term.

Section 10. The Faculty Advisor shall be the person hired by the College of Liberal Arts & Sciences to be the "Director of Forensics." The Faculty Advisor's duties shall include advising the team on Speech/Debate and administrative matters. The Faculty Advisor shall retain his/her position as long as he/she is the Director of Forensics and maintains good standing.

Section 11. Should any member of the executive board be accused of being delinquent of duties, an impeachment process must proceed in the following manner. A group of at least five (5) active members shall call for an impeachment hearing before the executive board. At this point, the indicted shall be suspended from the board, pending the outcome of this process. During the impeachment hearing, one person only shall offer testimony against the accused, followed by a defense of the accused, which may be presented by the accused personally or a representative. If any member of the executive board shall find just cause for an impeachment, that member shall call for an impeachment vote to be held at the meeting following the meeting at which the announcement of the vote is made. A 2/3 vote of the active membership shall be required for the removal of office. In the case of the Parliamentary or Policy Debate/I.E. Captain, only active members who participate in that specific activity may vote. This vote concludes the impeachment process.

Article VII. Amendments to the Constitution and Bylaws.
Section 1. Amendments shall be presented to the executive board. The executive board will determine if such an amendment shall be deemed relevant by the board. If an endorsement is made, the amendment must pass two (2) consecutive readings before a quorum of the active members by a 2/3 vote. If the amendment passes both the first and second reading, it shall be added to the constitution. If the amendment fails either the first of second reading, it shall be considered dead.

Section 2. In either the first or second reading, a vote may be made to send the amendment back to the executive board for a re-writing. This bote may not be made once the amendment has failed a reading and thus should be made prior to a vote in favor or opposed to the amendment.