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Article I
The name of this organization is the
Lebanese American Society (LAS).
Article II
1. Purpose: The primary aims of this organization
are:
1.1 Providing open atmosphere for people
interested in learning about the Lebanese culture, customs, history and
language.
1.2 Emphasizing the role of the
Americans descending from Lebanese origins in U.S.A. through history.
2. Activities: The Lebanese American Society shall
organize/participate-in social and cultural activities in consistent with
section one of this article.
3. LAS is a not-for-profit or non-commercial
organization. Activities shall be financed through student government,
event sponsors and fund raising events in accordance with par. 6C1-4.006
of the Handbook for Student Organizations.
Article III
1. Membership: Full membership shall be limited to
registered students of the
University of
Florida
.
However, Faculty, staff, the spouses of members and other students may be
associate members. Associate members may not hold office or vote on
matters concerning this organization. Membership is completely free and no
dues are required from any member.
2. Voting Members:
2.1 A
voting member is anyone holding full membership.
2.2 A voting member should have attended no less than
50% of all regularly scheduled meetings of the Lebanese-American Society
(not less than three meetings in total).
3.
Membership Term: The Lebanese American Society general membership shall be
based on the academic year.
Article IV
LAS, including all of its members, will not
discriminate against anyone on the basis of race, creed, color, gender, age, nationality,
disability or sexual orientation.
Article V
Board of
Directors
1. Board of Directors: The Board of Directors is
composed of the elected officers. The officers of the Lebanese American
Society shall be the President, Treasurer, Vice-President/ Secretary,
Public Relations coordinator and Social & Cultural Coordinator. They
are elected during a general meeting.
2. Nominations:
2.1 Any Lebanese American Society voting-member is
eligible to be an officer provided that the individual student meets the
requirements specified in the Handbook for Student organizations.
2.2 The candidate for Presidency must have been a
voting member in LAS for at least one semester. The Presidency candidate
must also has been a member of an active committee, in which he/she has
attended no less than 40% of the scheduled meetings of that specific
committee.
3. Terms:
3.1 An officer's
term shall consist of one full year. Each term shall begin on the first
day of the month of February and end on the last day of the month of
January.
3.2 Officers may be reelected for up to two consecutive terms for
the same position.
4. Responsibilities:
The Duties of the officers are as follows:
4.1 The President shall:
4.1.1 Serve as the representative of The Lebanese
American Society.
4.1.2 Be responsible for all
financial affairs of the organization in coordination with the
Treasurer.
4.1.3 Preside at all general
meetings.
4.1.4 Suggest committees to be approved
by Board of Directors and/or members.
4.1.5
Authenticate by his/her signature, as necessary, all documents.
4.2 The Treasurer shall:
4.2.1 Be responsible for handling funds for formal
and informal events
4.2.2 Keep all financial
records of the organization.
4.2.3 Report
financial status of the organization to the Board of Directors.
4.2.4 Present a budget report to the members at the
general meeting each semester.
4.3 The Vice-President/ Secretary shall:
4.3.2 Be responsible for taking and maintaining a
record of the minutes of the meetings of the Board of Directors and the
general LAS meetings.
4.3.3 Preside scheduled
meetings in case of Presidents absent.
4.3.4
Conduct the organization's correspondence.
4.3.5
Maintain a current membership list and a file of the personal
information.
4.3.6 Maintain records of the
association's past and current activities.
4.3.7
Form any committee, if needed, to help in carrying on his/her duties.
4.4 The Public Relations Coordinator shall:
4.4.2 Be responsible for the publicity/ advertisement
of the organization.
4.4.3 Coordinate the
relations with other student organizations as needed.
4.4.4 Form any committee, if needed, to help in
carrying on his/her duties.
4.5 The Social & Cultural Coordinator shall:
4.5.2 Prepare for all cultural and social events.
4.5.3 Form any committee, if needed, to help in
carrying on his/her duties.
5. Vacancies: If the president is unable to complete
his/her term, the V.P./Secretary shall take his/her place until someone is
elected for the position. All other vacancies in the Board of Directors
shall be open for a vote at a general meeting.
6. Officer Removal: A member of the Board of
Directors shall be removed by the majority vote of three officers of the
Board of Directors, in case the member is proved negligence in performing
his/her responsibilities as stated in this constitution.
7.
7.1 The Board of
Directors' meetings are scheduled by the officers.
7.2 The B.D. shall have 3 officers at least,
including the president or the VP/secretary, during any meeting.
7.3 B.D. decisions shall be taken by simple
majority.
8.
8.1 The General meetings
are scheduled by the B.D.
8.2 A general meeting
shall be attended by 50%, at least, of voting members.
8.3 The general meeting decisions shall be taken by
simple majority.
Article VI
Committees
1. Internal committees may be formed at any time,
according to the needs of this organization for a specific project or to
help in carrying out the work of an officer.
2. Each committee shall consist of volunteers. The
volunteers shall nominate and elect someone to serve as chairperson for
that committee unless an officer is leading that committee.
3. The chairperson shall serve until the project for
which the committee was formed is completed. The chairperson of a
committee is responsible to report, to the rest of the organization, the
progress of the committee.
ARTICLE VII
Nominations and Elections
1. Nominations shall be registered two weeks prior to
the election meeting.
2. Advanced notice for
nominations and elections shall be given to the voting members at least
two weeks prior to the nominations.
3. Elections
shall be held during the month of January.
4.
Elections shall be carried out with no fewer than 50% of the voting
members present.
5. The officers shall be elected
by relative majority.
6. There shall be no
absentee voting.
ARTICLE VII
Faculty Adviser
The faculty Advisor shall serve as a consultant to
the Board of Directors and the organization in general. The Faculty
Advisor will support the club members in fulfilling the purpose of the
club, be resource and represent the club to the community and the
University of
Florida
as needed. The Board of
Directors shall select him/her at the end of the Spring term. The
advisor's term shall be from August until June of an academic year.
Article IX
1.This organization shall conform to the regulations
prescribed by the Student Guide and other laws and rules governing the
University of
Florida and its students.
2. Hazing is, by all means, prohibited.
3. Members are free to leave and disassociate without
fear of retribution or harassment.
Article X
Amendments to this Constitution may be suggested
through a committee of interested members who has drafted the desired
revisions. These revisions shall be presented to the general meeting.
Approving any amendment requires 80 % majority of the voting
members. |