Constitution of the University of Cincinnati
Student Activities Board
Revised: August 27, 2015January 29, 2015MarchMay20132012
Article IName
The name of this organization shall be the University of Cincinnati Student Activities Board, hereinafter referred to as “SAB.”
Article IIPurpose
The Student Activities Board (SAB), as a departmental organizationgroup under Student Activities and Leadership Development Office, works cooperatively with Student Government. Its purpose is threefold: registration, promotion, and regulation of student organizations. SAB also works with newly-forming organizations groups so that they may achieve an organized and efficient nucleus.
Article IIIMembership
3.13.1There shall be three (3) classes of members: voting, non-voting, and honorary.A fee of $0.00 will be charged for membership in SAB.
3.2 There shall be three (3) classes of members: voting, non-voting, and honorary.
3.32Voting Members shall consist of the following:
a.Voting Members shall consist of not more thantwenty five (25)Thirty (30)undergraduate full or part-time students, not including members who will graduate during the academic year but including participants in 4+1 or similar program, that are in good academic and disciplinary standing chosen by Board members as specified herein.
b.In addition to the twenty five (25) voting Board members, there shall be one (1) additional member from Student Senate with voting membership after being appointed by the Speaker of Senate and all proper training is completed.
3.43Non-Voting Members shall consist of the following:
a.Non-Voting Members shall consist of first quarter members including the representative appointed by senate new members prior to attendance of an orientation session deemed suitable by the president. With an absence to a suitable orientation one full academic semester quarter of Board experience and incurring no more than two unexcused absences, the member shall be granted voting status. Should the number of non-voting members exceed the number of voting members, the Executive Board shall have the power to grant voting status
3.54One representative from the Student Affairs Division of the University of Cincinnati shall be appointed by the Director of Student Activities and Leadership Development and shall serve as the University advisor. An advisor, as described in Article VI, shall have no voting rights.
3.65Honorary membership shall be open to any person desiring such membership, elected to the same by a majority of the voting members and shall have no voting rights.
3.76The number of honorary and non-voting members together shall not exceed the number of voting members.
3.8This organization shall not discriminate on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, age, gender, disability or handicap, religion, sexual orientation, disabled veteran's status or Vietnam era veteran's status in any of its policies, procedures and practices. This policy will include but is not limited to recruiting, membership, organization activities[DS1], or opportunity to hold office.
Article IV Officers
4.1 The officers of SAB shall be President, Internal Vice-President, External Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Membership,two University Funding Board Representatives, and Senate Representative, whose duties are described herein.
4.2 Each officer shall be a voting member and a matriculating undergraduate student achieving and maintaining a 2.5 per semester quarterly grade point average and in good standing with his/her college.
4.3 All officers shall serve for a term of one full year or until their successors shall be duly elected and qualified.
4.4 Any voting officer who, during the term of his/her office, ceases to be a voting member, or fails to maintain his/her status as a matriculating undergraduate student maintaining a 2.5 grade point average, in good academic and disciplinary standing with his/her college, and/or miss more than 23general meetings within a semester, shall be removed from office and replacement shall be elected thereto.
Article V Meetings
5.1 The SAB shall hold regular meetings at least twelve (12) times per semester during the Fall and Spring academic semesters (excluding times of campus closure). The time for such meetings shall be determined by the Executive Board with the approval of the voting members.
5.1.1 No organizations shall be heard the first week of Fall or Spring Semesters.
5.2 The Executive Board may call special meetings at any time upon one week’s notice to each member by a petition of a majority of the membership, submitted one week before the scheduled meeting.
Article VI University Advisor
6.1 SAB shall have a University Advisor who shall be a full or part-time member of the University, faculty, staff, or administration. The University Advisor shall be appointed by the Director of Student Activities and Leadership Development.
Article VII Amendments
7.1Amendments to this Constitution must be presented by a member of SAB at least one week prior to voting upon the same.
7.2 A two-thirds (2/3) vote shall be required for approval of the amendments.
7.3Amendments to the Constitution of SAB shall not become effective until the Student Senate passes the enactment bill.
Article VIII Ratification
8.1Ratification by two-thirds (2/3) of the voting members of the SAB shall be sufficient to establish this Constitution.
Bylaws of the University of Cincinnati
Student Activities Board
Revised March 2013
Section ISelection of Members
1.1The following procedure will be followed in selecting voting members.
a.The board shall interview eligible students who have submitted petitions made available to the University community before the tenth week of Fall Semester.
A selection committee composed of the President, Membership Officer(s), and four[DS2] (4) members of the organization, shall interview and select candidate(s) from each pool of eligible students for positions on the board. The Candidates will be presented to the existing Board for final approval by two-thirds vote, within one week of the applicant’s final interview.
b.The new board members shall have non-voting membership during the timefirst week following their selection and approval[DS3], and will not become voting members until the completion of their training.
1.2All student members shall serve for at least one (1) year.
1.3Any vacancies that occur may be filled by selecting another member from the petitions submitted that year or by re-opening petitions to the University community.
Section II Duties of Student Officers
2.1 The President shall be the Executive officer of the SAB and shall preside over all meetings of the SAB and the Executive Board. He/she shall be an ex-officio member of all standing committees.
2.2 The Internal Vice President shall be in charge of the revisions to the Constitutions and/or By-laws and shall advise the President on actions taken by the Board as to their constitutional legitimacy. The officer shall oversee the Violation committee. He/she shall also oversee the registration workshopsprocess and any other workshopspresentations presented by the SAB. He/she shall also plan any retreat other than the new member retreat.
2.3 The External Vice President shall be in charge of the publicity and advertising for the[DS4] SAB. He/she shall oversee the Publications and, the Special Events committees, and committees. He/she shall work in conjunction with the SAB Student organization consultants to facilitate better communication to Student organizations about SAB’s programs and resources.
2.4 The Treasurer shall be responsible, in conjunction with the University Advisor and President, for all fiscal matters of the SAB, and shall have the following duties:
a.He/She, in conjunction with the Advisor and President, will have the final approval of all SAB expenditures. He/she shall co-sign all checks with the Advisor/President in payment of bills.
b.He/She shall abide by all University funding policies and procedures and the policies and guidelines set down by the Student Activities and Leadership Development Office.
c.He/She shall keep the account books, which must be open to inspection by the President, Executive Board, SACUB, or any authorized auditor at all times. He/She is also responsible for reporting the status of the budget at each SAB meeting.
d.He/She shall prepare a budget to submit before the Board’s approval and shall submit said report to SACUB. Failure to abide by these policies will result in financial probation of the SAB.
2.5The Secretary shall keep the record of the membership attendance and the minutes of the meetings, and be responsible for submitting the minutes to members, SAB’s website(s)blackboard, and the Student Government website by the Wednesday following[DS5] their approval by the SAB, and serving as Office Manager by providing the following duties; management of the SAB office area, and the maintenance of online Student organization files. He/She should also be in charge of the following:
a.Phone lists, email lists, birthdays, calendars, office hour sheets, etc[DS6].
2.6The Membership Officer shall have the responsibility to organize membership selection including overseeing membership committee, orientation, and training of the new members as well as assisting the President in the leadership development of existing board members. He/She shall also plan and execute the new member retreats[DS7] and birthday recognitions.
2.7The University Funding Board Representatives shall have the responsibility to facilitate communication between SAB and UFB, including:
a.Reporting approval and denial of university organizations by SAB to UFB.
b.Reporting approval and denial of budgets of university organizations by UFB to SAB.
c.Both representatives shall alternate meetings, reporting to both UFB and SAB at all times.
2.8The Senate representative shall have the responsibility to represent the SAB on Senate, including:
a.Attending all meetings of the Student Senate or appointing an alternate with the Speaker of Senate no less than 48 hours in advance,
b.Reporting approval and denial of university organizations at each Student Senate meeting.
c.Reporting Senatorial business at each SAB meeting.
Section III Election of officers
3.1Each Spring at the 2nd and 3rd meeting before Spring Break of the semester, officer nominations will be taken for President, Internal Vice-President, External Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Membership, UFB Representative, and Senate Representative. At the last meeting before Spring Break, officer elections shall[DS8] be held.
3.2A co-op member of SAB, in good standing, can if he/she wishes, place a vote in current elections by submitting his/her proposed slate to the outgoing president forty-eight (48) hours prior to the election. No other slate will be accepted for any other reasons. Only members present at the election meeting and in good standing shall have the ability to vote in elections.
3.3Members on out-of-town co-op or absent for valid reason may run in the election providing they submit their presentation 48 hours prior to the election meeting to the outgoing President.
3.43 The President shall refrain from voting in officer elections with the exception being in the event of a tie.
3.54The President and Advisor shall execute the tallying of official votes for officer elections only.
3.65 The new officers shall begin their term of office after their transition period and shall serve a term of one full year.
3.76 Transition of officers is to be scheduled before Spring Break by the president. Transition of officers requires that the incoming and outgoing Executives meet simultaneously to ensure satisfactory transition of command and must occur before the new Executives can be installed.
3.87All outgoing officers shall be ex-officio members until deemed necessary by the new officers. All executive Board members are responsible for educating their successors of the obligations of their positions.
3.98The representative from Senate is not eligible to hold an office on the SAB
Section IV Executive Board
4.1 The Executive Board shall be composed of the elected officers of the SAB and the Advisor.
4.2 The Executive Board shall determine the policies and activities of the SAB, discipline members, approve the budget, and have general management of the SAB.
4.3The Executive Board shall meet at least bi-weekly outside of the general member SAB Meetings and at the call of the Advisor.
Section V University Advisor
5.1 The University Advisor shall consult with SAB and assure that its activities are consistent with its purpose.
5.2 The Advisor shall grant approval for all off-campus activities in which a student formally represents SAB, such as conventions, meetings, etc.
5.3 The Advisor must file an official certification of academic standing of SAB’s officers with the Student Activities and Leadership Development Office. Said Certification is due per semester.
5.4The Advisor shall know the rules and regulations governing the handling of all financial matters, and co-sign checks.
Section VI Duties of Members
6.1
The duties of SAB members shall be as follows:
a.To attend all meetings. It is members’ responsibility to provide flexibility in their academic schedule in order to fulfill membership obligation of mandatory meeting attendance. Should an academic conflict arise, the member must submit their official schedule to the SAB President by the second meeting of the academic semester in question.
b.To know the purposes of the SAB.
c.To take an active part in the Board functions and activities. Each member is required to participate in an SAB committee and to hold two office hours a week, excluding the senate representative.
d.To perform other duties as required by the President.
e.Responsibility to participate in the selection and training of new members with the guidance of the Internal Vice President and Membership Officers.
f.To serve as Student Organization Consultants under the Internal Vice President to an assigned section of sStudent Organization[DS9]; to guide these organizations in terms of University and sStudent Organization policies, organizational development, and programming; and to serve as an information resource for sStudent Organization. The President, Internal VP, and External VP are excluded from these duties.
g.If a member is in the co-op program, they must inform the SAB President one semester prior to their co-op semester. When returning from co-op the member must contact the SAB President two weeks prior to the academic semester.
h.All members are required to attend all SAB events which include: Fall and Winter Organization fairs, Presidential Luncheon, and Celebration of Student Involvement (CSI) unless they are on co-op, study abroad or have class during the time of the event.
i.All members must attend at least one Registration PresentationWorkshop coordinated by the Internal Vice-President.
6.2A member of SAB is considered in good standing if all of the above duties are being fulfilled.
Section VII Committees
The following committees shall be appointed
a.Publications: This committee shall consist of no less than two (2) members[DS10], excluding the External Vice President who has oversight of its functions. The Publications committee is responsible for the production of the Activus. This committee is also the official marketing and advertising division of the SAB and shall be responsible for all promotion of the Board’s programs, recruitment, organization registration, and Activus.
b.Special Events: This committee shall consist of no less than two (2) members for each event, excluding the External Vice President who has oversight of its functions. This division is responsible for the SAB Activities Fairs, the Celebration of Student Involvement Awards Student Involvement End of the Year Celebration, and all other programming done by the Board.[DS11]
c.Violations: This committee shall consist of no less than two (2) members excluding the Internal Vice President who has oversight of its functions. This committee shall publicize and enforce all university policies, in which the SAB has been given jurisdiction, including: posting, hazing, and alcohol violations with procedures set forth herein.[DS12]
Membership: This committee shall consist of no less than two (2) members, excluding the Membership officer who has oversight of its functions. This division is responsible for all internal social programming and personnel incentives for the Board[DS13].
Section VIII Meetings
8.1Meetings shall be held at such places as determined by the Executive Board.
8.2Meetings will be held weekly at the designated time and place.
8.3At all the meetings, a quorum shall be 50% + 1 of the voting members. A quorum is necessary for the organization to conduct business.
8.4All matters coming before the SAB which require the approval of the membership shall be carried by the majority vote and the members present, providing that a quorum is present except for business specified in the Constitution or Bylaws which require a specific number, i.e. ratification, etc.
Section IX Revenue
9.1Revenue from sources such as fundraisers, etc. may be raised as determined by the Executive Board and approved by SAB along with the approval of Student Activities and Leadership Development Office.
9.2The distribution of said revenues shall be determined by the Executive Board with the approval of SAB and with accordance of University policies.
Section X Duties of the Student Activities Board
10.1The Student Activities Board shall:
a.Conduct the registration of new and re-registrationR.E.S.E.T. of existing student organizations each year. Each year’s Board shall determine the periods during which these duties shall be performed in the upcoming year, with adequate time given for organization to fulfill their obligations. Failure to meet re-registrationR.E.S.E.T. requirements will result in suspension until the organization’s re-registrationR.E.S.E.T. obligations are fulfilled as determined by the Board.
Determine and enforce the adherence of student organization to existing University Policy and investigate complaints filed against any student organization under SAB.[DS14]
b.Take appropriate action against organizations under the jurisdiction of SAB that violate University Policy, fail to attend mandatory workshops, or fail to turn in registration.
10.2 When dealing with infractions of University Policy, or complaints by organization or in any official business in which the Board has interactions with organization under its jurisdiction, the Board will follow the procedure stated herein.
The president shall choose a member of the Board to handle the proceedings. He/She shall be in charge of all correspondence to and from the Board.