MOST Constitution

The constitution of MOST.

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CONSTITUTION
of the MIT Organization of Serbian Students (MOST)

As amended on October 4^th 2003.

ARTICLE 1 (Name)

The name of the Organization shall be the M.I.T. Organization of Serbian Students (MOST), referred to in what follows as MOST or the Organization.

ARTICLE 2 (Purpose)

Section 1:

The purpose of the Association shall be:

a. To welcome and counsel all newly arrived Serbian students, and all others interested in joining the Organization.

b. To promote fellowship, and cultural, social and educational activities among the members of the Serbian student community, as well as all the others interested in the Serbian culture and heritage.

c. To present Serbian culture and heritage to the wider MIT community.

d. To foster the development of ties between the Serbian students worldwide.

Section 2:

Political activities are beyond the scope of the dealings of MOST. Political activity is considered to be any activity directly dealing with the question of who (person or party) has or should have authority in a country or any political institution.

ARTICLE 3 (Membership)

Section 1:

There shall be two types of membership: (a) Active membership (b) Alumni membership.

a. Active members of the Organization shall be all members of the MIT Community ("MIT Community," as defined by MIT) to whose membership in the organization less than a half of current Active Members present during a General Assembly meeting oposes. Serbian origin is not a prerequisite for active membership. Active members have the right to vote in a General Assembly, and to be elected to the Executive Committee.

b. Alumni members shall be those MIT Alumni who were Active Members of the Organization during the course of their work at MIT Alumni members have the right to attend and speak at General Assembly meetings. However, they do not have the right to vote at General Assembly meetings nor to be elected to the Executive Committee.

Section 2:

There is no membership fee.

ARTICLE 4 (Executive Committee)

The Executive Committee (serbian: Izvrshno Vechye) of the Organization shall be composed of the following elected officers:

(a) President; (b) Treasurer and (c) two (2) Committee members.

Section 1:

Each officer, immediately after elected, shall agree to abide by the provisions of this Constitution, and shall say: "I promise to respect the Constitution of MOST."

Section 2:

The duties of the Executive Committee and its members shall be as follows:

a. The Executive Committee shall make policy decisions. Executive Committee decisions shall be made by consensus. Before leaving office, the Executive Committee shall present a complete report of the Organization's activities during its mandate, and its recommendations to the incoming Executive Committee, to the members of the Organization.

b. The Executive Committee is responsible for maintaining an inclusive atmosphere in the Organization, and for encouraging work for the Organization among the Organization's members. The Executive Committee has the authority to appoint coordinators of the Official Organization's sub-committees (e.g. sub-committees for social or cultural events, movie projections, sports, public relations, inter-organizational cooperation, website and electronic mailing lists maintenance and others).

c. The President shall head the Executive Committee, shall preside at all meetings and/or other functions of the Organization, and shall be the official representative of the Organization. . Each active member can serve as a president for no more then two (2) yearly terms of office in a row, and no more than seven (7) yearly terms of office in a lifetime.

d. The Treasurer shall be responsible for all Organization funds; shall pay all bills under the direction of the Executive Committee; shall keep an account of all receipts and disbursements and shall present an annual report at the last meeting of the academic year. The Treasurer shall also request from the sub-committees to come up with itemized costs for their projects at least a week before the appropriate funding deadlines.

e. One of the remaining two Executive Committee members shall keep an updated record of names and contact information of all Active and Alumni members of the Organization. The other of the remaining two Executive Committee members shall keep record of all the property of MOST (e.g. books, video cassettes, utensils etc.), and of who keeps this property at the moment.

Section 3:

The term of office for all members of the Executive Committee shall be one (1) calendar year. No member shall hold two (2) offices in the Executive Committee simultaneously.

Section 4:

The Executive Committee shall use most_sef@mit.edu electronic mail list to discuss policy issues and make decisions. The Executive Committee shall encourage membership on this list, and an active role in the discussions it hosts, of all Active and Alumni members of the Organization. The Executive Committee can also meet in person at its discretion.

ARTICLE 5 (Resignation and Removal from Office or Organization)

Section 1:

In case of one resignation from the Executive Committee, a substitute member joins the Executive Committee. However, if two or more members of the originally elected Executive Committee resign, then new elections take place.

Section 2:

A majority of active members (half plus one) can decide to replace the Executive Committee during a General Assembly. In that case, new elections take place. Removal from office may happen only once in an academic year. Removal of a member of the Association shall require a two-thirds (2/3) majority of Active members' votes during a General Assembly meeting.

ARTICLE 6 (General Assembly Meetings)

The General Assembly (serbian: Skupshtina) is the sovereign body of the Association and has the power to make all decisions.

a. An elected Board presides over the General Assembly meetings. The Board consists of a Chairperson and a Secretary. Each General Assembly elects its Board by open ballot, at each of its meetings.

b. There shall be one (1) Regular General Assembly meeting per year, to be held between September 15 and October 15, inclusive.

c. Other General Assembly meetings shall take place: 1) at the request of at least ten (10) Active members of the Organization; 2) at the request of the President; 3) if a consensus is not reached by the Executive Committee on any policy decision; (4) according to Article 5. In the third (3) case, the General Assembly will vote on the problematic policy issue. In all cases, the President shall call a General Assembly meeting within one (1) month.

d. The President shall notify by electronic mail all the active members, at least two (2) weeks in advance, of the exact date and time of any General Assembly meeting, and at least five (5) days in advance, of the exact location of any General Assembly meeting.

e. General Assembly makes decisions by open ballot (besides the elections which proceed by secret ballot), and by majority of votes. A General Assembly meeting does not have to consist of a quorum.

ARTICLE 7 (Elections)

Section 1:

No elections shall be held outside of General Assembly meetings. All elections will be presided over by the Chairperson of the General Assembly. Regular Elections for the Executive Committee shall be yearly, and shall be held during the Regular General Assembly meeting. Exceptional elections shall be caused according to Article 5.

Section 2:

Nominations for any office may be submitted by any active member of the Organization. A member may also nominate himself/herself. The nominee may accept or refuse the nomination. In case of absence of the nominee, a letter of acceptance should be made available. No voting by mail is allowed.

Section 3:

All elections proceed by secret ballot. Nominees who receive the highest number of votes are elected to the office. In case of a tie one revote with the two candidates will be performed. After one revote, the ties will be resolved at the discretion of the Chairperson of the General Assembly.

ARTICLE 8 (Amendments)

a. Amendments to Articles 2, 8.a and Article 5, Section 2 of this Constitution shall require a two thirds (2/3) majority vote of the active members.

b. Amendments to all other articles, excluding Articles 2, 8 and 11.a, shall require a one-half (1/2) majority vote of the active members.

ARTICLE 9 (ASA Clause)

The MIT Organization of Serbian Students agrees to abide by the rules and regulations of the Association of Student Activities, and its executive board. This constitution, amendments to it, and the by-laws of this organization shall be subject to review by the ASA Executive Board to insure that they are in accordance with the aforementioned rules and regulations.

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