CONSTITUTION OF THE GEORGETOWN UNIVERSITY BALLROOM DANCE CLUB

Preamble

In the interest of promoting dance, culture and fun, the members of the Georgetown University Ballroom Dance Club do hereby establish this Constitution.

Article I. Names and Structure

Section 1

The name of the organization will be Georgetown University Ballroom Dance Club, hereafter referred to as the "Club." Georgetown University shall be henceforth referred to as the "University."

Section 2

The Club shall consist of both competitive and non-competitive, social dancers. Competitive dancers enrolled in the Club's team dance classes will constitute the Georgetown Ballroom Dance Team, Hoya DanceSport, hereafter referred to as the "Team."

Article II. Purpose

Section 1

The Club is established in order to promote a ballroom dancing tradition at Georgetown. The Club aims to teach students the art of dancing - either for social purposes or in preparation for competition and performance. The Club will seek to develop a relationship with the ballroom dance clubs at other universities and the ballroom dancing community in general.

Section 2

Activities of the Club include: organizing social and Team ballroom dance classes; representing Georgetown University in local, national, and international ballroom dance competitions; and sponsoring and participating in campus and community events and performances in the interest of promoting ballroom dancing.

Section 3

The Club will abide by all Georgetown University policies and procedures.

Article III. Membership

Section 1

Active members are those persons affiliated with the University who participate in social dance classes and/or who join the competitive team. Furthermore, active membership requires payment in full of all financial obligations. These fees may include but are not limited to class fees, competition fees, and/or membership dues as determined by the organization.

Section 2

Active members may attain voting status if they have attended a majority of the activities sponsored by the Club during a given semester.

Section 2.1

Section 2.2

Persons who are studying overseas are considered active or voting members if they fulfilled all membership requirements during their last semester at Georgetown prior to going abroad.

Section 3

The Club does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, creed, age, nationality, marital status, ethnicity, gender or sexual orientation.

Article IV. Officers

Officers of the Club must be voting members of the Team. The Club will be governed as follows:

Section 1

The Club's voting members shall elect a President, Team Captain, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Social Events Coordinator, and Newcomer Liaison. These officers shall constitute an Executive Board (hereafter known as the "Board") and shall meet on a regular basis. A Board meeting may be called by any Board member according to the Club Bylaws.

Section 2

The President will preside at all meetings of the Club, will be responsible for coordinating activities of the Club, and will facilitate intra-board communication. The President shall serve as liaison between the Club and the Student Activities Commission (SAC) and the Office of Student Programs (OSP). The President may have additional responsibilities as outlined in the Club Bylaws.

Section 3

The Team Captain will coordinate practices and team participation in competitions. The Team Captain will also serve as liaison between the Team and the local chapter of the United States Amateur Ballroom Dancers Association (USABDA). The Team Captain will work with the Newcomer Liaison (see Article IV, Section 8). The Team Captain may have additional responsibilities as outlined in the Club Bylaws.

Section 4

The Vice President will preside at all meetings in absence of the President. The Vice President is responsible for fundraising and coordinating social dance classes. The Vice President may have additional responsibilities as outlined in the Club Bylaws.

Section 5

The Secretary will keep accurate lists of the active and voting members, including contact and all other pertinent information. The Secretary will notify members of meetings as well as take attendance and minutes at those meetings. The Secretary will arrange for the maintenance of the Club website. Furthermore, the Secretary will work with the University and other organizations to secure facilities for Club events. The Secretary may have additional responsibilities as outlined in the Club Bylaws.

Section 6

The Treasurer will handle all dues, fees, other revenues, and expenditures. The Treasurer will develop the annual budget and present it before the Board and SAC for approval. The Treasurer shall represent the Club in financial interactions with the SAC and the OSP. The Treasurer will perform other duties as stated in Article VI, Section 4. The Treasurer may have additional responsibilities as outlined in the Club Bylaws.

Section 7

The Social Events Coordinator, also known as the Minister of Fun, will coordinate social outings and on-campus social events for the Club. The Social Events Coordinator will assist in publicizing all Club events. The Social Events Coordinator may have additional responsibilities as outlined in the Club Bylaws.

Section 8

The Newcomer Liaison will serve on the Board as a representative of the Beginner Team members. Moreover, the Newcomer Liaison will assist the Team Captain in coordinating competitions. The Newcomer Liaison may have additional responsibilities as outlined in the Club Bylaws.

Section 9

All Club business must be put before the Board, and may only be passed by a majority vote of the Board.

Article V. Operations

Section 1. Voting Eligibility

Those members meeting all requirements of voting membership as set forth in Article III will be eligible to vote.

Section 2. Election Process

Section 2.1

All officers except for the Newcomer Liaison shall be elected by a majority vote of the voting members present at a meeting comprised of, at minimum, a quorum. A quorum shall consist of (50% + 1) of the voting members of the Team. If no candidate receives a majority of the votes, the two top candidates will participate in a run-off election. In case of a tie, the outgoing board will vote between the two run-off candidates. To guarantee that all voting members of the Club who wish to vote have an opportunity to do so, elections shall be announced at least three weeks before the election date. Elections will be held on an annual basis and no later than February 15.

Section 2.2

Section 2.3

During elections, the President will take nominations from the floor for one office at a time, in the order in which the positions are listed in Article IV, Section 1. Nominations must be seconded and accepted by the nominee. Absent members eligible to run may do so by proxy.

Section 2.4

All voting shall be done by secret ballot to be collected and tabulated by two voting member of the Club appointed by the President and approved by the majority of the board. The Secretary will oversee the election process and record election results.

Section 2.5

Newly elected officers will assume office on April 15 or on an earlier date as unanimously approved by the outgoing Board, but will begin training for their future roles with the appropriate members of the outgoing Board immediately after the election, except in the case of mid-term elections. Officers elected mid-term will assume office immediately after their election.

Section 2.6

The Newcomer Liaison shall be elected at the beginning of the fall semester by the Beginner members of the Team, and no later than the fourth week of Team classes. The Newcomer Liaison will assume office immediately as a full voting member of the board.

Section 3. Removal

Any officer of the Club in violation of the Club's purpose or who fails to fulfill his or her duties as stated above may be removed from office by the following processes:

1. A written request for removal submitted to the Board by at least three members of the Club.
2. Written notification to the officer in question of the request, asking that officer be present at the next meeting prepared to speak in his or her defense.
3. Written notification of the removal proposal and subsequent meeting to the voting membership.
4. Two-thirds vote in favor of removal at a meeting where a quorum is present, and where the party submitting the request for removal as well as the officer in question are allowed to state their cases. All members shall be notified at least two weeks in advance of the vote to allow for social members to be present.

Section 4. Replacement

Should an officer resign or be removed, a special election will be held no later than two weeks after written notification of that officer's departure to all voting members. Mid-term elections shall be conducted as specified in Article V, Section 2.

Article VI. Finances

The Club will finance its activities by the following means:

Section 1

Membership dues will be collected in the form of class fees within the first two weeks after the start of dance class sessions each semester, or as defined in the Bylaws.

Section 2

The Club will submit a budget to the SAC on an annual basis and request appropriate funding for the effective operation of the Club in the coming year.

Section 3

The Club will conduct all financial activities in accordance with University policy and place all funds in its University account.

Section 4

The Treasurer shall maintain all the financial records for the Club and present up to date information upon request to any of the Board members within two weeks of the request.

Article VII. Amendments

Section 1

Amendments to the constitution may be proposed in writing to the Board by any voting member. The Board must notify all voting members of the proposed amendment two weeks prior to the vote date.

Section 2

Proposed amendments will become effective following approval of a two-thirds vote of an assembly consisting of at least two-thirds of the Team and any other voting members who wish to attend.