Constitution

(A Graduate Student Organization of Tufts University)

Article I

Name

The name of this organization shall be 'Indian Society At Tufts (ISAT)'.

Article II

Purpose

The purpose of the organization shall be to foster greater interaction among graduate students of Indian origin; to provide all possible help and support to incoming graduate students of Indian origin to enable them to transition comfortably into their new environment; to provide a convenient forum for them to share their experiences and discuss pertinent issues; to represent, promote and protect the interests of the graduate students of Indian origin at the University level; and to create an awareness among the Indian students community residing in India about the programs, environment and educational opportunities at Tufts. ISAT is also responsible to promote interaction between Tufts alumni and current graduate students.

Article III

Membership

The membership of the organization shall be open to all graduate students of Indian origin of the Tufts community who have paid the graduate student activities fee. Membership can be requested by sending an email to the contemporary office holders.

Article IV

Officers and Elections

Section I. The officers of the organization shall be the President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Committee Chairs. The officers shall form the Executive Board of the organization.

Section II. The President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer shall be elected at the end of the academic year by a simple majority of all present members. The Committee chairs shall be elected at the beginning of the academic year by a simple majority of all present members. In case of a tie, the current President, Vice President and the Secretary shall vote between the two tied members to break the tie. All members of the organization shall be eligible to vote.

Section III. The organization may establish additional officers and provide suitable methods for their election.

Article V

Meetings

Meetings will be held on a regular basis during each academic semester, or as deemed necessary by the Executive Board. However there should be at least one meeting in the fall and spring semesters.

Article VI

Duties of the Officers

Section I. Duties of The President

i. The President shall preside over all the meetings of the organization.

ii. The President shall have signatory powers over the financial accounts of the organization.

iii. The President shall have the authority to act on behalf of the organization in matters requiring immediate attention.

Section II. Duties of the Vice President

i. The Vice President shall take over the duties of the President in his or her absence.

ii. The Vice President shall assist the President in carrying out his or her duties.

iii. The Vice President shall act as the coordinator of the organizations committees, working to ensure reasonable progress in the committee tasks.

Section III. Duties of the Secretary

i. The Secretary shall keep good and true minutes of the meetings of the organization.

ii. Within one week of each meeting, the Secretary shall make the minutes public to all members.

iii. The Secretary shall be responsible for all the official correspondence of the organization and shall take care to see that copies of all such correspondence and the minutes of all meetings are preserved on file, and other media if suitable.

Section IV. Duties of the Treasurer

i. The Treasurer shall manage all the financial records of the organization, and shall be responsible to preserve copies of all financial documents on file. These documents shall be made accessible upon request to any member of the organization.

ii. The Treasurer shall take responsibility for the preparation of the budget of the organization.

iii. The Treasurer shall submit a proposed budget to the organization for the subsequent year at the budgeting meeting in April, and a financial statement to the organization at the beginning and end of the academic year.

Section V. Duties of the Committee Chairs

i. The Committee Chairs shall be responsible for managing the activities of their respective committee.

ii. The Committee Chair shall be responsible for organizing members for their committee on a voluntary basis.

Article VII

Amendments

This constitution may be amended by a vote of at least three fourths of the present members, with a quorum of at least 80% of all members, provided that the proposed amendment was formally introduced at the previous meeting of the organization, and that copies of the proposed amendment were made available to all members at least one week before the meeting. All amendments are subject to the approval of the Graduate Student Council.

Article VIII

Impeachment

Section I. The Officers of the organization may be removed from office by the following procedure:

i. Upon receipt of a petition for removal of an officer signed by at least half the members of the organization, a special meeting of the organization shall be convened to hear and discuss the charges.

ii. The members shall designate a Special Chair by a majority vote to preside at this meeting.

iii. The Officer shall be allowed to defend himself / herself at this special meeting.

iv. Within two weeks of this meeting, a special ballot should be held under the supervision of the Special Chair. The officer in question shall be removed from office if approved by at least a three-fourths vote of all members.

v. Until the resolution of the impeachment proceedings, the officer in question shall not be permitted to carry out his duties, and shall be replaced by one of the other officers.

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