International Relations Club Constitution Passed 4/13/06 by unanimous vote Preamble Whereas international political issues and state-to-state

relations are of param ount importance in a globalized world, we hereby establish the University of Massachusetts Internat ional Relations Club , herein known as the organization, in an effort to both promote awareness of relevant topics and gain valuable experience in the art of diplomacy. Article I: Name Section 1 The name of this organization shall be the International Relations Club of the U niversity of Massachusetts at Amherst, abbreviated IRC. Article II: Membership Section 1 Membership in the organization will be open to all students, staff, faculty, dep endents and alumni of the five-college community. Section 2 The organization will not discriminate on the basis of age, gender, race, ethnic ity, nationality, religion or sexual orientation. Section 3 Membership is granted once two formal meetings are attended. Article III: The Executive Board Section 1: Composition The executive board, herein Eboard, shall consist of a president, vice president , finance officer, head delegate, publicity officer and secretary general. Non-voting executive boa rd members whom shall be present at all meetings include the parliamentarian and the webmas ter. Section 2: The President The President shall act as the chairman of the board during executive board meet ings, and as such, is responsible for setting the agenda. The president will serve as the org anizations primary liaison to the University, Student Government Association and to the Political S cience Department. The president must receive UMASS signature responsibility. Section 3: The Vice President The vice president shall assist the president in any and all administrative matt ers. The office of the vice president should coordinate efforts between Eboard members and provide logistical support for both the Eboard and the organization as a whole. Section 4: The Finance Officer The finance officer is responsible for recording and facilitating all financial transactions of the organization. He/she must receive UMASS signature responsibility. The finance of ficer is responsible for fundraising, preparing the annual SGA budget and submitting end of semester

reports and reactivation packets. It is the finance officer responsibility to ma ke sure IRC is in good standing with the University. Section 5: The Head Delegate The head delegate is responsible for all matter relating to intercollegiate conf erences. He/she shall make all hotel reservations, handle conference registration, training, edi t position papers, and all other matters hereinto related. The head delegate will also decide the t eam to attend conferences. The head delegate must conduct at least one training/ research sess ion prior to every conference. Section 6: The Publicity Officer The publicity officer is responsible for publications, membership drives and pla nning special events, including speakers. He/she must actively recruit members throughout the year when deemed needed by the Eboard. He/she is also encouraged to arrange for a speaker at least once per semester. Section 7: The Secretary General The secretary general is charged with the creation and execution of UMassMUN, ou r High School Conference. Though he/she has sole discretion on all matters relating to the conference, he/she is prohibited from possessing signature responsibility. The secretary gen eral may appoint either the president or the finance officer as director general. The secretary g eneral or the secretariat member of his choosing is responsible for keeping financial books an d keeping the finance officer apprised of what monies are encumbered by the conference. Also, annually, an operations manual must be created/maintained. Section 8: The Parliamentarian The Eboard shall appoint a Parliamentarian. This non-voting Eboard member is res ponsible for creating minutes from both Eboard and general club meetings. Also, he/she is res ponsible for taking attendance and maintaining a members list. Section 9: The Webmaster The Eboard shall appoint a Webmaster. This non-voting Eboard member is responsib le for the maintenance and updates of the website. Any member of the club, including Eboard can be appointed webmaster. All major changes must be approved by the Eboard prior to r elease. The website must contain: the constitution, a list of Eboard members, minutes, meeti ng schedule, and a dedicated UMassMUN page. Section 10: Executive Board Meetings All officers are expected to be present at all Eboard and general meetings. Offi cer reports should

be given at the beginning each Eboard meeting and recorded by the parliamentaria n. The finance officer must give the most accurate account balances, and available funds, inclu ding conference expenditures at every meeting. Eboard meetings are generally open to all members to attend, however, by the request of any officer, they can be held in executive session. F ailure to attend three consecutive Eboard meetings will result in an automatic recall election. Section 11: Quorum and Succession Quorum will consist of 4 of the 6 voting members. In the event that the presiden t is unable to attend a meeting the vice president will act in his/her capacity. The order of s uccession will be president, vice president, finance officer, head delegate, publicity officer, se cretary general. Section 12: Decisions Decisions made by the executive board are binding. The president has the power t o break tied votes. Officers will be sovereign within their own spheres of influence; however , decisions deemed major decisions by the Eboard president are subject to Eboard vote. Section 13: Exclusivity All voting Eboard positions are mutually exclusive. No person may hold more then one voting office. Article IV: General Club Meetings Section 1: Frequency General Club Meetings will be held on UMASS campus, at a minimum of biweekly, ba rring unforeseen or irregular circumstances. Section 2: Agenda The Executive Board shall jointly decide the agenda prior to a General Meeting. If a vote is deemed required, a simple majority is required to set/change the agenda. Section 3: Format The president shall open and close all meetings. First, old business should be d iscussed. Then the president should move into the Eboard decided agenda. Every officer will speak a bout topics specifically related to their office. Discussion of international relations issu es is encouraged. Section 4: Notification The president is responsible for announcing meetings at least 72 hours prior whe never possible. Article V: Voting Section 1: Eligibility Voting membership shall be restricted to University of Massachusetts- Amherst un dergraduate students. Voting privileges shall be granted once a member has attended at least

3 formal meetings, so long as they have not missed two of the three meetings preceding th e vote. Unless otherwise noted, a simple majority is needed to pass all measures. A simple majo rity is defined as 50% + 1 of the eligible voting members present at the time of the vote. Votin g eligibility requirements can be waived by a majority of organization members. Section 2: Elections Elections should be held in the second week of April. Should this cause schedule conflict, the first or third week may be substituted. The exact date of elections must be give n by the president at least two weeks prior. Section 3: Offices The positions of president, vice president, finance officer, publicity officer a nd head delegate shall all be voted on. After the election, the new Eboard shall appoint a secret ary general, webmaster, and parliamentarian. The secretary general is subject to a confirmati on by the club. Section 4: Election procedures First, every candidate is nominated, starting with the president. The organizati on shall then elect a chancellor of elections from those members not running for office. The chancel lor of elections must remain neutral and is therefore unable to participate in debate. Then, for each office, candidates will give a speech up to 5 minutes. After all candidates for that off ice speak, they pass their secret ballots to the chancellor of elections and leave the room. Debate i s conducted under a limited version of Robert's Rules of Order for up to 10 minutes. At any time the chancellor of elections may conduct a vote to determine if debate is still needed. This proces s repeats until all officers are elected. Drop down voting is permitted. Section 5: Terms of officers All elected officers terms run from election to election. An officer's term begi ns immediately after being elected and terminates at elections the following year. The terms of the parliamentarian and webmaster expire at elections as well. The secretary general shall remain in office until a new secretary general is appointed, which shall be the first task of the new executive board. Section 6: Recall A recall election for any officer can be called by either 4 Eboard members or 50 % of the organization. If recalled an officer must be reconfirmed by the organization. Section 7: Impeachment An officer may be removed from office by impeachment proceedings. Charges of imp eachment

may only be filed ther egregious misconduct. After next meeting that occurs after If an officer is impeached, he/she

if an officer has violated the constitution or has committed o charges of impeachment are placed, a vote will be taken at the a 2 week window. A 2/3 vote is required to remove an officer. is barred from holding office for one year.

Section 8: Quorum No voting may take place unless there is quorum. Quorum shall consist of 4/6 Ebo ard members and 50% of the membership body eligible to vote. Article VI: Functions and Operations of IRC Section 1: Robert's Rules At the discretion of the president general club meetings may be held under a lim ited version of Robert's Rules of Order. Section 2: Subcommittees Each officer has the authority and is encouraged to appoint at least one person to assist with the duties of their office. These persons will comprise the subcommittees for their respective offices. Officers may call meeting of their subcommittees independently of the general bo dy. At these meetings, the respective officer has sole discretion as to what is discussed, an d in what manner. These meetings can never be considered general body meetings. Section 3: Vacancies of office Should any office become vacant throughout the year, the president shall appoint an interim officer. Interim officers can hold office no longer then 30 days, in which time special elections must be called. If the total potential term for an interim officer is less than 1 semester, special elections will be unnecessary. Section 4: Vacancy of the presidency Should the office of the president be open at any time, the vice president shall fill the office. This supercedes article VI, section 3. Section 5: Succession In the event that both the president and vice president are unable to fulfill th e role of president, the order of succession is as follows: Finance, Head Delegate, Publicity, Secret ary General, Parliamentarian, and Webmaster. Section 6: Expulsion Any regular club member may be expelled from the organization by a 2/3 vote of t he general body or a unanimous vote of the executive board. Expulsion lasts for the remaind er of the semester and one additional semester. Article VII: UMassMUN

Section 1: The conference The International Relations Club shall act as an umbrella for the UMassMUN confe rence, hereinto referred to as the c onference. Section 2: The secretariat The secretary general shall appoint a secretariat. The secretariat shall consist of the director general and any undersecretary generals appointed by the secretary general. Section 3: Succession Should the secretary general be unable or unwilling to fulfill the duties of the office, the director general shall fill the office until a replacement can be found. Section 4: Budget At the request of the president or the finance officer, the secretary general is required to produce the most accurate budget and account information available. Article VIII: Intercollegiate Conferences Section 1: The team The International Relations Club shall act as an umbrella for the intercollegiat e model united nations team, hereinto referred to as the team. Section 2: Head delegate The Head Delegate shall act as team head delegate whenever possible. Should this not be possible, the head delegate can assign an acting head delegate for a conference. Section 3: Authority When attending a conference, the head delegate, or acting head delegate has ulti mate authority and speaks for the executive board. He/she reserves the right to disaffiliate a member of the team if deemed absolutely necessary. Article IX: Amendments Section 1: Amendments This document can be changed via constitutional amendment. Amendments must be pr oposed, in writing, two weeks prior to vote. The time requirement can be waved if the presi dent deems the matter an important question. A 2/3 majority is require d to pass an amendment. Article X: Ratification Section 1: Ratification This document shall be ratified if passed by 2/3 of the voting members, as deter mined by the preceding constitution. If ratified, it takes effect immediately and elections w ill occur directly afterward.