Louisiana State University and A&M College at Baton Rouge Residence Hall Association Constitution Contents Preamble – Article I: Organization Name – Article II: Purpose – Article III: Basic Policies – Article IV: Membership – Article V: President and Vice President of RHA – Article VI: Directors of RHA – Article VII: Standing and Special Committees – Article VIII: Meetings – Article IX: Banquet and Awards – Article X: Amendments Procedures – Article XI: Registration Renewal Preamble We, as residents of the on-­‐campus residential communities at Louisiana State University and A&M College at Baton Rouge, in order to provide on-­‐campus residents with appropriate student representation and self-­‐government and to promote residential communities that foster academic, cultural, political, social, civic, and leadership interests of the on-­‐campus students, do hereby establish this, the Constitution of the Residence Hall Association. Article I: Organization Name The organizational name will be: Louisiana State University A&M College at Baton Rouge, hereafter LSU, Residence Hall Association, hereafter RHA. Article II: Purpose The purpose of RHA is to represent and serve on-­‐campus residents by: promoting academic, cultural, political, social, civic, and leadership development for all residents within on-­‐campus residential communities; serving as a voice regarding policy and procedures in the residence halls; acting as a liaison between on-­‐campus residents and internal/external campus entities; exchanging ideas and information at local, regional, and national conferences; programming to a variety of student needs; providing funding for developmental initiatives within the residential communities; serving as the parent organization of the individual Community Councils; and acting in accordance with LSU’s Commitment to Community. Any other goals, not listed above, that are in accordance with this constitution, may also be pursued. Article III: Basic Policies The following are basic policies of RHA: Section 1. RHA will be non-­‐commercial. Section 2. RHA’s name or the names of any members in their official capacities will not be used in 1 connection with a commercial concern. Section 3. Section 4. Section 5. Section 6. Section 7. RHA will cooperate with Louisiana State University to support the improvement of education in ways that will not interfere with administration of the University. RHA may cooperate with other organizations and agencies, but persons representing RHA in such matters will make no commitments that bind the organization. RHA agrees to abide by all University policies and all local, state, and federal laws. The Department of Residential Life will provide the annual RHA budget from the department’s programming budget line. RHA’s fiscal year will run from July 1 to June 30. The Department of Residential Life will disseminate each annual RHA budget after consideration of a budget request submitted by the RHA Executive Staff during the previous spring semester. The incoming Executive Staff may alter budget line items at its discretion by a simple two-­‐thirds vote; however, they cannot change the total budget amount. Should the Department of Residential Life change its budget request processes, a congruent amendment to this section is necessary. In the event that this organization becomes inactive, all monies will return to the Department of Residential Life’s programming budget line. Said monies will be reserved from the date of initial inactivity until the close of the fiscal year (June 30). If, at any point during the duration between the date of inactivity and the close of the fiscal year, RHA returns to an active status, the reserved monies will return to RHA. Article IV: Membership The following subsections describe the three types of RHA membership: Section 1. Active membership is restricted to LSU students residing on campus in residential communities, excluding married and graduate housing and fraternity and sorority houses. Section 2. Active participatory membership is restricted to those active members who have been elected to one of the four Community Council positions available in each on-­‐campus residential community. To be eligible for active participatory member status, a student must meet and maintain the requirements stated in the Community Council Governing Statements or be on the RHA Executive Staff. Section 3. Associate membership is restricted to LSU faculty and staff, LSU students who reside off campus, residents in married or graduate housing, and/or residents of fraternity and sorority houses. Associate members are non-­‐voting members. 2 Article V: President and Vice President of RHA Section 1. Section 2. To be eligible to be elected to an office, a student must: A. Be enrolled as a full-­‐time student at LSU B. Be in good standing with the University, have at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA, and not be on disciplinary probation or deferred suspension. C. Follow the guidelines for maintaining active participatory membership status. The following subsections describe the processes for elected officials: A. The term of elected officials will be approximately one year and will span from the final General Assembly meeting of an academic year to the final General Assembly meeting of the next academic year. B. The election process of President and Vice President will be as follows: 1. There will first be an election for the position of President, followed by a separate election for the position of Vice President. Any candidate not elected to the position of President may then be eligible for the position of Vice President. 2. The RHA Elections Commission will preside over the elections of the President and Vice President. 3. If the current Director of Records and Procedures chooses to run for President or Vice President, he or she must resign as the head of the Elections Commission by the third General Assembly meeting of the spring semester. 4. The winning candidate will be the candidate that receives a simple majority vote of the active RHA members participating in a campus-­‐wide vote. 5. If no candidate receives a simple majority vote, a two-­‐candidate runoff election between the persons receiving the highest percentage of votes will occur. 6. Candidates for President must express intent to run at the General Assembly meeting by the third General Assembly of the spring semester by filling out an online application and turning in a paper form. Attendance at the third General Assembly meeting is mandatory. Candidates unable to make this designated General Assembly meeting must present their case to the Elections Commission no later than forty-­‐eight hours prior to the meeting and the Elections Commission will decide upon a just solution. If no one expresses intent to run, then the Elections Commission will determine an alternate process for candidate selection. Once the President has been elected, this same process will take place for the Vice President position. 7. Elections for President will occur no later than seven weeks prior to the last day of classes of the spring semester and no earlier than nine weeks prior to the last day of classes of the spring semester. This may be altered by the Elections Commission with the current RHA President’s approval pending 3 8.
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Section 3. Mardi Gras Break and the NACURH conference registration deadline time conflicts. Elections for Vice President will occur no later than five weeks prior to the last day of classes of the spring semester and no earlier than seven weeks prior to the last day of classes of the spring semester. A filing period of at least three class days will follow the third General Assembly meeting. During this time, the Director of Records and Procedures will ensure the eligibility of the candidates, and candidates will agree to abide by the election code set forth annually by the Elections Commission. A campaigning period of at least five class days will follow the filing period and must be immediately succeeded by the election. Election results will be announced to the candidates participating in the election and then to the RHA membership within two class days of the close of voting. Should the results of an election be contested, concerns must be submitted, in writing, to the Director of Records and Procedures within two class days of the posting of the winning candidate; immediately after which point, the Elections Commission will make a decision as to the validity of the complaint and decide a plan of action for determining the winner. The winner will be determined no later than twenty-­‐four hours after the submission of written concerns to the Director of Records and Procedures. The President-­‐elect and Vice President-­‐elect must participate in a transitional period consisting of at least biweekly meetings with the outgoing President and Vice President starting as soon as the President-­‐
elect is elected. The President and Vice President will be installed at the final General Assembly meeting of the academic year, otherwise known as the Banquet. Should both the President and Vice President positions become vacant during the academic year, the process outlined above will be followed, save date-­‐specific occurrences. The Director of Records and Procedures will preside over the election, and the election will occur in a timeline determined by the Elections Commission that is not to exceed four weeks from the vacancy. The removal process of the President and Vice President will be as follows. A. The term of office of an elected official may be terminated by impeachment during the fall or spring semesters for failure to maintain his or her responsibilities and qualifications as specified in this constitution. 1. The President will oversee all impeachment proceedings unless the President is being impeached, in which case the Director of Records and Procedures will oversee the process. 2. Formal charges must be filed to the General Assembly at a regularly scheduled meeting. Charges must be formal, specific, and in written form 4 including a petition of support from an absolute majority of the voting members of the General Assembly. 3. The vote to impeach will be held at a special meeting immediately following the subsequent regularly scheduled General Assembly meeting. Only voting members and other allowable personnel per the latest edition of Robert’s Rules of Order will be in attendance at the special meeting. If the impeachment is ratified by an absolute two-­‐thirds vote of the voting members of the General Assembly, the official will be dismissed. B. If the President or Vice President critically violates the terms set forth by the constitution in such a manner that is detrimental to the organization when the General Assembly is not in session, the individual’s behavior may then be brought to and reviewed by a committee consisting of the Executive Director of Residential Life, Director for Residence Life and Education, Graduate Assistant of Leadership for the Department of Residential Life, and any Residence Life and Education Assistant Directors which may result in termination of the individual’s funding (if applicable) or position. Section 4. The duties of the President will be: A. To set and preside over all RHA meetings or appoint a replacement to do so and set the agenda for those meetings; B. To work as a liaison between RHA and university faculty and administration; C. To meet with the RHA Advisor on a weekly basis, barring illness or extenuating circumstances; D. To serve as a representative and spokesperson for RHA in various university settings or to appoint a representative as is necessary; E. To vote in the General Assembly only in situations when a tie needs to be broken (when serving in a capacity as the chair); F. To call and advertise special meetings as necessary; G. To appoint, direct, and plan trainings for the Executive Staff; H. To appoint a Vice President with the approval of the General Assembly should the position become vacant; I. To be present on campus the summer preceding his or her term barring illness or approved extenuating circumstances, during which time, he or she will meet regularly with the RHA Advisor, establish relationships with on-­‐campus entities, contribute to the summer fundraiser, barring any catastrophic, widespread deterrent to fundraising, and provide programming to summer residents, barring any catastrophic, widespread deterrent to programming; J. To serve as a functioning member of the Executive Staff; K. To head the President’s Committee and hold monthly meetings; L. To know, uphold, and conform to this constitution and other regulations of RHA; M. To perform other duties as assigned in accordance with this Constitution. 5 Section 5. The duties of the Vice President will be: A. To work as a liaison between RHA and university faculty and administration; B. To meet with the RHA Advisor on a weekly basis, barring illness or extenuating circumstances; C. To assist the President in his or her duties and those assigned by him or her as is consistent with this constitution; D. To appoint the Executive Staff with the President; E. To be present on campus the summer preceding his or her term barring illness or approved extenuating circumstances, during which time, he or she will meet regularly with the RHA Advisor, establish relationships with on-­‐campus entities, contribute to the summer fundraiser, barring any catastrophic, widespread deterrent to fundraising, and provide programming to summer residents, barring any catastrophic, widespread deterrent to programming; F. To plan and implement all Community Council training and development sessions; G. To promote good relations between RHA officials through various retreats and cohesion events, holding at least one event per semester; H. To chair the Publicity Committee; I. To approve and submit all Of-­‐the-­‐Month awards from the Executive Staff; J. To have knowledge and advise those seeking information regarding legislation; K. To oversee the upkeep, use, and rental of the RHA DJ equipment; L. To serve as a functioning member of the Executive Staff; M. To know, uphold, and conform to this constitution and other regulations of RHA; N. To perform other duties as assigned in accordance with this Constitution. Article VI: Directors of RHA Section 1. Section 2. To be eligible to be appointed to an office, a student must: A. Be enrolled as a full-­‐time student at LSU. B. Be in good standing with the University, have at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA, and not be on disciplinary probation or deferred suspension. C. Hold RHA active participatory member status. The following subsections describe the processes for appointing the RHA Executive Staff: A. The term of an appointed official will be approximately one year and will span from the final General Assembly meeting of an academic year to the final General Assembly meeting of the next academic year. B. Immediately following the Vice President’s election, the President-­‐Elect and Vice President-­‐Elect will interview and select the appointed officials that will serve a term of office. Said selected Executive Staff members will be appointed before and installed at the final General Assembly meeting of the academic year, also known as the Banquet. 6 C. Should any appointed Executive Staff position become vacant, the President and Vice President will appoint a replacement if deemed necessary by a 3/5 vote of the remaining Executive Staff members. D. The President has the authority to terminate any appointed Executive Staff member upon repeated dereliction of duty using the process as follows: 1. The negligent staff member must be put on notice of his or her dereliction of duty. The President must give expectations for correction of the problem as well as a reasonable date for expected improvement. 2. If said expected improvement is not met, the President may terminate the Executive Staff member and appoint another in his or her place. 3. In cases of severe neglect of duty and/or illegal or irreprehensible acts in the service of his or her duty, the President must terminate the guilty party immediately and appoint a replacement if deemed necessary. E. Beyond those outlined for each appointed position in this constitution, position descriptions consistent with the duties and responsibilities listed hereafter may be drafted and/or edited by the President and Vice President prior to the appointment of the new Executive Staff. Section 3. The appointed Executive Staff will include, but not be limited to: the Director of Programming and Finance, the Director of Records and Procedures, the Director of Volunteers and Philanthropy, and the National Communications Coordinator, hereafter Director of External Affairs. Each staff member must also serve as a Council Buddy to a minimum of one Community Council. Buddies must serve as sources of information, guidance, conflict mediation, and buddies must attend a community council meeting of their assigned council(s) once per month, excluding the first and last months of each semester. If there are time conflicts and a Buddy cannot attend his or her buddy community’s council meetings, he or she must schedule monthly one-­‐on-­‐ones with the Community’s President. All Executive Staff members must also write a minimum of one Of-­‐the-­‐Month. Any additional positions may be added to the bylaws. A. The duties of the Director of Records and Procedures will be: 1. To manage the RHA website and review/update it once a month; 2. To manage the Tigerlink website and review/update it once a month; 3. To oversee the upkeep and use of all computerized applications and RHA-­‐owned electronics; 4. To keep records of Executive Staff and Community Council Membership and attendance at (but not limited to) General Assembly meetings, programs, and training; 5. To prepare all RHA-­‐approved policy or procedure proposals for presentation to the Department of Residential Life; 6. To schedule and oversee all elections during the fall and spring semesters; 7. To serve as chair of the Elections Commission; 8. To verify the qualifications of candidates at the close of filing; prior to announcing election results; 9. To verify elections results; 7 10. To serve as a function member of the Executive Staff; 11. To know, uphold, and conform to this constitution and other regulations of RHA; 12. To perform other duties as assigned in accordance with this Constitution. B. The duties of the Director of Programming and Finance will be: 1. To manage the execution of RHA programs; 2. To implement an evaluation system for RHA programs; 3. To draft a budget for the ensuing year for presentation to the General Assembly no later than the second meeting of the academic year; 4. To oversee all monetary aspects of the organization; 5. To verify all Community Council budgets at the beginning of the Fall semester; 6. To chair a programming committee per RHA event if deemed necessary; 7. To serve as a functioning member of the Executive Staff; 8. To know, uphold, and conform to this constitution and other regulations of RHA; 9. To perform other duties as assigned in accordance with this Constitution. C. The duties of the Director of Volunteers and Philanthropy will be: 1. To train and inform volunteers on what is expected of them; 2. To recruit volunteers from inside the RHA organization, as well as other on campus organizations; 3. To assist the Director of Programs and Finance in planning and actual setup of programs throughout the year; 4. To coordinate philanthropy for all sub-­‐regional, regional, and national conferences; 5. To pick a philanthropy event no later than the 9th week of school in the fall with the purpose of providing funding for an outside charity; 6. To be a liaison between LSU philanthropic organizations and RHA; 7. To serve as a function member of the Executive Staff; 8. To know, uphold, and conform to this constitution and other regulations of RHA; 9. To perform other duties as assigned in accordance with this Constitution. D. The duties of the Director of External Affairs will be: 1. To represent LSU RHA on the sub-­‐regional, regional, and national levels and to ensure LSU RHA Remains affiliated with its associated national organization; 2. To assist the President in interviewing and selecting the National Communications Coordinator In-­‐Training; 3. To maintain a close relationship with the organization known as the National Residence Hall Honorary, hereafter NRHH; 4. To train and transition the National Communications Coordinator In-­‐Training; 5. To interview and select all delegations for conferences; 6. To report on programs, initiatives, and applicable legislation upon return from conferences; 7. To serve as a functioning member of the Executive Staff; 8. To know, uphold, and conform to this constitution and other regulations of RHA; 9. To perform other duties as assigned in accordance with this Constitution. Article VII: Standing and Special Committees 8 Section 1. Section 2. Section 3. To be eligible to be a Committee member, a student must: A. Be enrolled as a full-­‐time student at LSU. B. Be in good standing with the University, have at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA, and not be on disciplinary probation or deferred suspension. C. Hold RHA active participatory member status. Unless otherwise noted, decisions in all committees will be made by a simple majority vote of the committee members. In the event of a tie, the committee chair will cast the deciding vote. Standing Committees of RHA are as follows: A. President’s Committee 1. The RHA President will hold monthly meetings with the Community Council Presidents. 2. Membership will include the RHA President and all Community Council Presidents. Other RHA members may join the committee with approval of the RHA President. 3. The purpose of said committee is to regularly update the Community Council and for the RHA President to regularly be updated on what the Communities are doing. 4. General Assembly attendance policy will be in effect. B. Banquet and Awards Committee 1. The Director of External Affairs will chair the Banquet and Awards Committee. 2. Membership of the Exec staff of RHA is required. No other members may apply for this committee 3. The duties and responsibilities of the committee will be as follows: send out nomination forms for awards, choose and purchase physical awards to give to recipients of said award, schedule and hold the Banquet, and pick winners of each award by a simple majority vote. If a tie results, the Graduate Assistant of Leadership for the Department of Residential Life will vote. C. Publicity Committee 1. The RHA Vice President shall chair the Publicity Committee. Membership of Community Council Vice Presidents is required. Other members will include any RHA member who wishes to join. 2. The duties and responsibilities of the Publicity Committee are as follows: to design publicity artwork, t-­‐shirts, and other printed materials; to distribute advertisements; to research and develop advertising strategies for events and initiatives; and to perform other duties reasonable to the commission of the committee as determined by the President and Vice President and/or the General Assembly. D. Elections Commission 9 1. The Director of Records and Procedures will chair the Elections Commission. For the election of the Community Council members, the Elections Commission will consist of the executive staff. For the Presidential and Vice Presidential elections, the Elections Commission will consist of the Director of Records and Procedures only. 2. The duties and responsibilities of the Elections Commission are as follows: to draft and enforce an election code for each election; to oversee and administer all elections consistent with this constitution; to verify all qualifications of candidates and elects; and to litigate any appeals of the election code or election. 3. If current director of records choses to run for either President or Vice President position than he or she must assign those duties to a current exec staff member who is not in the election Section 4. Special Committees A. Programming Committees 1. The Director of Programming and Finance will chair a programming committee pertaining to their appointed programs. The chair will recruit the committee members from the RHA membership. 2. The duties and responsibilities of each programming committee are as follows: to complete any paperwork required for the program; to brainstorm ideas for publicity; to participate in the set up and cleanup of the program; to keep record of all aspects of the program; and to perform any other duties reasonable to the commission of the committee as determined by the President and Vice President and/or the General Assembly Article VIII: Meetings Section 1. Section 2. Executive Staff meetings will be held on a weekly basis on a day and time to be determined by the Executive Staff at the beginning of each academic year. A. Notification of meeting times and locations must be distributed electronically 48 hours in advance. B. The President or a replacement appointed by the President will chair RHA Executive Staff meetings. C. At each meeting, the organization and its issues will be discussed. Regular General Assembly meetings will be held on a weekly basis on a day and time to be determined by the Executive Staff at the beginning of each semester. A. Notification of meeting times and locations must be distributed electronically 48 hours in advance. B. The President or a replacement appointed by the President will chair the RHA General Assembly meetings. C. The privilege of debating issues being voted on will be limited to active participatory members of the organization. 10 D. All RHA members must yield to the Chair’s discretion in the manner required by the latest version of Robert’s Rules of Order. Repeated failure to do so may result in the member’s loss of speaking privileges during General Assembly meetings. E. Voting members of the RHA General Assembly will be Community Council Presidents and Senators. In case of a tie vote, the Chair will vote to break the tie. F. The privilege of introducing motions will be limited to the active participatory members of the General Assembly. G. Absences at RHA General Assembly meetings will be excused only if the voting member is in class, if his or her absence is a result of any university-­‐excused absence, or if he or she appoints a proxy. H. Attendance will be counted in the form of points twice during the General Assembly, once during roll call at the start of the meeting, and once again during roll call at the end of the meeting. One-­‐half point will be given to each person present during each roll call, making the maximum point value any one person can achieve at one meeting one whole point. I. Active participatory members will be allowed two unexcused full points (four half points) each semester. After the fourth unexcused half point is missed, the RHA President will meet with said offender, discuss reasons for absence, and possibly revoke said offender’s voting privileges. J. Quorum will be a simple majority (50% plus one) of the voting membership of RHA and is required to hold a vote of the General Assembly. K. The most recent version of Robert’s Rules of Order will govern the meetings of the Assembly, except as otherwise established by the Assembly. L. Any discussion item for the upcoming meeting will be submitted for approval to the Chair at least 48 hours before a General Assembly meeting. M. Unless otherwise established in this Constitution, legislation and decisions will be made by a simple majority vote. Section 3. The RHA President may call special meetings of the General Assembly to expedite unexpected, urgent legislation. A. Notification of special meetings must be distributed personally 24 hours in advance. B. The same attendance policies of regular General Assembly meetings apply. However, active participatory members may appeal unexcused absences to the RHA President within two class days of the missed special meeting. The President can excuse the active participatory member at his or her discretion. C. Quorum will be a simple majority (50% plus one) of the voting membership of RHA and is required to hold a vote of the General Assembly. D. At special meetings, legislation and decisions will be made by absolute majority vote. Article IX: Banquets and Awards 11 Section 1. Section 2. Section 3. Section 4. Section 5. RHA Banquet will be held in place of the last General Assembly of the spring semester. The President and Vice President of the current Executive staff will decide the date during the preceding summer. All active participatory members will be notified of this date no later than 5 weeks prior to said event. Eligibility 1. RHA Executive Board members, are ineligible for awards other than those that specifically state that these members are eligible. 2. All active participatory members are eligible for awards 3. The timeline for these awards is the present school year unless otherwise specified. Online Nominating Process A. Nominations shall be submitted to the NCC at least 10 days prior to the announced date of award presentations. The Banquet and Awards Committee will decide the format for how to submit an award. That format will include but not be limited to the name of the nominator, who is being nominated, for what award this person or council is being nominated for, and why that person or council should receive said award. Nominator shall receive an e-­‐mail confirmation from the chair of the Banquet and Awards Committee. B. Nominations may be submitted by any active participatory member, any executive staff member, any community council Advisor, or the executive staff Advisors, unless otherwise stated. C. The nominations shall be posted with the original formatting submitted by the nominator, to be presented at the Executive meeting. Graphics are allowed in nominations. If the original nominations submitted are too large, web based file-­‐
sharing service shall be utilized when nominations are distributed. D. If a nomination may be ruled out for ineligibility, petitioner will be able to submit a formal proposal explaining their case to the chair of the Banquet and Awards Committee. If approved, the committee chair will then facilitate a simple majority vote from the executive members without a period of discussion on whether or not the nomination should be allowed to be ruled back in. The committee chair will then notify the petitioner once the majority vote has been reached. If there is a tie vote, the committee chair may reserve the right to be the tiebreaker. Awards can be given, but not be limited to the following: A. Program of the Year Award 1. Purpose: RHA recognizes the most outstanding student-­‐implemented program concerning residence halls through the Program of the Year Award. This award seeks to recognize an outstanding display of teamwork and implementation of programming within residence halls. B. Community Council Cup 1. Purpose: This award recognizes the accomplishments of a specific community for outstanding programming and community atmosphere. The student involvement within this community shows the true strength of the student’s community. This is the highest award given by the RHA Staff. 12 C.
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Section 6. 2. This award will be nominated by the Banquet and Awards Committee or by a Community Council Advisor, but all members of said committee will be allowed to vote to decide which council will receive this reward Council Member of the Year Award 1. Purpose: This award was designed to recognize distinguished student leadership while serving RHA, and its community council for the school year. RHA Tiger Paw Award 1. Purpose: This award recognizes the accomplishments of a Community Council Member for his or her outstanding sense of pride for LSU and his or her dedication to his or her fellow students. Distinguished Service Award 1. Purpose: This award recognizes the outstanding contributions of volunteerism of a Community Council Member throughout the university and to the Baton Rouge community. Community Council Advisor Award 1. Purpose: This award recognizes the outstanding contribution of a Community Council Advisor and his or her devotion to the well-­‐being of his or her community. Making Great Strides Award 1. Purpose: This award recognizes another organization or individual that collaborated with RHA this past year. This organization or individual has visibly strong taste in unifying LSU campus and a goal to make RHA more known to LSU students. Ultimately, RHA feels it is their duty to thank this organization or individual for hard work and dedication to the LSU community. Selection Process A. The nominated winners will be chosen by the Banquet and Awards Committee. Every member of said committee will vote, and a simple majority will decide the winner of said award. If there is a tie, the tiebreaking vote will be decided by the Graduate Assistant of Leadership for the Department of Residential Life. B. If a Banquet and Awards Committee member submitted a nomination he or she will not be allowed to vote for said nomination unless otherwise stated. Section 7. Other Awards A. The following awards are not nominated or voted on by the Banquet and Awards Committee. These awards are awarded to the people who have accomplished certain endeavors as outlined by the award. B. RHA Distinguished Member(s) Award 1. Purpose: This award recognizes the community council members who went beyond the natural duty to commit to the RHA organization. These Community Council Members attend meetings, attend RHA-­‐held events and visibly display their dedication to the service of this RHA organization. 2. To be eligible for this award, the Community Council Member must have attended every General Assembly meeting. 13 C. RHA Executive Member Recognition Award 1. Purpose: This award recognizes the accomplishments and dedication of each individual Executive Staff member to the Residence Hall Association. D. RHA and Community Council Advisors Recognition Award 1. Purpose: This award recognizes the accomplishments and dedication of each individual advisor that has helped to improve the Community Council initiative and devotion to the LSU Community. E. LSU SWACURH Delegation Recognition Award 1. Purpose: This award recognizes the delegates who attend Regional conferences and their devotion to representing LSU to the best of their ability. F. RHA No Frills Delegation Recognition Award 1. Purpose: This award recognizes the delegates who attend Regional No Frills Conference and assisted in any way. These delegates devoted their time to represent LSU to the best of their ability. Article X: Amendment Procedures Section 1. Section 2. Section 3. Section 4. Any RHA active participatory member may propose amendments to this constitution at a meeting of the General Assembly. Following a period of not less than seven days from the date of proposal, amendments may be approved by an absolute two-­‐thirds vote of the General Assembly. If a petition, signed by 25% of the RHA membership requesting consideration of a constitutional amendment, is presented to the RHA President, the proposed amendment will be subject to a ratification election held between 10 and 15 class days following presentation of the petition. Any proposed amendment shall be subject to approval of the Dean of Students or his/her designee. Article XI: Registration Renewal RHA will apply to the Assistant Director of Involvement for Campus Life for registration on an annual basis two weeks after RHA’s new officer elections by emailing [email protected]. Bylaws Section 1. The bylaws to this constitution may be added or amended by an absolute majority vote of the RHA General Assembly. Proposed additions or amendments must be submitted in writing to the RHA General Assembly. After a period of no less than one week and no more than three weeks, a vote must be held to add to or to amend these bylaws. 14 Section 2. Section 3. Section 4. Section 5. Section 6. Proposed changes to Community Council Governing Statements can be submitted at any time by members of the Community Council to be affected by the changes. Changes must be submitted in writing to the RHA General Assembly. After a period of no less than one week and no more than three weeks, an absolute majority vote in the General Assembly must be held to amend this bylaw. During periods of time when the General Assembly voting seats remain unfilled, amendments to the RHA bylaws may be ratified by a two-­‐thirds vote of the standing RHA Executive Staff. These amendments will retain authority only until the General Assembly is reconvened, at which point an immediate vote of the General Assembly (per the RHA constitution) must take place to ratify or suspend the temporary amendment. If the amendment is ratified in the General Assembly, it no longer will be referred to as temporary. Should the amendment be suspended, it will be removed entirely and immediately from these bylaws. The process for being sworn in shall be as follows: With right hand raised, the officer shall take the following oath: "I (state full name) do solemnly swear that I will support and uphold the Constitution of the Residence Hall Association of Louisiana State University, and that I will faithfully and impartially discharge and perform all the duties incumbent upon me, to the best of my ability and understanding." If a voting member of a Community Council is unable to attend a General Assembly meeting, he is expected to appoint a proxy to vote in his or her place. The process for appointing a proxy is as follows: A. The voting member who will be absent will electronically fill out the Official Meeting Proxy Form. B. He or she will then email the form to [email protected] at least 24 hours before the scheduled meeting time. Should a situation arise, in which it would be in the organization’s best interest to create a new committee, said committee can be approved by the following procedure: A. A proposal for the committee should be presented to the RHA President in written form. This should include, but is not limited to, why the committee is needed, who will chair the committee, who is eligible to serve on the committee, and what the committee’s duties and responsibilities are. B. The committee will be discussed and voted on at the subsequent General Assembly meeting. C. To be approved, the committee must receive a simple majority vote of the voting members of the General Assembly. D. The committee will serve until the last meeting (RHA Banquet) of the year, in which it was instated, unless otherwise stated in the proposal. 15 Section 7. Each Community Council will be governed by the standard Community Council Governing Statements; however, should a council determine a need to amend its own governing statements, the governing statements may be amended by the process explained in the official document. The amended governing statement will be passed on to the next academic year. 16