CONSTITUTION OF THE SOCIETY OF ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERS
at the
University of Florida
(Revised July 2011 for the 2011-2012 Academic Year)
PREAMBLE
In order to advance the development of knowledge and skills in the engineering profession, and by recognizing the necessity for establishing a student organization in the discipline of environmental engineering sciences, we, the members of the SOCIETY OF ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEERS, do hereby adopt the following constitution.
ARTICLE I – NAME
The name of this organization shall be the “Society of Environmental Engineers” and shall be hereafter referred to in this constitution as SEE.
The name of this organization is the “Society of Environmental Engineers, and this organization will utilize the acronym “SEE” in publicity materials and correspondence. Society of Environmental Engineers is not a chapter or affiliate of any parent organization.
ARTICLE II – PURPOSE
The objectives of SEE shall be:
1. To sponsor discussions and activities in Environmental Engineering Sciences in order to enhance the professional awareness of our members.
2. To offer services to the needs of the Department of Environmental Engineering Sciences (EES), its faculty and students, and the College of Engineering.
3. To promote mutually beneficial student/teacher interaction
4. To recognize an outstanding faculty member each year (McCreary Award).
5. To provide social activities for members to interact outside of the classroom including intramural and intradepartmental athletics.
6. To participate and promote participation in activities of the Benton Engineering Council and the College of Engineering (e.g. Engineering Fair).
ARTICLE III – COMPLIANCE STATEMENT
Upon approval by the Center for Student Activities and Involvement, the Society of Environmental Engineers shall be a registered student organization at the University of Florida. The Society of Environmental Engineers shall comply with all local, state and federal laws, as well as all University of Florida regulations, policies, and procedures. Such compliance includes but is not limited to the University’s regulations related to Non-Discrimination, Hazing, Commercial Activity, and Student Leader Eligibility.
ARTICLE IV – NON-DISCRIMINATION
Society of Environmental Engineers agrees to comply with the University of Florida’s Non-Discrimination Policy (Regulation 6C1-1.006).
ARTICLE V – MEMBERSHIP
Membership in this organization is open to enrolled students at the University of Florida. Non-students, spouses, faculty, and staff may be associate members; however, they may not vote or hold office. All members are free to leave and disassociate without fear of retribution, retaliation, or harassment.
Membership shall be defined in three categories: officer, active, and associate. Officers are expected to attend regular officer meetings as well as many general and unified meetings as possible. A participant will be considered an active member if s/he earns a minimum of eight points per semester, excluding summer. Active members are eligible to vote, be elected as an officer, and serve as a committee chair. A participant will be considered an associate member if s/he earns a minimum of four points per semester, excluding summer. A committee chairperson shall automatically be considered an active member. Any participant that volunteers at the UF Organic Garden Cooperative (OGC) and completes the requirements set by the Garden Manager shall automatically be considered an active member.
Points shall be counted with the following system:
General Meetings: 3 points
Unified Meetings: 3 points
Volunteer Events: 2 points
Socials: 1 point
ARTICLE VI – OFFICERS
There shall be nine major officers, each with terms of one year. All officers are elected.
For all offices except President, if during the time of an officer’s term the officer becomes ineligible, due to financial, academic or conduct problems with the university, the remaining officers may choose to either elect another officer, or to split the duties of the ineligible officer and continue with the remaining officers. If the President becomes ineligible, the Vice President will assume the office of President, and the remaining officers will decide whether to elect a new Vice President.
All officers will keep a notebook of all their records, correspondence, and activities during their term; this notebook will then be handed down to their corresponding successor after elections are held.
The officers shall preside in the following order:
1. President:
a) Shall oversee all functions and activities of the society.
b) Shall preside over all General Meetings of the society.
c) Shall have a voice and vote in all committee decisions.
d) Shall be authorized to distribute funds by signature.
e) Shall become the default chairperson of the Outstanding Faculty Award committee during the spring term if a chairperson is not appointed.
f) Shall be authorized to act, in accord with the SEE Constitution, on behalf of the organization in business affairs.
g) Shall be responsible for the communication and partnering with all departmentally associated societies.
h) Shall oversee the planning and running of the Environmental Career Forum.
i) Shall be present in SEE’s communication (i.e., publicity, corporate outreach, student outreach, etc.)
2. Vice President:
a) Shall perform all the duties of the President in the absence of that officer.
b) Shall be responsible for the proper functioning of all committees; however, shall not have a vote in a committee unless s/he is a member.
c) Shall be in charge of ordering and arranging for the design of t-shirts for various events and sales.
d) Shall be responsible for arranging speakers for the General Meetings.
e) Shall oversee the planning and running of FE Exam reviews.
f) Shall become the default chairperson for the Engineer’s Fair committee during the spring term if a chairperson is not appointed.
3. Secretary:
a) Shall transcribe and maintain accurate accounts of the proceedings of all General Meetings.
b) Shall notify all members of all general meetings and society activities by e-mail and fliers.
c) Shall record attendance at meetings and be responsible for maintaining records of member participation.
d) Shall be responsible for original copies of attendance sheets.
e) Shall be responsible for all written out-of-department transactions (i.e. alumni, staff, companies), except for those communications required by other offices.
4. Treasurer:
a) Shall advise the President and General Body of the current financial status of SEE.
c) Shall be in charge of arranging the collection of dues and the financing of activities by various fundraisers.
d) Shall work closely with the department to arrange payment for departmental social events.
e) Shall be authorized to submit to Student Government and the Benton Engineering Council the proper forms for the allocation of SEE funds for programming or travel activities approved by a majority of SEE members.
f) Shall maintain a log of all financial transactions and provide a monthly report to the President of SEE’s accounts.
5. Historian:
a) Shall be in charge of taking pictures of all events or making arrangements for a substitute in their absence, and shall keep a record of all events in nicely decorated photo or online web album.
b) Shall make sure that the SEE Website is kept up to date.
c) Shall Work with Social Coordinator to advertise events.
d) Shall be in charge of SEE’s publicity through social media.
6. Social Coordinator:
a) Shall be responsible for the proper functioning of all intramural activities as well as promoting participation by all members.
b) Shall be responsible for planning social activities for the society.
c) Shall be in charge of reserving rooms and food for the semi-formal events at the end of the fall and spring semesters.
d) Shall oversee the SEE socials (Back to Black, Holiday Social, and Spring Banquet).
e) Shall become the default chairperson of the Football Tickets and Tailgates committee in the event that no chairperson is appointed.
7. BEC Rep
a) Two active members shall be elected to represent SEE in the Benton Engineering Council.
b) Shall attend all BEC meetings and provide, within a week, a report to the President.
c) At least one of the two representatives shall serve on a BEC committee.
d) Shall attend BEC sponsored events and encourage SEE participation in BEC affairs.
8. Garden Manager
a) Shall be responsible for the maintenance of SEE’s plot(s) at the UF Organic Garden Cooperative (OGC).
b) Shall be responsible for filing the necessary paperwork to retain our plot(s).
c) Shall attend the required number of OGC Work Days per semester.
d) Shall encourage participation of SEE members in Garden affairs.
e) Shall be responsible for keeping members informed on opportunities to volunteer at the Garden.
f) Shall be responsible for keeping the President informed on the status of the Garden.
Any officer may be removed from office through the following process:
A written request by at least three voting members of the organization shall be submitted to any member of the Executive Committee. Written notification shall be sent to the officer in question asking that officer to be present at the next meeting and prepared to respond to the removal request. A two thirds majority vote of members present is necessary to remove the officer.
ARTICLE VII-ELECTIONS
Nominations will be made during the election meeting. All active members are eligible for nomination. A candidate may nominate him or herself. Each nominee may make a short speech (less than 3 minutes) if he so chooses. Each officer will be elected by a simple majority of the active present members in a secret ballot vote at the end of every spring semester, during the month of April, before the end of the spring semester. In the event that no candidate wins a majority of the ballots, the two candidates with the highest vote tallies will go into a runoff. Officers are limited to a maximum of two terms at the same position.
The names, phone numbers and email addresses for all officers for the academic year must be submitted to the Office Manager of the Department of Environmental Engineering Sciences and re-registered for SEE with Center for Student Activities and Involvement before the start of the fall semester.
ARTICLE VIII-FACULTY ADVISOR
The faculty advisor shall serve as a resource person and provide advisory support for the officers and members of the organization. The faculty advisor is welcome to attend officer and general meetings; however, the faculty advisor may not vote in any committee matters. The faculty advisor shall be nominated by the officers and confirmed by a majority vote of the members. S/He may be replaced if the society’s officers decide that it is in the best interest of the club. A simple majority vote by the officers is required to replace the advisor, and the advisor will not be replaced until a new advisor is found and prepared to step in. The advisor must be a current faculty member of the Department of Environmental Engineering Sciences
ARTICLE IX – COMMITTEES
There shall be six committees. The Chairperson of each committee will be appointed each year by the Executive Committee. All active members are eligible to become a Chairperson, and all SEE participants are welcome and encouraged to work on committees. It will be the responsibility of the Chairperson to organize committee participants, hold committee meetings, and report to the Executive Committee the status of their project. The committee chair will be the deciding vote on any committee decision that is put to a vote and split evenly among its participants.
1. Executive Committee
a) The President shall serve as the chairperson.
b) Shall be composed of the President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer.
c) Shall appoint chairs to the other committees.
d) Shall oversee the activities of all other committees.
e) Shall have the power to amend the Constitution in order to comply with the Student Activity Center’s requirements.
f) Shall have the power to enact dues on members.
2. FE Reviews
a) The Vice-President shall serve as the chairperson.
b) Shall be responsible for reserving rooms as well as appropriate permits.
c) Shall coordinate and communicate with Professors regarding scheduling.
d) Shall work with the Secretary and Historian to advertise the reviews.
3. Garden Committee
a) The Garden Manager shall serve as the chairperson.
b) Shall be responsible for the maintenance of SEE’s plot(s) at the OGC.
c) Shall be responsible for keeping records of plantings, results, and regular photos.
d) Shall be responsible for completing the requirements to keep SEE in good standing with the OGC.
e) Shall be responsible for keeping members informed about opportunities to volunteer at the garden.
4. Outstanding Faculty Award
a) Shall recognize an outstanding EES faculty member at Spring Banquet with the McCreary Award.
b) The President shall become the default chairperson if no chair is appointed.
5. Engineers Fair
a) Shall be responsible for representing our department at E-Fair during Engineers Week (E-week, sponsored by the Benton Engineering Council).
b) Shall be in charge of preparing visual, hand-outs, and/or demonstrations to present to students at E-Fair.
c) Shall work to encourage joint efforts with other EES Societies.
d) The Vice President shall become the default chairperson if no chair is appointed.
6. Football Tickets and Tailgates
a) Shall be responsible for arranging football seating blocks in the fall.
b) Shall be responsible for both collecting and distributing the tickets.
c) Shall be in charge of organizing EES Tailgates prior to home football games.
d) The Social Coordinator shall become the default chairperson if no chair is appointed.
ARTICLE X – FINANCE
Students will be charged dues per semester as determined each term by the Executive Committee, after approval by the active members in the following General Meeting.
Dues shall not exceed $15.00 per year.
ARTICLE XI – DISSOLUTION OF ORGANIZATION
In the event this organization dissolves, all monies left in the treasury, after outstanding debts and claims have been paid, shall be donated to the UF Department of Environmental Engineering Sciences. Any outstanding debts will be split evenly and paid by the members.
ARTICLE XII – AMENDING THE CONSTITUTION
The Executive Committee has the authority to amend the SEE constitution in order to comply with the Center for Student Activities and Involvement’s requirements. All other amendments shall be voted on by a simple majority of the active present members. Any voting member may propose an amendment. The amendment will be voted on in the following SEE meeting.
