Constitution of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Graduate Students Association

Ratified October 25, 2004; Effective November 1, 2004.

Article I. Name

This organization shall be known as the Massachusetts Institute of Technology Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Graduate Students Association (MIT EECS GSA) and it shall serve the graduate students of the MIT EECS department.

Article II. Purpose

The purpose of the EECS GSA shall include the following items:

Article III. Membership

Section III-1. Eligibility

Only and all those students who are enrolled in a graduate degree program that requires admission by the MIT EECS department shall be considered members of the EECS Graduate Student Body. The EECS Master of Engineering program shall be considered one such graduate program, but this statement shall not be construed to exclude other graduate degree programs offered by MIT EECS. All students of the EECS Graduate Student Body are members of this Association (henceforth refered to as "Members"). Any person who has been admitted to a graduate degree program that requires admission by the MIT EECS department, but who has not yet enrolled in that program, and any alumnus or alumna of such programs, shall be a Member immediately upon expressing in writing such a desire to a member of the Executive Committee.

Section III-2. Minimum Membership

This Association shall consist at all times of at least five MIT students and be over 50% MIT students.

Section III-3. Nondiscrimination

This organization shall not discriminate based on any characteristic listed in MIT's Nondiscrimination Statement.

Section III-4. Membership Dues

Members shall not be required to pay any dues to the Association.

Article IV. Structure and Organization

Section IV-1. Officers

There shall be four Officer positions within the EECS GSA: President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer. No person may hold the same Officer position, Acting or otherwise, for more than two and a half years after January 31, 2005.

Section IV-2. Committees

There shall be Committees that handle specific affairs of the EECS GSA. The Executive Committee is the only Committee created by this Constitution; it is the only Constitutional Committee. Standing Committees are defined in the By-laws. Any Member can join any Standing Committee. Ad Hoc Committees shall be created as needed by passing legislation at a General Body Meeting as described in Section VII-3. All Committees shall be chaired by one or more Members. The Executive Committee shall be the supreme executive organ of the GSA. The Executive Committee must include the Officers. The other members of the Executive Committee shall be specified in the By-laws and legislation. The President shall be the ex officio Chair of the Executive Committee.

Section IV-3. Holding Multiple Positions

No individual may hold more than one position within the EECS Graduate Students Association, Acting or otherwise, at any given time.

Article V. Voting Procedures

Section V-1. Purposes of Voting

Official votes shall be used for the following four distinct purposes:

Section V-2. Definition of Voting Thresholds

Except when otherwise stated, the calculation of all voting thresholds in this Constitution, the By-laws and legislation shall not include abstentions.

Article VI. Elections, Appointments and Terms of Office

Section VI-1. General Purpose

The following election, appointment and office removal procedures act to complement the voting procedures outlined in Article V. The process used to manage and to determine the outcome of an election shall be specified in the By-laws.

Section VI-2. Officers

The President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer shall be elected by the Members of the EECS GSA for terms lasting no longer than 400 days. The terms for all Officers shall begin and end at the same time.

Section VI-3. Committee Chairs

Committee Chairs shall be elected by some combination of the Members of the EECS GSA, Officers, and members of their respective Committee for terms lasting no longer than 400 days.

Section VI-4. Vacancies and Acting Roles

A position in the Association may be occupied by a Member in an Acting role to fill in a vacancy. Acting holders of positions shall exercise all the rights, powers and responsibilities of the position, except as specified in this Constitution. The By-laws shall determine how vacancies are created, how Acting office holders are installed and how Acting office holders are elevated to conventional office holders or removed from office.

Section VI-5. Removal of Association Members from Office

Any three members of the Executive Committee shall have the ability to impeach an Officer or Committee Chair, and any three members of a Committee shall have the ability to impeach the Chair of that Committee. Removal of any of these individuals from office shall require the approval of two-thirds of the Executive Committee followed by the approval of two-thirds of the Members voting at the next General Body Meeting such that quorum is met.

Article VII. Meetings

Section VII-1. General Body Meetings

The President shall call and preside over regular General Body Meetings, which shall be open to all Members. Beginning with the Spring 2005 term, at least two such meetings per semester must be held. Quorum shall be met if a majority of the Executive Committee and at least ten Members who are not part of the Executive Committee are present at the meeting.

Section VII-2. Special Meetings

Special meetings of the Association may be called to consider a special item or items of business, by the President, by any three members of the Executive Committee, or by petition of any twenty Members.

Section VII-3. Legislation

The Association may pass legislation during a General Body Meeting through a majority vote of those Members voting at the meeting. Legislation shall refer to any statement of purpose, support or action by the Association. Legislation can only be passed if quorum is met for the meeting.

Article VIII. Open Records

Records and documents of the EECS Graduate Students Association shall be open to inspection by any MIT graduate student, subject to Institute policy.

Article IX. Amendments

Section IX-1. Extraordinary Constitutional and By-laws Amendments

It is the goals of this Association eventually to represent the EECS Graduate Student Body and to seek recognition as the Body's official student group from the MIT EECS department and the MIT Graduate Student Council. The realization of those goals shall require amendments to this Constitution as well as consequential amendments to the By-laws. Any amendment or set of amendments to this Constitution and the By-laws that accomplishes these goals shall require the approval of two-thirds of all the members of the Executive Committee followed by the approval of a majority of the entire EECS Graduate Student Body. Upon ratification of such an amendment, the new status of the GSA shall be announced within 30 days to the EECS Department, the EECS Graduate Student Body, and the Graduate Student Council.

Section IX-2. Ordinary Constitutional Amendments

Amendments to this Constitution aside from those defined in Section IX-1 may shall be proposed and ratified in the following manner. An amendment shall be considered proposed if it is either approved by a majority of the entire Executive Committee or a written petition by twenty members of the EECS Graduate Student Body is presented to the Executive Committee. Proposed amendments must be conspicuously posted for a period of at least two weeks before being voted upon at a General Body Meeting where at least twenty Members are present. The text of a proposed amendment, or instructions on where it can be easily found, must be included in any announcement of a General Body Meeting that intends to vote on them if this announcement is made within two weeks of the Meeting. The approval of two-thirds of those Members voting at this meeting shall be required for the ratification of the proposed amendment. A proposed amendment shall expire one year after its date of proposal if it is not ratified within that period.

Section IX-3. Ordinary By-laws Amendments

Amendments to the By-laws aside from those defined in Section IX-1 shall require the approval of two-thirds of the Executive Committee followed by the approval of a General Body Meeting through legislation. Such a General Body Meeting must pass the relevant legislation within six months of approval by the Executive Committee.

Article X. Relationship with the ASA and the GSC

Section X-1. ASA God Clause

The MIT EECS Graduate Student Association agrees to abide by the rules and regulations of the MIT Association of Student Activities and its executive board. This Constitution, amendments to it, and the By-laws of this organization shall be subject to review by the ASA Executive Board to ensure that they are in accordance with the aforementioned rules and regulations.

Section X-2. GSC Governance Clause

The MIT EECS Graduate Students Association agrees to abide by the rules and regulations of the MIT Graduate Student Council and its executive board.

Article XI. Ratification

This Constitution and the accompanying By-laws shall be ratified upon the the approval of five members of the EECS Graduate Student Body and shall go into effect at noon Eastern Standard Time on November 1, 2004. The Members who are listed as holding positions in the GSA on the GSA's website at http://eecs-gsa.mit.edu/ at that time shall then officially take office for terms of office that end at noon Eastern Daylight Time on May 1, 2005.