CONSTITUTION | berkeley

Humanity First Student Organization at UC Berkeley

RSO Constitution

Date Prepared: 09/17/13

Date Amended: 07/30/17

Date Approved (LEAD Center staff): 08/10/17

Approved by (LEAD Center staff): Katheryn (PLC)

Article I - Name

The official title used to address the group shall be, “Humanity First Student Organization at Berkeley.” It shall be abbreviated by HFSO at Berkeley.

Article II - Purpose

The primary objective of the Humanity First Student Organization at Berkeley is to advocate for human life by means of undertaking disaster relief efforts, as well as to alleviate suffering and promote human development for socially disadvantaged communities in partnership with Humanity First USA—the organization’s subsidiary.
Additional objectives include putting our members' efforts to helping the local community of Berkeley while upholding the missions and values of Humanity First USA to better assist our members in serving our community locally and globally.

Article III - Membership

Only currently registered students, faculty, and staff of UC Berkeley shall be active members of a registered student organization. Only active members shall vote or hold office.
We will not restrict membership based upon race, color, national origin, religion, sex, gender identity, pregnancy (including pregnancy, childbirth, and medical conditions related to pregnancy or childbirth), physical or mental disability, medical condition (cancer related or genetic characteristics), ancestry, marital status, age, sexual orientation, citizenship, or service in the uniformed services (including membership, application for membership, performance of service, application for service, or obligation for service in the uniformed services).
We will not haze according to California State Law.

Article IV - Officers & Elections

Each Humanity First at Berkeley may only hold one executive position per term.
The officers of this organization who constitute the executive committee shall be the following:
1. President
2. Vice President
3. Director of Administration
4. Director of Finance
5. Director of Events
6. Director of Public Relations
7. Director of Digital Marketing
8. Director of Internal Relations
9. Director of Business and National Programs
Each executive officer shall be responsible for the specified powers and duties below, as well as any additional duties determined by the discretion of the executive council.
1. President
  1. Act as the official spokesperson and representative of the Humanity First Student Organization at Berkeley.
  2. Preside over all meetings of the club and be an ex-officio member of all committees within the club, all executive and general meeting.
  3. Handle the day-to-day operations of the club.
  4. Ensure the adherence to UC Berkeley's and Humanity First-USA policies.
  5. Maintain active communication with Humanity First-USA.
  6. Work closely with the Vice President and other executive members of the club for important matters such as, but not limited to, reserve the right to terminate an inactive member who does not contribute to the activities required.
2. Vice President
  1. Perform the duties of the President in the latter's absence.
  2. Coordinate with executive team to ensure assigned deadlines are met.
  3. Implement the evaluation process of executive council performance.
  4. Mediate conflicts between executive members.
  5. Record approved amendments to the constitution.
  6. Perform other duties that are from time to time assigned by the President.
  7. Work with executive members to prepare the club’s progress report and provide it to the Humanity First-USA after each semester.
3. Director of Administration
  1. Perform the duties of the Vice President in the latter's absence.
  2. Keep track of club priorities and facilitate communication with school administration for venue booking.
  3. Record and maintain the minutes of all meetings.
  4. Communicate with executive members of Humanity First to ensure organizational function effectively and efficaciously.
  5. Be responsible for all correspondence of the association, and perform other duties that are from time to time assigned by the President or executive members.
4. Director of Finance
  1. Maintain the account books of the club and arrange for the custody and distribution of funds pursuant to the executive and general membership’s direction.
  2. Present the finances status of the club at each executive meeting.
  3. Provide account books to the President and VP if requested.
  4. Ensure that all projects and events proposed by the Executive Board are financially feasible in accordance with the organization’s financial balance.
5. Director of Events
  1. Manage events, lead fundraising projects, and work closely with the Director of Business and National Programs to ensure successful events.
  2. Communicate with the Director of Administration to ensure proper reservations of space for general meetings and executive meetings.
  3. Mediate the marketing of the event with the help of the Director of Public Relations.
6. Director of Public Relations
  1. Prepare Media Advisories and Press Releases before and after each event.
  2. Invite news channels to events and maintain an active list of media contacts in the community.
  3. Coordinate physical publicity with the Director of Photography and Digital Marketing through flyer distribution, school orientations, student organization fairs, and maintain a good image with the public including personnel outside of UC Berkeley.
  4. Recruit new members to the club, maintain active communication with other RSOs, local organizations and charities.
  5. Seek ways for Humanity First to be involved with the local community.
7. Director of Photography and Digital Marketing
  1. Manage and maintain the Humanity First page at Berkeley website, Twitter, and Facebook to ensure maximum organizational presence.
  2. Manage and implement digital advertising, design flyers and other promotional materials to broaden the existence of the club to the public.
  3. Take photos and/or promotional videos for different events including the final event of the year.
  4. Work with the Director of Public Relations to promote the club.
8. Director of Internal Relations
  1. Coordinate general and executive meetings.
  2. Conduct phone calls, send emails, and maintain contact with all current Humanity First members.
  3. Maintain an updated list of members.
  4. Promote and maintain to have at least 70% of registered members attend club activities and events, and collaborate with the Directors of Public Relations and Photography/Digital Marketing to increase club membership.
  5. Keep track of volunteer hours of members present as well as members present at each general and executive meeting.
9. Director of Business and National Programs
  1. Promote the club to different companies in pursuit of corporate funding.
  2. Maintain the required goals to meet yearly targets.
  3. Maintain a list of donors, both individual and business.
  4. Ensure the club keeps up to date with and participates in national and international Humanity First campaigns such as but not exclusive to: Water for Life, Gift of Sight, etc.
  5. Coordinate opportunities for students to travel with Humanity First-USA for humanitarian and medical relief trips.
  6. Work closely with the Events Coordinator to ensure success of both volunteering events and fundraising events.
Such a structure will be pursued in order to establish an even ground amongst all those running the club, without creating an unjust hierarchy within the organization.
Elections
1. Only members of Humanity First at Berkeley who have served an entire semester may run for office (i.e. serve in the fall and run for office in the spring).
2. Each candidate may only run for one executive position.
3. All executive officer positions are voted on by active members. Each member will be allowed 1 vote. Election of officers shall be conducted by ballot. Those with the highest votes will be selected as executive officials of the organization.
4. In the event of a tie for any of the offices, the remaining candidates will be removed from the ballot and the two candidates shall be voted on until there is no longer a tie.
  1. In the event that only two candidates are running for an office and the vote results in a tie, then each candidate will be given one and a half (1.5) minutes to speak to the membership and another vote will be taken.
5. All decisions to run or rerun for a certain office must be submitted and be made official to all members of the organization one week prior to the election date.
6. Elections will be held in mid-April, prior to the culmination of the school year to train individuals in the responsibilities that executive directors hold.
7. All officers shall assume their official duties following the transitional meeting with the former Executive Board. The transitional meeting shall be held the week of elections, in place of the weekly Executive Board meeting.
8. Officers will serve a minimum one-year term. Each spring, officers will be selected by the election process. If disputes arise on the active role of an executive director, the individual’s status may be put to a vote by the members to decide whether the individuals may continue to serve in a leadership role in their current term. Again, members will have one vote per person, and the decision with the highest vote will determine the fate of the individual’s role with the organization.
Officers’ service
1. The removal or replacement of officers must be unanimous among the executive board and involves a process of nominating prospective officers upon the basis of the member’s previous activity, leadership ability, and interest. The nominations will be made by the current executive directors. Once directors decide upon nominees, members will be allowed one vote per person.
Signatories
1. The President will serve as the primary contact and signatory for HFSO at Berkeley. The Vice President, the Director of Administration, and another executive committee member shall serve as any additional HFSO’s signatory.

Article V - Meetings

Meeting Protocols
1. All executive officials will meet once a week—a general meeting every other week and the other week, executive meetings. Members of the organization (non-executive directors) will meet biweekly for general meetings and may meet weekly for recreational activities. Although these activities are not required for members, it is highly encouraged that they attend to satisfy the minimum five hours required outside of general meetings.
2. The Director of Internal Relations is responsible for setting up general and executive meetings; however, any officer of the executive committee may call for an emergency executive meeting. Refer to Article V, section C.
Quorum (i.e. the minimum number of members present such that the proceedings at that meeting are valid)
1. The meeting quorum is three persons.
Emergency Meetings
1. Special emergency meetings for general members may be called into session by the executive board if the organization is nearing a large event requiring extra meeting and planning, or if the organization experiences abrupt changes in the functions of the club. Members will be notified about a special emergency via email and social media.

Article VI - Constitutional Amendments

Proposal of Amendments
1. The executive committee of Humanity First Student Organization at Berkeley can propose an amendment, but it is subject to oversight by Humanity First USA.
2. The required period of time between the proposed amendment and a final vote is at least two weeks.
3. Active members will be notified that an amendment is going to be voted upon via email and social media. Again, an amendment requires a 2/3 majority vote from the organization’s active membership to pass. All amendments, additions or deletions to this document must be filed with the LEAD Center in 102 Hearst Gym.
Final Changes
1. Amendments require a 2/3 majority vote from your active membership to pass. Amendments change the structure of the group and it is important to have 2/3 approval from the members at large so that there is strong agreement that the change should be made.
2. The required period of time between the proposed amendment and a final vote is at least two weeks.
3. The president shall have the power to veto any amendments. However, the veto can be overridden by a three-fourths majority vote of the executive committee, excluding the president.

Article VII - Dissolution

Humanity First at Berkeley will be dissolved if voted unanimously by all the members at a general or executive meeting. This shall be decided if there is an insufficient number of volunteers to conduct basic administrative activities. Upon dissolution, all unspent ASUC funds shall remain the property of the ASUC; all Graduate Assembly funds shall remain the property of the Graduate Assembly. After 5 or more years of inactivity, any privately obtained funds left in accounts will be donated to the ASUC carry forward account.

Optional Addition:

This organization will site Robert’s Rules of Order for points not covered in the RSO Constitution in the case that our group is in a time of conflict, or when the constitution is not clear on how to handle a specific situation.