Alpha Sorority, Incorporated Psi Chapter Constitution & Bylaws Revised Spring 2017

Article I–Name

The Chapter shall be known as Theta Psi Chapter located in Oxford, Mississippi of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. The chapter shall be composed of Undergraduate Sorors as defined by the Corporate Constitution and Bylaws.

Article II- Purpose

The purpose of Theta Psi Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated is to cultivate and encourage high scholastic and ethical standards, to promote unity and friendship among college women, to study and help alleviate problems concerning girls and women in order to improve their social stature, to maintain a progressive interest in college life, and to be of “Service to All Mankind" as stated in the Constitution and Bylaws of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc.

The members of an undergraduate chapter must graduate within six (6) years from their date admission to the first university/college of acceptance. If the Soror has not graduated after six (6) years of entering the university/college, the Soror must to graduate chapter as an associate member. Only the Supreme Basileus can give exception to this requirement.

Article III- Membership

Section 1: The chapter shall be composed of person who have initiated into the chapter, transferred from other chapters, or transferred from the Boule. Sorors seeking transfer to Theta Psi chapter must submit a signed Transfer Verification Form from their former chapter.

Section 2: An active Soror of Theta Psi shall be one who meets ALL financial obligations, as well as, ALL attendance, community service, and point system requirements (as outlined in Article V of this document) for the current year of both the local chapter and Boule. An active member, as

1 well as the chapter as a body, must also maintain a cumulative and semester GPA of 2.3. Any active Soror and/or chapter that does not meet the 2.3 GPA requirement of cumulative and semester GPA of a 2.3 will be placed on socially inactive status and will forfeit her office.

Socially inactive status shall include but not be limited to study hall hours, non-participation in step shows, ineligibility to be delegate, etc. All other disciplinary action shall be at the discretion of the Basileus.

Section 3: The chapter may hold one (1) rush meeting per academic year at which votes upon candidates for the Membership Intake Process it. Written notices of this meeting per academic year at which votes upon candidates for the Membership Intake Process it. Written notices of this meeting must be sent to each chapter member at least seven (7) days prior to the meeting.

All prospective members must meet the following requirements:

a.Have a cumulative and semester GPA of 2.3 for her the semester prior to MIP

b.Provide detailed evidence of a minimum of thirty (30) hours of community service that she has completed prior to MIP

c.Have completed a minimum of twelve (12) course hours at the host university, the University of Mississippi

Section 4: All local dues and assessments are due and payable by January 1 and no later than February 1 of each calendar year. Any chapter member who has not paid her dues by this date will be considered non-financial and is ineligible to vote in chapter meetings. Any officer who has not paid her dues by this date shall be considered non-financial and will forfeit and will forfeit her office.

Article IV

Officers Section 1 a. The officers shall be Basileus, Anti-Basileus, Grammateus, Anti-Grammateus, Tamiochous, Pecunious Grammateus, Epistoleus, Hodegos, Philacter, Parliamentarian and Ivy Leaf Reporter. b. All officers, except the Parliamentarian, shall be elected in November by majority vote. The election is by secret ballot. The Parliamentarian shall be appointed by the Basileus. All officers shall be installed at the close of the last meeting of the Fall Semester (November/ December)

Section 2: The term of office shall one (1) year for each office. The new officers’ term will being on January 1. Any officer shall be eligible to succeed herself once in any given office.

2 Section 3: To be eligible for an office, a Soror must be academically and financially active member of the chapter. To be eligible for the office of Basileus and Anti-Basileus, a Soror must be a financially active member for at least one semester prior to her taking officer.

Section 4: In the case of an unexpired term of office for all positions except Basileus, e.g. failing to perform prescribed duties, the vacancy shall be filled from the floor or appointed by the Basileus. In case of an unexpired term of the Basileus, the vacancy shall be filled by the Anti- Basileus.

Section 5

a. The Basileus shall preside at all meetings of the chapter. She shall perform the duties, which are usually executed by the chief officer. She shall appoint the chairmen of all committees, with the exception of the Nominating Committee. She shall be an ex-officio member of all committees with exception of the Nominating Committee. She shall serve as the chapter’s delegate to all conferences and meetings at which chapter representation is required or determined by the chapter to be desirable. She shall serve as the chair of the Executive Board. She shall be a signatory officer on all bank accounts and vouchers along with the Graduate Advisor.

b. It shall be the duty of the Anti-Basileus to assist the Basileus in the performance of her duties. She shall preside in the absence of the Basileus. She shall serve as chairman of the Program Committee. She shall succeed the Basileus in office in case the office in case the office becomes vacant prior to the normal expiration of the Basileus’ term.

c. It shall be the duty of the Grammateus to serve as secretary of the chapter and the Executive Board. She shall be a member of the Bylaws Committee.

d.It shall be the duty of the Grammateus to serve as secretary of the chapter and the Executive Board in the absence of the Grammateus. She shall assist the Grammateus in the performance of her duties.

e. If shall be the duty of the Tamiouchos to deposit all monies for the chapter, giving proper receipts for the same, and make monthly reports in writing of the finances of the chapter. She shall chair the Finance Committee and present the annual budget of estimated income and expenditures to the chapter for approval. She shall follow proper financial procedures, keep orderly records of income and expenditures, and make timely deposit of funds.

f. It shall be duty of the Pecunious Grammateus to collect all monies and issue receipts for it. She shall make monthly reports in writing of the same to the chapter.

3 She shall maintain a current alphabetical list of members. She shall sign all vouchers along with Basileus and submit to the Tamiochus.

g. It shall be the duty of the Epistoleus to serve as the corresponding secretary for the chapter. She shall be in charge of the correspondence of the chapter, send a written notification of meetings seven(7) days prior to meeting to all members, and she shall maintain a correspondence file.

h. It shall be the duty of the Hodegos to serve as the official hostess for the chapter. She shall chair the Hostess Committee and introduce all visitors to the chapter.

i. It shall be the duty of the Philacter to guard the door. She shall check credentials of all visitors and Sorors. The Philacter shall insure that the password is used by all Sorors who enter after a meeting has been called to order.

j. It shall be the duty of the Parliamentarian to assist the Basileus in the interpretation of the Constitution and Bylaws of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated, the Bylaws of Theta Psi, and parliamentary procedure in general, according to Robert Rules of Order, Newly Revised. She shall chair the Bylaws Committee.

k. It shall be the duty of the Ivy Leaf Reporter to collect and edit all material for publication. She shall be in charge of submission of all news releases to the media, including the IVY LEAF.

l. It shall be the duty of each officer to deliver the Graduate Advisor all files, supplies, and other materials at the last meeting of each semester (Fall & Spring).

m. Graduate Advisor and/or Assistant Graduate Advisor The Graduate Advisor and/or the Assistant Graduate Advisor shall serve as a link between the graduate and undergraduate chapter. It shall be the duty of the Graduate Advisor and/or Assistant Graduate Advisor to support and advise the Undergraduate Chapter with operations, activities, and any area(s) of concerns. The Graduate Advisor and/or Assistant Graduate Advisor will ensure that the Sorors of the undergraduate chapter will be the decision makers and lead their chapter’s operations.

Article V - Meeting

Section 1

The chapter shall hold its regular scheduled chapter meetings on the 2nd or 4th Sundays during the months of September - November and February - April, except during designated school holidays. The chapter shall have sisterly relations in place of December and May monthly meetings. Meetings will be held in an area designated by the Basileus.

Section 2

4 Written notices shall be sent to each chapter member and the Graduate Advisory Council for each regular chapter meetings seven (7) days to prior to the meeting. Written notices for election meetings must be sent seven (7) days prior to the meeting.

Section 3

Additional meetings may be specially called at any time by the Basileus, the Executive Board, or by written request by a quorum of the membership. Such written notice shall be sent to the Basileus with a copy to the Epistoleus and the membership 14 days prior to the meeting. The existing quorum procedures shall be in effect

Section 4

Two-third (2/3) of the active memberships shall constitute a quorum to conduct the chapter’s business. If no quorum is present, the presiding officer shall declare

Section 5

Formal Meetings: All chapter members are required to attend all formal meetings. Tardiness to formal meetings will result in a $2.00 fine. Only absences related to participation in university- related activities ( I.e. class, varsity sports, etc.) and immediate family emergencies (“immediate family” is defined as spouse, parent, stepparent, sibling, child, stepchild, grandchild, grandparent, son- or daughter-in-law, mother- or father-in-law, or brother- or sister-in-law.”) will be considered as excused. In the case of being excused, the chapter member shall give twenty-four (24) hour notice, prior to missing an event, which must be approved by the Basileus. Any unexcused absences without proper authorization will result in social inactiveness, unless repealed by the Executive and Penalties Committee.

1. Officer and Chairs: Officers who are not fulfilling their duties will be receive written notice seven (7) days prior to being brought before the Executive and Penalties Committee, which shall consist of members from both the executive board and the graduate advisory committee. If it is found that the officer was not fulfilling their duties required and recommended revisions will be made.

Section 6

Community Service Requirements: All chapter members are required to attend all community service projects sponsored by the chapter. Only absences related to participation in university- related activities (i.e. class, varsity sports, etc) and family emergencies will be considered as excused. In the case of being excused, the chapter members shall give twenty-four (24) hour notice, prior to missing an event, which must be approved by the Basileus. Any unexcused absences without proper authorization will result in social inactiveness, unless repealed by the Executive and Penalties Committee.

5 Section 7

Point System: Sorors must meet a predetermined number of points each month. The Basileus and Anti-Basileus will determine the number of points required for each month. Soror who fail to meet the point system requirements will be deemed socially inactive for the following month, but may regain socially active status if they meet point system requirements. See Point System Addendum.

Article VI - Executive Committee

Section 1

The Executive Board shall consist of the Basileus, Anti-Basileus, Grammateus, Tamiouchos, Epistoleus, Parliamentarian and standing committees. The Basileus shall serve as chairman of the Executive Board. It shall be the duty of the Executive to make recommendations to the chapter, and to hear all concerns brought before it by chapter members. The Executive Board shall conduct the business of the chapter between the regularly schedules bi-monthly meetings.

Section 2

The Executive Board shall meet prior to the chapter’s regularly scheduled bi-monthly meeting.

Section 3

To constitute a quorum for the Executive Board, one-third of the Board’s members must be present. This quorum must include the Basileus and/or Anti-Basileus.

Article VII - Committees

Section 1

The Standing Committees shall be the Bylaws Committee, Finance Committee, Program Committee, Nominating Committee, Membership Committee, Publicity Committee, Hostess Committee, and Standards Committee. With noted exceptions, chairmen of all committees shall be appointed by the Basileus. Chapter members may volunteer to serve on various committees.

a. Bylaws. The Bylaws Committee shall keep the chapter informed of changes to the International Constitution and Bylaws, carefully examine all proposed amendments from other Sorors and formulate the same to be circulated. The parliamentarian shall chair the Bylaws Committee.

b. Finance Committee. The Finance Committee shall prepare the annual budget for the chapter. The Finance committee shall be responsible for originating a program of investments. The Finance Committee shall review all requests for funds from the

6 Contingency Budget and make appropriate recommendations to the Executive Board. The Tamiouchos shall chair the finance committee.

c. Program Committee. The Program Committee shall plan a program of activities that will include The Sorority’s goals and objectives, both locally and internationally. The chapter’s program shall be presented to the membership for approval in the October meeting. The AntiBasileus shall chair the Program Committee.

d. Nominating Committee. The Nominating Committee shall consist of five members elected by the chapter in November. The chairman of the committee shall be appointed by the Basileus from those elected to the committee. A soror who is holding an elected or appointed office in the chapter shall be ineligible for membership on the committee. The Nominating Committee will recommend and certify the credentials of all candidates for office and prepare the office slate of nominees.

e. Standards Committee. The Standards Committee shall implement the annual evaluation of the chapter, conduct the Officer’s Training Workshop and any other workshops pertaining to chapter operations as prescribed by the chapter. The Standards Committee shall examine all proposed changes from other sorors and formulate the same to be circulated.

f. Membership Committee. The Membership Committee shall supervise the Membership Intake Process, monitor membership status and trends, recommend and implement strategies for recruitment, retention, and reactivation of members.

Section 2

Other Committees deemed necessary by the Basileus in promoting the program of the chapter may be appointed as needed.

Article VII – Special and Hoc Committees

The Basileus shall create committees as needed to facilitate the purpose and objectives of the chapter.

7 Article IX Parliamentary Authority

The governing documents will be used in said order:

1. National Constitution and Bylaws

2. Manual of Standard Procedure

3. Chapter Bylaws

4. The rules contained in the current edition of Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised.

Article - Voting

Voting of official business can be done at monthly Chapter meetings and via email/internet. Only financially and academically active members are allowed to vote.

Article X –Amendment of Bylaws

Section 1

Any active member of the chapter may submit in writing to the Parliamentarian a proposed change and/or amendment to the Constitution and Bylaws during the Fall semester in the month of September, to be presented in October and voted upon by a two thirds vote in November. Any active member of the chapter may submit in writing to the Parliamentarian a proposed change and/or amendment to the Constitution and Bylaws during the Spring Semester in the month of January, to be presented in February, and voted upon by a two thirds vote in March.

Section 2

Amendments to the Bylaws shall take effect immediately following adjournment of the meeting at which they are adopted, unless otherwise provided.

Article Dissolution

Upon dissolution of the Chapter, its assets shall be distributed for one or more exempt purposes within the meeting of Sec 501© (7) of the Internal Revenue code or corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or for one or more exempt purposes within the meaning of Sec 501 © (3)

8 of the Internal Revenue Code or corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or shall be distributed to the federal government, or to a state or local government, for a public purpose.

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