ARTICLES:
I: NAME
II: MISSION
III: MEMBERSHIP
IV: MEETINGS
V: COMMITTEES
VI: VOTING
VII: ELECTIONS
VIII: DUTIES OF OFFICERS
IX: DUTIES OF THE PRESIDENT
X: DUTIES OF THE VICE PRESIDENT OF PUBLIC RELATIONS
XI: DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY
XII: DUTIES OF THE TREASURER
XIII: DUTIES OF THE ADVISOR
XIV: RESIGNATION AND IMPEACHMENT
XV: POLICIES AND PROCEDURES
XVI: PRESIDENTIAL SUCCESSION
XVII: CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS
XVIII: ETHICAL STANDARDS
XIX: MEMBERSHIP
XX: RATIFICATIONS



ARTICLE I: NAME

The name of this organization shall be the Women in Computing Society, hereafter referred to as WiCS.

The Women in Computing Society (WiCS) is a female-centric organization tailored specifically to women in a Computer Science or similar field at Drexel University. Its purpose is to support, recruit, and retain women pursuing a degree in the broad field of computing. WiCS will enhance communication among women in computing through informal dinners and gatherings, speakers, field trips, and arrange for tutoring and mentoring for its members as needed. The ultimate goal is to empower women in computer fields to succeed and thrive in the Drexel community.

All currently and actively enrolled fulltime undergraduate students shall be eligible for membership regardless of race, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, or ability, provided such students have no standing judicial sanctions as determined by the Secretary.

A.  The Secretary is responsible for recording and calculating who is a qualified member of WiCS.
B.  Only qualified WiCS members are eligible to vote, and only then if they are present or send an absentee ballot by the required deadline.
C.  A student is a qualified member if she attends two meetings or events per quarter.

A.  Meetings are to be attended by all officers of the WiCS and the Advisor.
B.  All meetings are to be open to all undergraduate students. 
C.  Meetings will be held no less than once monthly and on an as-needed basis. 
D.  No official business shall be conducted without the presence of a quorum of officers.  Quorum shall be defined as one-half (1/2) of officers not away on co-op outside of the Philadelphia area. At least one of the present officers must be either the President or the Vice President.
E.   The time and location must be publicly announced to WiCS members twenty-four to seventy-two hours before the scheduled meeting time.

ARTICLE V: COMMITTEES

A.  Special committees will be defined by the officers on an as needed basis
B.  Each committee will have an appointed chair who reports the committee’s status to the President.

ARTICLE VI: VOTING

A.  An active WiCS member is given the privilege to vote.
B.  If a member is unable to attend a meeting where a voting procedure will occur, she or he is permitted to give her or his vote to the president no less than twenty-four hours before that meeting.
C.  A member can cast a ballot only once per vote.
D.  All voting procedures at WiCS are by a Lesser Majority, which requires the majority of qualified members who are voting in order to pass, provided that quorum is reached.
E.   In the case of a leading tie with no clear majority winner (not during elections), a vote will be held repeatedly, until the leading tie is broken and a decision is made.

ARTICLE VII: ELECTIONS

A.  Officers shall be elected by the general WiCS membership body and officers during the spring term.
B.  The applicants for officer positions shall have been a member of WiCS for at minimum, one term.
C.  The elections process for officers shall be managed by the incumbent President.
D. The elections process for the President shall be managed by the incumbent officers.    
E.   The interviewing body for the President shall be the entire general board.
F.   All candidates shall give an oral presentation to the membership body no longer than 5 minutes in duration.
G.  The decision-making process shall be through electronic or anonymous handwritten ballots.
H. Nominations will take place the meeting prior to elections.
I.   One nomination will be required to run. A candidate must be nominated by a WiCS member, and this includes self-nomination.
J.    A nomination may be received up to and including the week before the nominations meeting.
K. Absentee ballots must be received by the president (or Vice President in the case of the presidential vote) twenty-four hours before the elections meeting.
L.   In the case of a leading tie, a second vote shall be held, with only the candidates from the tied positions. If there is a tie after that, then the tied candidates will give another oral presentation to the membership body. Then, another vote shall be held. If there is another tie, another vote shall take place, and there will be numerous votes until a winner is chosen.                           
M.  All positions shall be open for election during the first two weeks of spring term.
N. An individual position may be open for election whenever there is a vacancy.
O.  There is no limit to the number of times an individual may be elected to an office.
P.   The spring term will serve as a transition period for incoming officers to receive help and advice from outgoing officers.

ARTICLE VIII: DUTIES OF OFFICERS

A.  Shall have access to WiCS’ email account. The password shall be changed with each spring election and given only to officers.
B.  Shall attend all WiCS meetings, with exceptions give for extreme emergencies.
C.  Shall actively participate/lead the planning and implementation of events.
D.  If there is a vacated position that cannot be filled via elections, the remaining officers will split the duties of that position, until the next spring election, or a two-thirds vote of the officers determines another election shall be held for that position.

 ARTICLE IX: DUTIES OF THE PRESIDENT

A.  Shall preside over all meetings.
B.  Shall coordinate the leadership development and training of all members, and will be the point-of-contact to arrange for mentoring or tutoring as needed for members of WiCS.
C.  Shall serve as the official spokeswoman and representative for WiCS to the Drexel University community.
D.  Shall oversee all WiCS activities to ensure compliance with the WiCS Constitution.
E.   Shall have the authority to establish working groups to evaluate specific issues or concerns. 
F.   Shall serve as the primary point-of-contact to the WiCS Advisor.
G.  Shall contact the WiCS Advisor no less than once a month.
J.    Shall maintain WiCS’ email account in the event that another officer cannot.

ARTICLE X: DUTIES OF THE VICE PRESIDENT OF PUBLIC RELATIONS

A.  Shall maintain, and utilize the WiCS email account for communication within and without the WiCS membership body.
B.  Shall be responsible for the design, creation, and distribution of WiCS advertising for events and meetings.
C.  Shall be the one in charge of communication within the WiCS membership body.
D. Shall communicate with the Alumni of the University.
E.   Shall assume the duties of the Secretary, in the case of the Secretary’s absence from a meeting.

 ARTICLE XI: DUTIES OF THE SECRETARY

A.  Shall maintain up-to-date minutes for all meetings.  These shall be distributed via email within three (3) business days after the respective meeting.
B.  Shall maintain and distribute a current list of members’ contact information.
C.  Shall maintain an attendance list for all meetings.
D. Shall manage recruitment of new members to WiCS.
E.   Shall maintain the WiCS’ website, in the case that a committee chair has not been given this responsibility.

 ARTICLE XII: DUTIES OF THE TREASURER

A.  Shall monitor and record all monetary transactions.
B.  Shall be responsible for ordering and maintaining an inventory of all supplies. This includes, but is not limited to aiding the advisor with contractual procedures for food and invited speakers.
C. Develops fiduciary responsibilities for WiCS, and ensures compliance of these rules with all of the University’s financial policies, procedures, and practices.

ARTICLE XIII: DUTIES OF THE ADVISOR

A.  Shall make recommendations to the board on development and execution of programs.
B.  Shall advise the board on policy and procedure as pertaining to women in computing majors and Drexel University.
C.  Shall approve financial expenditures with the approval of the board.
D.  Shall assist in activities related to leadership development and training.
E.   Shall be contacted by the WiCS President no less than once a month to review recent activities and to discuss possible areas of improvement in the structure and operations of WiCS.
F.   Shall not have voting privileges.
G.  Shall not make executive decisions for the organization and shall not serve as official representative to the Drexel community.
H.  Shall attend WiCS meetings.
I.    An advisor must agree to hold this position.
J.  Must be a fulltime faculty or staff member.

ARTICLE XIV: RESIGNATION AND IMPEACHMENT

A.  Anytime an officer feels he or she cannot fulfill his or her duties, she must write a letter to the President (if she is the President, then to the Vice President. If both are resigning, then the letter is given to the Treasurer, then the Secretary). The advisor must be notified, and the WiCS membership body will be informed at the next meeting. At this meeting, the resignation and need for nominations will be expressed. The voting procedures will follow Article VI.
B.  If a member feels that one of the officers or members are not fulfilling her responsibilities to WiCS, then the officers will call an emergency meeting for the officers, the impeacher, and the impeachee in order to try and resolve the problem. The highest officer not being impeached will preside over the impeachment procedures. If the issues are not resolved at the emergency meeting, a two-thirds vote of the votes received by the WiCS membership is required.

ARTICLE XV: POLICIES AND PROCEDURES

A.  All policies and procedures must be in accordance with this Constitution, SOPs, Drexel University Policy, and all Local, State, and Federal Law.
B.  All policies shall be approved by a 2/3 vote of the entire membership.

ARTICLE XVI: PRESIDENTIAL SUCCESSION

A.  The Vice President shall assume the duties of President if the President is absent or unable to perform his/her duties during a temporary absence.

ARTICLE XVII:  CONSTITUTIONAL AMENDMENTS

A.  Any amendment to the Constitution shall be approved by a 2/3 vote of the present membership body at a quorum set up no earlier than two weeks after amendment is proposed at a meeting.

ARTICLE XVIII: ETHICAL STANDARDS

A.  A student may not simultaneously hold more than one office in the Women in Computing Society organization.
B.  A member shall not apply undue influence upon or otherwise intimidate fellow members so as to cause them to make a decision or commit or omit any action that they would not have normally intended.
C.  A member shall not intentionally or negligently undermine the decisions or mission of the Women in Computing Society through personal action or inaction or through discouragement of other members.
D.  A member shall not intentionally damage another student’s character by giving false or insupportable information about that student.
E.   All officers shall carry out all of their duties as outlined in the WiCS Constitution fully and ethically, to the best of their abilities.
F.   If an officer cannot fulfill her obligations, she is ethically compelled to resign immediately so that another member may fulfill those obligations.  

ARTICLE XIX: RATIFICATION

A.  The Constitution must be ratified by a 2/3 vote of the WiCS membership that are present.

ARTICLE XX: DISSOLUTION

A.  WiCS will be dissolved by a 4/5 vote of the WiCS membership that are present at a quorum set up no earlier than two weeks after dissolution is proposed at a meeting.