BiGLARU

The Bisexual Gay Lesbian Alliance at Rutgers University

Office: RSC Room 404 – Email: biglaru_biglaru@yahoo.com

Official Organization Constitution
Last Updated: July 15, 1999February 25, 2005

ARTICLE I - Organization Name and Purpose

Section 1

The name of this organization shall be The Bisexual Gay Lesbian Alliance atof Rutgers University, hereafter "The Alliance" or "The BiGLARU."

Section 2

BiGLARUsocial activities and political action. The Alliance will also provide information to the Rutgers University community regarding sexual minorities. The Alliance is a political, social, cultural, and educational organization that shall

ARTICLE II - Purpose

a. The purpose of this organization shall be to provide an open and safe atmosphere for the Queer community lesbians, bisexuals, gay men, transgendered people, and their friendsto friends to meet for discussion and general information. AllianceAllianceThe term “Queer community” shall be inclusive of, but not limited to, all individuals who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex for bisexuals, gay men, transgendered people, lesbians, and their friends and/or straight ally. BiGLARU shall also reach out to the greater University community regarding Queer issues. allies. A key goal of the organization is to foster and encourage both the political and social growth of is members.


ARTICLE II - Membership and Legal Disclaimers

Section 1

Individuals who attend or have attended BiGLARU programming within the past year may be members.

Section 2

Membership shall be open to all Rutgers University Students and must comply with federal laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, creed, color, religion, national origin, ancestry, age, sex, disability, marital status, familial status, affectional or sexual orientation, or veteran status.
 
Section 3
This organization shall abide by all applicable laws of the State of New Jersey and the United States.
 
Section 4
This organization shall abide by all applicable rules and regulations of the University and under the privileges as granted by the Office of Student Leadership, Involvement & Programs, the Livingston Student Center, Deans, and Dean of Students where chartered. This organization shall also abide by the rules and regulations of the Board of Governors, the University, and the colleges as provided by the Board of Governors and the Deans of the Colleges.

Section 5

In addition to Federal, State, and University laws, rules and regulations, BiGLARU prohibits discrimination based on gender identity and expression, personal health, physical or mental ability, class, ethnicity, nationality, political affiliation, eligibility to serve in the military, and number of dependents.

Section 6

Non-students, faculty, and staff may be guests of the organization, but their rightrights as participants are limited as per guidelines set forth by the Rutgers College Office of Student, Leadership Involvement and Programs.

Leadership Development.


ARTICLE III - Officer Designations and Duties

Section 1
Executive Board officers this organization may be from any undergraduate college which recognizes the Alliance.BiGLARU. The Executive Board shall consist of two Co-Presidents, a Communications Officer (one female and one male), a Vice-President/Communications Officer, and a Treasurer. All officers are responsible for attending Executive Board meetings, programming, outreach, maintaining a familiarity and awareness of issues which present themselves to Queer communities, responsibly representing the organization, and other duties as necessary. In times of emergency, the Executive Board as a whole shall make all decisions that are necessary and proper for the functioning of the organization. Upon being elected it is the responsibility of each Executive Board officer to review, ratify, and pledge to uphold the constitution of BiGLARU.

a. The Co-Presidents will be responsible for organizing and running all organizational meetings, and shall have equal power and responsibility. Each Co-President shall also be responsible for all actions of the organization and shall serve as an official representative of BiGLARU.the Alliance. The gender for which a person may run as for Co-Presidency position is determined by their declared gender identity.

b. The Communications Officer shall record all actions and handle all records of the organization. The Communications Officer shall also maintain the correspondence of the organization and preserve a copy of all materials for archival.

c. The Treasurer shall handle all financial transactions and keep all financial records of the organization. All monies of the organization shall be handled through the Student Fund Accounting Office of Rutgers College.

Section 2
In addition to the Executive Board, committeesexecutive board, the special task forces, both ad hoc and ongoing, shall be established in order to effectively carry out the functions of the organization. These committeestask forces may include, but not be limited to: Publicity, Outreach, Dance, and Programming. Any member may propose and lead a committee at the discretion of the Executive Boardtask force.

ARTICLE IV – Nomination, and Election, and Appointment Processes

Section 1
a. Members may nominate themselves or others to an Executive Board position provided that the nominee is a matriculating student at an undergraduate college that recognizes BiGLARU.

b. One election will take place each year at a general meeting towardtowards the end of the springsecond semester. The officers elect shall take office from the end of the academic year in which elections occurred through the end of the following academic year. The incumbent officers who are not candidates shall will preside over the election and will tabulate the results; if there are not at least two eligible, unless an incumbent officers to preside overofficer is a candidate, and in such cases s/he shall not tabulate the election, the Executive Board shall charge up to two BiGLARU members who are not candidates with that task.

results.

b. Nominations for officers should be made at the meeting prior to the election, or using other methods (i.e. E-mail) as otherwise agreed upon and ratified by mebers of the organization.

c. Nominations for officers shall begin two meetings prior to the election. All individuals must communicate to an Executive Board member whether they accept or decline their nomination 48 hours before the election, otherwise the nomination will be considered declined.

d. Candidates may run for only one office perofficers election.

e. If after the election there is no candidate for a given office, the Executive Boardexecutive board elect shall appoint an individual to fill the vacancy. with the present membership's approval within three weeks of the election.

Section 2

a. When voting for the Co-Presidency each member shall cast votes for two candidates. Individuals running for this office declare their own gender identities, which may be, but are not limited to male, female, transgender, or non-gender. When tabulating the results, the two candidates of differing gender identities with the greatest number of votes will be Co-Presidents.

b. For the offices of Treasurer and Communications Officer, officers shall be elected by a plurality of the votes cast by a secret ballot.

c. A candidate shall be said to have won after the accumulation of at least two votes.

Section 3

a. Voting eligibility is such that BiGLARU Members must be physically present to cast a vote. Absentee ballots are not permitted unless arrangements are made with the membership at least one week prior to the election. Special procedures, if required, may also be discussed and voted upon at that meeting.

b. Organization members who have attended at least one-half of all organizational programming for the semester, or have been membersa member of at least one programming event committee, shall be considered to have full voting rights. Members who do not meet these requirements are ineligible will be asked not to vote.

b. Absentee ballots are not permitted unless arrangements are made with the membership at least one week prior to the election. Special procedures, if required, may also be discussed and voted upon at that meeting.

Section 4

cast a. Should a vacancy occur in any office, a special election shall be held at the next meeting to fill the position. If a a vacancy occurs within eight school weeks prior to the day of elections, the Executive Board shall appoint a temporary officer to serve out the term.

b. Should a vacancy occur between semesters, the Executive Board shall appoint a member to fill the office. At the next general meeting a simple majority vote is necessary to confirm the appointment.

Section 5
a. Any Executive Board member of BiGLARU can be removed from office through the process of impeachment. Grounds for impeachment shall be defined as incompetence, misconduct of duty, malfeasance, mismanagement of funds, and/or dereliction of duty as defined by Article III, Section 1. Charges must be brought up at a general meeting by any three members of the organization and filed in writing to all Executive Board members as well as the

Section 4
Impeachment charges may be brought against any officer of the organization by any three members of the organization. These three members must file charges in writing to all executive board members. These charges must also be filed with the respective governing associations at the undergraduate colleges where BiGLARU is recognized.

b. At the following general meeting the individual being considered for impeachment shall have the opportunity to present a defense. The impeachment vote shall be taken at this meeting. The individual being considered for impeachment shall not have a vote and shall not be counted amongst the number of voting members present. For voting eligibility, see Article IV, Section 3, Paragraph a. A two-thirds majority of the voting members is required to remove a member from office. Executive Board members not being charged will preside over the proceedings.

ARTICLE V - The organization must then have a meeting within two weeks from the date the charges are filed.


ARTICLE VI - Meetings and Quorum

Special meetings will be held when requested by any of the officers, the advisor(s) and/or when petitioned by ten-percent of the membership. There shall be at least one meeting a month, with a precedent set at one meeting per week. A quorum for conducting business at any meeting shall be 50% plus 1.


ARTICLE VII - Constitutional Amendments and Review

Section 1

To amend the Constitution, any member may submit a written proposal at any general meeting. At the following general meeting, the body will discuss and vote on the proposed amendment. For the amendment to pass it must receive a two-thirds majority vote. For voting eligibility, see Article IV, Section 3, Paragraph a.
a. Any member may propose an amendment to the Constitution. If passed, see below, it will become effective at the first meeting following a vote.

b. This constitution may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the members attending a meeting, providing the amendment was submitted in writing at a previous regular meeting and notice is given to all members at least one week before the meeting on the constitutional amendment. The amendment will go into effect after it has been presented to and approved by the respective governing associations at the colleges where recognized. It is the responsibility of the Executive Board to notify the membership of the upcoming vote within three days of receiving the proposal.

Section 2

This constitution shall be ratified by the members of BiGLARU every three years.

ARTICLE VI - Confidentiality

Section 1IX

Questions of Parliamentary Procedure shall be decided upon by and in accordance with the forms laid down in Robert's Rules of Order, latest edition


ARTICLE X

In order to maintain a safe atmosphere:

a. Names shall not be recorded for the purpose of attendance keeping, and

b. Divulgence of the name of any member attending an Alliancea BiGLARU Alliance function without explicit permission by said member is not allowed.

ARTICLE XI

No dues shall be collected per se, but funds may be solicited for the purpose of providing refreshments and other non-necessities which are not covered by student funding. Ratified October 19, 1987

Amendments and Modifications:

Revised August 29, 1990 - to include University College Governing Association

Revised January 29, 1991 - changing name from "Rutgers University Lesbian-Gay Alliance" to the "Rutgers University Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Alliance"

Revised April 20, 1995 - changing name from "Rutgers University Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Alliance" to "Bisexual, Gay, and Lesbian Alliance of Rutgers University"

Revised September 14, 1995 - General Updates

Revised January 25,1998 - to include Cook College Council

Revised April 29, 1999 - Added language in Article V, Section 1, Paragraph A to include people in the trangendered community. This clarification was discussed and approved during elections on 4/29/1999

Revised July 21, 1999 - Made modifications so that this constitution conforms to RCGA/OSILD guidelines. Added Article III, Paragraphs A and B, and added Article V, Section 2, Paragraph B. Spelling and grammar corrections were made throughout the document. A circular clause in article V, Section 3, which made it impossible to determine a procedure for a replacement of a Co-president if needed, was stricken.

Revised February 25, 2005 –Aside from correcting a multitude of spelling and grammatical errors, as well as certain structural changes in formatting, the following are significant changes to the constitution.

--Additions:

-Rewording the purpose of the organization for clarity and for greater inclusiveness of queer identities

-Redefining what it means to be an Executive Board officer by listing specific duties, responsibilities, and expectations. Also, we removed some implicit hierarchy within the structure of the Executive Board giving more ownership and decision making to the Executive Board as a whole. Before the many decision making powers lay solely with the office of the Co-presidency.

-Greater inclusion of gender identities and non-conformity by restructuring the office of the Co-Presidency

-New system of voting for the office of Co-presidency

-Definition of member

-Better defined process of voting and nominations

-Explicit clarification of policy regarding confidentiality and non-disclosure of members’ names

--Omissions:

-Slight name change resulting in the removal of ‘and’ in the official name of the organization

-The co-presidents must be one man and one woman or a transgender person.

-Article IV Section 2 defining role of a male and a female advisor

-Ability for an individual to run for more than one office in an election

-Article VI Special Quorums

-Article IX Dependence on Robert's Rules of Order for Parliamentary Procedure

-Dubious Article XI relating to collection of dues