Our Constitution

The Association for Psychological Science Student Caucus of Central Michigan University shall exist for the purposes of encouraging, stimulating, and guiding the professional development and advancement of the science of psychology. Membership is open to graduate and undergraduate students who are making the study of psychology one of their major interests. The Association for Psychological Science Student Caucus of Central Michigan University is an affiliate of the Association for Psychological Science.

The Association for Psychological Science Student Caucus of Central Michigan University serves ten major goals.

1. To enhance the quality of education in the science of psychology.

2. To enhance the educational opportunities for students of psychology.

3. To preserve the scientific base of psychology.

4. To make policy recommendations to APS about student concerns.

5. To promote the public interest in psychology.

6. To promote and facilitate student initiated collaborative research.

7. To provide contact between students and psychologists in the field.

8. To assist the student’s professional development through activities.

9. To promote educational extracurricular participation.

10. To disseminate information about the educational and scientific opportunities available to students.

ARTICLE I

Name

This organization shall be known as the Association for Psychological Science Student Caucus of Central Michigan University, hereinafter referred to as APSSC of CMU.

ARTICLE II

Membership

1. Active members may be students who are making the study of psychology one of their major interests and who are students at Central Michigan University.

2. All student affiliates shall be treated without discrimination. An RSO may not discriminate on the basis of age, color, disability, gender, familial status, height, marital status, national origin, political persuasion, race, religion, sexual orientation, veteran status or weight.

3. Minimum qualifications for active membership shall be as follows:

a. Registration as a student at Central Michigan University

b. Application and acceptance as a student affiliate of APS.

4. Active members must attend all meetings of the chapter.

5. Active members are entitled to vote on all issues and concerns, and in

all elections.

6. All members are entitled to all benefits of APSSC and APS as a student

affiliate.

ARTICLE III

Officers, Duties, and Terms of Office

1. The officers of the Student Caucus shall consist of an executive council including a president, a vice president, a secretary, a treasurer, a graduate advocate, an undergraduate advocate, a historian, a public relations officer, a research coordinator, a funding coordinator, and a webmaster. The officers of the Student Caucus Executive Board shall be elected by the majority of members attending the meeting at which voting occurs. This election must be announced one meeting in advance. Candidates for executive offices and voting members must be present when the elections are held. The executive officers shall serve one-year terms. They may be reelected as many times as the membership wishes.

2. Each member of the Executive Board shall perform the usual duties of the respective office and specific duties provided elsewhere in the Constitution. Qualifications for persons who are nominated to run for an Executive Board position are:

Ÿ All students shall be active members of APSSC of CMU and graduate or undergraduate students in the psychology department.

Ÿ The Graduate Advocate must be a graduate student in the psychology department; the Undergraduate Advocate must be an undergraduate student in the psychology department.

3. The Executive Board officers' specific duties shall include the following:

Ÿ PRESIDENT: Shall preside over all meetings and oversee all group activities; schedule locations and speakers for socials; create and present to the group a plan for yearly activities at the beginning of the fall semester; schedule and obtain a room for e-board meetings; prepare an agenda for e-board meetings; is jointly responsible, with the treasurer, for the maintenance of an account at a bank

Ÿ VICE PRESIDENT: Shall assist at all meetings; assist in scheduling locations for socials and speakers; assist in creating a yearly plan; assist in scheduling and obtaining a room for e-board meetings

Ÿ SECRETARY: Shall take and publish minutes from each meeting; keep attendance records; mail out letters to speakers and to social hosts prior to each social as a reminder and a preliminary thank you; mail out thank you letters to social hosts and speakers immediately after each social; send out emails to all members to remind of meetings, socials, and other events

Ÿ GRADUATE ADVOCATE: Serves as a graduate student's advocate; serves as a liaison to IOPA and other graduate student organizations.

Ÿ UNDERGRADUATE ADVOCATE: Serves as undergraduate students advocate; serves as a liaison to Psi Chi.

Ÿ TREASURER: Shall receive and disperse funds under the direction of the president and faculty advisor; is jointly responsible, with the president, for the maintenance of an account at a bank is jointly responsible, with the funding coordinator, for obtaining funding for activities.

Ÿ PUBLIC RELATIONS: Shall advertise and promote all APSSC meetings and other functions by: creating and posting attractive flyers in as many halls as possible on campus, announcing events in as many psychology classes as possible, placing announcements in faculty mailboxes asking faculty to announce functions in classes

Ÿ HISTORIAN: Shall document all APSSC activities throughout the year by taking photographs; is responsible for up-keep of the bulletin board; is responsible for adding all pictures to scrapbook at the end of each semester

Ÿ WEBMASTER: Shall maintain and update APSSC webpage; includes but is not limited to updating e-board and member lists, constitution, mission statement, main page, and links when necessary; updating research opportunity information as soon as new information is available; adding any material that is deemed necessary at meetings

Ÿ FUNDING COORDINATOR: Shall investigate funding opportunities; attend any meetings required to obtain funding from SBAC or other sources; shall fulfill any requirements by SBAC or other funding sources in order for APSSC to receive funding; shall apply for and follow up on funding requests; shall oversee disbursement of awarded funds

Ÿ RESEARCH COORDINATOR: Shall be in charge of investigating current faculty research information (area of interest, assistance needed); making sure the research information is current at the beginning of each semester; giving updated research information to the webmaster; giving information on how to get involved in research to psychology students

4. A member of the Executive Board may be removed from office by the unanimous vote of the other Executive Board members. The President (or Vice-President in the event of incapacity of the President) shall then appoint a person to take over the duties of the vacant office with the approval of the majority of the Executive Board. Missing three meetings and/or socials may result in being automatically removed from office.

ARTICLE IV

Faculty Advisor

1. The faculty advisor must be a faculty member of the Psychology Department at Central Michigan University. The faculty advisor must be a member in good standing of APS. The faculty advisor must submit all information required by APS, meet all the requirements of APS, and be accepted by APS as a faculty advisor.

2. If the office of faculty sponsor becomes vacant, the membership shall nominate a prospective advisor at a meeting. The president shall extend an invitation to the faculty member nominated to be the faculty advisor.

3. A faculty advisor may be removed from office by the unanimous vote of the Executive Board members if in more than one member’s opinion the faculty advisor engages in conduct which warrants his or her removal. A faculty sponsor who misses three meetings and/or socials during a semester shall be automatically removed from office.

ARTICLE V

Meetings

1. Executive board meetings shall occur as often as the president, vice president and faculty advisor deem necessary. A petition from two or more members to the executive board shall cause a special meeting to be held.

2. Social/Research meetings are meetings organized around social functions, such as student or faculty presentations. There should be approximately four socials/research meetings each semester. These shall be well publicized.

3. Generally agreed upon rules (or, if necessary, of parliamentary procedure) shall be used at all meetings.

ARTICLE VI

Finances

1. Membership fees are the sum of APS student affiliate dues plus $10 chapter dues payable to the APSSC of CMU bank account.

2. Disbursement of funds is made at the direction of the president and faculty advisor through the treasurer. Financial records are kept with the treasurer and are available for inspection by any member of APSSC.

3. In the event of inactivation, all proceeds will go to the General Scholarship Fund of Central Michigan University.

ARTICLE VII

Amendments

1. Any member, at any meeting, may propose a written amendment. No action will take place, but the amendment shall be discussed fully. At the next meeting, the amendment must be discussed again and voted on. Affirmative vote of 2/3 of the members present at the meeting shall be required for adoption of the amendment.

BYLAWS

1. The order of business to be followed at meetings shall be determined by the executive board. Any member, at any meeting, may request that the order of business be set aside to consider a particular item.

2. The executive board may establish committees for any useful purpose. For these committees to exist beyond one semester, the membership must approve.

3. An RSO may not discriminate on the basis of age, color, disability, gender, familial status, height, marital status, national origin, political persuasion, race, religion, sexual orientation, veteran status or weight.