Constitution of the Kansas State University International Buddies Program

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ARTICLE I - NAME AND PURPOSE

Section I: Name

1. This organization shall be known as the Kansas State University (KSU) International Buddies or I-Buddies.

Section II: The Purpose

1. The purposes of this club will be threefold: 1) to provide interaction between local KSU students, KSU faculty/staff, spouses, community members and the international community through conversation and creative activities; 2) to ease the transition for incoming international students, their families, and visiting scholars to an American university and American culture; 3) to provide participants the opportunity to build intercultural communication skills, global competencies, language skills, and to add a cross-cultural component to their K-State experience.

 

ARTICLE II - MEMBERSHIP

Section I: Membership

1. Membership shall be open to anyone interested in learning about other culture. Membership is not based on sex, national origin, disability, religion, age, sexual orientation, class enrollment, student or academic status, or any other criteria. Membership is also open to non-university local communities.

2. Membership is maintained through keeping an active relationship with assigned Buddy/ Buddies, averaging a minimum of 3 hours of contact a month (exemption is given to members who have not been paired yet with a Buddy) or regular attendance at International Buddies events.

 

ARTICLE III - EXECUTIVE BOARD

Section I: Structure and Organization

1. The Executive Board shall consist of the President, Vice-President, Secretary, Event Manager(s), Public Communication Director, Matching Chair(s), and Fundraising Chair.

2. The Executive Board will have the authority to formulate policies and regulations, and make decisions that are necessary for the well-functioning of the organization.

3. The Executive Board shall be selected by the KSU Advisor and the past year’s President and Vice President with majority vote by the executive board.

4. The term of the office for all members of the Executive Board shall be of one academic year. Selections for the Executive Board for the following year will be made in April.

5. Only one office may be held by a person at one time.

6. International Student and Scholar Services has final say over the organization.

Section II: Obligations and Responsibilities.

1. Duties of the President

  • Coordinate the work of the Executive Board and represent members at all levels.
  • Preside over all meetings, activities, or assemblies called for a special purpose.
  • Serve as official spokesperson for, and representative of, the International Buddies.
  • Call special meetings or assemblies upon the approval of the Executive Board.
  • Oversee the day-to-day matters within the Club in conjunction with the Vice-President.
  • Ensure that regular executive meetings are held.
  • Represent International Buddies on all appropriate university bodies and committees.
  • Oversee all the financial records of the organization, to sign all vouchers and disbursements and report account balances at meetings in conjunction with the KSU staff advisor of the organization, and to be responsible for all debts of the organization so not to bring dishonor or discredit to the International Buddies.
  • Ensure that the Club is properly run and their financial affairs are in order.
  • Complete CMS training for website maintenance (serve as backup for website maintenance).

2. Duties of the Vice – President

  • Perform the duties of the President in their absence or at their request, and to be the successor to the Presidency should the office become vacant.
  • Serve as co-chairman of all committees, and coordinator of the Executive Board.
  • Maintain close contact, in conjunction with the Public Communications Director, with the Student Association, and other clubs and organizations related to this Club.
  • Coordinate outreach events by providing resources to the Public Communications Director to disseminate to buddy groups.
  • Formulate and present the budget for approval before the Executive Board at the beginning and end of each semester with the assistance of the President and KSU Staff Advisor of the organization.

3. Duties of the Secretary

  • Keep accurate minutes of all meetings and duplicate and distribute them electronically to the members of the Club and the Executive Board no later than 48 hours after each meeting.
  • Perform all the official secretarial work of the Club.
  • Serve as the historian of the International Buddies and to keep recording of the meetings in a book form (may be electronic), along with all accompanying correspondence and publicity.
  • Facilitate regular communication over e-mail (or OrgCentral) between the Executive Board and the membership.
  • Assist other Executive Board members as and when reasonably required, in the publicity of their campaigns work.
  • Take attendance before and after every meeting and event.

4. Duties of the Event Manager

  • Coordinate, in conjunction with the Advisor and the President, the arrangements for all International Buddies activities and carry them into action in conjunction.
  • Formulate and plan all meeting and activities related to his/her office term and publish them in conjunction with the Public Communications Director.
  • Open and close all events and activities.
  • Maintain an inventory of all equipment and its condition.

5. Duties of the Public Communication Director

  • Publicize the organization’s events, meetings and activities.
  • Maintain contact between the International Buddies and any other organization, club, or person at Kansas State University or any other college or university that may be related to this Club.
  • Promote and distribute information concerning the life, activities, or programs of the International Buddies to the public.
  • Facilitate regular communication between the Executive board and the members over Internet.
  • Oversee the Club’s website, social media accounts, online boards, and poster sites.
  • Update and maintain website, online group and communities. Complete CMS training for website maintenance.
  • Ensure, in conjunction with the Event Manager, that sufficient information and publicity is provided for students in relation to entertainment functions.

6. Duties of the Matching Chair

  • Ensure that a matching strategy is in place at the start of each semester with approval from the Executive Board.
  • Match domestic students and international students based on criteria by designated matching system.
  • Regularly match and stay up to date with students signing up until the deadline for applications has passed or until any new inquiries for International Buddies membership have stopped.
  • Seek out volunteers from the International Buddies membership to assist with the matching process, if needed.
  • Attend meetings and help with all events remaining an active member of the Executive Team.
  • Maintain regular contact with all matched buddies via email (which included checking International Buddies email account regularly for matching concerns).
  • Collect and organize data for statistical analyses (in the form of a survey) to track participant feedback. Report findings to Executive Board.
  • Serve as a liaison between buddy groups and officers.

7. Duties of the Fundraising Chair

  • Organize and facilitate all fundraising activities/initiatives.
  • Oversee all donations; actively seek out donations of food, prizes, etc.
  • Actively seek out new fundraising opportunities and works closely with event planners to create new fundraising events.
  • Contact past fundraising partners for future collaborations.
  • Obtain “Buddy Group of the Month” prizes.
  • Update the board on the financial status/amounts in the accounts at each meeting.
  • Formulate and present the budget for approval before the Executive Board at the beginning and end of each semester with the assistance of the President and KSU Staff Advisor of the organization.

ARTICLE IV - MEETINGS

Section I: Meetings

1. The International Buddies Executive Board shall have its meetings bi-weekly or weekly if deemed necessary by the KSU staff advisor and the President.

2. All meetings must be announced at least 48 hours in advance.

3. A sign-in sheet must be provided at large group meetings.

4. The Secretary shall take attendance at all meetings and events. If secretary is unavailable, any other officer will undertake this responsibility.

5. All meetings shall be based on the procedures outlined in this constitution. Any discrepancy in meeting procedure shall be resolved by using Roberts Rules of Order and the discretion of the KSU staff advisor.

6. All executive board members shall report the tasks accomplished, projects in process, or any other relevant information at every meeting.

ARTICLE V - ATTENDANCE

Section I: Attendance

1. All members of the Executive Board are expected to attend all meetings and events.

2. Each member of the Executive Board may incur one unexcused absences in the fall and one in the spring semester.

3. Missing the beginning or end of a meeting/event counts as one half of an absence.

4. If a member is gone for a considerable part of the meeting, the Secretary/Advisor may charge said member with one half of an absence.

5. For an absence to be excused the reason must be submitted to the advisor and the secretary in writing at least 24 hours in advance of the meeting. Only serious situations will be excused (A decision made between Advisor and the secretary) such a health condition..

6. If an executive board member exceeds the allowed number of absences the secretary shall notify said member that they have been recalled from said position.

ARTICLE VI - EXECUTIVE BOARD SELECTIONS

Section I: Executive Board Selections

1. The term of the office for all members of the Executive Board shall be of one year- from the end of one spring semester to the following end of spring semester.

2. Exceptions for the term of the office for members of the Executive Board can be made at the discretion of the advisor and Executive Board.

3. Selections will be made in the spring semester for the next term.

4. Should a vacancy other than that of the President occur in any office, the President should call for special elections to be held following the announcement of the vacancy.

ARTICLE VII - PUBLICITY

Section I: Publicity

1. All flyers, online/social media publications and press releases must be approved by the KSU staff advisor for the International Buddies Program.

ARTICLE VIII - IMPEACHMENT

Section I: Impeachment

1. The executive board by a two third vote may impeach any International Buddies Officer.

ARTICLE IX - AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION

Section I: Amendments to the Constitution

1. Amendments to this constitution may be presented to the Executive Board, by a member of the Executive Board or the KSU staff advisor at any time.

2. All amendments to this constitution must be approved by the KSU staff advisor.

 

Last Updated: 6/9/2020 5:17 PM