BYLAWS FOR THE OKLAHOMA GAMMA CHAPTER
THE TAU BETA PI ASSOCIATION
OKLAHOMA STATE UNIVERSITY
STILLWATER, OKLAHOMA
(Revised: September 13, 2004)
ARTICLE I
TITLE, LOCATION, AND INSIGNIA
SECTION 1. The name of this organization shall be the Oklahoma Gamma Chapter of the Tau Beta Pi Association.
SECTION 2. The Oklahoma Gamma Chapter shall be located at Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, Oklahoma
SECTION 3. The insignia and colors shall be in accordance with the National Constitution.
ARTICLE II
GOVERNMENT OF THE CHAPTER
SECTION 1. The Government of the chapter shall be in accordance with the National Constitution.
SECTION 2. a) Chapter officers shall consist of the President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Cataloger.
b) The offices of President-Elect and Engineering Student Council Representative are hereby established in addition to the offices listed in the National Constitution.
c) In addition, there shall be a Chapter Advisor.
d) All officers shall be duly initiated active members. In addition, the President-Elect shall have a minimum of two regular semesters or one full year remaining prior to graduation, whichever is applicable.
SECTION 3. a) All officers shall serve for one semester with the exception of the Engineering Student Council Representative and the Chapter Advisor, who shall serve for one year each.
b) No officer shall serve for more than two consecutive terms in a particular office.
SECTION 4. a) The President-Elect shall understudy the position of President. He shall vacate his office at the next regular office election, and shall assume the office of President.
b) The duties of the President, Vice-President, Treasurer, and the Cataloger shall be as described in the National Bylaws.
c) The Secretary shall assume the duties of both the Corresponding and Recording Secretaries in accordance with the National Bylaws.
d) The Engineering Student Council Representative shall represent the chapter’s interest in the Engineering Student Council, and shall keep the members informed of all activities of the Council.
e) The Chapter Advisor shall be the Parliamentarian and Interpreter of the Bylaws and shall act as parliamentarian at all meetings. He shall interpret the Bylaws, notifying the chapter when it is violating the Bylaws whenever the occasion arises.
SECTION 5. In the event that any chapter officer, with the exception of President, cannot serve his complete term, a successor shall be elected by a ¾ vote of the active members to complete the unexpired term, the President-Elect shall serve out the unexpired term.
SECTION 6. Any officer may be removed from office at any regular meeting by a 2/3 vote of the active members.
SECTION 7. a) A quorum, consisting of ½ the active membership of the Chapter, is required for the consideration of routine business.
b) For the election of the new members, for changing the initiation or chapter dues, or for passing of an assessment on the members of the chapter, ¾ of the active members eligible to vote thereon is required.
c) For the approval or disapproval of a proposed amendment to the Constitution or Bylaws of the Association, ¾ of the active members of the Chapter is required.
ARTICLE III
MEMBERSHIP
SECTION 1. Active members shall be those members who meet the requirements for active membership as set forth in the National Bylaws.
SECTION 2. a) An active member shall be declared inactive in accordance with the National Bylaws.
b) The President shall notify a member that he will be declared inactive upon approval of the Advisory Board.
c) To regain good standing, a member must submit a petition, stating reasons and considerations to the President. The petition shall be reviewed by the Advisory Board. The petition shall then be submitted to the membership, along with the Board’s recommendations for a vote. The petition must receive a ¾ majority of the active members, otherwise the member shall remain inactive.
ARTICLE IV
ELECTION TO MEMBERSHIP
SECTION 1. The election of members shall be in accordance with the National Constitution and Bylaws.
SECTION 2. Any full-time undergraduate student who is presently enrolled in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Architectural Engineering, Biosystems Engineering , Agricultural Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or Aerospace Engineering and who meets the standards set forth in the following sections shall be eligible for membership, providing that he or she is considered by the university to be at least of junior standing. He or she shall be considered to be that of junior standing if he or she has completed sixty credit hours, and of senior standing if he or she has completed ninety credit hours. Any graduate student enrolled in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Architectural Engineering, Biosystems Engineering , Agricultural Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering and who meets the standards set forth in the following sections shall be eligible for membership, providing that he or she has completed all class work, half of their research, and, in the opinion of their advisor or School Head, be in the upper half of graduate students.
SECTION 3. The eligibility of transfer students shall be left to the discretion of the Electee Committee, provided that they meet the requirements set forth in Article IV, Sections 1 & 2.
SECTION 4. The procedure for selecting prospective members shall be as follows:
a) At the first regular meeting, the Electee Committee shall be appointed. It is their responsibility to insure that students meet the qualifications specified in Sections 1 & 2 of this Article. They shall submit a list of students who meet the requirements at a following meeting.
b) The candidate list shall then be reviewed by the membership.
c) The Electee Committee shall send bids inviting the students on the list to the electee smoker.
d) The purpose of the smoker is for further rating of eligible students. The President shall explain the requirements, objectives, and activities of the Association and the Chapter to the electees.
e) Electees shall be selected by a vote of the membership. Those individuals receiving negative votes shall be further discussed.
f) A final vote shall be taken to reconsider any candidate receiving a negative vote in the initial balloting. Any candidate receiving two or more negative votes in the final balloting shall be disqualified for membership.
g) Any candidate who has been disqualified for membership shall be eligible for reconsideration the following semester.
SECTION 6. Election of graduate students, alumni of OSU, alumni not of OSU, and Eminent Engineers shall be in accordance with the National Constitution.
ARTICLE V
ELECTEE PROGRAM
SECTION 1. All electees shall obtain the signatures of a representative number of active members of Tau Beta Pi prior to initiation.
SECTION 2. All electees shall be required to pass an examination on the National Constitution, National and Chapter Bylaws, and the names and offices of the National Officers.
SECTION 3. The Vice-President shall chair and appoint an Electee Committee which shall be responsible for all electee activities including planning of smoker, informal and formal initiations.
SECTION 4. a) A pre-election meeting shall be held to permit academically eligible students to learn more about the organization and provide an opportunity for members to meet these students. Candidates attending this meeting, and other academically eligible students, will be invited to become pledges.
b) The pledge term will consist of a two-week period during which pledges shall engage in a service project for the community. This project will be determined by the pledges with the advice and consent of the Vice-President except that no pledge shall be required to attend more than three pledge meetings of one hour each during the pledge term, and additional activities, exclusive of pledge meetings, shall be limited to three hours per week or less. Pledges may also be required to pass a test over material relevant to Tau Beta Pi, and attend the informal initiation.
c) Special consideration with regard to pledge activities shall be given to pledges who are providing a major fraction of their own support by working, with the aim that no time need be lost from his or her regular work schedule. Other excuses reviewed by the Vice-President will be considered.
d) Members shall take advantage of the pledge term to individually evaluate the character of each applicant. Character shall be deemed appropriate for membership unless ¼ of the active members vote to deny membership on the basis of non-exemplary character.
SECTION 5. a) The vote to deny memberships shall be taken at a special Election Meeting to be held near the end of the pledge term but prior to the informal initiation. The active members may vote to inform any unsuccessful candidates of their status prior to the informal initiation, from which they may be excused. Otherwise, results of the election will not be revealed until the informal initiation.
b) At the Election Meeting, the Eligibility Code shall first be read.
c) The names of the eligible candidates will be submitted to the Chapter membership in groups by the membership committee along with the committee’s favorable recommendation for each candidate in the group. The size of the groups shall be determined by the membership committee.
d) If any active member has a question about any of the candidates in the group, that candidate’s name shall be removed from the group (“purged”) and considered separately.
e) A Chapter vote shall be taken on the remainder of the group
f) Each candidate removed from a group and candidates who did not receive a favorable recommendation from the membership committee shall be considered separately after all the groups have been voted on. Each name shall be presented for discussion and voted on before the following name is considered.
g) After all names have been considered and voted on, there shall be a second individual ballot for each candidate who failed election on the first ballot
h) No candidate who fails election on the second ballot shall be considered further unless ¼ of the members present so request.
i) No candidate who fails election on the third ballot shall be considered again at this election. He or she may be considered again at the next election if he or she is then eligible.
ARTICLE VI
EXPULSION OF MEMBERS
SECTION 1. Expulsion of members shall be in accordance with the National Constitution.
ARTICLE VII
MEETINGS
SECTION 1. Meetings shall be held in accordance with the National Bylaws.
SECTION 2. All chapter meetings shall be considered regular meetings. At least one, and preferably two, regular meetings must be held during each month of the school year.
SECTION 3. In the event of any meeting, notice shall be posted on the Tau Beta Pi bulletin board in the main Engineering Building and on the bulletin boards of those schools whose main offices are not located in the Main Engineering Building.
ARTICLE VIII
FEES
SECTION 1. The initiation fee shall be in accordance with the National Bylaws.
SECTION 2. The initiation fee shall include all items normally furnished by the National Association to each new member, but it shall not include any electee week expenses.
ARTICLE IX
AMENDMENTS
SECTION 1. These Bylaws may be amended by an affirmative vote of ¾ of the active members. The amendments are to be proposed at a regular meeting and allowed to lay over until the next meeting for a final voting. The approval of the Chapter Advisor and of the National Council shall be required before any amendment shall be in force.