Hmong Student Association Consitution

Hamline University

Article I: Official Name

This organization shall be named Hmong Student Association, henceforth known
as and referred to as Hmong Student Association or H.S.A.

Article II: Purposes

Hmong Student Association shall be established to,

expose members of the Hamline Community to contents such as Hmong
history, culture, traditions, and community.

promote and encourage Hmong youth to continue their education
beyond high school.

improve the Hamline community and the broader Hmong community
by serving as a resource for volunteering.

establish a relationship with other higher education institutions and the
Hmong community.

develop and refine leadership and communication skills amongst
members.

provide a strong academic and social support system for members on
campus through meeting and social activities.

Article III: Membership

Section I: Shall not Discriminate

This organization shall not discriminate on the basis of race, gender,
religion, ethnicity, age, social status, political affiliation, sexual
orientation, and/or physical/mental disability.

Section II: Eligibility

All Hamline University College of Liberal Arts (CLA) students, Graduate
Students, Law Students, Staff, and/or Faculty members are eligible
to become members.
(Only CLA students are eligible to receive financial benefits.)

Article IV: Administration

Section I: Administrative Positions

Hmong Student Association shall be administered by the following
administrative positions:

I. President
II. Vice-President
III. Secretary
IV. Treasurer
V. Public Relations (Internal)
VI: Public Relations (External)
VII. Hmong Month Coordinator/ Conference Coordinator
VIII. Website/Technology Coordinator

Section II: Duties and Responsibilities

The duties and responsibilities of the aforementioned administrative
positions shall be as follows:

President:

shall act as a leader and an administrator over H.S.A. by
maintaining, promoting, and executing the goals of H.S.A.

shall supervise over H.S.A. at all events and conferences

shall have the authority to appoint committees and their presiding
chairs

shall have the authority to sign letters or documents necessary
to carry out the will of the organization.

shall along with the treasurer, endorse all H.S.A. checks

shall set up the agenda for every group meeting

Vice-President:

shall advise and assist the President on all matters concerning
H.S.A.

shall take responsibility and presume the aforementioned duties
of the President during the absence of the President

shall preside over every group meeting

shall direct and lead, along with the Treasurer in all fundraising efforts

Secretary:

shall maintain and record minutes from all meetings

shall handle and direct publicity needs with the Public Relations
Officers

shall inform members and executive board members of
up-coming meetings and/or events

Treasurer:

shall keep a record of the organizational budget, including
expenses and other budgetary concerns, i.e. budget proposal

shall direct and lead, along with the Vice-President in all
fundraising efforts

report H.S.A.’s financial accounts at meetings

shall, along with the President, endorse all H.S.A. checks

Public Relations Officer:
Internal:

shall establish and maintain involvement within the Hamline
Community, i.e. HUSC, MISA, Multicultural Alliance, etc.

shall be responsible, along with the secretary to assess and direct
all internal publicity needs

shall take on the External PR’s responsibilities if an absence of some sort occurs

External:

shall establish and maintain involvement outside of the Hamline
Community, i.e. TCAR, HCSM, Hmong Community, Larger Community

shall be responsible, along with the secretary to assess and direct
all external publicity needs

shall take on the Internal PR’s responsibilities if an absence of some sort occurs

Hmong Month Coordinator/ Conference Coordinator:

shall be responsible for the overall success of Hmong Month

shall work alongside all officers to promote and plan all H.S.A.
events

shall be responsible for coordinating all that is necessary to attend
the annual student conference for H.S.A.

Website/Technology Coordinator:

shall be responsible of keeping the H.S.A. website up to date

shall be responsible for creating publicized materials, i.e. flyers and posters.

Section III: Liabilities of Officers

Liabilities of Officers shall be within accordance with the following rules:

An Officer or any person acting on behalf of H.S.A. shall not be
held personally liable for their actions if he/she performs their
duties within reasonable bounds.

Lawsuits against any individual acting on behalf of the
organization should be directed at the organization and taken up
with the appropriate administrative authorities at Hamline University

Section IV: Terms of Offices

The Terms of Office shall be in accordance with the following rule-

There shall be no limit on the amount of times a person may run
and/or be nominated for election

No person shall, at any given time be allowed to hold two different
positions on the executive board

All newly-elected Officers shall assume their position immediately
after final election results are officially declared by the H.S.A.
Executive Board

Each annual term of office shall expire in mid-Spring Semester

Section V: Resignation

Any officer maintains the right to willfully resign from their elected duties
any time he/she wishes

The individual wishing to resign must submit a resignation letter to all of
other Executive Board Members and/or Advisor to officially proclaim
their resignation

Section VI: Succession of Offices

In the event that the office of the President becomes vacant, the line of
succession shall be as follows:

I. Vice-President
II. Treasurer
III. Secretary
IV. Public Relations Officer (Internal)
V. Public Relations Officer (External)
VI. Hmong Month/Conference Coordinator
VII. Website/Technology Coordinator

In all other offices besides the President, the line of succession will follow
the aforementioned order, but the current officers have the right to decline
their advancement of office, in which if occurs, a special election will be
held to elect a new officer

Section VII: Qualifications

The Qualifications of Candidates for office positions must meet the
following requirements:

must be a registered student in attendance at Hamline University’s
College of Liberal Arts for the entire academic year of elected
office

must be a member of H.S.A. at time of nomination

Section VIII: Impeachments

An impeachment of any officer shall be initiated in any general meeting
by at minimum: one current officer and one current member.

The impeachment will then be tabled for one week, in which a majority
vote is required at the following general meeting to impeach the officer

Section IX: Elections

I. Nominations are defined as a formal presentation of the name of a
member as a candidate for any executive office of H.S.A.

The process of nomination shall be secret-ballot and shall be as follows:

The President shall call and recognize nominations from members
in a general H.S.A. meeting

All nominations shall include the name of the candidate and the
position of office they are seeking

You may nominate yourself or be nominated by any H.S.A member

The nominee must accept their nomination to be eligible to be
put on the ballot

II. Voting rule and regulations will be as follows:

All members are entitled to only one vote per position
Only members are eligible to vote in the election

The election process shall be done by secret ballot

The current executive board shall preside over the election
and shall be the one to tally the votes, unless it is for a position
they are currently seeking

III. Challenging election results shall be as follows:

All challenges to an election should be filed with the presiding
officers

An election may only be challenged up until two weeks after the election

After a challenge, the exact results must be presented to the
Members in a general meeting

Article V: Executive Advisor

Section I: Advisor

The executive officers shall select one person by majority vote to be an organizational Advisor

The Advisor shall advise, assist, and supervise meetings and events
conducted on behalf of H.S.A.

The Advisor shall have no voting power in conducting the business of the organization

The duration of the Advisor’s term shall be maintained by the elected officers

Article VI: Meetings

Section I: Place of Meetings

The place of meeting shall be decided by majority vote of Executive officers

Section II: Quorum for General Meeting

A majority (51%) of members and officers present constitute a general
meeting quorum

Section III: Quorum for Officers’ Meeting

Two-thirds (2/3) of the officers must be present to constitute an officer’s
meeting

Article VII: Amendments

Any amendment to the constitution shall require a two-thirds (2/3) vote of
approval by members at a general meeting

Article VIII: Dissolution Statement

In the case that the members of this organization shall deem it necessary to
dissolve, the remaining money acquired through fundraising shall be donated to
charitable non-profit organizations. All possessions owned and purchased with
H.S.A. money shall be sold and/or donated and the proceeds given to charitable
non-profit organizations. All money acquired through the budgetary process shall
be returned to Hamline University Student Congress.