MINNIE'S HOUSE CONSTITUTION

Transcription

1 MINNIE'S HOUSE CONSTITUTION Preliminary Remarks: Minnie's Co-op got off to a colorful start in the fall of 1970 when, by the grace of goddess Astarte (the Phoenician moon goddess of fertility and sexual love) the House was painted purple during the work holiday. The Constitution was accepted by the House membership later in the fall and the House name was finally agreed upon early in winter. The Original Constitution can be seen in the ICC archives. The previous Revised Constitution was ratified Fall term, This revised Constitution was last amended Summer term Preamble: We, the members of Minnie's House, associate ourselves in accordance with the spirit of the Rochdale Principles for the purpose of providing room and board cooperatively. We adopt the following principles: 1. Open membership-there shall be no restriction on membership for any person other than availability of room in the House and the ability and willingness of the individual to discharge their duties as a member. Specifically, but not exclusively, the House will not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, age, international student status, sex, political beliefs, sexual orientation, or disability status. 2. Democracy-each member has only one vote; each shares equally in House duties responsibilities and in all benefits derived through House operation. 3. Education-the House will be a working example of cooperative living and will educate its members and others on campus in the principles of cooperation. 4. Neutrality-the House itself will be neutral in all religious and nonpartisan in all political affairs, shall be a member of no organizations other than cooperative societies and shall not provide financial support to any organization of which it is not a member. 5. Expansion-through support of the Inter-Cooperative Council, the House will further the cooperative movement in general. 6. Mutual Cooperation: The House shall actively cooperate on practical matters with other cooperatives at local, national, and international levels to further serve their members and their communities. 7. Distribution of Economic Result: The year-end savings of the House may be distributed as a patronage refund to the members. Article I: General Section 3: The name of the group which operates under this Constitution shall be called Minnie's Cooperative House, hereinafter referred to as the House. The House is a member and abides by the rules of the Inter-Cooperative Council (ICC). The exterior of Minnie's Co-op shall remain purple. In 1970, Minnie s co-op was painted Dauphine Purple in honor of Minnie Wallace s favorite color (unconfirmed). Since then, Minnie s Co-op has become a landmark, known commonly as the Purple House of Ann Arbor. Dauphine Purple is no longer produced and so in 2006 Minnie s co-op was painted Super Violet with Purple Rain trim. The House must always be painted a similarly bright and equally awesome shade of purple. Article II: Membership 1

2 Section 3: Section 4: Section 5: Requirements for membership shall be: a) Acceptance by the ICC according to the rules and procedure set up by the Board of Directors; b) Signing of an ICC contract and payment of a membership fee and purchase of required shares, and; c) Assignment by the ICC to this particular House. Duties and Obligations of members: a) Each member is personally responsible for work assigned to him/her on the work schedule. If a person is disabled or physically handicapped they may hire someone to do their work if accepted by a majority at a House meeting. Under no other circumstances may a member hire someone to do his/her work. b) House members are responsible for Payment of charges as determined by the House. c) House members must abide by this Constitution, By-laws and all House and ICC rules. Current Member Referral a) A member may be put on referral: 1) By the House Treasurer, House President and one other member, for non-payment. 2) By the Work Manager, House President and one other member for non-work. 3) For any reasons listed as grounds for expulsion defined in this constitution or grounds for current member referral as defined in the ICC Standing Rules, a majority of the House must vote in favor at a House meeting or through a petition. b) Any decision to put a member on referral may be appealed to a House meeting. c) Any member put on referral will have his/her future contract automatically held for two weeks. Expulsion a) The grounds for expulsion shall be: 1) Failure to pay debts, 2) Non work, 3) Uncooperative behavior, including any actions endangering the health and safety of other members or infringing of their rights in addition to those grounds established in the ICC Bylaws and Standing Rules. 4) Failure to abide by Permanent House Rules, ICC Bylaws, ICC Standing Rules, and any temporary rules passed at a House meeting. b) In case of a motion for expulsion, the House shall hear the evidence from interested parties, and a defense by the accused. Afterwards the accused shall leave the room. This will be followed by an open discussion, and then voting by secret ballot will occur. c) Expulsion of a member requires a 2/3 majority of the House members. d) Standard House meeting procedure shall be followed, as stated in Article 3, section 3 of this Constitution Spring/Summer Short Term Contracts a) Short term contracts over the spring/summer terms must be approved by a majority of the House officers. b) General Guidelines for Approvals: The goal is to fill the House as completely as possible. Current members should usually be approved. New members should not usually be approved for short term contracts unless it is close to the start of the spring term and there are a lot of empty rooms. In the middle of the spring/summer term contracts should usually be approved if there is space. Article III: House Meetings General Information a) Members are required to attend all meetings unless they notify the Most Exalted Chair in writing at least 24 hours in advance of a House meeting. b) Members with an unexcused absence at a House meeting will be fined work credit hours equaling the length of the meeting, rounded up to the nearest full hour. c) Members who miss three or more House meetings can be considered for referral or expulsion. d) Prior to the first House meeting, each member shall be given a copy of the House Constitution. e) At the first House meeting the following shall be discussed and/or voted upon: 2

3 1) House officers, 2) Work Holiday, and; 3) Quiet Hours. Section 3: Section 4: Section 5: The House Meeting shall have the following powers: a) Overrule the decisions of all House Officers and House Committees. b) Amend this Constitution and By-laws. Procedure a) Robert's Rules of Order, revised shall be followed at all House meetings. The House can decide to follow alternate methods of decision making. This decision will only apply to the term in which it was made. b) The agenda for a House meeting must be posted in a conspicuous place at least 48 hours in advance of the meeting. Only items appearing on the agenda 24 hours prior to any House meeting may be put to a House vote. c) A quorum of one-half of the total membership shall be sufficient at any House meeting. Decisions of House meetings shall be binding on all members. d) The Most Exalted Chair shall not vote except in the case of a tie. e) A secret ballot must be carried out at the request of a single member. f) Any member can request a neutral facilitator. The facilitator must be accepted by all to be neutral and must be a member of the House, the ICC Board of Directors or the ICC staff. g) An absentee ballot may be cast by informing the House Most Exalted Chair in writing of the choice. Absentee ballots must be submitted prior to the meeting. Absentee ballots may be cast for: 1) Elections; 2) Expulsions; 3) Referral, and; 4) Room Picks. h) Minutes shall be taken at each meeting, noting facts and details of discussion, not opinions. The first regular House meeting shall be held during the first week of the term and subsequently thereafter at a time to be determined by the membership. Special House Meetings a) Special House meetings may be called by the Most Exalted Chair or a Petition signed by five members. b) The agenda for a special House meeting shall be posted at least 24 hours in advance by the Most Exalted Chair. c) Only items on the agenda may be discussed at the special House meeting. Article IV: House Officers The officers shall consist of a Most Exalted Chair, a Minister of Political Affairs, a Minister of Finance, an Official Scribe, a Minister of Operations, at least two Maintenance officers, and if the House so chooses a Cruise Director. Elections a) House officers, except the Most Exalted Chair and the Minister of Political Affairs, shall be elected at the first House meeting of the semester. b) Each Officer, except the Most Exalted Chair and the Minister of Political Affairs, shall serve until the end of the semester in which they are elected. c) A simple majority of votes cast is sufficient to elect House officers; if there are three or more candidates and none receives a majority, there shall be a run-off election, dropping the lowest candidate, if any, after each ballot until one candidate receives a majority of the vote. d) Any member of the House shall be qualified to hold an office. Members may nominate themselves. Candidates must leave the room for final discussion and vote. e) The Most Exalted Chair and the Minister of Political Affairs serve a one-year term and are elected and assume office at the new members' meeting in April. Both current members and Fall-term new members are eligible to vote. 3

4 Section 3: Duties of the House Officers a) The Most Exalted Chair shall: 1) Receive four work credits for his/her service; 2) Be the official representative of the House. 3) Preside over House Meetings. 4) Serve as liaison between Membership Committee and Minnie's in regard to House vacancies. 5) Keep the House Constitution up to date. 6) Be in charge of the House group. 7) Hold and distribute all House keys, including one of two master House keys. 8) Inspect members rooms upon their departure. 9) Perform all other duties as specified by the House. 10) Shall be referred to as 'President' in legal matters. b) The Minister of Political Affairs shall: 1) Receive four work credits for his/her service. 2) Serve on the ICC Board of Directors and an ICC committee. 3) Be a representative of the House s interests to the Board of Directors. 4) Serve as an ICC information source to the House. 5) Shall be referred to as Board Representative in legal matters. c) The Official Scribe shall: 1) Receive two work credit hours for his/her service; 2) Forward mail; 3) Take House meeting minutes to be posted after each meeting, forward one copy to the ICC and retain past minutes in a House file; 4) Be referred to as Secretary in legal matters. d) Minister of Operations shall: 1) Receive four work credits for his/her service; 2) Be responsible for assignment of work. 3) Determine the need for House supplies and inform the Mich House Ordering Steward as necessary. 4) Issue fines for non-work, when applicable 5) Be referred to as Work Manager in legal matters. e) Minister of the Interior shall: 1) Shall receive four work credits for his/her service; 2) Be responsible for all House repairs and shall provide and have control over maintenance tools and other materials. 3) Serve on the ICC Maintenance Projects Committee, and perform all other duties specified by the House. 4) Post a log of projects completed with date and time spent on it. A maintenance request form will also be posted. 5) Hold one of two master House keys 6) Be referred to as Indoor Maintenance Manager in legal matters. f) Minister of the Exterior shall: 1) Receive two work credit hours in Fall term and four work credit hours in Winter term for his/her service; 2) Be responsible for the lawn, gardens and share control of the tool shed with Michigan House; 3) Be responsible for clearing the sidewalks in front of and leading up to the House of snow and ice. 4) Take the recyclable out to the curb on the designated day. 5) Shall be referred to as Outdoor Maintenance Manager in legal matters. g) Cruise Director shall: 1) Receive one work credit hour for his/her service; 2) Be a liaison to the ICC Education Coordinator. 3) Plan and take charge of social functions as directed by the House. 4) Keep members informed of educational and social activities taking place at other ICC Houses and the Coady-Friere Education Center. Section 4: Spring/Summer terms officers hours. 4

5 a) Officers in the Spring/Summer terms will receive the following number of hours: 1) The Most Exalted Chair: 4 hours 2) The Minister of Political Affairs: 4 hours 3) The Official Scribe shall: 1 hour 4) Minister of Operations: 2 hours 5) Minister of the Interior: 3 hours 6) Minister of the Exterior: 3 hours 7) Cruise Director: 1 hour b) Any of these hours may be altered by a simple majority vote before an election. c) Any of these hours may be increased by agreement between the Minister of Operations and the Most Exalted Chair, if there are more than enough hours to cover other scheduled work on the work schedule. (The Minster of Operations retains the right to reduce officers hours back to their original number if the need arises) Section 5: Section 6: Interim officers for the Winter/Spring and Summer/Fall periods shall be elected by a simple majority at the last meeting of the Winter term. Interim Officers for Thanksgiving break, Fall/Winter break and Spring break shall be appointed by the Most Exalted Chair. Recall and deposition of officers: a) The only grounds for removal of an officer shall be failure to adequately perform the duties state in Article 4, sec. 3. b) Any officer can be recalled only by a majority of the entire House at an open meeting of the House. Article V: Room Assignments Section 3: House members exercise room choice on the basis of seniority, the person having the highest seniority to have the first choice, the person with the second highest seniority having second choice, etc. Seniority is determined in the following order: a) Current members of Michigan or Minnie s Houses which shall include ex-members who return after an absence of one year or less. These ex-members may not reenter directly into a single. 1) Number of terms in Michigan or Minnie s House. Spring and Summer shall each count as 1/2 of a term; 2) Number of terms in the ICC, each counting as 1/2 term. Spring and Summer shall each count as 1/4 of a term; 2.5) In the event of a tie, Minnie s credit shall have seniority over Michigan credit. 3) Date of the first ICC contract; 4) Receipt number on membership shares; 5) Pistol Duel at 20 paces. b) Other ex-members 1) 1,2,3,4 and 5 as listed above c) Other ICC members 1) 1,2,3,4 and 5 as listed above d) New members 1) 1,2,3,4 and 5 as listed above Occupancy: Any member who has lived in a single occupancy room at Mich or Minnie s, or the same room for four consecutive semesters (excluding Spring/Summer) may not live in a single or that same room for the next two semesters. Section 4: Procedure for determining fall/winter room choices: a) A list of seniority ranking shall be made in April for all members who have signed contracts for the fall semester. Each member shall be granted the seniority due them at the time the list is made. A person who intends to remain in the House during Spring/Summer cannot count that term towards their seniority for the following fall, nor can they displace the designated fall occupant of that room on the basis of their summer occupancy. b) Room choices shall be made according to this list and the rules of Article V of this Constitution, and the choices shall be recorded at the time they are made, and this list shall be kept by the Most Exalted Chair during the Spring/Summer. Absentee ballots for room picks may be used. 5

6 c) When selecting a room a person may select roommate(s). The roommate(s) shall be granted full rights to the room regardless of the future occupancy of the original person. d) At the beginning of the fall semester, no member may be displaced from the room they had chosen during the previous April. This shall supersede any Squatters Rights from Spring/Summer. e) In the case of contract cancellations during the summer, choice for the vacated space shall be made according to the seniority ranking at the time the vacancy occurs, with the exception that no Spring/Summer occupant may count their Spring/Summer term towards their seniority. f) Squatters Rights: No member of the House who has lived in a room for one complete semester (excluding spring/summer) and wished to remain in that room can be displaced by another member, regardless of seniority. Section 5: Section 6: Section 7: Procedure for determining spring/summer room choices: a) A list of seniority ranking shall be made in April for all members who have signed contracts for the spring/summer semester. Each member shall be granted the seniority due them at the time the list is made. b) Room choices shall be made according to this list and the rules of Article V of this Constitution. Absentee ballots for room picks may be used. c) When selecting a room a person may select roommate(s). The roommate(s) shall be granted full rights to the room regardless of the future occupancy of the original person. d) Squatters Rights: Members may use their winter term occupancy and remain in that room. No member, regardless of seniority may displace them. In case of room vacancies during the year, room choice is made according to the seniority of those living in the House at the time the vacancy occurs. The Most Exalted Chair shall be responsible for maintaining an accurate seniority list and for seeing that room choices are made in accordance with the rules established above. Article VI: Guest Policy Personal Guest(s) (refer to ICC Standing Rule 4.5) a) Definition: A member s personal guest is defined as a person who is sponsored by a current member, stays overnight in the House, stays in the room of their sponsoring current member, or common room, and has no ICC contract. b) All members of the House have the right to host a guest or guests in the House. c) The member/host is required to give the House 24 hours notice if 1) The guest(s) will be staying for an extended period of time, as defined as three to six days/nights. 2) The guest(s) will be staying in a common room. d) After an extended period of time has been exceeded, the guest(s) must be voted in and sign a Guest Contract through the ICC e) No personal guest(s) shall be issued a House or room key. f) The hosting member is responsible for: 1) Informing guests about the House rules. 2) The conduct of the guest(s) and any damages caused by the personal guest(s). House Guest(s) a) The House must be given 48 hours notice, and a majority vote in favor of the visitors. b) A majority vote shall determine the terms as follows: 1) Number of guest(s) 2) Date and length of stay 3) Boarding charges 4) Key distribution c) House guest(s) must have a contact person who is a current member of the House. The contact member is responsible for: 1) Explaining House rules; 2) Enforcing the terms decided on by the House. d) The House is legally responsible for any damages caused by the House guest(s). 6

7 Section 3: Stranger Policy: No non-icc member or ex-icc member, without an established relationship with a current member of the House, the House itself, or the ICC can be permitted to stay in the House unless the person(s) meet all criteria in either Section 1 or Section 2 above. Article VII: House Trivia House color: Dauphin Purple House bird: Cold duck Section 3: House deity: Goddess Astarte Section 4: House motto: Pine trees are tall but they do not reach the sky. Article VIII: Amendments No amendment contrary to the Rochdale Principles or the ICC Articles of Incorporation and ICC Bylaws shall be enacted. A proposal for an amendment may be presented at any House meeting. a) The Most Exalted Chair shall post the amendment at least five days before the amendment is voted on. b) A two-thirds vote of the total membership shall be required to pass an amendment. House By-Laws 1. Fines The Most Exalted Chair may fine a member of the House for failure to obey the rules of the House and the Minister of Operations may fine a member for failure to perform assigned duties. The fine shall consist of one hour of make-up work for each hour of missed assigned work. Failure to perform this additional work will result in a fifteen dollar fine for each hour of unfinished make-up work. After the monetary fine, one additional missed assigned work hour will result in referral. Both the fine and referral may be appealed to a House meeting, and a majority of those present shall be sufficient to remove either. No House member, other than the officers may fine another member. 2. Noise Policy As a general rule members should be respectful of other members with the amount of noise that they are making. If a member feels another member is making too much noise they should speak to them about it. If the noise continues to be a problem the Most Exalted Chair should be informed. If the situation cannot be mediated successfully then the issues should be brought to a House meeting where the House may decide what measured to take, such as fining a problem member or establishing formal quiet hours. 3. Tool Shed Tool Shed is for storage of both Minnie's and Michigan House co-ops and should be shared as such. 4. Porch Policy No personal property is to be left on the porch. No bicycles are to be locked to the porch or railing. 5. Key Policy The Most Exalted Chair shall be in charge of all House keys and will keep records of all keys issued. If a key is lost during a term, a $5 fee will be added to the member s charges for replacement of the key. Members shall return all keys to the Most Exalted Chair at the end of their contract period. If a key is not returned at the end of a contract period a $10 fine per key will be assessed to that member. 6. Absences Members should leave contact phone numbers in their mailboxes in case they need to be reached in an emergency. They should also inform the Most Exalted Chair of their absence. 7. Smoking There is no smoking of tobacco in any part of the House except outside on the porch. 7

8 8. Storage Room Any member living at Minnie s Cooperative can store any personal belongings in the storage room one term preceding and for the duration of their ICC contract at Minnie s (Spring/Summer counts as one term.) Upon termination of this contract, said members have one additional term to remove any personal belongings from the storage room. If said member has not removed his/her items from the storage room by this time, a concerted effort shall be made by the Most Exalted Chair and Minister of Operations to contact said member, and if unable to contact by the following work holiday, all belongings shall become guff. 9. Pet Policy Members are not allowed to keep dogs, cats, or any other un-caged pets while living in Minnie s. Caged pets are allowed with unanimous House approval. The current House may approve a pet for a future House. The Most Exalted Chair is responsible for notifying the ICC of the pet s presence. The House may at any time vote to remove a pet. Any damages (including odor) done by the pet will be charged to the owner of the pet. (Refer to ICC standing rule 8.4: Animal Policy for more details) 10. Mandatory Doubles 10.1 Rooms 4, 8, and 10 shall be designated mandatory doubles over the Spring and Summer terms. Members will be given the chance to select these rooms in the same fashion as other rooms are picked, but they are required to either pick a roommate at room selection or to sign a roommate request form at the ICC office. The Most Exalted Chair will ensure that members living in mandatory double rooms by themselves have submitted roommate request forms to the ICC office Any member found to have not submitted a roommate request form will be fined an amount equaling House charges plus 4 work hours a week for the entire time they were living in that room without a roommate. These fines are to make up for the potentially lost House charges and work hours that would have come from having an additional member living in that room with them. 11. Member Room Painting Policy 11.1 Members may paint their rooms any color provided that the follow conditions are met: a) The color must have a rating of 60 or greater on the Light Reflective Value (LRV) scale. b) Murals or designs must be approved by the House beforehand. c) Oil based paints may NOT be used. d) Ceilings must always be painted white if they are repainted. e) Members are responsible for costs to repair any damage to the windows, carpet, furniture, or any other part of the room resulting from painting Failure to abide by the above rules will result in a fine equal to the cost of paint and other supplies to repair any damage and to repaint the room if necessary. Person hours required for the project will also be reimbursed by the member at a rate of $15 an hour for House members or the going rate of any contractors required to work on the room. 12. Instrument Policy 12.1 Members are welcome and encouraged to play House instruments in the basement living room, provided that they store their instruments on the side of the room while not in use, they are respectful of the space and clean up after themselves, and they abide by the agreed-upon quiet hours, as approved by the House Basement Jam-Session Quiet Hours: a) Sunday Thursday: 10:00 pm b) Friday Saturday: Midnight c) If given notice in advance, the House may choose to grant an exception to the regular quiet hours. 8