Constitution of the Epsilon Delta Sigma Management Honor Society Revision 2.0 Revised: 4/19/2017 Christa Roth (President s Signature) Frank X. Wright (Advisor s Signature)
Article I. Name Section 1.01 The Honor Society at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Lally School of Management and Technology shall be named Epsilon Delta Sigma Management Honor Society. Section 1.02 Definitions (a) Hereinafter, the Epsilon Delta Sigma Management Honor Society shall be referred to as the Society. (b) Hereinafter, the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Lally School of Management shall be referred to as the Lally School. Article II. Purpose of Organization Section 2.01 General Statement of Purpose (a) The Society seeks to become unique as an honorary society which will function as an advisory as well as functional member of the Lally School. It will serve as an altruistic arm of the Lally School within the community. Its scope and duties will be limited only by the imagination of its members, tempered by the realities of available financing and support of the current administration and faculty as well as the existing organization budget. Section 2.02 Specific Scope of the Organization (a) To confer recognition and honor upon those individuals in the field of management who fulfill necessary criteria of membership as stated in Article VI of this constitution. (b) To provide active and constructive opportunities for the interaction of individuals with similar interests, objectives, and abilities in order to promote the professional welfare of the members as well as the institution they will actively serve. (c) To assist in the development of the facilities and organization of the Lally School in order to fully realize the potentialities of the curriculum, academic department, faculty, and students. (d) To create a closer, more honest student-faculty relationship by bringing together the needs, desires, and abilities of both parties in an active participative atmosphere of mutual trust and understanding. It will be a primary function of this organization to assist the faculty and administration members as an advisory committee in furthering the academic goals of the Lally School. In conjunction with this, the organization deems as its major responsibility the protection of the students right to relevant and competent course instruction and content as well as individual development. Consequently, the organization will function as a sounding board for student and faculty ideas and grievances and will inform both sides of alleged deviations from sound professional and sound academic principles and procedures.
(e) To consider the active promulgation of new chapters in other universities and colleges which provide similar curricula and courses as one of its primary functions. It will be the responsibility of the Society to actively investigate possible future Epsilon Delta Sigma chapters in his capacity as an active as well as an alumni member. (f) To foster incentives by providing a financial as well as organizational vehicle for practical application of principles as promulgated by the professional community. (g) To consider any idea, project, or proposal which has the possibility of future benefit to and promulgation of the reputation and services of the Lally School and investigate as a possible future activity. (h) To provide service for the community both within the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute as well as the City of Troy whenever and wherever possible. Article III. Symbols Section 3.01 The official insignia, known as the key, shall consist of an equilateral triangle of gold with a black arc downward and mounted across the center of the triangle. On the arc will be inscribed the three Greek letters of the Society. The letters will be in gold. A gold ring will be attached to the apex of the triangle and a gold cylindrical projection will extend from the middle of the lower side of the triangle. Engraved in the center on the front of the lower side of the triangle will be the year of the founding of the Society, 1948, in Roman numerals as MCMVIII. Section 3.02 The insignia shall be worn only by members of the Society. Section 3.03 The certificate of membership shall have the form as suggested by the Induction Committee and approved by the members of the Society. It shall contain the full name of the member and the date of initiation into membership. The certificate shall be signed by the current President of the Society. Article IV. Governance and Organization Section 4.01 The Executive Board of the organization shall consist of a President, Event Coordinator, Secretary, and Treasurer. In addition, there will be temporary committees established by and when deemed necessary by the President. These committees can include but are not limited to an Induction Committee, a Budgetary Committee, and an Evaluation Committee. Section 4.02 The duties of the President shall be as follows: (a) To call and preside at regular and special meetings (b) To approve an order of a quorum. (c) To adjourn meetings.
(d) To establish any committee (or appoint a group of members) to investigate the feasibility of any proposed function which will satisfy the purposes of the organization. (e) To appoint chairmen of those temporary committees (which are dictated by the current by-laws). Committee appointees will be subject to the approval of a majority of the members present at a meeting containing a legal quorum. (f) To bear responsibility for fund dissemination (check signature, etc.) only in the absence of the Treasurer. (g) To act as official representative of the organization in all external and internal contacts. The ultimate responsibility for all actions promulgated under the name of the Society will reside with the President. (h) To assume all other duties as stated or implied in the following articles of this Constitution. (i) To meet with the Advisor to the Society and the Dean of the Lally School of Management and Technology on a regular basis, at least on a monthly schedule with the Advisor and on a semesterly schedule with the Dean, to maintain the Society s ties within the Lally School. Section 4.03 The duties of the Event Coordinator shall include certain permanent duties (as listed below) as well as any temporary duties as deemed necessary by the President. The permanent duties include: (a) To bear full authority and responsibility for the ordering, storage, and dissemination of all materials (pins, certificates, and other relevant information) pertaining to the induction of all future members of the Society. In this context, the Event Coordinator will be permanent chairman of the Induction Committee. (b) To preside at all general meetings in which the President is unable to attend or carry out his duties. (c) To assume the presidency in the case of the permanent disability or expulsion of the President, or in any other case in which a majority of the Society decides that the President is incapable of performing his/her duties and responsibilities. Section 4.04 The duties of the Secretary shall include certain permanent duties (as listed below) as well as any temporary duties as deemed necessary by the President. The permanent duties include: (a) To inform all members of the time, place, and purpose of all special meetings at least three days before a scheduled meeting. (b) To take adequate and complete minutes at all general business meetings. (c) To inform all members of any event, function, or activity that may be sponsored and/or sanctioned by the membership.
(d) To maintain records and prepare reports on all meetings. In this respect, the Secretary may be aided by any one member of the Society that he/she may choose to assist in this function. (e) To issue updated reports on the membership of all standing and temporary committees. (f) To maintain all digital assets of the Society including but not limited to the website and cloud-storage locations. Section 4.05 The duties of the Treasurer shall include certain permanent duties (as listed below) as well as any temporary duties as deemed necessary by the President. All of the permanent duties shall be carried out by the Treasurer in conjunction with the members of the Budgetary Committee, as necessary. The permanent duties include: (a) To act as permanent chairman of the Budgetary Committee. (b) To manage the financial cash flow of the organization including but not limited to: (i) The collection of membership dues; (ii) The setting of current membership dues in consultation with the Induction Committee (subject to approval of 3/4 of the membership present at a special meeting with quorum); (iii) The authorization of all cash outflows pertaining to the functions and operations of the Society; (iv) The establishment of a budgetary floor from which further expenditure will be forbidden. (c) To keep a set of monetary transactions in neat, accurate, and legible order. (d) To issue reports to the President and to the Society as a whole on the current financial status of the organization at the beginning and the end of each academic semester. (e) To turn over the checking account and investment package at the termination of his/her tenure to the incoming Treasurer. Section 4.06 The duties of the Temporary Committees shall be described by the duties of their chairmen. The duties of the Temporary Committee(s) will be subject to the purpose for their existence as established by the President and the membership as a whole, and as stated in the minutes of the meeting in which they were established. The President reserves the right to recommend the discharge of any temporary committees on or before the execution of their specified function. Article V. Meetings Section 5.01 Regular business meetings shall be held once a month during the academic year, on a day of the week to be determined by the body at the start of the academic semester. Special meetings may be called by the President to deal with extraordinary business. Such special meetings may be requested of the President by the chairman of a committee. A regular business meeting may also be denoted as a special meeting.
Section 5.02 The purpose of the regular business meeting shall be that of a feedback and control mechanism: to review the current activities of the various committees, to disseminate information relevant to the entire body, and to promote discussion of and participation in current and new ideas and activities. Special meetings shall have the specific purpose of discussing the extraordinary business for which the meeting is called, such as amendments to the Constitution, disciplinary examinations (under Article VIII), and other matters requiring immediate and concentrated attention. Section 5.03 The agenda for any meeting shall be announced by the President at least one day before the meeting. Section 5.04 All meetings, regular and special, must be attended by the Executive Board, the Chairmen of the Temporary Committees. All active members of the organization are encouraged to attend. A Committee Chairman who cannot attend the meeting must delegate the responsibility of representing the committee in the meeting upon a specific member of his/her committee. Section 5.05 A quorum for a regular business meeting is satisfied by a minimum attendance of 30% of the total active membership except for special meetings called for amendments to the Constitution, disciplinary examinations, setting dues, and induction of new members, in which case the minimum attendance requirement shall be 50% of the total active membership. Article VI. Membership Section 6.01 There shall be five classes of members: Active; Associate; Honorary; Alumni; Inactive. (a) An Active member shall be a student currently enrolled in a management discipline. Only active members are allowed to vote. (b) An Associate member is an individual pursuing their degree at a remote campus. (c) An Honorary member may be a faculty member or individual engaged in the advancement of management principles. (d) An Alumnus/ae member shall be a graduate of a school at which the Society is actively engaged in advancing its goals and purposes. An Alumnus/ae is a previous active member. An Alumnus/ae member is allowed to vote. (e) An Inactive member shall be a former active member who is currently enrolled in a management discipline, but requests removal from the active rolls. Section 6.02 Members will consist of those individuals of the discipline of management who have distinguished themselves and/or their school through notable scholarship and an interest in taking an active role in the furtherance of management principles and professional ethics in academic, private, and public settings.
Section 6.03 Prospective Member Requirements (a) Enrollment in an undergraduate Management major program at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. (b) A cumulative Grade Point Average of at least 3.50 at induction. (c) Completion of at least 44 credit hours at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. (d) Involvement in extracurricular and community activities. (e) Demonstration of leadership experience. (f) A signed Member Contract. (i) The Member Contract shall include the aforementioned Prospective Member Requirements, possible disciplinary action for violation of the Member Contract, and rights conveyed to them. (ii) The Constitution of the Society shall be provided to the prospective member and must be read before signing the Member Contract. Section 6.04 Active Member Requirements (a) All requirements outlined in Article VI, Section 6.03 (b) Maintenance of a GPA of at least 3.25. (c) Attendance of all meetings. (d) Volunteer work at any of the events, at least two per semester, that are approved by the Executive Board. Section 6.05 Failure to meet the membership requirements presented in Article VI, Section 6.04 shall subject that member to disciplinary action in accordance with Article VIII. Article VII. Induction of New Members Section 7.01 Selection of candidates eligible for induction per established academic criteria shall be the responsibility of the Executive Board, or delegated to a Temporary Induction Committee. (a) The Executive Board, or through an Induction Committee, will be responsible for setting the criteria for admittance to the Society, as set by the Article VI. These criteria will be subject to the majority approval of the membership in accordance with Article V. (b) The Induction Committee, if established, can recommend for admittance to the Society those individuals who it believes can actively further the goals and purposes of the Society. The Executive Board, based on the Induction Committee s recommendations, will be the sole approving agency for admission to the Society of those individuals who fill the requirements of Article VI. (c) A special meeting and induction ceremony will be held to induct the prospective members of the Society.
Section 7.02 Honorary members may be recommended for admission to the Society by any member of the Society. Admittance to the Society of said members shall be by a 3/4 approval of a quorum of the Society s members in accordance with Article V, Section 5.05. Section 7.03 Induction of new members shall be held each spring semester. If possible the induction will be held within two months of the beginning of each semester. The Executive Board holds the right to induct, at any time, any exceptional student who they believe would make an immense contribution during the academic year as long as that student meets all requirements in accordance with Article VI. Article VIII. Discipline Section 8.01 Discipline of a member shall be by suspension, expulsion, or removal from office. Section 8.02 An active member shall be subject to discipline for the following reasons: (a) If he/she misses two unexcused meetings by the officers during a semester. (b) If he/she fails to attend the required volunteering events per semester. (c) If he/she is a committee chairman, misses a meeting, and does not have a delegated representative at a meeting. (d) If he/she fails to carry out the duties and responsibilities of his/her office. Section 8.03 Discipline of an officer may be recommended by an officer or a member and accomplished by a ¾ vote of the active members of the Society at the next scheduled meeting. Section 8.04 The disciplinary process will take the following format: (a) The Executive Board decides unanimously to discipline the member. (b) The member may appeal the decision at the next meeting. If there is not scheduled meeting due to the end of the semester, then a special meeting will be scheduled. (c) The disciplinary proceedings as the meeting will take the following format: (i) The Executive Board will describe the reason for and extent of the disciplinary action. (ii) The member will be allowed to defend his/her actions. (iii) Active members cast anonymous votes. (iv) A majority ruling of at least fifty-one percent (51%) of the active members will be needed to overturn the executive decision for discipline. (v) The members will then have a chance to apply a new disciplinary action and will require a ¾ vote of active members to be accomplished. Section 8.05 Members being disciplined must be properly notified before all disciplinary actions or appeals take place.
Article IX. Election of Officers Section 9.01 Officers will be elected by a majority vote of the members at a special meeting convened for this purpose. Section 9.02 Election of officers will consist of closed ballot voting by the membership for the following offices: (a) President (b) Event Coordinator (c) Treasurer (d) Secretary Section 9.03 The elections shall occur before the end of the third month of the spring semester to provide for a smooth transition for newly elected officers. Newly elected officers will have the duty of attending officer meetings and performing any tasks deemed necessary by the Executive Board. The newly elected officers shall not take their respective office until the tenure of the previous officers is completed. Section 9.04 The tenure of the office shall extend from the end of the semester elected to the end of the following semester. Article X. Amendments Section 10.01 Amendments to this constitution may be proposed by any active member of the Society. Section 10.02 Amendments must be passed by a 3/4 vote of the active members of the Society present at a special meeting. Article XI. Statement Against Discrimination Section 11.01 It is the policy of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and the Society that all persons be provided equal opportunities regardless of race, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, religion, national origin, marital status, or disability.