Vanderbilt School of Medicine Council of Class Officers Constitution

Vanderbilt School of Medicine Council of Class Officers Constitution Preamble We, the medical students of Vanderbilt University, in desiring to affirm the formation of a student organization to represent the student body and to act for the students in matters involving the students interest do hereby establish the Vanderbilt Medical Student Association (VMSA) and adopt this constitution. Article I The Vanderbilt Medical Student Association (VMSA) Section I. Name The name of this organization is the Vanderbilt Medical Student Association hereafter referred to as the VMSA. Section II. Membership All duly registered medical students of Vanderbilt University are voting constituents of the student body. Section III. Purpose The purpose of the VMSA is: a. To provide a means whereby medical students feel empowered to effectively express their views and interests to other members of our medical community. b. To provide a responsible and effective organization that represents the interests and needs of all medical students in the decision-making process of the School of Medicine and University. c. To stimulate and provide for the development and coordination of student organizations, activities, and services beneficial to Vanderbilt medical students. d. To promote the total well-being of each medical student. Section IV. Voting All members of the VMSA may vote in all referenda and general elections of the VMSA. Article II Council of Class Officers Section I. Composition Membership in the Council is based on a representative scheme designed to provide for the fair and equal representation of all Vanderbilt medical students. Membership includes the following positions, and the number of persons required for that 1

position: President (1), Vice President (1), Secretary/Treasurer (1), and Social Chairs (3) of each of the four classes in residence. Section II. Duties The Council, in accordance with this Constitution, shall: a. Act as the representative body for the medical students in the School of Medicine, field all questions and concerns brought to the Council by the VMSA, and act in a manner to see these questions and concerns are dealt with appropriately. b. Approve all regulations that are necessary to maintain and execute the purposes of the VMSA. c. Advise and make recommendations to the medical school administration in addition to promoting a positive relationship between the VMSA and administration. d. Nominate Vanderbilt medical students to the School of Medicine and University committees and monitor these committees through medical student representatives as required. e. Approve expenditures of any funds acquired by the VMSA. Section III. Meeting Council meetings, in accordance with this constitution, shall: a. Meet on a monthly basis throughout the fall and spring semester. b. Allow for special meetings to be called by the Executive President (see Article III.1) or a majority of the members of the Council. c. Be open to all Vanderbilt Medical Students of the VMSA upon special request to their respective class president. d. Include the following individuals in attendance: i. Individual class positions: 1. President (1) 2. Vice President (1) 3. Secretary/Treasurer (1) 4. Social Chairs (3) ii. School-wide positions held by members of senior class: 1. Chair(s) of Curriculum Committee (1-2) 2. Chair of Student Interest Groups (1) 3. Senior Honor Council Members (2) iii. Graduate student representative (1) iv. Members of the administration: 1. Dean of Medical School 2. Associate Dean of Medical Student Affairs 3. Senior Associate Dean for Health Sciences and Education 4. Associate Dean for Diversity 5. Assistant Vice Chancellor for Health Affairs 6. Director of Medical School Social Events e. Various student leaders (including, but not limited to, Cadaver Ball chairs, Careers in Medicine President, Wellness President) may attend meetings as 2

needed, at the discretion of the Executive President. These students will not receive votes in formal petitions. f. The Parliamentary authority at Council meetings is Roberts Rules of Order. The Executive Vice President serves as Parliamentarian for all meetings. Section IV. Voting a. No proposal or resolution may be voted on unless a quorum of two-thirds of the council is present. b. All voting shall be done in person; no proxy votes shall be accepted. c. Every permanent, student member on the Council of Class Officers receives one vote, in addition to the Graduate Student Representative. Members of the administration and temporary programming positions do not receive votes. Article III Executive Branch Section I. Executive President The VMSA President is the President of the senior class. The Executive President: a. Is the executive of the VMSA. b. Administers all resolutions and legislation of the Council. c. Serves as the official representative of VUSM to the greater Vanderbilt community as well as all dignitaries visiting the School of Medicine. d. Coordinates and sets the agenda for all Council meetings in conjunction with the Executive Vice President. e. Forms ad hoc committees as deemed necessary. Section II. Executive Vice President The Executive Vice President is the Vice President of the senior class. The Executive Vice President: a. Shall serve as acting President at the request or in the absence of the President. b. Serves as the President of the Honor Council, leads all eight honor council class representatives in organizing any necessary hearings, and is in communication with the administration regarding any infractions of academic integrity. c. Helps to coordinate and sets the agenda for all Council meetings in conjunction with the Executive President. d. Assists the Executive President in his duties. Section III. Executive Secretary/Treasurer The Executive Secretary/Treasurer is the Secretary/Treasurer of the senior class. The Executive Secretary/Treasurer: a. Shall annotate minutes and record the proceedings of each Council meeting, and upon completion, e-mail out to the Council. 3

b. Records and keep track of voting numbers in the event of a vote. Section IV. Committees Medical student committees will be established as necessary to accomplish those goals and projects deemed appropriate by the student body and/or Council of Class Officers. Any member of the VMSA can serve on any committee. Article IV Individual Class Responsibilities Section I. President Responsibilities of the President include: a. Representing their class to the administration and faculty. b. Organizing class events in conjunction with other class officers. c. Acting as a motivator to recruit classmates to participate in medical school-sponsored events that occur throughout the year. d. Managing class conflicts that arise throughout the year and responding appropriately to any issues brought forth by a classmate. Section II. Vice President Responsibilities of the Vice President include: a. Coordinating service activities and providing classmates with opportunities to become involved in their surrounding communities. b. Acting as a liaison between their class and the greater Nashville community. c. Being available to assist the President in class matters or events. Section III. Secretary/Treasurer Responsibilities of the Secretary/Treasurer include: a. Collecting and organizing class dues, in addition to managing the class bank account, which includes reimbursing members of the class for expenses involving class events, pending initial approval to spend class funds. b. Communicating to their respective class important messages regarding class matters and relevant announcements from the Council meetings. Section IV. Social Chairs Responsibilities of the Social Chairs include: a. Organizing events that involve all members of their respective class. b. Organizing their class school-wide event. Article V. Judicial Branch Section I. Designation of Power 4

All judicial powers of the VMSA shall be vested in a court system composed of the Honor Council, Dean, and Appellate Review Board. Section II. Jurisdiction a. The Honor Council shall have original jurisdiction over all violations of academic nature. b. The Dean shall have original jurisdiction over all non-academic disciplinary matters. c. The Appellate Review Board shall act as the supreme judicial body at Vanderbilt University and rule on all appeals from the Honor Council or Dean. Article VI. Formal Petitions Section I. Population Served Any member of the VMSA is entitled and encouraged to bring formal petitions to the Council of Class Officers. Any student has the right to bring forth an issue they feel should be addressed. Section II. Process If any member of the VMSA has a formal petition they feel needs to be addressed by the Council of Class Officers, they shall complete the following steps to formally initiate the process: a) Obtain a Formal Petition to the Class Council (FPCC) document and complete the document accordingly. b) Upon completion, he/she shall bring the FPCC to his/her respective Class President. c) Upon receipt of the FPCC, the respective Class President will bring forth the formal petition to the Executive President to discuss the matter, prior to the next Council meeting. d) If the respective Class President and the Executive President feel the petition warrants action, they deem the issue Necessary for a Vote. e) The formal petition will be presented to all six administrative members of the Council (see Article II, Section 2.d.iii). The six administrators will read the FPCC and make a recommendation. This recommendation will include the following: i. A recommendation on the formal petition, articulating where the administration stands with respect to the issue. ii. A ruling on whether the formal petition needs to be further approved by the Undergraduate Medical Education Committee (UMEC) after it has been approved by the Council. f) Upon review by the administrative members of the Council, the formal petition goes to a vote at the Council of Class Officers. All student members have one vote in all official rulings. The administrative members of the Council do not have a vote in these Council matters. 5

g) For a vote to ensue, two-thirds of the Council of Class Officers are required to be in attendance. Upon such action, a two-thirds majority of the present members of the Council shall be required to pass the vote. h) If the vote passes and does not need UMEC approval, it shall take effect immediately. i) If the vote passes and does need UMEC approval, it will go directly to the UMEC to be voted on. j) If the formal petition is rejected by the Council, it is denied and may be brought up again in the next meeting through the aforementioned process. Article VII. Removal from Office and Vacancies Section I. Consideration The removal from office of any elected member of the Council is to be considered by the Council upon submission of an FPCC. Section II. Initiation There are two possible ways to initiate the removal of a class officer: a) Twenty percent of a specific class members can sign an FPCC and bring it to the Council. b) A simple majority of the Council can initiate the removal. Section III. Execution There is only one way an officer removal can be completed: a) Three-quarters of the specific class of that officer, the same group of students that voted the officer into power, shall be required to officially remove an officer from power. Section III. Vacancies All vacancies of elected members of the Council shall be filled by an election by the member s class to be held within four weeks of the vacancy. Article VII Student Organization Funding Section I. Procedure of Initial Meeting The allotment of funds from the University to student organizations shall be completed according to the following procedures: a) Each organization submits five items in order to be eligible for funding: i. Mission statement and goals for upcoming year ii. Membership number 6

iii. A copy of last year s proposed budget iv. A copy of last year s actual budget v. A proposal for the current year s budget b) The four class Presidents and the Director of Medical School Events are present at the meeting. The group will evaluate each student organization based on the following criteria, and allocate funds accordingly: i. Activity 1. Efforts by organization to fulfill their mission and provide relevant services and events to the VUSM student body. ii. Size 1. Number of individual members of the organization. 2. Number of individuals who benefit and/or participate in the group s events and/or services. iii. Last year s budget adherence 1. How well the group adhered to their proposed budget from the previous year. c) Based on these three criteria, each student organization will be divided into four tiers, and each tier will receive a predetermined amount of money. i. Level I (very active) ii. Level II (active) iii. Level III (mildly active) iv. New organizations (first year) d) Only 80% of total funds for student organizations will be divided up in this initial meeting. The remaining 20% of the funds will be allocated at a meeting at the end of first semester based on an incentive basis. Section II. Procedure of Mid-Year Meeting The allotment of the remaining 20% of student funding from the university to student organizations shall be completed according to the following procedures: a) As stated, at the end of first semester, the remaining 20% of student funding will be divided up to student groups who submit a mid-year application for funding, meant to reward active and fiscally responsible groups. b) To complete a mid-year application for funding, a student organization must submit: i. Budget for past semester ii. Initial proposed budget submitted at beginning of year iii. Review of past semester iv. Plans and goals for upcoming semester c) The aforementioned group of Presidents and Director of Medical School Events will allot the remaining 20% of funding based on the following criteria: i. Adherence to initial budget ii. Adherence to event goals iii. Adherence to overall mission iv. Activity (see Article VII Section I.b.i) 7

v. Size (see Article VII Section I.b.ii) d) Appeals will be dealt with on a case-by-case basis directly to four class Presidents and the Director of Medical School Events. e) Once all funds are allocated, each student organization will submit receipts of expenditures, and the spent money will be subtracted from their allotted amount accordingly. All funds left over at the end of the year will be returned to the Student Activity Fund. f) Separate from University money, any organization that raised funds through means of their own may spend these funds as they see fit during the current fiscal year. Article VIII Protocol for the Creation of a New Student Organization Section I. Submission of Application Students who propose a new organization to be recognized by the School of Medicine will be instructed to complete an application. a) Applications shall include the following information: i. Organization name ii. Mission statement iii. Specific organization goals iv. Proposed leadership structure v. Faculty advisor vi. Proposed yearly budget vii. Statement of need b) The Statement of Need must include the following information: i. Deficiencies in campus life addressed by the group s creation ii. Explanation of how novel organization will seek to fill a niche(s) presently unmet by current student groups c) Applications will be submitted to the Associate Dean of Students. d) Students may meet with the Associate Dean of Students at any point during the process to discuss their application. Section II. Review of Application Once the Associate Dean of Students has received all portions of the application, the Student Organizations Ratification Subcommittee shall review the document. The following are the responsibilities of this group, hereafter referred to as The Subcommittee. a) The Subcommittee will consist of the elected presidents of the four medical school classes plus one additional student member to be appointed by the presidents. b) The Subcommittee will meet once near the midpoint of each semester to review previously submitted applications. At that time, a representative from the proposed organization will have to opportunity to meet with The Subcommittee in order to give a brief presentation or answer questions. c) The Subcommittee will evaluate all applications based on the following criteria: i. Potential benefit to student life ii. Feasibility of the organization s goals 8

iii. Relevance of Statement of Need iv. Organization of leadership structure v. Fiscal responsibility and soundness of budget (if applicable) d) The Subcommittee will then submit a written recommendation to the Associate Dean of Students. Section III. Approval or Denial of Application Final rulings regarding the approval or denial for official recognition by the School of Medicine will be made by the Associate Dean of Students. a) This decision will be made within two weeks after the Subcommittee s written recommendation has been submitted. b) If the student organization is approved: a. The organization will be informed of their formal recognition status b. Approval will be communicated to the Office of Special Programs c. Approved organizations will be entitled to submit a proposal during the initial budgetary meeting of the following academic year i. Organizations accepted after the initial budgetary meeting of the year will not be eligible to receive funding for over the course of that academic year c) If the student organization is denied: a. A formal letter will be composed for the organization outlining reasons for denial b. A representative from the proposed organization will be allowed to schedule a meeting with The Subcommittee to discuss their recommendation. c. The organization will be given an opportunity to re-apply for approval during the following academic school year Article IX Amendments Section I. Consideration For an amendment to be made to the constitution, the student/faculty must submit an FPCC. Section II. Initiation There are two possible ways an amendment to the constitution can be initiated and brought to the council: a) Twenty percent of a specific class population can sign an FPCC to bring forth the amendment to the constitution. b) A simple majority of the class council can initiate the amendment. Section III. Execution There is only one way an amendment can be made to the constitution: a) Two-thirds of the VMSA must approve the amendment for the amendment to be added to the constitution. 9

Article X Ratification A simple majority vote by the VMSA shall be required for ratification of this constitution. 10