CONSTITUTION OF THE FORESTRY CLUB OF THE UNIVERSITY OF WISCONSIN-MADISON PREAMBLE The University of Wisconsin-Madison Forestry Club, established by the members of the first undergraduate class in Forestry taught at the University of Wisconsin, was founded on November 6, 1968. This shall be recognized as an organization founded for the purpose of bringing forestry and recreation resources management students more closely together socially and professionally and to represent them in campus affairs. ARTICLE I (Name) This organization shall be known as the Forestry Club of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. ARTICLE II (Purpose) The purpose of this Club shall be to promote the general and academic interest of all forestry students, to stimulate interest in forestry among the students and faculty of the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and to maintain a close fellowship among all students interested in forestry. ARTICLE III (Membership) All students of the University of Wisconsin-Madison enrolled in the Department of Forest Ecology and Management or any interested students in related fields are eligible to become members. Active member shall be those members who have attended at least 50% of the meetings held to date in a given semester. All faculty members and graduate students shall be considered as Honorary members of the Forestry Club. They shall have the privileges of attending all functions of the Club, but shall not have the power to vote.
ARTICLE IV (Officers) The officers of the Club shall consist of a President, a Vice-President, a Secretary, and a Treasurer. A faculty advisor(s) shall be recognized by the active members of the Club and shall be the final judge in any dispute arising over the interpretation of the Constitution, bylaws, or rules of the Club. Only active members are eligible to serve as officers of the Club. (Only juniors and seniors with at least 2.0 cumulative grade point are qualified for the office of Presidency.) Officers shall be members of their respective professional societies for the duration of their term. ARTICLE V (Elections) Officers shall be elected for a term of one year by a majority of the active members voting at the November meeting. (See University of Wisconsin- Madison Student Chapter of the Society of American Foresters Bylaws Article 6 for more information regarding the format of elections.) An officer may be re-elected to an office but cannot hold that office for more than two consecutive terms. ARTICLE VI (Duties of Officers) The President It shall be the duty of the President to preside over all meetings of the Club, to uphold the constitution in letter and spirit, to appoint all committees when necessary, to appoint officers pro tem when regular officers are absent, to call and preside over meetings of the executive cabinet, and to call special meetings when necessary. He/She may act as ex-officio member of any committee, and shall authenticate by his/her signature all acts, orders, and proceedings of the Club. He/She is also authorized to delegate responsibilities to the other officers and to direct them in the conduct of their official duties. The Vice-President The Vice-President shall assist the President in all the regular affairs of the Club, shall assist other officers with their duties and organizing club events, and shall preside in the President s absence at Club meetings.
Section 4. Section 5. Section 6. The Secretary The Secretary shall keep the minutes of all Club meetings, handle all Club correspondence, have custody of all papers and documents and hand them down to his/her successor, and take care of Club property. The Treasurer The Treasurer shall have charge of all funds of the Club and shall pay them out by order of the Club with the consent of the President. At the last meeting of the semester the Treasurer shall make a complete itemized report covering the semester and prepare a budget statement. The four officers shall serve as the Executive Committee. All resignations of Club officers shall be preceded by a two week notice. ARTICLE VII (Duties of the Executive Cabinet) Section 4. Section 5. All business and matters of policy affecting the Club shall be considered by the Executive Cabinet and the findings or conclusions reached by them together with supporting information, shall be put before the Club for approval. Appointment of officers to fill vacancies must be ratified by the Executive Cabinet. The Executive Cabinet shall be empowered to appoint special committees that will serve until their duties are fulfilled. The Executive Cabinet shall maintain regular correspondence with club advisor(s) and seek guidance when conducting official club business. It shall be the responsibility of the Executive Cabinet to ensure that all funds utilized by the club and its members are done so in a frugal and responsible manner. ARTICLE VIII (Meetings) Regular Club meetings shall be held every month as determined by the Executive Committee and the membership. Robert s Rules of Order shall be followed at all Club meetings with the Vice-President acting as parliamentarian.
ARTICLE IX (Amendments) The Constitution may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the active members present, providing a written notice of the amendment is given at the previous regular meeting. ARTICLE X (Regulation of the Dispersal of Funds) Definitions: Club-Sponsored Event A club-sponsored event refers to any event that is attended by, or hosted by the Forestry Club. In order for an event, or participation in an event to be club sponsored, all members of the club must be notified in a meeting, in a club mailing, or a club electronic mailing. The designation of a particular event as a club-sponsored event is the responsibility of, and only of, the club officers. If a disagreement cannot be settled, and a majority of the officers cannot agree on the designation of an event, the club advisor should be consulted as a tie-breaking vote. Club-sponsored events may be subsidized up to 100% as determined by the officers. Club Related Activity A club related activity refers to any event that is attended by one or more club members and is in keeping with Article II Section I of the Forestry Club Constitution. Club officers will determine if the activity is in compliance with the constitution. Section 1: The club treasury may subsidize all club-sponsored events, as defined above, up to 100%. Club-sponsored events shall be determined by a majority vote by the club officers prior to announcing the event to the club members. The club advisor shall act as a mediator, and if necessary, shall cast the deciding vote. As stated above, all members must be notified of the date, time, and place of the event. Receipts of subsidized expenses incurred during a club-sponsored event are to be kept by the treasurer; the treasurer shall include the details of the subsidy in the treasurer s report to be kept on record and read at a designated meeting. Club-sponsored events may include, but are not limited to Summer Camp, Spring Trip, club social events, etc. Summer Camp and Spring Trip are special cases due to their status as courses in the curriculum. They are listed here in an attempt to be thorough, but the subsidies regarding these two events may be overridden by higher jurisdictional powers (i.e. the Department of Forest Ecology and Management.) Section 2: Club related activities or events may be attended by one or more club members with or without public notification prior to the event. Within
two weeks following the activity, if subsidies from the club treasury are desired, the participants shall submit a written application for subsidy. The application shall be turned in to the club chairperson to be reviewed by the club officers (or a committee of at least four persons appointed for that purpose) to determine the validity of applications and amount of subsidy to be given. The written application must contain the names of the persons involved, a description of the activity that the persons participated in, a list of expenses, including copies of receipts for those expenses, the total amount of aid requested, and the signatures of all persons involved. The description of the event must be dated and must be explicit enough that compliance with Article II Section 1 of the Forestry Club Constitution can be determined. If the officers (or committee) determine that the activity is in compliance with the constitution and all other guidelines mentioned above are met, then a subsidy up to 50% of the expenses incurred may be granted. A reply, and if applicable, a payment in the form of a check, must be given to the participants within one week of receiving the application. The treasurer shall keep the application for the subsidy including copies of the receipts. The treasurer shall include a description of the subsidy in the treasurer s report that shall be recorded and read at the designated meeting. Examples of club related activities may include, but are not limited to: attending state and national SAF meetings, travel and lodging expenses incurred in the participation of above events, participation in educational conferences or training courses not part of a class curriculum but directly related to skills important to the forestry and/or recreation resources professions, etc. NOTE: The original form of this Constitution was made by a committee of Tim Krohn, Richard Leifer, and David Karnosky in 1984. It was updated and amended by Amy Jahnke, Joe Schwantes, Maggie Grosenick and Sarah Unz in 2004.