CONSTITUTION OF THE LATIN AMERICAN STUDENT ASSOCIATION Preamble We, the members of the Latin American Student Association do hereby establish this Constitution on 9/15/96, in order that our vision to cultivate and nurture the Latino leadership of the 21 st Century is realized to its fullest extent. Article I. Name The name of the organization will be Latin American Student Association, henceforth referred to as LASA. Article II. Purpose 1. LASA is established as means to empower, promote, and advance its membership through the development of leadership skills for those whose interest lies with the Latino community. 2. LASA recognizes the broad origins of the Latino community and is committed to fostering an environment where students can identify and celebrate their heritage. 3. LASA values the need for Latino students on campus; therefore, it will work with the Georgetown community to actively recruit Latino students and seek to ensure their commencement. 4. LASA believes in establishing a constructive and reciprocal relationship between the greater Latino community of Washington, D.C. 5. LASA recognizes and promotes its membership to participate in other Georgetown organizations. 6. LASA understands and is committed to fulfilling responsibilities of abiding by Georgetown University s policies. Article III. Membership
ACTIVE MEMBERSHIPSHALL BE LIMITED TO PERSONS OFFICIALLY CONNECTED WITH THE UNIVERSITY AS ENROLLED FULL-TIME UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS. In addition, the following requirements are necessary to constitute voting membership. 1. Payment in full of financial obligations as determined by the Executive Board. 2. Attendance at 2/3 of all meetings during a given semester. 3. Active participation in all activities sponsored by LASA, unless the activity interferes with either a class or a job. 4. Honorary membership is extended to members of the Georgetown faculty, staff, and graduate student body who recognize the purposes of LASA. 5. LASA openly admits undergraduate and graduate students to its membership and does not discriminate on the basis of age, sex, sexual orientation, race, handicap, color, religion, national and ethnic origin. Article IV. Officers Officers of LASA must be full-time undergraduate students enrolled in Georgetown University. LASA will be governed by the following means: 1. President: The President will be the official spokesperson for LASA and will act in the capacity of chief executive officer responsible for realizing the purpose and potential of LASA to its fullest extent. The president shall present all motions to the general membership, and shall be present at 90% of the meetings of LASA. The president is responsible for communication between LASA, its Executive Board, the General Board and the Office of Student Programs. 2. Vice-President of Finance: The Vice-President of Finance will maintain a financial accounting that will record all revenues and expenditures of LASA; will coordinate all fundraising efforts; will manage all administrative duties and initiatives. The VP of Finance will provide leadership and coordination of LASA s financial planning in addition to budget management functions. This individual will retain the power to appoint sub-committees and staff in order to carry out these objectives. The VP of Finance is responsible for attending all training sessions related to finance and treasury provided for the club by school authorities. 3. Vice-President of Cultural Education: The Vice-President of Cultural Education will plan and coordinate cultural activities that enrich the membership of LASA and the Georgetown community. The Vice President of Cultural Education will coordinate efforts of engagement with other Latino Affiliated organizations, centers, and boards. Furthermore, this person will coordinate events involving Latino cultural enrichment by organizing events with Latin American leaders and professors. This individual will retain the power to appoint sub-committees and staff in order to carry out cultural-related objectives.
4. Vice-President of Communications: The Vice-President of Communications will be responsible for the development of LASA s communication strategy and will contribute to the organizational strategic planning process. The VP of Communications will directly manage communication efforts that promote, enhance and protect LASA's image. The VP of Communications will be responsible for integrating communication services including: newsletters and other print publications; web, and other online forms of communication; media and marketing. This individual will retain the power to appoint sub-committees and staff in order to carry out these objectives. 5. Vice-President of Outreach: The Vice-President of Outreach will actively seek mutually beneficial relationships with humanitarian, service, and professional organizations both nationally and internationally. This individual will be responsible of overseeing all aspects of volunteer participation, including scheduling; special event planning, coordination, organization and promotion. The VP of Outreach will retain the power to appoint sub-committees and staff in order to carry out service related objectives. 6. Vice-President of Public Affairs. The Vice-President of Public Affairs will disseminate information on all LASA activities and functions; preserve an image that is in accordance with LASA s purpose and vision and coordinate and manage the logistics for each LASA event. This will be achieved by creating personal initiatives and engaging with established mechanisms such as SAC, the Office of Student Affairs, the Undergraduate Admissions Office, and other administrative bodies of the university. This individual will retain the power to appoint subcommittees and staff in order to carry out these objectives. 7. Vice-President of Student Affairs. The Vice-President of Student Affairs will coordinate all social activities that encompass the Latin American culture. This individual will encourage membership involvement in all facets of the greater Georgetown community. The VP of Student Affairs is in charge of attendance at all events. In order to do so, this member is responsible for reaching out to LASA s membership in the four classes (freshmen, sophomores, juniors and seniors). This individual will manage the lists of members, fee payments and committees conformed by LASA members. The VP of Student Affairs will retain the power to appoint sub-committees and staff in order to carry out these objectives. Article V. Operations 1. Voting Eligibility Those members meeting all requirements of a voting membership as set forth in Article III will be eligible to vote.
2. Election Process All Vice-Presidents shall be nominated and elected by a majority vote of eligible voting members of LASA at a meeting where the quorum prevails. The President shall be nominated and elected by the general membership. All elections will be held on an annual basis on February 1 of each academic year, at a meeting comprised of a quorum (50%+1) of LASA s active members. 3. Terms of Office The terms of office of the President and Vice-President will begin on May and will terminate on the following June 1. 4. Term Limits The President and Vice-Presidents shall not serve more than one year in the same position. Any member of LASA cannot hold nay office for more than two years. 5. Removal Any officer of LASA in violation of the Organization s purpose or Constitution or failure to fulfill the duties as stated may be removed from office by the following process. a. A written request by at least three members of the Organization submitted to the Executive Board. b. Written notification to the officer of the request, asking the officer a week in advance to be prepared to speak in his/her own defense. c. Written notification to the membership. d. 75% of the voting membership must be in attendance to vote on a removal of an officer. A two thirds (2/3) majority vote of the voting members in necessary to remove an officer. 6. Replacement Should an officer resign or be removed, the Executive Board will appoint an interim director to serve in the capacity of the officer being replaced. 7. Meetings All general meetings will occur on an ad hoc basis but no less than once a month and will follow the procedure set forth below: Attendance Report by the President Committee Reports Vote on all committee motions and decisions Any other business put forward by members of organization Dismissal by the President Article VI. Finances LASA will finance the activities it engages by the following means: 1. Membership dues as appropriated by LASA s Board of Directors.
2. LASA will submit a budget to the Student Activities Commission on an annual basis and request funding appropriate for the effective operations of the organization for each year. 3. LASA will conduct all financial activities in accordance with university policy and place all funds in its university account. Article VII. Amendments 1. Amendments to the constitution may be proposed in writing by any voting members of LASA at any meeting. 2. These amendments will be placed on the agenda for the next regular meeting. 3. Proposed amendments will become effective following approval of two thirds (2/3) majority vote at a meeting where two thirds (2/3) of the voting membership is in attendance. Established: 9/15/96 3:20PM