NEW MEXICO INSTITUTE OF MINING AND TECHNOLOGY ASTRONOMY CLUB CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS

Club Constitution can be viewed in pdf.

Article 1

Name

he name of this organization shall be the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology Astronomy Club, hereinafter referred to as the Astro Club or Club.

Article 2

Purpose

Section 1

The purpose of this organization is to promote, through its activities, interest and education in astronomy and related space sciences for its members, the Institute, public schools and the general public.

Section 2

Operation of the Observatory shall include the scheduling of star parties for the general public and by request for schools, clubs, special interest groups and special events (see Article 10). By written agreement approved by the voting membership, the observatory shall also be made available for use by students as a part of their course work at the Institute. Such agreements can be made on an individual or departmental basis. Such agreements may also include provisions for the loaning and installation of equipment at the observatory.

Section 3

The club shall function as a non-profit organization.

Article 3

Membership

Section 1

Membership in the Astronomy Club shall be open to anyone who wishes to join the club. In order to main member status within the club, one should remain active in club activities, and attend meetings when possible.

Section 2

Regular membership is extended to students, faculty, and staff of New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology and to any members of the community.

Section 3

Special "perpetual" members are those charter members and others who have advanced the purpose of this organization by virtue of their outstanding contributions and support for the club.

Section 4

Voting members are limited to those who are students, faculty and staff of the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology and the active Special Members. Only student members, who have paid their activity fee, may vote on the expenditure of Student Association funds.

Section 5

An up-to-date membership list shall be kept by the Secretary of the club and reviewed/updated as necessary.

Section 6

Membership may be revoked by a two thirds majority of the voting membership. Revocation may be based upon extended inactivity or actions deemed to be harmful to the club and its stated purposes

Article 4

Club Meetings

Section 1

Regular meetings of the club shall be conducted no less frequently than once per month during the school year at a time and place fixed by the consensus of majority of the club membership.

Section 2

Notice of regular or special meetings shall be posted on astronews, Physics Department website, Astronomy Club Website, and as many bulletin boards as possible at least two days before the meeting.

Article 5

Officers

Section 1

The club shall have the following officers:

1. President

2. Vice President

3. Secretary

4. Treasurer

5. Webmaster

Section 2

Officers shall be elected at the last regular meeting before the end of the Spring semester. Officers shall be elected from the voting membership of the club by a simple majority of the voting members present.

Section 3

In the event of a vacancy, the President or Vice President shall call a special meeting for the purpose of a special election to fill the vacancy.

Section 4

An officer may be removed from office provided the following conditions are met:
1. A written proposal for removal containing the signatures of at least 50% of the voting membership shall be provided to all officers of the club at least one week prior to a regular meeting.
2. At the next regular meeting following the submission of the proposal for removal, the proposal shall be voted upon by the voting membership after time has been provided for each side to present their case and for the general membership to discuss the proposal.
3. An officer may be removed from office by a two thirds majority of the voting membership present.
4. A removed officer may not hold office in the club for one full academic year following removal.

Article 6

Duties of Officers

Section 1

The duties of the President include: scheduling meetings and club events; posting of meeting notices; presiding over the majority club meetings; appointment of committees; control of the club key to Etscorn Observatory; organizing work parties for the maintenance and improvement of the Etscorn Observatory; and in general providing the leadership necessary for the club to fulfill its stated purposes.

Section 2

The duties of the Vice President include: assisting, the President in carrying out his duties; assuming the duties of the President during his/her absence; and production and distribution of the club newsletter.

Section 3

The duties of the Secretary include: the taking of complete and accurate minutes of all meetings; maintaining files of the minutes of all meetings, all club correspondence, club activities, documentation pertaining to the operation of Etscorn Observatory; and distributing copies of the minutes of all meetings to all officers of the club.

Section 4

The duties of the Treasurer include: developing budget in accordance with Student Association guidelines; submitting the budget to the Student Association and club membership for their approval; maintaining complete and accurate records of club finances; reporting the status of club finances to the membership at each regular meeting; overseeing the disbursement of club funds; and maintaining communications with the Student Association to provide an accounting of all funds given to the club by the Association.

Article 7

Committees

Section 1

The President may appoint committees to work on special projects related to the functioning of the club and its stated organizational purposes. Each committee shall work on a single task, defined by the President, and is automatically disbanded when that task is complete.

Section 2

Membership of each committee is decided by the President and shall consist of not less than 2 nor more than 4 members.

Article 8

Expenditure of Funds

Section 1

The Officers shall have authority to expend funds on a monthly basis not exceeding $25.00 and without approval of the voting membership provided that such expenditures do not exceed any budgetary limits.

Section 2

No funds that exceed budgetary limits or account balances may be expended by the club for any reason.

Section 3

All funds expended on a monthly basis, exceeding $25.00, must be approved by a simple majority of the meeting quorum at any regular of the club.

Section 4

Expenditure of funds via a campus work order must be approved by the membership and contain the signatures of the President, Treasurer and Faculty Advisor.

Article 9

Faculty Advisor

Section 1

The club shall select a member of the Institute faculty to function as an advisor to the club.

Section 2

The advisor shall be automatically invited to all meetings and club events. He shall be consulted on matters pertaining to the functioning of the club and the Etscorn Observatory and be provided with copies of all budgets, minutes, correspondence and documents used by the club.

Section 3

The advisor must approve of and co-sign all campus work orders involving the expenditure of club funds.

Article 10

Operation of Campus Observatory

Section 1

The Frank T. Etscorn Campus Observatory, hereinafter referred to as the Campus Observatory or Observatory, shall be made available for use by the club membership and the general public as described in the following sections.

Section 2

The Observatory shall remain locked and secured at all times when not in use. At least one Astronomy Club member shall be present at all times when the observatory is open.

Section 3

Keys to the observatory shall be assigned to the club President, and at least two locally available Special Members or any other member designated and approved at a club meeting by a simple majority vote. Key holding members shall make themselves available to open the observatory for the membership upon reasonable request. Keys may be loaned to any member for the purpose of gaining access to the observatory. DUPLICATION OF OBSERVATORY KEYS IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED.

Section 4

Any club member may use the observatory at any time, except as noted in Section 6, and provided they have been trained in the use of the observatory equipment. The observatory will be opened by a key holding member or a key temporarily loaned to a member requesting access.

Section 5

The observatory shall be made available to the public through periodically scheduled Star Parties, special events or by special arrangement with school and civic groups. Notices of such events shall be advertised in the same manner as regular club meetings (see Article 4, Section 3).

Section 6

The club President has final authority in scheduling or granting the use of the Campus Observatory for special requests, academic use by Institute students or faculty that may otherwise affect the open policy use of the observatory. The President or his designated representative may declare the observatory or a specific instrument to be non-operational at any time to temporarily restrict the use of the facilities when he deems it necessary. Such special scheduling, declaration of non-operational status or any limitation in the use of an instrument shall be posted at the Campus Observatory.

Section 7

Special requests for Observatory usage for periods longer than two weeks shall be awarded by the voting members at the next regular club meeting by a simple majority vote, with the agreed upon terms of usage set forth in writing and kept on file by the club Secretary.

Article 11

Amendments

Section 1

The Constitution and By-Laws of the New Mexico Tech Astronomy Club may be amended at any time provided the request for amendment is approved by a two thirds majority of the voting members at a regular meeting. An amendment must receive a two thirds majority of the voting members at a regular meeting to become effective. Any newly approved amendment shall be immediately added to the constitution and by-laws and distributed to the voting membership by no later than the next regular meeting.

Article 12

Enchanted Skies Star Party committee

Section 1

Purpose

The purpose of this document is to establish the annual Enchanted Skies Star Party Committee (ESSP) as a public-education, recruiting, and community-outreach function of the New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology (NM Tech) astronomy club; this committee is empowered to organize and conduct the ESSP; and to establish procedures and guidelines for that committee's operation.

Section 2

The Enchanted Skies Star Party Committee is hereby established to organize, coordinate, manage and conduct the ESSP. This committee is an entity of, and responsible to New Mexico Tech astronomy club. This committee shall be empowered to determine the policy and program for the star party, and to enter into agreements with other organizations, including but not limited to, the City of Socorro, the State of New Mexico, the Socorro County Chamber of Commerce, the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, and corporations and individuals, for services and cooperative efforts related to the star party. This committee shall prepare and approve the budget and program for each event. The Enchanted Skies Star Party Committee shall be composed of nine members, as follows:

Section 3

The members of the Enchanted Skies Star Party Committee shall elect a Chairman, Vice- Chairman and Secretary-Treasurer from among their membership. The officers of the Committee shall be elected by the Committee during the November meeting each year. The Chairman shall preside over committee meetings and sign documents on behalf of the committee. The Vice-Chairman shall serve as Chairman in the Chairman's absence. The presiding officer shall retain the right to vote on all matters before the committee. The Secretary-Treasurer shall record the minutes of each meeting and monitor financial transactions made on behalf of the Enchanted Skies Star Party.
Actions by the committee must be approved by a majority of the members present at any meeting. At least five members must be present in order to conduct business.
The rules contained in the current edition of "Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised" shall govern the committee in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with this document and any special rules of order which the committee may adopt.