Constitutions
Article I. Name
The Official Name of the organization shall be
INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS ORGANIZATION (ISO)
Article II. Purpose
The purpose of this organization shall be to provide a platform for social interaction among international students and help new international students adapt themselves to the Ole Miss community.
Article III. Membership
Section 1: There shall be no member who is not currently enrolled as a student at the University of Mississippi .
Section 2: There shall be no discrimination on the basis of race, sex, age, color, religion, disability, or national origin.
Section 3: All members must maintain an overall quality point average of at least 2.0.
Section 4 : Membership shall be terminated under the following conditions
(i) Graduation
(ii) Transfer from Ole Miss
Article IV. Officers
Section 1: The officers of the organization can be any member of the International Students Organization who is eligible to serve as from Article V.
Section 2: Officers shall be elected by general elections every beginning of Fall.
Section 3: The Officer's term of office shall be the following: They shall be elected and installed as set forth by the election code (Article VIII). Term of service shall be one academic year.
Section 4: All officers should be Sophomore or higher standing in the University of Mississippi.
Article V. Officer Eligibility
Officers of the organization shall hold and maintain a minimum grade point average of 2.0, not be on disciplinary or academic probation, and shall be fully admitted students to the University of Mississippi and have been an active member of ISO for at least one academic semester.
Article VI. Officer Responsibilities
President
All officers should be Sophomore or higher standing in the University of Mississippi.
1. Act as the official representative of ISO
2. Arrange and preside over all meeting of the ISO assembly and call such meetings as necessary,
3. Arrange and preside over all meeting of the Executive Board,
4. Administer programs, workshops, and fundraisers for the ISO assembly,
5. Have the power to veto legislation passed by the ISO assembly. A presidential veto must be issued within ten days of the date of passage. A presidential veto may be overridden by a two-thirds vote of the ISO assembly members present and voting.
6. Meet with ISO Advisor and Student Leaders Counsel when necessary about matters concerning ISO and to give a verbal update of duties performed since last meeting,
7. Be an ISO representative when working with other organizations…
8. Uphold all aspects of the ISO constitution and its bylaws,
9. Act as liaison between the University and the international students.
10. Oversee the effective implementation of the ISO constitution and its bylaws,
11. This position shall only be for one year unless overruled by the executive board.
Vice President
All officers should be Sophomore or higher standing in the University of Mississippi.
1. Attend and actively participate in all ISO assembly meetings,
2. Attend and actively participate in all Executive Officer meetings,
3. Assume the responsibilities of the President upon his/her absence,
4. Assume the responsibilities of the President upon his/her resignation,
5. Coordinate the activities of any committee appointed by the Executive Board and/or the ISO assembly, and assist the committee directors in effectively performing their assigned duties,
6. Maintain an organized binder to be passed on to the next Vice President, ,
7. Uphold all aspects of ISO and its bylaws
8. This position shall only be for one year unless overruled by the executive board.
Secretary
All officers should be Sophomore or higher standing in the University of Mississippi.
1. Attend and actively participate in, and keep accurate minutes at all ISO Assembly meetings,
2. Attend and actively participate in all Executive Officer meeting,
3. Attend and keep accurate minutes at all meetings requested by the Executive Board,
4. Post the minutes of all ISO meetings within a week after the meeting in a binder as well as online at the Minutes link of the website,
5. Execute all official correspondence of ISO (letter, etc.)
6. Maintain attendance records of all assembly, committee, and Executive Board meetings, and will announce excessive absences to the board,
7. Uphold all aspects of the ISO constitution and its bylaws
8. This position shall only be for one year unless overruled by the executive board.
Treasurer
All officers should be Sophomore or higher standing in the University of Mississippi.
1. Attend and actively participate in, and keep accurate minutes at all ISO Assembly meetings,
2. Attend and actively participate in all Executive Officer meeting,
3. Maintain all financial records of ISO,
4. Keep the ISO budget balanced and request funding from SPB, ASB, Campus Programming and International Programs as necessary
5. Collect dues from all members at the beginning of the semester
6. Keep track of members who have paid and ensure that they receive their official membership card
7. Uphold all aspects of the ISO constitution and its bylaws,
8. This position shall only be for one year unless overruled by the executive board.
Elected Board Positions
Public Relations
1. Promote awareness of ISO to the campus community and the community at large
2. Publicize all ISO events, programs, and activities through distributed flyers, banners and signs
3. Create monthly calendars or similar schedule of activities
4. Establish and maintain good relations with campus media
5. Submit newsworthy items about the organization to campus and community media
6. Uphold all aspects of the ISO constitution and its bylaws,
Special Events Coordinator
1. Coordinate all special evens such as International Night, Fall and Spring Cookouts, etc.,
2. Identify and organize committees to plan events
3. Work closely with public relations officer in promoting all special events
4. Implement other responsibilities relating to ISO events as necessary
5. Uphold all aspects of the ISO constitution and its bylaws,
Elections Coordinator
1. Organize nomination and election of officers at the beginning of fall term
2. Ensure that all members are aware of upcoming elections
3. Ensure that all candidates meet necessary requirements to run for office
4. Ensure that the elections are carried out fairly as stated by the constitution
5. Work with incumbent officers and become familiar with duties of office
6. Uphold all aspects of the ISO constitution and its bylaws,
Web Master
1. The webmaster shall be responsible for updating and maintaining the ISO website
2. Uphold all aspects of the ISO constitution and its bylaws
Organizational Representatives
1. Be an active member of the organization representing
2. Be a liaison between ISO and the other international organization on campus which the officer represents
3. Be knowledgeable about activities of the other organizations to coordinate ISO activities with the other organization
4. Ensure that the other organization is aware of ISO activities
5. Uphold all aspects of the ISO constitution and its bylaws,
Advisor(s)
A member of IPO will serve as one of the advisors
Article VII. Removal from office
Clause A: ISO Representatives may remove any office from office following a majority vote of a minimum present 7 members. The impeachment petition must be presented to the ISO executive council two weeks prior to the vote and must state misconduct, violation of the Code of Conduct (provided by the University of Mississippi in the ‘M’ Book), or lack of fulfilling duties.
Clause B: The impeachment case shall be heard at the next regular Assembly meeting following the presentation (as set by the ISO president) whereby the accused officer shall be given an opportunity to speak before the assembly for him/herself and bring witnesses for his/her case. A vote by secret ballot will take place after the accused and witnesses have left the room.
Article VIII. Election Code
The election shall be held in the first month of the beginning of the Academic Year
6. ISO must announce elections two weeks prior to elections.
7. Candidates running for office must announce their intent by form of application available through ISO, one week prior to the election date to the elections officer as well as the executive board.
8. During the election process there must be no form of campaigning. Each candidate will be allotted time, approved by the ISO executive board, in which they may speak to the assembly.
9. The President, and Vice-President Candidates shall be allotted time to speak to the assembly regarding their intent and ideas as well as to the present executive board.
10. The newly elected officers shall assume office from the next meeting after elections, and serve until the election of the new officers in the following academic year.
11. During the last meeting, the former executive officers will hand over their journals for the newly inducted officers to read and follow as a form of training.
12. No officer may hold the same position for a period longer than one year but may remain on the executive council with a new position. The executive board may overrule this, and allow a person to serve in a position for more than one year.
Article IX. Resignations
An officer must submit a full page letter of resignation whereby there is an explanation of the failure to commit to ISO as well as the date the officer wishes to resign. Plus the officer must recommend a person he/she thinks would efficiently to the job
Article X. Meetings
Section 1: Regular meetings shall be held bi-monthly at the discretion of the board.
Section 2: Special meetings may be called by the President of the organization.
Section 3: The agenda at regular meetings will include:
A. Call to Order
B. Roll Call
C. Reading of the previous minutes
D. Announcements
E. Old Business
F. New Business
G. Adjournment
Article XI. Finances
Section 1: Membership fees shall be $5.00 per member per academic year.
Article XII. Amendment and Ratification
Section 1: This constitution may be amended at any time by a majority vote of 2/3 of the active membership.
Section 2: Nothing contained in this constitution shall in any way limit the final authority of the University of Mississippi .
Section 3: Ratification of this constitution shall be following approval of the membership, and approval and acceptance of the Committee on Students Organizations and/or the Office of the Dean of Students.
Section 4: Upon Ratification of this constitution, all other previous constitutions shall be null and void