CONSTITUTION
KANSAS COLLEGIATE MEDIA
(Revised April 2011 / Approved Sept. 2012)
FOREWARD:
The association was founded in 1967 under the name The Kansas Association of Two-Year College Mass Media Advisers. On February 22, 1979, the name was changed to the Kansas Association of Journalism Advisers. In April 1988, the name of the association was changed to Kansas Associated Collegiate Press. In 2012, the name was changed to Kansas Collegiate Media.
PREAMBLE:
Kansas Collegiate Media, herein after referred to as the Association, strives to enrich the quality of journalism education and student journalism in Kansas by:
- Supporting and promoting the First Amendment.
- Supporting and promoting high academic and professional standards in collegiate media.
- Supporting students working in and for student media.
- Supporting collegiate media advisers.
- Supporting administrators and others at academic institutions in understanding and appreciating collegiate media through encouragement, education, and professional interactions.
- Supporting outreach efforts in the academic and professional communities.
ARTICLE I: NAME AND SCOPE
The name of this organization is Kansas Collegiate Media
ARTICLE II: MEMBERSHIP
Section 1: Any instructor of journalism at a college or university in the state of Kansas.
Section 2: Any student medium or media produced for and primarily by students at a college or university in the state of Kansas.
Section 3: Any adviser of a student medium or media at a college or university in the state of Kansas.
Section 4: All students at member colleges and universities in Kansas participating in student media at member colleges and universities, or individual students, with the approval of the Executive Committee, at non-member colleges and universities in the state of Kansas. Students are non-voting members of the Association (except when serving on committees, in which cases they are eligible to vote as members of the committees on which they serve).
Section 5: Associate members who participate in and support collegiate media. Associate members are non-voting members of the Association (except when serving on committees, in which cases they are eligible to vote as members of the committees on which they serve).
Section 6: The Executive Committee may determine, by a vote of a simple majority of the committee’s full membership, whether a candidate for association membership fulfills prescribed requirements.
Section 7: Continued qualification for membership, beyond paying annual dues, requires fulfilling an expectation of participation, which means participating in selected activities that support the Association. These will include participation in at least one of the following activities in a calendar year: serving as an officer of the Association; judging contests arranged by or associated with the Association; serving on a planning committee, in support of the Executive Committee, in planning the annual convention, and other activities approved and authorized by the President of the Association. The Association’s Executive Committee, by majority vote, will be the sole ruling body to determine compliance concerning “expectation of participation.”
ARTICLE III: OFFICERS
Section 1 (elected officers): The Association’s elected officers are president, first vice president, second vice president, secretary, and treasurer. The immediate past president shall serve as an appointed officer.
Section 2 (appointed officers): Two students (one from a two-year member institution and one from a four-year member institution) and an associate member will also serve as voting members of the Executive Committee. Each will be selected by the Executive Committee. Any Association member may make nominations to the Executive Committee for the three positions.
Section 2: All those listed in Sections 1 and 2 shall serve as voting members on the Association’s Executive Committee.
Section 3: Each elected officer will serve for a two-year term from May 1 to April 30. Appointed officers will be selected within 30 days after May 1 and will serve for the duration of the elected members’ terms.
Section 4: Officers, with the exception of president, in Section 1 will be elected once every two years by an Association election conducted by mail or electronic voting. The first vice president by succession will assume the office and duties of the president for a two-year term. Ballots will be made available to members no less than three weeks before the spring conference, and elections will be completed at least three days before the start of the spring conference of the election year. A three-member Elections Committee, of which the Association’s Secretary will be chair, shall be named by the Association’s president by January 15 of an election year. That committee will provide a list of candidates by February 15 of an election year, with ballots available to eligible voters, from the Association’s secretary, by March 1. The Association Secretary shall also be responsible for collecting the ballots, compiling the votes, and reporting the results to the Executive Committee by March 31 of the election year.
Section 5: The total number of ballots cast for each office must represent at least 50 percent of the eligible membership, and, from that total, a simple majority of members submitting ballots will determine the winner.
Section 6: Vacancy in the office of the president, should it occur, will be filled by the first vice president. Should both offices become vacant, the Executive Committee will elect an acting president to serve through the next election. The Executive Committee shall also elect an Association member to fill any other vacancies on the Executive Committee that may occur for any reason.
ARTICLE IV: DUTIES OF PRESIDENT
Section 1: The Association president is the chief executive officer and will be responsible for all affairs of the Association and will call and preside at its meetings. The president also will chair the Association’s Executive Committee. In those roles, the president will be required to carry out the actions and decisions of the membership and those actions and decisions within the purview of Executive Committee’s authority.
Section 2: The president will prepare the agenda for all Association meetings. Any member may, at a time to be provided on the agenda of all annual meetings of the Association, introduce matters of business not included on the prepared agenda, except amendments to this Constitution.
Section 3: The president shall name all Association committees, standing or special, and oversee their work.
Section 4: The Association president will be the chief administrative officer of the Association.
Section 5: The president assumes duties immediately at the end of his or her term as first vice president.
ARTICLE IV: DUTIES OF FIRST VICE PRESIDENT
Section 1: The Association’s first vice president will be the chief administrative assistant to the president and will immediately assume the presidency at the end of the term.
Section 2: The first vice president will assume all duties of the presidency, in the absence of the president, or in the event the president resigns or is unable to carry out the duties of the office. If that occurs, immediately on assumption of the duties, the president will call a special election for first vice president to be completed within 30 days of assumption of duties of president. Note: Once the election is completed, the terms of the president and vice president will continue through the end of the current term and the succeeding term.
Section 3: The first vice president shall plan and coordinate all activities associated with the spring conference.
Section 4: The first vice president will assume other duties at the behest of the president.
Section 5: The first vice president will immediately succeed to the presidency in the event of a vacancy of the office.
ARTICLE V: DUTIES OF SECOND VICE PRESIDENT
Section 1: The first vice president shall be responsible for coordinating the activities of the Contest Committee, serving as chairman. This officer shall plan and carry out the awards assembly held at the spring conference.
Section 2: The second vice president will assume other duties at the behest of the president.
ARTICLE VI: DUTIES OF SECRETARY
Section 1: The secretary will keep accurate records of all Association meetings and serve as the Association’s chief clerk.
Section 2: The secretary is responsible for ensuring that minutes of all Association meetings are taken, and for making them available to all Association members in a timely manner, for preserving them, and for passing them along to a successor.
Section 3: The secretary, as chair of the Elections Committee, will be responsible, with the Committee’s help, for preparing, distributing and tabulating official election ballots each election cycle as outlined in Article III, Section 4.
Section 4: The secretary will prepare copies of proposed amendments to this Constitution and will distribute the copies to the membership before any meeting at which such proposed amendments are to be considered.
Section 6: The secretary will make available to all Association members immediately upon request, copies of the Constitution.
ARTICLE VII: DUTIES OF TREASURER
Section 1: The treasurer will collect dues from Association members, keep a complete and timely set of financial records and make such records available for inspection by any Association member.
Section 2: The treasurer will distribute a detailed written report of all Association income and expenditures for the immediate past fiscal year at each meeting of the membership.
ARTICLE VIII: COMMITTEES
Section 1: Standing committees, with the exception of the Elections Committee, will serve for terms of one year. Standing committees are Contest Committee, Convention Committee, Membership Committee, Fundraising Committee and, during election years, an Election Committee.
Section 2: Ad hoc committees may be formed at any time with approval of the Executive Committee.
Section 3: Members of committees are named by the president with approval of the Executive Committee.
Section 4: Committees shall be composed of no less than three members.
ARTICLE IX: HEADQUARTERS
The Association’s executive office will be at the host institution of the Association president.
ARTICLE X: MEETINGS
Section 1: The Association will meet at least once annually.
Section 2: The Executive Committee will be convened at the discretion of the president to conduct business. Other Executive Committee meetings may be called by assent of five members of the Executive Committee. The time and location of meetings should be announced at least 48 hours prior to a meeting.
Section 3: During annual meetings of the Association, members present and voting may, by simple majority, fix annual dues; appropriate funds for the subsequent year, or until the next annual meeting; consider, adopt and address resolutions proposed by any member; and, by two-thirds vote of those present and voting, ratify amendments to this Constitution.
Section 4: “Robert’s Rules of Order” shall be the parliamentary authority for all matters of procedure not specifically covered by this Constitution.
Section 5: A quorum will consist of:
- except as noted below, a majority of eligible voting members in attendance at general purpose meetings, such as the annual fall and spring meetings;
- a majority of standing or ad hoc committee members, including the Executive Committee;
- a majority of the entire membership for elections of Association officers;
- two-thirds of voting members (either by mail or electronically) of the entire membership on amendments to the Association’s Constitution.
ARTICLE XI: REVENUES
Section 1: Annual dues may be fixed by the vote of a simple majority of those present and voting at the Association’s annual meeting.
Section 2: Failure of any member to pay dues by May 15 of each year will result in automatic suspension of his membership in the Association. Immediate reinstatement to the Association will result with payment of current dues.
Section 3: All dues will be paid to the Association through the treasurer, whose hosting institution will represent the seat of the treasury.
Section 4: The Association’s fiscal year will be concurrent with the period between August 1 and July 31.
ARTICLE XII: AMENDMENTS
Section 1: Amendments to this Constitution will be voted on during Association meetings or by ballot to the entire membership.
Section 2: In order for an amendment to this Constitution to be included for consideration, the proposed amendment must be submitted in writing to the Association secretary at least two weeks before the meeting in which the amendment is to be considered.
Section 3: Any member may submit an amendment in writing to the Constitution to the Executive Committee. A two-third’s vote of the Executive Committee is required before the proposal can be forwarded to the entire membership.
Section 4: Approval by two-thirds of eligible membership present and voting at an annual meeting will be necessary to ratify proposed amendments to this Constitution.
Section 5: Proxy votes must be presented in writing or electronically to the president at least 24 hours prior to the scheduled meeting, and the President will be required to provide evidence of each proxy vote. Proxy votes are not allowed on amendments to the Constitution.
ARTICLE XIV: RATIFICATION OF THE CONSTITUTION
Section 1: The Constitution and any amendments to the Constitution are in full force and effect immediately after is ratified by at least two-thirds of the eligible membership.