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CONSTITUTION

University of Southern Maine Chapter
Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi

ARTICLE I - Name and Object

Section 1. Name. The Name of this organization is University of Southern Maine Chapter of Phi Kappa Phi.

Section 2. Object. The object of this organization is to maintain the chapter of the Honor Society of Phi Kappa phi chartered and installed at the University of Maine at Portland-Gorham on April 25, 1975 and to support the purposes of the National Society, which include promoting the pursuit of excellence in all fields of higher education, recognizing outstanding achievement by students, faculty, and staff by electing them to membership and opening its membership rolls to scholars from all academic disciplines.

Section 3. Governing Regulations. This organization shall be governed in accordance with the Bylaws of the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, Inc., as published in July 1972, with amendments, if any, which may be made from time to time, and by the provisions of this Constitution with amendments, if any, which may be made from time to time.

ARTICLE II - Membership

Section 1. Eligibility. The following, and no others, subject to the limitations in Section 2 below, shall be eligible for election to membership in the University of Southern Maine Chapter of Phi Kappa Phi.

a.  Any USM student with at least 70 but fewer than 100 credits by the end of the fall semester, including at least 30 credits taken at USM, and ranking in the top 4% of the junior class in the USM college or school in which enrolled will be eligible for election to Phi Kappa Phi as a junior. Any USM student with at least 100 credits at the end of the fall semester, including at least 30 credits at USM, and ranking in the top 8% of the senior class in the USM college or school in which enrolled will be eligible for election to Phi Kappa Phi as a senior. However, in all cases a grade point average of at least 3.5 on a 4-point scale will be required.

b.  Any graduate student who is a candidate for an advanced degree, who has been registered as a graduate student for at least one year and who has made a noteworthy record in his/her graduate work except (1) that a candidate for a master’s degree who has not completed a full year of residence shall be eligible for election within the term during which he/she is to take a final examination for the degree and (2) that any former graduate student who has been awarded an advanced degree subsequent to the last previous election of members shall be eligible for election.

c.  Any member of the faculty, including the administrative, research, and extension staff of the University, whose scholastic record and/or outstanding achievement has rendered him/her worthy of membership.

d.  Any alumnus of the University of Southern Maine, having graduated at least five years previously, selected on the basis of outstanding achievement since graduation and a high scholastic record while attending the University.

e.  Honorary Members who may have no connection with the University of Southern Maine but who shall have graduated ten or more years previously from a recognized institution of higher education AND who shall have attained eminence in some line of creative endeavor, provided prior approval is granted by the national Board of Directors.

Section 2. Limitations.  Provisions of Section 1 above are subject to the following limitations:

a.  The total number of undergraduates elected to membership within an academic year shall not exceed 10 percent of the number of candidates for baccalaureate degrees during that year.

b.  The total number of graduate students elected to membership within an academic year shall not exceed 5 percent of the number of such students eligible for consideration during that year.

c.  No more than four staff or faculty members shall be elected in one academic year.

d.  No more than two alumni members shall be elected in one academic year.

e.    No more than one Honorary Member shall be elected in one academic year.

Section 3. Election of Members. All elections to membership shall be by ballot either at a regularly called meeting of the chapter at which a quorum is present OR by ballot mailed to all active members.

a.  An affirmative vote of two-thirds of the active members responding shall be necessary for election.

b.  All persons who have been elected to membership in the Society shall be notified by letter and upon acceptance shall be publicly honored in an appropriate manner.

Section 4. Classes of Membership. Persons elected and initiated into membership in the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi in the manner prescribed in this Article remain members for life. Categories of membership shall be as follows:

a.  Active Members-Affiliated, members who have paid the annual chapter dues, including newly initiated members whose initiation fees include one year active membership dues.

b.  Active Members at Large, members who have paid only the annual national dues and are not affiliated with any chapter.

c.  Active Members for Life, members who have paid the Active Life Membership fee required by the national Society or who have been accorded this status by action of the national Board of Directors.

d.  Emeritus Active Members, members who have retired from professional duties and have been accorded this status by the Chapter and approved by the national Board of Directors.

e.  Honorary Members, individuals who have been accorded this status by the Board of Directors upon recommendation by a member of the Board or by one or more of the chapters;he/she may continue as an active member by payment of annual dues.

f.   Inactive Members, members whose national dues have not been paid for the year, who may become active members by payment of dues for the current year.

g. Distinguished Members, especially outstanding active or inactive members who have, upon recommendation of a chapter or a Director of the Society, been given this designation by the Board of Directors and presented with an appropriate certificate or other symbol of recognition.

ARTICLE III - The Executive Committee

Section 1. Officers. The officers of the Chapter shall be a President, a President-Elect, a Secretary-Treasurer, and a Public Relations Officer, all of whom shall be staff or faculty members of the University of Southern Maine, and a Vice President who shall be a student member of the University of Southern Maine Chapter. These officers together with the immediate Past President, the chairperson of the Scholarship Committee, an alumni representative, and an additional student representative shall constitute the Chapter Executive Committee.

Section 2. Election of officers.  The president-elect, secretary-treasurer, and public relations officer shall be elected to two-year terms at a Chapter meeting or by mail ballot before the end of June every other year. The president-elect shall normally serve for two years and then become president for a two-year term. The vice president, the chairperson of the scholarship committee, the student representative, and the alumni representative shall be appointed to one-year terms by the Executive Committee.

Section 3. Duties of Officers.  

a.  It shall be the duty of the President to call and preside at all meetings of the Executive Committee and of the Chapter, to appoint committees deemed necessary or helpful in furthering the business of the Society, to vote in behalf of the Chapter on ballots and other materials sent to the Chapter by the national headquarters, and to fulfill other usual responsibilities of the Office of President.

b.  It shall be the duty of the President-Elect to preside at meetings in absence of the President and to succeed to the Presidency in the event of death, incapacity, or resignation of the President.

c.  The Secretary/Treasurer is responsible for maintaining records, supplies, and financial accounts of the Chapter. It shall be his/her duty to keep and publish minutes of meetings of the Chapter and the Executive Committee, to maintain correspondence and other files of the Chapter related to the national office and affairs of the Chapter, to prepare, with the assistance of the University Registrar lists of eligible candidates to be voted on by the Chapter, to prepare materials and documents required for the initiation of candidates, to receive and deposit and account for all moneys received by the Chapter from dues and other sources, to pay all bills approved by the Executive Committee, to arrange for the investment of all funds not required for current operation, to prepare an annual budget and arrange for an annual audit of his/her books, to prepare an annual report of the financial condition of the Chapter, and to prepare and submit reports required by the national office.

d.  It shall be the duty of the Public Relations Officer to disseminate to the various media news of Chapter activities, to submit news items and articles of lasting interest to the Editor of the Phi Kappa Phi Journal and to take whatever other steps he/she deems advisable to promote the objectives of the Chapter and the Society.

e.  It shall be the duty of the Vice President to perform such duties as are assigned to him/her by the President.

f.   It shall be the duty of the immediate Past President to serve on the Executive Committee.

Section 4. Duties of the Executive Committee. It shall be the responsibility of the Executive Committee to supervise annual and long range planning of Chapter activities, to advise and assist

Chapter Officers in carrying out their duties and coordinating the activities of officers and committees, to have jurisdiction over matters pertaining to the Chapter but not provided for in this Constitution or in the Bylaws of the national Society, to elect Delegates to General and Special Conventions of the Society, and in the event of loss of any Chapter officer by reason of death, incapacity, or resignation to appoint a temporary officer to serve until the election of new officers.

ARTICLE IV - Meetings

Section 1. Chapter meetings will be held upon call of the president or the Executive Committee. All active members shall be duly notified of chapter meetings by the Secretary-Treasurer.

Section 2. Quorum. Eight active members shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business at any regular or special meeting.

ARTICLE V - Fees, Dues and Assessments

Section 1. Initiation Fees. Each newly elected member before initiation shall pay to the Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi, Inc., through the Chapter Secretary-Treasurer an initiation fee as established by the National Board of Phi Kappa Phi, in addition to local chapter dues.

Section 2. Active Membership Dues. All active members other than those newly initiated shall pay annual dues in the amount assessed by vote of the Chapter together with the amount set by the Board of Directors for national dues.

ARTICLE VI- Amendments and Bylaws

Section 1. Amending this Constitution. Any Article of this Constitution may be amended at a meeting of the Chapter provided that any amendment proposed shall have been presented to the active members of the Chapter at least 30 days previously at a meeting or in writing. Amendments must receive the affirmative vote of two-thirds of the active members present.

Section 2. Bylaws and Rules of Procedure. To record and publish policies established from time to time and to provide guidelines for the Chapter and its officers, the Executive Committee shall publish Bylaws and Rules of Procedure to supplement this Constitution. Such Bylaws and Rules of Procedure may be prepared by any of the officers but must be approved for publication by the Executive Committee.

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