University of Rochester Computer Interest Floor Constitution

Contents

• Floor Membership
  • Types of Membership
  • Acceptance of Members
  • Acceptance of Floor Affiliates
  • Floor Dues
• Elections and Officers
  • Nominations
  • Elections
  • Officer Duties
• Floor Committees
• Interest and Informational Meetings
• Floor Meetings
• Board Meetings
• Overriding Board and Board Member Decisions
  • Resignation
  • Impeachment
  • Resolving Resignation or Impeachment
• Room Assignments
• Selection of New Resident Members
• Participation Points
• Nauticock Award
• Conduct, Discipline and Status Change of Floor Members
  • Probation
  • Expulsion
  • Withdrawal
• Procedures for Constitutional Amendment and Ratification
  • Temporary Amendment
  • Amendment
  • Ratification

Floor Membership

Types of Membership

• Floor Members
  Anyone who has applied to become a CIF member and has been granted CIF membership is considered a floor member. Floor members are subdivided into resident and non-resident members. This group is also referred to as simply ``the floor'' or as ``members.''
  • Resident Members
    People living on the Computer Interest Floor are considered resident members. Exceptions to this are the R.A. (if an R.A. lives on floor) and people placed on CIF by Residential Life to fill open spaces, any of whom are welcome to be floor members if they so chose.
  • Non-Resident Members
    These are people who have all benefits and responsibilities of membership, but do not live on floor. If space becomes available on floor, interested non-resident members can move onto floor pending board and suite approval.
• Floor Affiliates
  Affiliate status is open to anyone with an interest in CIF. Floor affiliate status should not be confused with membership status. Affliliate status carries none of the responsibilities or benefits of membership, but provides individuals with a chance to interact with CIF without taking on the commitment of membership. Floor members who have graduated or moved off floor and have decided to no longer be full members may also choose to become floor affiliates.

   

Acceptance of Members

Applications for membership are reviewed by the board on a case-by-case basis. Applications must be reviewed at an open board meeting whose time and purpose must be announced to the floor with at least 48 hours' advance notice. Any floor member may attend this meeting and may speak on the topic of granting membership. If at least four board members vote in favor of an applicant, that applicant is granted membership. As with any board decision, a membership acceptance decision can be overridden by a floor vote following the proper procedure.

A resident floor member who plans to move off the floor must declare his or her intentions for continued membership to the board before he or she leaves the floor. He or she may chose between non-resident membership, affiliate status, or no association with CIF.

Acceptance of Floor Affiliates

Floor Dues

Floor members who cannot pay their dues must request a waiver or reduction from the board and provide a reason for the request. The request is granted if a majority of the board approves it. If the request is not granted, the member who requested it must pay the full dues for the semester. A floor member who does not pay dues by the deadline, and who either does not make such a request to the board or has been turned down for such a request is placed on probation.

Elections and Officers

Nominations

Requirements for nomination:

• The candidate must be a floor member who is planning to live on the floor for the next two semesters
• The candidate must not be nominated for any other board position (a candidate may decline a previously accepted nomination to accept a nomination for a different position)
• If elected, the candidate must live on floor during both semesters of his or her candidacy

Candidates may campaign for office during the week between nominations and elections if they so choose. No floor funds may be used for campaign purposes.

Elections

The procedure for elections shall be as follows: Each candidate shall be allowed five minutes to individually address the floor. Each candidate will then be allowed five minutes to individually accept questions from the floor. Officers shall be elected in the following order: Chair, Membership Director, Community Relations Director, Technology Director, Secretary-Treasurer. Voting will take place after all candidates of all positions have spoken.

New officers start their term at the beginning of the spring semester and their term lasts for one full year.

Officer Duties

Chair of the Board

To ensure consistency of representation, the Chair shall be the primary and default representative to any external individual or organization (``parties''). If required by an external party, the board shall appoint floor members as additional representatives to that party, if the appointments are approved by a vote of the floor. If the board feels that another officer can better represent the floor to an external party, the Chair shall appoint that officer to serve as the primary representative. Representatives shall report to the board the proceedings of any meeting in which they represent CIF. If minutes were taken at a meeting, they shall be furnished to the board. Representatives cannot enter into agreements with or make commitments to external parties on CIF's behalf without first receiving board approval.

The Chair shall act as the floor's contact with the Office of Residential Life. He or she shall ensure the fulfillment of requirements set forth in the Expectations for Excellence, by making sure that each board member is aware of and able to fulfill those requirements for which he or she is responsible.

The Chair acts as CIF's nonvoting representative to the hall council, and cannot hold any formal office within the hall council.

The Chair calls and presides over meetings of both the board and the floor. At least one board meeting and one floor meeting must be held each month while school is in session. All meetings must be called with at least 48 hours' notice. The Chair has control over any floor committee that is not specifically under the jurisdiction of another officer. The Chair forms such committees and is responsible for seeing that they accomplish their goals.

The Chair must have advance board approval before he or she may assume any power or responsibility for floor affairs that is not explicitly mentioned in this constitution.

The Chair shall proactively monitor the board to ensure that all officers are fulfilling their duties. If the Chair finds that an officer is not fulfilling his or her duties, the Chair shall take steps to rectify the situation.

Membership Director

The Membership Director is responsible for updating and maintaining the various membership and affiliate files and mailing lists. the information should include but not be limited to: name, date accepted, contact information, and housing eligibility.

The Membership Director is primarily responsible for generating new membership (recruitment) and coordinating the application process.

The Membership Director is responsible for scheduling floor events, advising floor members on planning such events, and aggregating floor interest.

The Membership Director is responsible for coordinating the housing process in the spring semester, in conjunction with the rest of the board.

Recruitment

At the beginning of the spring semester, the Membership Director must survey all residents to see who is tentatively planning on retaining residency. With that information, he or she will set a tentative goal on a number of applicants for residency for the following year.

With the assistance of the rest of the board, the Membership Director shall plan social events (open to the general student body) to encourage non- members to join, or at least learn more about CIF.

Application Process

The Membership Director is responsible for contacting an applicant when an application for membership is submitted. He or she should inform the applicant of the procedures and timeframe for how their application will be processed. The Membership Director is also responsible for contacting the applicant when an application has been approved or rejected.

Community Relations Director

The Community Relations Director shall oversee and publicize events open to the public, designed to benefit the Towers or University communities and promote awareness of the floor.

As the recruitment process involves reaching out to the community to gain new members, the Community Relations Director shall work with the Membership Director to plan and implement recruitment.

The Community Relations Director is responsible for coordinating CIF events with R.A. programs; he or she does not have any authority over the R.A.'s programming, but is responsible for working with the R.A. to ensure that conflicts do not arise. The Community Relations Director may not schedule an event for a time that conflicts with any already-scheduled R.A. event.

The Community Relations Director should also organize regular, ongoing activities, such as study breaks and birthday celebrations.

When a person or group of people suggests an event or activity, the Community Relations Director schedules it into the floor's social calendar and organizes an initial planning meeting among the people who suggested it, as well as anyone else who wants to contribute to the planning. While the Community Relations Director is responsible for initiating the planning of an activity and scheduling it on the social calendar, the group who proposed it is responsible for seeing that something actually gets done. After the initial meeting, the Community Relations Director should serve as an advisor to the planners; the Community Relations Director is in charge of subsequent planning and organizing only if the group requests it, and he or she is so inclined.

The Community Relations Director is responsible for keeping the floor informed about the social calendar; publicity for specific events is the responsibility of those planning them.

Technology Director

Secretary-Treasurer

The Secretary-Treasurer records the decisions made at board meetings and floor meetings, and reports those decisions to the floor as a whole. This may be done via electronic mail utilizing the minutes@cif and floor@cif e-mails.

The Secretary-Treasurer is responsible for the keeping of CIF records. Written and printed records will be stored in a filing cabinet in the CIF computing lab. Such records for the current semester may be temporarily stored in the Secretary- Treasurer's room for convenient access. If the Secretary-Treasurer chooses to temporarily store the current semester's records in his or her room, they must make the records available to any member who requests to see them.

E-mail correspondence and other electronic-media records will be stored in a designated directory on Roundtable. Those in charge of administrating that directory may decide how this will be implemented.

The Secretary-Treasurer is responsible for keeping the master membership list, a list of all current members. This should include each member's name,

participation points, housing points, the date membership started, and relevant contact information. A similar but separate list of all current CIF affiliates, the master affiliate list, should also be kept by the Secretary-Treasurer.

The Secretary-Treasurer is responsible for collecting dues from floor members. Floor members may pay their dues in the form of receipts for improvements to floor, if and only if they clear it in advance with the Secretary-Treasurer.

The Secretary-Treasurer may authorize expenditures of up to $25 at his or her discretion; however, at least two other board members must be notified of the expenditure within one week, or before the next such expenditure (whichever is sooner). If the Secretary-Treasurer fails to provide such timely notification, his or her power to spend money without getting board approval in advance may be revoked by a majority vote of the board (the Secretary-Treasurer does not vote in this decision).

The approval of three board members is required to authorize expenditures up to $100, except for those under $25 which are left to the Secretary-Treasurer’s discretion. Expenditures of more than $100 must be approved by a vote of the entire floor.

The Secretary-Treasurer should create a budget based on the prior semester’s expenditures and present it to the board at the second board meeting of the semester.

This budget should be created by the Secretary-Treasurer who was in office during the semester that the expenditures took place. The budget will include a summary of how CIF dues were spent and to give an idea on how much money will be spent in the current semester.

Floor Committees

The board must then announce the formation of the new committee to the floor and call for volunteers to serve on the committee. Those who volunteer to serve on the committee must then arrange a time for an initial meeting, during which they will elect a committee chair and determine the procedures and schedule for the committee to accomplish its goals. In the time between the initial creation of the committee and the initial meeting the person who proposed its creation will be temporarily appointed as committee chair for the purpose of organizing the initial meeting.

The committee chair will also serve as liaison between the new committee, the Board, and the Floor as a whole. By default the committee chair is responsible for these duties, but he or she may delegate these responsibilities to another member of that committee. The committee chair (or delegate) will be required to report the status of the committee at a Board meeting at least once a month as well as any other time that involves a matter needing approval by the Board. It is up to the discretion of the Board how much freedom each committee has to act on its own without requiring Board approval.

Interest and Informational Meetings

The person who called the interest or informational meeting presides over the meeting. Discussion is limited to the announced topic. A vote of those present may be held only on the announced topic. Decisions made at an interest or informational meeting are not binding for the floor as a whole.

Floor Meetings

Floor meetings may be called in two ways:

1. The Chair may call a floor meeting for the default time with at least 48 hours' advance notice.
2. One-quarter of the members may sign a petition calling for a floor meeting to be held at any time (not just the default time) with at least 48 hours' advance notice.

When a floor meeting is held, the Chair presides over the meeting. If the Chair is unable to attend the meeting, the next officer in the order of succession presides over the meeting as acting Chair. Each officer (and the R.A.) is given an opportunity to report on current developments and plans within his or her domain.

A quorum for floor meetings will consist of one-half of the members. A quorum is required for any floor vote. A proposal is approved by a floor vote if a quorum is present at a floor meeting and a majority of those present vote in favor of the proposal.

If a floor member is not present for three consecutive floor meetings then that member will lose voting privileges until they have attended three consecutive floor meetings. A member who has lost voting privileges neither counts for quorum nor counts for the total number of members when calculating quorum.

Board Meetings

Board meetings may be called in three ways:

1. The Chair may call a board meeting for the default time with at least 48 hours' advance notice.
2. Any two board members may call a board meeting for the default time with at least 48 hours' advance notice.
3. A board meeting may be called for any time (not just the default time) if all board members agree to it.

The Chair will notify the floor of the times and locations of planned board meetings. A quorum for board meetings will consist of all five board members. A quorum is required for any board vote.

If a board meeting is called and any board member is absolutely unable to attend, then the meeting must be rescheduled to take place within one week of the time for which it was originally called. The meeting will take place at the next default time for board meetings unless all board members agree on another time. A board meeting may be delayed in this manner only once.

If four board members agree that the decisions made at a board meeting should remain confidential, then the notes taken by the Secretary-Treasurer at that meeting must be placed in the floor's filing cabinet in a sealed envelope clearly marked ``NOT TO BE OPENED UNTIL mm/dd/yy'', where mm/dd/yy is the date four years after the date on which the meeting was held.

Floor attendance at board meetings is never required, but encouraged. All planned board meetings are designated ``open'' board meetings by default, meaning that any members may attend.

If a majority of board members feel there is sufficient reason to ``close'' a board meeting in process, the meeting will be considered ``closed'' and non-board members must leave. Before they are asked to leave, a reason must be given to the non-board members present for the meeting being closed.

Decisions made at ``closed'' board meetings must still be reported to floor, unless confidentiality is invoked.

Overriding Board and Board Member Decisions

If any board member wishes to dispute a decision or action made by another board member, he or she may take either of two actions:

1. Call a board meeting (in conjunction with another board member) to discuss the issue and call for a vote to override the decision or action in question.
2. Have a majority of the board members sign a petition to override the decision or action in question.

When taking either of these actions, the board member must specifically describe the issue in question as well as his or her position on that issue. If a majority of the board does not agree to sign such a petition or attend such a meeting, then the decision or action cannot be overridden.

If such a vote or petition receives the support of a majority of the board, the board member whose decision or action is being overridden may take one of two actions:

1. Comply with the decision of the board within one day.
2. Circulate a petition to call a floor meeting at which to present his or her view and call for a floor vote. The board member must collect the signatures of one-quarter of the members within one day, and must comply with the decision of the board if he or she fails to gather enough signatures.

If such a floor meeting is called and a quorum is not present for the meeting, then those members who are present may elect to postpone the meeting; three-quarters of those present must vote for postponement, and such a meeting may be postponed only once for at most one week. If there is no quorum and there is no successful vote to postpone the meeting, then the board's decision is upheld and the board member who called the meeting is required to comply with it.

If such a floor meeting is called and a quorum is present, a majority vote of those present is required to overrule the board's decision to override the board member. If the board's decision is overruled, then the board member is not required to comply with it.

Any member who disagrees with a decision made by the board can call for a floor vote at a floor meeting. If such a floor vote is called and a quorum is present, a majority vote of those present is required to override the board's decision. Any board decision can be overridden by a floor vote in this manner.

Resignation

Impeachment

A vote of impeachment is held at a floor meeting; the usual rules governing floor meetings are in effect, and all board members must be allowed to speak. The board member who is the subject of the impeachment vote may not preside over the meeting; if necessary, the next board member in the order of succession presides over the meeting. The vote of impeachment is successful if a simple majority of the members (not only a simple majority of those present) vote to impeach the board member in question. A successful impeachment vote must be followed immediately by nominations for candidates to fill the vacancy, unless a board member-elect already exists for the position who is not the same individual who was just impeached. In this case, the board member- elect fills the vacancy, otherwise, a special election is then held one week later according to the usual election rules.

Resolving Resignation or Impeachment

1. Chair
2. Membership Director
3. Community Relations Director
4. Technology Director
5. lastly, Secretary-Treasurer

If the Chair resigns or is impeached then the next board member in the order of succession will take on his or her responsibilities and be the acting Chair until a special election can be held. If this board member also resigns or is impeached then the next available board member will become the acting Chair until a special election can be held. If any board member other than the Chair resigns or is impeached then the Chair is responsible for the duties of that board member until a special election can be held. The Chair may choose to delegate these responsibilities to another board member at his or her discretion.

It should be noted that if the Secretary-Treasurer is impeached, the votes in the special election are counted by the Chair.

If a new Technology Director is chosen in a special election, he or she may not submit a new lab and computing staff proposal.

If a board member resigns or is impeached within the last week of classes during the spring semester, a special election to fill the vacancy is not held until the fall. Nominations for the vacancy must take place within the first 2 weeks of the fall semester, followed by an election one week later.

In the case of a special election to fill a vacancy in a board position, current board members are eligible to be nominated without resigning from their current position. However, if a current board member accepts a nomination, he or she is bound by the acceptance of that nomination to fill the new position (to which they have been nominated) if they are elected, without exception.

Room Assignments

• 2 points for each semester they have been a dues paying member of CIF with 2/3 or more of the total participation points for the semester.
• 1.5 points for each semester they have been an active at the University with a maximum of eight semesters. Students will still be credited for semesters spent abroad. If a student transfers to the University from another college then he or she will be credited 1 point per semester at the other institution and may not receive credit for more than eight semesters total between the colleges.
• 0.5 points for the winner of the Nauticock Award

Members with the most points receive the highest priority when rooms are assigned. If a group of people wish to live together, their total points are combined to determine their priority in room assignment.

All groups of people that wish to live together must fit into one of two size/gender configurations. A suite must contain six members, with at least two people of the same gender who agree to live in the double. A center double pair must contain four members of the same gender. (This section is specific to CIF's location and ResLife's policies. It must be updated in the case that CIF moves from the third floor of Anderson Tower, or that gender configuration rules are changed.)

In the event of a tie, the priority of individuals or groups with the same number of points, special tie breaking points are calculated and compared. Tie-breaking points are as follows:

• 3 points for each semester a person has lived with a roommate in a double
• 2 points for each semester a person has been a non-resident member

Housing points for all members must be tabulated by the Membership Director by two weeks before the housing due date. These numbers must then be verified, recorded and posted to all members by the Secretary-Treasurer within 48 hours. If any member disputes their posted points, they should address it to the board within 48 hours.

Selection of New Resident Members

Participation Points

• 1 point for attending an event (such as a floor meeting, CIFnic, CIFgiving, CIF classes, parties, etc.) For an event to count for participation points it must be announced with 72 hours notice.
• 1 point for actively participating in a committee (this is determined by the chairperson of the committee. The board is considered to be a committee and the Chair makes this decision. This implies that the chair of a committee chooses whether or not to award themselves the point, which is fair because the chair is an elected position and can be impeached)

Nauticock Award

Conduct, Discipline and Status Change of Floor Members

Probation

Members who are on probation are expected to attend all floor meetings and floor activities or else give a good reason for their absence. Members who are on probation but who fail to comply with the rules of probation will face expulsion. Those members of the lab and computing staff who are responsible for system administration may also have computer accounts locked at their own discretion; however, they must inform the board that they have done so as soon as possible. If the board disagrees with the decision to lock a floor member's account(s), the system administrators should comply with the board's decision if possible. A floor member who has had his or her account(s) locked is not necessarily on probation.

A unanimous board has the power to tell system administrators to lock a member's account(s) in the case of a member who is suspected of computer- related misdeeds (breach of user agreement or criminal). If a board member is the person suspected of such misdeeds, they are not considered a board member for any discussion/votes on the matter.

Expulsion

If the member offers an explanation of his or her actions to the board, then the board must hold a vote to decide if the explanation is acceptable. If four board members vote that the explanation is not sufficient, then the floor member in question is expelled from CIF.

Any member who remains on probation for an entire semester is brought to a hearing at a floor meeting where the member on probation offers an explanation of his or her actions.

The floor will vote on whether or not the member should be expelled from CIF. If a two-thirds majority of the total CIF membership vote in favor of the amendment, then the member is expelled from CIF. (In the case that the number of members is not divisible by three, the two-thirds majority must be rounded up to the nearest whole person.)

A member who has been expelled must be notified of his or her expulsion in person by the Chair. If the expulsion decision was made by the board, then the Chair must ask the member if he or she wishes to appeal the decision to the floor because as with any board decision it can be overridden by a floor vote following the proper procedure. If he or she does not wish to appeal the decision, his or her membership is immediately terminated. If he or she does wish to appeal the decision, this appeal must be made at the next floor meeting. If the appeal is unsuccessful, membership is terminated at the end of that floor meeting. In the case that a resident member is expelled from membership status for any reason, they are expected to move off floor in a timely manner. The individual in question must contact the Office of Residential Life about applying for a room change. The Chair is responsible for communicating and coordinating with the Residential Life Area Director.

In the case that a member has had their membership status revoked for any reason before the middle of a semester, their current semester's dues will be refunded.

Withdrawal

In the case that a member decided to withdraw from their membership status for any reason before the middle of a semester, their current semester's dues will be refunded.

Procedures for Constitutional Amendment and Ratification

Temporary Amendment

Amendment

Any floor member may draft and propose an amendment to the constitution. An amendment must be drafted before it is officially proposed as an amendment to the constitution. During a floor meeting, the floor member may propose the amendment, explain why they think the amendment is necessary and call for a vote on that amendment at the next floor meeting.

If a two-thirds majority of the total CIF membership vote in favor of the amendment, then the amendment passes. (In the case that the number of members is not divisible by three, the two-thirds majority must be rounded up to the nearest whole person.)

Ratification

• the members of the Computer Interest Floor
• the Area Director for Residential Life
• the floor's Staff Advisor in Information Technology Services

After two weeks a vote will be held at a floor meeting. If three-quarters of the total CIF membership vote in favor of the new constitution, it is considered ratified.

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