Constitution of the Horticulture Club of Virginia Tech

Article I—Name

Section I: The name of this organization shall be The Horticulture Club of Virginia Tech.

Article II—Purpose

The purpose shall be to promote good fellowship and further the education and interests of horticulture by uniting those having a common interest in the field by:

Section I: Fostering, promoting, and encouraging closer professional and social relationships between faculty and students.

Section II: Presentation of current developments of horticulture.

Section III: Developing contacts with the horticulture industry.

Section IV: Encouraging the promotion of horticultural-oriented activities in the community.

Article III—Membership

Section I: Any present or former Virginia Tech student interested in horticulture may become a member of the Horticulture Club upon payment of dues.

Section II: An active member shall be defined as an individual who has paid dues for the current semester, has attempted to attend the majority of the meetings for the current semester, and who has helped with at least one activity or committee per semester excluding social events. Only active members will be sponsored for club activities and trips. The executive committee reserves the right to ask non-active members to pay additional money for club activities.

Section III: The executive committee shall set the amount for semester and yearly dues.

Article IV—Executive Committee

Section I: The executive committee shall consist of a president, a vice-president, a secretary, a treasurer, a programs chair, a social chair, a historian, a web master, and two SGA representatives.

Section II: Additional offices shall consist of Pumpkin Sale Chair, Fall Festival Chair, and Plant Sale Chair(s). Their attendance at the executive meetings will be at the discretion of the officers.

Article V—Elections

Section I: Only active student members shall be eligible to hold office. All potential candidates must be approved by the Executive Committee. Candidates should be present at the time of voting, unless a valid reason has been presented to the Executive Committee, or candidate cannot take office.

Section II: The Executive Committee shall solicit nominations from all active membership. Self nomination is possible. Potential candidates can choose which office they would like to hold.

Section III: Current officers are allowed to run for re-election for their current office of another office.

Section IV: All candidates must be approved by the Executive Committee in order to run for office. Candidates will be informed of other candidates running for the same office. If nominees chose to change their position on the slate they can do so.

Section V: It is the responsibility of the Executive Committee to fill any vacancies in the slate. The Executive Committee can suggest that a candidate change their position on the slate in order to fill a vacancy, but a candidate can not be forced to run for a different office if they choose not to.

Section VI: After the slate is full and all the candidates have been given a chance to change their position on the slate it is to be approved by the Executive Committee.

Section VII: Elections shall be by written ballot during the spring semester at a time chosen by the Executive Committee. All active members shall be given an opportunity to vote.

Section VIII: A majority vote of the active members voting shall be necessary to elect an officer. If there is no majority vote, the two candidates receiving the largest number of votes shall have a run-off election arranged by the Executive Committee.

Section IX: In the case of a tie for the highest number of votes only those candidates will run in a run-off election. If there is a tie for the second number of votes but not for the first and there is no majority vote then all candidates for the highest and second highest number of votes shall participate in the run-off election.

Section X: If there is a tie or no majority vote in the run-off election then a vote will be taken by the Executive Committee and the advisors to decide the winner. The decision made by the Executive Committee is final.

Section XI: Vacancies in any additional offices such as committee chairs or SGA representatives shall be filled by the Executive Committee in any way that the Executive Committee deems. This can be done by appointment or election by the Executive Committee or the Horticulture Club.

Article VI—Monetary Affairs

Section I: The budget for the club must be approved by the Executive Committee and presented to the active club members.

Section II: The treasurer is responsible for the recording and handling of financial actions, presenting the club a beginning budget by the third scheduled Horticulture Club meeting of the year. The retiring treasurer is also responsible for presenting a closing budget to the newly elected treasurer.

Section III: Only the president, treasurer, or the advisors authorized to do so may withdraw funds from Horticulture Club accounts.

Section IV: The treasurer is responsible for the distribution of funds within the limits of the budget.

Section V: Any change within the approved budget shall be brought before the Executive Committee for their approval. To amend the budget a majority vote within the Executive Committee is required.

Section VI: The fiscal year for the Horticulture Club shall be for one year beginning with the first day of the spring plant sale.

Article VII—Amendments

Section I: Articles may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the active members present at a regular meeting after presentation at the previous regular meeting.

Section II: A complete copy of the current Constitution, amendments, and by-laws shall be kept available to the members online on the club website. At least one duplicate copy shall be kept by the club advisor(s).

Article VIII—Advisors

Section I: Advisor(s) will be elected by a majority vote of the Executive Committee. Advisors will serve two year terms, being elected in alternate years. Each advisor will be eligible for re-election. Staff and faculty are eligible to be nominees.

Article IX—Resignation and Impeachment

Section I: Any officer or advisor, for failure to perform the prescribed duties, may be removed from office by the initiation of the Executive Committee which brings the issue to the floor for a two-thirds vote of the active members present at any regular meeting.

Section II: Vacancy by resignation or the impeachment of an officer or advisory shall be filled by appointment made by the Executive Committee.

Article X—Awards

Section I: The Silver Key Award shall be given to an active club member for outstanding performance service to the club. Recipients of this award shall be selected by the advisors and the outgoing president. A silver key and certificate will be presented at the club's annual spring banquet along with a monetary award to be determined by the Executive Committee. A recipient may receive this award only once. Members of the Executive Committee may be considered for this award

Section II: The Senior Award shall be given to an active, outstanding, Horticulture Club Senior if there is a deserving candidate. The advisors of the club will decide if and to whom this award should be presented. This person is to be selected on the basis of service to the club, taking into account leadership ability, character, and academic standing.

Section III: Two awards, set by the executive committee, of no less than $250 may be given annually to deserving candidates each year. Scholarships to outstanding Executive Committee members and/or club members may be given out annually. The number of scholarships and the amount of money is to be determined by the Executive Committee. The recipients of these awards will be selected by the club advisors and the outgoing president based on the following criteria: participation in Horticulture Club activities, contributions to the Horticulture department, and a minimum overall GPA of a 2.5.

By-Laws

•  The president shall preside at each meeting of the club and the Executive Committee and shall perform such duties as regularly pertain to the office. The president shall also have an agenda for each club meeting to maintain organization and efficiency.

•  The vice-president shall perform all the duties of the president during the president's absence or inability to perform the duties of the office.

•  The vice-president shall be in charge of soliciting chairpersons for committees and shall chair a constitutional review at any time deemed necessary. The vice-president is also in charge of membership and promoting the club.

•  The secretary shall keep permanent club records, including minutes of the club and executive meetings, the officer list, list of members showing their addresses and telephone numbers. A copy of the meeting minutes shall be made available as soon as possible on the Horticulture Club website. The secretary shall also be responsible for supplying club information for departmental newsletters and/or the bulletin board.

•  The treasurer shall be responsible for the financial records and for the handling of funds. The treasurer shall collect club dues and keep account of all club receipts and expenditures, and shall make an account balance report at all meetings. The treasurer is responsible for presenting a beginning budget by the third scheduled Horticulture Club meeting of the year.

•  The programs chair is responsible for contacting and arranging all speakers for club meetings. The programs chair shall insure that all audio/visual equipment needed for the speaker is in place prior to the meeting, shall welcome and introduce the speaker to the club, and following the program, shall write a thank you note on behalf of the Horticulture Club to the speaker.

•  The Historian is responsible for keeping photographic record of the club's annual activities, maintaining the bulletin board in the Saunders foyer, and preparing a presentation for the spring banquet.

•  The social chair is responsible for getting all food for meetings and any other club events that call for refreshments. The social chair is also in charge of putting together the spring banquet.

•  The SGA representative(s) are responsible for attending the weekly SGA house meetings and reporting anything important/relevant back to the club as well as bringing any club issues to attention at the SGA meetings.

•  The officers shall deliver to successors in office all records and other properties entrusted to their care at the transitional executive meeting held in the spring after elections.

•  The new officers shall take office for a year's period following the spring banquet.

•  The responsibility of additional officers and chairpersons are to be decided by the Executive Committee.