Article I  Name: The name of this organization is "The History Graduate Society at the University of Florida."  [Hereinafter, "HGS"]

Article II  Purpose: The primary purposes of the HGS are to promote the study of history at the graduate level at the University of Florida, to assist current graduate students at the University of Florida Department of History in pursuing their research, education, and career goals, to foster the diffusion and publication of historical scholarship, to recognize excellence in the field of history, to encourage the exchange of historical research and scholarship, to facilitate communication and the diffusion of information among its members, and to further the professional aims of graduate students at the Department of History generally.  The HGS is organized pursuant to relevant rules of the University of Florida.  These goals shall be achieved through assistance in the publication of a scholarly journal, funding a prize or prizes for excellence in historical scholarship, maintenance of a web site, publication of an HGS newsletter, sponsorship of historical conferences, and other forms of assistance to current graduate students at the Department of History.  The HGS shall be not-for-profit or non-commercial in nature. 

Article III  Membership: Full membership shall be limited to registered students of the University of Florida Department of History.  All registered graduate students in the Department of History shall be full members of the HGS.  However, members who have been registered for less than one full semester may not vote at the annual election meeting.  Other students may be associate members.  Associate members may not hold office or vote on matters concerning the HGS.  Members are free to leave and disassociate without fear of retribution or harassment. 

Article IV  Anti-Discrimination Policy: Student Government and the HGS, including all of its members, shall not discriminate against anyone on the bases of race, ethnicity, creed, sex, color, gender, age, national origin, disAbility, religion, sexual orientation, or any other classification as provided by law.

Article V  Finance: The HGS will not and may not require members to pay dues or fees to be members of the organization.  In light of the fact that student organizations can receive student body funds only if they are registered with the University of Florida Office of Student Activities and adhere to Student Body Laws, the HGS shall maintain its registration with the University of Florida Office of Student Activities and adhere to Student Body Laws. 

Article VI  Officers:
Section 1: The officers shall be President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Past President.

Section 2: Any member of the HGS may nominate any other member to be an officer, provided the nominee has been registered for at least one full semester and intends to be in residence at the University during the relevant academic year. 

Section 3: Officers will hold office from the date of the annual election meeting until the date of the next following annual election meeting.  No officer may be re-elected to the same office which said officer held in the previous year, unless said officer has served less than one full semester in said office.  Further, the President may not be elected to any office after having served his or her term. 

Section 4: The office of Faculty Advisor is to be selected by a majority vote of the members present at the annual election meeting.  The term of the Faculty Advisor shall be coterminous with that of the HGS officers elected at the same annual election meeting.  The faculty advisor should be one whose ideals are aligned with the organization's purpose and who is willing to serve as a source of information and advice for the HGS. 

Section 5: The Faculty Advisor will support the HGS members in fulfilling the purpose of the HGS, be a resource, and represent the HGS to the community and the University of Florida as needed. 

Section 6: Roles of the officers.

Par. 1: The President is responsible for presiding over meetings and acting as the official representative of the HGS. 

Par. 2: The Vice President is responsible for presiding over meetings when the President is unable to attend and for turning in office logs if the HGS obtains office space in the Student Activities Center. 

Par. 3: The Secretary is responsible for presiding over meetings when the President and Vice President are unable to attend and for maintaining an accurate membership roster. 

Par. 4: The Treasurer is responsible for presiding over meetings when the President, Vice President, and Secretary are unable to attend, for handling funds, whether collected or distributed for formal or informal events, and for maintaining accurate records of all financial transactions. 

Par. 5: The Past President is responsible for advising the other officers on the Executive Committee. 

Par. 6: The officers collectively shall comprise the Executive Committee of the HGS, which shall be responsible for conducting the day-to-day and discretionary business of the HGS.  It shall further be the responsibility of the Executive Committee collectively, and of each Officer individually, to maintain active relations with the Executive Board of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Student Council, and to remain in accordance with Student Body Laws. 

Section 7: The impeachment of an officer can occur only when said officer has engaged in material and substantial dereliction of his or her duties.  For such an officer to be impeached, a petition signed by a simple majority of all members must be received by the officers other than the officer sought to be impeached.  A secret ballot election must then be scheduled within thirty days of the petition submission, but only during the Fall or Spring semesters, and three-quarters of all members must approve said impeachment, at which point the officer shall be removed from office. 

Article VII  Elections
Section 1: Elections of new officers will take place at the annual election meeting, which shall occur preferably in April, but in no event later than the last day of classes of the Spring semester. 

Section 2: Except as provided at Article VI, Section 3, any member can be nominated for any office, provided said member has been registered for at least one full semester and intends to be in residence at the University during the relevant academic year. 

Section 3: Members who are running for office must accept nomination and agree to faithfully discharge the duties of the office for which they are nominated.

Section 4: Officers must be elected by a simple majority of members eligible to vote and present at the annual election meeting.  The voting shall be by secret ballot.

Section 5: If an officer decides to step down from office, or is removed from office pursuant to the procedures set forth at Article VI, Section 7 above, another officer will fill the position, as decided by the remaining officers, until such time as a special election meeting can be held.  In no event shall said special election meeting be held more than thirty days after the resignation or removal, unless the resignation or removal occurs during the Spring semester, in which case no special election meeting need be held. 

Article VIII  Committees: Committees may be formed at any time, according to the needs of the HGS, as determined by a majority of the officers.  The officers shall appoint a committee chairperson who shall be responsible for recruiting volunteers for the committee.  The chairperson and the committee shall serve until the project for which the committee was formed is completed.  It is the responsibility of the chairperson to report to the Executive Committee on the progress of the committee's work.

Article IX  Meetings: Including the annual election meeting, the HGS shall hold at least two meetings each semester, which meetings shall be well publicized by the officers to the members.  The officers may also decide, by majority vote, to hold additional meetings from time to time as conditions require. 

Article X  Authority: The HGS shall conform to the regulations prescribed by the Student Guide and other laws and rules governing the University of Florida and its students.  Hazing is, by all means, prohibited.

Article XI  Amendments: Amendments to this Constitution may be suggested by any member of the HGS eligible to vote at the annual election meeting.  Said amendments shall then be voted upon, by secret ballot, and shall be approved upon receiving two-thirds of the votes. 

 

Founding Officers:

Michael Bowen, President

Mark Corell, Vice President

Matthew S.R. Bewig, Treasurer

 

Officers at time of 2006 amendments:

Matthew S.R. Bewig, President

Paul Wagner, Vice President

Nathan Herrod, Secretary

Emily Munce Casey, Treasurer

Sean Cunningham, Past President

 

Proposed changes to constitution