Constitution – MIT Polish Club

Article I: Club Identity

This club shall be called the “Polish Club.” The club may be identified as the “MIT Polish Club” or the “Polish Club at MIT” to reflect its recognition by, and the affiliation of its members with, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
The Polish Club’s signature colors are #8D8F8C, #A4A095, #C5BFB3, and #A02D2F.
The purpose of the Polish Club shall be to bring Polish culture and community to MIT’s campus by celebrating Polish holidays and traditions, fostering connections among the Polish and Slavic communities at MIT (including anyone interested in these cultures, regardless of heritage), sharing opportunities for internships and cultural engagement, and enhancing the academic presence of the Polish community at MIT by hosting lectures and similar events.

Article II: Membership

Any MIT student is eligible to become a member of this club. An MIT student who attends at least two club events over the course of the year shall immediately attain club membership. A year is defined as the time between two club elections.
1. A “club event” is defined as any event the Polish Club and its officers played a role in planning and/or carrying out, regardless of whether the Polish Club was the primary sponsor. Events merely promoted by the Polish Club or attended by its members shall not count for the purposes of this definition.
2. Elections and meetings which serve only administrative/planning functions for the club shall not count as club events. In the event of any disputes, the officer team shall decide what qualifies as a club event by a majority vote.
3. There shall be no standing general body meetings for the club. Instead, club events shall take place, at a minimum, any time a major Polish holiday is celebrated while MIT is in its fall or spring term. Club events may take place more often to celebrate holidays outside these terms, or to hold events for reasons other than the commemoration of Polish holidays.
4. If the Polish Club hosts fewer than four club events over the course of the year, the attendance requirement to attain membership shall be reduced to one club event over the course of the year.
Any member may voluntarily resign his/her membership by submitting a request (written or electronically) to any club officer. A member may be involuntarily removed for non-participation reasons only. All behavior-related matters shall be referred to the appropriate channel(s) for resolution, including, but not limited to, the Institute Discrimination & Harassment Response office, the Committee on Discipline, and the Student Organizations, Leadership, and Engagement office.
1. Individuals are encouraged to refer such matters to the appropriate channel(s) for resolution directly. In the event that a club officer receives a report of such a matter, he/she shall forward the report to the appropriate channel(s). In either case, the club shall follow the MIT administration’s directives regarding the membership of the student in question.
2. A member shall remain in good standing by attending any one club event over the course of the year. A member who fails to attend a single club event before the next club election shall be automatically removed for non-participation at the beginning of the election. If the Polish Club hosted fewer than four club events over the course of the year, this requirement is voided and anyone who was a member for the previous year shall remain a member.
3. Because the Polish Club is an MIT student club, a member who loses his/her student status at MIT (for any reason) also loses his/her club membership.
4. In the event an officer loses his or her membership in the club (whether voluntarily or involuntarily), the office shall be filled according to the vacancy procedures outlined in Article III.
The organization’s membership shall always consist of at least five MIT students. In the event there would otherwise be fewer than five MIT students, the definition of membership shall be loosened to include any MIT students signed up for the club’s mailing list. If there would still be fewer than five MIT students, the club’s officer team – including caretaker officers, if applicable – shall be tasked with immediately correcting this deficiency by recruiting their friends to join the club or recruiting students from Poland by taking advantage of the opportunity to send an introductory email to international students through MIT’s International Students Office.
MIT affiliates who are not students, as well as those not affiliated with MIT, may be recognized as participants in the club based on their contributions to the club. Such recognition is bestowed by a two-thirds majority vote of the club’s officer team.
1. Recognized participants are subject to the same participation requirement as members, as outlined in Article II, Section 2, Clause (b).
2. Recognized participants shall not be able to vote at club elections or meetings but shall receive preference for limited-attendance events. In particular, MIT students shall have priority for such events, but recognized participants shall receive priority over other MIT affiliates and non-MIT affiliates. Additionally, the officer team may restrict events to MIT students only, but may make exceptions, such as to allow recognized participants.
3. Recognized participants may have their recognition revoked by two-thirds majority vote of the club’s officer team.
The Polish Club shall never discriminate based on any characteristic listed in MIT’s Nondiscrimination Statement.
Monetary dues shall never be a requirement for membership in the club.

Article III: Officers

The organization shall have a minimum of two officers. If it ever does not, it shall be governed by a Caretaker Government in accordance with Article V instead. The officer roles shall be elected and ranked in the order their respective sections appear in this article, and in the event of a vacancy, each officer below the vacancy shall ascend to the officer position ranked immediately above his or her role.
Each officer shall be a currently enrolled MIT student and must intend to keep this status for the duration of his or her term. If an officer loses this status, the position shall be vacated.
The club shall have a President, who is the official representative of the group to any other organization, and to MIT.
1. The President shall decide when officer meetings occur and shall preside over all officer meetings in accordance with (in decreasing order of priority) ASA regulations, this constitution, this club’s bylaws (if adopted by the officer team), and Robert’s Rules of Order.
2. In the event of an unfilled vacancy in the Secretary position, the President shall also assume the responsibilities of this position.
3. Two students may be elected to fulfill the responsibilities of President as co-Presidents. If this occurs, one such student shall be listed as President for ASA purposes, and if necessary, the other as Treasurer. There shall otherwise be no difference between these positions, except that the student listed as President shall primarily fulfill the duties of the President and Secretary and the student listed as the Treasurer shall primarily fulfill the duties of the Vice President and Treasurer if it was necessary to list one of the co-Presidents as Treasurer. In any case, each co-President shall receive one officer vote.
The club should have a Vice President, who shall fulfill the duties of the President in his or her absence, and any other such duties delegated to him or her.
1. In the event of an unfilled vacancy in the Treasurer position, the Vice President shall also assume the responsibilities of this position.
2. If only one student is serving as President, two students may be elected as co-Vice Presidents. If necessary, one such student shall be listed as the Treasurer for ASA purposes. There shall otherwise be no difference between these positions, and each co-Vice President shall receive one officer vote.
The club shall have a Treasurer, who shall be responsible for the finances of the group, and must approve all disbursements from the group’s accounts, including reimbursements to members. He or she is also responsible for applying for funding through the ASA and GSC.
The club should have a Secretary, who shall maintain the club’s website and social media account(s), takes attendance at club events, and keeps record of meetings and elections.
The officer team may establish other official positions as needed. These positions may be established or revoked by a two-thirds majority of the officer team, and such positions have officer voting rights.
1. Each position established in accordance with this procedure shall be considered vacant upon establishment and may be filled in accordance with the procedure for special elections outlined in Article IV. They may also be filled at each future election as with any other position, unless and until the position is revoked.
2. The officer team, upon establishment of the position or modification by two-thirds majority vote, shall determine the priority of these other official positions, but at no point may any such position outrank the President, Vice President, Treasurer, or Secretary.
Any officer may voluntarily resign his/her position by submitting a request (written or electronically) to the other officers. An officer may be removed from his/her position involuntarily for reasons including, but not limited to, ethical concerns, failure to carry out his/her duties, or the club membership’s dissatisfaction with the officer’s performance. Upon an officer’s removal or resignation, the position shall be filled in accordance with the vacancy procedure outlined in Section 1 of this article.
1. An officer shall stand for removal proceedings upon petition by 20% of the club’s membership. This petition shall be submitted to the full officer team, including the officer named in the petition. The officer team shall then determine, by majority vote, a time (within ten class days of the date of the petition’s submission) and place on MIT’s campus for the proceedings and provide all members at least one week’s notice. Class days are defined as days in which MIT has scheduled classes during the fall or spring semesters.
2. The President shall preside over all removal proceedings. In the event the President is standing for removal proceedings, the highest-ranking officer after the President shall preside. An officer standing for removal proceedings shall have the opportunity to speak – or to designate someone else to speak on behalf of him or her – after every speech advocating for his or her removal and shall be granted an equal amount of speaking time for such speeches.
3. An officer may only be removed by two-thirds vote of the members present at the removal proceedings, and these members must constitute at least one-third of the club’s total membership.
The officer team may, by majority vote, appoint non-voting officers. These officers need not be MIT students and may be removed by majority vote of the officer team.

Article IV: Elections

Officers shall be elected for terms lasting until the next annual election. Elections shall take place on MIT’s campus at the club’s annual Constitution Day event on, or within seven calendar days before or after, May 3. The officer team may vote to move the club election to another day in May by two-thirds majority.
The outgoing President shall preside over the election of all positions, which shall take place in the ranked order of the officer positions. Everyone running for office shall be given equal time to speak and equal opportunity to answer any question fielded from the audience.
Any MIT student member is eligible to vote. Any such member is also eligible to run for office as long as he or she intends to remain an MIT student for the next year. If a position would otherwise remain vacant, an MIT student who is not a club member may run for the position, and if elected, will immediately attain club membership.
Elections shall take place by ranked-choice (instant-runoff) voting.
New officers shall take office immediately upon conclusion of the club election.

Article V: Caretaker Governments

In the event that fewer than two MIT students are serving as officers, a Caretaker Government shall be established.
A caretaker President and caretaker Treasurer shall be elected in accordance with Article IV and shall have the sole responsibility of ensuring the club maintains all requirements for continued ASA recognition.
Should there be sufficient interest in MIT students carrying out the duties of each officer role, the caretaker President and Treasurer shall decide on a time and place for a snap election to be held (within twenty class days and on MIT’s campus) but otherwise in accordance with Article IV.

Article VI: Amendments and ASA Supremacy

Amendments may be proposed by any member at an election or, upon petition by 20% of the club’s membership, at a convention within twenty class days.
Amendments may be ratified by three-quarters majority vote of the members present. Unless the amendment takes place at a club election, those voting in favor of the amendment must constitute at least one-half of the club membership. Upon endorsement by two-thirds of the club’s officers, the voting requirement may be lowered to a two-thirds majority, but it must still constitute at least one-half of the club membership if the vote does not take place at a club election. There is no minimum voting requirement if the vote to amend takes place at an election.
The Polish Club agrees to abide by the rules and regulations of the Association of Student Activities (ASA), and its executive board. This constitution, amendments to it, and the by-laws of this organization shall be subject to review by the ASA Executive Board to ensure that they are in accordance with the aforementioned rules and regulations.

Article VII: Ratification

This constitution shall be considered ratified upon the club’s recognition by the ASA.
Upon ratification, the President and Treasurer listed on the club’s ASA recognition application shall serve as the acting President and acting Treasurer, with the responsibility of completing Newly Recognized Student Organization Registration no later than the deadline set by the ASA.
A snap election in accordance with Article V shall take place within twenty class days of the club’s completion of Newly Recognized Student Organization Registration. The acting President and acting Treasurer shall also assume the typical responsibilities of the caretaker President and caretaker Treasurer in planning and carrying out this snap election, and all MIT students listed as members in the club’s ASA recognition application shall be considered members at the time of the club’s ratification, including at the snap election.
At the snap election, the acting President and acting Treasurer are committed to running for the offices of President (or co-President) and Treasurer (or an office which carries the responsibilities of the Treasurer in the event of a vacancy in the Treasurer role), respectively; however, any other member may also run.