UIC Biomedical Engineering Society Constitution

Article I. Name
This organization shall be known as the University of Illinois at Chicago Biomedical Engineering Society, hereinafter called the "chapter" which shall have been granted a charter by the Biomedical Engineering Society.

Article II. Objectives
The object of the chapter shall be to promote the profession of biomedical engineering through the organized effort of this group in study, research, and discussion of the fields of biomedical engineering and the dissemination of knowledge thereby gained. The chapter shall promote membership in the chapter by acquainting the student body with the ideas, purposes, and objectives of biomedical engineering.

Article III. Membership
3.1 Any person who is a registered student enrolled in an undergraduate college curriculum in engineering, engineering technology, or pre-medicine, which culminate in a bachelor's or associate's degree, or in any graduate level degree program which will enhance professional competence, and who is also a Student member in good standing of BMES is eligible for membership in the student chapter.

3.2 All members of the student chapter are subject to the Constitution and Bylaws of the Biomedical Engineering Society.

3.3 All requirements must meet the Board of Trustee's policies regarding nondiscrimination on the basis of race, religion, sex, or national origin.

3.4 Additional eligibility requirements of new members include completion of the national BMES membership form, the payment of national BMES dues, and all members are expected to make their best effort to attend all general meetings. A new applicant who has been expelled may not reapply for one year from the date of the expulsion.
3.5 A member may be expelled for any of the following reasons: Poor attendance at general body meetings, lack of involvement in BMES activities, inappropriate use of BMES materials and funds, and general misconduct.

3.5.1 A recommendation for expulsion can be made by any BMES member in good standing, and it shall be made directly to the president. If the president deems the recommendation legitimate, the expulsion shall be discussed in an open forum at the next general meeting. Once all arguments have been voiced, the members present shall vote by secret ballot. For the member to be expelled, a majority vote (50% + 1) must be reached.

3.6 There shall be two levels of membership: officers and associate members. Further membership levels shall be delineated as needed as the society grows, and as further modifications are made to the Constitution.

3.6.1 Officers: the role of an officer is defined in Constitution Article V and Bylaws Article VI.

3.6.2 Associate members: all BMES members in good standing who are not officers are considered associate members.

 

Article IV. Student Council
The chapter is classified as a professional organization and is to be registered with the appropriate College and/or University Student Council. The chapter is directly represented in the Student Council and Council decisions shall be binding upon this organization as long as they are not in any way conflicting with the BMES Constitution and Bylaws.

Article V. Officers
5.1 There shall be four officers of the chapter: President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer.

5.2 The officers of the chapter shall be elected in the manner prescribed by the Bylaws of the chapter. They shall hold office for a period of one year if possible.

Article VI. Constitution
This Constitution may be amended by a three-fourths vote of the members present at any regular or special meeting, provided that written notice of the amendments have been posted on the Biomedical Engineering Bulletin Board (or other appropriate notice board) at least ten days prior to the date of the meeting. Upon passage, an amendment should be submitted to the Society headquarters.

Chapter Bylaws
Article I. Dues
1.1 The annual dues for the national BMES for Student members have been established at $25.

1.2 The chapter membership shall be authorized to suggest voluntary contribution to the chapter treasury; beyond the amount collected as national dues. This amount shall not be remitted by the chapter members to the national Society, but shall be given directly to the chapter treasury for use by the chapter.

1.3 Student applications for membership are evaluated at Society headquarters. Students will be individually notified of their acceptance for BMES membership.

Article II. Nominations
2.1 At least two meetings (or ten weeks) prior to the scheduled election meeting, the President shall appoint three seniors to the Nominating Committee.

2.2 The Nominating Committee will prepare a ballot consisting of at least one member for each office. Permission of the candidates to have their names on the ballot will be obtained.

2.3 At the last meeting before the annual election meeting, the Nominating Committee will make known the ballot. At this meeting additional nominations will be accepted from the floor and included on the ballot.

Article III. Elections
3.1 To be qualified to run for any of the officer positions, a member must have been a member of the BMES in good standing for at least one year and meet the criteria for membership as described in Article III of the Constitution.

3.2 Elections should be held in February.

3.3 New officers shall take office on March 1 and continue through February 28 of the following year.

3.4 Special meetings will be called to elect new officers to fill any vacancies which may occur, provided that written notice of this meeting, its purpose, and office to be filled has been posted on the Biomedical Engineering Bulletin Board at least 10 days prior to the date of such a meeting.

3.5 No student officer shall be elected to office if graduating before completing at least one-half year in office.

3.6 No officer may hold a particular office for more than one year.

3.7 A majority vote of all members present shall be necessary to elect an officer. A vote is considered only if it is made by a current member of the BMES who is in good standing.

3.8 All elections shall be by secret ballot.

3.9 Impeachment of any officer may be accomplished only upon presentation of just and reasonable cause for such action to the Faculty Advisor of the chapter and, upon the Faculty Advisor's approval, with a two-thirds vote of all enrolled members of the chapter, subject to review by the BMES national office.

Article IV. Meetings
4.1 The chapter shall hold regular monthly meetings each month during the school year, with the exact date determined by the officers.

4.2 Special meetings may be called by any officer or by any current BMES member. Should a special meeting be requested by an associate member, the request should be made directly to the president. It is then the president's decision to call the meeting based on the associate member's request. If a special meeting is called, it should be held no earlier than 10 days after the initial request. Efforts to inform all society members should include, but are not limited to, posting the meeting on the Biomedical Engineering Bulletin Board or other acceptable alternatives.

4.3 A quorum shall consist of a simple majority of all current BMES members in good standing. For special meetings, a quorum may defined within the meeting request. Notice of all meetings shall be posted on the Biomedical Engineering (or other appropriate) Bulletin Board at least ten days prior to the date of the meeting, and may be further publicized in any manner the Publicity Committee deems necessary and proper.

Article V. Programs
5.1 Regular monthly meetings each month shall be devoted primarily to the profession of biomedical engineering and may be accomplished in connection with a dinner or refreshments.

5.2 A field trip may be scheduled in lieu of a regular monthly meeting.

5.3 At least one field trip shall be scheduled each academic year and must be supervised by the Faculty Advisor.

5.4 Social functions may not be scheduled in lieu of a regular monthly meeting.

Article VI. Duties of Officers
6.1 The President, and Chief Executive of the organization, shall supervise the organization's affairs and activities. The President is the executive administrative, presiding and reporting officer. The President shall be responsible for public relations, publicity, and promotion of the organization's activities. The President will appoint a representative to the Joint Engineering Council at the university, if one exists, and will work with the Faculty Advisor and Society national office in all council and Society matters.

6.2 The Vice President, who shall preside at the meetings in absence of the President, shall also supervise membership promotion. The Vice President may be the appointed representative to the Joint Engineering Council. The Vice President's primary responsibility will be program planning and execution.

6.3 The Secretary shall be responsible for posting of all regular and special meetings and shall keep a permanent record (minutes) of such meetings. The Secretary shall be responsible for maintaining a current roster of members and for timely communications with the Society national office. The Secretary will be responsible for maintaining a continuous Post Office Box address (or other permanent chapter address) and checking it frequently for correspondence.

6.4 The Treasurer shall be responsible for the financial records of the organization, for the disbursement of funds at the direction of the membership (by vote) and with the approval of the Faculty Advisor, and for reporting in detail when requested by the membership. Income will be received through income producing functions approved by the membership and Faculty Advisor.

Article VII. Handling of Funds
7.1 The organization's on-campus C.O.F. account will by managed primarily by the Treasurer.

7.2 The registration form will indicate to University staff which officers are authorized to sign what types of documents concerning funds.

7.3 All monies collected on campus, with the exception of dues, MUST BE DEPOSITED into the organization's C.O.F. account

Article VIII. Awards Program
The chapter shall encourage its qualified members to apply for the Young Investigator Award, Graduate Student Awards, and Undergraduate Design Awards, sponsored by the BMES.

Article IX. Committees
9.1 There shall be four standing committees: executive, programs, chapter development and membership, and constitution and bylaws. The committees shall consist from two to five members of the chapter.

9.2 The President shall appoint the Chair of the standing committee, and, with the approval of the Chair, shall appoint the members of the respective committees. The Vice President shall be Chair of the Program Committee and serve ex officio.

9.3 The President shall determine and appoint any additional committees deemed necessary and proper to fulfill the objectives of the organization.

Article X. Rules of Order
Robert's Rules of Order, Revised, shall govern the proceedings of all meetings for the organization and its committees.

Article XI. Faculty Advisor
11.1 The Faculty Advisor shall be appointed annually by the Chapter/Department/University.

11.2 The Faculty Advisor must be an Associate member, Member, or Senior member of the Society. He/she shall serve the chapter and the BMES as an intermediary and a resource person.

11.3 The Faculty Advisor shall be a full-time faculty or academic staff member at UIC.

Article XII. Amendment
12.1 Amendments and revisions may be proposed by any BMES member in good standing. Proposals for amendments and revisions should be made directly to either the president or the Constitution and Bylaws committee. The proposal should be reviewed and/or revised and then submitted to a vote at the next general meeting. The Constitution shall be reviewed with outgoing and incoming officers each year or as changes occur within the organization.

12.2 These Bylaws may be amended by a three-fourths vote of the members present at any regular or special meeting, provided written notice of the proposed amendment has been posted on the Biomedical Engineering Bulletin Board at least ten days prior to the meeting.

12.3 The president shall be responsible for initiating the revision process of a newly ratified amendment or revision. The secretary shall be responsible for informing and distributing the new document to all current BMES members. Upon passage, an amendment should be submitted to the Society national office and to the Campus Programs staff.

Signatures:
Mary Mayka (president)
Nick Gierut
Nick Gruszauskas

This constitution was approved as printed above on Wednesday, June 20, 2001.

UIC BMES Constitution NCV - Created 6/20/01