Chicago Society Organizational Bylaws

Voted Upon and Enacted on 31 May 2005. Replaces Previous Bylaws of 16 May 2002.

Article I: Name

The name of this organization shall be Chicago Society (CS).

Article II: The Vision of Chicago Society

Chicago Society is a student organization at the University of Chicago dedicated to organizing special events that facilitate students’ encounters with professors and experts from around the world, outside the usual undergraduate academic container of coursework and classroom lectures. Our interdisciplinary events, ranging from informal lunches to large-scale conferences, are developed by members to connect with their own areas of interest. Through these events, Chicago Society aims to be a leader in generating campus discussions and debates among students and faculty alike. Our vision is to create imaginative forums for discussion between the world’s most interesting figures and the students of the University of Chicago.

Article III: Membership

Section 1. Membership in Chicago Society is open to all currently enrolled students of the University of Chicago.

Section 2. The members of Chicago Society, including the members of the Executive Board, shall be entrusted with realizing the Chicago Society vision. In weekly meetings, members shall brainstorm ideas for special events for the University community and they shall discuss organizing, funding, and marketing them.

Section 3. Voting privileges shall be extended to members who have attended at least fifty percent of weekly Chicago Society meetings for the previous quarter or who, by unanimous vote of the Executive Board, have been determined to have made a notable contribution to Chicago Society.

Article IV: Meetings

Section 1. The President and Executive Director shall hold weekly meetings for all Chicago Society members, during Autumn, Winter, and Spring quarters.

Section 2. The agendas of weekly meetings shall be jointly written by the President and Executive Director.

Section 3. The Executive Board shall meet on a schedule determined by the President.

Article V: Executive Board

Section 1. The Executive Board of the organization shall be composed of a President, Executive Director, Marketing Director, Finance Director, and others as determined by Section 9 of this article.

Section 2. Any member eligible to vote according to Article III Section 3 of these bylaws shall be eligible to stand for election to the positions of President and Executive Director under the condition that he or she will continue to be an enrolled student at the University of Chicago for the quarter following the elections. In the event that a candidate plans to take a leave of absence, study abroad, or graduate early, he or she is required to inform the members of Chicago Society of these plans prior to the vote. The Finance Director and Marketing Director are appointees of the President who must have the same qualifications as if they were running for office.

Section 3. The term of office for President, Executive Director, Finance Director, and Marketing Director shall be one year, from the first of May in the year of election until the thirtieth of April in the following year.

Section 4. A member of the Executive Board may resign from his or her position after submitting a letter to each remaining member of the Executive Board. Additionally, the President and Executive Director may jointly relieve an appointee of his or her responsibilities. The President may appoint a new Finance Director or Marketing Director should either of those positions become vacant. If the Executive Director or President resigns, elections shall be held within two weeks to select a replacement, subject to restrictions of the academic calendar. The highest ranking remaining member of the Executive Board shall preside over elections.

Section 5. The President shall be responsible for overseeing the Executive Board and the long-term vision, events, finances, operations, and membership of Chicago Society. The President shall be the representative of Chicago Society to external groups and event attendees, including through a quarterly Chicago Society update.

Section 6. The Executive Director shall be responsible for the recruitment and inclusion of new members into the organization, including developing new member training programs. The Executive Director shall collaborate with the President on strategic issues relevant to the group and shall join the President in performing other responsibilities as necessary.

Section 7. The Marketing Director shall direct and coordinate the organization’s brand image and maintain primary responsibility for the maintenance of the organization’s web site. He or she shall work with event organizers and interested members to develop marketing plans for each event sponsored by Chicago Society.

Section 8. The Finance Director shall be responsible for Chicago Society’s budget for all spending, under the direction of the President, including assisting members in creating budgets for their events and applying for event-specific grants from the Student Government Finance Committee and other funding sources. He or she shall keep detailed records of all Chicago Society finance activity, and shall present a summary of Chicago Society’s financial situation to the Executive Board at the last Executive Board meeting of each month.

Section 9. The President and Executive Director may delegate any of these responsibilities to other individuals at their discretion, and they may jointly decide to create additional appointed positions within the Executive Board.

Article VI: Elections and Impeachment

Section 1. Elections for the positions of President and Executive Director will be held at least one week in advance of the first day of May, when the new President and Executive Director will assume office. The outgoing President shall determine and announce the date of elections.

Section 2. One week in advance of the elections, the President shall give notice to all Chicago Society members. Those who wish to stand for election shall gather in a meeting no fewer than four days in advance of elections, in which they will form a consensus on rules for the elections.

Section 3. A motion to impeach any member of the Executive Board, including the appointed positions, may be called by any member of Chicago Society who is eligible to vote. A member wishing to move to impeach must submit a letter in writing to each member of the Executive Board requesting a hearing at the next weekly Chicago Society meeting, no fewer than 48 hours after the member to be impeached is informed of the motion. The Executive Board member will be given adequate opportunity to respond to the allegations contained in the letter and must be available for further questioning outside the room during debate on the motion. The President shall moderate the debate, or, if the President is to be removed, the highest ranking remaining Executive Board member shall preside over the elections. Votes will be taken secretly and tallied by the President and remaining member of the Council. A 3/4 majority is required for impeachment. Should the impeachment succeed, the provisions of Article V Section 4 shall be followed to replace the impeached Executive Board member.

Article VII: Handling of Funds

Section 1.All funds collected will be deposited in Chicago Society’s ORCSA account.

Section 2. The Finance Director shall retain the exclusive right to submit reimbursement request forms to the Organization of the Reynolds Club and Student Activities for any member of Chicago Society who has incurred an expense on the organization’s behalf.

Section 3. All expenditures on behalf of Chicago Society must be approved by the Executive Board.

Article VIII: Amendments

Section 1. These bylaws may be amended at any time at the request of a voting-eligible member of Chicago Society. To amend, a member must submit a proposed amendment in writing to the members of the Executive Board. A vote must be scheduled for no fewer than seven but no more than fourteen days after the submission of the amendment proposal, subject to restrictions of the academic calendar.

Section 2. A 3/4 majority in favor is required for an amendment to pass. Within fourteen days following passage of an amendment, the entire membership must be informed of the changes by email and the web site must be updated with the new bylaws.

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