CJO Constitutional guidelines

 

ARTICLE 1: Name

            The name of this organization shall be the Criminal Justice Organization (acronym: CJO)

 

ARTICLE 2: Membership

            Section 1: Membership shall be open to all Rutgers University students and must comply with federal laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, sex, disability, age, sexual orientation, or political and religious affiliation. Compliance with these laws means that membership, benefits, and the election of officers will not be made on the basis of these factors.

           

            Section 2: The organization shall abide by all applicable laws of the state of New Jersey and the United States.

 

            Section 3: The organization shall abide by all applicable rules and regulations of the University and under the privileges as granted by the SAO and the Dean of Students, along with those of the Board of Governors, University and the College.

 

ARTICLE 3: Officers

            Section I: The officers of the organization are elected to carry out the purposes of the CJO. Each officer is responsible for knowing the Constitution of the CJO and the duties of his/her particular office.

 

            President: The President presides at all meetings of the association and executive board. It is the responsibility of the President to conduct all meetings impartially and to protect each member's rights.

 

            Vice President: The Vice President shall conduct all reponsibilities of the Presidental position if for any reason the President is unable to do so. The Vice President is responsible for being familiar with the CJO Constitution so that he/she may be able to protect the rights of all members in an impartial manner.

 

            Secretary: The main duty of the secretary is to keep the records, or "minutes," of the meetings of the CJO. The secretary's minutes are the official record of the CJO and should contain only the actual business transacted. In addition, the secretary must issue notices of meetings, have official copies of the by‑laws, constitution and official files, and provide the President with a list of postponed motions and unfinished business.

 

            Treasurer: The treasurer is the "custodian" of the organization's funds. The treasurer should be authorized to pay the bills of the CJO and should draft monthly and annual statements (the latter of which should be audited), and should be familiar with all Rutgers Student Fund (RSF) procedures. At the meeting of the CJO, the Treasurer reports to the membership on the state of the organization.

 

            Section 2: Term of Office: No elected officer many serve more than two consecutive terms.

 

            Section 3: Elections: All officers must have a minimum of a 2.0 GPA upon election and throughout the academic year. Elections will be held in the Spring of each year. The process for nominations is as follows:

            -Any student meeting the required GPA regardless of demographics may run for office.

            -All nominations must be seconded before a student can officially run for a position.

            -All positions are filled by majority rule.

            -All votes are to be submitted by secret ballot.

 

            Officers may be removed from office for the following reasons:

            -acting in a manner unbefitting to the University or CJO, at the discretion of the Executive Committee along with the advisor

            -failure to maintain a minimum GPA of 2.0

            -failure to be enrolled as a full-time student (part-time students may be members)

 

ARTICLE IV: Executive committee

            The elected officers of the CJO form the executive committee. It is the responsibility of the executive committee to run this organization in an unbiased manner. The executive committee is responsible for representing the organization, while supplying the members with information, which could be helpful to them both academically and careerwise. If at any time, any member of this committee fails to act in an appropriate manner he/she can be removed from office according to the rules of Article II, section 3.

 

ARTICLE V: Meetings

            Section I: General membership: This organization will hold a minimum of at least one meeting per month. These meetings will include any field trips that may be taken.

 

            Section II: Executive committee: The executive committee will meet once a month outside of CJO meetings. These meetings will be held with our advisor.

 

            Section III: Emergency meetings: For special purposes, the executive committee may call a meeting of the general membership. In the situation of an emergency meeting, there must be at least four members in attendance. To consider any final decision, majority must be the rule.

 

ARTICLE VI: Committees

            Currently there is no need to have any special standing committees, but if in the future there arises such a need, we leave the option open to make amendments to this section.

 

ARTICLE VII: Funds

            All funds of the CJO shall be kept in an account in the Rutgers Student fund. Dues may not be so excessive as to discriminate against any existing or potential members.

 

ARTICLE VIII: Quorum

            This organization may not hold a legal meeting with fewer then six members. This article does apply to emergency meetings.

 

ARTICLE IX: Parliamentary authority

            Robert's Rules of Order, Newly Revised Edition, shall be the authority on all questions of parliamentary law and proceedings.

 

ARTICLE X: Order of Business

            Order of all meetings for the CJO will be as follows:

            Meeting will be called to order

            Roll call of officers

            Reading of minutes (secretary's report) and acceptance

            Treasurer's report

            Correspondence read

            Unfinished or Old Business

            Reports of Special Committees (if applicable)

            New Business

            Adjournment

 

ARTICLE XI: Advisor

            Each organization must have an advisor affiliated with the University. The Advisor of the CJO until further notice will be Dr. Jon'a Meyer.

 

            The Advisor is responsible for overseeing the actions of the officers of the CJO and approving all actions taken by said officers. It is the responsibility of the Advisor to work side by side with the officers of the organization. It is primarily the responsibility of the officers to run the organization however it is the responsibility of the advisor to make sure that the organization is run in an orderly and unbiased fashion. At anytime if the advisor feels an officer is not meeting the requirements of his/her position the advisor is responsible for calling an emergency meeting with the officer to inform them of said dissatisfaction.

 

ARTICLE XII: Amendments

            All Amendments, after being discussed by the officers of the CJO, are to be presented to the organization. All amendments to this Constitution must be made in writing and presented to the organization for approval by a majority vote of at least 2/3. All amendments after being presented to the organization must be presented to the Advisor for his/her approval and finally to the Student Activities Office for their approval.

 

ARTICLE XIII: By Laws

            The Criminal Justice Organization hereby agrees to adhere to the University alcohol policy and the Student Code of Conduct. Alcohol will be prohibited at all CJO events.