Student Government Association
Of Northwest High School
13501 Richter Farm Road
Germantown, MD 20874
Constitution
Preamble
We, the students of Northwest High School, have drafted this constitution with advice, guidance, and
example of all previously accredited Montgomery County high schools and institutions. This document is
adopted subject to regulation and supervision of the Executive Committee, the General Assembly,
Administration, and faculty of Northwest High School. It shall be deemed worthy of recognition and of
indispensable exercise by the authority granted to each of the above named jurisdictions. Its provisions
shall be appropriately carried out in accordance with student government by-laws, student government
Standing Rules, and Robert’s Rules of Order. It shall become incumbent upon the student body
immediately upon its acceptance. This document shall provide a means by which each student of
Northwest High School shall have equality of opportunity, method of action, and ability of opinion to
pursue their individual aspiration within the realm of this institution.
Article I: Name
The name of this organization shall be the Student Government Association of Northwest High
School (SGA).
Article II: Purpose
The purpose of this organization is to:
A. To represent and support the student body of Northwest High School.
B. To promote the general welfare of the students.
C. To offer an opportunity for the students to participate in a democratic government.
D. To foster a close relationship among the students, faculty, and administration and to
act as a representative of the student body in exchange with the faculty,
administration, county school system, community and outside organizations.
E. To provide a forum through which students may express their opinions and
concerns.
F. To be a vertical of MSPS for students to effect changes within the educational
system.
G. To provide responsible students leadership positions.
H. To communicate within the student body and class officers to ensure everyone
knows what the SGA represents.
I.
To help coordinate student activities.
J.
To further the educational well-being of the students.
Article III: Membership & Source of Authority
Section I:
Every student of Northwest High School has the right to be a participating
member of this organization.
Section II:
Students interested in being voting members of the general assembly
must attend prior meetings pertaining to specific issues.
Section IV:
In order to be elected President of the SGA or the Junior or Senior Executive
Councils (class office), an individual must exhibit at least
One year of experience as an officer in either organization.
Section V:
The President of SGA must be a senior student.
Article IV: Organizational & General Structure
Section I:
The SGA shall consist of the General Assembly, the Executive Committee and
the Executive Council.
Article V: The General Assembly
Section I:
Organization of The General Assembly
A. The General Assembly will consist of representatives (chosen by classmates, in
specific class period), class officers, and SGA officers. Each classroom will select one
student.
B. Meetings will be held to inform the representatives about the issues the SGA and
class officers are currently discussing. The representatives will report this
information back to their classes.
C. The General Assembly will meet monthly, however, meetings may be cancelled if
needed.
Section II:
Powers of The General Assembly
A. The General Assembly will be the legislative body of the SGA. They will approve any
money appropriations made by the SGA president. The money lent out will be
repaid by the end of the school year.
B. By Robert’s Rule of Order, the General Assembly has the power to impeach any
member of the SGA by a 2/3 vote.
C. The Assembly can make any recommendations to any organizations and may
overrule any decision of the president by a two-thirds vote.
Article VI: The Executive Committee
Section I:
Membership
A. The Executive Committee consists of the President, 1st Vice-President (Senior), 2nd
Vice-President (a junior), 3rd Vice-President (a sophomore), 4th Vice-President (a
freshman), Corresponding /Recording Secretary, Treasurer, and Parliamentarian.
B. Each office will be occupied by only one candidate (no co-positions).
Section II:
Election of Officers
A. The officers shall be elected by a plurality of votes cast by the Student Body (all
voting freshman, sophomores, and juniors) and shall be done by secret ballot.
B. The term of office is for one school year and shall be defined as extending from June
1 of the school year in which they are elected until June 1 of the following school
year.
C. The election of the officers of this organization shall take place in May preceding the
school year in which they are to assume their position.
D. Any officer may run for his or her position for a second term in the spring election.
E. If for any reason an office other than the president is vacant or vacated prior to the
expiration of that office, a replacement officer will be selected by popular election.
F. If after the spring election an office is left vacant, the Executive Committee reserves
the right to appoint a replacement with approval of the General Assembly.
Section III:
The Powers & Duties of the President
A. The President shall be the chief executive of the SGA as well as the chairman of the
General Assembly and of the Executive Committee.
B. The President shall execute the provisions of this constitution and preside over all
General Assembly and Executive Committee meetings.
C. The President must polish and distribute an agenda at all General Assembly and
Executive Committee meetings.
D. The President shall have the power to call special meetings of the General Assembly,
Executive Committee and Executive Council as necessary.
E. The President shall inform the administration and SGA advisor of SGA activites and
events and shall act as a spokesperson for the student body.
F. The President shall present the views of the student body on matters affecting it to
the Administration and Community.
G. The President will deliver a state of the SGA address at the conclusion of the school
year.
H. Subordinates appointed by the President are accountable to the President for their
actions.
I.
The President is a member of the MCR Executive Council.
J.
The President is responsible for attending or having representation at all important
County Council and Community Meetings.
K. The President is a representative of the Executive Board of the PTSA and is
responsible for attending or having a representative attend all PTSA and Booster
Club Meetings.
Section IV:
The Powers & Duty of the Vice Presidents
A. The First Vice President shall assume all Presidential duties in the President’s
absence and assume the presidency if the office is vacant.
B. Each Vice President shall act as a class officer and is responsible for representing his
or her class on the Executive Committee and to the General Assembly.
C. The Vice-President shall assist the president in his or her duties and in executing his
or her power and shall work with and coordinate committees.
D. The Vice-Presidents shall preside over recall proceedings.
E. The Vice-Presidents shall submit all SGA activities to the Business Manager, SGA
sponsor and principal for placement on the school calendar.
F. The Vice-Presidents shall serve on the Executive Council and will be called on to
chair and serve on a variety of committees throughout the year.
Section V:
The Powers and Duties of the Secretary
A. The Recording Secretary shall record, compile, and publish minutes of all meetings
of the General Assembly, Executive Committee, and Executive Council (on file and
on a disk).
B. The Recording Secretary shall maintain all non-finacial SGA records, including copies
of all legislative actions taken by the General Assembly or Executive Committee. All
records shall be open to public inspection.
C. The Secretary will be responsible for all correspondence between the SGA and
outside organizations and other schools and will be responsible for all SGA
announcements, bulletins, and memos.
D. The Secretary will be responsible for typing all the names for the General Assembly
attendance and distributing these lists to all staff on the day of each meeting.
E. The Secretary must be able to use a Word Processor.
F. The Secretary shall serve on the Executive Committee and Executive Council and will
be called on to chair and serve on a variety of committees throughout the year.
G. The Corresponding secretary will be responsible for delegation of the MCR at
Northwest High School. They will themselves be a MCR rep, and fill the other
delegate spots with Northwest High School Students. They shall make sure the SGA
general assembly and executive committee are kept up to date on all MCR news.
They will be ultimately responsible for all things regarding the MCR.
H. The secretary will maintain a roll of members’ attendance to all meetings and SGA
sponsored activities.
Section VI: The Powers and Duties of the Treasurer
a. The Treasurer shall have the responsibility of overseeing all SGA financial affairs and
all financial records (including all ticket records and reconciliation, all building use
forms and all contracts).
b. The treasurer must be informed of all deposits to and disbursements from the SGA
account- writing all check requests, supplying receipts to the financial secretary, and
recording all transactions.
c. The Treasurer must be informed of all requests well in advance of their proposed
dates.
d. The Treasurer will be responsible for helping set a budget for each SGA activity.
e. The Treasurer shall report at each General Assembly meeting and Executive Council
meeting on all expenditures, deposits, and anything else regarding the SGA
accounts.
f.
The Treasurer shall serve on to chair and serve on a variety of committees
throughout the year.
Section VII: The Power and the Duties of the Historian
a. A Historian is responsible for photographing all events not covered by a professional
photographer.
b. The Historian is responsible for being certified by the Media Center for use of both
camera and editing equipment.
c. The Historian is responsible for taping and editing everything.
d. The Historian shall work with and coordinate committees.
e. The Historian will serve on the Executive Committee and Executive Counsel and will
be called on to chair and serve on a variety of Committees throughout the year.
Section VIII: The Powers and Duties of the Parliamentarian
a. The Parliamentarian shall record constitutional amendments, by-laws, operating
procedures, and rules that are passed by the Student Council.
b. The Parliamentarian shall be chairmen of the Constitutional Review Board.
c. The Parliamentarian shall enforce Robert’s Rule of Order and Parliamentary
procedures during all meetings and General Assembly.
d. The Parliamentarian has the power to declare any action taken by the Student
Government Association unconstitutional. The SGA at the time will have to change
their action to make it constitutional.
e. The Parliamentarian shall be in charge of rules and the enforcing of them in the
SGA, including but not limiting to Homecoming. They will be in charge of
impeachment of officers if necessary.
f.
The Parliamentarian shall serve on the Executive Committee and Executive Council
and will be called on to chair and serve on a variety of committees throughout the
year.
Section IX: The powers and Duties of the Executive Committee
a. The Executive Committee may recommend legislation to the General Assembly.
b. The Executive Committee shall, under circumstance which prohibits consultation
with the general assembly, act for the body in a manner consistent with the sense of
the assembly as expressed in legislative actions.
c. The Executive Committee must keep the General Assembly, student body,
administration, staff, and community informed of its activities through meetings,
bulletins, the bulletin board, announcements, Friday shows, and newsletters.
d. The Executive Committee shall annually review thoroughly and, if necessary, revise
the SGA constitution and standing class constitutions.
e. The Executive Committee shall set the agenda for the General Assembly meetings.
f.
The Executive Committee may create special committees which would carry out
responsibilities as directed by the Executive Committee.
g. The Executive Committee shall oversee all SGA activities committees.
Article VII: The Executive Council
Section I: Membership
a. Seniors, Junior, sophomore, and Freshmen Class officers shall consist of a President,
Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Historian, and a Parliamentarian.
Section II: Purpose of the Executive Council
a. Their purpose is to organize school events with those of SGA as well as those of
other Class Officers from other grade levels.
Section III: Election of Officers
a. An officer will be elected by the majority vote of the classmates from their grade
level.
b. The term of office shall be defined as extending from June 1 following the election
through June 1 the following year.
c. If for any reason, there is a vacant position, the Class Officers may hold special
election. However, if for some reason, the Presidential spot is vacant, then the Vice
President will take position as the new president, then a special election will be ran
for the spot of Vice President.
Section IV: Responsibilities and Expectations of the Executive Council
a. Executive Council Meeting: It is the responsibility of every class and SGA officer to
attend every Executive Council meeting to be held (if possible) every fourth
Wednesday of each month and to attend all Special Meetings.
b. SGA General Assemble: It is expected that all class officers attend General Assembly
whenever possible. If an officer’s absences exceed two unexcused absences per
semester when that officer is present in school. That officer will face impeachment.
c.
The Executive Committee has the responsibility to attend all SGA functions.
d.
It is an expectation that members of the Executive Council attend all class
functions, fundraisers, and other activities.
Article VIII: Election Guidelines
Section I: Pre- Election Requirements: One week prior to the elections, candidates must receive
one hundred student signatures and ten staff signatures agreeing to their capacity of holding an
office.
Section II: Posters
a. Each candidate will be limited to only fifteen posters or posted flyers
b. Each poster/flyer must be initialed by the SGA advisor, an administrator, or a class
sponsor prior to being hung.
c. Every poster/flyer must be hung on cinder- blocks only
d. Candidates will be held financially responsible for any damages they cause to the
facility as a result of campaigning (including but not limited to stickers).
e. All posters must be removed from the walls by 2:30 the day of elections.
Posters/flyers may be put up one week prior to the elections.
No posters/ flyers are allowed to be hung in the lobby of the building.
Sections III: Election Day
a. Speeches will be pre- recorded and shown to the student body once time.
b. The voting will take place in classrooms directly after hearing speeches.
c. The ballots will be counted by hand (SGA officers) or by Scranton
d. Election results will be announced at the end of the day of elections. All candidates
will be dismissed to the front lobby prior to the announcement of elections results.
Sections IV: Campaigning
a. The will be no negative campaigning
b. Candidates found using negative campaigning will be removed from the election
process at the discretion of the sponsors involved and the administrator in charge of
student affairs.
c. Candidates or their staff may not handout candy or any other edible products for
the purpose of campaigning.
Article IX: Finances
Section I: Any operating expenditures which totals less than $101.00 may be approved by the
Executive Committee, with the consent of the SGA faculty advisor(s).
Section II: Any capital expenditure must be approved by the faculty advisor.
Section III: Before undertaking any substantial venture, requiring the outlay of $75.00 or more,
the General Assembly must approve the project as a whole, although individual expenditures in
the course of the approval project need not be approved.
Section IV: In any area of areas which it deems appropriate, the General Assembly may set a
ceiling or floor an expenditure, which it may temporarily suspend or permanently repeal.
Article X: Initiative, Recall, Removal
Section I: Initiative
A. If 5% of the student body signs a petition for action on an issue, the person(s) or
branch(es) of the SGA specified in the petition must consider the petitioned action.
B. If this signed petition names a non- member of the General Assembly or Executive
committee to speak before either body on behalf of the petitioners, the person(s)
named shall be allowed to do so.
Section II: Referendum
A. Any petition bearing the signatures of 10% of the student body may be require the
Election Committee to submit an issue, whether previously considered or not, to be
voted on in a school wide referendum.
B.
Such referendum shall take place, as scheduled by the Elections Committee, within
fifteen days of the presentation of signed petition.
Section III: Removal
A. Any member of the SGA may be removed from office by a 2/3 vote from the
General Assembly.
Article XI: Amendments
Section I: Amendments
A.
Amendments to this constitution and the four sets Class Constitutions may be
proposed by:
1. Any SGA Committee
2. A petition bearing signatures of 10% of the student body
3. Any three members of the General Assembly
B. If approved by three-fourths (members present) of the General Assembly,
amendment takes effect immediately.
C. If approved by two- thirds of the general assembly (members present) and threefifths of the SGA officers, amendment takes effect immediately.
Article XII: Administration Involvement
Section I: This constitution and future Amendments thereto shall be reviewed by the Vice
Principal in charge of Student Affairs.
Section II: The school administration shall not interfere with the SGA in its internal legislative
process as provide by the constitution.
Section III: The school administration or its representatives will consult the SGA Executive
Committee in determining student representation or involvement in the development and the
revision of major MCPS and local policies and rules which affect them.
Section IV: The school administration or its representatives will also consult the SGA Executive
Committee in determining official representation by the student on any school committee or at
any school function.
Amended:
October 13, 2012