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UHCL National Science Foundation Scholar Organization Bylaws
The National Science Foundation (NSF) scholar organization is established to promote the NSF
Computer Science, Engineering and Mathematics Scholarship (CSEMS) program at the
University Houston Clear Lake. The scholar organization focuses on attracting new students to
technological disciplines while improving the academic and career advancement of organization
members through mentoring strategies and exposure to industry related research.
Article I:
Organization
A.
General
1. A president or president pro tempore shall preside over official meetings.
When there is not a president or vice president, the club sponsor(s) will
preside.
2. Motions may be made and seconded at any time during the meeting, but
only those seconded may be opened for discussion.
3. Rules or major decisions may be made at any official meeting provided
that prior notice has been provided for each member. Absentee voting
will be allowed, and the deadline for ballot submission will be 24 hours
after the end of the meeting.
B.
Requirements For Passing Motions
1. A two-thirds vote of members present is needed to pass a rule or a major
decision.
C.
Committees
1. There will be one permanent activity coordinating committee (ACC). The
ACC shall consist of at least four members – at least one student from
each of the declared majors covered by under the scholarship program
(CS, CIS, CSE, Mathematics). The ACC shall be responsible for planning
organization activities including field trips, business/industry tours, and
volunteering events. The committee chair shall be responsible for
reporting all activity costs to the organization treasurer and informing the
organization reporter of all activities.
2. Each permanent and temporary committee will choose a chairperson.
3. As needed, the NSF members can establish other committees under the
guidelines provided in Article I.3.
Article II
Executives
A.
Titles
The executives of the NSF scholar organization shall be president, vice-president,
recorder, treasurer, reporter and committee chairs.
B.
Elections and Tenures
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1. Nominees for the executive offices shall be recorded at the second official
meeting of each school year. The organization members at large, through
secret ballot, and over a week's time, shall elect the executives through a
majority vote. The club sponsor(s) will oversee the election process at the
beginning of each academic school year.
2. Committee members must elect a committee chair within one week after
the committee has been formed. The majority of the members of a
committee must approve the committee chair when committee elections
are held. The president will informally administer the election of
committee chairs.
3. Each office holder shall relinquish their position after serving two
semesters in office.
C.
Eligibility
Any member of the club who is in good standing shall be eligible for election to
any office.
D.
Vacancies of Office
1. If the president permanently vacates their office, the vice president will fill
the position, and a new vice present will be elected. If the vice president,
recorder, treasurer, or reporter should permanently vacate his/her office
the remaining executives shall appoint a member in good standing to
temporarily fill the position until a proper election can be held. If the
president and vice president vacate their offices, then the club sponsor(s)
will act as president pro tempore until a new election can be organized to
select a permanent president and vice president.
2. If any office, except the aforementioned, shall be vacant then the president
shall appoint a replacement with the majority approval of the members at
the next official meeting.
E.
Duties of Executives
1. The president shall:
a. Preside at all organization meetings
b. Call special meetings when necessary
c. Remain aware of and aid in the progress of the committees
d. Notify all members of the meetings
2. The vice-president shall:
a. Be an aide to the president
b. In the absence of the president, pro tempore assume and perform the
duties of president
c. Carry out all other assignments of the office of vice president
3. The recorder shall:
a. Keep accurate minutes during official meetings
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b. Conduct the correspondence of the organization (send letters/emails and
make phone calls to members when necessary, and send a copy of
meeting minutes to the president to be distributed to all members)
4. The treasurer shall:
a. Render an account of all receipts, deposits, and expenditures to the
recorder each month
b. Maintain a bank account in the name of the organization
5. The committee chairs shall:
a. Preside at the meetings of their committees
b. Represent their committee during official organization meetings
c. Update the president about information discussed during committee
meetings.
6. The reporter shall:
a. Be an aide to the recorder
b. Report organization activities to the UHCL newspaper
c. Be responsible for the publicity of any special events in which the
organization participates
d. Count votes after any election
Article III
Membership
Qualification for membership shall be:
1. New or Current UHCL student with a declared major in Computer
Science, Computer Information Systems, Computer Systems Engineering,
or Mathematics
2. Full-time undergraduates who are accepted in one of the above programs
by the time that the scholarship/semester begins
3. Minimum GPA of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale)
4. US citizen or permanent resident
5. Financial need
6. Participate fully in the activities below:

Mentoring
Each scholar has a faculty mentor and a peer mentor. They are
available to provide advice to scholars regarding their field of study
and future career. Faculty mentors will also provide scholars with
industry related research opportunities. In their senior years, scholars
will be required to serve as mentors to incoming scholars. Each
scholar must:
1. Meet with the faculty mentor once a month.
2. Submit a brief annual progress report to the faculty mentor.
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3. Meet twice with the peer mentor per semester.

Career Enrichment
Each scholar must attend one of each of the following career
enrichment activities organized by the Career and Counseling Services
(CCS) per semester:
1. Counseling session
2. Career session
3. Personal session
Article IV
Meetings
General meetings shall occur at a time and place chosen by organization
members. At least one general meeting per month of organization members is
required.
Article V
Amendments
These bylaws may be amended at any time by a two-thirds vote of all members
provided that a 24 hours notice of the amendment has been provided. Absentee
voting is allowed.