Constitution of the Gustavus Chapter of Democracy Matters
Article I: Name
Section I: The name of this organization shall be the Gustavus Chapter of Democracy Matters.
Section II: The Gustavus Chapter of Democracy Matters shall be affiliated with the national organization
known as Democracy Matters.
Article II: Purpose
Section I: The purpose of the Gustavus Chapter of Democracy Matters shall be to inform and engage fellow
Gustavus students and the St. Peter community in efforts to strengthen our democracy specifically in regard
to issues of money in politics.
Article III: Membership
Section I: While any person shall be welcome to attend its meetings, membership in the Gustavus Chapter
of Democracy Matters shall be reserved for persons within the Gustavus community.
Section II: There shall be two categories of membership, active and inactive. To be considered an active
member, one must attend at least three meetings within the previous semester. Only active members shall
be allowed to vote. All other members are considered inactive and thereby shall not be eligible to vote
Section III: All members shall remain in good standing as long as they uphold the chapter rules as well as
the rules and regulations of Gustavus Adolphus College. A member may be removed from the chapter for
reasons that include but shall not be limited to showing pornographic material during chapter meetings,
failing to return chapter property, and failing to follow the guidelines mandated by Gustavus Adolphus
College concerning sexual harassment, racial discrimination and sexual discrimination. Serious offenses
shall be reported to the Gustavus Adolphus College Judicial Board.
Section IV: Accordingly, unethical behavior as listed above shall be dealt with in this manner:
A. First Offense: The member in question shall receive an official warning to cease offending
behavior. This warning shall be issued by an officer, and will be placed in the members’ official
record.
B. Second Offense: The member shall attend a meeting with the chapter’s faculty advisor and a
chapter officer where disciplinary measures may be decided.
C. Third Offense: The member shall be removed from the chapter.
D. Serious Offenses: All serious offenses shall result in the member being removed immediately
by a consensus of the chapter officers and its faculty advisor.
Article IV: Officers
Section I: The Gustavus Chapter of Democracy Matters shall have four officers whose titles shall be
President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer. All officers shall be students enrolled at Gustavus
Adolphus College, in addition to being members in good standing of the Gustavus Chapter of Democracy
Matters.
Section II: All officers of the Gustavus Chapter of Democracy Matters shall be removed from office when
they cease to be members in good standing of the chapter as stated in Article III. Additionally, vacancies in
chapter offices shall be filled by appointment of the President within a time period of one month and will
be approved by a consensus of the officers.
Section III: Executive powers shall be vested in the President of the Gustavus Chapter of Democracy
Matters. This person shall hold that office for a one year term and his or her executive powers shall include
coordinating the work of the chapter with fellow officers, being the final authority in all matters concerning
the chapter, and presiding over meetings of the Gustavus Chapter of Democracy Matters. The President
shall have power, along with the advice and consent of the other officers, to establish formal relationships
with other clubs and services on the Gustavus campus, provided that a consensus of the officers present
concurs. As a result, the President shall have the power, with the advice and consent of the other officers, to
appoint ambassadors, public ministers and other types of consuls as is necessitated by the Gustavus Chapter
of Democracy Matters. The President shall from time to time give the members information of the state of
the chapter and larger organization while also recommending to their consideration such measures which
are judged to be necessary and expedient. In addition, the President may serve as Campus Coordinator of
the Gustavus chapter of Democracy Matters or choose to delegate that position to another member within
the chapter.
Section IV. In case of the removal of the President from office, or of death, resignation, or the inability to
discharge the powers and duties of the said office, the same responsibilities shall be passed on to the Vice
President. In addition, the majority of elected officers may provide for the case of removal, death,
resignation or inability, both of the President and Vice President, declaring what officer shall then serve as
interim President. When this has been decided, said officer shall act accordingly until such time that
leadership competence is restored or a new President is elected.
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Section V: The Vice President shall be in charge of enforcing the chapter rules, regulations, and
constitution. The Vice President also shall share in the responsibilities of the President and shall be able to
fulfill the office of President at such time where the President is deemed incapable of aptly fulfilling the
duties and responsibilities of his/her office. In addition, the Vice President shall take on or appropriately
delegate the role of chapter Community Outreach Coordinator.
Section VI: The Secretary shall be in charge of the maintenance of the Gustavus Chapter of Democracy
Matters Internet presence which includes the chapter email list. The Secretary is also charged with keeping
a record of the minutes of chapter meetings. In addition, the Secretary shall take on or appropriately
delegate the role of chapter Campus Relations Coordinator.
Section VII: The Treasurer shall be in charge of financial records, obtaining purchase orders, renting
necessary rooms for meetings, and shall be the financial liaison to the Student Senate as well as the national
Democracy Matters organization. In addition, the Treasurer shall take on or appropriately delegate the role
of chapter Advertising Coordinator.
Section VIII: Election of officers shall take place at a special meeting of members called by the current
President. This meeting shall be announced at least two weeks in advance and shall take place during the
month of April. Officers shall be in office for a period of time no longer than one year without being reelected. Members who wish to be candidates for a chapter office shall announce their candidacy through a
brief statement made to those present at the meeting. In this statement, the candidate shall explain his or her
platform specific to the office for which he or she is running and issues relevant to the work of the chapter.
Following this, candidates shall be elected by a simple majority of active members.
Article V: Meetings
Section I: The chapter shall hold meetings once a week while class is in session. The meeting day and time
shall be determined at the conclusion of each weekly meeting. At each meeting, an agenda shall be
followed as prepared by the chapter’s officers. If the agenda should include movies, books, or other media
resources, the legal processes concerning copyright laws will be followed. The officers shall be in charge of
organizing and running the weekly meetings but may choose to delegate this power to other members.
Section II: Two officers and one-fourth of the active membership must be present so as to constitute a
quorum which shall be necessary to make any changes in policy or make any decisions concerning
financial matters. Decisions made prior to or during chapter meetings when a quorum is present shall
require a simple majority for approval and shall be enacted immediately.
Section III: Special meetings shall be called by the President or the Vice President to plan upcoming
events, to address any issue that may have been brought to an officers’ attention, or to address any other
issues of great importance to the chapter. These meetings shall also cover urgent needs to purchase
materials and shall require three days notice, unless in the case of an emergency during which appropriate
communication will take place among chapter members as deemed necessary by the chapter’s officers.
Article VI: Committees
Section I: Committees shall be created through a consensus of chapter members and shall operate in a
permanent or temporary capacity as is deemed necessary by a consideration of the circumstances
surrounding the committee’s proposed creation.
Article VII: Finance
Section I: Finances for the Gustavus chapter of Democracy Matters shall be allocated by the Gustavus
Adolphus College Student Senate, the Democracy Matters national organization, and through chapter
fundraising as well as individual contributions.
Section II: In the event of the dissolution of the Gustavus Chapter of Democracy Matters, the monetary
assets of the chapter shall be turned over to the Gustavus Adolphus College Student Senate.
Article VIII: Amendments
Section I: Members of the Gustavus chapter of Democracy Matters may propose amendments to this
Constitution, which shall be valid when approved by three-fourths of the chapter’s membership.
Article IX: Ratification
Section I: The ratification of this Constitution through unanimous approval by the four main officers of the
Gustavus chapter of Democracy Matters shall be sufficient for the establishment of this Constitution as the
chapter’s governing documents.
Date of Ratification: __________ Signed: ____________________________________________