Seeing Voices Montreal- Concordia Chapter – Constitution
Article I: Name
2.1. The name of our group is Seeing Voices Montreal – Concordia Chapter, which is
also known as SVM.
Article II: Objective
2.2. The purpose of this club is to raise Deaf awareness and provide students at
Concordia University an opportunity to learn American Sign Language. We will
also provide workshops on Deaf culture, communication strategies and
collaborate with the McGill SVM Chapter on theatrical projects which feature
American Sign Language. Through these, and other, endeavors, SVM – Concordia
will raise d/Deaf student awareness throughout the student body.
2.3. Our club addresses issues on discrimination and misconceptions surrounding
D/deaf individuals, as well as the miscommunication that often occurs between
D/deaf and hearing individuals.
Article III: Membership
2.4. Members of SVM – Concordia Chapter will be students who enrol in our ASL
courses, students who are part of the cast and crew of SVM productions and
students who are volunteers and executives of the SVM – Concordia Chapter.
2.5. Membership in the group is open to all students, without restrictions on the
grounds of national origin, race, religion, colour, sex, sexual orientation,
disability or faculty of study.
2.6. Every club member has the same rights; any form of discrimination will not be
tolerated. Members are not required to attend weekly meetings, but will be
notified of any organizational meetings related to the planning of event's and
productions. Our club will not have associate or honorary memberships.
Article IV: Officers
2.7. The responsibilities of each position are as follows:
2.7.1. Chapter Liaison/Co-ordinator/Booking Officer:
The Chapter Liaison is responsible for room and event bookings, and will
advise the Events Co-ordinator on the details of the bookings in order for
them to advertise the event publicly on social media. They will also be
responsible for the budgeting of the club, signing of documents, and the
communication with other SVM chapters.
2.7.2. Community Outreach Co-ordinator:
Responsible for d/Deaf community outreach. They will be contacting people
through Glide (video recording application useful for ASL communication)
and ASL videos on social media. They will also be responsible for designing
our posters, logos, and any advertising-related artwork.
2.7.3. Events Co-ordinator:
Responsible for the internal and external SVM – Concordia Chapter
calendars which have been created to inform our members when upcoming
events with SVM are taking place. They will also be responsible for making
reservations at the restaurants/ bars where our monthly “ASL Social Nights”
are hosted.
Article V: Finances
2.8. Chapter Liaison/ Co-ordinator/ Booking Officer and Events Co-ordinator would
both be responsible for signing off all the club expenses as the club's signing
officers.
2.9. The Chapter Liaison/ Co-ordinator/ Booking Officer would be responsible for
keeping track of the club's budget and expenses throughout the year, finding the
most affordable prices when the club needs to make purchases.
2.10.
All proceeds made by SVM will be deposited into the CSU internal
account. This includes funds, money made from events, ticket sales and ASL
courses.
2.11.
However, the club will not open or keep an external bank account or keep
event/ticket sales proceeds in a cashbox or safe.
Article VI: Elections
2.12.
The nomination period is the second week of September annually. The
executive and potential members, volunteers of SVM are the ones eligible for
nominating themselves for the elections.
2.13.
The voting procedures are:
2.13.1. The positions are voted and elected by the simple majority.
2.13.2. If there are positions that not filled during the elections, the procedures
we will make an decision as the executive members decides who is
responsible for taking over the unfilled position with an agreement of the
selected candidate.
2.13.3. The positions are elected for a period of one year.
2.14.
Electoral Procedures: The Vice-President (Clubs & Services) of CSU or
his/her representative shall be the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) with final
authority over electoral procedures and validity of results.
2.15.
The general membership must be notified of the date of the general
meeting 2 weeks in advance to the date of the General Meeting called for
election purposes. Elections are to be held two weeks before March 31 during
the previously mentioned General Meeting. The Executive Committee may
designate Deputy Electoral Officers (DEOs) to assist the running of elections in
consultation with the CEO. Elections are to be conducted by secret ballot in
person. Ballots must be kept in a secure place for 5 weeks after the date of
voting. The Vice-President (Clubs and Services) should be notified immediately
in the event of contested electoral results.
Article VII: Replacement and Impeachment
2.16.
The officers will be impeached from their positions if they repeatedly fail
to notify other members on the team if/when they are unable to attend weekly
meetings, events, general meetings and/or perform duties.
2.17.
The team will make an arrangement to carry out a meeting to discuss, and
decide who will take over the impeached position. An agreement will be in place
as well.
2.18.
The disciplinary measures are in place if the officers fail to perform their
role on the team. There will be two warnings, which are meant to remind the
officers/members of their role and responsibilities. The third warning will be the
final warning that can lead to impeachment or role suspension.
Article VIII: General and Special Meetings
2.19.
The general meetings will be held weekly throughout the school semester,
based on the members' availability. The members will discuss which day is best
suited for them to meet, to be able to discuss plans, events and who will be
responsible for carrying out duties.
2.20.
The procedures for calling special meetings will be announced via Seeing
Voices Montreal Facebook page and Glide application. Glide is a special
application which is found on cellphones, which is video-recorded-messaging
(instead of using text messages). This application gives our D/deaf members the
opportunity to communicate by recording themselves as they use American Sign
Language (ASL) as their primary language. The members on the team do
understand as well as have the ability to communicate with others by using ASL.
Using Glide has proven to be a very helpful tool for communication among the
members without any confusion of written language.
Article IX: Activities
2.21.
Seeing Voices Montreal carries out different kinds of activities and events.
2.22.
As a part of our activities, we offer ASL courses each semester, workshops,
and ASL social nights. We offer two or three different kinds of ASL courses
depending on the students' academic background which would be more suitable
and beneficial for them (ex. Theatre, Education, Business, Art and Science
programs have different disciplinary communication demands, so we create
classes that are suitable for these programs). The ASL social nights are hosted
once a month, for those former/current/potential ASL students, to learn,
practice and socialize with others by using ASL. The current SVM – McGill
chapter carries out yearly events. They include Deaf Awareness Week (DAW),
Community Engagement Day(CED), cast/crew auditions, call-outs for theatrical
productions (everyone is welcome to join as we provide ASL crash courses to
teach and train the cast/crew) and collaborative pieces with Montreal Improv.
Article X: Affiliation
2.23.
This club does have an affiliation with the SVM - McGill University chapter.
Article XI: Amendment
2.24.
Any member of the club may propose an amendment to the Constitution.
In order to amend the constitution, a consensus on the proposed amendment
must be reached at a General Meeting or special GM.
2.25.
All amendments shall be submitted to the Interest Group Coordinator,
where it will be reviewed by the Interest Group Committee and ratified by the
CSU council before they take effect.
2.26.
Any amendments to the club's constitution will be communicated to the
VP Clubs of CSU.
Article XII: Disputes & Appeals
2.27.
Disputes and appeals within club members or concerning the club
constitution will be referred to the CSU Judicial Board for ruling.
Articles XII: CSU Policies
2.28.
“Where items are not defined in this constitution or there are
inconsistencies with the CSU's By-Laws, regulations, and policies, the CSU's ByLaws, regulation, and policies shall take effect.”