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TCNJ MENC Constitution

Article I: Name
Article II: Purpose and Affiliation
Article III: Membership
Article IV: Meetings
Article V: Officers and Executive Committee
Article VI: Bylaws
Article VII: Amendments

Constitution of TCNJ MENC

Article I: Name of the Organization

Section 1: The name of the organization shall be "The College of New Jersey Collegiate Chapter of the Music Educators National Conference". This may be abbreviated to "TCNJ MENC Collegiate Chapter" or simply "TCNJ MENC".

Article II: Purpose and Affiliation of the Organization

Section 1: It shall be the purpose of TCNJ MENC to:

Make available to members opportunities for professional development in the field of music education.
Acquaint students with the privileges and responsibilities of the music education profession.
Provide all members with the opportunity to become acquainted with leaders in the music education profession through participation in programs, conventions, demonstrations, discussions, workshops, and performances planned by this organization, the New Jersey Music Educators Association, and the Music Educators National Conference.
Assist the school in various projects throughout the year.
Provide the opportunity to have contact with collegiate members from other schools.

Section 2: This chapter shall have an affiliated relationship with the New Jersey Music Educators Association (NJMEA), the Music Educators National Conference (MENC), and the New Jersey State MENC Collegiate Chapter.

Article III: Membership in the Organization

Section 1: Membership shall be open to any student enrolled at The College of New Jersey who is interested in teaching music and who is not employed full-time in the field of music education.

Section 2: Students who fulfill the requirements as stated in Section 1 may become members of TCNJ MENC, with all rights, privileges, and responsibilities thereto, upon successful application to MENC for collegiate membership and upon payment of dues as stated in Article IV.

Section 3: Applications for membership shall be available at all TCNJ MENC meetings or by other arrangement until the deadline for application for membership has passed. The deadline may be set by the Executive Committee; it must be at least one month later than the start of the academic year but may be no later than the deadline imposed by MENC for new applications.

Section 4: The rights, privileges, and responsibilities of membership shall include:

Those granted by membership in NJMEA and MENC, including but not limited to admission to conventions and conferences, receipt of NJMEA and MENC periodicals, and additional services provided by these organizations.
Further rights, privileges, and responsibilities as determined by the Executive Committee.

Section 5: Music faculty members, with the exception of the Advisor, are not eligible to become members of TCNJ MENC, but are encouraged to become members of MENC and to assist this organization in its activities in any way possible.

Article IV: Meetings of the Organization

Section 1: Regular meetings shall occur at least once a month. Members shall be notified of meeting times and locations by the Secretary at least one week before the meeting is to take place.

Section 2: The Executive Committee must meet at least once every two weeks, and at least once between each regular meeting.

Section 3: Special meetings may include programs, conventions, demonstrations, discussions, workshops, and performances both on- and off-campus. These meetings should be discussed in regular meetings and publicized by the Secretary to ensure good attendance.

Article V: Officers and Executive Committee of the Organization

Section 1: The elected officers of TCNJ MENC shall be defined as follows:

President: It shall be the duty of the President to preside at all meetings, represent the organization on- and off-campus, uphold the principles of this constitution, head the Executive Committee, and appoint committees with the approval of the Executive Committee.

Vice President: It shall be the duty of the Vice President to assist the President in his/her duties, to perform the duties of the President in the absence of the President.

Secretary: It shall be the duty of the Secretary to record and post the minutes of chapter and Executive Committee meetings, handle all necessary correspondence, and handle membership records and other organization records.

Treasurer: It shall be the duty of the Treasurer to maintain the financial records of the organization, handle funding from the Student Finance Board and other sources, handle payments and expenditures, and assist the Secretary in handling applications for membership.

State Representative: It shall be the duty of the State Representative to represent the organization to the New Jersey State MENC Collegiate Chapter, represent the organization on advocacy issues, and act as the resource person for the organization to receive information from affiliated organizations, particularly the State NJCMENC Executive Board. In the event that a member of TCNJ MENC is serving on the NJCMENC Executive Board, that person shall automatically become the State Representative.

Any duty assigned to a particular officer by this section may be delegated to another person if the officer feels that this person may be more capable of carrying out said duty; however, final responsibility for the duty still rests with the officer.

Section 2: There shall be a Faculty Advisor who is a member of the music faculty at The College of New Jersey and who is a member of MENC. It shall be the duty of the Faculty Advisor to:

Act as a representative to and liaison with MENC for the members of the organization.
Represent the interests of the chapter on campus and at MENC functions.
Assist the Executive Committee as an ex officio member to help officers in fulfilling their respective duties and to help with planning and implementing chapter activities.
Serve as an advisor and guide in the formation of chapter programs and policies.
Encourage interest and participation of students in MENC activities, and promote the concept of chapter importance in training music education students.
Encourage the development of student initiative, leadership, and imagination, to build a sense of responsibility on the part of students.
Work for support of the chapter by members of the college faculty and explore with department chairperson the possible funding of chapter activities.

The membership shall appoint and remove a Faculty Advisor in the same manner as elected officers, as described in Section 3 of this article. However, the term of office shall not have any definite limit.

Section 3: The terms of the elected officer positions shall be one academic year.

General elections for all positions must be held no later than the final meeting of the spring semester.

There must be a quorum of at least two-thirds of the membership at the electoral meeting.

Candidates may be nominated by any member, including him or herself. Nominations must be seconded by another member. Brief discussion of each candidate should take place. A vote for each position, by hand or by secret ballot, must be held. The candidate for each position with a plurality of votes shall be declared the victor.

Members who will be graduating less than one semester after the term of office begins are not eligible to be elected.

Members who have had membership for less than one semester are not eligible to be elected.

In the case of the resignation or loss of any elected officer, a special election must be held to fill the office not later than two weeks after the position is vacated. The new officer shall hold the position for the remainder of the original term.

In the case that an elected officer fails to carry out his or her duties, the membership as a whole may remove the officer by three-fourths majority vote. A special election must then be held as stated above.

Section 4: The elected officers of TCNJ MENC and the Advisor shall constitute the Executive Committee.

The Advisor serves in an ex officio capacity only and may not vote.

The Executive Committee shall discharge its responsibilities by the management of the bylaws, as described in Article VI.

Article VI: Bylaws of the Organization

Section 1: The Bylaws document of TCNJ MENC exists to facilitate the operation of the organization by the Executive Committee.

Section 2: The Executive Committee shall enact Bylaws as follows:

A new bylaw, the modification of an existing bylaw, or the removal of a bylaw must be proposed to the Executive Committee by any member of the organization.

The Committee shall discuss the proposed bylaw (or change to a bylaw).

The Committee shall vote on the bylaw; a majority must approve for the bylaw to pass. If the bylaw passes, it shall take effect immediately.

Section 3: The Executive Committee shall have the authority to pass bylaws regarding the following subjects:

Creation, appointments, and duties of committees.
Financial planning.
Setting regular and special meeting times and locations.
Determining aspects of membership such as rights, privileges, responsibilities, and deadlines for application.
Other issues not specifically addressed nor prohibited by this constitution.

Article VII: Amendments to this Constitution

Section 1: Amendments to the constitution must first be presented to the Executive Committee; the Committee must approve the prospective amendment by majority vote.

Following approval by the Executive Committee, the amendment must be presented to the membership at least one meeting prior to the approval vote.

A prospective amendment approved by the Executive Committee must be presented to the membership for vote not later than one month after approval.

The prospective amendment must be approved by a two-thirds majority of the membership, at a meeting at which a quorum of two-thirds of the membership is present.

Section 2: If the prospective amendment is passed, it shall take effect immediately.

Section 3: Following approval, the Secretary shall distribute amended copies of the Constitution to the membership and to Campus Life, and any other necessary parties.

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