Constitution Of The Chinese Student Association At The University Of Virginia

ARTICLE I: INCORPORATION

The name of the organization shall be the Chinese Student Association (Heretofore referred to as CSA)
at the University of Virginia.

ARTICLE II: PURPOSE

The purposes of the CSA are:

1) To share Chinese culture with the community and spread cultural understanding.
2) To provide a framework for Chinese students and those interested in Chinese culture to interact.
3) To assist incoming Chinese students and their families.
4) To provide language assistance for interested parties.

ARTICLE III: NON-DISCRIMINATING MEMBERSHIP

The Chinese Student Association at the University of Virginia does not restrict its membership,
programs, or activities on the basis of age, color, disability, gender identity, marital status, national or
ethnic origin, political affiliation, race, religion, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, veteran
status, and family and genetic information.

ARTICLE IV: THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Section 1: Officers
Contracted Independent Organization officers (i.e., CSA executive officers) must be officially registered
as full-time students at the University of Virginia. Control of expenditures and policy-making powers
must be vested in the executive officers. The executive committee of the CSA consists of the executive
officers (President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer), committee chairpersons, and advisors, as
follows:

1. The President:
The President is the chief executive officer, who initiates plans for annual activities, and presides over
both general and officer meetings. The President is also the official representative of the CSA at non-CSA
functions. The President if ultimately responsible for the welfare and growth of the organization. To this
end, the President will oversee the conduct of officers in order to ensure stability within the executive
board.

2. The Vice President

The Vice President assists the President in organizing the officers and delegating responsibility. The Vice
President also performs the duties of the President's office in case of the latter's absence.

3. Secretary:
The duties of the Secretary include reserving rooms for meetings, writing and distributing the CSA
newsletter, recording the events which have taken place under CSA auspices, and maintaining the CSA
scrapbook with the help of the Historians (described later). The Secretary also must maintain the Alumni
database.

4. Treasurer:
The Treasurer keeps accurate financial records, reimburses members who have made sanctioned
purchases for the organization, and works closely with the rest of the executive committee in
formulation an annual budget to the Student Council. The Treasurer is also responsible for fund-raisers
along with the Vice President.

5. Committee Chairpersons
Committee Chairpersons are non-elected officers, chosen through a process of application and
responsible for initiating and planning, with the assistance of their committee members, events
pertinent to their committee. Chairpersons must also delegate work among their committee, and insure
that the goals and responsibilities of the committee are effectively completed and/or maintained.

6. Advisors
Advisors are members of the CSA who were former officers or chairpersons and have a thorough
knowledge of CSA and will be able to help officers and chairpersons when they have questions. Advisors
will also take on responsibilities for special projects organized by CSA which combine several different
committees.

Section 2: Co-officers
If deemed necessary, the Secretary, Treasurer, and Chair positions may be occupied by two persons,
sharing the responsibilities of that position. The decision to use Co-officers/Co-chairs will be decided by
the newly elected President and Vice President during the election meeting.

ARTICLE V: COMMITTEES

The current standing committees are:

Culture:
The Culture Committee will oversee and supervise all research and planning concerning activities
organized for the purpose of promoting awareness and understanding of Chinese culture. These
activities include CultureFest, ChinaFest, the Full Moon Festival, and any other cultural presentation.

Publicity:
The Publicity Committee works closely with the Secretary. It is in charge of keeping CSA members and
the community informed of CSA activities. It should work toward attracting new members, as well as
keeping old ones informed. One chairperson will be in charge of fliers and the other will be responsible
for e-mail and the CSA homepage.
Social:
The Social Committee is in charge of planning and organizing social activities such as parties, outings,
karaoke, and dinners, as well as designing entertainment for general meetings. They are also responsible
for recruiting new members to the organization by directing activities involving perspectives, transfers,
and First-year students; including the organizing of the Big Sibling Program and working closely with the
Asian Perspectives Day committee.

Sports:
The Sports Committee is in charge of organizing teams for intramural and sports tournaments, providing
an additional means for networking and membership outreach.

Community:
The Community Committee oversees all activities pertaining to community relations, including the
University at large. They will work with the Chinese and non-Chinese communities of Charlottesville in
promoting CSA and the Chinese culture. They will also help plan
community service events for the CSA.

Issues:
The Issues committee will organize and lead discussions on issues facing Chinese people and students at
UVa. They will examine issues of the day and work closely with ASU to bring such issues to light. The
chairpersons will also serve as the representatives for CSA to Building Linkages, an organization set up
for communications with all other cultural organizations.

Historians:
The Historians will be responsible for visually recording all activities of the CSA. They will help the
publicity chairpersons and have photos to put on the CSA homepage. They will make the CSA scrapbook
and present the slide show at the end of the year. They will also be responsible along with the secretary
for producing a monthly newsletter for CSA and its members.

ARTICLE VI: ELECTION PROCESS FOR OFFICERS AND CHAIRPERSONS

1. The nomination period for executive officers occurs at the beginning of the Spring semester. Elections
are traditionally held during the New Years Banquet, but can be held at any other official CSA gathering,
during which time each candidate must present themselves before the members, state why he or she
wishes to serve, detail any plans he or she might have, and explain his or her qualifications. The body
will then be allowed to ask questions. The candidates shall leave the room and allow the body to
deliberate and then vote. A simple majority of dues-paying members present determines the winner. No
member may be permitted to vote by proxy or by absentee ballot.

2. Each officer serves one Lunar-year term, beginning immediately after the election, and lasting until
the next elections. There is no limit on terms of office.
3. A transition period for all officers is required to ensure that all pertinent information will be passed on
to new officers. The old officers will help guide their successors and serve as a resource to the group.

4. Committee chairpersons are drawn from the organization, and are selected by an interview and
application process directed by the standing executive committee. During the selection process, the
preceding co-chair(s) may exact the right to be present during co-chair interviews and may cast a vote
towards the selection of their own respective co-chair position, unless reseeking selection to the same
position. Note that past executive officers may participate in the co-chair interviewing process to offer
advice, but may not be allowed to vote, unless deemed otherwise by the acting executive committee.

5. Committee chairs serve for one Lunar year.

6. A committee chair may be removed in the event that the executive officers decide that he or she has
not performed their duties. A replacement, chosen at the discretion of the Executive Board and co-
chairs, will serve the remainder of the term.

7. Committee chairs may be removed by a unanimous vote by the President, Vice President, Secretary,
and Treasurer after having a formal list of complaints presented no less than two weeks prior to the vote
for removal. Officers may be removed by the by a two-thirds majority vote of the Officers and Co-chairs.

8. When an executive officer feels they no longer can effectively carry out the tasks and responsibilities
of their position it may be appropriate for the individual to resign from the position. In which case, the
order of succession for the executive officers proceeds as follows: President ==> Vice President ==>
Secretary ==> Treasurer. After verbal or written notification of resignation by an executive officer, the
position is opened to the other three executive officers, whom may choose to decline or accept the
higher position, in which case, the next executive officer in line is offered to succeed the opened
position. Non-executive officers (i.e., non-elected officers) may not succeed any executive officer
positions. In the case that no executive officer chooses to fill the position , or there are no executive
officers to fill those positions, then the vacated executive officer position(s) can only be filled by having a
general election, as described above, at the next general CSA gathering (i.e., meeting or event). Vacated
non-executive officer positions may be filled at the discretion of the remaining executive committee.

ARTICLE VII: MEETINGS

1. The executive committee shall meet as deemed necessary before general meetings to discuss relevant
issues, hear progress reports from the various committees, and initiate new plans.

2. General meetings shall be held at least once a month, arranged at the discretion of the officers.

ARTICLE VIII: DUES, FUNDRAISING, AND FINANCE

1. Dues are $10 for the year ($6/semester) for students.

2. Additional revenue shall be raised by means of activities devised by the Treasurer and other executive
officers as they see fit.

3. Dues and self-generated funds shall be used only for planned activities of the CSA, as determined by
the executive committee (i.e., Full Moon Festival, ChinaFest, Mahjong/Karaoke Night, Chinese
Moviefest, Chinese Chess Tournament, etc.).

4. Only the student members of the CSA may have voting powers with regard to expenditures of the
Student Activities Fund.

ARTICLE IX: AMENDMENTS

Proposals for amendments must be submitted to the President, who shall, with the help of the executive
committee, determine whether the proposal is reasonable to the operation and purposes of the
organization. A two-thirds majority vote of members present at a general meeting is required for an
amendment to pass, or a unanimous vote by the executive committee.

ARTICLE X: ALUMNI

Upon graduation from the University, all fully-paid graduating CSA members are granted special lifetime
membership status. This includes, but is not exclusive to, all privileges associated with being a fully-paid
member (i.e., reduced members fees, as opposed to non-member fees). University graduates may only
be granted lifetime membership if their name appears in the alumni database with a permanent
address, in order to, allow any potential future contact. The database of alumni is to be kept up by the
acting Secretary.