Preamble
In
order to promote a better America, with equality, opportunity, and
freedom within a just and strong society, we dedicate ourselves to
organizing the participation of Democratic college students in the
State of New York. Our mission as a student organization is to help
elect Democrats from the grassroots level up, train and engage new
generations of democratic student activists, shape the Democratic Party
with voices from America's youth, and to become a potent political
voice on the issues that impact the student population. In this
mission, we call for full participation of all New York students,
regardless of gender, race, ethnicity, national origin, religion,
physical handicap, socioeconomic status, sexual orientation or gender
identity.
Understanding the importance of
participation in the Democratic Party to the preservation of our values
and principles, we, Democratic college students, do hereby associate
ourselves and adopt this Constitution as the College Democrats of New
York. The College Democrats of New York is the official student
outreach arm of the New York State Democratic Committee and is part of
the College Democrats of America, the official student outreach arm of
the Democratic National Committee.
Article 1: Name, Purpose, and Membership
Section
I. Name: The name of this organization shall be the "College Democrats
of New York," hereinafter referred to in the document as CDNY.
Section
II. Purpose: CDNY, as the collegiate arm of the Democratic Party,
pledge to support the philosophy and purpose of the Democratic Party.
Furthermore, CDNY declare their intention to support efforts to
increase the participation of college students in Democratic Party
affairs. To these ends, CDNY shall educate and train their members so
that they may be better able to:
* A. Educate students about the philosophy of the Democratic Party;
* B. Work with Democrats across the country to achieve the goals of the CDNY and the Democratic Party; and
* C. Work to bring more people into the political process.
Section
III. State Regions: For the purposes of assuring that colleges in all
areas of New York are represented, the state shall be divided into nine
state regions: the Capital Region, the Central New York Region, the
Finger Lakes Region, the Hudson Valley Region, the Long Island Region,
the New York City Region, the North Country Region, the Southern Tier
Region and the Western New York Region
* A. The Capital Region shall include all colleges in Albany,
Rensselaer, Schenectady, Saratoga, Fulton, Montgomery, Schoharie, and
Washington counties;
* B. The Central New York Region shall
include all colleges in Oneida, Oswego, Madison, Onondaga, and Cortland
counties;
* C. The Finger Lakes Region shall include all colleges in Cayuga,
Seneca, Yates, Ontario, Wayne, Monroe, Livingston, Schuyler and
Tompkins counties;
* D. The Hudson Valley Region shall include all colleges in
Rockland, Putnam, Dutchess, Ulster, Sullivan, Orange, Greene and
Columbia counties;
* E. The Long Island Region shall include all colleges in Suffolk and Nassau counties;
* F. The New York City Region shall include all colleges in the
Richmond, Kings, Westchester Queens, Bronx and New York counties;
* G. The North Country Region shall include all colleges in the
Warren, Essex, Clinton, Franklin, Hamilton, St. Lawrence, Herkimer,
Lewis and Jefferson counties;
* H. The Southern Tier Region shall include all colleges in the
Delaware, Otsego, Chenango, Broome, and Tioga, * I. The Western New
York Region shall include all colleges in the Orleans, Genesee,
Wyoming, Erie, Niagara, Cattaraugus, Chautauqua counties Chemung,
Steuben and Allegany counties;
.
Section
IV. Members: The name of this organization shall be the "College
Democrats of New York," hereinafter referred to in the document as
CDNY. Members of CDNY organization shall consist of the following
entities:
* A. The Executive Board;
* B. The State Council;
* C. The chartered Campus Chapters; and
* D. Membership at large
Section
V. Structure: CDNY shall serve as an umbrella organization for
chartered Campus Chapters. While CDNY will coordinate with each
organization, they remain separate entities under the CDNY. The overall
structure of the CDNY shall be as follows:
* A. The Executive
Board shall consist of: The President, the Capital Region Chair, the
Central New York Region Chair, the Finger Lakes Region Chair, the
Hudson Valley Region Chair, the Long Island Region Chair, the New York
City Region Chair, the North Country Region Chair, the Southern Tier
Region Chair and the Western New York Region Chair. The Executive Board
shall also consist of the Secretary, the Finance Director, the
Communications Director, the Legislative Affairs Director and the State
Council Chair. The Executive Board shall have the responsibilities of
coordinating the activities of different regions, facilitating
inter-region and inter-chapter activities, and determining the
direction and goals of CDNY.
* B. The State Council shall be the official voice of chapters
within CDNY and shall advise the Executive Board on the direction and
goals of CDNY
* C. The chartered Campus Chapters shall be the most basic and fundamental unit within CDNY.
* D. The membership at large shall be composed of all the members
of the chartered chapters and college students wishing to be known as
College Democrats at institutions in New York that lack a chartered
chapter who have the best interests of the Democratic Party, College
Democrats of America, and CDNY at heart, regardless of sex, race,
ethnic origin, religion, physical handicap, socioeconomic status, or
sexual orientation.
Article 2: Executive Board
Section
I. Authority and Responsibility: The Executive Board shall determine
the agenda and policy of CDNY and coordinate all statewide activities
and events. The Executive Board shall also formulate a state platform.
All Executive Board members must maintain active involvement in CDNY
activities and endeavors. Decisions of the Executive Board may be
over-ridden only by a three-fourths vote of all members of the State
Council.
Section II. Executive Board
Composition: The President, the Capital Region Chair, the Central New
York Region Chair, the Finger Lakes Region Chair, the Hudson Valley
Region Chair, the Long Island Region Chair, the New York City Region
Chair, the North Country Region Chair, the Southern Tier Region Chair
and the Western New York Region Chair. The Executive Board shall also
consist of the Secretary, the Finance Director, the Communications
Director, the Legislative Affairs Director and the State Council Chair.
The Executive Board shall have the responsibilities of coordinating the
activities of different regions, facilitating inter-region and
inter-chapter activities, and determining the direction and goals of
CDNY. All positions will be elected once yearly at the General
Elections at the CDNY convention for terms beginning on July 1 of the
year in which they were elected until June 30 of the following year.
The procedure for Executive Board elections is stated in Article 7.
Section
III. Meetings: The Executive Board shall meet on a regular basis
determined by the President or the majority of the Executive Board.
Notice must be given no later than five (5) complete days prior to the
scheduled meeting.
Section IV. Annual
Strategic Plan: No later than one month following the State Convention,
the Executive Board shall establish a set of goals for the year in
which every officer will be assigned official duties. All officers will
be required to submit bi-monthly written reports to the Executive Board
detailing their pursuit of these objectives.
Section
V. Quorum: A quorum of the Executive Board shall be a majority of the
elected officers of the Executive Board members present, in person, by
conference calls, or by electronic communication.
Section
VI. Vacancies: A vacancy shall be declared when a member of the
Executive Board dies, resigns, or is removed from office. If the
vacancy is in any position other than the President, the President
shall appoint a successor with the majority consent of the remaining
Executive Board and the majority consent of the State Council. If the
Chair of any particular region is vacant, the President shall decide
what Regional Chair shall be Chair of the Region lacking a Chair, with
the majority consent of the incoming Executive Board and the majority
consent of the State Council. The President's decision should be
primarily based on the geographic location of the vacant region.
Section VII. Removal: Executive Board members may be removed in the following manner:
* A. Cause for Removal: Cause for removal shall be defined as
malfeasance, misfeasance, or nonfeasance of constitutionally-assigned
duties, being convicted of a felony, or upon other grounds found by all
of the other members of the Executive Board to constitute good and
sufficient cause; and
* B. Process for Removal: To begin the process for removal, a
member of the Executive Board must make a motion for removal. After the
motion is seconded, it will automatically be layed on the table with no
vote. The officer being removed must be contacted that a motion for
removal has been made and that it will be voted on at the next meeting.
Motion will come to a vote at the next schedule meeting. The motion for
removal needs two-thirds majority of the Executive Board.
Section VIII. National Representation and Procedure:
* A. National Council Representation: As specified in Article 3,
Section III of the constitution of the Constitution of the College
Democrats of America, the CDNY President and the next highest-ranking
member of the opposite gender shall represent CDNY on the CDA National
Council. The rank of the Executive Offices for the purpose of National
Council Representation shall be the senior Vice President, the junior
Vice President, followed by all the other officers in their order of
seniority. Shall there be a tie in seniority, the NY State Council
shall elect New York’s other National Council representative among the
eligible members tied for seniority.
* B. National Convention Voting Procedure: For the elections of
College Democrats of America National Officers, the Executive Board
shall determine by majority vote the method by which New York’s votes
shall be allotted. In determining this, the Executive Board is
obligated to make a good faith effort to align New York with the method
chosen by the general consensus of state federations. No member of the
Executive Board running for national office may participate in this
vote.
Section IX. Duties of the President: The President shall:
* A. Attend and preside over meetings of the Executive Board, be
responsible for determining the goals and direction of the CDNY, and
provide quarterly reports to the Executive Board;
* B. With the assistance of the Vice Presidents will be responsible
for the implementation of the goals of the CDNY as set by the Executive
Board;
* C. Appoint ex-officio members of the Executive Board with the advice and consent of the Executive Board;
* D. Establish committees to facilitate CDNY’s goals as needed and
appoint members to them with the advice and consent of the Executive
Board;
* E. Submit bi-monthly reports to the Executive Board and the State council.
Section X. Duties of the Regional Chairs: Each Regional Chair shall:
* A. Attend Executive Board meetings, assist in determining the
directions and goals of CDNY and provide bi-monthly reports to the
President;
* B. Provide a statement of the region’s finances to the Finance
Director, once in the first week of October and once in the first week
of February;
* C. Along with the President, be responsible for the
implementation of the political, and membership goals of the CDNY as
set by the Executive Board;
* D. Act as a representative of all the Region’s chapters.
* E. Outreach and maintain ties to Democratic elected officials,
Democratic campaigns, and Democratic-leaning organizations in the
Region;
* F. Outreach to people interested in starting new Regional chapters and assist them in forming a new chapter;
* G. Outreach and stay in regular communication with active chapters of the l Region.
Section XI. Duties of the Finance Director. The Finance Director shall:
* A. Attend Executive Board meetings, assist in determining the
directions and goals of CDNY and provide bi-monthly reports to the
Chair;
* B. Along with the Chair, be responsible for the implementation of
the financial goals of the CDNY as set by the Executive Board;
* C. Maintain CDNY's financial records
* D. Set Fundraising Goals for CDNY and follow through with a fundraising initiatives;
* E. Maintain organizational compliancy with the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
Section XII. Duties of the Secretary: The Secretary shall:
* A. Attend Executive Board meetings, assist in determining the
directions and goals of CDNY and provide bi-monthly reports to the
Chair;
* B. Supervise elections of CDNY positions and tabulate results
* C. Record the minutes of each Executive Board meeting; and
* D. Upon the Chair's death, removal, resignation, or
incapacitating disability according to Article 2, Section IV.
Secretary will oversea election of one of the regional chairs to the
President position. New President must be elected by a majority of the
executive board members. Runoffs should be conducted as necessary.
Section XIII. Duties of the Director for Communications: The Director of Communications Shall:
* A. Attend Executive Board meetings, assist in determining the
direction and goals of the CDNY, and provide bi-monthly reports to the
President;
* B. Along with the President, be responsible for the
implementation of the communications goals of the CDNY as set by the
Executive Board;
* C. Maintain the CDNY Listserv, online groups, and public
relations. Maintain website or present to Executive Board for approval
a nominee for the position of Webmaster.
Section XIV. Duties of the Director of Legislative Affairs: The Director of Legislative Affairs shall:
* A. Attend Executive Board meetings, assist in determining the
goals of the CDNY, and provide bi-monthly reports to the President;
* B. Along with the President, be responsible for the
implementation of the Legislative goals of CDNY, as set by the
Executive Board.
* C. Identify political issues on the state and local levels that
affect college students and organize CDNY lobbying efforts.
Article 3: State Council
Section
I. Definition: Its purpose shall be to provide a voice for state
chapters and the grassroots organizing within the organization.
Section II. Rights & Responsibilities: The State Council members
shall make themselves available to the Executive Board for advice and
shall have a right to cast an advisory vote. The State Council shall
meet at the state convention and at regular intervals determined by the
Chair and approved by the Executive Board. A three-fourth (Â3⁄4)
majority of NY State Council members can override any Executive Board
decision. The NY State council shall also approve the CDNY Platform.
Each NY State Council member shall be on the New York State Council
listserv and shall be responsible for passing down relevant information
to their chapter's membership.
Section III. Membership: The membership of the State Council shall
include one representative of each chartered state chapter. The State
Council shall elect a chair who shall:
* A. Be a state chapter representative, and will be elected on an
annual basis by the membership of the State Council at the State
Convention. In the event that no chair is elected at the State
Convention, a chair will be elected at the subsequent meeting, as
determined by the Executive Board.
* B. Attend Executive Board
meetings, advise in determining the goals of CDNY, and provide
bi-monthly written reports to the President; and
* C. Shall assist the Executive Board in initiation of new state
chapters and assist communication between and amongst existing state
chapters.
Section
IV. Quorum: A quorum of the State Council shall be a majority of the
members present, in person, by conference calls, or by electronic
communication of the State Council and a majority of the Executive
Board to constitute a Quorum.
Article 4: Campus Chapters
Section
I. Definition: Chartered Campus Chapters shall be the most basic and
fundamental unit within CDNY. There may be only one Campus Chapter per
college campus.
Section II. Purpose: As member organizations of
CDNY, chartered Campus Chapters shall be dedicated to educating members
of their college community about the philosophy of the CDNY and
organizing them to further the interests of the Democratic Party. Each
CDNY Campus Chapter shall extend membership to all registered college
students who wish to be known as College Democrats regardless of sex,
race, ethnic origin, religion, physical handicap, socioeconomic status,
or sexual orientation. For these purposes, a "college student" shall
mean an undergraduate or graduate student including those on approved
temporary leave or absence from their college.
Section III. Chapter Certification: Campus chapters applying for a
charter shall at a minimum provide the Executive Board with the names,
permanent and school addresses, emails, and phone numbers of all
officers. A copy of the chapter constitution must be submitted. All
CDNY chapters must also be certified by the College Democrats of
America.
Section IV. Chapter Maintenance: In order to maintain an active charter
a chapter must provide to the Executive Board a yearly update of the
current list of names, permanent and school addresses, emails, and
phone numbers of all officers. A copy of the chapter constitution
amendments must be submitted. Chapters shall also register with the
Student Activities office of their respective institution.
Section V. Chapter Decertification: Chartered Campuses may be decertified in the following manner:
*
A. Cause for Decertification: As specified in Article 5, Section V of
the Constitution of the College Democrats of America, cause for
revoking a chapter's charter shall be defined as malfeasance,
misfeasance, or nonfeasance of assigned duties, or upon other grounds
by a member of the Executive Board to constitute good and sufficient
cause.
* B. Process for Decertification: As specified in
Article 5, Section V of the Constitution of the College Democrats of
America, to begin the process for decertification, a member of the
Executive Board or State Council Member must charge the officers of the
Campus Chapter with the reasons for the decertification at least 30
days before the Executive Board meeting at which the Chapter's
decertification will be voted upon. Officers of the Campus Chapter in
question must be offered an opportunity at or before that meeting,
either in person, by phone, or by mail, to defend their actions
directly to the Executive Board. A majority vote by the Executive Board
shall rule on the Chapter in question's decertification.
Article 5: The Membership at Large
Section
I. Definition: The membership at large shall be composed of all the
members of the chartered chapters and college students wishing to be
known as College Democrats at institutions in New York that lack a
chartered chapter who have the best interests of the Democratic Party,
College Democrats of America, and CDNY at heart, regardless of sex,
race, ethnic origin, religion, physical handicap, socioeconomic status,
or sexual orientation.
Article 6: State Convention
Section
I. Definition: A State Convention shall be held on an annual basis at a
set by the Executive Board and majority consent of the State Council.
Section II. The purposes of the State Convention are:
* A. To train and educate CDNY members in political techniques
* B. To allow CDNY members to meet fellow College Democrats from across the state of New York
* C. To host Democratic political speakers.
* D. To hold elections for all Executive Board positions.
Section
III: Location: A certified campus chapter that shall be selected by a
majority of the Executive Board shall host The Annual Statewide
Convention.
Section IV: Membership: The
State Convention shall be governed by the Temporary Rules of the
Convention, as adopted by the Executive Board prior to the Convention.
Candidates for the Executive Board must be enrolled as full-time or
part-time student for at least one quarter or semester of undergraduate
or graduate education during the academic year following the election.
Section V: Executive Board Elections
* A. Eligibility to be a Candidate: All candidates must be members in
good standing at a certified CDNY chapter. Only downstate members are
eligible to run for and vote for downstate positions. Only regional
members are eligible to run for and vote for regional positions. All
candidates must be present at the CDNY convention.
* B.
Eligibility to Vote: Each CDNY member in good standing of a certified
chapter who attends and properly registers for convention, according to
the procedure established by the Executive Board and host chapter or
chapters shall be considered a voting delegate for his or her
respective chapter.
* C. Nominations: Candidates shall have the opportunity to declare
their intention to run for an Executive Board position by filing a
statement of candidacy with the Executive Board prior to the
convention. Candidates may also be nominated by any two or more
delegates from at least two different chapters directly before their
election.
* D. Speeches & Questions: Each candidate shall be allowed the
opportunity to give a speech prior to voting. The maximum time that a
candidate may speak shall be 5 minutes for Presidential Candidates, 4
minutes for Vice Presidential Candidates, and 3 minutes for each other
office. Following all the speeches for a given office, delegates shall
be allowed to ask questions of all the candidates.
* E. Election Chair: The Secretary shall chair the elections,
except when the Secretary is a candidate; in this instance the
highest-ranking Executive Board member who is not a candidate in the
election in question shall chair the election. In the event that all
Executive Board members are candidates, the State Council Chair shall
chair the election.
* F. Voting:
a. Each chapter shall be allocated five votes, plus one vote per delegate.
b. Elections for each office shall take place directly
following the speeches and questions of the candidates for that office.
c. The order offices shall be elected in shall be: The
President, the nine regional chairs Secretary/Treasurer, Director of
Communications, and Director of Legislative Affairs.
d. In order to win, a candidate must receive more than half
of all votes cast, shall no candidate receive this many votes, there
shall be a runoff between the two candidates receiving the most votes.
Article 7: Parliamentary Authority
Section
I. The rules contained in the current edition of Roberts Rules of Order
Newly Revised shall govern the CDNY in all cases to which they are
applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with these bylaws and
any special rules of order the CDNY may adopt.
Article 8: Amendments
Section I. Procedures: This constitution can be amended by:
* A. The Constitutional Committee shall advise the membership on
revisions and amendments to the CDNY Constitution annually at the State
Convention. A two-thirds (2/3) vote at the State Convention of those
chartered Chapters present. For these purposes, each chartered Chapter
shall have one vote;
* B. Unanimous vote in favor in two
consecutive Executive Board meetings, provided that the chartered
chapters later vote by a majority in favor of the Amendment.
Adopted on April 14, 2004 by the 2003-2004 Executive Board of the College Democrats of New York.
Evan S. Lederman, President
Laura Perelman, Downstate Vice President
Tim C. Lim, Upstate Vice President
L. Carlos Zapata, Communications Director
Brian Switzer, Secretary/Treasurer
Michael Donnelly, Legislative Director
Michael Klett, Downstate Political Outreach Director
David Yellin, Upstate Political Outreach Director
Megan Curran, Downstate Membership Director
Lauren Rosenberg, Upstate Membership Director
Amendment I
All members of the executive board and of all chapters of CDNY are
expected to act in a moral and ethical manner at all times when acting
in their official capacity as members of CDNY. Acting in a blatantly
unethical manner can result in removal from office under the rules
provided in Article 2 Section VII.
Amendment II
An executive board member acting in an official capacity must share any
and all information received from national candidates with the chapters
of CDNY, regardless of individual or other preferences without
expressing any bias or the exertion of undue influence. Any executive
board member found to have purposely withheld information on any
candidates to aid one candidate over another, can be removed from
office under the rules provided in Article 2 Section VII |
