Bylaws

Bylaw I General 

Section 1.  These Bylaws shall govern the proceedings of this Chapter in all matters not expressly provided for in the Constitution and Bylaws of the Tau Beta Pi Association, Inc. 

Section 2.  This Chapter shall conform to such rules and regulations of the University of Central Florida and of its College of Engineering as may apply to honor societies.

Section 3.  In the event of conflict between the Constitution and Bylaws of the Tau Beta Pi Association, Inc., and the rules and regulations of the University of Central Florida, the rules of the University of Central Florida shall prevail, and the Secretary Treasurer of the Association shall be notified of the circumstances of the conflict.

Section 4.  Abbreviated references herein to the Constitution and Bylaws of the Association and to the various Bylaws of this document shall be made in the form illustrated by the following examples:

a.        C-VI, 1-National Constitution Article VI, Section 1

b.       B-V, 5.02–National Bylaw V, Section 5.02

c.        FBD–I, -Florida Delta Chapter Bylaw I, Section 4

Bylaw II Government and Officers

Section 1.  The Chapter shall be composed of members chosen from among eligible students and alumni on the basis of distinguished scholarship or professional attainment and exemplary character, as enunciated in C–VIII and in The Eligibility Code of the Association.

Section 2.  The Chapter shall have full control over its individual affairs, subject to the Constitution and Bylaws of the Association, which control shall be exercised by the active membership of the Chapter and its Advisory Board.  An “active member” of this Chapter shall be defined in C–VI, 1, and only active undergraduate and graduate-student members, as defined therein, shall have the privilege of voting on new members and on the amounts of the initiation fee, dues, fines, and assessments.  A student may become inactive only under the provisions of B–VI, 6.05.

Section 3.  The officers of this Chapter shall be President, Vice President, Recording Secretary, Corresponding Secretary, and Cataloger, who shall be active members of the Chapter; a Treasurer, who may be an active member of the Chapter or a member of the faculty; and four alumnus advisors, preferably elected from among the faculty of the College of Engineering.

Section 4.  The Advisory Board of the Chapter shall be composed of the President, Vice President, Corresponding Secretary, and four alumnus members of the Association.

Section 5.  Alumnus members of the Advisory Board shall serve four-year terms as specified in C-VI, 7.  All other officers shall serve for one year or until their successors are duly elected and installed.

Section 6.  The duties of the officers shall be those usually performed by persons holding such offices, those prescribed by the Constitution and Bylaws of the Association, and those prescribed in these Bylaws or by Chapter action.

Section 7.  The President shall be the Chapter’s delegate to the Convention of the Association.  The other officers shall be alternate delegates, in the order given in FDB-II 3.

Section 8.  The following extra duties shall be required of the officers:

a.        The President shall be an exofficio member of all committees.

b.       The President shall see that each officer and committee chair is provided with a written list of specific duties for which each is responsible.  A copy of each list shall be placed in the Recording Secretary’s notebook and in the President’s Book.

c.        The Recording Secretary shall see that each candidate accepting election receives copies of the Constitution and Bylaws and Eligibility Code of The Tau Beta Pi Association, Information About Tau Beta Pi, these Bylaws, and such other materials as the Chapter may deem desirable.

d.       The Corresponding Secretary shall notify each active member and Advisor of the time, place, and purpose of each Chapter meeting at least one week in advance of the meeting.

e.        The Corresponding Secretary shall serve as Secretary of the Advisory Board.

f.         The President shall cooperate with the Director of Tau Beta Pi District 5 and shall encourage the Chapter Members to participate in the District’s activities.

Bylaws III Meetings

Section 1.  The following regular meetings shall be scheduled and held once each year: Organization, and Installation of Officers.

Section 2.  The following regular meetings shall be scheduled and held once in the Fall and once in the Spring semesters: Discussion of Election Procedures, Election of Candidates, Initiation of Electees, and one general meeting of a social, literary, or technical nature.

Section 3.  Special meetings may be called at any time by the President, any alumnus member of the Advisory Board, or upon written request to the President signed by 20% of the active members of the Chapter.

Section 4.  “Roberts Rules of Order” shall be the parliamentary guide of the Chapter in all matters not covered in the Constitution and Bylaws of the Association or in these Bylaws.

Section 5.  The first meeting of each semester shall be held within two weeks of the start of the semester.

Section 6.  The officers shall present a complete calendar of the regular meetings of the Chapter for the semester to the active members for their approval no later than the second meeting of the semester.

Section 7.  Notices sent to active members and alumnus advisors announcing meetings shall clearly state the time, place, and purpose of the meeting.

Section 8.  Business meetings, other than the Election Meeting, shall last no longer than two hours, unless extended by affirmative vote of three-fourths of the active members present.  The order of business at these meetings shall be as follows:

a.        Roll call

b.       Minutes of the previous meeting

c.        Reports of officers

d.       Reports of committees

e.        Unfinished business

f.         New business

g.       Adjournment

Section 9.  Attendance of active members shall be required at all regular, scheduled meetings of the Chapter, unless excused by the President for reasons which he or she judges to be good and sufficient.  A member who must miss a regular, scheduled meeting shall submit his or her reasons to the President, in writing, before the meeting, unless the excuse is due to illness.

Section 10.  The President shall call a meeting of the Advisory Board at the beginning of each semester to discuss Chapter activities for the semester.  The minutes of each Advisory Board meeting shall be read at the following regular meeting of the Chapter.  Additional meetings of the Board will be held at approximately two-week intervals or at the convenience of the Board members.

Section 11.  A quorum for the consideration of routine business shall be a majority of the active membership of the Chapter: for the election of new members, for changing the initiation fee, for amending the Chapter Bylaws, and for approval or disapproval of a proposed amendment to the Constitution of the Association; a quorum shall be three-fourths of the active membership; for the election of officers, the quorum shall be two-thirds of the active membership.  A quorum for an Advisory Board meeting shall be five members of the Board.

Bylaw IV Committees

Section 1.  Subject to the provisions of B-V, 5.02, the President shall appoint the chair and members of the following committees: Membership, Initiation, Program, Social Activities, and such other committees as the Chapter shall desire and establish.  Appointments shall be made at the next Chapter meeting following each initiation of new members. 

Section 2.  As early as possible after committee appointments are made the President shall provide each committee chair with a list of his or her specific duties and responsibilities.

Section 3.  Each committee chair shall make a report on the progress of his or her group’s activities at each Chapter meeting.

Bylaw V Election of New Members

Section 1.  Election of new members shall be held in the Fall and Spring semesters as soon as possible after the grades of the previous semester become available.

Section 2.  All provisions of C-VII and B-VI shall be strictly followed.

Section 3.  Scholastically eligible students in the following curricula shall be considered for membership in the Chapter: Civil Engineering and Environmental Sciences, Computer Engineering, Electrical Engineering and Communication Sciences, Mechanical Engineering and Aerospace Sciences, Industrial Engineering.

Section 4.  Night students, pursuing equivalent curricula to those named in Section 3, may be considered for membership in this Chapter, subject to the provisions of C-VIII, 2(a), however, such students shall be considered separately from day students, and no such student shall be considered more than twice as a junior or more than twice as a senior.

Section 5.  Transfer students shall be eligible for consideration after attaining twenty-five UCF semester hours.

Section 6.  The cases of students whose scholastic eligibility is in doubt because of irregularities in standing or curriculum shall be determined by the Advisory Board of the Chapter.

Section 7.  The Chapter may elect to specify scholastic requirements higher than those stated in C-VIII.

Section 8.  The membership committee shall periodically consult with the chairs of the various engineering departments to determine the names of graduate students, alumni, faculty members, and others who may be eligible for membership under the provisions of

C-VIII, 3-6.

Section 9.  Exemplary Character Evaluation

                MIXER

a.        Letters shall be sent to scholastically eligible candidates inviting them to a get acquainted meeting (“mixer”).

b.       A get acquainted meeting shall be held at which the Chapter members will meet the candidates.  The candidates shall be introduced to the purposes and activities of Tau Beta Pi.

c.        The Chapter members shall be asked to make recommendations on the candidates they met during the get acquainted meeting, at the Chapter’s election meeting.

ACTIVITIES

a.        All eligible candidates will be invited to sign up for participation in one of the Chapter’s projects.

b.       A chair for each project shall be chosen from one of the candidates which has signed up for the committee.

c.        Each of the candidates shall be required to participate actively in a project to receive further Chapter consideration.

d.       At the election meeting the membership committee shall make recommendations based on the candidates’ participation in their assigned projects.

Section 10.  Voting Procedures

a.        At the Election Meeting, the Eligibility Code shall first be read.

b.       The names of eligible candidates will be submitted to the Chapter membership in groups by the membership committee along with the committee’s favorable recommendation for each candidate in the group.  The size of the groups shall be determined by the membership committee.

c.        If any active member has a question about any of the candidates in a group, that candidate’s name shall be removed from the group and considered separately.

d.       A Chapter vote shall be taken on the remainder of the group.

e.       Each candidate removed from a group and candidates who did not receive a favorable recommendation from the membership committee shall be considered separately after all groups have been voted on.  Each name shall be presented for discussion and voted on before the following name is considered.

f.      After all names have been considered and voted on, there shall be a second individual ballot for each candidate who failed election on the first ballot.

g.     No candidate who fails election in the second ballot shall be considered further unless 25% of the members present so request.

h.     No candidate who fails election on the third ballot shall be considered again at this election.  He or she may be considered at the next election if he or she is eligible.

Section 11.  The President shall direct the Membership committee to have sufficient letters of notification of election prepared in advance of the Election Meeting.  These letters should be signed by the President, addressed to the electees, and mailed within six hours of the Election Meeting.

Section 12.  All members shall keep the elections results in absolute confidence so that no candidate shall learn of his or her election except by means of the official letter; likewise, no candidate shall be informed of the details of the vote, especially concerning the personal matters discussed at the voting.

Section 13.  At the first meeting of electees, the President shall explain the requirements, objectives and activities of the Association of the Chapter.  Those electees desiring to accept election shall formally state their acceptance, in writing, in a letter addressed to the President.

Section 14.  Each electee who refuses initiation for financial reasons shall be interviewed by the Advisory Board, as required by C-V111, 10 (a) .

Section 15.  Each electee shall be required to take part in an activity recommended or approved by the Chapter officers to foster a spirit of liberal culture.  They shall also be required to read the Constitution and Bylaws of the Association and these Bylaws.

Bylaw VI   Election and Installation of Officers

Section 1.  The President, Vice President, Recording Secretary, Corresponding Secretary, Treasurer, Cataloger and an Alumnus member of the Advisory Board shall be elected in the spring semester of each year.

Section 2.  Nominations for officers shall be made by two nominating committees appointed by the President.  Each committee shall nominate one candidate for each office.  Additional nominations may be made from the floor at the Election of Officers Meeting.  Reports of the nominating committee shall be made at a scheduled Chapter meeting, or by mail to the active members at least one week prior to the Election of Officers Meeting.

Section 3.  The Election of Officers Meeting shall be held as soon as is reasonably possible after the beginning of the spring semester.  The Chapter Officer Installation Procedure given in the President’s Book shall be employed to install new officers.  During the period following the election until the installation, each Officer-elect shall work closely with his or her counterpart to learn the duties and responsibilities of the office.  Transfer of the financial records between the past and the newly elected Treasurer is contingent upon an audit as required by FDB-VII, 8.

Section 4.  The election of officers shall be by secret ballot.  Two-thirds of the active membership shall constitute a quorum for the Election of Officers Meeting, and a majority of the quorum shall be required for election.  A vote by the members present will cause the nominee receiving the least number of ballots to be dropped from further consideration until one receives a majority vote.

Section 5.  If any office becomes vacant between regular elections, a special election shall be held at the next Chapter meeting to fill the vacancy.  The officer elected shall serve until the next regular election.

Bylaw VII   Finances

Section 1.  The expenses of the Chapter shall be borne by the initiation fee and by various fund raising activities.  A majority vote of the active membership shall be required to change any fees or to levy any assessment.  Within one week the Corresponding Secretary shall inform the Secretary-Treasurer of the Association of any changes in amounts of the Chapter’s initiation fee or assessment.

Section 2.  The initiation fee for all initiates shall be $55.00, payable in advance to the Chapter Treasurer.  This amount covers the national initiation fee of $21.00, the national convention assessment of $7.00, the cost of a rough Bent casting, and the operating expenses of the local Chapter.

Section 3.  Shortly after the Election of Officers Meeting a committee composed of the President, President-elect, Treasurer, and the Treasurer-elect shall prepare an operating budget for the next year.  The budget shall be submitted to the Chapter for approval by a majority vote at the first regular meeting of the fall semester.  The budget shall include a recommended amount for the initiation fee to be charged during the year.  Any additional expenses not provided for by the adopted budget must be approved by the Chapter, except that the Treasurer shall be authorized to advance the Convention delegate a sum sufficient to cover expenses he or she expects to incur in attending the annual Convention. 

Section 4.  The Chapter shall use the official bookkeeping system of the Association.

Section 5.  There shall be at all times a balance of at least $50.00 in the Chapter treasury.  A sum of no more than $20.00 may be kept in petty cash by the Treasurer.

Section 6.  Expenditures in excess of $5.00 shall be made by check, signed by the Treasurer and countersigned by the President.  Expenditures of less than $5.00 may be made from petty cash by the Treasurer.

Section 7.  The Chapter’s fiscal year shall be May 1 to April 30.

Section 8.  Immediately following the end of the fiscal year, at least one member of the Advisory Board (but not the Treasurer if he or she is an alumnus member of the Board) shall audit the Chapters books.  If necessary the Treasurer and Treasurer-elect shall file the Internal Revenue Service Form 990.

Section 9.  No part of the net earnings of the Chapter will inure to the benefit of, or be distributable to, members or officers of the Chapter or to any other individual.

Bylaw VIII   Discipline

Section 1.  It is the intent of this disciplinary Bylaw to impress the membership with the seriousness of purpose of this Chapter and of The Tau Beta Pi Association, and to enable the officers and dedicated members of this Chapter to accomplish necessary business in a manner not inconvenienced or encumbered by a lack of interest on the part of a few members.

Section 2.  Discipline shall be accomplished with C-IX, 4&5.

Section 3.  A uniform system of fines for habitual absence or tardiness may be established each year in which it is desired by the Chapter.  A majority vote of the active membership shall be required to establish this system of fines for a period of one year.

Bylaw IX   Records and Equipment

Section 1.  All permanent records of the Chapter shall be kept current and up-to-date.

Section 2.  The initiation equipment shall be maintained in good order and in a secure manner by the Vice President, and the Ritual and its related materials shall be kept up-to-date and under lock and key when not in use.

Section 3.  All records and an inventory of all physical equipment owned by the Chapter shall be turned over to the new officers at the Installation of Officers Meeting.

Section 4.  The Charter of this Chapter shall be displayed at a location determined by the Dean of Engineering.

Section 5.  All records of this Chapter shall be open for inspection to any member of the Association and to any official of the University who has received approval form the Advisory Board, except the Ritual may not be inspected by non-members of the Association.

Bylaw X   Suspension of the Bylaws

Section 1.  These Bylaws may be suspended only by a three-fourths affirmative vote of the active membership of the Chapter and by a four-sevenths affirmative vote of the Advisory Board, as provided in C-VI, 5.

Bylaw XI   Amendment

Section 1.  Amendments to these Bylaws may be proposed by any three active members of the Chapter.  A proposed amendment shall be submitted in writing to the President and signed by the members proposing it.

Section 2.  These Bylaws may be amended by a three-fourths affirmative vote of the active membership of the Chapter, subject to the approval of the Advisory Board, as provided in C-VI, 7 (b).

Section 3.  The Corresponding Secretary shall send a copy of the Bylaws as amended, to the Secretary-Treasurer of the Association within two weeks after an amendment is adopted.

Bylaw XII   Dissolution

Section 1.  In the event of the dissolution of the Chapter, the residual assets shall be distributed to The Tau Beta Pi Association, Inc., a corporation organized and operated exclusively for educational and scientific purposed and exempt from federal income tax under Section 501( c) (3) of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1954.  Any of such assets not so disposed of shall be distributed to a Federal, State or Local Government for public purposes.

Bylaw XIII   Enactment

Section 1.  These Bylaws were adopted by vote of this Chapter and it’s Advisory Board and became effective on

Date___________________________________________________________________

They were amended on ____________________________________________________

Signed__________________________________________________________________

                                                                (President)

Signed__________________________________________________________________

                                                                (Advisory Board Chair)

 Home  |  Information  |  Eligibility Requirements  |  Members Area  |  Officers  |  Pictures  |  Links