Q&A Constitution

Preamble

Queers & Allies: LesBiGayTrans Services is based upon fundamental principles of equality and dignity:

Discrimination based upon sexual orientation or gender identity is wrong, and degrading to all persons as individuals and as a community. We believe in the inalienable right of all people to live and love without being judged by his or her gender or the gender of those with whom he or she chooses to have a loving, consensual relationship.

Queers & Allies is an inseparable and dynamic part of the University of Kansas. Queer people add invaluable diversity to the existence of the University, and its students should be encouraged to express themselves and their lives freely.

Lesbian, bisexual, gay and transgendered people-and their friends-must have a healthy and positive support organization in the University community. Queers & Allies, in existence for over three decades, aims to provide such support and nurturing in all it does.

We have a right as humans to live our lives free from fear, oppression, discrimination, and harassment. We have a right to a University, town, state, country, and world that recognizes and values us.

Because of these reasons, Queers & Allies, LBGT services of Kansas, exists.

Article I

Q&A resolves to accomplish the following in a positive manner:

To provide support services to the queer community;
To educate ourselves and others about issues surrounding sexual orientation, gender identity, and expression;
To sponsor social activities to foster a sense of community among gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered people and their allies;
To coordinate educational activities on campus and in the community;
To encourage the reform of all heterosexist and gender discriminatory laws and policies;
To provide a friendly, accepting, and hospitable atmosphere for all, both in the Q&A office and at Q&A functions;
To encourage the understanding and acceptance of collective and individual differences within and among the lesbian, bisexual, gay, and transgendered communities.

Article II

Q&A functions and activities are open to all interested persons regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, ancestry, disability, gender, sexual orientation or veteran status.

Article III

Officers shall be elected and appointed from the general membership. The elected officers of the organization are as follow: Director, Treasurer, Events Chair, Communications Director, Social Chair, Outreach Chair, Student Senator, and others as deemed necessary by the membership. Appointed officers are as follow: Vanguard Editor, Webmaster, and Office Manager.

A. General Responsibilities for All Officers

To responsibly carry out specific officer duties as listed in sections B and C below;
To maintain a positive position and attitude toward the organization;
To handle all relevant communications responsibly;
To report on all actions carried out as an officer at each business meeting;
To attend all business meetings unless excused by the Director;
To maintain at least two regularly scheduled hours each week in the Q&A office;
To maintain student status if Director, Treasurer, or Events Chair.

B. Elected Officers

1. Director
a. Role: The Director is charged with maintaining diplomatic relations within the organization and helping the organization to consider its possible directions. The Director is to intervene when intra-organizational conflicts arise and is to act as a motivator to all officers. Overall, the director is to offer leadership, advice, and support to all officers and members as they carry out the mission of Queers & Allies. The Director is also ceremonial head of Queers & Allies.

b. Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following: acting as diplomatic representative for the organization; keeping in touch with member wants and needs; arranging and coordinating all business meetings; arranging for relevant guests to be a part of Queers & Allies meetings; to work with the LBGT Resource Coordinator in developing campus-wide programming needs not met by Queers & Allies; to excuse meeting requirements for officers if deemed necessary; and to appoint and oversee an Office Manager in conjunction with the Communications Director.

2. Treasurer
a. Role: The Treasurer is charged with overseeing all financial transactions for the organization and with providing financial accountability for the organization. In this capacity, the Treasurer is expected to advise the group regarding money spending decisions and is also expected to implement fundraising programs.

b. Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following: providing full financial reports at all business meetings; depositing all organizational monies into the general account in a timely manner; to ensure payment on all approved expenses (expenses must be approved at a regularly scheduled Queers & Allies meeting or via a business list-serve vote where members of the list-serve have at least three full days to vote on the expense); and to maintain adequate funds in the Queers & Allies account in order to meet organizational spending needs.

3. Events Chair
a. Role: The Events Chair is charged with overseeing the five regularly scheduled events hosted by Queers & Allies each year. In order to do this, the Events Chair must seek speakers, venues, co-sponsors, and facilitators for various projects in conjunction with committees (as detailed in section b).

b. Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following: organizing a summer retreat/event; organizing the National Coming Out Day dance (and heading the Dance Committee); securing a speaker for World AIDS Day; organizing and implementing Pride Week (and heading the Pride Week Committee); and organizing and implementing the Kansas College Unity Coalition conference (in consultation with KCUC and the Conference Committee).

4. Communications Director
a. Role: The Communications Director is responsible for promoting the organization by providing adequate communications regarding all activities and events. This officer is responsible for helping Q&A maintain a strong image via advertisements, press releases, and strong office communications. The Communications Director is also charged with compiling and maintaining an ongoing history of the organization.

b. Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following: taking minutes at all business meetings; posting minutes to the organizational listserv; creating and distributing advertisements for all approved events (events, excepting the five regular events listed in section 3b, must be approved at a regularly scheduled Queers & Allies meeting or via a business list-serve vote where members of the list-serve have at least three full days to vote on the event); assisting the Director in overseeing the Office Manager; training all officers on how to handle communications to the organization; overseeing creation of the scrapbook for the organization; and appointing and overseeing a Vanguard editor. If the Communications Director so chooses, she or he may chair a Publications Committee that oversees advertising, the Vanguard , and the scrap book.

5. Student Senator
a. Role: The Student Senator is charged with representing the needs of Queers & Allies to Student Senate.

b. Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following: attending every relevant Student Senate meeting (and to follow all Student Senate conduct codes and guidelines); to write, submit, and defend all legislative needs as voted upon by Queers & Allies; and to keep Queers & Allies informed on possible Student Senate action that may affect the well-being of the group directly or indirectly.

6. Social Chair
a. Role: The Social Chair is charged with planning, coordinating, and implementing activities for all Q&A social meetings (note: social meetings are also called general meetings in the constitution).

b. Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following: to plan and implement social programming for all social meetings; to ensure that Q&A social activities are inclusive of the general membership; and to facilitate a monthly social event that does not fall on the day of a social meeting.

7. Outreach Chair
a. Role: The Outreach Chair's primary responsibilities are the Speaker's Bureau program and an annual Peer Support Conference. Speaker's Bureau is an educational forum designed to inform the public about issues important to the queer community. Each panel should create an open and positive atmosphere for the discussion of differing viewpoints and attempt to break down stereotypes, discrimination, and bigotry. Speakers Bureaus represent the queer community as a diverse, vital, and essential part of the public at large. The Peer Support Conference serves as an exchange of ideas regarding support in the LGBT and ally community.

b. Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following: to run the Speaker's Bureau program; to chair a Peer Counseling Committee; to facilitate the Peer Support conference; and to ensure that the Q&A Office is supplied with information for anyone calling about support resources.

C. Appointed Officers

1. Vanguard Editor
a. Role: The Vanguard is the official queer publication for the University of Kansas , serving as the voice of Q&A to its members and the public at large. The Vanguard Editor is charged with soliciting submissions, fairly selecting manuscripts or visual elements for publication, designing each issue of the Vanguard , and ensuring that the Vanguard is distributed.

b. Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following: to facilitate the creation and distribution of the Vanguard .

2. E-Mail/Webpage Coordinator
a. Role: The e-mail account maintained by the organization is to provide interested individuals with information about the organization in a fast and confidential manner. The webpage likewise serves as a conduit of information about the organization. The E-Mail/Webpage Coordinator maintains the organization's e-mail account and mailings, in addition to the timely maintenance of a webpage. The E-Mail/Webpage Coordinator also has the responsibility of scanning possible submissions for the OUTbox Newsletter (in order to publish submissions they must be queer related and be of local interest to KU or Lawrence).

b. Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following: to renew the e-mail account as necessary; to coordinate messages concerning Q&A and its upcoming events through various e-mail channels; to forward items of particular urgency to concerned individuals; to maintain the Queers & Allies webpage, including any message forums; and to create regular editions of the OUTbox Newsletter, the official e-newsletter of Queers & Allies.

3. Office Manager
a. Role: The Office Manager is charged with the duty of keeping the Queers & Allies office staffed, clean, and operating in a reliable manner

b. Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the following: making sure that Queers & Allies officers and members are committed to at least twenty office hours as an organization; ensuring that every office hour is served; maintaining the cleanliness of the office; ensuring that the office is full of applicable supplies; maintaining the office computer; and maintaining the order of the Queers & Allies David H. Stout Library.

4. Other Appointed Officers
On occasion, Q&A may be asked to appoint a representative to serve on various committees and entities from the University or community at large. The representative will be recruited from volunteers.

Article IV

A. In matters of general decision making, each person present at a social meeting where the decision is to be made and who has attended at least one previous meeting shall be accorded one vote. The only exception comes in voting for officers, in which a member must have attended at least two meetings each semester during the previous academic year. Votes may be cast as 'yea', 'nay', 'abstain' or other, as in special cases requiring a vote other than 'yea' or 'nay'.

B. A quorom of officers must be present for a vote to take place at a business meeting. All members who have attended at least one meeting (excepting the first meeting of the year) will be accorded one vote. The Director shall abstain from the voting process. All business meetings shall be open to all members. Votes may be cast as 'yea', 'nay', 'abstain' or other, as in special cases requiring a vote other than 'yea' or 'nay'.

C. No vote shall be conducted until all discussion has ceased.

D. A majority decision of those voting during a decision-making process may postpone a non-election vote for a maximum of two weeks.

E. Motions requiring a 'yea' or 'nay' must acquire a majority vote of 'yea' to pass.
1. Motions not requiring a 'yea' or 'nay' to pass (e.g. voting on a Pride Week speaker from three choices) require a simple majority.
2. In cases of a tie vote, the Director casts the deciding vote.

F. The Director may veto a 'yea' or 'nay' motion that passed.

G. The Director's veto can be overridden by a further vote on the same motion that garners a two-thirds majority of eligible members; only one further vote is permitted and the vote must take place during the subsequent appropriate meeting. Per Article IV, Section D, this second vote can be delayed.

H. The Director's veto cannot overturn a majority vote of 'nay'.

Article V

A. Elections of all elected officers shall take place at the social meeting immediately prior to the last business meeting of the spring semester each year with the exception of Student Senator which shall be elected the first meeting during the month of April.

B. Elected officer positions may be permanently filled only by election.

C. Officers will serve over the summer and through the following academic year and will be eligible for re-election.

D. Immediately prior to each respective election, written and verbal nominations will be accepted. Self-nomination is allowed. Each officer will be elected in the order they are listed in this constitution (see III B), and each election will be completed before moving on to the next.

E. All voting will be done by secret written ballot, even in the event of unopposed nominees. Write-in votes for individuals not nominated and "no" votes against nominees are allowed.

F. Results will be tabulated by the Q&A advisor(s) in conjunction with one student who will not run for any offices. If any group member objects to the student who is selected to assist in tabulating votes, then another student will be selected. In the rare case that no student is trusted to assist in tabulating votes, all votes will be opened one at a time directly in front of the group. If an advisor is not present to help tabulate votes, then a second student will be selected to assist who is subject to the same stipulations placed upon the first student.

G. Final results will be announced by the current Director.

H. All elected officers will assume office after the last social meeting of the spring semester. All appointments for appointed offices will be made by the close of the school year.

I. Any officer may be removed from office by the following procedures:
1. An officer may write a letter of resignation. This letter must be sent to the business list-serv and to the current Director. In the case of Director resignation, the Director shall deliver his or her letter to a current advisor.

2. Any member may move at a business meeting to impeach an officer. After this occurs, the Director will ask for a reason for the impeachment. The member moving for impeachment will then explain why the officer should be impeached. After this, the Director will ask for a second for the impeachment charge. If someone seconds the motion, then at the following meeting an impeachment trial shall be held. This impeachment trial shall consist of the person or persons bringing impeachment listing all charges made against the officer. The officer will then have a chance to respond to the charges. The Director may ask questions to clarify the contentions and responses. Immediately following this trial, the group will then vote via secret ballot as to whether the officer shall be impeached. If over half of the members present vote to impeach the officer, then a vote to remove the officer shall be held at the next meeting. The Director will list the charges regarding why the officer was impeached, and at that point the members will vote as to whether the officer shall be removed. If 2/3 of the members present vote to remove the officer, then she or he shall leave office immediately. Directly following this impeachment vote, the Director will call for nominations for the vacant position. The final vote will occur at the next business meeting to fill the vacant position. If impeachment charges are brought against the Director, then he or she will relinquish duties to the Treasurer during the duration of the trial (although they may still act as Director during this time period).

3. If an officer misses more than two business meetings without notifying the other officers via the business list-serv, he or she shall be immediately removed from office.

Article VI

This constitution may be amended or re-written by a majority 'yea' vote of those voting at a Q&A general meeting. Amendments to or re-writings of this constitution must be presented in writing and read at a minimum of one general meeting and prior to said vote.