We, the ALPHA CHAPTER OF MASSACHUSETTS of the UPSILON PI EPSILON ASSOCIATION, in order to foster the development of an inclusive and supportive environment which shall promote high scholarship and achievement within the Computer Science community at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, declare these bylaws to define the workings of our chapter. The ALPHA CHAPTER OF MASSACHUSETTS shall be located at the WORCESTER POLYTECHNIC INSTITUTE, in Worcester, Massachusetts.
- A member will be considered an Active Member per the provisions in Article III, Section II.
- A Quorum shall consist of one-half of the Active Members of the Chapter in any regular or special meeting.
- A Vote shall consist of votes in person or, at the discretion of the Executive Board, votes by proxy but such proxy votes shall not count towards quorum.
- These bylaws shall become effective immediately upon adoption.
- These bylaws shall remain in effect until revised or amended.
- Any provision of these bylaws may be temporarily suspended by a quorum vote in the affirmative. The period of which the suspension is valid shall be determined at the time of the vote.
- These bylaws may be suspended in whole or in part by a unanimous vote of the Executive Board with the consent of the Chapter Advisor.
- Any proposed amendment to these bylaws must be distributed to all members no later than two weeks prior to any vote on the adoption of such amendment.
- The adoption of any amendment to these Bylaws shall require a quorum vote in the affirmative at a regular or special meeting.
- This Chapter shall consist of Members and Honorary Members.
- The membership of the Chapter shall be made up of individuals whose academic achievements, reputations and creative abilities deserve recognition, and whose membership would enhance the stature of the Association. Specifically, the membership shall include graduate students, undergraduate students, former students, and faculty in the Computer Science Department at Worcester Polytechnic Institute, elected according to the procedures detailed in Article VI of these Bylaws.
- Honorary Members shall be individuals of distinguished achievement in Computer Science.
- Eligibility for membership shall not be restricted according to race, nationality, creed, color, sexual orientation or sex.
- If a member is found to be in violation of the WPI Student Code of Conduct, their membership status may be suspended or revoked. Such cases will be decided by a majority vote of the Executive Board and may be appealed to the Faculty Advisor.
- A non-away member will be considered active if they have attended at least 50% of general body meetings per semester and helped administer at least one community service event per semester, provided that two such events are held per semester.
- A member is considered “away” if he or she is participating in an off-campus MQP, IQP, Co-op, or Humanities Project. Provided they give prior written notice to the Executive Board of their circumstances, “away” members' active status for the relevant semester will be computed proportionate to the time for which they were not away.
- Non-away regular members who have not attended at least one meeting in a given semester shall not be considered active for that semester.
- The Secretary shall update the roster of Active Members after the final event and before the end of each semester.
- Non-away members may petition the Executive Board for excused absences from general body meetings and community service events. Written notice must be provided at least 48 hours in advance of the event in question. Credit of excused absences towards active membership shall be determined at the discretion of the Executive Board.
- Certain benefits or events may be provided for exclusive active member use or attendance; inactive members shall not be eligible to participate.
- Inactive members may petition the Executive Board for reactivation and reactivation shall be determined by a committee appointed by the President.
- The society shall elect six primary executive officers: a President, Career Officer, Events Coordinator, Treasurer, Secretary, and Web Secretary.
- The term of an officer shall be from the first day of D-term until the day before the first day of D-term of the subsequent year.
- Additional executive positions other than those specified above shall be created or removed at the discretion of the President, and the term for such positions shall be the same as the primary offices’.
- An individual appointed to an additional executive position shall not be removed from office until their term expires (except as specified in Section IV).
- The President shall be the primary point of contact of the society, shall preside over meetings, shall conduct the induction of new members, shall be responsible for determining who is eligible to be inducted into the society, and shall create and appoint committees for special purposes as necessary.
- The Career Officer shall be the primary coordinator for the chapter’s annual honor society networking event, which includes advertising, logistics, and maintaining industry contacts. The Career Officer’s duties shall be carried out with the assistance of the President, the Events Coordinator, and any other board members as needed.
- The Events Coordinator shall be in charge of managing special events, such as Burning the Midnight Oil and company talks, which includes advertising and logistics.
- The Treasurer shall collect all dues and assessments and shall issue, with the assistance of the Secretary, notices of special assessments. The Treasurer shall have charge of all funds of the Chapter, shall authorize payment of bills presented against the Chapter, and shall pay therefrom bills presented against the Chapter which have been approved for payment. The Treasurer shall also represent the chapter in financial matters, in particular before the Student Government Association.
- The Secretary shall keep records of all the transactions of the Chapter, and in particular shall keep the minutes of the meetings. The Secretary shall communicate to all members the dates, times, and locations of meetings, and shall coordinate the scheduling of a time and place, having secured them, for such meetings.
- The Web Secretary shall maintain and update the chapter website, add and remove members from the email alias, oversee the LinkedIn group, maintain the chapter GitHub repository, and manage all social platforms, which includes promoting club events and opportunities.
- Additional officer positions as created by the President shall have responsibilities as described therein.
- No officer shall be held accountable for a duty or responsibility created or enacted after appointment to his or her position, unless agreed upon by the majority of the Executive Board, which must include the officer whose responsibilities are being modified.
- The Faculty Advisor shall be a senior member of the Computer Science teaching staff. The duties of the Faculty Advisor shall be to consult on matters of Chapter policy and to act as auditor of Chapter finances.
- The Officers of the Chapter shall be elected at the first general body meeting of the spring semester (C Term).
- The newly elected officers shall assume their duties starting the first day of D term.
- In order to be eligible to hold office, the member must have been active at time of induction and must maintain active status for the remainder of their elected term.
- The confidentiality of all votes should be maintained.
- Voting shall be done in the order of: President, Career Officer, Events Coordinator, Treasurer, Secretary, and Web Secretary. Voting shall take place between speeches for each position as a heads down hands up vote.
- Vacancies in any office shall be filled by a special election held at the next general body meeting.
- Any executive officer may be immediately removed from office by an affirmative quorum vote.
- Additionally, any executive officer may be removed from their position by an affirmative vote of all other members of the Executive Board and with the approval of the Faculty Advisor.
- Regular meetings will be held at least once per term, except in the summer terms.
- Special meetings may be called by the President, the Executive Board, or by petition of quorum.
- All Active Members shall be notified of a special meeting and its purpose by the Secretary one week prior to the meeting.
- No business shall be conducted at a called special meeting except that for which the meeting was called.
- The Chapter shall charge a fee to each new member which shall consist of a Chapter Initiation Fee in the amount of twenty dollars in addition to an Association Initiation Fee which shall be determined by the National Association.
- Each initiate shall be required to pay Chapter and Association initiation fees prior to his/her initiation. An initiate will not be considered active until their fee is paid.
- Special assessments may be made at any time by a quorum affirmative vote.
- The induction of new Members shall be held within ten weeks of the time of their election.
- The induction shall specifically avoid any practice which conflicts with WPI regulations or which constitutes an attack upon the personal dignity of the initiates. The activities shall be devised to stimulate the inductees’ interest in Computer Science and to acquaint them better with the Members of the Chapter.
The eligibility of students, former students, and faculty for election to membership in this Chapter of the Upsilon Pi Epsilon Association shall be determined as follows:
- A graduate student must be a candidate for a graduate degree in Computer Science, and must have completed at least twelve credits of graduate study, three-quarters of this with a grade level of A.
- Undergraduate student eligibility shall require registration as a Computer Science Bachelor’s degree candidate, a minimum of a year and a half of credits, and a minimum of two Computer Science related units, with greater than fifty percent of A's in Computer Science, and a majority of A's and B's in non-Computer Science courses.
- A faculty member must have been teaching in the Computer Science program or in a field closely related thereto, at Worcester Polytechnic Institute for at least one year in order to be eligible for membership in the Association. He or she must have been in responsible charge of development, preparation, or presentation of courses, or in charge of research in the Computer Science field. Achievements in research and teaching shall determine eligibility for a faculty member, rather than scholastic achievements.
- Former students who, at the time of their completion of degree requirements in Computer Science, satisfied the admission requirements shall be eligible for election to membership in this Chapter of the Association.
- Former students who do not qualify under the provisions of the previous subsection, but whose achievements in and contributions to the Computing field qualify them for appointment in the society shall be eligible for induction into the Society.
- There shall be one election of new members each year, occurring prior to the winter recess.
- The president shall prepare a list of all candidates eligible for induction into the Society.
- A candidate must attend a social meeting (for example, a "meet and greet") chosen by the officers in order to be eligible for induction. Additionally, the candidates are required to submit one or two faculty references.
- The faculty references of each candidate shall be asked to make written remarks with respect to the candidate’s fitness. There must be at least one positive recommendation from faculty, and no negative recommendations for the member to be invited to join. These recommendations will remain confidential to the President and Secretary.
- The candidates from the list prepared by the officers shall have their names presented to the society after they have received positive faculty recommendation. The society shall then vote on extending an offer for membership to the eligible candidates.
- Votes for induction of new members shall require a present quorum. A vote shall pass if a two-thirds majority of members not abstaining vote in the affirmative. If two-thirds is not attainable due to abstentions, the number of affirmative votes should be at least twenty percent of members in attendance.
- In case a candidate fails a first ballot, he or she may be discussed further, and a second and final vote shall be taken. On a failure at the second ballot, the individual shall not be considered for membership again that year.
- The names of those elected to membership shall be given to the President, who shall then issue them invitations to become Members of the Association, and of this Chapter.
- Failure of a member-elect to notify the Chapter of his/her acceptance of the invitation to membership within one week of its issuance shall constitute notice of refusal.
- The maximum number of members shall not be limited.
- The procedure for nomination and induction of new members shall be conducted once per year.
- Members of any other chapter of the Upsilon Pi Epsilon Association shall be eligible for automatic induction as regular members contingent upon their payment of the Chapter initiation fee.
- Membership should not be offered to a particular individual a second time if such membership has been previously declined by that individual for any reason with the exception of hardship cases. A student or faculty member who is offered membership may defer his or her induction until a later term.
- The ALPHA CHAPTER OF MASSACHUSETTS of the UPSILON PI EPSILON ASSOCIATION agrees to abide by the policies of Worcester Polytechnic Institute as well as Federal, State, and local laws.
- The provisions of these bylaws shall be subordinate to the Constitution and Bylaws of the international UPSILON PI EPSILON ASSOCIATION.