Society of Software Engineers Constitution
Last Ratified: November 2, 2018
Last Edited: October 30, 2018
Table of Contents
DEFINITIONS
DEFINITIONS
- “Executive board” refers to the President, Vice President, and all Leadership Chairs unless explicitly stated.
- “Simple majority” refers to greater than 50% of currently assembled members who are able to vote.
- “⅔ majority” refers to greater than 66% of currently assembled members who are able to vote.
ARTICLE I: Name and Purpose
Section 1: Name
The name of this Organization shall be the Society of Software Engineers, hereafter referred to as the Organization. The
official acronym shall be SSE.
Section 2: Purposes
The principal purpose of this Organization shall be to improve the experience of students interested in software and
affiliated with MSOE by providing opportunities to socialize, network, build their skills, and professionally develop.
Other goals include increasing enrollment in corresponding academic programs, generating interest in software technology
among all students, guiding prospective students in integrating with the program. Students graduating from the
Organization should have developed skills, a broader network, and the confidence to pursue their goals.
ARTICLE II: Membership
Section 1: Qualification for Membership
Members must be pursuing (or already hold) a degree from MSOE (excluding sponsor members). There are no other
qualifications. Consistent with all applicable federal and state laws and MSOE policies, this Organization and its
subordinate bodies and officers shall not discriminate for or against anyone on the basis of race, gender, religion,
culture, or sexual orientation.
Section 2: Responsibilities of Members
- Members should attend all regular meetings held by the Organization.
- Members should attend events sponsored / held by the Organization.
- Members should offer suggestions for and help plan activities run by the Organization.
- Members should seek opportunities to improve the Software Engineering program and community.
- Members should encourage other interested students to participate in events held by the Organization.
- Members should attempt to keep pace with trends and current affairs related to technology.
Section 3: Types of Members
- REGULAR members
- REGULAR members are those members who have earned at least 10 points in the current quarter and have the right to
vote in any non-executive organization vote. Regular members may earn points for the following:
- General Meeting: 10 pts
- Event Attendee: 10 pts
- Helping w/ Event/Project: 20 pts
- Game development club, website, any event
- Leadership Role in Organization/Project: 30 pts
- Game development club, website, any event
- Members with zero points at any given time are considered INACTIVE.
- Points reset to zero at the beginning of each quarter. At the end of each quarter, a raffle will be held and each
10pts had by member corresponds to one raffle entry.
- ALUMNI members
- ALUMNI members are those who have graduated from MSOE with REGULAR member standing or those who have been granted
ALUMNI status by a simple majority vote of the Executive board. ALUMNI members do not have the right to vote unless
all ALUMNI members have been given the right to vote on a specific vote, such permission being granted by a ⅔
majority vote of the Executive board.
- SPONSOR members
- SPONSOR membership is granted to any organization, company, or individual (including professors) by a simple
majority vote of the Executive board. SPONSOR members do not have the right to vote unless all SPONSOR members have
been given the right to vote on a specific vote, such permission being granted by a ⅔ majority vote of the Executive
board.
- The Faculty Advisor is automatically a SPONSOR member.
ARTICLE III: Officers
Section 1: The Executive Board
The Executive Board of the Organization shall consist of the President, Vice President, Secretary and multiple
Coordinators, including but not limited to Communications, Administrative, Events, Competitive Programming Team, Game
Development, and Webmaster. Any REGULAR, ALUMNI, or SPONSOR member may suggest a new Coordinator position to be created.
The Executive Board, including both the coordinators and executive positions, will vote on the approval of the new
coordinator position. All executive positions including chairs must be held by a regular member. If a coordinator’s
status becomes inactive, a replacement will be appointed by the Executive Board from among REGULAR MEMBERS.
Section 2: Election of Officers
Each elected officer shall hold their position for one year, starting in the Spring term. Yearly elections are to begin
in late Winter term. Voting should occur the during the General Meeting during the 9th week of the Winter quarter.
Election information should be distributed at least 2 weeks prior. Potential candidates must be nominated by at least
two REGULAR MEMBERS (not including the candidate) prior to running for any executive position.
Section 3: Officer Responsibilities
- All Officers
- Attend scheduled Executive Board Meetings
- Provide digital notice of absence in Slack channel at least 5 minutes before meeting
- An officer should not miss more than two consecutive meetings
- Should make an effort to attend General Meetings
- President
- Plan and lead General meetings
- Plan and lead Executive meetings
- Curate organization project opportunities
- Work in tandem with the VP to achieve their responsibilities
- Vice President
- Serve as a liaison for University faculty and administration, industry representatives, and members of the local
community
- Curate job postings and career opportunities
- Work in tandem with the President to achieve their responsibilities
- Administrative Coordinator
- Manage general (non-event related) fundraising efforts
- Oversee the Organization’s account (balance and reimbursements)
- Record minutes at General and Executive Meetings
- Track regular membership point standings
- Communications Coordinator
- Serve as a liaison for leaders of other organizations on campus
- Publish periodic updates to all SE students via the website (and email for larger, more infrequent announcements)
- Curate and distribute a quarterly newsletter with valuable information for members and stakeholders
- Forward high-impact updates from individual members to the general membership
- Event Coordinator
- Oversee / guide event committees to ensure events contribute to Organizational goals
- Manage SSE room and equipment reservations on the University’s room reservation software
- Refer to the event feedback forms from the previous year when planning new or recurring events
- Maintain SSE event calendar
- Competitive Programming Team Coordinator
- Actively recruit and develop members of the team
- Apply for competitions within the area, and if budget allows, in the US
- Apply for grants and scholarships to waive competition fees
- Maintain relationships with new and existing sponsors
- Game Development
- Incite and maintain conversation in the #gamedev channel
- Recruit students to join ongoing projects or create their own
- Showcase projects at recruitment events (such as the annual Org Fair)
- Actively engage with the game development community in Milwaukee
- Webmaster
- Manage SSE website discussions and content
- Maintain Organization membership and mailing lists
- Manage merge requests and/or a backlog for said website
- Alumni Outreach Coordinator
- Manage and grow the Organization’s alumni network
- Solicit donations from alumni as needed
- Provide guidance and membership for student board members
Section 4: Removal of an Officer
Should an Executive Board member fail to uphold their responsibilities, it may come to the decision of the Executive
Board, not including the Executive Board member in question, to remove the Executive Board member in question with a ⅔
majority. A special election should follow to replace the Executive Board member and voting should occur at the next
General Meeting at least two weeks in advance.
ARTICLE IV: Meetings
Section 1: Types of Meetings
- GENERAL meetings
- The cadence for GENERAL meetings are to be established within the first quarter with the new Executive Board. At
the time of this revision, the current executive board has decided that General meetings are to be held on Friday at
12 noon on weeks 3, 6, and 9 of each academic quarter. The purpose of GENERAL meetings is to conduct votes, discuss
the direction of the organization, and inform the members of upcoming events and opportunities.
- EXECUTIVE meetings
- EXECUTIVE should be organized by the PRESIDENT or VICE-PRESIDENT at the beginning of each new quarter, so as to
reflect changing schedules. The cadence is to be set by the Executive Board as a whole with a complete majority, but
it may not descend in frequency beyond bi-weekly meetings.
- SPECIAL meetings
- SPECIAL meetings may be called by the PRESIDENT or VICE-PRESIDENT with at least a ONE(1) week notice, the topic
of which is to be decided by organizer. Attendance of the Executive Board is mandatory.
- SUB-CLUB meetings
- SUB-CLUB meetings include regular meetings for each the website, game development, competitive programming, and
any other team that may form. These should be set by the respective coordinator or team lead, and should be subject
to change each quarter with changing schedules.
Section 2: Voting and Decision Making Process
All votes involving regular members will be held in person during general meetings. Any member can suggest an item to
bring to vote, and it then must be approved by a member of the Executive Board. Votes will pass by a simple majority of
any currently assembled regular members who have attended at least one previous meeting during the current school year,
with the Vice President receiving an extra vote in the case of a tie.
Section 3: Location
As of Fall 2018, it is encouraged to hold these meetings in CC03. Upon completion of the new building containing an
office for the Organization, executive board meetings will be held in this office, and general meetings are encouraged
to be held in the classroom on the first floor.
Article V: Committees
Section 1: Committee Creation
The Executive board has the right to create a committee by a simple majority vote conducted either at a GENERAL meeting
or an EXECUTIVE meeting. The purpose of the Committee must be explicitly defined in writing and added to the master list
on the website. Each committee must have an explicitly designated leader (Champion) from the REGULAR members at the time
of creation.
Section 2: Committee Disbandment
The Executive board has the right to disband a committee by a simple majority vote conducted either at a GENERAL meeting
or an EXECUTIVE meeting. The Committee’s information must be removed from the master list and all of its associated
notes / files must be archived for historical reference.
ARTICLE VI: Amendments
Section 1: Amendment Process
These Articles may be amended by a ⅔ majority vote at a general meeting. A notice and a copy of any proposed amendment
shall be distributed to all members at least 1 meeting prior to the meeting at which the amendment is to be considered.
The members shall be notified of adopted constitutional amendments by the most feasible means. Amendments may be
submitted by any member.