Constitution of the Queer Straight Alliance

I. Organization Name A. The name of the organization shall be the Queer Straight Alliance (QSA). II. Purpose A. The purpose of the organization is to provide a safe and supportive environment for all UNM students regardless of sexual orientation or gender identity. The QSA serves communities of all sexual orientations and identities on campus through community service, activism, and social networking, although emphasis shall be placed on issues concerning the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) communities. We provide a safe place for gay, lesbian, queer, bisexual, transgender, queer heterosexual, and questioning people to meet and support one another. We are devoted to promoting community acceptance and diversity. The organization will also provide educational resources to the UNM community and encourage personal growth. III. Membership A. Any student, faculty, staff, or community memberregardless of sex, gender, color, religion, creed, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity interested in furthering the purpose of the organization and enrolled in at least one (1) credit hour of a degree-seeking program is eligible for membership. B. Any person requesting membership shall abide by the QSA Constitution and by-laws. C. All members must be respectful of another members wish to privacy; outing a persons sexual orientation, gender identity, or other personal information will not be tolerated and may result in institutional action and/or banishment from the group. D. Members shall not use any slur to intentionally degrade another member; members should consult the offender or an officer about the issue prior to action. Members that repeatedly violate this point will be banned from QSA events, and institutional disciplinary action will be sought. E. A member is defined as anyone who participates in any QSA activity or meeting and/or is a recipient/member of the QSA listserv. F. All membership must be in accord with Student Activities and UNM policies. IV. Officers A. Officers must be registered students at UNM and enrolled in at least three (3) credit hours in a degree-seeking program. B. All officers shall be voted in by a majority of the members present at the annual election meeting, whose date and procedure is to be determined by current elected officials. C. The Co-Chairs shall appoint all other officers in the event that all offices are not filled. D. Additional offices not listed in the by-laws may be created or removed as deemed necessary by the Co-Chairs with the best interest of the group at heart. V. Meetings A. Officer meetings shall be held every one (1) week or more at the discretion of the CoChairs. B. General meetings with all members shall be held every two (2) weeks or at the discretion of the members and officers.
Revised 8/15/13

C. Social meetings shall be held at the discretion of the Meeting Coordinator. D. Volunteer meetings shall be held at the discretion of the Volunteer Chair. E. No two meetings shall be held at the same time. VI. Voting Procedures A. All members have one (1) vote. Procedure shall be according to Roberts Rules of Order. B. All members wishing to vote on any issue brought to general discussion must be present to have their vote counted. C. There shall be no online voting or vote by email. VII. Quorum A. Quorum shall be all those present in addition to a majority of the officers. B. Quorum shall not be a set percent of QSA members. VIII. Amendments and By-Laws A. Amendments to the constitution and by-laws shall be put to vote by members with no less than one (1) weeks notice, to be distributed by the QSA listserv. The passing of such legislation shall require a majority vote. B. Discussion about such legislation shall be permitted, and all changes explained for members wishing to inquire. Discussion shall be limited to a total of one (1) hour and must be completed in one (1) meeting. 1. All members who wish to discuss changes must have read the constitutional changes implemented to ensure productive discussion. 2. Members that have not read the changes may still vote and ask questions for clarification, but they may not participate in lengthy discussion. 3. All members may inquire about changes or request changes once provided with a copy of the proposed changes. These requests may be ignored but should be considered. C. These changes shall take place after they have been passed.

Revised 8/15/13

By-Laws I. Officers A. B. C. D. E. F. There shall be two Co-Chairs. There shall be a Meeting Coordinator. There shall be a Volunteer Chair. There shall be a Financial Chair. There shall be an Advocacy Chair. There shall be an Office Manager.

II. Officer Duties and Descriptions A. The Co-Chairs: 1. Shall plan and preside over officer meetings. 2. Shall be responsible for representing the group in a positive light. 3. Shall be responsible for communicating with other GSA groups and LGBTQ organizations, both on- and off-campus. 4. Shall be responsible for ensuring a safe, positive environment. 5. Shall be responsible for maintaining the website and email address. 6. Shall be responsible for the weekly email and maintenance of the QSA listserv. 7. Shall be responsible for charting at the beginning of the year. 8. In the event that there are no other officers, the Co-Chairs shall assume all other officer responsibilities, until they can appoint suitable QSA members who meet the Constitution Section IV, Point A, requirements to officer positions. 9. A Co-Chair can expect to commit 10-20 hours a week in planning for and ensuring the success of the organization. B. The Meeting Coordinator: 1. Shall plan and preside over social meetings. 2. Shall be responsible for planning and executing meetings of a social nature. 3. Shall work with both the Co-Chairs and Volunteer Chair to ensure QSA growth. 4. Shall announce all upcoming QSA activities at social meetings. 5. Shall encourage volunteer efforts for social events. 6. The Meeting Coordinator can expect to commit 3-10 hours a week in planning for and ensuring the success of weekly meetings. C. The Volunteer Chair: 1. Shall plan and preside over volunteer meetings. 2. Shall organize, plan, and execute volunteer activities for large events. 3. Shall help to recruit new members to the organization through efforts such as tabling. 4. Shall plan other volunteer efforts as he or she sees fit, including (but not limited to) fundraising, chalking, meeting set up, social gatherings, etc. 5. Shall be responsible for soliciting, organizing, and contacting volunteers for all events. 6. The Volunteer Chair can expect to commit 3-6 hours a week in planning for and ensuring the participation and coordination of volunteers. D. The Financial Chair: 1. Shall be responsible for the budget. 2. Shall attend all Student Government Accounting Office (SGAO) workshops relating to financial information.
Revised 8/15/13

3. Shall fill out all IR forms according to SGAO practices and acquire the necessary signatures. 4. Shall attend all ASUNM budget hearings in which the QSA is called to be present. 5. The Financial Chair can expect to commit 1-8 hours a week to ensure the financial solvency and success of the organization. E. The Advocacy Chair: 1. Shall plan and preside over advocacy meetings. 2. Shall organize, plan, and execute activist activities and efforts, such as lobbying in Santa Fe for domestic partnership or participating in the National Equality March. 3. Shall stay updated on all current LGBTQ matters 4. Shall present a weekly update at all the general meetings about current LGBTQ issues, historic LGBTQ figures, etc. 5. The Advocacy Chair can expect to spend 4-10 hours a week to ensure the outreach, education, and activism that is crucial to the groups mission. F. The Administrative Assistant: 1. Shall be responsible for the QSA office space. 2. Shall keep the office neat and free of garbage. 3. Shall maintain the library and request new materials through the Financial Chair. 4. Shall have set hours of office availability and coordinate volunteers office hours. 5. Shall attempt to have the QSA office open 20 or more hours per week through his or her own efforts or that of office volunteers. 6. Shall fill out all necessary paperwork to ensure space allocation of office space. 7. The Administrative Assistant can expect to G. The Social Media Chair 1. Shall coordinate the social media presence of the organization via Facebook, Twitter, and the Student Activities Center (SAC) online platform to ensure the visibility, advertisement, and proliferation of the group at large. 2. Shall gather and post at least four (4) images/cartoons/news stories/current events/articles/campus activities/etc. each week to reach our subscribers news feeds. III. Officer Expectations in General A. All officers regardless of rank, seniority, or class level will be treated equally and will be expected to pull their own weight in terms of meeting planning, event planning, tabling, attending interdepartmental meetings, chalking/flyering, etc. B. All officers will hold 2-6 office hours a week in the Lobo Lair (room 1036). The schedule shall be facilitated through the Administrative Assistant no later than the third week of the semester. IV. Other A. B. C. D. E. All officers shall have office access. All officers shall be able to sign IR forms. The office hour volunteers shall have access to the office. Member recruitment and retention should be top priority to all officers. All officers should communicate with each other to ensure an effective, cohesive organization.

Revised 8/15/13