[6430] in APO-L
Re: Robert's Rules
daemon@ATHENA.MIT.EDU (Jeffrey N. Woodford)
Thu Jul 8 10:08:30 1993
Date: Thu, 8 Jul 1993 10:07:04 -0400
Reply-To: "Jeffrey N. Woodford" <jw53+@andrew.cmu.edu>
From: "Jeffrey N. Woodford" <jw53+@andrew.cmu.edu>
To: Multiple recipients of list APO-L <APO-L%PURCCVM.BITNET@mitvma.mit.edu>
In-Reply-To: <Added.MgCob6S00UdbBPtE4i@andrew.cmu.edu>
EDK <EDK.LASPAU@MHSGW.HARVARD.EDU> writes:
> The catch here is that the chapter has no prescribed means for filling a
> mid-term vacancy. As a practical matter, there are two options:
> 1) appointing someone to fill out the SVP's term.
> 2) appointing someone until an election can be held at a fall chapter
> meeting to fill the vacancy.
Well the point is rather moot, since if the person is appointed just
for the summer, he/she will most likely win any election in the fall
anyway.
A couple of thoughts:
* Hold an election for the office eventually. It's probably best to
wait until the fall to have an election, but if a lot of brothers are
around during the summer, you may want to consider holding it now.
(But if only 10-20 out of a chapter of 90 are around, it's rather
pointless.) I know in Kappa's bylaws, and a couple of others I've
seen, that in case of a vacancy a special election is called almost
immediately. (Except in our case, in the office of the President,
when the SVP takes over and a new election is held for the SVP.)
* If a lot of your Exec Board members are around, perhaps holding an
election for the office at a special Exec meeting would be
appropriate. I don't know how you have your bylaws set up, but in
Kappa's case the Exec Board has the power to run the business of the
chapter in between meetings. I'd certainly see this option as a
legitimate use of Exec's powers. If only until a special election can
be held in the fall.
* If you would rather appoint somebody, and if your chapter has an
active Service Committee, consider appointing the chair of the
committee (if different from the SVP) or an active member of that
committee. Also consider former SVP's (if they're not all burned out!
:) since they generally have a lot of experience in this area.
* Don't forget to get some input from your advisors! While the
decision is yours and yours alone, perhaps your advisors can help you
out. Who knows, maybe your chapter has gone through this problem in
the past.
* Don't forget that if you choose not to appoint anybody, then the
responsibility for organizing the service program would fall on your
shoulders. While this is not necessarily a bad thing, many of these
responsibilities would probably carry on into the beginning of the
fall semester. I imagine it would suck holding two offices plus being
a student.
* And when the fall semester resumes, call a meeting of the Rules
Committee (or whatever you have there) to fix the problem! It's
important to learn from our mistakes.
Good luck! I know it's hard when you have to "wing it" and you chart
into unfamiliar territory, but remember that the chapter elected YOU
most of all to provide direction and a sense of leadership to the
chapter's activities. As long as you don't start acting like a
dictator I think you'll be fine.
If you would like a copy of Kappa's bylaws, just send me mail and I'll
send you a copy.
In Leadership, Friendship, and Service,
-Jeff Woodford
President, Kappa, Carnegie Mellon University
