By-Laws
Article I. Name and Acronym
The
name of this association shall be the University
Counselors Advisors Network. The official acronym of
this association shall be UCAN.
Article II. Mission
The
University Counselors Advisors Network (UCAN) was
created as a forum for sharing ideas and exchanging
information related to advising services at the
University of North Texas. As stated in the official
UCAN mission statement, UCAN’s primary goal is to
provide its members with opportunities for
professional development, recognition, and peer
support, ultimately building a network of resources
to enhance student success in college. Equally
important is the representation and promotion of the
interests of academic advising within the larger
university community.
Article III. Membership
Section
1. There shall be no discrimination for reasons of
religion, age, race or ethnicity, color, sex,
marital status, national origin, disability, or
sexual orientation.
Section
2. Types of Membership include active and associate
membership.
A. Active
memberships shall be open to faculty advisors,
academic counselors, and advisors at the University
of North Texas. Individuals shall become active
members in good standing upon statement of intent.
a. Attendance:
UCAN benefits from the attendance of all members;
therefore, regular attendance is strongly
recommended.
b. Rights of active
membership: Active members are eligible to vote in
elections and during membership meetings, hold
office, chair or serve on standing or ad-hoc
committees. Active members are entitled to all the
services and benefits provided by the association.
B.
Associate
members are individuals who have interests in
academic counseling and advising. Associate members
are invited to attend meetings and functions of UCAN.
a. Rights of
associate membership: Associate members can serve
on standing or ad-hoc committees. As committee
members, associate members are eligible to vote on
issues before their respective committee.
b. Restrictions of
associate membership: Associate members are not
eligible to vote in election of officers or in
general UCAN meetings.
Section
3. Dues
Currently, UCAN is a non-dues paying association.
Article IV. Officers
Section
1. The offices for UCAN shall be comprised of the
President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer,
Historian, and Parliamentarian.
Section
2. Duties
A. President-runs the general UCAN meetings. Provides
the agenda for and facilitates executive committee
meetings to plan and discuss upcoming projects and
events; involves members in committees and serves as
an ex-officio member on all committees as needed.
Works with executive committee and membership to
establish goals and objectives. Responsible for
evaluating goals and objectives and assessing and
filing year-end report. Provides representation of UCAN at appropriate University functions and
meetings. Provides orientation and turns over all
materials to successor.
B. Vice President-in absence of the President or at the
request of the President, performs the President's
duties. Chairs or appoints chairperson for the
programming committee and serves on the programming
committee. Provides orientation and turns over all
materials to successor.
C. Secretary-records and distributes minutes of all UCAN meetings; corresponds with membership as
prescribed by President. Chairs or appoints
chairperson for the Hospitality Committee and serves
on the Hospitality Committee. Maintains UCAN e-mail
distribution list. Updates, distributes, and
processes membership forms. Keeps UCAN roster
updated and distributed. Provides orientation and
turns over all materials to successor.
D. Treasurer-responsible for collection of monies
related to UCAN, keeping current UCAN accounts
including records of income and expenditures.
Provides orientation and turns over all materials to
successor.
E. Historian-Documents and keeps record of UCAN
history. Chairs or appoints chairperson for the
Public Relations Committee and serves on the Public
Relations Committee. Provides orientation and turns
over all materials to successor.
F. Parliamentarian-Oversee the conduction of business
at executive committee meetings and regularly
scheduled UCAN meetings. This shall include, but
not limited to the following: ensuring that
meetings are run in an orderly fashion, allowing for
all members’ voices to be heard, and ensuring that
motions are offered and voted on properly all within
the context of Robert’s Rules of Order, Newly
Revised Version, and educating the membership
regarding Robert’s Rules of Order. Shall chair or
appoint chair of the Elections Committee and serves
on the Elections Committee. Provides orientation and
turns over all materials to successor.
Section 3.
Election of Officers
A.
Annual elections are held in May.
B. The
election of officers will be administered by the
Elections Committee.
C. Nominations
for office will be solicited at the meeting prior to
the meeting during which election will be held.
Nominations will be accepted until the day of
elections. Nominations from the floor will be
accepted prior to voting.
D. Absentee
voting by official ballot will begin one week prior
to the election date and will end at 5 p.m. one day
prior to the election meeting.
E. Officers
shall be elected by a majority of the voting members
by official ballot.
F. The term of
office is one UCAN calendar year. A member may not
hold the same office for more than three years
consecutively.
Article V. Meetings
Section
1. Calendar Year
For
leadership and financial purposes, the calendar year
for UCAN will be September 1 through August 31.
Section 2.
Schedule of Meetings
The
membership shall meet monthly throughout the
calendar year. Summer meetings will be held as
necessary to be determined by membership. A primary
function of the May meeting is to hold officer
elections. The sole function of the August meeting
is to hold an annual planning session, calendar
meetings and events, and transition of new officers
for the ensuing year. The Executive Committee will
present the proposed calendar to the membership body
in September for approval for the next calendar
year. Special activities and functions of the
membership shall be held with the approval of the
Executive Committee.
Article
VI. Committees
Section
1. The Standing Committees include the Executive,
Elections, Hospitality, Professional Development,
Programs, and Public Relations. All other
committees shall be ad hoc and, as such, be formed
by UCAN active membership when such need arises.
Interested volunteers, including associate members,
shall make up the membership of all standing
committees with the exception of the Executive
Committee, which is comprised of officers and
committee chairs.
A. The
Executive Committee of UCAN shall be comprised of
the President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer,
Historian, Parliamentarian, and chairs of the other
standing committees. The immediate Past-President
serves as an ex-officio member of this committee.
President of UCAN shall be Chair of the Executive
Committee. The Executive Committee exists as a
forum for officers and committee chairs to submit
information for consideration prior to presentation
to the body, to submit and create the UCAN calendar,
meeting dates and agendas, and to make informed
decisions regarding the UCAN body in the interim of
regularly scheduled meetings.
B. The Elections Committee is responsible for
soliciting nominations for upcoming elections of
officers, compiling the ballot, assisting in the
election process, counting the ballots and reporting
the results, and other duties as assigned.
C. The Hospitality Committee is responsible for
reserving meeting rooms, coordinating social and
recognition events, organizing refreshments for
meetings as needed, coordinating activities to
welcome new members to UCAN, and other duties as
assigned.
D. The Professional Development Committee provides
to UCAN members connections to professional advising
organizations such as NACADA, TEXAAN, etc., serves
to identify UCAN members who have received special
recognitions/ honors/awards and work with UCAN
Hospitality Committee to recognize these
individuals, works to create UCAN recognition
awards, works with UCAN constituency to develop and
update recommended knowledge, skills, and attitudes
essential to Advisor I, II, and Counselor positions,
works with UCAN Program Committee to provide UCAN
members professional development activities to
enhance identified knowledge, skills, and attitudes,
promotes continued personal and professional
development of UCAN members and advising
professionals of UNT, and other duties as assigned.
E. The Program Committee is responsible for
implementing workshops and/or skill-building
activities, conducts a membership interest survey as
well as a survey to asses UCAN projects, programs,
and social events, reports results of said surveys
to the UCAN membership, and other duties as
assigned.
F. The Public Relations Committee assists the
Historian as needed, archives current and past
activities of UCAN, documents annual projects and
programs, edits and publishes UCAN
newsletter/web-page each semester, provides
information regarding UCAN to internal and external
sources as needed, and other duties as assigned.
CAS
