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International Relations Organization Constitution
Adopted unanimously by the General Membership of and on May 3rd, 2010
Article I: NAME AND PURPOSE
Section 1. TITLE. The name of this organization shall be: International Relations Organization (IRO).
Section 2. PURPOSE. The purpose of this organization is to better student understanding of global issues through participation in intercollegiate simulations and discussions.
Article II: MEMBERSHIP
Section 1. MEMBERS. Only Michigan State University (MSU) students may be IRO members. The organization will not discriminate on the basis of age, color, ethnicity, gender, handicapper status, height, marital status, national origin, political persuasion, race, religion, sexual orientation, veteran status, or weight.
Section 2. DUES. A person becomes a member of IRO by paying yearly dues, which will be set annually by the executive board (E-board).
Section 3. GOOD STANDING. A person remains in good standing by obeying the rules of the group written in the Constitution and any other official IRO documentation, including, but not limited to, the travel contract . (Appendix 1)
Article III: OFFICERS
Section 1. TITLES AND TERMS. Five officers consisting of the President, Vice President of Finance, Vice President of Membership, Vice President of Conference Preparation, and the Vice President of Technology and Operations. Their terms are all set to be one full academic school year beginning immediately upon the date elected.
Section 2. DUTIES. The following duties shall be vested in the respective offices:
1. President
The President of IRO is the chief administrator of the IRO E-Board. His/her primary task is to oversee individual functions of the Vice-Presidents and to be accountable for the overall direction of the organization. Presidential decisions are the executive power of the organization and he or she is responsible for making time-sensitive decisions placed before the International Relations Organization E-Board. These decisions include:
a. The immediate reaction E-Board will take if a member violates the travel contract or other conference rules and if action must be taken promptly following the transgression.
b. Decisions regarding timetables and meeting points at conferences.
c. Immediate actions taken by the E-Board when health or safety of a member of the organization is at risk.
d. Any other time-sensitive decisions when the entire E-Board cannot be consulted and no clear consensus among those present can be reached.
If at any point the entire E-Board can be assembled, informed of the situation, and make a ruling in a reasonable time frame, then decisions shall be reached by a majority vote of the entire E-Board and not by the President’s discretion. If the entire E-Board cannot be contacted and three E-Board members are in consensus upon a course of action, then their decision shall be carried out, even if it contradicts the President’s course of action. The President presides over all meetings, both general membership and E-Board. Furthermore, the President is responsible for preparing an outline of items to be discussed at all meetings. Outside the meeting room, the President is critical in the promotion of IRO to the University and its faculty. When not spending time promoting the benefits of a Model United Nations team on campus, the President actively assists other board members with the work in their own areas of responsibility.
2. Vice President of Finance
The VP of Finance is responsible for all fundraising and financial recordkeeping. They are also is responsible for collecting all monies from the general membership and depositing these monies in the IRO bank account. The officer must also maintain a ledger of all IRO accounts, and must be prepared to produce these ledgers to the E-Board at any time. In the absence of the President, the VP Finance runs E-Board meetings. The Vice President of Finance will be permitted to nominate up to two Assistant Vice Presidents who will serve as staff of the Vice President of Finance in capacities determined by the Vice President of Finance.
3. Vice President of Membership
The VP of Membership is primarily responsible for serving as the liaison between the general membership of the organization and the E-board through weekly emails. Specific tasks of the VP of Membership include, but are not limited to, taking minutes of E-Board and general membership meetings, maintaining a membership list, drafting and distributing a newsletter to sponsors and significant parties upon the return of every conference, and coordinating efforts to recruit new members to IRO. In the absence of the President, the VP Membership runs the general membership meeting. VP Membership will serve as an intermediary coordinator of IRO/MSUMUN membership and shall be a member of MSUMUN Staff or Secratariat. The Vice President of Membership will be permitted to nominate up to two Assistant Vice Presidents who will serve as staff of the Vice President of Membership in capacities determined by the Vice President of Membership.
4. Vice President of Conference Preparation
The VP of Conference Preparation shall prepare delegates for conferences by instructing them in the procedure, strategy, and research required for conference attendance. They shall handle all issues that concern position papers and are responsible for the production of all IRO simulations. The Vice President of Conference Preparation will be permitted to nominate up to two Assistant Vice Presidents who will serve as staff of the Vice President of Conference Preparation in capacities determined by that Vice President.
5. Vice President of Technology and Operations
The VP of Technology is responsible for creating and maintaining the IRO web page, creating and compiling conference placement forms, keeping records of achievement and involvement of members and serving as the liaison between the organization and external entities that require financial transactions including, but not limited to, conference staffs, transportation services, and hotels. The Vice President of Technology and Operations will be permitted to nominate up to two Assistant Vice Presidents who will serve as staff of the Vice President of Technology and Operations in capacities determined by that Vice President.
Section 3. ASSISTANT VICE PRESIDENTS. Nominees for Assistant Vice President positions must be confirmed by a majority vote of the Executive Board. Assistant Vice Presidents will not be considered members of the Executive Board and are not permitted to vote in policy matters.
Section 4. REPLACEMENT
1. Impeachment/Removal: An officer of IRO may be removed from his or her position by a 2/3rds majority vote at a regular membership meeting. Any IRO member can move for the impeachment of an officer. The motion requires a 2/3rds majority for the impeachment to be under consideration. An e-mail shall be sent to all members in good standing a minimum 5 days before the planned impeachments proceedings, alerting them of the plans. At the impeachment proceedings, the E-board member in question will be given the floor for 10 minutes to defend themselves against the accusations—the floor may be yielded to speakers on the defendant’s behalf.
2. Line of Succession: President, VP of Finance, VP of Membership, VP of Conference Preparation, and VP of Technology and Operations. In the event that one of the positions is vacated through removal or resignation, the following will occur:
a. If the opening is in any VP position, the President will have the option of appointing an interim replacement until elections for the vacated position can be held.
b. If the opening is the office of the President, the next in line of succession will take on presidential responsibilities and oversee election procedures.
c. Elections shall take place no later than 28 days after the position has been vacated.
Article IV: OPERATING PROCEDURES
Section 1: E-BOARD MEETINGS. E-Board meetings will be open and announced at least 48 hours before they are scheduled to occur. Any meeting not announced in which E-board makes official IRO decisions shall not be considered binding. The meeting will be presided over by the President, but all members of the E-Board may present information. The VP of Finance and Operations is obligated to publish the official IRO financial statements to the E-board at every E-board meeting. This obligation must be filled twice a month in any month in which Michigan State University is in session. Any cancellation of an E-board meeting must be done so two days in advance and be accompanied by an e-mail sent to the general membership.
Section 2: MEMBERSHIP MEETINGS. General membership meetings will be open to the public. The time and place of these meetings will be established at the first meeting of the year, but are subject to change. The meeting will be presided over by the President, but he/she shall delegate speaking time to members as he/she sees fit.
Section 3: MEMBERSHIP DUES. All persons must pay dues to be a member. This amount will be set by the E-Board at the beginning of the year but is subject to change. Dues are non-refundable.
Section 4: CONFERENCE FEES.
1. All members will pay a fee set by the E-Board for conference attendance. The collection of this fee will be equally divided into two deposits. The first deposit and second deposit will be collected with enough time in between for members to reasonably clear their schedules for said conference. The first deposit will be completely refundable up until the time of the second deposit.
2. IRO members shall have the right to drop a trip for any reason up until the date of the second payment being due. After that second deposit date has passed, if the trip is not full, nothing will be refunded; if the trip is full and a waiting list exists (or the member finds a replacement), a member can sell their spot back to IRO for a full refund, and IRO will sell the spot to someone on the waiting list or to the replacement. In cases of extenuating circumstances, a full refund may be received for a trip that is not full, at the discretion of the IRO President.
Section 5: COMMITTEE PLACEMENTS. Placements for committee positions shall occur in two stages. First, E-Board members will place themselves, pending concurrence of the E-Board. Second, remaining placements will occur based on conference awards won, performance in simulation, placement requests, and prior service to IRO, including, but not limited to: time in IRO, effort and attitude, time spent in preparation, behavior at past conferences, etc. Final decisions are left to the discretion of the E-board.
Section 6: HEAD DELEGATE. Head delegates will be a member of the E-board. A head delegate must attend every IRO-sanctioned conference.
Article V: ELECTION PROCEDURES
Section 1: NOMINATIONS
1. The nomination process will begin the week before elections. Persons shall be nominated to a position by notifying the President in writing or by a motion in front of the general membership. The election meeting will be run in the following manner:
a. Elections will be split-up according to position following down the line of succession.
b. Each candidate will speak for up to five minutes while the other candidates are away from the election site. Speaking order will be randomly assigned. There will be no yields on these speeches.
c. Immediately following the speeches, all candidates will assemble in the form of a panel. This panel will have both an encompassing time limit and an individual speaking time. The encompassing time limit will be calculated by multiplying the number of candidates running for the position under consideration by three minutes. The individual time limit will be thirty seconds per question or comment with the candidate having thirty seconds to respond. The only instance where another candidate would be permitted to respond is if the initial respondent critiques another member of the panel—in this case, a thirty-second response will be allowed. No follow-ups are permitted.
d. The outgoing President will moderate the panel. In the event that this person is running again, the moderator will be a graduating senior appointed by the outgoing E-Board.
Section 2: ELECTION RESULTS. Candidates win with a simple majority vote. In the event that no majority is achieved, the two candidates with the highest plurality will compete in a run-off election until one gains a simple majority.
Section 3: VOTING RIGHTS. All dues paying members shall have a vote providing that his/her dues have been paid by the conclusion of the most recent conference. Immediately following the election of new E-Board members, said persons will be awarded full IRO membership until the following annual election and will assume all responsibilities of the respected position.
Article VI: AMENDMENTS
Section 1: PROPOSAL. Any dues paying member may propose amendments.
Section 2: E-BOARD PRESENTATION. Amendments must be presented to the President in writing.
Section 3: ANNOUNCEMENT. The President announces the amendment(s) at the next meeting of the general membership. Following a one-third vote of approval, the amendment(s) will be approved for consideration at the next week’s meeting of the general membership. The amendment(s) will be distributed to the general membership and a two minute speaking time will be allotted to the mover of the amendment under consideration. A ten minute moderated caucus, chaired by the President, will then ensue with a speaking time of 30 seconds to debate the merits of the amendment under consideration. Once the speakers or time is exhausted all members present then vote. A two-thirds majority is required for the approval of all amendments.
Section 4: GENERAL MEMBERSHIP PRESENTATION. At the majority decision of the E-Board, multiple substantive amendments to the constitution will be presented to the body as a “constitutional rewrite” and will be presented and passed as would a single amendment.