Purpose  |  Article I  |  Article II  |  Article III  |  Article IV  | Article V  |   Article VI  |  Article VII

Purpose

The purpose of the Organization of Latin American Students is to unite the Latino students at El Centro College. It is also the purpose of this organization to promote higher education for students of Hispanic/Latino descent and to serve the Latino communities surrounding the college.

Article I
Name

The name of this organization shall be O.L.A.S. - Organization of Latin American Students. The demographic changes in our community clearly demonstrate that the population is very diverse in its Latino heritage. Many different countries of Central and South America as well as Mexico and Spain are represented. Our name, O.L.A.S., is designed to be inclusive.

Article II
Membership

Section 1: A member shall be any full-time or part-time student currently attending El Centro College.

Section 2: Dues shall be $5.00/per semester and must be paid within two weeks of submission of membership form. Membership recruitment will take place during the first six weeks of the semester.

Section 3: With the exception of El Centro College officials, O.L.A.S. reserves the right to hold all club records as confidential to the organization. Requests for information regarding O.L.A.S. must be submitted in writing to the President and Sponsor of the organization.

Article III
Election of Officers

Section 1: The organization will elect four officers: President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer.

Section 2: The members of O.L.A.S. will elect officers in May. The newly elected officers will assume office at the end of the voting semester.

Section 3: All Candidates for office must hold a cumulative grade point average of 2.30 or better for all college work.

Section 4: All candidates for office must be enrolled in at least 9 credit hours at El Centro College. To maintain his/her office, the student must remain enrolled in 9 credit hours or more throughout the semester.

Section 5: Students that meet the qualifying criteria may be nominated for an office. A simple majority vote will serve to duly elect an officers.

Section 6: Should a vacancy arise in any office, a special election will be held to fill the position.

Section 7: The Officers will appoint a member-at-large to the executive committee to represent 10 members of the organization.

Section 8: Impeachment proceedings may be initiated by written request of six of more active members. The director of SPAR shall be the presiding officer at impeachment proceedings.

Article IV
Duties of Officers

Section 1: The President shall preside over the meetings, enforce the constitution, represent O.L.A.S. at all inter-school and community functions, and guide the executive committee in the development of meeting agendas.

Section 2: The Vice-President will assume the duties of the President in that officer's absence. The Vice-President will also coordinate the membership drive and maintain a journal and historical archive of organizational activities.

Section 3: The Secretary will post notices of meetings, maintain a calendar of events, take the roll at meetings, and maintain a record of the proceedings at all meetings. He/she will preside over the meetings in the absence of the President and Vice-President.

Section 4: The Treasurer will collect all O.L.A.S. money and deposit them in an account with SPAR at El Centro College. The Treasurer will also submit a written financial report at the end of each meeting.

Article V
Meetings

Section 1: O.L.A.S. shall meet every other week during the Fall and Spring semesters.

Section 2: The calendar of regularly scheduled meetings shall be established by the Executive Committee no later than the second week of classes.

Section 3: Meetings shall be official when 51% of the paid members are present.

Section 4: Special meetings may be called by the President. The Secretary must notify all members of special meetings.

Section 5: The meetings of O.L.A.S. will be conducted in accordance with (Parliamentary vs. Democratic) procedures.

Article VI
Responsibilities

Section 1: O.L.A.S. will be responsible for notifying the college administration of problems, conflicts, concerns, and quality of student life issues.

Section 2: O.L.A.S. will be responsible for communicating with the SPAR director about any ideas regarding student interests, activities, and programs.

Article VII
Amendments

Section 1: This constitution may be amended at any official meeting of O.L.A.S. by a 3/4 vote of all members.

Section 2: Proposed amendments must be submitted in writing to the President or Vice-President no less than two weeks prior to the meeting at which the amendment will be considered.