Our Constitution

Preamble
The Residence Hall Association at Southern Connecticut State University, as the largest organization representing on-campus students, is committed to providing a positive, approachable and effective forum for all students living on-campus. The Residence Hall Association strives to be the aware and involved voice of Southern’s residential community and seeks to develop a broader intellectual, social, and cultural on-campus environment. From this foundation, the Residence Hall Association trains and develops the next generation of student leaders.

Article I: Name
The official name of this organization shall be “The Residence Hall Association of Southern Connecticut State University”, hereafter referred to as “RHA.”

Article II: Purpose
RHA is hereby established in order to:

  1. Serve as the voice of all students residing on campus, hereafter referred to as the resident student body;
  2. Function as the liaison between the resident student body and the staff/administration of the University;
  3. Function as a governing body implementing policy development and serve as a decision making organization while taking into consideration that the residents have an equal voice in policies and procedures;
  4. Recommend to the Office of Residence Life changes in its administrative policies for the betterment of the student body residing on campus;
  5. Promote the general welfare of the undergraduate and graduate student body living on campus; and
  6. Create educational, social and recreational programming for the resident study body.

Article III: Membership and Eligibility
All members of the resident student body shall be members of RHA.

To become a voting body member, a student must:

  1. Maintain a cumulative quality point ratio (QPR) of 2.0 or better;
  2. Live on campus during the academic term s/he is active in the organization;
  3. Be elected as a Hall Council representative;
  4. Be a member of the Programming Board.

Article IV: The Residence Hall Association Executive Board

Section I: Composition of the RHA Executive Board

A. The RHA Executive Board shall consist of: one (1) President, one (1) Vice-
President, one (1) Secretary, one (1) Treasurer and the chairperson of the RHA Programming Board.

B. To be eligible for a position on the Executive Board, the following qualifications must be met:

  1. All candidates must reside on campus for the length of their term in office;
  2. All candidates must have completed a minimum of 1 academic semester as a part of the general student body of the organization prior to being elected to office;
  3. Candidates may not hold the title of president or vice-president in their respective hall councils;
  4. No individual may run for or serve in more than one office on the Executive Board at the same time.

Section II: Duties of the RHA Executive Board

A. The President of the RHA shall:

  1. Call to order and preside over all meetings of the RHA, both of the body and the Executive Board;
  2. Establish an agenda for all Executive Board meetings;
  3. Appoint committees and chairpersons when needed;
  4. Act as liaison between the Spring Week and Homecoming Committee and RHA;
  5. Act as liaison between the Division of Student Affairs and RHA;
  6. Act as the spokesperson for RHA;
  7. Appoint the members and the Chairperson of the Programming Board;
  8. Maintain at least 4 hours in the RHA Office per week;
  9. Not be a voting member unless in the event of a tie;
  10. Be an ex-officio member of all committees;
  11. Be responsible, with the Vice President, for the planning and organizing of any RHA retreats;
  12. Attend at least one Hall Council meeting per week to monitor development and efficiency;
  13. Submit to the members of RHA a bi-semester report; one at the first general body meeting of the semester and one at the last general body meeting of the semester; and
  14. Receive a stipend of $1500 per semester.

B. The Vice-President of the RHA shall:

  1. Assume the duties of the President in the event of the President’s absence;
  2. Temporarily assume the position of President in the event of the President’s resignation or removal from office, until a new President of Residence Hall Association is selected according to RHA policy;
  3. Assist the President whenever possible in the performance of all RHA duties;
  4. Attend at least one Hall Council meeting per week to monitor development and efficiency;
  5. Submit to the members of RHA a bi-semester report; one at the first general body meeting of the semester and one at the last general body meeting of the semester.
  6. Maintain at least 4 hours in the RHA Office per week;
  7. Act as a voting member of RHA; and
  8. Receive a stipend of $1200 per semester.

C. The Secretary of the RHA shall:

  1. Keep and distribute minutes of all official meetings of the RHA Body and the RHA Executive Board;
  2. Maintain all non-financial records;
  3. Maintains at least 4 hours in the RHA Office per week;
  4. Maintain and update the records and files of the RHA;
  5. Attend at least one Hall Council meeting per week to monitor development and efficiency;
  6. Submit to the members of RHA a bi-semester report; one at the first general body meeting of the semester and one at the last general body meeting of the semester.
  7. Act at the discretion of the President;
  8. Act as a voting member of RHA; and
  9. Receive a stipend of $1000 per semester.

D. The Treasurer of the RHA shall:

  1. Comply with the Financial Policy of the university
  2. Be responsible for the payment of all bills incurred by the RHA, and for the deposit of
    all receipts the university business office and accounts payable office in accordance with university policy;
  3. Maintain and update all financial records for RHA;
  4. Present written/ oral reports at each meeting of RHA;
  5. Attend at least one Hall Council meeting per week to monitor development and efficiency;
  6. Submit to the members of RHA a bi-semester report; one at the first general body meeting of the semester and one at the last general body meeting of the semester.
  7. Maintain at least 4 hours in the RHA Office per week;
  8. Act as a voting member of RHA; and
  9. Receive a stipend of $1000 per semester.

The Chairperson of the Programming Board shall:

  1. Serve at the pleasure of the President within the position;
  2. Organize and coordinate all meetings of the Programming Board;
  3. Report to the Executive Board weekly regarding the activities of the Programming Board;
  4. Be appointed by the President and ratified by the body;
  5. Attend at least one Hall Council meeting per week to monitor development and efficiency;
  6. Submit to the members of RHA a bi-semester report; one at the first general body meeting of the semester and one at the last general body meeting of the semester;
  7. Maintain at least 4 hours in the RHA Office per week;
  8. Act as a voting member of RHA; and
  9. Receive a stipend of $1000 per semester.

Failure to reflect on RHA in a positive manner will result in the termination.

Section III: Elections
A. The procedures for the regularly scheduled election process are:

  1. Students wishing to be elected to an RHA office may nominate themselves or be nominated by an RHA member in the second week of April;
  2. The elections will take place in the spring semester no later then May 4th but no earlier then April 8th ;
  3. Elections will be on line at the RHA website: www.scsuRHA.com.
  4. The RHA Advisors, along with a senior, non-returning RHA member, will collect the votes and the candidates will be notified by a phone call from one of the RHA Advisors;
  5. The candidates receiving the simple majority of the vote shall be declared the official winners;
  6. The term of office shall run from May 1st to May 1st of the following year;
  7. Consecutive terms are allowed provided that the proper election procedures are followed.

B. Procedures for the election process to fill vacancies during the academic year are as follows:

  1. Those who wish to fill the vacancy may nominate themselves or be nominated by an RHA member at the next scheduled RHA meeting after the vacancy occurs;
  2. Elections shall be held two (2) weeks following the vacancy.
  3. Voting will be done by secret ballot;
  4. Two-thirds of the RHA membership must be present to hold the vote;
  5. RHA advisors shall collect and count the ballots.
  6. The candidate receiving the simple majority of the vote shall be declared the official winner.
  7. The term shall run until the following May 1st;
  8. In the interest of time, vacancies may be filled by an executive board nomination and vote only when the university is not in regular session;
  9. Any vacancies in the general membership shall be filled in accordance with the procedures established by that particular body.

Section IV: General Duties of the RHA Executive Board

In addition to the specific responsibilities of each position, as listed in Art. IV, Sec. II, each member of the Executive Board must also complete the following as part of the position:

  1. Executive Board members shall be responsible for attending all General Assembly
  2. Meetings and all Executive Board meetings of the RHA;
  3. Executive Board members shall chair appropriate committees when applicable;
  4. The Executive Board shall address any and all issues brought to the attention of the RHA
  5. by members of the General Assembly;
  6. Each Executive Board member, near the end of their term of office, must complete a detailed end-of-the-year report. This report must contain the officer’s general duties, position-specific duties, summaries of all programs and projects, and a troubleshooting section detailing problems the officer encountered and how they were overcome. In addition, each report should contain suggestions and/or ideas for the coming year. Each officer, regardless of whether or not they are returning to the specific position, must complete a report. This report should serve as a history of what occurred during the year and must be submitted to the head RHA advisor (Director of Housing);
  7. All officers of the RHA must hold weekly office hours, as determined by the RHA, which shall be no less than four (4) hours a week while classes are in session.

Failure to comply with the general and specified duties of the RHA Executive Board will result in that Executive Board member will not receive his/her stipend.

Section V: Impeachment of the RHA Executive Board

A. Grounds for Impeachment shall include:

  1. Failure to perform the duties of the respective office as defined by this Constitution of RHA.

The procedure for impeachment of an elected RHA officer shall be:

  1. A complaint, in writing, must be filed with an RHA Advisor;
  2. The advisor shall inform the grieved officer of stated complaint(s) in writing within 48 hours of receiving it;
  3. The grieved officer shall have one (1) week to plead his/her case before the general RHA membership;
  4. A simple majority vote shall result in the impeachment of said RHA officer.

Article V: The Residence Hall Association General Assembly

Section I: Composition of the RHA General Assembly

A. The RHA General Assembly shall consist of student representatives from each Residence Hall

B. All representative shall be accorded voting privileges in the General Assembly according to the percentage of the on-campus population that resides in their Hall;.

C. The standard vote allocation shall be two (2) voting representatives per residence hall;

D. In the event of extenuating circumstances involving Residence Hall population, the number of representatives shall be reapportioned at the discretion of the Executive Board of RHA.

E. In no case could a resident hall have more than four (4) voting representatives or less than one (1) voting representative.

Section II: Duties of the General Assembly

A. RHA Representatives shall:

  1. Approve actions taken in the name of RHA;
  2. Be present at all weekly meetings of the RHA. If the representative is unable to attend, that representative is responsible for finding a substitute to attend the meeting;
  3. Serve on one (1) committee of the RHA per year and attend all meetings of that committee;
  4. Attend meetings deemed mandatory by the RHA Executive Board;
  5. Represent the residents of their Residence Hall on matters of concern to the RHA;
  6. Be responsible for communication between RHA, individual Residence Halls, and the staff of their respective Residence Halls.

Section III: Meetings of the RHA General Assembly

A. The first meeting shall be held by the second full academic week of the first full month of each semester.

B. Meetings shall be held (4) times per month during the academic year except when the college is not in regular session.

C. Additional meetings may be called at the discretion of the President upon request of a majority of the representatives or a majority of the Executive Board.

D. Meetings shall be run according to parliamentary procedure as stated in Roberts Rules of Order, Revised.

Section IV: Voting Procedures of the RHA General Assembly

The voting members of the RHA General Assembly shall consist of :

  1. President only if a tie
  2. Vice President
  3. Treasurer
  4. Secretary
  5. Chairperson of the Programming Board
  6. Hall Council Presidents
  7. Programming Board
  8. Another executive board member from each hall council

Article VI: Advisors

Section I: Approval of the advisor(s)

  1. There shall be at least two advisors to the RHA;
  2. At least one of the advisors to the RHA shall be from the Residence Life Staff;
  3. All Advisors function at the pleasure of the Director of Housing and Residence Life;
  4. The Director of Housing and Residence Life serves as the primary Advisor.

Article VII: Amendments to and Ratification of this Constitution

Section I: Amendments

  1. Amendments shall be proposed by any student presently residing in an on-campus residence hall.
  2. Proposals must be made in writing to the president at a scheduled RHA meeting.
  3. Copies of the proposed amendment shall be distributed to all RHA members and RHA advisors.
  4. A voting ratification will be done on-line at the end of the semester.
  5. Two-thirds of the voting membership must be present in order to have a vote.
  6. Two-thirds of the vote must be in favor of the amendment for it to be approved.
  7. Upon approval, the amendment is to take effect immediately.

Section II: Ratification

A. This constitution shall be ratified upon the receipt of a two -thirds in favor vote cast by the RHA General Assembly.

B. upon ratification this constitution shall supersede and replace all previous constitutions of the Residence Hall Association.

C. Any reading process begun under the previous constitution shall be heard according to that constitution.

This Constitution was revised by the 2009-2010 Residence Hall Association Executive Board.

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