CONSTITUTION OF THE TERRAPIN ANIME SOCIETY
(Fall 2002 by Executive Membership of TAS)

PREAMBLE
1. We, the members of the Terrapin Anime Society, do hereby establish the Constitution to realize out purpose to its fullest extent.

ARTICLE 1 - NAME
1. The name of the Organization shall be the “Terrapin Anime Society”, henceforth referred to as the “Terrapin Anime Society” or “TAS”.

ARTICLE II - PURPOSE
1. TAS is established for the expressed purpose of encouraging the appreciation and discussion of anime—Japanese Animation—between its members and to bring a better awareness of anime to the general public.

ARTICLE III - MEMBERSHIP
1. Active membership shall be limited to current undergraduates of the University of Maryland , College Park . Active membership entitles voting rights and eligibility for office.
2. Once a member is recognized, the member's name will be added to a membership record listing all members in the organization. During each meeting attendance will be taken to keep track of participation.
3. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, creed, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, personal appearance, age, national origin, political affiliation, physical or mental disability, or on the basis of the exercise of rights secured by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.
4. Dues are not required for voting, active membership.

ARTICLE IV - OFFICERS

TAS will be governed by the following means:
1. An elected President, or other designated officer, will preside at all meetings. The President will maintain the power to appoint all committee chairpersons, present all motions to the present body of members, and will be present at 75% of the meetings. The President will also act as SGA liaison for the group . Other responsibilities include acting as liaison to Hornbake Library and McKeldin Library in order to increase the amount of anime related materials contained in both libraries. These materials include books, magazine subscriptions, VHS tapes, DVDs, etc. The President will also keep in contact with US distributors to seek screening permissions and licenses.
2. A Treasurer will also be elected. The duties of the Treasurer will be to preside at all meetings and activities that the President cannot attend. This includes acting as SGA liaison for the group when the President is unable to. In addition, the Treasurer will keep track of all the finances for the organization and create a budget for the next fiscal year.
3. Members will also elect a Secretary. This officer will handle such duties as membership registration, record keeping, rule observances at meetings, protocol, web page updates, etc. They will also assist the President with advertising the club and promoting various activities.
4. An Editor in Chief will also be elected by the members.
5. In the event that an officer does not fulfill his/her duties, the following steps will be taken:

A. If the officer is the Treasurer, Secretary, or Editor in Chief, they must meet with the President in order to discuss the problem. If the officer does not meet with the President within two weeks of being notified by the President, the President has the right to temporarily suspend them from their position until the next meeting. At the meeting, the President has the option of putting forth a vote to decide on whether the officer should be removed from his/her position. The officer in question is allowed to state their side of the story as to why they have been unable to fulfill their position and how they plan to rectify the situation. Once this is done, there will be a vote to determine whether the officer should be removed from office. In order for the officer to be removed, two of the officers (including the President) must vote for the removal, along with at least 75% of the present active voting members of TAS. If the officer is removed, the President will appoint a replacement until the next regular elections in May. The replacement officer cannot be the same as the one removed.
B. If the officer is the President, he/she must meet with the Treasurer to discuss the problem. If the President does not meet with the Treasurer within two weeks of being notified by the Treasurer, the Treasurer has the right to temporarily suspend the President from their position until the next meeting. At the meeting, the Treasurer has the option of putting forth a vote to decide on whether the President should be removed from his/her position. The President is allowed to state their side of the story as to why they have been unable to fulfill their position and how they plan to rectify the situation. Once this is done, there will be a vote to determine whether the President should be removed from office. In order for the President to be removed, two of the other officers (Secretary, Treasurer, or Editor in Chief) must vote for the removal, along with at least 75% of the active voting members of TAS. If the President is removed, the Treasurer, Secretary, and Editor in Chief will appoint a new President until the next regular elections in May.
6) All publications of TAS (advertisements, flyers, Tsunami, etc.) are subject to approval by the officers excluding the Editor in Chief, by way of majority vote.

ARTICLE V - ELECTIONS

1. All voting members must be undergraduates and fulfill the requirements stated in Article III.
2. All executive officers must be undergraduates.
3. All officers shall be elected by a majority vote of the present active voting members of TAS. Elections will be held in May.
4. The President will take nominations via email. All nominations must be in by a certain date as determined by the President. Once nominations are closed, the President will contact all members of TAS with the list of candidates. The voting shall be done by secret ballot to be collected and tabulated by the President, Treasurer, Secretary, Editor in Chief, and one eligible voting member of TAS appointed by the President. A person running for a position is not eligible to count votes for that position.

ARTICLE VI - FINANCES
1. TAS will submit a budget to the Student Government Association Finance Committee on an annual basis and request funding appropriate to the effective operation of the organization for the year.
2. TAS will supplement its activities through small fund-raisers.

ARTICLE VII - REGISTRATION RENEWAL
1. TAS will apply to the Office of Campus Programs for registration on an annual basis after the election of TAS officers.

ARTICLE VIII - AMENDMENTS
1. Amendments may be proposed by any active member of TAS.
2. These amendments will be placed on the agenda for the next regular meeting of the officers.
3. Proposed amendments will become effective following their approval by a two-thirds majority vote of the active voting members in attendance.
4. Members must be recognized by an officer before they can speak during the discussion portion of meetings.
5. Any member attempting to disrupt the normal function or organization of the club can be removed from the event by decision of the officers.

AMENDMENTS

Amendment I:  Recall of Officers
Purpose: Should (a) member(s) of the active membership of TAS find one or multiple officer(s) incapable of fulfilling their duties, the following steps are to be taken in order to recall them from office.
1. A written proposal must be drawn up by the party/parties who wish for the recall of mentioned officer. This proposal is to be submitted to the staff sponsor of TAS. It is also to be submitted to a TAS officer or member who is NOT directly affected by the proposal to post on the mailing list(s) and website.
2. The proposal is to be discussed on the TAS discussion list for approximately a week (at least 7 days: i.e., a proposal submitted and posted on Monday would be brought to attention at the following Sunday's meeting, but a proposal submitted on a Saturday would not be discussed until a week after the next day's meeting.)
3. The proposal will be brought up at the next appropriate TAS meeting, whereupon the active members will vote on whether or not to bring it up for official discussion. If 50% of the TAS voting members (UMCP Undergraduate
Students) vote to officially bring forward the motion, it will go to debate. Should this not be reached, the proposal is dead and can not be resubmitted.
4. If the 50% majority pass the proposal for official debate, a general discussion will be held during the following TAS meeting to discuss the specific issues behind the desired recall, adjust sanctions (i.e., does the person NEED to be totally recalled, should a probation or last chance be granted), etc. After this third discussion, the present TAS voting members (UMCP Undergraduate Students) will vote on the finalized recall proposal. In order for the recall to be passed, a 50% majority must vote in favor of it.
5. If the proposal fails to get a 75% majority, it is dead and may not be resubmitted.
6. If the recall is passed by the membership, an appointment shall be made according to the rules already stated in the TAS constitution and a new  election will be made at the usual time.