UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT CHAPEL HILL STUDENT TELEVISION

CONSTITUTION

 

Amended November 2000

 

1. Preamble

 

We, the members of Student Television, organized on the campus of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and established for the purpose of assembling a maximum number of college students in the production and viewing of university programming, do adopt this Constitution and the By-Laws which govern Student Television.

 

2. Purpose and Policy

 

This organization shall always conduct its activities under the guiding principle with which it was established: that there was a need for student access to television production on a regular, extra-curricular basis. The activities and affairs of Student Television shall be managed under the direction of its governing body, which is herein referred to as the Board of Directors.

 

3. Membership

 

Open Membership:

Membership in this organization of Student Television shall be open to UNC-CH students of every gender, race, age, color, disability, religion, sexual preference or national origin, irrespective of their course of study, veteran status or other University affiliation.

 

Active Membership:

Active Membership shall be conferred upon enrolled students- undergraduates and graduates- of this educational institution who are in agreement with the principles of Student Television and who are active in one or more of the committees or staffs. Active membership shall carry with it voting rights and responsibilities in this organization. Active membership shall continue so long as the member remains in good standing in this organization and continues enrollment in this University.

 

Honorary Membership:

This organization may confer honorary membership upon persons who have contributed significantly to the ideals of Student Television. Persons so honored shall have all rights and privileges of active membership except those of voting or holding office. Honorary membership shall not be bestowed upon any undergraduate student. The approval by a vote of at least three-fourths the vote of those in a General Body meeting, fulfilling the attendance requirements outlined in the By-Laws (Article V, Section B), shall be required for the conferring of honorary membership.

 

Alumni Membership:

Upon leaving this organization in good standing, those who have served as Active Members shall be recognized as Alumni Members.

 

 

UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT CHAPEL HILL STUDENT TELEVISION

 

BY-LAWS

 

Amended January 2000

 

Preamble

 

The rules contained in these By-Laws shall govern the Board of Directors, Executive Board, staffs, committees and subcommittees of Student Television, hereafter referred to as STV, all cases, to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with the rules and regulations of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

 

ARTICLE I

The Board of Directors

 

A. The Board of Directors shall have responsibility for:

1)      The review and evaluation of STV finances including approval of all capital expenditures exceeding $500 and all stipends, as proposed by the Executive Board;

2)      Selecting the Station Manager of STV with the recommendations of the Screening Committee;

3)      Advising and assisting the Station Manager or Executive Board with any matters of STV policy;

4)      Responding to a mandate or the STV General Body as outlined in Article IV.

B. The membership of the Board of Directors, not to exceed sixteen voting members plus one vote per show, shall be as follows, with no individual receiving more than one vote regardless of the number of voting positions held:

1)      The officers of STV being:

a.      The Faculty Advisor of STV, as selected by the STV General Body Membership;

b.      The Station Manager of STV, as selected by the Board of Directors;

c.      The Business Manager of STV, as appointed by the Station Manager and approved by the Board of Directors;

d.      The Station Engineer of STV, as appointed by the Station Manager and approved by the Board of Directors;

e.      Two Members-At-Large, as selected by the General Body Membership;

f.        One vote per show, provided that the show has been produced for at least one year and will continue to be produced in the current year;

g.      The Advertising Manager of STV, as appointed by the Station Manager and approved by the Board of Directors;

h.      The Publicity Manager of STV, as appointed by the Station Manager and approved by the Board of Directors.

 

2)      One University of North Carolina faculty or staff member selected by the incumbent student members of the Board, at the last scheduled meeting of the year, for two-year terms.

 

3)      Students representing the following ex-officio positions:

a.      The UNC Student Body President;

b.      The Carolina Union Activities Board President;

c.      The Speaker of Student Congress;

d.      The Residence Hall Association President;

e.      The Carolina Athletic Association President.

Each ex-officio member may serve on, or appoint one designate to act on his or her behalf at the meetings of the Board of Directors. The designations must be submitted in writing to the Secretary of the Board.

 

4)      Two Community Representatives being permanent residents of the Chapel Hill or Carrboro community to serve three-year terms, rotating in that one such member is elected every year by the outgoing board.

 

5)      One representative of the local Chapel Hill cable company to serve a three-year term, without vote.

 

6)      All members of the Executive Board not forementioned and the Station-Manager elect shall be members of the Board of Directors without vote.

 

C. Quorum

 

At all meetings of the Board, the presence of a simple majority of voting members, which includes either the Secretary of the Chairperson, shall be necessary to constitute a quorum. Any act of a majority present at a meeting at which there is a quorum shall be the act of the Board, except as may be otherwise provided by these By-Laws.

 

D. Meetings

 

The Board of Directors shall hold meetings at least once a month during regular school sessions. The Board may, at any meeting, cancel the meeting for the next month. Meetings may be called by the Chairperson or upon written request of four members of the Board submitted to the secretary. All members will be duly notified of the time and place of meetings.

 

E. Attendance

 

The members of the Board are not allowed to vote without being present at the Board of Directors meeting. A Board member may be removed by the appointing authority for non-attendance or termination of his or her status as a student. The Secretary of the Board will notify the appointing authority when a member misses one meeting of the Board. A member who misses two consecutive meetings will automatically be considered for removal from the Board. Following such a removal by the Board, the appointing authority will be requested to make a replacement appointment before the next regular meeting of the Board. In the event that an ex-officio member misses two consecutive meetings, they will be requested by the Secretary to designate a representative to permanently replace them.

 

F. Term of office of Board members

 

All members of the Board shall serve from the close of the Changeover Meeting (Article V, Section C), or the time of their appointments, if later, until the close of the Changeover Meeting one to three years hence as applicable. Vacancies occurring for reasons other than expiration of term shall be filled without delay in the same manner of the original appointment. Faculty members may succeed themselves if nominated by the incumbent student members.

 

G. Positions of Chair and Secretary to the Board

 

The Chairperson shall be elected from and by the members of the Board at the first regular meeting of each year. The secretary will be selected by the members of the Board, and if not already a member of the Board, and if not already a member of the Board shall not hold a vote.

 

H. Station Manager Selection

 

The Board of Directors will select the Station Manager-elect each year prior to March 31st and the Station Manager will select Producers prior to April 15th. Candidates that hold a voting position on the Board of Directors must abstain from all voting and selection committees that pertain to the position for which they are running. Applications for Station Manager shall be required to present an application to a screening committee appointed by the Board of Directors. The committee will screen all applicants for the position unless three or fewer people apply. The committee of five will include the incumbent Station Manager, two Executive Board members as selected by the Executive Board, and two voting members of the Board of Directors. The Screening Committee will advise applicants whom they feel are not qualified that they cannot be recommended by the committee, but applicants so notified may appear before the Board if they so desire. At least seven days prior to the Board of Directors screening process, all completed applications will be posted in an area commonly accessible to all STV members. Any regularly enrolled student of the University may apply for consideration. All applicants found capable will appear before the Board, who will vote by written ballot; a simple majority shall be required for the selection. If the Screening Committee cannot recommend any qualified candidates, they may automatically suspend this By-Law for up to two weeks to seek and screen further candidates. The Station Manager-elect shall assume the duties of the Station Manager at the close of the Changeover meeting (Article V, Section C).

 

The incumbent Station Manger will author the annual “Report from the STV Station Manager to the Station Manager-Elect and the Board of Directors”. Copies of the Report will be made available to all outgoing Board members by their last scheduled Spring meeting and, by the succeeding Station Manager, to all new Board members in the Fall. The Informal report will address the pending business, issues and concerns of the outgoing Station Manager, Board of Directors and Executive Board, and highlight the significant accomplishments of the year.

 

ARTICLE II

Duties of STV Officers

 

The Chairperson of the STV Board of Directors, the Faculty Advisor, the STV Member at Large, Station Manager, Business Manager, Station Engineer, Publicity Manager, Advertising Manager, and all Producers shall be officers of Student Television.

 

In his or her capacity as an officer of STV:

 

A. The Station Manager shall have among his or her duties the responsibility for:

 

1)      Implementing the policies of the Constitution and By-Laws of STV;

2)      Chairing the Executive Board;

3)      The management of STV facilities;

4)      Providing encouragement and assistance to individual programming efforts;

5)      General promotion of STV;

6)      The implementation of STV affairs and general station policies, the scope and application of which are not inconsistent with the powers of the Board of Directors;

7)      Selecting the Station Engineer, Business Manager, and all standing committee chairs and producers pending the approval of the Board of Directors;

8)      Ensuring an equipment training program;

9)      Ensuring that the equipment and facilities of STV are used strictly toward the benefit of STV.

 

B. The Business Manager shall have among his or her duties the responsibility to:

 

1)      Serve as treasurer of STV;

2)      Present to the Board of Directors quarterly reports of STV finances;

3)      Coordinate and project with the incumbent Executive Board proposed budget requests for the proceeding academic year.

 

C. The Station Engineer shall have among his or her duties the responsibility to:

 

1)      Establish station equipment usage policies for Executive Board implementation;

2)      Establish preventative maintenance schedules;

3)      Maintain, to the best of his or her ability, the highest standards of equipment upkeep and repair ensuring the most economical long-term expense with prudence and timeliness;

4)      Maintain documentation of repairs to, expenses for and user hours of each major piece of equipment.

 

ARTICLE III

Student Television Executive Board

 

The functions of the Executive Board shall be to correlate work of the staffs and committees, discuss common problems, study the techniques of effective group work and service, and formulate entertaining, cultural and educational programs. The Executive Board will always attempt to work by consensus. The respective committees and their members shall plan, produce and execute these programs with the approval of the Executive Board. The Executive Board shall resolve questions and problems concerning STV programming policy. The Executive Board has the responsibility to develop and coordinate a prioritized/forecasted listing of equipment needs. The use of any funds raised by or student fees allocated to STV shall be the business of the Executive Board in accordance with these By-Laws. The Executive Board will approve any STV expenditures over $100.00, except maintenance expenditures on capitalized equipment that are below $250.00.

 

A. Membership

 

The Chairpersons of all standing committees, Producers of regularly scheduled shows, the Station Engineer, the Business Manager, the Station Manager, and others deemed by these members shall comprise the Executive Board. The Station Manager shall serve as Chairperson.

 

B. Selection

 

The Chairpersons of all standing committees shall be appointed by the Station Manager-Elect, subject to approved by the incumbent Executive Board with final confirmation by the incumbent Board of Directors. Special appointments may be made at the discretion of the Station Manager or by the Station Manager-Elect with the assistance of the outgoing Station Manager, an officer of the Board of Directors, the faculty advisor or a designated representative in making these selections.

 

C. Term of Office

 

The Station Manager-Elect and Chairperson-Elect shall meet and plan program activities which take place during the academic year in which they will serve. They shall take office at the close of the Changeover Meeting. Chairpersons are subject to recall by the Station Manager.

 

D. Qualifications

 

The members of the Executive Board must be regularly enrolled students at the University of North Carolina. However, at the discretion of the Board of Directors, a non-student may be appointed by the Board of Directors.

 

ARTICLE IV

Officer Recall

 

The Station Manager and Station Manager-Elect shall be subject to recall by the Board of Directors. A recall vote by the Board may be mandated by the General Body of STV by submitting to the Board a petition signed by no less than forty (40) active STV members.

 

Any member of the Executive Board shall be subject to recall by the Station Manager with the final approval of the Board of Directors.

 

ARTICLE V

STV General Body Membership

 

A. Membership

 

Active members of this organization, as outlined in the Constitution, shall constitute the General Body Membership.

 

B. Meetings

 

There is a minimum of one General Body meeting per academic semester, preferably within the first two weeks of classes. The meeting shall be called by the Station Manager with all reasonable effort to notify all members and potential members of the General Body by at least one week prior to the scheduled date. The type of meeting shall be decided by the Executive Board.

 

C. Changeover Meeting

 

The annual end-of-the-year meeting shall be the Changeover Meeting of STV which will be held prior to final examinations during the spring semester. This will be the occasion of recognizing outgoing members of the Board of Directors, the Executive Board and the General Body of STV.

 

ARTICLE VI

Amendments to the Constitution and By-Laws

 

The Constitution and these By-Laws of Student Television may be amended at any regular or special meeting of the Board of Directors by a vote of three-quarters of the members present in quorum and voting, provided that the amendment is submitted in writing at least one week prior, at either a regular or special meeting.

 

Enacting Clauses

 

The Constitution and these By-Laws shall become effective upon adoption by the Student Television Board of Directors.