HKN National Statutes

Title 1

ASSESSMENTS

Each college chapter shall be assessed the sum of $40 for each of its inductees to defray the cost of a certificate, a copy of the Constitution and a two-year subscription to BRIDGE magazine for each inductee, for expenses of the Board of Directors, and for the expenses of chapter services, including conventions and visitations.

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Title 2

ASSEMBLED CONVENTION

Section A. The cost of holding an assembled convention shall be borne by the Association.

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Title 3

INSTALLATION EXPENSE

The EC shall have the power to decide all questions of expense incident to the installing of new chap-chapters; provided, however, that no assessment be placed on the charter members of the new chapter in excess of the amount per inductee provided in the Constitution and Statutes.

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Title 4

THE BRIDGE

Section A. THE BRIDGE shall be published at least four times in the college year.

Section B. The staff of THE BRIDGE shall be composed of an editor and a BRIDGE correspondent from each chapter, and such other staff members as may be appointed by the EC.

Section C. The subscription price to THE BRIDGE shall be determined by the EC.

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Title 5

EXPENSES

The Executive Secretary shall reimburse any member of the Board of Directors for out-of-pocket expenses incurred on behalf of HKN, when approved in advance by two members of the EC.

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Title 6

COLLEGE CHAPTERS

Section A. A petition for the establishment of a college chapter may be made by no fewer than eight undergraduate students who are qualified for membership. It shall be accompanied by the written consent of the President, the Dean of Students, the Dean of Engineering and the Head of the Electrical and Computer Engineering, of the petitioning school, or their equivalent.

Section B. College chapters shall be installed by the President, or by a deputy appointed by him.

Section C. Charter members of a new chapter shall include all the petitioners duly inducted and any other members inducted at the installation ceremonies whom the petitioners desire to be distinguished as charter members.

Section D. Officers of a college chapter shall be a President, Vice-President, Recording Secretary, Corresponding Secretary, BRIDGE Correspondent and Treasurer. When the occasion makes it desirable, any two of these offices may be combined by the chapter and assigned to a single member.

Section E. Duties of the officers shall be as follows:

  1. The President shall exercise such jurisdiction over the chapter as is usually accorded the position. He shall preside at all meetings and shall call special meetings at the request of not less than five members or whenever he deems necessary.
  2. The Vice-President shall, in the absence of the President, assume his duties. He shall succeed to the presidency in case of resignation or disability of the President.
  3. The Recording Secretary shall keep a record of all meetings and shall issue notices of all special meetings.
  4. The Corresponding Secretary shall have charge of all correspondence of the chapter, except that pertaining to the Treasurer and the BRIDGE correspondent's office.
  5. THE BRIDGE correspondent shall submit reports of the chapter's activities to THE BRIDGE and perform all other duties pertaining to THE BRIDGE, including publicity for the chapter.
  6. The Treasurer shall collect all dues and be in charge of all chapter funds, which he shall pay out only on order of the chapter, signed by the President and the Recording Secretary.

Section F. A quorum for the legal transaction of chapter business shall consist of at least one-half of the total active members of the chapter. Student members pursuing a cooperative program or off the campus on an industrial assignment at the time of balloting shall not be counted in the total membership for the purpose of determining a quorum.

Section G. By-laws adopted by a college chapter for its government shall not conflict with the Constitution or Statutes. Such by-laws, and all changes thereto, must be approved by each member of the EC. In the event of enactment of any future amendments to the Constitution or any new Statutes, with which the chapter by-laws may become in conflict, such conflicting by-laws shall thereby become void.

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Title 7

MEMBERSHIP QUALIFICATIONS

Section A. A junior means any enrolled student in an accredited course in Electrical and Computer Engineering who has completed one-half of the scholastic requirement for the bachelors degree. A senior means any enrolled student in an accredited course in Electrical and Computer Engineering who has completed three-fourths of the scholastic requirements for the bachelors degree, provided that in five-year undergraduate courses no student is eligible for membership until he has completed one term or semester of his third year.

Section B. Candidates for membership to HKN, in addition to having the required scholastic rank, must be of unimpeachable character, have ability to make use of the knowledge and information acquired, have capacity and willingness for hard work, and have a genial nature and ability to work in harmony with all sorts of men.

Section C. The approval of the faculty advisor of the nominating chapter and of the Head of the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department of the college shall be a condition prerequisite to eligibility for induction of non-student members.

Section D. A graduate student may be nominated to membership by any member of HKN, provided he has completed the equivalent of one-half of one academic year of full-time study in the school wherein is located the college chapter or branch of Eta, into which the graduate student is proposed to be inducted, and further provided that such study is generally applicable to an advanced degree in electrical and computer engineering. Such nomination shall require endorsement by the Head of the Electrical and Computer Engineering faculty of said school.

Section E. Nominations to eminent membership may be made by a college chapter, an alumni chapter, or by any member of Eta Kappa Nu. For election, the candidate must receive the approval of the Board of Directors, and the approval of three-quarters of the college chapters.

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Title 8

CONVENTION

Section A.

  1. In preparation for an annual mail convention, the Executive Secretary shall communicate with all college and alumni chapters and with the members of the Board of Directors, calling for nomination of candidates, proposals of new legislation and other matters to be submitted to the chapters for approval. He shall set a deadline by which all nominations and proposals shall be in his office.
  2. The Board of Directors before March 1 shall nominate candidates for national office at an assembled meeting, or by mail.
  3. The Executive Secretary, after compiling all material, shall send it promptly to each college and alumni chapter with a proxy ballot for voting on all candidates and matters introduced, and shall set a date when the election closes, with due regard for the time required, if a run-off ballot should be necessary.

Section B. In a mail convention, except as otherwise specifically provided, a majority of votes cast shall be necessary for the determination of any question, including repeal or enactment of statutes and approval of contracts. In the case of a tie vote on any question, the Board of Directors by plurality vote shall cast the deciding vote.

Section C. Election of officers and directors shall be by the chapters through preferential ballot conducted as follows: Ballots will be cast indicating first, second and third choice, and so forth, of the candidate for each office. The ballots will initially be counted according to first choices. If no candidate receives a majority of the first-choice votes, the candidate having the least number of first-choice votes will be eliminated, and the ballots on which he was made first choice will then be divided according to the second choices of those ballots and added to the ballots of the remaining candidates. Should none of these candidates have a majority, the candidate now having the least number of votes will be eliminated and his ballot will be divided among the candidates who still remain, according to the next preference in order. This process of successively eliminating the lowest candidate will be continued until one candidate receives the majority of the votes. If a tie exists among candidates receiving the least number of votes, the Board of Directors shall eliminate one of these candidates by a preferential ballot as described above.

Section D.

  1. If an assembled convention is held the time and place thereof shall be established by the EC. The expenses of the host chapter, one official delegate from each College chapter, the members of the Board of Directors and incidentals shall be paid from the funds of the Association.
  2. A special assembled convention shall be held, should urgent demand arise, on the petition of at least five College chapters, including no less than one chapter from each geographic region, or at the discretion of the Board of Directors. Such convention shall be called by the Executive Secretary and the time and place shall be established by the EC, provided that three-fourths of the college chapters approve the holding of such a convention, and further providing that a means satisfactory to the Board of Directors has been provided to pay expenses of the delegates.
  3. An assembled convention of voting members shall consist of one official delegate from each college and alumni chapter and the members of the Board of Directors sitting in regular session.

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Title 9

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Section A. The President, Vice-President, and the Executive Secretary shall be the chairman, vice-chairman and secretary, respectively, of the Board of Directors.

Section B. Vacancies on the Board of Directors, including the officers, may be filled by a majority vote of the remaining board members. Members may be so appointed only for the unexpired portion of a term of office, and such appointment shall be subject to confirmation at the next Convention, if the appointee is then still in office.

Section C. The Board of Directors shall be responsible for the interpretation of the Constitution and Statutes. Any such interpretation by the Board of Directors shall, at the request of any chapter, be subject to majority approval by the next Convention.

Section D. The Board of Directors shall determine the policies of the Association.

Section E. The Board of Directors shall determine the compensation of the Executive Secretary for his services, and may enter into a pension contract with the Executive Secretary on behalf of the Association, and subject to the approval of the College chapters.

Section F. The Board of Directors shall have the power to remove any member from the EC for good and sufficient cause.

Section G. The Board of Directors shall have access to all records of the Association and may call at any time upon a national officer or any college or alumni chapter for a written report on any of their activities.

Section H. The Board of Directors shall meet at least once a year as soon as feasible after July 1, and at such other times as agreed upon by a majority of the Board. A newly-elected Board of Directors otherwise taking office on July 1 may meet during the immediately preceding June with the powers of office, provided the outgoing Board of Directors has so authorized.

Section I. Visitation to College chapters may be made by a member of HKN, preferably a director, appointed by the resident.

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Title 10

EXECUTIVE COUNCIL

Section A. The Executive Secretary, under the direction of the EC, shall prepare an annual operating budget for consideration and approval by the Board of Directors. The EC may, in conformance with established fiscal policies, and with the aid of investment counsel, invest and re-invest in the name of the Association, funds of the Association in bonds, stocks or other securities. The Executive Secretary shall execute such transactions with the written consent of each member of the EC.

Section B. Nominations and eligibility for national office shall be as follows:

  1. The Board of Directors shall nominate a single candidate for each of the offices of President, Vice-President, and Executive Secretary.
  2. Groups of no less than five College chapters, each group including no less than one chapter from each geographic region may nominate individual candidates for each of the offices of President, Vice-President, and Executive Secretary.
  3. Eligible for the offices of President and Vice-President are past members of either the Board of Directors or the former Advisory Board.
  4. Eligible for the office of Executive Secretary shall be any member of HKN.

Section C. Terms of office and election of the officers shall be as follows:

  1. The term of office for the President and for the Vice-President shall be one year.
  2. The term of office for the Executive Secretary shall be three years.

Section D. Election of officers shall be by the annual mail convention.

Section E. On July 1, next succeeding the annual mail convention at which the elections were held, the newly-elected President and Vice-President and the Executive Secretary shall take office. The newly-elected officers otherwise taking office July 1, may meet during the preceding June with the powers of office, providing the outgoing Board of Directors has so authorized. In the event the result of the annual election is not determined by July 1, the incumbent officers shall continue until their successors are elected or appointed.

Section F. Vacancies shall be filled as follows:

  1. Vacancies on the Board of Directors shall be filled in accordance with Title 9.
  2. During the period of a vacancy in the office of the President, the Vice-President shall assume the duties and responsibilities of the President until a successor is elected or appointed, provided, however, that he may vote only one of the two offices.
  3. During a period of a vacancy in the office of the Vice-President, the President shall assume the duties and responsibilities of the Vice-President until a successor is elected or appointed, provided, however, that he may vote only one of the two offices.
  4. If the office of Executive Secretary becomes vacant, the appointee shall be titled Acting Executive Secretary.

Section G. The duties of the offices shall be as follows:

  1. The President shall be responsible for the coordination of the work of the other members of the EC and of all general executive duties. He shall be responsible for the appointment of all committees which are to serve during his term of office. He shall have charge of and prescribe at the Convention and shall preside at all meetings of the EC and of the Board of Directors. He shall install new College chapters, either in person or by official representation. He shall sign all membership certificates and charters.
  2. The Vice-President shall assume any duties assigned to him by the President. He shall preside in the absence of the President.
  3. The Executive Secretary shall keep a record of the Convention and shall send an official report of all business transacted by the Convention, including a canvass of the vote of any election to each chapter and to each director. He shall keep a record of the minutes of the meeting of the EC and of the Board of Directors and send a certified copy of these minutes to each Board member. He shall keep the seal and shall have executed and shall issue the charters for the new chapters, the membership certificates, copies of the Constitution and the emblems. He shall stimulate college chapter and alumni interest and activity. He shall have in his immediate charge all funds of the Association and shall pay out money upon the order of the convention, signed by the President, or when the Convention is not in session, if so directed by the President and the Vice-President. For his services he shall receive compensation He shall give an approved bond, the amount of which shall be fixed by the EC.

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Title 11

TRUST FUNDS

Trust funds may be for a specific one or a combination of the following purposes: religious, charitable, scientific, literary, educational. Any action concerning trust funds shall require the unanimous recommendation of the members of the EC prior to submission to the Convention, and the approval of at least three-fourths of the college and alumni chapters. All trust funds shall be organized in such a manner as to prohibit their use upon dissolution or otherwise for general purposes of the Association.

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Title 12

DISCIPLINE

Section A. Each chapter shall have the sole power to discipline its own members.

Section B. The Board of Directors shall have the power, upon recommendation of the EC to suspend the charter of any chapter for good and sufficient reasons, but such suspension must be sustained or the action reversed at the next succeeding Convention.

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Title 13

BY-LAWS

The Board of Directors may adopt by-laws, not in conflict with the Constitution or Statutes, for the governing of the Association.

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Updated 2006-04-19