Methodist Lay Training College Student Body Association
NAME
The name of this association shall be ‘Methodist Lay Training College Student Body Association’
PURPOSE
The purpose of this association shall be:
a. To promote wholesome student relationships and to provide a means of cooperation among students, faculty, and administration.
b. To maintain the Christian ideals of the College by acting in accordance with the Scripture with respect to character, conduct and lifestyle.
c. To maintain both the rights and responsibilities of each member of the MLTC
Student Body Association by monitoring student’s welfare and raise issues of concerns through approved channels of communication with the Principal and the Methodist Lay Training College Board.
MEMBERSHIP
The Association shall be comprised of all students of Methodist Lay Training College who shall become members upon enrolment in that academic year.
OFFICE BEARERS
The officers shall consist of a:
- President
- Vice President
- Secretary
- Treasurer
- Spiritual Affairs Officer
- Education Officer
- Cultural Affairs Officer
- Sports Officer
- Welfare Officer
- Media Officer
- Inter Tertiary Officer
- A Representative from the Minority group
- A representative from the female students
- Both the Female and Male Head Prefects
ELECTIONS
a. The Office Bearers shall be elected by the members of the association to serve a term of one year.
b. Elections shall be held at the last regular meeting of the association at the end of the academic year.
c. The officers shall be elected by means of a ballot.
d. The term of office for all officers shall begin upon completion of elections, and end on the same day of the following year.
e. Nominations of candidates for MLTCSBA Office Bearers shall be nominated from the floor of the meeting by any member.
f. Nominees for Office Bearers must be MLTCSBA members
g. Officers shall be elected by majority vote of those members present, provided quorum is met.
MEETINGS
General Meetings
a. Notice of any General Meetings shall be given by the Secretary two days prior.
b. The President or the Vice President shall be the Chairperson at the meeting.
c. At any General Meeting, two thirds of the total membership shall form a quorum.
d. If the number present does not reach the quorum requirements, the meeting shall be cancelled or postponed.
e. A General meeting could be petitioned provided there is an urgent issue.
f. At the meeting, the following issues could be transacted:
The Adoption of the Annual Report for the previous year
Any business which may properly dealt with by the meeting
Any business brought forward which does not need notice.
g. At this meeting, election of the Office Bearers could be declared.
h. A special General Meeting could be petitioned [refer to (e) above]
Office Bearers Meeting
a. The Office Bearers shall meet once a month, prior to a Faculty of MLTC Board meeting.
b. Any meeting of the Office Bearers shall be called by the President or the Vice President (as delegated and approved by the President)
c. Notice of any meeting must posted up well in advanced. It shall include date, time and place of the meeting.
d. An emergency meeting may be called at any time by the President provided that a written notice is given to members of the Office Bearers.
e. The meeting shall be chaired by the President or the Vice President (as delegated by the President)
f. At any meeting the quorum shall be two third of the members of Office Bearers.
General Conduct of Business
a. All business shall be conducted in accordance with these rules of association.
b. Any matters or question not provided by the rules or standing order shall be determined by the chairman.
c. All business shall be brought forward, discussed and dealt with in the form of a motion.
d. The chairperson shall maintain order in the meeting and the chair shall be heard without interruption.
e. The chairperson shall rule out of order any matters that do not pertain to the question under discussion before the meeting.
f. The chairperson shall ruling refuse to receive any motion of offensive nature in terms of language used, letter or documents.
g. The Chairperson shall determine any matter, dispute or question as to order and procedures.
REMOVAL FROM OFFICE
a. Any officer may be removed from office for failure to perform his/her prescribed duties by a two-thirds vote of the membership, provided that all members are notified of this pending action at least one week prior to the removal decision.
b. Removal from office can occur either for failure to carry out the responsibilities of that office, or for actions which violate the purposes of the organization.
c. Written charges by a member are to be presented to the Office Bearers who will notify the officer in question with sufficient opportunity given for the officer to answer charges at a meeting of the membership.
DUTIES OF MLTCSBA OFFICE BEARERS
President
1. He or She is the general leader and coordinator among the student: active, associate and corresponding members
2. Calls and Chair meetings of the association
3. Represents the interest of the students to the staff or vice-versa.
4. Represents the association in outside contacts.
Note: Members of the Association who wish to involve the association with outside groups shall refer this to the President.
5. Shall be responsible to the MLTCSBA Office Bearers.
6. Shall establish sub-committee as deemed necessary subject to the MLTCSBA Office Bearers.
7. Term of office will Commencement following his or her election and will extend through the year to the next Commencement.
Note: The Commencement usually begins immediately after the election of
the officers-elect for the in-coming MLTCSBA office bearers for the new academic year.
8. Will facilitate the election of the student representatives to the MLTCSBA responsibilities at the first General Meeting of the year.
Note: This usually takes place during the Orientation Week of the Centre school year, and the date is usually allocated by the Principal, as part of the Orientation Week programme.
9. Shall also facilitate the election of the in-coming MLTCSBA office bearers at the last General Meeting of the year.
10. Can call for an urgent meeting with any or all of the leaders of the different ethnic groups in regards to any sensitive issue that arise and that will affect the community’s life and well-being.
Note: Any matter that remains unresolved can then be referred to the Principal for his decision.
11. Shall recommend the President-elect before leaving office.
Vice President
1. He or she shall perform the duties of the President or other officers in the event
of their absence, with the approval of the Office Bearers.
2. Act as parliamentarian for the Association and Officers Bearers meetings.
Note: The word “parliamentarian” refers to the person who guides the proceedings of meetings in accordance with designated rules of procedure. The rules of procedure for the Association are designated in the section of the Conduct of General meeting.
3. Ensure that the MLTCSBA Constitution is current and correct.
4. Perform other duties at the discretion of the President, Offices Bearers or Association.
5. Term of office will begin with election and end at the following Commencement.
Secretary
1. He or she is to work in conjunction with the President and the Vice-President.
2. To attend to all the Association’s and Office Bearers correspondence.
3. To keep records of:
Minutes of all Association’s meetings including the Office Bearers meetings. All necessary MLTCSBA Association documents.
4. Publicly post and email minutes of all members of the Association to its members. Active and associate, prior to the convening of the next general meeting.
5. Serve as steward of the Community Notice Board.
6. Publicly announce all Association meetings in accordance with the General meeting
7. Term of office will begin with election and end with the election of a new Secretary
8. Upon election of the new Secretary, the outgoing Secretary will inform his or her successor duties. Also give minutes and records of present year to the incoming Secretary.
Treasurer
1. He or she shall keep the financial records and manage the financial affairs of the Association. This includes presenting a financial report at every meeting; executive and Student Body general meeting.
2. Utilize funds, as allocated upon approval of the Association and the
Office Bearers.
3. Records of all authorizations and utilization of funds, including receipts of all payments, should be kept in a permanent file and on paper.
Note: No allocation of funds may be made without the authorization of the association and office bearers to/for which payment is to be made.
4. Submit the financial records for an annual audit.
5. Term of office will begin at the Commencement following his or her election and will extend through the year to the next Commencement.
6. Inform the newly elected Treasurer, which includes the transfer of all financial records. This includes training the new Treasurer on the established financial system. This should be completed before the end of the academic year.
Spiritual Affairs Officer
1. To be the point of contact for members in regards new initiatives and urgent needs for revival of spiritual affairs.
2. The officer should report these needs and insights during any Office Bearers meeting.
Education Officer
1. To be the point of contact for members in regards to any complaints or recommendations about teaching and learning issues.
2. The officer should report these grievances during any Office Bearers meeting.
Cultural Affairs Officer
1. To liaise with the school protocol officer in any dealings concerning any school organised event.
Sports Officer
1. The Sports personnel works closely with the Office Bearers
2. The sports personnel must consult with the President before any games are arranged with outside organisations
3. All sports arrangements which involve the life of the College shall be handled by the sports personnel who shall that all the sports gear are in order.
4. Shall liaise with the OHS Committee and draw up health fitness program for the Association.
Welfare Officer
1. To be the point of contact for members to the office bearers of the MLTCSBA in regards to the welfare of each member.
2. Prior to reporting, the officer must have first-hand information about any complain raised by the members.
Media Officer
1. To be the liaison officer for the MLTCSBA in any media dealings of the association; all responsibilities must be taken carefully prior to any media release and approval must be granted from the Office Bearers meetings.
Inter Tertiary Officer
1. To be the school representative to the inter-tertiary body and be the point of contact in regards to any of its dealings.
A representative of Minority Group
As the representative of the minority group, the officer is required to raise any issue regarding their welfare into the office bearers meeting.
Women Representative
Women’s active participation in MLTCSBA is vital and the officer must be the point of contact between women’s members to the office bearers.
FUNDING
The MLTCSBA shall, as it deems necessary, undertake fundraisers for its own purposes. All fundraising shall be conducted in accordance with College policies.
– Subscription of each student: $1.00 per month.
– Bereavement gift if a student’s parent or sibling (father, mother, sister, brother) died: $100
AMMENDMENTS
Amendments to this constitution shall be adopted by a two-thirds vote of the members present at two consecutive meetings at which the amendment has been read.
JURISDICTION
The MLTCSBA is subject, as a recognized/registered student organization, to the rules, regulations, and policies of Methodist Lay Training College and the Constitution and Regulation of the Methodist Church in Fiji. The rules, regulations, and policies of the Methodist Lay Training College shall hold precedence over any and all rules, regulations, and policies applying to the MLTCSBA.
