Constitution

Constitution of the University of Regina - Biology Undergraduate and Graduate Society 

Article 1 – Name

1.1   The official name of the club shall be “Biology Undergraduate and Graduate Society”, or “B.U.G.S.” if abbreviated.  No other name shall be used in the advertisement or representation of the club.

Article 2 – Purpose of the Club

2.1   The purpose of B.U.G.S. is to unite undergraduate and graduate students interested in Biology, represent the needs of Biology students, and inform Biology students about departmental issues.

Article 3 – Membership

3.1   Membership is open to current undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, and staff at the University of Regina. Membership is defined as students, faculty, or staff who have paid the annual membership fee set by the executive for the academic year and filled out a membership form. 

3.2   Only current students of the University of Regina in the Faculty of Science are eligible to hold a voting membership and may hold Executive Committee positions in the organization. A membership needs to be held for a minimum of 7 days by a current student before it becomes a voting membership. 

3.3   Non-voting members, including but not limited to faculty, staff, general public etc., shall be allowed to become members to support the organization but are not eligible to hold Executive Committee positions or vote at annual general meetings. 

Article 4 – Duties of the Executive Committee

4.1 President

a) Oversee the other members of the Executive Committee in their duties;

b) Create an agenda for and chair all meetings;

c) Maintain order in the B.U.G.S. student lounge and ensure it is a friendly and inviting environment. 

d) Maintain, in coordination with the Treasurer, supplies within the B.U.G.S. student lounge;

e) Have signing authority for the group.

f) Appoint a graduate and undergraduate student representative to the Biology Department and Faculty of Science boards.

 4.2 Vice-President

a) Create and update a membership list and email list for the school year;

b) Assume all powers of the President in his/her absence.

c) Provide the Executive Committee contact list to the Biology Department office, the Head of the Biology Department, and to the Faculty of Science;

d) Have signing authority for the group.

e) Maintain order in the B.U.G.S. student lounge and ensure it is a friendly and inviting environment. 

4.3 Treasurer

a) Responsible for all financial dealings of the group.

b) Keep a complete record of all financial transactions on the B.U.G.S. Google Drive.

c) Regularly report the financial standing of the group at meetings.

d) Create budget proposals and spending reports.

e) Have signing authority for the group.

4.4 Secretary

a) Responsible for recording the minutes of all meetings; 

b) Type up meeting minutes and upload them to the B.U.G.S. Google Drive.

b) Check the B.U.G.S. mailbox in the Biology office.

d) Chooses the ubugs@gmail.com account password for the year and regularly checks the email account.

4.5 Events Coordinators (2 positions)

a) Organize social events (such as socials, bowling, etc) and educational events (such as the IMAX/Science Centre, lab tours, museum, etc), including telephoning for information and prices, as well as making reservations and bookings;

b) Purchase any supplies needed for events (e.g. paper plates, cups, cutlery, napkins, etc.);

c) Organize a minimum of one social and one educational event for each of the fall and winter semesters;

d) Organize at least one fundraising event in the academic year.

e) Responsible for booking a table outside the Lab Café for membership drives, clothing sales, and event sign-ups;

4.6  Information Technologies/Communications Director (1 - 2 positions)

a) Responsible for promoting events, membership drives and clothing sales through bulletin boards, and emails, and social media.

b) Updates the B.U.G.S. information for the URSU handbook and website.

c) Responsible for informing members (both general and executive) about scheduled and impromptu meeting times. 

d) Regularly update the B.U.G.S. website and social media accounts with upcoming events, pictures, etc.

e) Post the AGM meeting minutes to the website. 

f) Maintain and update the B.U.G.S. social media accounts, including Instagram and Tiktok accounts. 

4.7 Student Representative (~3-4 with the 4th position occurring in the case of a tie)

a) Member at large. One graduate student and one undergraduate student with the highest votes in the Student Representative category will be elected to these positions. The third position will go to the nominee with the next highest number of votes, regardless of student status. If no eligible graduate or undergraduate students are available to fill their respective positions, all three positions will be awarded to the nominees with the highest overall votes. For example, if no graduate students are eligible, all three positions may be filled by undergraduates.b) Responsible for promotion of events and other items of interest to undergraduate and graduate students, in coordination with the Communications Director.

c) Responsible for documenting events, as necessary, via photographs.

d) Responsible for assisting in planning and execution of events in coordination with the event coordinators.

4.8 Student Club Liaison

1. Network with other student clubs and centres, manage collaborations for events/social media posts, contests, etc. 

2. Assist with event planning in collaboration with event coordinators. 

3. Attend URSU board meetings regularly and write independent minutes for these meetings that will be published on the B.U.G.S. website. The purpose of this is to increase B.U.G.S. knowledge of URSU operations to be better able to understand and advocate for members; additionally, the goal is to help URSU create and maintain transparent lines of communication with the student body at large.  

4.9 Faculty Representative

a) Appointed by the Executive Committee in the spring for the school year.

b) Attend Faculty of Science meetings and report back the proceedings of the meeting to the Executive Committee.

c) Lobby to the Department of Biology on behalf of B.U.G.S. for funding from the Biology Department.

d) Provide counsel to the B.U.G.S. Executive Committee members.

Article 5 – Finances

5.1 The Executive Committee will set a membership fee annually.

5.2 The finances of the organization must be handled exclusively by the organization and kept separate from any other group.

5.3   Any surplus resulting from the yearly operation of the group should be transferred to reserve for future use and no part of the surplus shall be payable to any member. 

5.4 In the event of the dissolution of the group, all surplus and assets will be transferred to the Department of Biology.

Article 6 – Meetings

6.1 Members of the Executive Committee shall meet every two (2) weeks at a date and time organized by the Executive Committee during the fall and winter semesters. Summer meetings will be at the discretion of the Executive Committee.  A minimum of two (2) meetings during the summer will be held to ensure continuity of the board.

6.2  Fifty percent (50%) plus two (2) members of all filled Executive Committee positions must be present to pass a vote.  The President shall remain impartial on all motions passed at Executive Committee meetings lest there be a tie between the present members of the executive

6.3  Executive Committee decisions shall not be autocratic.  If there is any opposition to an Executive Committee decision, the decision must be taken to a vote of the membership.

6.4 Annual General Meeting

6.4.1  An Annual General Meeting will be held in the winter semester.

6.4.2  Members must be informed of the AGM at least seven (7) days in advance.

6.4.3  Quorum for the AGM shall consist of at least ten (10) voting members.

Article 7 – Elections

7.1 The Executive Committee of the club must be elected from and by the membership by a majority vote.

1. Voting members can nominate themselves or be nominated by others for an executive position (if one is nominated by others, the nominee must accept the nomination via email within 2 days of the nomination period closing). Nominees will be added to election ballots. 

2. The nomination period must take place over 7 days and close 1 week before election voting. 

3. Members can nominate themselves for a maximum of three positions but can only hold one. If they win multiple positions, they must choose one to hold. 

4. In the event of a two-way tie, votes for each candidate for all positions will be totaled. The candidate with the highest overall vote count will be declared the winner of the tied position. If there is still a tie in the total votes, the candidates will share the role. For example, if two candidates tie for the most votes for secretary, they will both serve as co-secretaries.

5. In the event of a three-way tie that cannot be resolved by total-vote-counts, the membership will cast a new vote for that position with only the three tied nominees as options. 

7.2  Executive Committee elections will be held in March by a secret ballot.

1. To be eligible to receive a ballot, membership must be verified and at least 7 days old.

2. Students who sign up for B.U.G.S. memberships within 7 days of voting period are not eligible to vote in that years’ election and their membership will be rolled over into the next academic year.

7.3  The ballot may be paper or electronic at the discretion of the current Executive Committee board.

7.4  The Executive Committee shall appoint an external Chief Returning Officer (CRO) who is not a past board member to oversee all election proceedings.

7.5  Positions that are not contested shall be acclaimed.

7.6 Positions vacated between elections shall be filled from and by the membership through secret ballot by-elections without delay.

Article 8 – Amendments

8.1 Amendments to the Constitution shall be made at the Annual General Meeting (AGM).

8.2 Amendments to the Constitution must pass by a two-thirds (2/3) majority vote of the members present.

Article 9 – Impeachment

9.1 A motion to remove a member of the B.U.G.S. must be signed by at least five percent (5%) of the members of the club.

9.2 The motion shall be presented in writing at a regular meeting of the club where it shall be inscribed on the agenda of the next regular meeting of the club, whereupon the member will be given the right to defend his/her actions.

9.3 A two-thirds (2/3) majority vote of the Executive Committee members present shall be required to remove a member of the club and any responsibilities or privileges associated with such.

 Article 10 – Agency

10.1 The club is not an agent of the URSU and the club’s views and actions do not represent those of URSU.

Article 11- The Canary Protocol 

11.1 In an emergency event (such as the COVID-19 shutdown), the current executives will elect two representatives to maintain minimum maintenance of the society.

11.2 The elected representatives will update members on the current status of University and city shutdowns. 

11.3 The elected representatives will maintain the financial status of the bank accounts. 

11.4 When restarting normal activities, affected executives can return to their elected duties.

11.5 If seats are open, the executive can be reconstructed based on necessity, prioritizing President, Vice-President, and Treasurer positions.

11.6 In the case that no executives can sustain activity, the responsibility will be given to the Faculty Representative. 

The Biology Undergraduate and Graduate Society Constitution,

 as of March, 2025.