Constitution
This is the constitution of OUMAN
A Martial Arts club is said to be Affiliated to OUMAN if
- Its committee are in agreement with the aims of OUMAN.
- It has paid a fee to affiliate to OUMAN.
- It provides an OUMAN representative from its own membership.
General Regulations
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The name of the club shall be the Oxford University Martial
Arts Network (hereafter referred to as `OUMAN').
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The club shall at all times be administered in accordance with the
regulations for Oxford University clubs currently in force.
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Wherever the masculine forms of words are used they should be
interpreted as encompassing the feminine forms equally.
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The aims of the club are:
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To promote the Martial Arts within Oxford University.
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To encourage collaboration and joint activities between disparate
Martial Arts clubs within Oxford University.
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To aid in the organisation of seminars, lectures and other Martial
Arts related events.
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To publicise the existence of the club and its aims.
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This constitution may only be varied by a unanimous vote
in an open ballot at a general meeting.
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A copy of the constitution shall be made available for inspection
by any member on 7 days notice. Copies may be purchased from the
committee at a price fixed by them.
OUMAN does not assert any copyright status regarding the text of
their constitution, and it may be freely copied by any person.
Constitution last revised: 20th November, 1997.
The Committee
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The
committee
shall consist of the Senior Member, the Officers and Club Representatives
from each of the affiliated clubs. The
Officers are the President, the Secretary and the Treasurer, and must be
members of OUMAN. The Senior Member need not be a member of OUMAN.
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The Club Representatives are nominated by each of the Affiliated Clubs
from within their own membership. An Affiliated Club may nominate either
1 or 2 Club Representatives and change the nominations at their own
discretion.
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The Officers shall be elected by a secret-ballot of the Club
Representatives at the A.G.M. (annual general meeting).
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All nominees for the election of club Officers must be
Club Representatives. The Senior Member may not stand for club Offices.
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The term of Office for the committee is one calendar year. Previous
Officers are eligible for re-election.
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Any Officer may be removed by a vote of no-confidence at
a general meeting.
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If a vacancy occurs on the committee, a replacement Officer shall be
elected at the next termly general meeting. In the interim period a
stand-in may be nominated by the Senior Member or, in absence of the
Senior Member, by the President.
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As far as is possible the Officers should be Representatives from
different Affiliated Clubs.
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The Officers may not derive financial benefit from their
position on the committee. No wages are payable.
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The committee shall meet at least once per term.
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In the event of a dispute arising amongst the committee, the Senior
Member shall have the casting vote.
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In the event of a dispute arising between the Senior Member and the
otherwise unanimous committee, the matter may be referred to a general
meeting or the Proctors
at the request of either party. The decision of the Proctors will be
regarded as final. Whichever party receives an unfavorable decision
from the Proctors must tender their resignation, though this need not
be accepted by the other party.
Meetings
- Only members of the committee are entitled to vote at OUMAN
committee meetings. Each affiliated club has 1 vote irrespective of
the number of Representatives it has on the committee.
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The quorum at a meeting is at least half the maximum number of votes
possible under the previous clause.
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Any group of 4 members may call a general meeting by giving a
written signed request and an agenda to the Secretary. A general meeting
may only be held during the University term. A requested general meeting
should be organised by the Secretary between 7 and 14 days from the
receipt of a valid request.
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The Annual General Meeting shall be held each year in Trinity term.
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The time and venue of a general meeting will be fixed by the committee.
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All open ballots will be counted by the President.
All secret-ballots will be counted by the committee in full
view of the attending members. A 2/3 majority is required to
pass any motion except where otherwise stated in the constitution.
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In the event of a tied vote during a meeting the President will
exercise the casting vote.
In the absence of the President the Secretary assume his role.
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A general meeting may be held in conjunction with some other
club event, unless any member objects to this. Valid reasons for
objecting include the financial expenditure which may accompany
such a dual purpose meeting.
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Items for the agenda of any general meeting must be submitted to the
Secretary and one other member of the committee at least 5 days in
advance of the meeting. The agenda shall be publicised within the
club by the Secretary at least 3 days in advance of the meeting.
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Except where otherwise stated within the constitution, all ballots
shall be visible and decided by simple majority, and the President
shall have the casting vote in the event of a tie. The President may
not abstain in the event of a tied vote.
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The committee shall attempt to organise a dinner for members
of the club and their guests towards the end of each term. The
committee may exclude particular guests if they believe that the
guests behaviour or presence is likely to disrupt the event.
Membership
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Any member of an OU Martial Arts club which is affiliated to
OUMAN is automatically a member of OUMAN.
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To affiliate to OUMAN, a martial arts club must have been recognised
by the Oxford University Proctors for at least 2 full calendar years,
and pay a club affiliation fee to OUMAN each year.
The time constraint for joining may be waived with
the unanimous agreement of the Club Representatives presently in OUMAN.
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Any person may apply for membership of the club, including people who
are not affiliated to Oxford University. Applicants may not be rejected
on grounds of age, sex, race, social-status, occupation, politics or
religion. Non-University members who do not abide by the general University
Regulations applying to University members will be expelled from the club.
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The annual club affiliationn fee will be decided by the committee, but will
be kept at a nominal level (e.g. 1 pound at 1997 prices).
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The individual membership fee will be decided by the committee.
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Membership of the club may be refused or revoked to persons
if the Senior Member or, at a general meeting, the Officers
consider that their behaviour is
detrimental to the well-being and good-name of the club. If the
committee decision is not unanimous then the member may appeal to
the University Proctors, and their decision will be final.
Possible reasons for refusal or revocation of membership include:
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Failure to pay subscription fees.
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Any actions likely to bring the good name of the club into disrepute.
Finances
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The Treasurer is responsible for regulating the finances of the club.
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The club accounts for the current year may be inspected by any member of
the club, subject to 5 days notice to the Treasurer during term-time.
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All income should be placed in a central bank
account with the Treasurer as signatory. If the committee so desires, a
second Officer of the club may act as co-signatory for this account.
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Club finances may be used for the following expenditures:
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Organisation of liason meetings.
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Expenses for guest instructors/lecturers.
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Direct publicity through advertising and freshers' fair.
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The Treasurer is responsible for applying for grants to any
bodies the committee deems appropriate.