Student Council Bylaws
Preamble
We strive to follow the advice from the following guides when writing our bylaws:
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This document was approved during the General Assembly on 29-02-2024
frivillig.dk: foreningens vedtægter / backup
frivillighed.dk: sådan skriver I foreningens vedtægter / backup
This document was approved during the General Assembly on 29-02-2024
Contents
§ 1 - Name and location
§ 2 - Purpose
§ 3 - Membership
§ 4 - Organisational structure
§ 5 - University Elections
§ 6 - Activity Fund
§ 7 - Board
§ 7.1 - Constituting the Board
§ 7.2 - Working in the Board
§ 7.3 - Compensation for Board members
§ 8 - General Assembly
§ 8.1 - General Assembly Agenda
§ 8.2 - General Assembly Election Rules
§ 8.3 - Extraordinary General Assembly
§ 9 - Bylaw Amendments
§ 9.1 - Bylaw Amendment Deadlines
§ 10 - Budget
§ 11 - Accounting
§ 12 - Auditing
§ 13 - Validity of Contracts
§ 14 - Dissolution
§ 1 - Name and location
The name of the organisation is the Student Council of ITU, abbreviated Student Council.
We are a non-profit organisation, situated at the IT University of Copenhagen.
§ 2 - Purpose
The Student Council’s purpose is to improve the condition of students enrolled at ITU, by promoting the students’ interests and representing them through a united voice.
§ 3 - Membership
The members of Student Council consist of every student currently enrolled at ITU. As well as the currently elected board members.
§ 4 - Organisational structure
The board administers the daily work of the Student Council in all organisational, financial and administrative matters and acts on a mandate from the General Assembly and the members of the Student Council.
Responsibilities under the board
Chairs Guild
Activity Fund
Our Student Representatives
§ 5 - University Elections
It is ITU's legal responsibility to facilitate elections, but since we consider it important that all students are both represented in and informed about the University Elections, we strive to make sure that every spot in the election has at least one candidate.
After the elections we strive to support the representatives in their work, in part by making them visible to the students they represent.
§ 6 - Activity Fund
A part of our budget is allocated to the Activity Fund, where students or student organisations can apply for funding for their events.
The criteria for funding is that the event has social or educational value and is open to every student at ITU.
The approval of applications is determined by the Chair of Analog and Scrollbar, as well as the President and Treasurer of Student Council. They should be in regular dialogue with the Chairs’ Guild to ensure a fair and balanced distribution of funds.
§ 7 - Board
§ 7.1 - Constituting the Board
After being elected at a General Assembly, the new board will hold a constituting board meeting to decide on at least the President and Treasurer position. Additional positions may be added at the discretion of the elected board.
Board member positions should be publicly announced no later than two weeks following the assembly.
Board member positions should be publicly announced no later than two weeks following the assembly.
After an election the previous board should meet with the newly elected board regularly, to hand over any work and experience that might be relevant.
§ 7.2 - Working in the Board
The board meets regularly throughout the semester to coordinate work, and it is the Presidents responsibility to maintain an operational board.
The Board can act within the budget that has been approved according to § 8.1 pt. 3
In case of disagreement within the board, matters can be settled by a vote, where all board members votes are equal.
The Board can act within the budget that has been approved according to § 8.1 pt. 3
In case of disagreement within the board, matters can be settled by a vote, where all board members votes are equal.
It is optional to keep minutes of board meetings, and the board is free to use other tools to make their current work public. The board must strive to keep all affairs and actions as transparent as possible.
§ 7.3 - Compensation for Board members
Compensation is provided for all board members, with an hourly pay of 180 kr per registered work hour.
The board can register at most 50 hours of work per week for the entire board combined. The work amount has to be coordinated regularly to ensure a fair distribution.
The President and Treasurer can register up to 20 hours per week each, and regular board members can register up to 10 hours per week each. The board can agree to suspend the individual registration limit.
§ 8 - General Assembly
An ordinary General Assembly must be held at most 14 months after the previous one and is the highest authority of the Student Council. The board must announce an assembly with at least two weeks notice using the organisation's commonly used means of communication.
The budget and financial report needs to be public 2 weeks before the assembly. Amendments to the budget and financial report must be received by the Board 1 week before the assembly.
The budget and financial report needs to be public 2 weeks before the assembly. Amendments to the budget and financial report must be received by the Board 1 week before the assembly.
All members at the assembly have the right of speech and their vote counts for one. External participants can be granted a right to speak by the assembly.
Voting is done by show of hands, except for elections, where written voting is applied. Simple majority is used, which is one vote more than half of the valid votes.
§ 8.1 - General Assembly Agenda
The agenda for an ordinary General Assembly must include
- Election of a moderator and minute taker
- Annual report from the President
- Presentation and approval of the current finances
- Debate and vote on proposed bylaw amendments
- Election of a board of minimum 4 people
- Election of 2 auditors
- Any other business
§ 8.2 - General Assembly Election Rules
All board positions are up for election at the General Assembly.
Up to 7 board members can be elected at the General Assembly. If there are more candidates than 7, a written anonymous election will be held. Each member has 7 votes, equivalent to the number of possible board members. A vote can either be a named candidate or blank. The 7 candidates with the most votes are elected members of the new board.
In order to be eligible to run, a student must be enrolled at ITU at the time of the assembly.
§ 8.3 - Extraordinary General Assembly
A group of at least 4 members can call for an Extraordinary General Assembly.
The group of members calling for the assembly needs to provide the President with the agenda at the same time as the call. Up to 7 days before the meeting, any member is welcome to submit additional items to the agenda.
The meeting must be held within four weeks after the request has been made, and must be announced with 2 weeks notice.
§ 9 - Bylaw Amendments
Bylaw amendments can only take place at either an ordinary or extraordinary General Assembly. They take effect immediately after they are passed.
As a default, amendments pass with simple majority.
As a default, amendments pass with simple majority.
However, amendments to our name and address (§1), purpose (§2), membership (§3), compensation (§7.3), dissolution (§14) and bylaw amendments itself (§9) can only be changed by a 2/3 majority.
§ 9.1 - Bylaw Amendment Deadlines
Amendments must be received by the board at least 7 days before being voted on, and should be published by the board at least 6 days before.
Amendments to the proposed amendments can also be submitted. These must be received at least 3 days before voting, and published at least 2 days before.
§ 10 - Budget
The vast majority of the Student Councils budget is from ITU donations. The board applies for funding every autumn, which is transferred the following January, if approved by ITU. The board should therefore strive to set a budget that allows for freedom for the next board to operate, while at the same time being reasonable and within the purpose of our organisation.
One month before the budget proposal is sent to ITU, the board must publish it, so members can propose changes.
The final budget must be made available for the public at the Student Council website after it has been approved by ITU. The previous three years of budgets should always be available.
§ 11 - Accounting
It is the treasurers responsibility to keep track of the organisations financial records.
The organisation’s fiscal year runs from 1st of January to 31st of December.
The organisation’s fiscal year runs from 1st of January to 31st of December.
The deadline for making the financial report public follows the legally mandated deadline for businesses. Currently this is six months after the end of the fiscal year, meaning 1st of June.
§ 12 - Auditing
The accounts are audited by the elected auditors, who must be provided with a full account of transactions two weeks before any financial presentation to the organisation.
Auditors must be members who are not part of the board.
§ 13 - Validity of Contracts
The organisation is legally bound by the signatures of the President and at least one board member. Any contract without these signatures is void.
The signatures of all the board members are required to make a loan for the union, and/or sell or pawn the organisation’s properties.
§ 14 - Dissolution
Dissolution of the Student Council can only take place with 2/3 majority at two consecutive General Assemblies, at least one month apart. One of the general assemblies must be ordinary.
In the event of dissolution the Student Council's assets should be used in accordance with the organisation’s purpose. It is the responsibility of the disintegrating General Assembly to make sure that it happens, in cooperation with ITU.