To: ACM Chief Operating Officer
From: The Proposed Student Chapter of the ACM (SIG)
Date: 
Re: Petition for recognition of our Chapter to be known as (name).

We request recognition as an official Student Chapter of the ACM (SIG), and 
approval of the bylaws, which are attached. Below are the names of at least 
three officers that are at this time members or are including a membership 
application herewith.

Member No. __________________		__ Member application attached
Name
Office

Member No. __________________		__ Member application attached
Name
Office

Member No. __________________		__ Member application attached
Name
Office

Member No. __________________		__ Member application attached
Name
Office

Sponsor Name
Member No. __________________		__ Member application attached
Office




Bylaws of the (school name) Student Chapter of the ACM

Article I	
Name
	1. This organization shall be called the (school name) Student Chapter 
	of the ACM Special Interest Group on (specific SIG). In these Bylaws it 
	is referred to as the Chapter; the Association for Computing Machinery is 
	referred to as the "ACM".


Article II	
Purpose
	1. The Chapter is organized and will be operated exclusively for educational 
	and scientific purposes to promote the following: [You may change the items 
	below or add to them as long as the general spirit is maintained. See the 
	Constitution, Article 2 -- http://www.acm.org/constitution -- for other 
	ideas you may include.]
	
		a) An increased knowledge of and greater interest in the science, 
		design, development, construction, languages, management and 
		applications of modern computing.

		b) Greater interest in computing and its applications.

		c) A means of communication between persons having an interest in 
		computing.

	2. The Chapter will serve students at (school name) and other interested 
	persons in the (city/province) community.

	3. The Chapter is chartered by the ACM.


Article III	
Membership
	The provisions of this section must conform to the membership provisions 
	specified in ACM's Bylaws (Bylaw 6, Section 5; ACM Constitution Article 3).

	1. Membership in the Student Chapter shall be open to all ACM members, (SIG) 
	members, and nonmembers. [If you do not want non-ACM members and/or SIG 
	members to vote, you can create an Affiliate membership category.]

	2. Voting membership in the Student Chapter shall be granted to chapter 
	members who are also ACM members and/or SIG members.*


Article IV
Officers
	1. The officers of this Chapter shall be: Chair, Vice Chair, Secretary, and 
	Treasurer. These officers constitute the Council. A minimum of three 
	officers to establish a Chapter; some Chapters combine the offices of 
	Secretary and Treasurer. Other offices may also be established.

	2. All officers of the Chapter must be members of ACM and (SIG).

	3. The officers shall be elected by a plurality of the votes cast at the 
	annual election meeting. They shall take office on (date) and serve for one 
	year.

	[It is highly recommended that the Chapter's election be held at the last 
	meeting in the fall with the new officers taking office in January. This 
	provides for a period of transition from the outgoing Council to the 
	incoming Council as well as providing continuity of management and planning 
	over the summer. If your school operates on a quarter or trimester system, 
	choose a timing that serves the same objectives.

	4. No member may serve in the office of Chair or Vice Chair for more than 
	two consecutive years.

	[Provisions for filling vacancies left by resignations should be included in 
	this article. Provisions for limiting the number of terms that a person can 
	serve in a position also may be included in this article.]


Article V	
Duties of Officers
	1. The Chair is the principal officer and is responsible for leading the 
	Chapter and managing its activities in accordance with the policies and 
	procedures of the ACM and these bylaws. The Chair shall preside at all 
	meetings of the chapter and of its Executive Council. The Executive Council 
	shall consist of the Chapter officers, the Student Chapter Sponsor, and 
	chairs of the Chapter's standing committees.

	2. The Vice Chair shall preside at meetings in the absence of the Chair, 
	assist the Chair in the management of the Chapter, and perform other duties 
	that may be assigned by the Chair.

	3. The Secretary shall keep the minutes of all Chapter and Executive Council 
	meetings. Other duties of the Secretary include:
		
		a) Maintaining the records of the Chapter.

		b) Preparation of the Chapter's activity report and officer contact 
		information, and submission of these to ACM Headquarters.

		c) Submission of any proposed amendment to these bylaws to the Chief 
		Operating Officer. Proposed amendments must be approved before they can 
		be submitted to the Chapter's membership for a vote.

		d) Perform other duties as assigned by the Chair.

	4. The Treasurer shall collect dues, pay all bills, and maintain the 
	Chapter's financial records. Duties of the Treasurer also shall include:
		
		a) Preparation of the Chapter's Annual Financial Report for presentation 
		to the Chapter at the Annual Election meeting.
		
		b) Completion and submission of the Annual Financial Report to ACM 
		Headquarters.

		c) Performance of other duties as assigned by the Chair.


Article VI
Chapter Sponsor
	The Sponsor shall be a faculty member or full-time staff member of your 
	school. Each Student Chapter has one Sponsor.

	1. The Student Chapter Sponsor shall be a voting member of ACM and (SIG), 
	and either a member of the faculty or full-time staff of (your school).
	
	2. The Student Chapter Sponsor shall be selected by the Executive Council 
	immediately following the Election Meeting. The school shall confirm the 
	selection.

	3. The Student Chapter Sponsor shall be generally responsible for the 
	activities of the Chapter. Specifically, the Sponsor:
	
		a) helps provide continuity from year to year as student leadership and 
		personnel change;

		b) promotes good student-faculty relationships;

		c) helps maintain university standards in all activities of the Chapter; 

		d) exercises financial supervision, if necessary, by:

			i. promoting prompt payment of bills and collection of dues, and

			ii. overseeing the settlement of all accounts in the event of 
			dissolution of the Chapter; and

		e) represents the Chapter interests to the faculty and administration.

		f) for high school chapters and underage students, the chapter sponsor 
		must be in attendance at every meeting that is held in the evening. In 
		the event that the appointed sponsor is not available, another faculty 
		member may chaperone the meeting. If both are not available, a local 
		area professional, previously investigated and approved by the school, 
		can be assigned to chaperone evening meetings.


Article VII	
Executive Council
	There is no requirement that there be an Executive Council, but if there is 
	one, the Chair would be the presiding officer.  If there is no specific 
	Executive Council, the set of officers is the Executive Council.
	
	1. The Executive Council shall consist of the Chapter officers, the Student 
	Chapter Sponsor, and chairs of the Chapter's standing committees.

	2. The Term of the members of the Executive Council shall be coincident with 
	the terms of the officers. They shall take office on (date) and serve for 
	one year.


Article VIII	
Standing Committees
	1. The standing committees of the Chapter shall be Program, Arrangements, 
	Education, Membership, Publicity, etc.
	
	[The number and functions of committees is determined by your Chapter 
	activities and goals. Think about what you want to do this year and in the 
	foreseeable future and establish standing committees that correspond to 
	those activities and the corresponding assignment of duties. Then define the 
	general duties of the committees.]

		a) The Program Committee shall plan and make arrangements for the 
		technical programs of the Chapter's meetings in accordance with the 
		membership's interests and the aims of the Chapter as set forth in 
		Article II.

		b) The Publicity Committee shall maintain a mailing list and publish and 
		distribute all notices and publicity for andto the members of the 
		Chapter.

		[Include the descriptions of the other standing committees here.]


Article IX	
Temporary Committees
	With the advice of the Chapter's Executive Council, the Chair may appoint 
	such temporary committees as appropriate.

	1. A Nominating Committee, consisting of at least three voting members of 
	the Chapter, at least two of whom shall not be members of the Executive 
	Council, shall be appointed by the Chapter Chair at least two months prior 
	to the Election Meeting.
	
	[Some Chapters assign this function to the Past Chair, if available, as the 
	person with no other required duties who knows what all the jobs require. 
	The Committee can also be responsible for identifying people who may serve 
	on the various committees.]

	2. An Audit Committee shall be appointed by the Chapter Chair at the close 
	of the fiscal year to assure the accuracy of the accounting of the Chapters 
	funds for the year. This Committee should also verify the accuracy of the 
	Financial Report prepared by the Treasurer for submission to ACM 
	headquarters.

	[Descriptions of other Temporary Committees should be included in this 
	Article.]


Article X	
Meetings
	1. Meetings shall be held as planned by the Program Committee. The Chapter 
	shall hold meetings only in places that are open and accessible to all 
	members of the Association. [You may have additional local government 
	requirements about openness to the public and accessibility for the 
	handicapped.]

	2. The Annual Election meeting should be held at the last meeting of the 
	semester. At this meeting, the Secretary and Treasurer each shall present 
	the required reports. Also, the election of officers shall be held. Written 
	notices of all meetings shall be distributed to all members at least one 
	week prior to any meeting.


Article XI	
Disbursements and Dues
	1. Disbursements from the Treasury for Chapter expenditures shall be made by 
	the Treasurer with authorization of the Executive Council and shall be 
	included in the minutes of its meetings.

	2. Dues shall be fixed annually by the Executive Council.


Article XII	
Amendment and Voting Procedures
	1. All proposed changes to these Chapter Bylaws shall be approved by the 
	Chief Operating Officer, the Chair of the relevant SIG and the ACM 
	Constitution and Bylaws Committee before being presented to the Chapter 
	membership for a vote.*

	2. No official business of the Chapter shall be conducted unless a quorum is 
	present. A quorum of the Chapter shall be defined as ______percent of the 
	voting membership of the Chapter or at least _______members, whichever is 
	greater.

	3. A simple majority of the voting members present shall be required to 
	carry a motion.

	4. Officers will be elected by a plurality of votes cast.


Article XIII
Dissolution of the Chapter

	1. Dissolution of this Chapter by consent of the members shall consist of 
	unanimous agreement of all its officers together with a majority vote at a 
	meeting which has been publicized in advance to all members of the Chapter 
	for the purpose of taking this vote.

	2. Should this Chapter be dissolved, its assets and liabilities shall be 
	transferred to ACM and shall be supervised by the ACM Director of Finance.*

	*Mandatory Statement