ARTICLE I
NAME

The name of this organization shall be the _________ Chapter of Kappa Omicron Nu, hereinafter referred to as the Chapter and the National Society.

ARTICLE II
MISSION AND PURPOSES

Kappa Omicron Nu is a national honor society dedicated to recognizing and    encouraging excellence in scholarship, research, and leadership in family and consumer sciences. The mission is empowered leaders. To accomplish this mission, _______ Chapter shall

• promote scholarship and encourage intellectual development,

• promote research and foster the spirit of inquiry,

• confer distinction for high achievement,

• promote leadership development,

• stimulate student and faculty dialogue,

• enrich the intellectual environment of higher education institutions,

• encourage high standards of practice and ethical behavior, and

• promote attitudes of professional responsibility for the public good.

Note: Any additional professional objects/purposes (that relate to the national mission above) unique to the individual chapter may be inserted here.

ARTICLE III
MEMBERS

Section 1.  Active Members. Collegiate and professional members whose financial obligations to the Chapter and to the National Society are paid and current are active members, with all privileges of active membership, including the right to vote, hold office, serve on committees, and be elected a delegate to Conclave.

A.  Collegiate members shall be students enrolled in undergraduate or graduate programs at the time of initiation.

Note: Membership requirements must meet the minimum criteria as stated in the Constitution of the National Society. Any chapter, at its discretion, may establish higher criteria.

1.  Undergraduate students shall be enrolled in (name of institution), have declared a major in (name of Unit) or one of its specializations, have completed _____ semester hours or equivalent, and rank in the top 25% (or more restrictive) of their class. Transfer students shall have completed _____ semester hours at (name of institution).

2.  Graduate Students shall be enrolled in a graduate program in (name of unit), or one of its specializations, have completed ____ semester hours of graduate work or equivalent, and have a minimum grade point average of ____ on a 4.0 scale.

B.  Professional Members. Alumni of collegiate chapters shall be professional members. Others meeting the following criteria may be elected to professional membership: (a) earned one or more degrees in family and consumer sciences (or alternate unit title) with a ____ grade point average as undergraduates or ____ as graduate students and not have been previously initiated into Kappa Omicron Nu or its predecessor societies, or (b) have earned one or more degrees qualifying them to work in the field with a ____ grade point average as undergraduates or ____ as graduate students and have made a distinctive contribution to the profession.

Section 2.  Nominations for Membership.

A.  Nominations of collegiate members shall be made by the Chapter Advisory Council. Nominations of professional members shall be made by the Chapter with the approval of the Chapter Advisory Council.

B.  Chapters are eligible to nominate for National Honorary Membership persons outside the field, excluding those who are employed in the field, who have made distinctive scholarly and research contributions to the field.

Section 3.  Election shall be by ballot vote. A two-thirds vote shall elect.

Section 4.  The membership process shall include an informational meeting, orientation session, and initiation activities.

Section 5.  Membership in _____ Chapter is open to qualified candidates including persons with disability, without regard to age, color, gender, national origin, race, religion, and/or sexual orientation.

Section 6.  Upon initiation, a member shall pay an initiation fee and national dues as established by the National Society, and local dues as established by the Chapter.  Undergraduate collegiate members shall not be required to pay further national dues until after the baccalaureate degree is granted.

ARTICLE IV

OFFICERS

Section 1.  The officers of this chapter shall be the President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Editor.

Note: There must be at least three elected officers representing the above functions. A chapter may also have other officers if desired, such as president-elect, additional vice presidents, recording and corresponding secretaries, historian, etc.

Section 2.  At the regular chapter meeting preceding the meeting at which the  election of officers is to be held, a nominating committee of ____ active members shall be elected. The chair shall be a  member of the Executive Committee (Article VII, Section 1), and at least one member shall be a  faculty member of (name of institution). It shall be the duty of the  committee to nominate candidates for the offices to be filled at the regular meeting in (month). Before the election, additional nominations from the floor shall be permitted.

Section 3.  The officers shall be elected by ballot to serve for one year or until their successors are elected, and the term of office shall begin _____.

Note: Term of office may vary, however, it is recommended that no member serve more that two years in the same office.

Section 4.  No member shall hold more than one office at a time, and no member shall be eligible to serve more than two terms in the same office.

Section 5.  Should the office of President become vacant, it shall be filled by the Vice President. A vacancy in any other office shall be filled by the Executive Committee with the approval of the Chapter Advisory Council.

ARTICLE V

DUTIES OF OFFICERS

Section 1.  The officers shall perform the duties prescribed by these Bylaws, the Constitution of the National Society, and by the parliamentary authority adopted by the Chapter, and shall fulfill such other duties and requirements as may be determined by the National Society.

Section 2.  The President shall have general supervision and direction of the officers of the Chapter, shall preside at all meetings of the Chapter and the Executive Committee, shall appoint (with the approval of the Executive Committee and the Chapter Advisory Council) all chairs and members of standing and special committees unless otherwise stated elsewhere in these Bylaws, and shall be ex-officio member of all committees except the nominating committee.

Section 3.  The Vice President shall have the powers of and perform the duties of the President during any absence or disability of the President, shall be chair of the program committee, and shall have such other duties as may be determined by the Executive Committee or the President.

Section 4.  The Secretary shall record the proceedings of all meetings, maintain all membership records, attend promptly to all chapter correspondence, maintain adequate inventory of supplies from the National Society, and have such other duties as may be determined by the Executive Committee or the President.

Section 5.  The Treasurer shall be responsible for all monies of the Chapter and shall serve as chair of the finance committee. Accurate records of all transactions shall be kept. The National Chapter Financial Report shall be filed by June 1. The Executive Committee shall be responsible for causing the Treasurer's accounts to be audited annually.

Section 6.  The Editor shall be responsible for assembling and submitting articles for publication as requested by the National Society, and shall serve as chair of the publicity committee.

ARTICLE VI

MEETINGS

Section 1.  Regular Meetings. The Executive Committee and Chapter Advisory Council shall determine the number of regular meetings to be held during the year, and shall distribute a schedule of these meetings to each active member.

Section 2.  Special meetings can be called by the President or the Executive Committee and shall be called upon the written request of _____ active members of the chapter. The purpose of the meeting shall be stated in the call, and business shall be limited to that which is stated in the call.  Except in cases of emergency, at least three days' notice shall be given.

Section 3.  Quorum. Those active members present shall constitute a quorum.

ARTICLE VII

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Section 1.  The Executive Committee shall consist of the officers of the chapter.

Section 2.  The Executive Committee shall have general supervision of the chapter between its business meetings, fix the hour and place of meetings, make recommendations to the chapter, cause all reports required by the National Society to be submitted in a timely manner, and shall perform such other duties as are specified in these Bylaws and the Constitution and rulings of the National Society.

Section 3.  Meetings of the Executive Committee shall be called by the President or by any ____ members of the committee.

ARTICLE VIII

CHAPTER ADVISORY COUNCIL

Section 1.  The Chapter Advisory Council shall consist of three or more professional members, at least one of whom shall be a member of the faculty of (name of unit).

Section 2.  The Chapter Advisory Council shall assist the Chapter in fulfilling its Mission and Purposes and shall perform such other duties as are specified in these Bylaws and the Constitution and rulings of the National Society.

ARTICLE IX

COMMITTEES

Chapter committees shall consist of the chair and at least two additional active members. Standing committees shall be established by the Chapter. Special committees may be established by the President, the Executive Committee, or the Chapter. The Standing Committees of _____ Chapter shall be:

Section 1.  The Publicity (Public Relations) Committee shall promote Kappa Omicron Nu within the (name of institution) community, especially within the (name of unit). The Editor shall serve as chair.

Section 2.  The Honors Event Committee shall cooperate with the  (name of unit) to arrange events to recognize honor students. The Vice President shall serve as chair.

Section 3.  The Initiation Committee shall make arrangements for initiation ceremonies. A member of the Executive Committee shall serve as chair.

Section 4.  The Program Committee shall select programs and make arrangements for meetings. The Vice President shall serve as chair.

Section 5.  The Finance Committee shall prepare the budget and make an annual analysis of chapter fiscal management. The Treasurer shall serve as chair.

Section 6.  The Bylaws Committee shall submit amendments to the Bylaws to provide for changing chapter needs and to provide consistency with the National Society Constitution and (name of institution) policies for student organizations. The President shall serve as chair.

Note: These committees may not be needed by all chapters. Some chapters may have other committees. The Standing Committees of the Chapter should be included in this article.

ARTICLE X

PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY

The rules contained in the current edition of Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised shall govern the Chapter in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with these Bylaws, the Constitution of the National Society, and any special rules of order the Chapter may adopt.

ARTICLE XI

AMENDMENT OF BYLAWS

These Bylaws may be amended at any meeting of the Chapter by a two-thirds vote, provided the amendment has been submitted in writing at the previous regular meeting or has been submitted in writing to all active members of the Chapter at least two weeks prior to the meeting at which it is to be considered. No amendment shall become effective until approved by the National Society.

These Bylaws shall not be in conflict with the Constitution of the National Society. Any amendment of the National Society Constitution affecting these Bylaws shall cause this document to be amended automatically to concur with such amendment. 

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