Preamble

We, the students of Manchester High School West, in order to encourage broader student government and to achieve better coordination between the faculty and students, do ordain and establish this constitution for the Manchester High School West Student Council.

Article I

The name of the body shall be known as the Manchester High School West Student Council.

Article II

Our Student Council is a service organization to the community, faculty, and above all, the students. We provide an opportunity for everyone to become involved with the activities of our school and community. We sponsor social, governmental, community and political awareness activities. Our goal is to foster spirit among the students and faculty of our school.

Article III:

Section I

The officers of the Student Council Executive Board shall be President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Public Relations, Historian, two representatives to the School Board, three representatives from the Sophomore class and three representatives from the Freshmen class.

Section II

The term of office shall be one year beginning on the last day of the school year in which the officer was elected.

Article IV

Section 1

It shall be the responsibility of the President to:
a) represent the Student Council at public affairs.
b) nominate the committee chairpersons as well as be necessary for the successful completion of any of the duties of Student Council.
c) preside over all meetings and prepare the agenda for all meetings.
d) publish a monthly newsletter about all Student Council activities

Section 2

It shall be the responsibility of the Vice-President to:
a) perform the duties of the President in his/her absence.
b) work with the President and other officers to achieve the goals of the Student Council.

Section 3


It shall be the responsibility of the Secretary to:
a) take the minutes of the meetings as designated by the President.
b) give a report at each meeting of the minutes from the previous day.
c) take attendance at each meeting.
d) work with the President and other officers at any time

Section 4


It shall be the responsibility of the Public Relations Officer to:
a) be responsible for all of Student Council's correspondence within the school.
b) work with the President and other officers at any time.

Section 5


It shall be the responsibility of the Historian to:
a) attend all events and record in either picture or video format.
b) update and maintain the Student Council web page.
c) work with the President and other officers at any time.

Section 6


It shall be the responsibility of the Treasurer to:
a) be aware of all the expenditures of the Student Council.
b) give an oral financial report at each meeting.
c) work with the President and other officers at any time.

Section 7


It shall be the responsibility of the School Board Representative to:
a) attend all city of Manchester School Board meetings.
b) report all happenings at said meetings.
c) work with the President and other officers at any time.

Section 8


It shall be the responsibility of the Freshmen and Sophomore Representatives to:
a) participate as full active members of the Executive Board.
b) work with the President and other officers at any time.

Article V

Section 1


The President, Secretary, Treasurer, and one School Board Representative shall be members of the Junior Class at the time of election. The Vice-President, Secretary, Public Relations Officer, and one School Board Representative shall be members of the Sophomore Class at the time of election. The Sophomore Class Representatives shall be members of the Freshmen class at the time of election. The Freshmen Class Representatives shall be elected in the first marking period of their freshmen year.

Section 2


The President of the Student Council elected during the Junior Year must have previous Student Council Executive Board experience.

Section 3


In order to maintain a seat on the Student Council Executive Board, an officer must:
a) honor the Manchester High School West Student Leader Contract and Code of Ethics
b) be reliable and responsible.
c) attend all meetings.
d) maintain a C+ average.

Section 4


Failure to uphold Section 3 responsibilities will result in the following consequences:
a) one verbal warning.
b) probation for remainder of school year (can be combined with verbal warning).
c) removal from office.

Section 5


Any member who does not maintain a C+ average will be placed on probation for one marking period. If the average does not reach 2.5 the following marking period, the officer will be removed from office. If an officer earns an F for any marking period, that officer will be dropped from Student Council for the remainder of the year.

Section 6


Any student running for a position on the Student Council Executive Board must already have a 2.5 grade point average.

Section 7


Any student running for a position on the Student Council Executive Board must have attended at least three Student Council events in the year he/she runs. Records will be kept by the committee chairs of each event.

Article VI

Section 1


The Student Council Executive Board shall organize the elections of its incoming members in May of the school year.

Section 2


The Executive Board shall be elected at a time in May designated by the current Student Council Executive Board.

Section 3


The incoming Sophomore, Junior, and Senior Executive Board members shall be elected by the direct vote of the current Freshmen, Sophomore, and Junior classes; the incoming Freshmen class officers shall be elected solely by direct vote of the new Freshmen class i in October of the next school year.

Section 4


Voting shall be done by secret ballot.

Section 5


The winners shall be determined by a simple plurality.

Section 6


Vacancies in Executive Board Offices before a term is over shall be filled at the Executive Board's discretion by using the following guidelines:


a) the runner-up for the position from the previous election shall be appointed to the Executive Board.


b) a new election should be held if no runner-up. If this vacancy is that of an officer, than an existing member assumes the responsibility and the new incoming member acts as a representative. The Vice-President shall assume the President's position. The Public Relations officer shall assume the Secretary position. The Secretary will assume the Treasurer position. The Senior School Board Representative will assume the Vice-President position. The Public Relations position and the Junior School Board Representative position will be filled by a Sophomore Class Representative chosen by secret ballot within the Executive Board.

Section 7


No Executive Board member shall serve as a class officer while serving on Student Council.

Section 8


In case of a tie or a vote difference of less than 20, a recount will be done by the senior members of the Student Council Executive Board and/or the advisor.

Article VII

Section 1


Homeroom Representatives shall be representatives from each homeroom in school.

Section 2


Homeroom Representatives shall be elected by popular vote from each homeroom's students.

Section 3


Homeroom Representatives shall be elected at a time designated by the Student Council Executive Board no later than October of the school year.

Section 4


At the time of the Homeroom Representatives' elections, alternates shall also be selected for each homeroom to fill in for the Representative when necessary.

Article VIII

Section 1


Homeroom Representatives shall attend all monthly meetings.

Section 2


Homeroom Representatives shall report back to their classrooms with the monthly newsletter from the President and other information.

Section 3


Homeroom Representatives shall work with the Executive Board on Student Council Activities and functions.

Section 4


In the event a Homeroom Representative misses a meeting, a verbal warning will be issued. In the event a Homeroom Representative misses a second meeting, that Representative will be removed from Student Council and the alternate will become the Homeroom Representative.

Article IX

Section 1


The Executive Board members must be present for their votes to count on business conducted at any meeting.

Section 2


A majority of two-thirds shall constitute a quorum to do business.

Section 3


Every measure or resolution shall receive a majority vote in order to be approved by the Student Council.

Section 4


There shall be a faculty member acting as advisor. The advisor shall be nominated by the Principal. The advisor shall never be excluded from a meeting.

Section 5


All major events voted upon at a meeting shall be presented to the Principal or such persons designated by the principal for approval.

Section 6


Meetings shall be conducted in an orderly manner.

Section 7


The advisor shall be nominated by the Principal, but current Student Council Executive Board members may serve as an advisory committee.

Article X

Section 1


Any member of the Student Body may propose amendments to this constitution. These proposed amendments shall be submitted in writing to the Executive Board for consideration.

Section 2


Ratification by two-thirds of the Executive Board shall be sufficient for the establishment of the amendment.

Section 3


All amendments shall state the time at which they go into effect.

Article XI

Section 1

The Constitution must be ratified by a two-thirds vote of the Executive Board.

Section 2

The Constitution shall go into effect at ratification.

Adopted April, 1984

Amendment One:
Adopted April 12, 1985

Amendment Two:
Adopted June 10, 1987

Amendment Three:
Adopted April 22, 1988

Amendment Four:
Adopted May 4, 2001

Amendment Five:
Adopted May 4, 2001

Amendment Six:
Adopted May 4, 2001

Amendment Seven:
Adopted May 4, 2001

Amendment Eight:
Adopted May 4, 2001

Amendment Nine:
Adopted May 4, 2001