Douthart Scholarship Hall

CONSTITUTION OF DOUTHART HALL

2002-2003 

ARTICLE I: NAME 

The name of this organization shall be the Douthart Assembly.

 ARTICLE II: PURPOSE 

The purpose of the Douthart Assembly shall be to create a spirit of unity among the residents to promote and maintain high scholastic standards and to regulate all matters pertaining to the residential life not provided for in University regulations.

ARTICLE III: ORGANIZATION

Douthart Hall is a scholarship hall for women organized on the basis of cooperative living.  Residents are chosen by a committee consisting of the scholarship hall residents.  A Scholarship Hall Director appointed by the University of Kansas acts as a supervisor of the activities of the hall and as a counselor for its members while they are residents.

ARTICLE IV: MEMBERSHIP

All undergraduate women residing in Douthart Hall shall be members of the Douthart Assembly.

ARTICLE V: OFFICERS

Section A. Executive Officers

 1.     The executive officers shall be composed of the President, Vice-President, Treasurer, Secretary, two Social Chairpersons, an ASHC Representative, two H.A.W.K. Advisors/Programming Chairs.

2.     Officer responsibilities

a.     President    

b.     Proctor                 

c.     The President and Proctor, working in close cooperation, shall:

1.     Write letters to all incoming women during the summer.

2.      Work in close conjunction with the Executive Board and the SHD in matters concerning the hall and its members.

d.     The Proctor and SHD, working in close cooperation, shall:

1.     Oversee closing and opening of the hall at functions, with one closing and one opening.

2.     Alternate the above duties as they see fit.

3.     Be responsible for locking up all hall valuables for the summer such as library books, artwork, silverware, etc. 

e.     Vice President 

f.      Secretary 

g.     Treasurer 

h.     Social Chairs 

i.     ASHC Representative

j.     H.A.W.K. Advisors and Programming Chairs 

3.         As a body, the Executive Board shall function in the following capacities:

a.     Meet at the discretion of the President.

b.     Have the power to interpret the Douthart Hall Constitution and House Rules, except those made by the University.

Section B. Auxiliary Officers

1.     The Auxiliary Officers shall be the Historians (2), Academic Resource Chairperson (1), Food Board Chairpersons (2), Sports Chairperson (2), Community Service Chairpersons (2), Alumni Chairperson (1) and Environmental Chairperson (1).

2.     The Auxiliary Officers meet u at the discretion of the President.

3.     Auxiliary Officers shall be subject to the same grounds for removal of office as those stated in Article VI, Sec. A, 5.

4.     The job descriptions of the Auxiliary Officers are as follows:

a.    Historians 

b.    ARC

c.    Sports Chairs 

d.    Food Board

e.    Community Service 

f.     Environmental Chair 

g.    Alumnae Chair 

Section C.  Judicial Board

1.     Membership

a.     Two J-Board members.  One elected in the spring and a new woman elected in the fall.

b.     The Vice-President is the J-Board Chair.

c.     The J-Board Vice-Chair is a returning woman elected in the spring.  She serves on the board at all times.

d.     The J-Board member is a new woman elected in the fall.  She serves on the board at all times.

2.     Function

a.     To resolve problems and conflicts concerning hall members and general issues with the hall and its maintenance and standards.

b.     Standards defined as:

1.     Incomplete or missed shifts.

2.     Unexcused absences from hall meetings and/or executive board meetings.

3.     Theft of hall property.

4.     Failure to close the hall at night.

5.     Failure to escort guests.

6.     Failure to comply with Douthart House Rules.

3.     Procedure

a.     The Proctor, Vice-President or any resident may bring a complaint to the J-Board.  No anonymous submissions will be accepted.

b.     The Proctor shall give written notice of offense and J-Board hearing to the offender.

c.     The J-board will meet weekly at a time designated by the chairperson.

1.     If the offender wishes to be present at her hearing, but cannot be present at the specified meeting time, then she must notify the J-Board chair to designate an alternate time.

2.     If a J-Board member cannot be present or is the subject of the J-Board. a J-board alternate will serve in her place.  This  replacement member will be found by the chair.

d.     The J-Board Chair will preside over the meeting.  If it is the J-Board chair that is being tried, the Vice-Chair shall preside over the hearing.

e.     All subject matter of each meeting shall be kept confidential.

f.     The vote must be unanimous.  If a consensus cannot be reached the case will then be heard by the Executive Board.  If the Executive Board cannot reach a decision, then the accused is acquitted.

g.     All offenses for missed or incomplete shifts are sent directly to and are heard by the J-board

h.     If found guilty by the J-Board the resident must complete her penalty shift in the time allotted and must notify the Proctor of the completion of the shift.

1.     Failure to notify the Proctor of the completion of the shift will be treated the same as an incomplete shift.

2.     The length and severity of the penalty shift should be proportional to the severity of the offense as well as the amount of prior offenses.

4.     Meeting Format

a.     The J-Board will meet at the weekly allotted time.

b.     The charge is brought before the J-Board and the case is presented by those bringing the complaint.  Then those presenting the cases shall leave the room.

c.     The accused woman then presents her case and gives her plea to the J-Board and then exits the room.

d.     Witnesses and evidence may be used for either side’s case.

e.     The J-Board (with SHD present, but not as a voting member) then discusses the infraction and decides on guilt or innocence and whether a penalty shift is necessary, and the time period allowed for the penalty shift.

f.     The J-Board chair will inform those involved of the verdict and penalties (if necessary).

5.     Case Completion

a.     Records and details are to be recorded by the chairwoman on the Judicial Hearing sheets provided by housing.

                  1.     These must be signed by the Chair and the alleged offender.

                  2.     Copies are to be kept in the J-Board notebook, by the offender, and by student housing.

b.     The penalty shift will be completed within the given time and the proctor shall be notified when the shift is completed.

6.     General Rules

a.     Any resident from the Hall Assembly can report a complaint to the J-Board Chairperson or proctor.

b.     All complaints brought before the J-Board must be investigated by the Proctor, Vice-President or shift head to determine the validity of the charge.

c.     The J-Board reserves the right to refer any case to the Department of Student of Housing.

d.     The Hall Assembly shall ratify the J-Board guidelines for the following year.

7.     Penalties

a.     Missed phone duties, unexcused absences from Executive Board and/or hall meetings, failure to sign hall meeting minutes, and room check violations

1.     The first offense results in a written warning

2.     The second offense results in a J-Board hearing.

b.     Theft or destruction of hall or resident property

1.     Return, replace or reimburse the hall or resident for stolen property.

2.     The incident will be reviewed by the J-Board and Executive boards and will be reported to the SHD for possible Department of Student Housing sanctions.

c.     Failure to properly close the hall

1.     The first offense will result in a written warning.

2.     The second offense will result in a J-Board hearing.

3.     Multiple offenses will result in a reassignment of phone duty.

d.     Failure to escort guests

1.     A written warning will be given for the 1^st offense.

2.     The second and following infractions will result in a J-Board hearing and a referral of guest conduct to the SHD.

8.     Special Cases

            All offenses not covered by the J-Board guidelines will be dealt with by the SHD and the J-Board Chair. 

ARTICLE VI:            ELECTIONS AND APPOINTMENTS

     Section A. Executive Officers

1.     Nominations

a.      Women interested in the position of President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Social Chairpersons, ASHC Representative and H.A.W.K./ Programming chairs shall submit petitions containing their qualifications and recommendations to the incumbent President one week prior to the announced date of the election.  These petitions will be posted and read before the Hall Assembly and discussed before the votes are taken.  Petitioners for these offices are also qualified for the candidacy for other Executive offices which are voted on after the vote on the office is sought, if they do not win that office.  In the case of nomination, the nominee must be present or must have notified the President in advance that she would accept that office.

2.     Elections

a.      The annual election of the Executive officers will be held in conjunction with the first Hall Assembly of April.

b.     Elections will occur in the order of President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Social Chairpersons, ASHC Representative and H.A.W.K./ Programming Chairs.  If there are no candidates for a position, that position may be voted on last.

c.     The Elections Chair is the outgoing president.  The chair will refrain from voting unless needed for a tie breaker vote.  In the event that the chair is a returning resident running for a position, the incoming proctor will assume the position of chair for the election of that position only.

d.     All elections shall be by secret ballot.  Absentee ballots will be allowed only for the Presidential election.  The ballot will be given to the SHD and it will be counted once only. The SHD, incoming proctor and Elections Chair will count the ballots.

e.     A majority (50% plus 1) of the votes cast is necessary for election.  85% of the returning residents must be present.  If there is not a majority on the first ballot, a second vote must be taken on the two highest candidates.  Candidates for Social Chairpersons and H.A.W.K./ Programming Chairs are elected individually, not together on one petition.

f.     The margin of victory shall remain confidential.

g.     If an officer resigns or is impeached, an emergency election may be held to elect a replacement.

h.     Any non-winning petition holder can choose to “trickle down” to any position which is voted upon after the one she ran for.

3.     Qualifications

a.     The President and Proctor shall have resided in Douthart for at least two semesters, including the semester of the election.  The Proctor must meet all eligibility requirements set forth by the Office of Residential Life.

b.     All other officers shall have resided at Douthart for at least the semester of the election.

c.     A woman running for an Executive Board position should not be on academic probation for her grade point average.

4.     Term of Office

a.      The Executive Officers shall serve for one year, beginning one week after elections in the spring and continuing through to one week after elections the following spring.  However, shift exemption for Executive Officers will last for the duration of the academic year for which they were elected.  Outgoing officers must have the office information to the new officers by the first day they take over that office.

b.     The Proctor shall serve for the entire academic year Aug 1- May 31.

c.     The outgoing and the newly-elected officers shall attend an Executive board meeting shortly after the elections.

d.     Vacancies on the Executive Board shall be filled by Hall Assembly elections.

5.     Removal from office

a.     Grounds for removal from office shall be the failure to fulfill the duties of the office as put forth in this Constitution.

b.     Procedure:

1.     Anyone believing that grounds exist for the removal of an existing officer shall present proof at a meeting of the J-Board.

2.     J-Board shall write up the charges and present them to the residents at the next house meeting.

3.     Vote on the removal from office shall be by secret ballot at the following house meeting.  A two-thirds majority vote of all residents in favor of removal is required.  The margin of the vote shall remain confidential.

Section B.  Auxiliary Officers and Judicial Board

1.     Selection:

a.     Women interested in the positions on J-Board, or offices of, Historians (2), Academic Resource Chairperson (1), Alumnae Chairperson (1), Sports Chairperson (2), , Food Board Chairpersons (2), Community Service Chairpersons (2) and Environmental Chairperson (1) shall submit petitions containing their qualifications to the President one week prior to the announced selection date.

b.     Auxiliary board members should be voted upon by the Hall Assembly. Elections of Auxiliary board shall be held within two weeks after the Executive board elections.  All newly elected offices shall assume responsibility one week after elections.

c.     Any non-winning petition holder can choose to “trickle down” to any position which is voted on after the one she ran for.

d.     The Auxiliary Election Chair is the president-elect who shall not vote unless to break a tie vote.  The SHD, incoming proctor, and chair shall count the ballots.

e.     The order of election falls to the discretion of the Auxiliary Election Chair.

ARTICLE VII: MEETINGS

Section A.     Regular house meetings will be held as deemed necessary by the President, but will occur no less than once a month.  Special house meetings may be called by the President at any time.

Section B.     Attendance at house meetings and Executive Board meetings is mandatory, unless a resident is excused in person or in writing by the President or SHD 24 hours prior to the meeting.  A resident may be excused from a house meeting or executive board meeting due to school, work, or an emergency.  Other absences may be excused by the SHD or President as deemed necessary and appropriate.  On the first unexcused absence of the semester, a resident will be given a warning by the Secretary.  On the second house meeting warning of the semester, the resident will be brought before the J-Board by the Secretary.

Section C.     All excused and unexcused residents must read and initial the minutes within forty-eight hours of posting or they will receive a warning.  On the second warning of the semester, a resident will be brought before J-Board by the Secretary.

ARTICLE VIII: RATIFICATION AND AMENDMENTS

Section A.     This Constitution shall be ratified by a two thirds majority of the Hall Assembly following complete elections in the spring.

Section B.     Proposed amendments must be passed by a two-thirds majority vote of the Hall Assembly when deemed necessary.

Section C.     Proposed amendments to this constitution shall be posted by the Vice-President at least one week prior to the house meeting at which they will be voted upon.

Section D.     This Constitution will take effect as soon as it is ratified. 

ARTICLE IX: OBLIGATIONS OF RESIDENTS

Every resident of Douthart is responsible for observing the Douthart Hall Constitution, the House Rules, and the official policies and regulations for Scholarship Halls as listed in the present hall contract.  Failure to do so is subject to face J-Board.  

ARTICLE X: HOUSE RULES

Section A.     Proposals for changes or additions to the Rules must be approved by a two-thirds majority vote of the Hall Assembly. 

Section B.     The Assembly may not vote on changes proposed in one meeting until the following meeting.  The Vice-President shall post proposed changes at least one week prior to the next house meeting, at which they will be voted upon.

Section C.     House Rules

            1.     All doors are to remain locked from the time the hall officially closes to the time it officially opens.  The woman on phone duty before dinner and the woman on the last phone duty of the day shall follow posted closing rules, which include that fire escape doors are closed and that the front door is locked.

            2.     The door to the phone room shall remain open at all times due to emergency procedures which require use of the tag board.

            3.     While on phone duty, a woman is the official hostess of the Hall and must dress and act appropriately.

            4.     Do not tie up the phone in the phone room for long periods of time.  Personal calls received while on phone duty shall not exceed five minutes.  Personal phone calls shall not be made while on phone duty.

            5.     The Proctor or the Vice-President must be informed of missed shifts or phone duties within a 2 day period for any action to occur.

            6.     Open house policy will be determined each year, according to University regulations.  All guests will be escorted while in the hall.

            7.     Door locking policy: If it becomes known that a resident reveals the combination of the door lock to anyone who is not a resident of Douthart, a fee of fifty dollars plus the cost of replacing the lock will be assessed to that resident.  She will be responsible for making payment or arrangements for that payment within two weeks.  Failure to do so will result in whatever reasonable compensation is deemed appropriate by J-Board.

            8.     Since the living room is the area for receiving guests, women should act and dress in good taste, according to their discretion and with consideration for others who may also be in the living room.

            9.     Proper behavior in the public rooms is expected of all residents and their guests.  Considerations should be given to all persons using these rooms.

            10.     Women should show consideration for others at all times and be willing to cooperate in keeping the noise down for the benefit of others.  This consideration should extend to the living room, recreation room, phone room, and the porch and yard activities with reasonable limits.

            11.     Anyone wishing to have a private room party must have consent from the SHD.  J-Board is responsible for policy concerning offenders.  Please observe hall courtesy and keep noise to a minimum during quiet hours.

            12.     No smoking is allowed inside the hall, on the porch, or on the fire escape.

            13.     The buzzer may not be used before 8 AM or after 11 PM except in case of emergency.  In case of emergency calls during quiet hours, the one who answered the call must try to locate the person being called.  Messages shall be taken during house meetings, unless there is an emergency.

            14.     The piano may not be played between 11 PM and 8 AM.

            15.     During finals week, 24-hour quiet hours will begin at 11 PM the day before stop day.  They will extend until the last final is over.  The only exception is the daily hour of loud time to be determined by the residents.

            16.     It is Department of Student Housing policy that a resident must leave the hall 24 hours after one’s last final exam.  One must obtain permission from the SHD in order to remain longer than 24 hours after one’s last final. 

            17.     The Food Board Chairpersons and the Vice-President conduct room checks for dishes and damage to the room with at least a 24-hour advance warning.  This applies to specified and random room check.  In order for any room check to be conducted, at least one of the residents of that room must be present.  During random room checks if none of the residents of that room are present then a room check cannot be conducted.  However, if the time of the room check is clearly specified, at least on resident of that room must be present.  If no one is present then all four residents of that room will receive a warning if previous arrangements were not made with the Vice-President.

            18.     Personal belongings should not be left in common rooms for more than 24 hours or else they will be moved to the lost and found.

            19.      Nails, thumbtacks, tape, glue, or other materials liable to cause permanent damage may be used at the resident’s discretion.  Residents will be responsible for any damage.  Room checks will be made at the end of each year with the resident present to determine if repairs are to be made.

            20.     The cooks, servers and dishwashers may ask anyone to leave the kitchen during their shifts.  Do not interfere with the kitchen shifts.  Cooks have first priority for ovens and all other appliances and kitchen areas.

            21.     Anyone preparing their own meal independent of hall meals should wash and put away their own pots, pans and cooking utensils.  People eating after the last load of dishes must wash and put away their own pots, pans and dishes, except for glasses, cups, and silverware.

            22.     All disciplinary action will follow the J-Board Guidelines available upon request from the Vice-President.

            23.     Male guests may shower in the hall bathrooms only between the hours of 12a.m. and 6a.m.  Residents escorting male guests who wish to shower must notify residents on their floor and stand guard outside the door while their guest is in the bathroom.

            24.     Glass dinner cups may not be taken out of the basement.  Any resident caught upstairs with a glass cup will be fined $15.00.

ARTICLE XI: ROOM SELECTION

President shall have first choice of room and Proctor shall have second choice.  All other room selections shall be based on seniority by number of semesters lived in the hall.  Each room’s seniority will be determined by the person with highest seniority.  In case of matching seniorities, room selection shall be determined by random drawing. 

ARTICLE XII: PHONE DUTY

Section A.     It is the responsibility of the woman on phone duty to straighten up the phone room and entry way at the beginning of her shift.  She should serve as a greeter to visitors.  In that capacity she should be accessible while on phone duty. The door to the phone room shall remain open and the use of headphones is prohibited.  This includes all guidelines under Phone Duty guidelines in the Handbook.

Section B.     If a resident misses her phone duty or fails to pick up the phone room or entry way at the beginning of her shift, and does not leave herself accessible to visitors or misses her shift, she will receive a warning. On the second warning of the semester, she will be brought before the J-Board by the Vice-President.  Subsequent violations will result in a J-Board hearing.

Phone Duty, House Meeting & Quiet Hours Guidelines  

A.        Phone duty

1.     The person on phone duty shall:

a.     Act as a receptionist for the hall, answering phones and greeting guests and finding the resident whom they need.

b.     Act as security for the hall, making sure no non-residents are unescorted in the hall.

c.     Be available and approachable.

d.     Do not wear headphones.

e.     Do not make personal calls from the phone.  Limit personal phone calls received to 5 minutes.

f.     If responsible for the first phone duty, open the hall by unlocking the door and opening the drapes and blinds in the living room.

g.     If responsible for the last phone duty of the evening, close the hall by locking the front door, closing the blinds in the living room, and checking to see that the kitchen door and fire escape doors are locked.

h.     Lock the door for times during the day such as dinner when no one is on phone duty.

i.     Put mail in boxes if it arrives during her phone duty and buzz.

2.     One warning will be given for:

a.     Any missed phone duty

b.     Insufficient closing of the hall.

c.     Other disregard for the rules of phone duty.

3.     Two warnings and any subsequent warnings will result in action by the J-Board.

4.     If someone notices that there is no one on a scheduled phone duty, and it is within the first 15 minutes of a phone duty:

a.     Check to see if the person who is supposed to be on phone duty is tagged in.  If so, contact that person and remind her that she has phone duty.

b.     If the person is not tagged in, call her room and ask if any of her roommates will cover the phone duty.

c.     If you cannot find anyone to do the shift, lock the door and either find the Vice-President and tell her who missed their shift or if she is not in, leave her a signed note telling her who missed their shift and at what time.

d.     If a resident should miss her phone duty and another resident does the phone duty in her place, it is the responsibility of the two residents to work out a sufficient payback.  If there is a problem in doing this, the resident who missed her phone duty will receive a warning.

e.     If is past the first 15 minutes of the phone duty, proceed by the rules in part c.

B.     House Meeting

1.     Attendance at house meetings is mandatory except for those excused by the president or SHD for the following reasons:

a.     Work

b.     Class

c.     Emergency situations

d.     Other reasons deemed appropriate by the President or SHD.

2.     After one unexcused house meeting absence a warning will be given.

3.     On the second warning, as well as any subsequent warnings, the resident will go before the J-Board.

C.     House Meeting Minutes

1.     The minutes must be read by any resident absent from the meeting within 48 hours of posting or the resident will receive a warning.

2.     On the second warning, as well as any subsequent warnings, the resident will go before the J-Board.

D.     Room Checks

1.     If, during room checks, the Vice-President and Food Board Chair find any kitchen dishes or utensils belonging to the hall in a resident’s room, a warning will be given.

2.     The warning for a room check violation will be given to the resident who takes responsibility for the dish or utensil.

3.     If no resident in the room takes responsibility, all four residents will be given a warning.

4.     If no one is in the room at the time of the announced room check and no one informed the Vice-President or Food Board Chairs of their absence ahead of time, the four residents of the room will receive a warning.

E.     Quiet Hours

1.     Remember that it is up to all the residents to decide the overall noise level of this hall.  If a resident is being too loud, first politely ask the resident to quiet down and try to work it out yourselves.  Then, if there is still a problem, contact the Vice-President and she will handle the situation.

2.     One warning will be given for

a.     Repetitive and/or excessive noise during quiet hours which are 11 PM – 8 AM.

b.     Excessive noise includes loud stereos, loud voices, loud televisions, and buzzing.

3.     On the second warning, as well as any subsequent warnings, the resident will go before the J-Board.

Article XIII.  Recycling

Section A.     The Hall Assembly and the Scholarship Hall System as a whole emphasize the importance of recycling as a key part of Scholarship Hall life and as a community obligation.   Therefore, recycling will be an integral part of all hall functions.   It is the responsibility of residents completing a hall shift, organizing a hall event, or participating in a hall function to take part in properly recycling all materials that are accepted by the EHS Office of Resource Conservation & Recycling.  Recycling receptacles must be readily available for residents’ use throughout the year, as specified under the obligations of the Douthart Environmental Chair.

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Last modified: May 23, 2003