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About Fisher House

St. John Fisher

CUCA

Constituition of the Fisher
Society

Fisher Society Committee and
Fisher House College Reps

Elizabeth Kolb Memorial Trust

Contacts

 

 
The Constitution of the Fisher Society
.

Name and aim
Membership
General Meeting
Appointments to the Committee
Membership & Meetings of the Committee
Officers, their Election or Appointment, and Duties

Name & Aim
1. The body herein referred to shall be called the Fisher Society.

2. The aim of the society shall be to promote the spiritual, cultural and social interests of its members.

Membership
3. The membership of the society shall consist of:
ii. All resident Catholic members of the University of Cambridge.
ii. All members of the University of Cambridge who show an interest in the work of Fisher House.

4. Associate members.
Associate membership shall be open to such other persons as the Committee see fit to accept.

5. i. In articles 6-22, unless the context shall require otherwise, "the Chairman" shall be deemed to mean "the Chairman or his delegate".
iii. In articles 6-27, unless the context shall require otherwise, "he" shall be deemed to mean "he or she" and "his" to mean "his or her".

General Meeting
6. The General Meeting of the Society shall be the ruling body of the society.

7. No resolution of a General Meeting shall have binding effect unless all of the following conditions are met:
i. The Meeting is open to all members;
ii. The Meeting is presided over by the Chairman;
iii. The Meeting has been duly convoked as a Meeting of the ruling body of the Society.
iv. Notice of the Meeting has been given at all Masses on the previous Sunday.

8. All resolutions of a General Meeting, including all amendments to the Constitution, shall be approved by a simple majority of those present.

9. The Committee shall call an Annual General Meeting to be held on a date in the Lent Term chosen at its discretion. At the Meeting, among other business, a new committee shall be appointed.

10. Further General Meetings, with the same powers as the Annual General Meeting (including the power to appoint a new Committee), may be called either
i. by the Committee; or
ii. by the Chairman or Chaplain upon receipt of a petition signed by at least twenty(20) members of the Society.

Appointments to the Committee
11. The Procedure for the appointment of the Committee shall be as follows:
i. Notice of nominations must be announced at all Masses and written in the Newsletter at least two weeks before the General Meeting.
ii. The Chairman shall announce a list of offices and this shall be agreed with or modified by the General Meeting.
iii. Nominations shall close when the Chairman has given notice that they are to do so.
iv. The Returning Officers for the election of the new Committee shall be the Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Secretary, and Treasurer. They shall be responsible for the production, distribution, collection, and counting of official ballot papers.
v. Fifteen(15) nominees shall be elected to form "the Committee", and are expected to attend all Committee meetings. Voting shall be carried out by each member of the Society present at the General Meeting marking a cross next to each of the names of fifteen(15) nominees on a ballot slip acceptable to the Returning Officers (see article 11(iv) above), subject to the requirement that, if nominated, at least three(3) first years, two(2) second years, one(1) third year, and two(2) postgraduates shall join the Committee.
vi. Voting members shall be made aware of nominees who intend to cease to be student members of the University of Cambridge during their term of office, before voting is carried out.
vii. Once the procedure is complete, the newly appointed Committee members shall take office and the previous Committee's term of office shall terminate - all offices, with the exception of the Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Secretary, and Treasurer, shall be deemed to have fallen vacant.

Membership & Meetings of the Committee
12. The Committee of the Society shall constitute the executive body of the Society having power to determine policy, subject to the rulings of a General Meeting of the Society. It shall normally consist of:
i. Ordinary members: a number of members of the Society, appointed at a General Meeting or subsequently co-opted by the Committee, provided that they have registered with the Secretary of the Society.
ii. Ex-Officio members: the Catholic Chaplain(s) of the University of Cambridge.
iii. Honorary members: past Chairmen of the Society who are resident in Cambridge, and past Vice-Chairmen, Secretaries and Treasurers of the Society until the end of the term following the election or appointment of their replacements.

13. i. Any Committee member who is absent from three(3) consecutive meetings at which they were expected to attend, without sending apologies acceptable to the Committee, shall be deemed to have resigned.
ii. If, due to resignations or other circumstances, the membership of the Committee falls below twelve(12), the Committee shall co-opt at least as many new members as necessary to bring the number of members to twelve(12).

14. i. Meetings of the Committee shall be open to any member of the Society to attend.
ii. An extraordinary closed Meeting of the Committee may be called at the discretion of the Chairman.

15. Meetings of the Committee shall not be quorate for the purpose of calling General Meetings, electing officers, co-opting new Committee members, conferring associate membership of the Society, or authorising major expenditure unless:
i. The Chairman is presiding;
ii. At least seventy-five percent (75%) of the Committee members are present.
iii. At least one(1) Chaplain is present.

16. Meetings of the Committee shall not be quorate for purposes other than those specified in article 15 unless:
i. The Chairman is presiding;
ii. At least four(4) other members of the Committee are present.

Officers, their Election or Appointment, and Duties
17. The officers of the Society shall be holders of the offices named in articles 18 & 19. They shall be expected to attend all Committee meetings, of which the Secretary shall ensure they are notified.

18. i. The Chairman, the Vice-Chairman, and the Secretary shall be elected by the first Committee meeting after the appointment of a new Committee. Upon the resignation of one of these officers, a replacement shall be elected at the Committee meeting following the resignation.
ii. The Chairman, the Vice-Chairman, and the Secretary shall be elected from among the members of the Committee by a simple majority at a quorate meeting as defined in article 15. These elections shall be the first item of business at the meeting.

19. The Treasurer and holders of such other offices as may be deemed necessary by the General Meeting shall be appointed by the Chairman and Chaplain(s) from among Committee members. This shall be done within two(2) weeks of the offices falling vacant if there are Committee member available to fill the offices.

20. An officer shall remain in office until a replacement is elected or appointed in accordance with articles 18 and 19, or the office falls vacant as the result of a General Meeting as defined in article 11(vi).

21. i. The officers of the Society shall hold the monies of the Society on trust for its members.
ii. They shall dispose of them in accordance with the purposes of the Society at the direction of the Committee.
iii. They shall have powers of investment, to be exercised in accordance with article 21(ii) and also with the consent of the Senior Treasurer.
iv. The officers may act in respect of the monies of the Society only in so far as is approved by a majority of the Chairman, Vice-Chairman, Secretary, and Treasurer.
n. No officer shall be held liable in any respect for any failure to comply with article 21(ii) if he is unable to do so by virtue of article 21(iv).

22.i. The officers shall have the power to delegate their functions to other Committee members subject to the restrictions specified in article 24..
ii. If a post is vacant the Committee may delegate the functions of that post to any Committee member (including the previous holder of that post).

23. The Chairman shall be responsible generally for the acts and omissions of the Committee. His powers and duties shall be as follows:
i. To preside over General Meetings of the Society, Committee Meetings, speaker meetings, and other official functions of the Society;
ii. To have a casting vote at General Meetings and Committee meetings;
iii. To rule definitively on points of procedure at General Meetings and Committee Meetings;
iv. To interpret this constitution, advised by the Committee but not bound by its advice. (This interpretation shall be binding until such time as it may be over-ruled by a subsequent General Meeting);
v. To represent the Society in its dealing with outside bodies. (Any agreements entered into with such bodies by him shall constitute executive agreements binding on the Society but capable of being terminated by the General Meeting except that:
a. In so far as it is practicable, he shall consult the Committee and its decision;
b. Any executive agreements involving the use of the Society's monies must be ratified by the Committee, and, if necessary, the Senior Treasurer.);
vi. To appoint, with the Chaplain(s), members of the Society to be college representatives of the Society and to update the list of the same on the Term Card.

24. i.The Chairman, in exercising his power of delegation, shall delegate his functions to the Vice-Chairman. Only if it is impracticable to contact him, or if he is unable to act, may the Chairman delegate to any other Committee member.
ii. The Vice Chairman is responsible for supporting the Chairman in all matters pertaining to the Society.
iii. The Vice-Chairman may maintain, under the supervision of the Treasurer, an additional Society bank account for the keeping of monies relating to the aforementioned lunches.
iv. The Vice-Chairman shall be responsible for regularly presenting the state of that account (see article 24(iii)) to the Committee.
v. During Full Term, the Vice-Chairman shall also be responsible for ensuring the provision of tea and coffee after Sunday Mass.

25. The Secretary shall be responsible for:
i. The production of the minutes of General and Committee meetings;
ii. The maintenance of an accurate record of Committee members which shall be displayed in Fisher House. This record and a copy of the Constitution shall be available at all meetings;
iii. Ensuring that all officers are supplied with a copy of the Constitution.

26. The Treasurer shall be responsible for the keeping of the Society's monies and the documents giving control of its assets.

27. The Senior Treasurer shall be the official Treasurer of the Cambridge University Catholic Association, and his consent shall be required for any major expenditure of the Society's monies.

28. The Committee shall appoint, from among its members, two Ecumenical and External Representatives, whose tasks shall be:
i. Attend meetings of central Christian bodies, including the Student Christian Council of the University, working to further unity in prayer and action among Christians of the University.
ii. To be responsible for relations with other Catholic and Christian student bodies outside Cambridge, particularly the Catholic Student Council.
iii. To keep the Committee informed of all ecumenical issues relevant to the Fisher Society.

29. The Committee shall appoint, from among its members, a Punt Secretary. He shall be responsible for the maintenance of the scrap book.

30. i. The Committee shall appoint a member of the Society (who need not be a member of the Committee) to collate and produce the weekly Newsletter during Full Term.
ii. Editorial control of the newsletter shall reset with the Committee.

31. College representatives (as appointed under article 23(vi)) shall be responsible for welcoming freshers, distributing term cards, and arranging college masses.

32. Agenda of the Annual General Meeting of the Fisher Society:

I
II
i. Chairman's Report
ii. Questions to the Chairman

III
i. Treasurer's Report
ii. Questions to the Treasurer

IV. Any Other Business

V.
i. Agreement or modification of list of groups connected with Fisher House.
ii. Reports from leaders of representatives of the same groups.

VI. Agreement or modification of the following list of officers of the society: Chairman; Vice-Chairman; Treasurer; Secretary; Punt Secretary; Ecumenical Representatives.

VII. Close of Nominations and a list of those nominated will be read out.
VIII. Fifteen(15) people will be elected to form the Fisher Society Committee.

IX
i. Official business will close.
ii. Socialising will continue.

This Consitution having been adopted at the Annual General Meeting of the Fisher Society on 7 February 1999.