Proposed Constitution of the Ontario PC Student Association

June 2012

Article I. Name
A. The Organization shall be named The Ontario PC Student Association (hereinafter referred to as The

Association)

Article II. Objects

A. To study, discuss, and promote the policies of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PCPO). B. To promote among the youth of Ontario an awareness of the goals and objectives of conservatives, and of the

partys activities, initiatives, and policies. C. To formulate opinion on policy issues and to advocate adoption of such opinion. D. To promote the organization and operation of Youth Clubs in the ridings and Campus Clubs on our campuses, to secure adequate youth representation on riding executives, and to promote youth involvement in Policy Advisory Councils and other party bodies E. To promote the ideas and ideals of conservatism on our campuses, in our communities, and throughout our province. F. To assist in the election of conservatives to public office, be it federal, provincial, municipal, regional, or campus. G. To train young conservatives to become political activists on behalf of the conservative cause.

Article III. Membership

A. The membership shall be open to all members of the PCPO who:

1. Are students of a post-secondary educational institution in the province; or 2. Have reached the age of fourteen (14) and have not yet reached the age of nineteen (19) and are involved in their local youth riding associations. B. Membership shall be comprised of individuals who support the goals and objectives of the Association and pay the requisite membership dues if applicable. C. The Executive may grant a membership to a person who is a student at a post-secondary educational institution outside of Ontario and who had previously been a recognized member under the conditions of section 2 of Article III for at least one (1) year.

Article IV. Officers

A. The Executive of the Association shall consist of the following officers: 1. The President; 2. The Vice-President Campuses; 3. The Vice-President Ridings; 4. The Treasurer; 5. The Communications Director; 6. The Recruitment & Membership Director; 7. The Training Director 8. The Policy Director 9. The Campus Activism & Election Readiness Director; 10. The High Schools Director 11. The Past President; 12. The first appointed director shall be nominated by the president and ratified by the executive; 13. The second appointed director shall be nominated by the president and ratified by the executive;

Article V. DUTIES OF OFFICERS

A. The President: 1. Shall be required to be of legal voting age; 2. Shall preside over all Annual, General and Executive Meetings, as well as Presidents Council and committee

meetings; 3. Shall be responsible for developing an agenda for the Association, decide all questions of order, and announce results of all voting; 4. Shall see to the effective and efficient performance of the Executive and all of its members; 5. Shall be the official spokesperson of the Executive, the Presidents councils, and the Association; 6. Shall see to it that the Constitution of the Association is duly observed at all meetings of the Executive, the Council, the Association and all committees thereof; 7. Shall act as the chair of meetings of the Executive, and shall vote in the case of a tie; 8. Shall be an ex-officio non-voting member of all committees but may designate any member of the Association to act as his/her substitute on any committee; 9. May, with the approval of the majority of the Executive, appoint up to two (2) non-voting members of the Executive; these directors may be given portfolios to fill gaps in specific skill

sets required by the executive, or to lead or assist with projects or events the executive needs help with

10. Shall, in conjunction with the Treasurer, prepare an annual budget in accordance with the Executives annual

plan;

11. Shall be responsible for ensuring that all motions pertaining to spending are brought before the Executive in

the presence of the Vice-Presidents and Treasurer, before such measures can be approved.
B. The Vice-President Campuses: 1. Shall be a member in good standing of a recognized campus club at the time of their election; 2. Shall ensure that all campus clubs throughout the province are organized and maintained; 3. Shall keep the campus club Presidents informed of the actions of the Executive; Shall be responsible for helping

to create new campus clubs across the province; Shall voice the concerns of campus club Presidents to the Executive; 4. Shall chair the Campus Clubs Presidents Council; 5. Shall co-chair the Organization & Election Readiness Committee; 6. Shall, in the absence of the President, fulfill the duties of that office.
C. The Vice-President Ridings: 1. Shall be responsible for the organization and development of youth clubs; 2. Shall be responsible for the provision to riding and district youth associations of services and materials to assist

them in their activities; 3. Shall maintain an up-to-date list of recognized riding youth associations and of the presidents thereof, a copy of which shall be provided to the Communications Director; 4. Shall be responsible for the co-ordination and general encouragement of activities in riding and district youth associations; 5. Shall liaise with all the riding associations, both federal & provincial; including the contacting of all provincial Riding Association Presidents at least once each term to facilitate communication and assist in the recruitment and engagement of youth at the riding level; 6. Shall attend Senior Party Presidents Council meetings wherever possible; 7. Shall work with the High Schools Director to develop and implement a high schools outreach strategy; 8. Shall Chair the youth associations Presidents Council; 9. Shall Co-Chair the Organization Committee; 10. Shall, in the absence of the President, and the Vice-President Campuses, fulfill the duties of that office.

D. The Treasurer: 1. Shall, in conjunction with the President, prepare an annual budget in accordance with the Executives annual

plan; 2. Shall manage the funds of the Association; 3. Shall be responsible for keeping Executive expenditures within budgeted limits; 4. Shall lead Association efforts to raise funds; 5. Shall build and maintain a proper executive alumni list for fundraising purposes.
E. The Communications Director: 1. Shall maintain minutes of all meetings and send them out to the Executive in a timely manner; 2. Shall advise all persons concerned of all meetings and shall conduct correspondence and perform such duties as

the Association, the Executive, The Joint Presidents Council, and Committees shall require; 3. Shall supervise the publication of Association materials and generally work to improve communications amongst the members of the Association through various media outlets.
F. The Recruitment & Membership Director: 1. Shall assist in organizing new associations and in maintaining established member associations; 2. Shall be responsible for developing and maintaining full, complete, and accurate membership lists. This database

shall consist of members of all recognized riding associations, district associations, campus clubs, and any other youth member of the provincial party who wishes to join the Association; 3. Shall be responsible for ensuring that member associations are equipped with any recruitment materials that the Association can provide.
G. The Training Director: 1. Shall chair all training meetings; 2. Shall facilitate all training conferences and online sessions for its members; 3. Shall assist the Chair of the senior partys training committee. H. The Policy Director: 1. Shall work with the Senior Party 3rd VP (Policy) in its endeavor to stimulate policy discussion at the campus and

high school level and at the Association level; 2. Shall assist in the creation of a Youth or Student PACs (Policy Advisory Committee) as opportunities arise; 3. Shall encourage the discussion of policy issues relating to provincial, federal, and international areas of concern.

I. The Campus Activism & Election Readiness Director: 1. Shall be responsible for recruiting and facilitating the candidacies of as many conservative students as possible

in student government elections and encourage right wing influence on campus politics; 2. Shall work with the Vice President Ridings and Vice President Campus Clubs in recruiting and organizing youth volunteers for provincial and federal election campaigns.
J. The High Schools Director: 1. Shall be a student at a secondary school in Ontario; 2. Shall develop and implement programmes to encourage the involvement of secondary school students in the

Association; 3. Shall work with the Vice-President Ridings to develop and implement a high schools outreach strategy; 4. Shall liaise with high school students across the province who are interested in getting involved and consider matters of special interest to secondary school students; 5. Shall organize and chair the Standing Committee on High School Recruitment Committee to assist in the development and implementation of high schools outreach.
K. The Past President: 1. Shall assist the president and the executive in the transition period; 2. Shall assist the Executive as needed through their term

Article VI. Filling of Vacancies

A. In the event of a vacancy among the elected positions on the Executive: 1. The Communications Director will provide notice to the membership of a vacancy on the executive i. This notice will include instructions on how to submit an application to the executive for the vacant position

2. Applications shall be sent in writing to both the Communications Director and the President. i. This notice shall be sent to the president of each recognized youth association, campus club, and senior riding association 3. At an Executive meeting that is no less than three (3) weeks after the notice, the Executive will, by a simple majority resolution, fill the position from the nominees.

Article VII. Meetings of the Executive

A. The Executive shall meet at the call of the President. In the event of the neglect or refusal of the President to call

a meeting of the Executive, at the request of five (5) or more Executive members, the President shall be required to call such a meeting within three (3) days. B. Quorum shall be fifty percent of the Executive including the president or a vice president. C. Written notice of the meeting of the Executive shall be given to members not less than three (3) days before the meeting, or in the case of an emergency, by telephone not less than twenty-four (24) hours before the meeting is to be held. D. Any member of the Executive described under Article IV, Section A, subsections (a) to (n), who is absent without legitimate reason for three (3) consecutive properly constituted meetings of the Executive shall be notified that they have ceased to be a member. E. No member of the Executive shall be permitted to vote by proxy. F. Executive members may be permitted to vote through an email to the entire Executive. G. At the first meeting of the Executive, the Executive will set a limit under which expenses need not be approved in advance.

Article VIII. Annual Meetings

A. The Annual Meeting of the Association shall be held yearly in May, on a date set by the Executive, or at another

time of the year where the calling of a leadership or general election warrants this change. However, at no point shall more than fourteen (14) months elapse between successive Annual Meetings. The date and location for the Annual Meeting must be established by the Executive no less than sixty (60) days prior to the Annual Meeting. B. Notice of an Annual Meeting shall be mailed to presidents of all certified member clubs and Presidents of Senior Riding Associations at least forty-five (45) days prior to the date of the Annual Meeting. C. A quorum for the Annual Meeting shall consist of a representation of fifty (50) delegate members and representing a majority of certified member clubs and youth associations. D. Only certified delegate members shall be entitled to vote at an Annual Meeting. Passage of regular business will be decided by a majority vote by all delegates present, except in the case of constitutional amendments, as per Article XVI. E. All officers of the Association shall be elected by a majority vote, at the Annual General Meeting, on a secret ballot, subject to the following conditions: 1. In the case of two (2) or more candidates contesting an office, a preferential ballot shall be used 2. No person shall be eligible to seek or hold office unless he/she is a student enrolled at a post-secondary institution in Ontario or a member of a youth club in good standing, and is a member of the PC Party of Ontario, and who qualifies under the age requirements outlined in this constitution.

F. Under no circumstances shall any person be entitled to receive more than one (1) ballot for each contested

position. G. Members of the sitting Executive, prior to and at the time of the Annual General Meeting, should encourage a review of the constitution to ensure this document continues to reflect the realities of the organization.

Article IX. Certification of Member Clubs

A. The Executive shall have the power to certify a campus or youth club as a member association subject to the

following conditions: 1. Certification votes require a majority vote of the Executive 2. Each of the persons forming the proposed club must support the objects of the Association and must recognize the Constitution; 3. The proposed club must have at least ten (10) members; 4. In order to be a member of a youth club from a given riding, one must be a resident of the riding in question and must be over the age of 14 and not yet have reached the age of 19. Residents will be defined in this document. 5. In order to be a member of a campus club at a given post-secondary institution, one must be a registered student at the post-secondary institution in question. 6. Notice of a founding meeting, complete with time, date and location, a full and complete list of the campus or youth clubs membership, and a proposed constitution must be submitted to both the Communications Director and the President of the Association no less than fourteen (14) days prior to a founding meeting 7. As it relates to campus clubs, there must be no other member of the Association in good standing at the same post-secondary institution as the said group, unless: i. That college or faculty is located on a campus that is geographically separated, represents a professional faculty, or constitutes a separate degree granting institution, as determined by the Executive, from the remainder of the institution. B. Each certified club shall provide the following to the Communications Director and the President of the Association: 1. An annual report of its activities; 2. A full and complete membership list, including the names and addresses of the newly elected executive, to be submitted before the first day of the month of May each year. The Executive may defer the submission of the list until the first day of the month of November for those associations which elect their executive in the autumn or for those associations which otherwise have good reason, as determined by the Executive; 3. A copy of the notice of the most recent Annual General Meeting 4. A copy of the Clubs current constitution, to be submitted with the application for certification and resubmitted immediately after any amendments have been made to the said constitution, or after a request for resubmission from the Executive.

C. The procedure to be followed to revoke certification is outlined below:

1. A member club which: i. Has violated Section B(a) of this article; ii. Is unable to prove that it has ten (10) members; or, iii. Has given the Executive good reason to believe that the member association, or members who legitimately represent the member association, has or have acted in such a way as to bring the Association into disrepute, 2. May have its certification revoked subject to the following conditions: i. A motion to revoke the associations certification passes by a three-quarters majority vote at an Executive meeting at which there is a quorum ii. Notice is provided to the said member association immediately following the Executive meeting at which the revocation vote takes place 3. A member association may appeal such decision subject to the following conditions: i. Appeals from a decision made in C(b)(i) may be taken to the relevant Presidents Council, where the issue dispute shall be resolved by a three quarters majority vote of the General Assembly after having heard the grievances from the associate member club or select members who legitimately represent it. ii. Notice of appeal under this section shall be sent to the Communications Director and the President of the Executive within fourteen (14) days of the receipt by the member association affected of notice of decision under subsection (a) of this section iii. Pending an appeal under this section, the member association in question shall retain its certification status.

Article X. Delegates to the Annual General Meeting

A. Only members of the Association may be delegates to the Annual General Meeting (AGM), and only delegates

are entitled to vote. In order to be a delegate from a given riding, one must be a resident of the riding in question. A delegate from a campus club must be a registered student at the campus in question. B. Only clubs which have been certified for at least 60 days prior to the AGM will be entitled to send delegates to the AGM. C. Delegates shall consist of: 1. The members of the Executive 2. Ten (10) delegates from each recognized campus club, selected in accordance with the DSM timelines established 3. Five (5) delegates from each recognized youth club, selected in accordance with the DSM timelines established 4. Three (3) delegates appointed by the senior riding President in any riding where there is no recognized youth association, or where a recognized youth association has failed to hold a DSM

5. Three (3) delegates approved by the chairs of the AGM from any campus where there is no recognized campus

club, or where a recognized campus club has failed to hold a DSM. 6. Any candidate of record who meets the membership provisions of the Association D. Alternates shall be elected in equal number to and in the same manner as delegates, and each shall have the privileges of the delegate that they replace. Alternates shall be ranked, and there may be no alternates to members of the executive. E. Delegate Selection Meetings must be held in locations with reasonable accessibility to youth, and between the hours of 10:00am and 9:00pm Monday through Saturday, and between the hours of 1:00pm and 9:00pm on Sunday.

Article XI. The Quorum at an Annual Meeting

A. The Annual General Meeting shall not begin unless Quorum is met B. For the purpose of Article VIII, Section C, the Credentials Chair shall ascertain whether a quorum exists by a

quorum call when requested to do so by any delegate member. C. Except where elsewhere specified in this Constitution, a quorum shall be established under Article VIII, and passage for business on the agenda shall be by a simple majority of those delegate members voting. D. Should a delegate member leave an Annual Meeting, the quorum shall not be affected unless the delegate member requests to withdraw her/his vote.

Article XII. Presidents Council Meetings

A. The President may call meetings of the Presidents of all campus or youth clubs as they see fit. These meetings

may be called in order to: 1. Assign duties to the council as the Executive may require 2. Seek the advice of the council 3. Direct the Executive, through a majority vote, to reconsider matters of an organizational nature to the clubs which are called B. The President must call a minimum of two (2) Joint Presidents Council meetings, which will consist of the Presidents of all campus and youth clubs. These meetings may be called in order to: 1. Assign duties to the council as the Executive may require 2. Seek the advice of the council 3. Direct the Executive to reconsider matters of an organizational nature to the clubs which are called 4. At the discretion of the Executive, hold policy meetings to discuss and pass policy resolutions for the association

5. Establish the rules for the election of officers and delegate selection meetings, including timelines 6. Select the position of Chair of Elections, Chair of Credentials, and Chair of Convention 7. After a bidding process has commenced under the discretion of the President, the Council shall vote on such bids to determine the location of the Annual General Meeting

Article XIII. Standing Committees

A. There shall be four permanent Standing Committees of the Association, designated as follows:

1. Standing Committee on Policy; 2. Standing Committee on Organization; 3. Standing Committee on Finance. 4. Standing Committee on High School Recruitment B. The Executive shall be empowered to establish such standing committees as may be necessary, from time to time, to deal with any specific interests which the Executive or the Council deems appropriate. C. The duties of the aforementioned committees shall be as follows: 1. The Standing Committee on Policy i. Shall prepare and compile policy briefs for the Ontario PC Party; ii. Shall encourage policy discussions on individual campuses; iii. Shall prepare and distribute policy-related material for member clubs; iv. Shall maintain official relationships with the 3rd VP of the PCPO and the Policy Committee of the PC Party of Ontario, with the 3rd VP and all Policy Members as ex officio non-voting members of the Standing Committee; v. Shall be responsible for such other duties as are assigned by the Executive 2. The Standing Committee on Organization i. Shall establish an ongoing recruitment program for the Association; ii. Shall provide organizational information and assistance to all member associations; iii. Shall encourage the involvement of Association members in student government and student affairs; iv. Shall be responsible for ongoing consultation and recommendations with regards to campaign policy and strategy and maintain formal relationships with the Ontario PC Policy Committee; v. Shall maintain official relationships with the Organization Committee of the PC Party of Ontario and the Leaders Office, with any member of the PCPO Organization Committee or representative of the Leaders Office as ex officio non-voting members of the Standing Committee; vi. Shall be responsible for such duties as are assigned by the Executive

3. The Standing Committee on Finance: i. Shall develop an ongoing fundraising strategy for the Association; ii. Shall aid member associations preparing fundraising projects; iii. Shall maintain official relationships with the PC Ontario Fund and the Fundraising and Finance Committees of

the PC Party of Ontario, with any member of the PC Ontario Fund, Fundraising Committee, of Finance Committee as ex officio non-voting members of the Standing Committee; iv. Shall be responsible for such other duties as are assigned by the Executive 4. The Standing Committee on High School Recruitment i. Shall develop and implement an ongoing high school student recruitment strategy 5. All Committees shall submit the minutes of their meetings to the Communications Director and the President of the Association for distribution to the Executive. D. The composition of the aforementioned standing committees shall be as follows: 1. Each committee shall consist of the relevant members of the Association's executive, and those members of the Association interested in the subject area of the committee, subject to the restriction that under ordinary circumstances, no person shall be a member of more than two (2) standing committees at any given time. 2. Each committee shall have a chair i. The Policy Director, or in his or her absence, a person designated by the Committee, shall chair the Standing Committee on Policy; ii. The Recruitment and Membership Director, or in his or her absence a person designated by the Committee, shall chair the Standing Committee on Organization; iii. The Treasurer, or in his or her absence a person designated by the Committee, shall chair the Standing Committee on Finance. iv. The High Schools Director, or in his or her absence a person designated by the Committee, shall chair the Standing Committee on High School Recruitment; 3. Each Standing Committee shall meet at the call of the chair of the committee, or at the instruction of the Executive i. Each Committee shall meet at least four (4) times a year. E. Regional Organizers shall be appointed by the Association Executive and will sit on the riding associations Presidents Council, the Organization & Election Readiness Committee, and/or the Association Executive as nonvoting members. 1. Regional Organizers shall work with their corresponding Senior Party Regional Vice President.

Article XIV. Definitions

A. For any and all purposes concerning this Association and/or its constituent bodies, a resident of a particular

constituent organization of this Association must:

1. Satisfy the definition of resident as provided in section 55.3 and 55.4 of the Canada Elections Act, for more

than six months of any calendar year, or; 2. Be a member of the executive of the constituent organization in question. 3. In spite of the above, a student that maintains a second residence near their school may choose to be considered a resident of either their home or school residence. B. Electronic mail has equal status to printed communication for all purposes within the scope of this document, included but not limited to providing notice.

Article XV. Referendum Questions

A. On matters which do not require amendments to the Constitution, with the consent of the majority of the

Executive, referendum questions may be posed to the membership at duly constituted General Meetings. 1. Requests for referendum questions must be sent to the Communications Director at least twenty-one (21) days prior to the time of the General Meeting 2. Requests for referendum questions will be considered and voted on by the Executive 3. All ratified referendum questions shall be distributed to the membership at least fourteen (14) days prior to the time of the General Meeting B. A majority vote of the membership (50% +1) shall be binding on the Executive

Article XVI. Amendments to the Constitution

A. Amendments to this Constitution may be made only at duly constituted General Meetings of the membership.

In order to ensure that members have sufficient notice to review these amendments: 1. Notice of proposed amendments must be sent to the Communications Director at least twenty-one (21) days prior to the time of the General Meeting 2. The Communications Director shall have the authority to combine, separate, and merge proposed amendments with the permission of the mover and seconder as well as to correct any grammatical, numerical, or technical mistakes in the proposed amendments. The Executive may also propose its own constitutional amendments to general meetings. 3. All proposed constitutional amendments shall be distributed to the membership at least fourteen (14) days prior to the time of the General Meeting 4. Copies of the proposed amendments shall also be made available to the membership at the General Meeting B. Amendments to this Constitution may be made effective only by the affirmation vote of at least two thirds of the delegates at the General Meeting. C. Notwithstanding above, the Executive shall have the authority to amend the constitution where such amendments are of a grammatical, numerical, or technical nature and arise from the adoption of

amendments at the most recent annual or special general meeting of the Association. Such amendments must be ratified by a two-thirds vote of the Executive and Copies of all amendments made under this clause must be distributed by the Communications Director to every riding and campus president within seven (7) days of ratification by the executive.

Article XVII. Rules of Order

A. All meetings shall be guided in their procedure by Roberts Rules of Order. Should conflict arise between these

Roberts Rules and this Constitution, the provisions of this Constitution shall prevail.
B. Should conflict arise between this constitution and the provisions of any youth or campus club constitution, the

provisions of this constitution shall prevail.