BYLAWS
of the
ALPHA CHAPTER OF KENTUCKY
TAU BETA PI

PREAMBLE

Section 1. Purpose of the Bylaws

                These bylaws shall govern the proceedings of the Alpha Chapter of Kentucky in all matters not provided for in the Constitution and Bylaws of the Tau Beta Pi Association.

ARTICLE I

Section 1

                The requirements for membership in this chapter shall be as follows:

(a)     A candidate for membership in this chapter must have fulfilled all requirements of Article VIII of the Constitution of the Tau Beta Pi Association.

(b)     The candidate must be a student in the College of Engineering of the University of Kentucky or must otherwise be eligible under Section 4, 5, and 6 of Article VIII of the Constitution of the Tau Beta Pi Association.

Section 2

(a)     The eligibility committee, consisting of five members, shall be appointed by the President and shall obtain its data concerning the eligibility from the offices of the College of Engineering. The report of the committee, concerning the eligible candidates for any semester, shall be presented at a regular meeting of the Chapter not later than five weeks after the beginning of the semester.

(b)     A University standing below 3.4 will make any student ineligible for election to the Chapter.

(c)     A University standing below a 3.5 will make any student registered as a junior ineligible for membership for the Chapter.

Section 3

                The election of members shall be provided in Section 10 and 11, Article VII of the Bylaws of the Tau Beta Pi Association and not more than ten weeks after the beginning of any semester.

Section 4

                Each candidate shall be expected to do such simple duties as may be prescribed by the Pledge Master with advice from the President. These duties shall be for the betterment of the Chapter and the College of Engineering, and to provide a uniform requirement for membership.

Section 5

                Initiation shall not be more than four weeks following the election and shall be conducted as set forth in the Constitution and Ritual of the Tau Beta Pi Association.

ARTICLE II

A.      Scholastic Eligibility

Section 1

                Election of new members shall be held in the fall and spring semesters (or fall and winter quarters) as soon as possible after grades from the previous term become available.

Section 2

                All provisions of C-VII and B-VI shall be strictly followed.

Section 3

(a)     Scholastically eligible day students in the following curricula shall be considered for membership in the Chapter: Bio Systems & Agricultural Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Materials Engineering.

(b)     Scholastically eligible graduate students in the following curricula shall be considered for membership in the Chapter: Biomedical Engineering, Bio Systems & Agricultural Engineering, Chemical Engineering, Civil Engineering, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Materials Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Mining Engineering and Manufacturing Systems Engineering. 

Section 4

                Night students, pursuing equivalent curricula to those names in TOB-V, 4, may be considered for membership in the Chapter, subject to the provisions of C-VIII, 2(a). However, such students shall be considered separately from day students and no such student shall be considered more than twice as a junior or more than twice as a senior.

Section 5

                Transfer students shall be eligible for consideration during the third regular semester after their registration on the main campus of the University of Kentucky, provided the consent of five-sevenths of the Advisory Board is obtained.

Section 6

                The case of students whose scholastic eligibility is in doubt because of irregularities in standing or curriculum shall be determined by the Advisory Board of the Chapter.

Section 7

                In addition to the requirements of C-VIII, to be scholastically eligible for election, a student shall have obtained a minimum grade point average of a 3.50 for juniors and a 3.40 for seniors.

Section 8

                The membership committee shall periodically consult with the chairpersons of the various engineering departments to determine the names of graduate students, alumni, faculty members, and others who may be eligible for membership under the provisions of C=VIII, 3-6.

B.      Exemplary Character Evaluation

Section 9

(a)     Letters shall be sent to scholastically eligible candidates inviting them to a get-acquainted meeting (“smoker”).

(b)     A get-acquainted meeting shall be held at which the Chapter members will meet the candidates. The candidates shall be introduced to the purpose and activities of Tau Beta Pi.

(c)     The Chapter members shall be asked to make recommendations on the candidates they meet during the get-acquainted meeting, at the Chapter’s election meeting.

(d)     Prior to their election, scholastically eligible candidates shall be invited to complete and return a resume/questionnaire form describing their activities and interests.

(e)     After the specified deadline date, the membership committee shall review all resumes and formulate a recommendation on each candidate.

(f)      At the election meeting the membership committee shall report their findings about each candidate and shall have on hand each candidate’s resume for the Chapter membership’s reference.

 

C.      Voting Procedures

Section 10

(a)     At the time of election the Eligibility Code shall first be read.

(b)     The names of eligible candidates will be submitted to the Chapter in groups by the membership committee along with the committee’s favorable recommendation for each candidate in the group. The size of the groups shall be determined by the membership committee.

(c)     If any active member has a question about any of the candidates in a group, that candidate’s name shall be removed from the group and considered separately.

(d)     A Chapter vote shall be taken on the remainder of the group.

(e)     Each candidate removed from a group and candidates who did not receive a favorable recommendation from the membership committee shall be considered separately after all groups have been voted on. Each name shall be presented for discussion and voted on before the following name is considered.

(f)      After all names have been considered and voted on, there shall be a second ballot for each candidate who failed election on the first ballot.

(g)     No candidate who fails the election on the second ballot shall be considered further unless twenty-five percent of the members present so request.

(h)     No candidate who fails election on the third ballot shall be considered again at this election. He or she may be considered again at the next election if he or she is then eligible.

 

D.      Electee Activities

Section 11

                All members shall keep the election results in absolute confidence so that no candidate shall learn of his or her election except by means of the official letter; likewise, no candidate shall be informed of the details of the vote, especially concerning personal matters discussed at the time of voting.

Section 12

                At the first meeting of electees, the President shall explain the requirements, objectives, and activities of the Association and of the Chapter. Those electees desiring to accept election shall formally state their acceptance, in writing, in a letter addressed to the President.

Section 13

                Each electee who refused initiation for financial reasons shall be interviewed by the Advisory Board, as required by C-VIII, 10(a).

Section 14

                Each electee shall be required to take part in an activity recommended or approved by the Chapter officers to foster a spirit of liberal culture. This activity may take the form of a project and/or the writing of an essay, as specified in B-VII, 7.01. They shall also be required to read the Constitution and Bylaws of the Association and these Bylaws. (Note: The same person who, as a candidate, participated in an activity or project in the Chapter’s characterization measurement procedure need not now, as an electee, be required to take part in another project or activity in order to meet the requirements of the National Bylaw.)

Section 15

                The Chapter may assign additional duties to electees, subject to the provisions of B-VII, 7.02.

 

ARTICLE III

Section 1

                Officers of this Chapter and members of the Advisory Board shall be elected at the first regular meeting in April and shall take office on or before May 1.

Section 2

(a)     The officers of this organization shall be President, Vice-President, Recording Secretary, Corresponding Secretary,  Treasurer, Cataloger, Public Relations Officer, Historian, and two Engineering Student Council Representatives (henceforth ESC Reps).

(b)     The duties of all officers shall be set forth in Bylaw V of the Bylaws of the Tau Beta Pi Association with the exception of Historian and the ESC Reps.

(c)     The duty of the Historian shall be to maintain the Chapter’s History Book. The History Book shall reflect, in a creative manner, the yearly activities and undertakings of the Chapter. The duty of the ESC Reps shall be to represent the interests of this Chapter at the University of Kentucky Engineering Student Council as long as the same shall remain in existence.

Section 3

                A Faculty Treasurer shall be elected from among the faculty members of Tau Beta Pi, whose term of office shall be two entire academic years and may be renewed indefinitely, and whose duty shall be to instruct the Student Treasurer, approve expenditures, and receive and audit the accounts at the end of each academic year. In the event of disputes, the Faculty Treasurer will be subject to the ruling of the Advisory Board.

ARTICLE IV

Section 1

                The President shall ordinarily call one meeting of the Chapter each month.

Section 2

                At least two special meetings shall be held each semester of which the pledge banquet may count as one.

Section 3

                A majority of actives members of the Chapter shall constitute a quorum.

Section 4

                The Chapter Initiation shall be considered a regular Chapter meeting.

ARTICLE V

Section 1 - Dues

                The dues of this Chapter shall be an initiation fee based on Chapter costs. No candidate shall be initiated until he or she has paid the initiation fee in full; exception shall be made only as stated in Section 4, Article VIII, of the Bylaws of the Tau Beta Pi Association.

Section 2 – Assessments

                A special levy or assessment must be carried by a three-fourths votes of the active members in the Chapter.

Section 3 – Discipline

(a)     Any member who has failed to meet his or her financial obligations to the Chapter at the time of his or her graduation shall be considered for disciplinary action by the Chapter as set forth in Article IX, Section 4(a), of the Constitution of the Tau Beta Pi Association.

(b)     A registered letter shall be sent to each graduating senior having financial obligations notifying him or her of those obligations to the Chapter, one month prior to his or her graduation date.

ARTICLE VI

Amendments

                These Bylaws may be amended by a three-fourths vote of the active members. A proposed amendment shall be voted upon at the next meeting after the meeting at which it is proposed.

ARTICLE VII

Rules of Order

                Robert’s Rules of Order shall govern all cases not covered by these Bylaws or by the Constitution and Bylaws of the Tau Beta Pi Association.

 

Addendum
Revisions/Amendments to the Bylaws
Kentucky Alpha Chapter
Tau Beta Pi

These Bylaws were revised May 11, 1955.

These Bylaws amended according to the Constitution and Bylaws of the Tau Beta Pi Association, and according to the Bylaws of the Kentucky Alpha Chapter on February 24, 1960.

These Bylaws were revised April 20, 1969.

These Bylaws were revised April 6, 1971.

These Bylaws amended according to the Constitution and Bylaws of the Tau Beta Pi Association, and according to the Bylaws of the Kentucky Alpha Chapter on April 1, 1975.

These Bylaws were revised April 21, 1980.

These Bylaws amended according to the Constitution and Bylaws of the Tau Beta Pi Association, and according to the Bylaws of the Kentucky Alpha Chapter on November 30, 1983.

These Bylaws were re-typed November 22, 2008.