The Student Council Constitution

Preamble The Student Council is the representative body of all secondary students in Chinese International School. It is the role of the Student Council to facilitate the interaction and cohesion between school leadership, the faculty, and the students; express student opinion to the leadership and faculty; and work for the betterment of student life at Chinese International School. This Constitution serves as a basis for meaningful and effective student governance in the Chinese International School.1 This Constitution may be improved, changed or corrected by means of amendments by subsequent Student Councils. Article I. General Principles and Authority 1. The Student Council is the representative body of all the secondary students in Chinese International School. The Student Council shall consist of Executive Officers and Representatives. 2. The Student Council is a self-constituted organization, and may act freely and without interference provided activities are within the bounds of school policies. As such, the Student Council shall have the authority to make its own regulations within the scope of this Constitution. 3. The Student Council shall have the authority to present and investigate problems, solutions and suggestions to the Head of Secondary. 4. The Student Council shall have the authority to implement any decisions once approved by the Head of Secondary. 5. The Student Council shall be consulted on any changes in or additions to the school rules, including, but not limited to, those concerning the Standards of Behavior, the Policy of Academic Honesty, Homework Policy, Acceptable Use of Computers, and related disciplinary procedures and actions. 6. The Student Council shall have the right to represent the student body within the bounds of school policies.

The first Student Council Constitution was written in the academic year 1991/1992 and provided a firm base for student leadership. As the school has evolved in the twenty years past, a new version of the Student Council Constitution was drafted in the academic year 2011/2012. 1

Ratified February 14th 2012

Article II. Student Council Representatives 1. Each homeroom shall elect two Student Council Representatives for the academic year. The Representatives election shall take place one week after the election of the Executive. Any student of the homeroom may run to be a Representative. Each candidate will be required to deliver a speech on his or her candidacy. The two candidates receiving the most votes within the homeroom will assume their responsibilities as the Representatives. The homeroom may choose to remove a Representative through attaining two-thirds majority in a vote and must then elect a replacement through the same election process stated above. Likewise, if the Executive finds the attendance of a Homeroom Representative unsatisfactory, it may recommend to the Homeroom Representatives homeroom teacher a vote to remove the Homeroom Representative. 2. Representatives shall meet in Parliament, the regular meeting of Representatives and Executive Officers, at a minimum of once every two months in an academic year. The Representatives will propose, discuss and vote on resolutions in the Parliament. Any Representative or Executive member may propose a resolution. A minimum of a simple majority of Representatives present is required for Parliament to meet. The Executive shall preside over the Parliament and determine its proceedings. Voting records and minutes in each Parliament shall be released publicly. Members of staff may attend Parliament by invitation of the Executive; they may request an invitation through the Faculty Advisor. 3. Representatives are obligated to attend additional meetings called by the Executive and contribute in carrying out any proposal passed by Parliament or by the Executive. 4. Representatives may choose to be involved in or veto any proposals or decisions made by the Executive in Parliament or in other additional meetings through simple (more than half) majority. Any decisions to be made will be determined through a vote for simple majority. 5. A minimum of ten Representatives may call for a motion of no-confidence in the Executive. A two-thirds majority and approval by the Headmaster is required for the removal of the Executive. Any team that took part in the prior elections of the year may run to replace the removed Executive. Campaigning shall last one week maximum and teams may only campaign during meetings of Representatives. The team that receives the most votes in one round of voting by the Representatives shall win. 6. The Representatives have an obligation to represent their homerooms; the basis of their votes and motions must be the opinion of their homerooms and not their own.

Ratified February 14th 2012

Article III. The Executive 1. The Student Council Executive consists of six Executive Officers, all of whom must be in Year 12. The entire secondary school body shall elect a team of four students to the Executive. Any Year 12 may participate in a team of four to run for Student Council Executive. The team that wins the most votes shall become four of the six Officers of the Executive. The winning team shall choose two additional members in compliance with the election guidelines. Election guidelines are to be specified in a separate document issued in the academic year before the elections. Changes proposed to the election guidelines by any party must be approved by the sitting Student Council Executive, Head of Secondary, future Head of Year 12 and Faculty Advisor. 2. The Executive shall be responsible for the smooth operation of the Student Council and shall represent the Student Council. The Executive is responsible for liaising with the administration, staff, student body and student leadership bodies; tracking Representative attendance to meetings; record keeping; timing; minutes; tabulation of voting; announcement of meetings; other secretarial matters; and the bookkeeping of the Student Council Budget. The Executive Officers must clearly allocate such responsibilities amongst themselves and submit these assignments to the Head of Secondary. Any changes in these allocations must again be submitted to the Head of Secondary. In addition, the Executive Officers may adopt positions and titles such as President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer. The position titles must be approved by the Head of Secondary. 3. The Executive shall have the authority to draft and carry out proposals approved by the Headmaster. The Headmaster may delegate approval to a member of staff, but will be the final arbiter of approval. The Executive must notify all Student Council Representatives of proposals to be carried out. 4. The Executive is required to seek approval and carry out passed resolutions of Parliament. The Executive may delegate the execution of proposals to the Student Council Representatives. 5. The Executive may veto resolutions passed by the Student Council Representatives in Parliament. Vetoes may be overturned with a two-thirds majority of the Representatives. Article IV. Faculty Advisor The Headmaster shall appoint one Faculty Advisor to assist in the smooth running of the Student Council from year to year. The Faculty Advisor may offer advice and guidance to the Student Council. They may assist in the drafting of proposals and in conferring with the administration and staff. The Executive may request to the Headmaster a change in Faculty Advisor.

Ratified February 14th 2012

Article V. Amendments Any Student Council Representative or Executive Officer may propose an amendment to the Constitution. Amendments require a two-thirds majority of Student Council Representatives for passage and the same number for revocation. The Executive may not veto amendments. All amendments are subject to the approval of the Headmaster and the Head of Secondary. Article VI. Authorship This version of the constitution was authored by Yi-ling Liu, Louise Wihlborn, Lucy Reading, Henry Cubbon, Lewis Ho, Nathaniel Chan, Isaac Lee in the 2011-2012 Academic Year, with the assistance of the Student Council Representatives, consultation with the Student Body, and guidance from the Faculty Advisor Keith Sanders, Head of Secondary Justin Alexander and Head of School Ted Faunce. The original version of the Student Council constitution, written in the 1991-1992 academic year, was authored by Evan Lew, with the assistance of Yana Chung, Nanny Calabrese, Andrew Chiu, Catherine Fu, Susan Park and Tony Sabine, and inspired by the Faculty Advisor, Mrs. Marguerite Tsim. The constitution writing process was supervised by Mrs. Maureen Sabine.

Ratified February 14th 2012