Article I

Name

Section 1.  NAME.  The organization shall be called The Student Occupational Therapy Association of Cleveland State University (CSU), herein after referred to as SOTA or the Association. 

Article II

Purpose

Section 1.  PURPOSE.  The purpose of SOTA  is:
A.   To increase campus and community awareness of the occupational therapy profession.
B.   To represent CSU to the wider community, through attendance at local, regional and  national meetings, and community events.
C.   To be active on national issues affecting the profession by sending an Assembly of Student Delegates (ASD) representative to the annual American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) National Conference each year.
D.   To provide social support for its members.
E.    With the purpose of this Association devoted entirely to the advancement of the profession, no part of its earnings shall inure to the use or benefit of any individual.

Article III

Members

 

Section 1.  MEMBERSHIP CLASSES.  The membership of the Association shall consist of two classes:
A.   Executive Board.  Executive Board members shall be from both first and second year classes of students enrolled in the CSU Master of Occupational Therapy (MOT) Program and attending on-campus classes.
B.   Membership.  The membership shall be all students enrolled in the CSU MOT Program and attending on-campus classes.

Section 2.   MEMBERS IN GOOD STANDING.

• Executive Board.  An individual who meets the qualifications for membership and agrees to uphold the standards and ethics of SOTA is a member in good standing.
• Membership.  A member who attends two general SOTA meetings each semester and agrees to uphold the standards and ethics of SOTA is a member in good standing.
• Revoked Status.  Dismissal from the CSU MOT Program revokes SOTA membership.

Section 3.  RIGHTS AND PRIVILEGES OF MEMBERS IN GOOD STANDING.

• Executive Board.  Each Executive Board member in good standing has the right to formulate and direct the actions of his/her respective Board, and is entitled to one vote in the election of each officer of the Association.
• Membership.  Each member in good standing has the right to join and participate in the actions of one or more respective Committees as specified in Article V, and is entitled to one vote in the election of each officer of the Association.

Article IV

Meetings of the Membership

Section 1.  MEETING TIMES. 
A.         Executive Board.  Executive Board meetings will be scheduled one to two weeks prior to the general SOTA meeting, and a minimum of three times a semester.

• Membership.  SOTA membership/ plenary meetings will be scheduled one to two weeks after an executive board meeting and a minimum of three times a semester.
• C.         Committee and Task Forces.  Committee and task Force Meetings must occur at least once during each semester.  Meeting times must be relayed to the President and Vice President with two business days notice.

Section 2.  CALL FOR MEETINGS.

• Executive Board Meetings.  Executive Board meetings may be called anytime by the President, Vice President or two-thirds vote of the Executive Board with three business days notice.
• SOTA Membership Meetings.  SOTA Membership Meetings may be called anytime by the President, Vice President or two-thirds vote of the general SOTA membership with five business days notice.
• Committee Meetings.  Committee Meetings can be called anytime by the Committee chairperson, President or Vice President with three business days notice.
• Task Force Meetings.  Task Forces can be created anytime there is a need to focus on a domain that falls outside any of the duties required of the Executive Board.  A Task Force leader will be selected by the Executive Board from the general SOTA membership.  Task Force meetings can be called anytime by the Task Force Leader, President or Vice President.

Section 3.  ATTENDANCE

• Executive Board.  Any member of SOTA in good standing may attend an Executive Board Meeting.  Attendance is mandatory for all Executive Board members.  Absences are excusable only if a representative is on hand with a given statement to report.  The acting Secretary will record the attendance.
• General SOTA Meetings. Attendance is mandatory for all Executive Board members.  Absences are excusable only if a representative is on hand with a given statement to report.  Student Body members are required to attend all SOTA Meetings.  The acting Secretary will record the attendance.
• Committee and Task Force Meetings.  Attendance is strongly encouraged for all Committees and Task Force members.
• Quorum.  A quorum of at least half of the voting members of SOTA must be present to conduct official business at General SOTA meetings.  Other than during spring semester, at least three members of each class must be present.
• Procedure.  All meetings shall be conducted according to Parliamentary Procedure.

Section 4.  VOTING. 

• At each meeting, voting shall be done in person, either by a show of hands or by ballot.  The Executive Board shall determine the process for counting and recording the vote.
• Only those members present shall be permitted to vote.
• At all meetings, the chance for discussion followed by a motion shall precede any vote.

Article V

Executive Board Members

Section 1.  OFFICERS.  The officers of SOTA shall be: President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, Fundraising Chairperson, Public Relations Chairperson, Community Service Chairperson, Historian, ASD Delegate, Ohio Occupational Therapy Association (OOTA) Representative, Cleveland District OOTA (CDOOTA) Representative and two Class Representatives to the faculty.

Section 2.  ELECTIONS.  Elections for Executive Board Officers shall be held by ballot by mid-spring semester each year. 

Section 3.  ELIGIBILITY.  To be eligible to hold an Executive Board Office, the member must be in good standing with SOTA as outlined in Article III, Sections 2 and 3, and available to serve for the 3 consecutive semesters following fall semester elections.

Section 4.  TERM OF OFFICE.  All officers will hold their respective positions for 3 academic semesters, beginning the summer semester following elections.  Officer training will occur in the spring semester following elections.

steps and procedures for carrying out events; bring ideas for a vote before the general SOTA membership; plan and conduct PR events within the regulations of the university.

Section 14.  COMMUNITY SERVICE CHAIRPERSON.   The Community Service Chairperson will form a community service committee and together they will:  gather ideas for SOTA volunteer involvement on campus and in the community from SOTA members; investigate steps and procedures for carrying out events; bring ideas for a vote before the general SOTA membership; plan and participate in community service events within the regulations of the university.

Section 15.  SOCIAL ACTIVITIES CHAIRPERSON.  The Social Activities Chairperson will form a social activities committee and together they will: organize formal and informal social events, within the regulations of the university,  to increase inter-class socialization.  The Chairperson will be responsible for directing and overseeing the Big Sib-Little Sib Program.

Section 16.  HISTORIAN.  The Historian will maintain a photo album of all events and members; conduct projects for historical records; maintain an up-to-date SOTA Bulletin Board.

Section 17.  ASD DELEGATE. The ASD Delegate shall be a member of AOTA.  The ASD Delegate will:   serve as a liaison between SOTA and AOTA; poll SOTA members prior to the annual AOTA conference about their support for and concerns on current issues and proposed Resolutions; attend all delegate meetings; join a Task Force and fulfill these responsibilities throughout the year; relay all pertinent information gathered from Conference to all members of SOTA via Delegate Address; make all written materials available to other students throughout the school year.  The ASD Delegate should confer with last year=s delegate regarding expectations and further responsibilities.

Section 18.  OOTA REPRESENTATIVE.  The OOTA Representative will act as liaison between SOTA and OOTA, and will attend OOTA Annual Conference.

Section 19.  CDOOTA REPRESENTATIVE.  The CDOOTA Representative will attend all CDOOTA meetings and act as a liaison between CDOOTA and SOTA.

Section 20. REPRESENTATIVES TO THE FACULTY.  One representative from each class will serve as Faculty Representative.  The students are responsible for attending weekly OT faculty meetings and relaying any pertinent information between the faculty and their class.  The student faculty representative is the Avoice@ of the students and is responsible for presenting student issues to the faculty.

Section 21.  FACULTY ADVISOR.  The advisor to SOTA will be a current member of the OT Faculty or Professional Staff and will be appointed by the OT faculty at their discretion.  The advisor will act as consultant for SOTA in matters of university regulations and policy, and in keeping with the policies of the Department of Health Sciences and the Occupational Therapy Program.  The Advisor cannot debate over a motion or vote.  He/she must approve actions of the organization with signatures on required forms.
Article IV

Elections

Section 1.  RUNNING FOR OFFICE.  Any SOTA member in good standing can run for an office of his/her choice.  All members in good standing may self-nominate.

Section 2.  NOMINATIONS.  In the event that no SOTA member declares candidacy for an office defined for their respective class, a motion for nomination occurs.  SOTA members are encouraged to nominate an individual, within good standing from the designated class, they feel would best suit the office.  If all nominations are declined, nominations for individuals from the other class will be accepted.

Section 3.  ELECTIONS.

• Ballots.  The current vice president will prepare the paper ballot with the names of all those running for office.  All ballots will be confidential.
• Voting for Candidates.  Each SOTA member is entitled to vote for one candidate in each officer race.  All voting will be confidential.
• Counting of Votes.  The votes will be tallied by the current Vice President, Secretary and Advisor.  Following a confirmation of the officers, all ballots will be destroyed.
• Tie Vote.  In the event of a tie vote, the ballots will be recounted.  If the results are still tied, there will be a re-vote between only those candidates involved in the tie.
• Announcement.  Announcement of the election results shall be posted on the SOTA Bulletin Board and the SOTA Advisor=s office door.

 

Article VII

SOTA Manual

Section 1. LOCATION.  The SOTA Manual shall be kept in the Department of Health Sciences office, HS101.

Section 2.  CONTENTS.  The manual shall contain at least all of the following:

• Listing of the current officers
• Copy of current SOTA Bylaws
• Copy of current full membership
• Minutes of all meetings

 

Article VIII

Membership in Other Professional Organizations

Section 1.  AMERICAN OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY ASSOCIATION.  The SOTA membership will strive to achieve a high percentage of membership to the AOTA.  SOTA members having AOTA memberships will be encouraged to attend AOTA=s annual conference.

Section 2.  OHIO OCCUPATIONAL THERAPY ASSOCIATION.    The SOTA membership will strive to achieve a high percentage of membership to the OOTA.  SOTA members having OOTA memberships will be encouraged to attend OOTA=s annual conference.

 

Article IX
Annual Budget
                       
Section 1.  ROLE OF THE TREASURER.  The Executive Board will prepare the annual budget by September and the Treasurer will present it to the general SOTA membership.

Section 2.  ALLOCATION OF FUNDS.  The Executive Board will prepare the budget each year, however, with a two thirds vote, the membership may:  transfer a previously quoted budget amount for a given category to another category; and allocate additional funds required of an event or activity that surpasses its original budget amount.

 

Article X

Jurisdiction

SOTA is subject, as a registered and recognized organization, to the rules, regulations and policies of CSU and the laws of the State of Ohio.  The rules, regulations and policies of CSU shall hold precedence over any rules, regulations and policies applying to SOTA, including those of national organizations with which SOTA is associated.

 

Article XI

Additional Sections

Section 1.  FUNDING FOR ASD DELEGATES.  It is the responsibility of the ASD Delegate to apply and receive the stipend offered by the department of Student Life. It is the responsibility of the general SOTA membership to raise enough funds to support the ASD Delegate=s stay at the annual AOTA conference, minus the support received from Department of Student Life.

Section 2.  HISTORIAN PHOTO ALBUM AND WEB PAGE.  The Historian Photo Album and web page shall be maintained each year.  The album will be stored in the Department of Health Sciences office, HS101, to be available for viewing by all SOTA members.  The contents of the album and web page will be determined by the Historian, but should be of a professional nature and reflect SOTA activities.

Section 3.  SOTA BYLAWS.  The Bylaws shall be distributed to each SOTA member in the Occupational Therapy Program Student Handbook at the orientation session in the first semester of the program.