THE CONSTITUTION OF COMPUTER SCIENCE ASSOCIATION,
ENGINEERING SOCIETY, HKUSU
(Last amended on 28th July 2012)
SECTION 1 : GENERAL
1.1 NAME
1.1.1 The name of the Association shall be “Computer Science Association, Engineering Society, HKUSU”, in short “CSA, ENS, HKUSU”, or in Chinese 香港大學學生會工程學會計算機科學學會 (hereinafter referred to as “the Association”).
1.2 OBJECTIVES
1.2.1 To serve as the official representative body of the Association members.
1.2.2 To promote the general welfare of the Association members.
1.2.3 To promote friendship and communication among the Association members.
1.2.4 To facilitate communication between students of the Department of Computer Science (hereinafter referred to as “the Department”) and the Department.
1.2.5 To encourage and facilitate the study of Computer Science of the Association members.
1.2.6 To serve as a communication channel between the Association members and external organizations and the general public.
1.2.7 To raise the social respect of the curricula of Computer Science and Information Systems/Computer Science of the University of Hong Kong.
1.2.8 To promote the interflowing of the curricula of Computer Science and Information Systems/Computer Science with other academic bodies.
1.2.9 To provide current information on career aspects.
1.2.10 To introduce the curricula of Computer Science and Information Systems/Computer Science of the University of Hong Kong to the general public.
1.3 SESSION
1.3.1 The Association’s session shall commence immediately after the Annual General Meeting (hereinafter referred to as “the AGM”) and terminate at the end of the AGM of the succeeding year.
1.4 Affiliation
1.4.1 The Association shall be affiliated to Engineering Society, HKUSU
SECTION 2 : MEMBERSHIP
2.1 MEMBERSHIP
2.1.1 Full Membership
2.1.1.1 All undergraduates of the curriculum of Bachelor of Engineering (Computer Science) shall be Full Members of the Association and shall pay the prescribed fee stated in Section 6.2.
2.1.1.2 Any undergraduate of the curriculum of Bachelor of Engineering, who has not declared his/her major, may join the Association. He/She shall be a Full Member of the Association after paying the prescribed fee stated in Section 6.2.
2.1.2 Associate Membership
2.1.2.1 Any graduate of the curricula of Bioinformatics, Computer Science, Computer Science [Information Systems], Computer Science and Information Systems, Information Systems/Computer Science, Information Systems/Software Engineering, Software Engineering, and any postgraduate of Computer Science may be an Associate Member of the Association. He/She shall be an Associate Member after paying the registration fee stated in Section 6.2.
2.1.3 Honorary Membership
2.1.3.1 Any person recommended by the Committee referred to Section 3.3 may be voted and appointed at the AGM and become Honorary Members of the Association.
2.1.4 Honorary Staff Membership
2.1.4.1 All staff of the Department shall be Honorary Staff Members of the Association.
2.1.5 Honorary President
2.1.5.1 The Head of Department of the Department shall be the Honorary President.
2.1.6 Honorary Auditor
2.1.6.1 The Honorary President of the Association shall also be the Honorary Auditor of the Association.
2.2 PRIVILEGES AND RIGHTS
2.2.1 All members of the Association shall enjoy the following privileges:
2.2.1.1 to have a membership card valid from the first day of the first semester of an academic year to the thirtieth day of the first semester of the next academic year;
2.2.1.2 to use all facilities provided by the Association for the general use of the members;
2.2.1.3 to attend all General Meetings (refer to Section 4.1.1) of the Association;
2.2.1.4 to attend all functions and activities arranged by the Association for the general participation of its members.
2.2.2 All Full Members of the Association:
2.2.2.1 may vote, nominate, and be nominated for election in Association Elections at the AGM or the By-election General Meeting and be eligible for office in the Executive Committee of the Association;
2.2.2.2 may propose, second and vote at the AGM, Extraordinary General Meeting (hereinafter referred to as “EGM”) and By-election General Meeting.
SECTION 3 : OFFICE BEARERS AND COMMITTEE
3.1 ADVISORY BOARD
3.1.1 An Advisory Board shall consist of the Honorary President, Honorary Staff Members and Honorary Members.
3.2 OFFICE BEARERS
a Chairperson
an Internal Vice-chairperson
an External Vice-chairperson
an Internal General Secretary
an External General Secretary
a Financial Secretary
a Publication and Publicity Secretary
a Social Secretary
a Welfare Secretary
an Information Secretary
a Marketing Secretary
a Sports Secretary
3.3 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE
3.3.1 There shall be an Executive Committee (hereinafter referred to as “the Committee”) consisting of the office bearers of the Association and a Past Executive Committee Representative.
3.4 POWERS OF THE COMMITTEE
3.4.1 The Committee shall have the power to co-opt any Full Member to fill any vacancy of the Committee that may occur, except those stated in Section 4.4.
3.4.2 The Committee shall have the power to appoint sub-committee for any specific purposes. All such sub-committee shall consist of an ex-officio member.
3.4.3 The Committee shall have the rights to invite any person to attend any meeting or function of the Association.
3.5 DUTIES
3.5.1 The Executive Committee shall:
3.5.1.1 carry out the general duties related to the operation of the Association;
3.5.1.2 formulate and implement the policies of the Association in accordance with its objectives;
3.5.1.3 decide on all activities of the Association and the disposal of funds for such activities;
3.5.1.4 represent the Association members in matters that affect them as a whole.
3.5.2 The Chairperson shall:
3.5.2.1 be the chief executive of the Association and the Committee;
3.5.2.2 preside at all meetings of the Association at which he/she is present.
3.5.3 The Internal Vice-chairperson shall:
3.5.3.1 assist the Chairperson in all the duties pertaining to internal affairs;
3.5.3.2 be the ex-officio chairperson of the Committee in the absence of the Chairperson.
3.5.4 The External Vice-chairperson shall:
3.5.4.1 assist the Chairperson in all the duties pertaining to external affairs;
3.5.4.2 be the ex-officio chairperson of the Committee in the absence of the Chairperson and the Internal Vice-chairperson.
3.5.5 The Internal General Secretary shall:
3.5.5.1 conduct all general correspondence and record minutes of all meetings;
3.5.5.2 prepare the Annual Report to be presented at the AGM;
3.5.5.3 be responsible for keeping all past and present documents of the Association.
3.5.6 The External General Secretary shall:
3.5.6.1 be responsible for all internal and external liaison affairs of the Association;
3.5.6.2 be responsible for all external documentary work.
3.5.7 The Financial Secretary shall:
3.5.7.1 keep an account of all income and expenditure of the Association;
3.5.7.2 draft the Annual Budget;
3.5.7.3 prepare the Annual Financial Report to be presented at the AGM after audited by the Honorary Auditor;
3.5.7.4 be responsible for all general financial matters of the Association.
3.5.8 The Publication and Publicity Secretary shall:
3.5.8.1 be responsible for producing all publications and publicity of the Association;
3.5.8.2 be the ex-officio Editor-in-chief of any magazine or periodical papers that may be issued in the name of the Association.
3.5.9 The Social Secretary shall:
3.5.9.1 be responsible for all social activities of the Association;
3.5.9.2 initiate and organize all kinds of social activities according to the will of the members;
3.5.9.3 establish a good relationship among the members.
3.5.10 The Welfare Secretary shall:
3.5.10.1 be responsible for the general welfare of the Association members.
3.5.11 The Information Secretary shall:
3.5.11.1 gather and provide current information and arrange activities on academic and career aspects;
3.5.11.2 keep a good linkage with other academic bodies in order to promote the interflowing of the curricula of Computer Science and Information Systems/Computer Science.
3.5.12 The Marketing Secretary shall:
3.5.12.1 assist the External Vice-chairperson to contact the general public;
3.5.12.2 act as a communication channel between the Association and the general public;
3.5.12.3 keep a good linkage with business bodies related to Computer Science in order to introduce the curricula of Computer Science and Information Systems/Computer Science of the University of Hong Kong.
3.5.12.4 be responsible for all matters related to marketing activities.
3.5.13 The Sports Secretary shall:
3.5.13.1 be responsible for all sports activities of the Association;
3.5.13.2 initiate and organize all kinds of sports activities according to the will of the members;
3.5.13.3 be responsible for the organization of sport teams representing the Association.
3.5.14 The Past Executive Committee Representative shall:
3.5.14.1 act as a communication channel on past working experience of the Association;
3.5.14.2 facilitate and assist the work of the Committee in carrying out the duties.
3.6 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING
3.6.1 The members of the Committee shall have the right to attend and to speak in all Executive Committee Meetings.
3.7 RESIGNATION
3.7.1 When any Committee member wishes to resign his/her post, he/she shall submit a formal resign letter which must be received and adopted by the Committee one month before his/her resignation.
3.7.2 Should the Chairperson resign his/her post, a By-election General Meeting shall be convened to elect a new Chairperson.
SECTION 4 : GENERAL MEETING
4.1 GENERAL
4.1.1 The term General Meeting shall include the AGM and EGM and By-election General Meeting.
4.1.2 The vote of a General Meeting shall possess the highest authority in the Association.
4.1.3 At all General Meetings, a quorum shall be formed with no less than 15% of Full Members.
4.1.4 If after half an hour of the time scheduled for the commencement of the Meeting, a quorum is not formed, the Meeting shall be adjourned to the same weekday in the following week, at which if a quorum is still not formed, all Full Members present shall form a quorum.
4.1.5 At all General Meetings, Union Council Meeting procedures and By-laws of Engineering Council, Hong Kong University Students’ Union and By-laws of Hong Kong University Students’ Union Council and Constitution of Engineering Society, HKUSU shall be observed.
4.1.6 The councilor appointed by the Engineering Council Chairman shall be invited as the returning officer in the General Meeting. The returning officer shall have right to speak on the proceeding of the Meeting only.
4.1.7 All General Meetings shall be presided by the Chairperson of the current session of the Association.
4.2 ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
4.2.1 The Business of the AGM shall be:
4.2.1.1 to receive and adopt minutes of the previous AGM, By-election General Meeting and EGM which may have been held in the session;
4.2.1.2 to receive and adopt the Annual Functional Report of the current session;
4.2.1.3 to receive and adopt the Annual Financial Report from the Honorary Auditor and the Financial Secretary of the current session;
4.2.1.4 to elect the office-bearers for the coming session of the Committee;
4.2.1.5 to receive and adopt the Annual Budget from the Honorary Auditor and the Financial Secretary of the newly elected party;
4.2.1.6 to amend the Constitution, if any;
4.2.1.7 Any Other Business (No business other than that stated in the agenda shall be discussed without the consent of at least two-thirds of the members present).
4.2.2 No less than fourteen clear days’ notice shall be given for an AGM.
4.2.3 The AGM shall be held on or before the forty-second clear day of the second semester of each academic year.
4.3 EXTRAORDINARY GENERAL MEETING
4.3.1 The Committee shall have the right to convene an EGM for any purpose at any time.
4.3.2 An EGM shall be convened within a period of two weeks upon requisition signed by no less than 15% of Full Members of the Association. Such requisition shall specify the objects of the proposed Meeting.
4.3.3 No less than seven clear days’ notice shall be given for an EGM and the notice convening the Meeting shall state the business to be transacted.
4.3.4 No business other than that stated on the agenda shall be discussed at an EGM without the consent of at least two-thirds of the members present.
4.3.5 A vote of non-confidence for the infringement of the Constitution, neglect of duties of unbecoming conduct may be moved against any members of the Committee at an EGM held specifically for this purpose. A vote so passed shall call for the immediate resignation of the office-bearers against whom the vote is moved.
4.4 BY-ELECTION GENERAL MEETING
4.4.1 In the event of three or more posts of the office-bearers falling vacant at any one time, the Chairperson shall convene a By-election General Meeting.
4.4.2 In the event of the vacancy occurring in the post of the Chairperson, a By-election General Meeting shall be convened to elect a new Chairperson.
4.4.3 In the event of a vacancy occurring in the post of the Chairperson, a By-election General Meeting shall be convened by the Committee under the delegation of the Internal Vice-chairperson or in case of the absence both the Chairperson and the Internal Vice-chairperson, the External Vice-chairperson.
4.4.4 In the event of vacancies occurring in the posts of the Chairperson and the Vice-chairpersons, the Committee shall convene a By-election General Meeting for the election of the vacant posts. One of the office-bearers shall be appointed by the Committee to preside at this Meeting.
4.4.5 No less than seven clear days’ notice shall be given for a By-election General Meeting.
4.4.6 No business other than the election to vacant posts shall take place in a By-election General Meeting.
4.4.7 All nominations for the post(s) vacant should be in the hands of the Chairperson of the By-election General Meeting 48 hours before the Meeting taken place.
SECTION 5 : ELECTION AND VOTING
5.1 NOMINATION
5.1.1 All candidates should be in the form of parties.
5.1.2 Nomination of the office-bearers of the Association shall open not less than three weeks before the AGM.
5.1.3 Nomination for election shall only contain the names and signatures of candidates, together with the names and signatures of the proposers and seconders, and must be in the hands of the Internal General Secretary, or the Chairperson not less than 10 clear days before the AGM is to take place.
5.1.4 The Internal General Secretary shall post a list of all nominations within 3 clear days after the closure of nomination.
5.2 VOTING
5.2.1 Election of office-bearers shall take the form of secret ballot by individual voting. If there is only one candidate party for the Committee, the party shall be declared elected if the number of valid votes cast for the party is no less than half of the Full Members present at the meeting.
5.2.2 If there are two or more candidate parties for the Committee, each voter has one vote. A party shall be declared elected if the number of valid votes cast for it is the highest and no less than one-fourth of the Full Members present at this meeting.
5.2.3 In the event of a tie at the first place, a second voting shall be held between the parties which have tied.
5.2.4 In the event of a tie at the second place, the chairperson of the AGM shall have a casting vote.
5.3 ANNOUNCEMENT OF ELECTION RESULTS
5.3.1 Results of the election shall be announced within 24 hours after the conclusion of the election and by-election.
5.4 RE-ELECTION
5.4.1 The Chairperson who presided over the Election shall, on being satisfied that there had been a contravention of any of the election procedures, order a Re-Election. Any request for a Re-Election shall only be entertained if made by not less than ten Full Members in writing together with the grounds on which the request is made submitted to the Chairperson of the Election not later than 24 hours after the announcement of the results of the Election.
5.5 EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING
5.5.1 The members of the Committee other than the chairperson of the meeting shall have the right to vote in all Executive Committee Meetings.
5.5.2 All decisions and resolutions adopted by the Association must be approved by simple majority of the members of the Executive Committee Meeting. In case when the number of votes on each side of the motion is equal, a second voting shall be held, in which the Chairperson of the Executive Committee Meeting shall have a casting vote.
SECTION 6 : FINANCE
6.1 FINANCIAL YEAR
6.1.1 Financial year shall correspond to the Executive Committee session.
6.2 SUBSCRIPTION
6.2.1 Every Full Member of the Association shall pay an registration fee of HK$10 to the Financial Secretary on joining the Association.
6.2.2 Every Associate Member of the Association shall pay an registration fee of HK$20 to the Financial Secretary on joining the Association.
6.2.3 The subscription fee for Full Members shall be paid in accordance with the following table:
Undergraduates of the 3-year curriculum of Bachelor of Engineering (Computer Science):
| Status | No. of Academic Years Covered | Amount |
| 1st Year Students | 3 | HK$110.00 |
| 2nd Year Students | 2 | HK$70.00 |
| 3rd Year Students | 1 | HK$35.00 |
| Students beyond 3rd Year | 1 | HK$35.00 |
Undergraduates of the 4-year curriculum of Bachelor of Engineering (Computer Science):
| Status | No. of Academic Years Covered | Amount |
| 2nd Year Students | 3 | HK$150.00 |
| 3rd Year Students | 2 | HK$100.00 |
| 4th Year Students | 1 | HK$50.00 |
| Students beyond 4th Year | 1 | HK$50.00 |
Undergraduates of the 4-year curriculum of Bachelor of Engineering:
| Status | No. of Academic Years Covered | Amount |
| 1st Year Students | 1 | HK$50.00 |
6.3 ANNUAL BUDGET
6.3.1 The Annual Budget shall be prepared by the Honorary Auditor and the Financial Secretary and shall be submitted for adoption at the AGM.
6.4 FUND-RAISING
6.4.1 Proposal for fund-raising activities shall be presented to the Committee for approval.
6.4.2 The Financial Secretary shall co-ordinate and supervise all approved plans for fund-raising.
6.5 AUDITING
6.5.1 The Financial Secretary shall submit the annual account to the Honorary Auditor not later than two weeks before the AGM for auditing purposes. The audited financial report shall be presented at the AGM.
6.6 ACCOUNT
6.6.1 A current account shall be opened in the name of the Association.
6.6.2 All cheques shall be signed by the Financial Secretary and either the Chairperson or one of the two Vice-chairpersons.
SECTION 7 : CONSTITUTION
7.1 INTERPRETATION
7.1.1 The interpretation of the Constitution shall rest solely with the current-session Committee of the Association.
7.1.2 Any matter not specifically covered by this Constitution shall be decided by the current-session Committee.
7.2 AMENDMENT
7.2.1 No amendment of the Constitution may be in effect except at the AGM or EGM convened specially for this purpose. A notice informing the proposed amendments shall be posted seven clear days before the General Meeting.