Our Constitution

Constitution and Bylaws of the Performance Student Union 24/25

PREAMBLE:

The Student Union (also known as the PerformanceSU) exists to provide a greater depth of education and student advocacy to every student studying at the School of Performance within The Creative School at Toronto Metropolitan University. Each member is to provide an accessible, responsible, equitable and accommodating solution to any of the conflicts and concerns that students bring to the attention of the executive committee. This is to be done in a timely manner, with consideration to the direct concerns between the students and faculty within respective departments. 

Article I. NAME

Section 1: Performance Student Union (PerformanceSU) (hereafter referred to as the ‘Organization’).

Article II. OBJECTIVE

Section I: To promote the interests and concerns of students in every program at the Toronto Metropolitan School of Performance including Performance Acting, Performance Dance, and Performance Production.

Section II: To provide aid and information to any student who requires it, in regards to academics and life on campus at Toronto Metropolitan University. This is to be done through appropriate and official Organization communication mediums - as decided by the Executive members (e.g. online forms, email, in-person meetings).

Section III: To represent the student body as the liaison between students and faculty of the School of Performance, when assistance is required by the Organization.

Section IV: To create a safe space for all students to attend, and directly advocate on behalf of them in the terms of their concerns and grievances in any capacity.

Section V: To promote an inclusive environment for all students, staff, and other persons within the School of Performance - providing support and a voice to all regardless of race, ethnic origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, or creed.

Section VI: To provide an official path of communication between students and the School of Performance, taking concerns and/or needs they may have directly about the school to the appropriate staff and administration members.

Article III. RELATIONSHIP TO TMSU

Section I: The constitution must be approved by the TMSU.

Section II: The TMSU will not interfere in the activities and operation of the Organization unless absolutely necessary. It does, however, have the power to investigate complaints made by any member of the Organization concerning alleged violations of this constitution, specifically in financial and/or harassment matters.

Section III: The TMSU may request financial records of the PerformanceSU trust account that is set up with the TMSU. Such records may be specifically requested on the terms of the Organizations permanent records and financial bookkeeping.

Article IV. MEMBERSHIP

Section I: Membership for all executive positions in the Organization lasts for one year, starting May 1st of the respective election year, to the following date the year after. Exceptions are in the form of Committee Members, who begin their tenures in September. All positions are renewable through elections for an indefinite amount of time, as long as the member remains enrolled in the School of Performance.

Section II: Any member is allowed to take a brief but limited leave of absence from the Organization with the advance notice and approval from the President.

Section III: No member shall receive any kind of financial gain while serving on this Organization.

Section IV: Any member who fails to comply with any of these policies will receive a verbal and/or written warning from the President. Continued disobedience can result in removal from office by the discretion of the President.

Section V: Removal from an Executive office position can and/or will occur if the Executive has performed an inexcusable action, severe constitutional infringement, or has not fulfilled their duties adequately as has been described by their official list of requirements in their position.

Section VI: A petition signed by at least half of the general membership shall allow any article of impeachment to be tabled, which will then be discussed, then voted upon.

Section VII: Direct concern on the behaviour of any member of the Organization shall be brought to the attention of the President, who will then, depending on the severity of the accusation, meet either directly with the offending party, or with a minimum of two Executive members to follow through with an appropriate course of action. 

Section VIII: Removal from a General/Committee office position can/will occur on the same merits as laid out in Article IV, Sections IV and V - with the exception that a minimum of three Executive members must put forth an article of impeachment. This will lead to a meeting with an Executive panel, comprising a majority of the Executive, who will discuss and vote upon the articles of impeachment. A majority vote for impeachment within this panel will result in impeachment.

Article V. ORGANIZATION

Section I: Elections and Appointments

i. A general election will be held once per year. (Bi-elections will be held within the first two months in each necessary year to fill missing positions).

ii. The Executives must be elected by the student body of the School of Performance.

iii. Elections must take place by the third Friday in March.

iv. Any student enrolled in the School of Performance who is interested in a position can run for an Executive or Committee member position.

v. Appointments to Executive positions past the bi-election period must be done with a simple majority vote of Executive members, with approval by the President.

Section II: Election Procedure

i. Notice will be given to all students of the School of Performance regarding elections and opening of nominations.

ii. Any student will be able to nominate themselves or another member (also known as secondary nominations) for a position. Secondary nominations must not be accepted until the nominated party has approved the motion.

iii. Nominations will be accepted over a two-week period.

iv. There will be three weeks notice for when elections will be held.

v. The President is responsible for the execution and collection of all electronic ballots.

Section III: Committees

i. The Organization has the ability to create a committee or subcommittee at any time, and amend the constitution with information pertaining to it.

Section IV: Structure: The executive office (hereafter referred to as the ‘Executive’) will

be made up of the following:

i. President

ii. Vice President 

iii. Director of Finance

iv. Director of Events

v. Director of Communication

vi. Director of Marketing

vii. Director of Administration

viii. Director of Equity 

ix. Director of Academics

x. Representatives of Production/Acting/Dance

xi. Committee Members

xii. Should a Committee Member wish to create a position, they must notify the President in advance of the next General Meeting, and present an argument for the creation of the position with just cause. Approval for the creations of positions are made by the President.

Section V: Role of the Executive:

i. The Executive is responsible for fulfilling their official duties, abiding by the constitution, and working vehemently to benefit the students of the School of Performance.

ii. Three members of the Executive will be signing officers for the Organization.

iii. No faculty or staff may be allowed to sit on the Executive, although they are welcome to give feedback and suggestions in regards to the operating system of the Organization.

Section VI: Remote Functions

i. The Organization may amend its operational functions to adjust to a remote-based system which allows all members to function from a digital platform.

ii. A digital version of the Organization must be established by the Executive members prior to the month of August of the affected year, and plans must be approved by a two-third majority of the Executive. The amendments to the constitution caused by this must be added to this document.

Article VI: ROLE OF THE EXECUTIVE BY POSITION

Section I: President:

i. Shall chair all meetings, unless they are unable to attend, and appoint another Executive to this task.

ii. Will act as a liaison between the Organization and the Faculty of the School of Performance, the TMSU, the SCDS, and other potential Toronto Metropolitan University student organizations that the PerformanceSU is affiliated with. 

iii. Responsible for advising the Campus Groups Administrator of any changes in the Executive or signing officers.

iv. Will be responsible for the collection of ballots during an election within the Organization.

v. Update the constitution yearly to reflect the shifting needs of the Organization.

vi. Schedule and plan all meetings in liaison with the Director of Administration.

vii. Responsible for being the secondary contact at events within the school, after the Director of Events.

viii. Must approve all financial plans made by the Organization, as brought forth by the Director of Finance.

Section II: Vice President 

i. Shall chair meetings when the President is unable to do so.

ii.  In charge of overseeing and assisting direct internal management.

iii. Assists the completion of tasks by directors as requested by president

iv. Directly handles student complaints and filters to president 

v. Will assist the President in grand operations of the Organization as needed.

vi. Must liaison with faculty when the President is unable to do so.

vii. Must coordinate initiatives directly with directors and ensure that tasks are completed by the relevant dates.

Section III: Director of Finance:

i. Responsible for reporting to the TMSU, the SCDS, and other relevant official Toronto Metropolitan University student organizations, as well as members of the Organization for all monies allocated to the Organization by the relevant student groups or in any other way.

ii. Completes the recording of all financial information from events/fundraisers and ensures they are kept up to date.

iii. Responsible for the updating of all financial permanent records within the Organization, and must provide bi-annual financial statements at the end of the fall and winter academic semesters.

iv. Creates a financial plan for the Organization in each year of operation to maintain and promote the financial health of the Organization

Section IV: Director of Events:

i. Organizes and facilitates all events hosted by the Organization in collaboration with the 

Director of Administration.

ii. Creates, implements and executes the plan for each event.

iii. Responsible for completing an Event Debrief after each event.

iv. Must attend all planned events unless sufficient reasoning is provided.

v. Will liaison with the Director of Finance in regards to funding for events.

vi. Plans Orientation Week throughout the summer and obtains advance approval for all plans by the President.

Section V: Director of Communication

i. Manages the Organization's social media pages.

ii. Collects social media analytics from respective platforms.

iii. Responsible for bi-annual social media data analysis, as agreed upon by the President and Director of Communication, at the end of the fall and winter semesters.

iv. Must, along with the relevant Executive members, organize and execute the output of Organization merchandise.

v. Collaborates with the Director of Marketing on the creation of assets for the Organization’s social media pages.

Section VI: Director of Administration

i. Responsible for the upkeep and management of the Organization’s permanent records.

ii. Must, along with the President, organize bi-weekly meetings as needed throughout each operating year of the Organization.

iii. Will record meeting minutes at each meeting, then place them in the Organization's permanent records – unless assigned to another Executive.

iv. Manages the necessary forms and paperwork sent out to Executives, General/Committee members, and the student body.

v. Acts as the bridge between the communication ports of the School of Performance and the Organization.

vi. Responsible for managing the digital backend of the Organization’s operations including, but not limited to, the management of the Organization’s website, emails, financial systems.

vii. Oversees the execution of the plans that the President puts in place for the Organization.

Section VII: Director of  Marketing

i. Creates the appropriate physical and/or digital advertising content in regards to Organization activities/events in collaboration with the Director of Communications and Director of Events.

ii. Designs merchandise for the Organization as directed by the President.

Section VIII: Director of Equity

i. Responsible for the creation of programmes and activities that advocate for minority students within the School of Performance

ii. Acts as a liaison between the students and the Organization, gathering concerns and needs from the student body and presenting them to the Organization.

iii. Must work to create a more equitable and inclusive space for minority students through direct action as is possible through the resources of the Organization.

iv. Will work with the School of Performance in assuring equal opportunities to all students, and raise concern when needed if students feel as though they are not being heard.

v. Will, along with the President, work with the labour unions that the School of Performance associates with in order to promote workers rights and protections for students within the School of Performance.

vi. Oversees the operations of the Student Equity Association (SEA) in collaboration with the special committee member for the SEA appointed by the Executive. 

Section IX: Director of Academics

i. Will work with faculty to review course-work in order to ensure that it reflects current and ongoing needs of the students and the industry.

ii. Will manage complaints of call, show, classes, or other academic affairs as brought forth by students.

iii. Will organise academic assistance and support as is relevant within the school.

iv. Will assure, along with the Director of Equity, that course material is upheld to equitable standards. 

Section X: Representatives of Dance/Acting/Production 

i. Representatives are non-executive voting members who represent each program within the School of Performance.

ii. They may not vote on constitutional changes or the impeachment of executive members. 

iii. Must coordinate with relevant departments within the school to bring forth issues and concerns within the program they represent to the Organization.

iv. May bring proposals for initiatives that would support the program they represent. 

v. Makes recommendations to the President based on the needs of their respective programs.

vi. Must contact and listen to the needs and concerns of their respective programs.

Section XI: Committee Member:

i. Title bestowed upon any member who wishes to be part of the Organization who does not receive an Executive title and/or chooses not to create one for themselves with the approval of the President.

ii. Responsible for assisting at events as needed and is allowed to attend any meeting held while they serve on the Organization.

iii. Committee Members can also gather to make an amendment in regards to Article IX, Section II

iv. Must be overseen by the Director of Administration, assigned to Executives as needed

Section XII: Vacancy Policy

i. Should an executive position become vacant for any reason, the remaining executives may, by majority vote, appoint someone from within their membership to fill the vacancy.

ii. Should the Executive appoint a person to an executive position, they must announce it to the general body through digital means (e.g. email, social media, etc).

Article VII: MEETINGS

Section I: Executive Meetings will be held at least bi-weekly, provided the Toronto Metropolitan School of Performance show schedule allows time for it.

Section II: A majority of the Executive will form a quorum.

Section III: Executive Meetings are open only to the Executive members and respective subcommittees, unless explicitly stated otherwise.

Section IV: General Meetings will be held at least once per semester according to need and production scheduling.

Section V: At least one week’s notice will be given for General Meetings in the form of posters, emails and social media posts.

Section VI: General Meetings are open to all students enrolled in the School of Performance.

Section VII: The sum of the Executive and an equal number of non-Executive members

will form a quorum for a general meeting.

Section VIII: Proxy votes will not be allowed.

Section IX: The President or the Director of Administration must prepare an agenda prior to meetings.

Section X: After each agenda point, any member present has the opportunity to speak and raise questions or opinions.

Section XI: Minutes must be taken by the Director of Administration, or anyone present.

Article VIII: SUBCOMMITTEES

Section I: The Student Equity Association

i. The Student Equity Association (SEA) is a subcommittee of the PSU that acts as a branch for BIPOC students to have a communal space

ii. A special equity committee member will be appointed by vote by the executive at the beginning of each school year to help manage the SEA

iii. The SEA will organize events and/or initiatives for BIPOC students such as monthly meet ups, talks, etc

iv. All events or initiatives must be presented and approved by the Director of Administration, Events, Equity, and the President team before being executed.

Article IX: AMENDMENTS

Section I: An amendment of the constitution can occur at any meeting as

long as there are enough members in attendance to form quorum, with the exception as follows:

Section II. An amendment for the creation of a committee requires an Executive

Meeting with quorum, with an announcement made at the next General Meeting.

Article X: TURNOVER

Section I: The executive must leave the Trust Account with at least $100.00 for the

following year’s Executive to plan Frosh and Orientation events.