Constitution

Organization Name

The name of this organization shall be MCIT Online Student Association (MOSA) at the University of Pennsylvania.

Purpose

The purposes of MCIT Online Student Association (MOSA) are:

• Develop and foster the online student community at the University of Pennsylvania, organize various events for students including Entrepreneurship/Jobs; Hacking/Learning; and Social events
• Strengthen and empower the MCIT Online student community at the University of Pennsylvania
  • Enable online students to take advantage of all the resources that the University of Pennsylvania has to offer.
  • Foster a productive feedback culture between students and staff; act as a liaison for online students towards administration and faculty

Membership

Membership in the MCIT Online Student Association (MOSA) shall be open to the students regularly-enrolled at the MCIT Online program at the University of Pennsylvania.
MOSA is registered as MCIT Online Student Association (MOSA) under ACADEMIC & PRE-PROFESSIONAL section of Groups Online (GO) Penn system.

Note on Attendance

All meetings, events, and activities associated with MOSA shall be virtual unless otherwise stated.

Executive Board

The Officers of the Organization shall consist of two Co-Presidents, a Secretary, a Treasurer and a Director of Operations who shall constitute the Executive Board of the Organization.

Standing Committees

The organization shall have the following standing committees:

• Education and Learning:  The Education and Learning Committee is devoted to spearheading activities that bring educational value to all MOSA members. Events will be focused on applying knowledge gained from the MCIT program in a practical context, that will help further develop students’ technical skill-set outside the classroom. Additionally, the committee will seek to create programs that aid students in learning the skills necessary for successful careers in science and technology.
• Entrepreneurship and Jobs: The Entrepreneurship & Jobs Committee’s purpose is to support each MCIT Online student to find career and job success, by: creating a community to discuss, encourage, and pursue entrepreneurial endeavors; facilitating communication of job leads and listings; exposing MCIT Online students to a wide range of technical fields and career directions; and providing opportunities to develop and foster connections in industry.
• Fellowship (Social): The purpose of the Fellowship (Social) Committee is to organize and promote social events, activities, and programs to strengthen the community of the MOSA and MCIT Online students. The Committee plans to provide programs such as: mentorship for incoming and current students; biannual in-person social events; community and cultural events; and facilitation of extracurricular collaboration and projects.
• Marketing and Outreach: The purpose of the Marketing and Outreach Committee is to market the MCIT Online programs to the wider student body and to cultivate useful relationships with external sponsors and corporate partners. It implements marketing strategies to engage and communicate with its audience by maintaining its owned channels and managing all marketing communications of MOSA events.
• General Representative
  • Cohort Representative (1 from each cohort): MOSA General Representatives represent their cohort and work to help MOSA carry out its mission and support the Executive Board, by: listening to and liaising with the student body and individual cohorts; working together with the Secretary to liaise with university administration and work towards resolutions and improvements; and creating events designed to build community within and amongst cohorts to reach the entire student body.
  • Starting Spring 2021, this position ceased to exist.
• Gender Diversity in Computation (GDC) aims to promote leadership, community, and wellness among women and other gender minorities in computer science. GDC will work to support the success of all members of the gender spectrum who feel that the term “gender minority in computation” applies to them. GDC is intended to be a haven for underrepresented genders in CS and tech to organize, network, brainstorm, and voice their needs.
• Bridging the Ethnic Divide in Tech (BEDT) is focused towards empowering racial minorities within the tech industry. BEDT aims to be a voice for Hispanic/Black/other underrepresented minorities and learn how they believe they will succeed in the tech industry.  BEDT will strive to place their members in leadership roles in order to have racial minority groups learn leadership skills which will help them succeed after the MCIT program.
• Student Support Committee (SSC) recognizes that the emotional experience of learning is a critical factor in academic success. Its purpose is to provide resources, foster peer connections and organize educational events to support the holistic wellbeing of MCIT Online students. It aims to promote stress resilience, emotional intelligence and foster a sense of community belonging while normalizing help-seeking. It promotes and improves awareness of University resources, advocates for emotionally-aware course instruction, facilitates peer support, and hosts educational events on emotional wellbeing topics tailored to the online learning experience.

Advisor

The organization shall appoint at least one faculty member of the University of Pennsylvania to serve as an advisor to this organization.

• The faculty advisor shall serve as a mentor to the executive board and the members of the organization
• Provide support and guidance to officers and members of a student organization
• Assist the association in defining its goals, holding to its purpose
• The Advisor shall participate in the association meetings, as needed. Actively involvement in (some) hackathon events, attend workshops as judge or mentor
• The Advisor shall assist the organization in getting access to various Penn resources, needed by the student association to achieve its mission.
• Advisor shall serve on an academic year basis or until their successor has been selected.

By-Laws

I. MEETINGS

1. Executive Board meetings shall be held at least once every two months, virtually, during the academic year. Additional ad hoc meetings can be called upon on a need basis.
2. Attendance at Executive Board meetings is mandatory for all of its members. Accordingly, the meetings shall be scheduled at a time convenient to all members.
3. General Meetings of the Organization shall be held at least once per semester, virtually, at such time and place to be determined by the members of the Executive Board.
4. General Meetings are open to all members of MOSA. Any student who is a member of the MOSA may participate in discussion. Members shall be notified at the beginning of the semester of the regularly scheduled meeting dates. The meeting schedule will be published on the MOSA events calendar.
5. Any resolution adopted by the Executive Board shall be posted to the MOSA website as soon as practical. Additionally, minutes from the Executive Board meetings shall also be posted to the MOSA website as soon as practical after approval.
6. A quorum shall exist at any Meeting of the Membership where at least 50% of the Members are in attendance.
7. Actions requiring a vote may only take place when a quorum is present. The Secretary shall record the votes and announce the outcome.

II. OFFICERS AND DUTIES

1. Co-President
   1. The Executive Board shall include two Co-Presidents who shall lead the MOSA membership and Executive Board on all matters. 
   2. The Co-President shall be the primary MOSA representative to all the School and University administration and personnel, and shall attend all meetings with such personnel as necessary and appropriate. 
   3. The Co-President, in conjunction with the Executive Board, shall devise and implement annual goals and strategies for fulfilling the MOSA mission. 
   4. The Co-President shall organize, motivate, and empower student volunteers in support of all MOSA projects, initiatives, and events. 
   5. The Co-President shall delegate such responsibilities and duties as appropriate to the other Executive Board members, including but not limited to maintaining a MOSA website and email account and taking minutes at each Executive Board meeting.
   6. Co-President shall have the authority to establish ad hoc committees as may be necessary from time to time to carry out the work of the organization.
   7. The Co-President shall appoint the chairpersons and members of all committees.
2. Treasurer
   1. The Treasurer shall keep a current record of all financial transactions.
   2. At the beginning of each semester, the Treasurer shall present to the Executive Board a final, detailed budget expenditure report for the prior semester. This report shall remain on file with the Executive Board for one year and shall be available for review by any member of the MOSA membership.
3. Secretary 
   1. The Executive Board shall include a Secretary who shall record the minutes of all Executive Board meetings and report those minutes to the body at the next meeting. 
   2. The Secretary shall monitor attendance at all Executive Board meetings, certify quorum, and take roll-call votes as needed. 
   3. The Secretary shall maintain current information on the MOSA website, including current contact information for all members of the Executive Board and upcoming MOSA events and programs.
4. Director of Operations
   1. The Director of Operations shall oversee strategies and programs from all current Standing Committees under MOSA.
   2. The Director of Operations may also hold the position and roles of Education and Learning Director or Entrepreneurship and Jobs Director, depending on need.
5. Education and Learning Director
   1. The Education and Learning Director shall devise and implement annual goals and strategies for fulfilling the MOSA mission of organizing various education and learning events. Specifically, it shall be the responsibility of the Education and Learning Director to oversee all education and learning events organized by MOSA. 
   2. The Education and Learning Director shall create and maintain budget breakdown for all education and learning events for each semester and summer. 
   3. The Education and Learning Director shall maintain the MOSA website, manage event announcements and any business relating to education and learning events.
6. Entrepreneurship and Jobs Director
   1. The Entrepreneurship and Jobs Director shall devise and implement annual goals and strategies for fulfilling the MOSA mission of organizing social events. Specifically, it shall be the responsibility of the Entrepreneurship and Jobs director to organize and lead entrepreneurship/internship and jobs-related events organized by MOSA. 
   2. The Entrepreneurship and Jobs Director shall create and maintain budget breakdown for all entrepreneurship and jobs events. 
   3. The Entrepreneurship and Jobs Director shall maintain the MOSA website, manage event announcement and any business relating to entrepreneurship and jobs events.
7. Webmaster 
   1. The Webmaster shall be responsible for the public image of the club as it relates to Internet-based mediums like a website or social media. 
   2. The Webmaster shall create, update, and maintain the MOSA website where appropriate, and shall manage the social media accounts for the club.
8. Marketing and Outreach Director 
   1. The Marketing and Outreach Director shall devise and implement strategies for marketing of MOSA events and expand the outreach to the larger student community. 
   2. The Marketing and Outreach Director shall create and maintain budget breakdown for all marketing expenses. 
   3. The Marketing and Outreach Director shall maintain MOSA website, manage marketing announcements and any business relating to marketing and outreach events.
   4. The Marketing and Outreach Director shall handle relationships with external sponsors and corporate partnerships, as needed.
9. Fellowship (Social) Director 
   1. The Fellowship Director shall devise and implement annual goals and strategies for fulfilling the MOSA mission of organizing social events. Specifically, it shall be the responsibility of the Fellowship Director to oversee all social and cultural events organized by MOSA. 
   2. The Fellowship Director shall maintain MOSA website, MOSA social media accounts and any business relating to social events. 
10. General Representatives
    1. General Representatives should represent their cohort/program and work to help MOSA carry out its mission and support the Executive Board. 
    2. General Representatives work with other MOSA standing committees to assist/organize events considering the needs of their respective cohort.  
    3. General Representatives are expected to lead at least one MOSA event per calendar year. 
11. Gender Diversity in Computation (GDC) Director
    1. Gender Diversity in Computation (GDC) Director will collaborate with standing MOSA committees to bring diverse voices to all events, such as salary negotiation workshops, career mentorship programs, and technical skill development activities.
    2. The GDC Director shall create and maintain budget breakdown for all committee events for each semester and summer. 
    3. The GDC Director shall maintain the MOSA website, manage event announcements and any business relating to student support committee’s events.
12. Bridging the Ethnic Divide in Tech (BEDT) Director 
    1. Bridging the Ethnic Divide in Tech (BEDT) Director will collaborate with standing MOSA committees, holding events specially geared for racial minorities, and salary workshops aimed at racial minorities (as well as other activities). 
    2. The BEDT Director shall create and maintain budget breakdown for all committee events for each semester and summer. 
    3. The BEDT Director shall maintain the MOSA website, manage event announcements and any business relating to student support committee’s events.
13. Student Support Committee (SSC) Director
    1. The Student Support Committee Director shall devise and implement annual goals and strategies for fulfilling the MOSA mission of organizing various events focused at enhancing the emotional well-being of the MCIT Online  student community and MOSA members. Specifically, it shall be the responsibility of the Student Support Committee Director to oversee all student support committee’s events organized by MOSA. 
    2. The Student Support Committee Director shall create and maintain budget breakdown for all committee events for each semester and summer. 
    3. The Student Support Committee Director shall maintain the MOSA website, manage event announcements and any business relating to student support committee’s events.

III. VOTING

1. The voting would be limited to only MOSA members.
2. Each member shall have one vote.
3. All motions require an affirmative vote of a simple majority of the members to be effective.
4. The current executive board members would not participate in general voting. However, in the event of a tie for any given position – executive board members would anonymously vote to elect a winner for the position.

IV. SELECTION OF EXECUTIVE BOARD MEMBERS

1. All MCIT students of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences are eligible to run for the position of Co-President, Treasurer, Secretary and Director of Operations of the organization. 
2. The candidates applying for the executive board positions, should commit to serve for the applied position for a complete term (1 year).
3. Elections are held annually, at the end of fall semester and shall take place in an online setting. 
4. Candidates may be nominated to run for a position up until the beginning of the election for that Executive Board position. Self-nominations are accepted. 
5. If any position becomes vacant as a result of resignation, ineligibility or recall, the position shall be filled by an election held at the next regular meeting where the vacancy was announced. Nominations may be made at the meeting where the vacancy is announced, and nominations may also be accepted from MOSA members. The Co-President may appoint an interim officer to fill the vacancy.

V. SELECTION OF COMMITTEE DIRECTORS

1. All MCIT students of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences are eligible to run for the position of Directors for the MOSA sub-committees.
2. Committee Directors elections are held annually, at the end of fall semester and shall take place in an online setting. 
3. Applications will be required to apply for the position by completing the application form on MOSA website. 
4. The Executive Board will review the candidate applications and elect directors for the various committees.
5. The term for committee directors is 1 year, following which they would need to reapply and go through the selection process
6. If any position becomes vacant as a result of resignation, ineligibility or recall, the position  shall be filled by the above mentioned selection process.

VI. SELECTION OF COMMITTEE MEMBERS

1. All MCIT students of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences are eligible to become members of MOSA sub-committees.
2. Applications will be required to apply for the position by completing the application form on MOSA website. 
3. The respective committee co-directors will review the candidate applications and select members for their committees.
4. The term for committee members 1 semester, following which the members would need to reapply and go through the selection process.

AMENDMENTS

1. The Executive Board shall review and make recommendations on all bylaw revisions as the need arises.
2. Bylaw amendments require approval by two-thirds of the voting members present at a regular meeting. The amendment shall be effective immediately unless otherwise stipulated in the amendment.
3. A copy of any amendments to these bylaws shall be posted to the MOSA website.