1. Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics
  2. Rules of Procedure

Rules of Procedure

RULES OF PROCEDURE FOR Virginia Commonwealth University SIAM STUDENT CHAPTER

This Rules of Procedure (hereinafter called "Rules") apply to the SIAM Student Chapter called "Virginia Commonwealth University Chapter of SIAM".

The Student Chapter to which these Rules apply is formed by the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics and shall operate within the Bylaws of the parent organization.   The SIAM bylaws specify how Student Chapters are formed;  see the SIAM bylaws for details.   The Chapter shall not affiliate with any other organization without first obtaining the written approval of SIAM.  Provisions for SIAM Student (University) Chapters are contained in the SIAM Bylaws and are included in these Rules.  No provisions of these rules shall be construed so as to contradict the Bylaws of SIAM.

 

ARTICLE I

PURPOSE

The objectives of SIAM, as established in the Certificate of Incorporation, are:

  • To further the application of mathematics to industry and science.
  • To promote basic research in mathematics leading to new methods and techniques useful to industry and science.
  • To provide media for the exchange of information and ideas between mathematicians and other technical and scientific personnel.

Purposes of the Student Chapter shall be consistent with the objectives of SIAM. The purpose of the VCU SIAM Student Chapter is to:

  • Expose VCU students to SIAM, so that they learn about the variety of local/international conferences organized by SIAM, well-regarded SIAM journals, etc.
  • Promote SIAM as a professional organization for networking opportunities for students for both academic and industry professions after graduation.
  • Provide unique educational events about applied mathematics for students that they would not otherwise be exposed to in the classroom.
  • Develop a rapport among students with common interests and provide opportunities for STEM faculty to engage with students outside of the classroom in a social setting.

 

ARTICLE II

ACTIVITIES

  • Panel discussion about “The details about applying to graduate school in mathematics/statistics/engineering”.
  • Panel discussion about “Career paths with a STEM degree”.
  • Guest lectures from local professionals in industry (& academia) who use their STEM degree.
  • Workshops for gaining basic exposure to program language (e.g., Python, SAS, Matlab) not coming encountered in the classroom.

 

ARTICLE III

INSTITUTION SERVED

Student members will be recruited from Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU), including all schools and colleges (e.g., Medical College of Virginia, a part of VCU)

 

ARTICLE IV

MEMBERSHIP

Section 1.  Any student engaged or interested in mathematics or computing and their applications shall be eligible for membership in this Chapter.  SIAM encourages chapters to be interdisciplinary, including student members from multiple departments.

Student members of The SIAM Student Chapter must be a major or have a minor in the mathematical sciences (mathematics, applied mathematics, statistics, operations research); additionally, engineering majors are eligible.

Student members can be both graduate students and undergraduates.

In addition, student members must officially join SIAM and become student members (for free) if they are already not members by completing an application online, a printed copy, or having their names submitted as part of the list (by the faculty advisor). Student memberships of SIAM must be renewed every year.

Section 2.  There are two types of student members: i) student members and ii) elected officers. There are no membership fees or dues required to join the SIAM Student Chapter at VCU.

Section 3.  Chapter members shall have the privileges of SIAM membership only if they are regular or student members of SIAM.

Student Members will have the following privileges:

-option to attend SIAM Student Chapter meetings

-option to participate in planned activities organized by the student chapter; when reservations (RSVP) are required, student members will not be allowed to participate if they do NOT RSVP.

 Elected Officers will have the Student Member privileges as well as privileges outlined in ARTICLE VI.

Section 4.  All members of the chapter who are students enrolled in the sponsoring institution(s) are eligible for free student memberships in SIAM. Chapters shall encourage their members to join SIAM either online, by submitting printed membership applications, or by submitting a list of its student members to SIAM so that complimentary student membership in SIAM can be processed. Free student memberships may be renewed every year that the student remains a student member of the chapter.

Section 5.

Termination of student membership will take place upon graduation or withdrawal from the university.

 

ARTICLE V

SPONSORSHIP

Section 1.  The Sponsor is Virginia Commonwealth University.

Section 2.  The Sponsor of the Chapter shall appoint a Faculty Advisor for the Chapter. The Advisor must be a member in good standing with SIAM. In the event said Advisor relinquishes his/her position, the Sponsor shall appoint a new Advisor.  The responsibilities, rights and duties of the Faculty Advisor shall be those normally assigned to the Faculty Advisor of student organizations of the Sponsor, but in addition, the Faculty Advisor is expected to take leading role in the development of the Chapter activities consistent with the objectives of SIAM.

 

ARTICLE VI

OFFICERS

Section 1.  The Chapter shall have a President, a Vice-President, a Secretary and a Treasurer. Officers shall be chosen from Student Members of the Chapter and must be Student Members in good standing with SIAM.

Section 2.  The President shall preside at the meetings of the Chapter (and the Chapter Executive Committee (see Article VII below)).  In the absence of the President, the Vice-President shall assume the duties of the President.  In the absence of the latter, the Secretary shall assume said duties.  In addition, the President shall complete Finance Training for VCU student organizations [http://www.usca.vcu.edu/student-organizations/]

Section 3.  The Secretary shall keep a record of the affairs of the Chapter, handle correspondence, and submit an annual report of Chapter activities to the Secretary of SIAM, which report shall be suitable for publication in SIAM News or its equivalent.

Section 4.  The Treasurer shall receive and take custody of Chapter funds, and shall submit an annual Treasurer's Report and other financial reports, as requested, to the Treasurer of SIAM.  The annual Treasurer's Report shall be prepared as of the end of the academic year and shall be transmitted to the Treasurer of SIAM by no later than 30 days following the end of the academic year.  In addition, the Treasurer shall complete Finance Training for VCU student organizations [http://www.usca.vcu.edu/student-organizations/]

Section 5.  The terms of Chapter officers are not to exceed two years, re-election of an officer for an additional term is permissible but officers cannot serve more than 2 terms.  Officers have the option to serve for either 1 or 2 years.  In the event that an officer resigns or has membership terminated (see ARTICLE IV, section 5), a new officer will be elected in a special election to be held as soon as possible.  Terms for the 4 officers will be staggered as best as possible, with the President and Secretary elected in one year and the Vice-President and Treasurer elected in the following year.

Newly elected officers must re-register with VCU as a student organization [http://www.usca.vcu.edu/student-organizations/] as soon as possible with the new officers.

 

ARTICLE VII

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

Section 1.  The Executive Committee consists of the 4 elected student members and the faculty advisor, with 5 total members.

Section 2.  Any vacancies on the Executive Committee will be filled with newly elected student members (see ARTICLE IV, Section 5).

 

ARTICLE VIII

OTHER COMMITTEES

Section 1.  Student members interested in holding office will notify the faculty advisor, and an election by all of the current student members will determine who is elected (at a meeting or by proxy). In the event that more than 4 students are interested in any one particular office, an application to be a nominee consisting of a statement of interest will be submitted to the current Executive Committee who will select the 4 nominees.

 

ARTICLE X

MEETINGS

Section 1.  There shall be at least 2 meetings per year and 1 per semester.  At a minimum, the following will be discussed at the organizational meetings:

  • Planned activities for the semester
  • Action items for students and/or faculty to organize the activities
  • Election of new officers for those who’s terms expire the following semester (if any)

There may be additional member meetings as required and at the discretion of the Elected Officers and the Faculty Advisor.

Section 2.  The Chapter shall conduct a business meeting once per year during the month of September.  Other business meetings may be called by the President or the Treasurer on two weeks notice.

[Requests for funds should be submitted by September 30 of the academic year, see http://www.siam.org/students/chapters/funding.php]

The elected officers will discuss required funds for proposed activity and budget, with oversight and input provided by the Faculty Advisor.

 

ARTICLE XI

CHAPTER FUNDS

Section 1.  Currently, there are no student dues to join but this is subject to change via Amendments (ARTICLE XII).

Section 2.  N/A

Section 3.  Section 3.  The Chapter shall deposit all funds into an account at a financial institution under the Chapter’s name or place them into an account at their university.  All unused funds remain the property of SIAM [see Article XIII,Section 3.]

Section 4.  The Treasurer shall maintain books of account that show income and expense items for all activities and balances for all accounts of the Chapter.

Section 5.  The Chapter may request a grant or loan from the Treasurer of SIAM under the provision of Article XII, Chapter 8 of the Bylaws of SIAM.  Such requests shall be made by submission of “Request for Funding” form to SIAM and include a current financial statement for the Chapter and a proposed budget for the requested funds.

Section 6.  Other than seeking funds from the sponsoring institutions of the chapter, no officers or member of the Chapter may apply for a grant to support the Chapter activities or enter into any contract to support such activities or provide services, without approval of the President and the Treasurer of SIAM or the Executive Director acting on behalf of the Treasurer.

 

ARTICLE XII

AMENDMENTS

Section 1.  These Rules may be altered or amended with the approval of the SIAM Board of Trustees.  Submission to the board of proposal alterations or amendments shall be made only after approval by majority vote of members of the Chapter present (or represented by proxy) at a scheduled meeting.

 

ARTICLE XIII

TERMINATION OF THE CHAPTER

Section 1.  A Chapter may terminate itself by the unanimous vote of the members of the Chapter present (or represented by proxy) at a scheduled meeting, provided that notice of the proposed termination and the meeting at which it is to be considered has been given to all Chapter members at least 30 days in advance.

Section 2.  A Chapter may be terminated by the board if there has been no Chapter activity for one year.

Section 3.  In the event a Chapter terminates, the funds to which it has legal title shall revert to the account of SIAM

Approved, SIAM Board of Trustees, December 3, 1977
Revised, SIAM Board of Trustees, June 21, 2003
Revised, SIAM Board of Trustees, July 12, 2013
Revised November 18, 2013
Revised, SIAM Board of Trustees, July 12, 2014