Article I: Name and Purpose

Sec 1: The name of this University Committee shall be the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL of BROWN UNIVERSITY, hereafter referred to as the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL.

Sec 2: The purpose of this organization shall be to serve as an advisory board to the Office of Residential Life regarding issues of Residential Living at Brown University. These issues shall include, but not be limited to, Program Houses, the Housing Lottery, and Policy.

Sec 3: This organization shall make recommendations to the Office of Residential Life. These recommendations shall be non-binding on the Office of Residential Life.

Article II: Membership

Sec 1: The membership of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL will consist of fifteen students who are currently enrolled at Brown University.

Sec 2: The appointments process shall be as follows:

(a) Members shall be appointed by the UNDERGRADUATE COUNCIL of STUDENTS of Brown University. The members shall be selected in accordance with their regular procedures for appointing students to University Committees.

(b) In the event that a vacancy or vacancies shall occur on the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL due to members resigning or being removed, the UNDERGRADUATE COUNCIL of STUDENTS shall appoint members in accordance with their regular procedures for filling vacancies on University Committees.

(c) In the event that a vacancy or vacancies shall occur on the RESIDENTIAL COUCNIL due to the UNDERGRADUATE COUNCIL of STUDENTS appointing fewer than fifteen members, the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL may, at the discretion of the Chair, solicit applications from the Brown Community and select applicant(s) to fill said vacancy or vacancies by two-thirds (2/3) vote of the membership.

Sec 3: Members shall take office at the last regularly scheduled meeting of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL of the academic year in which they are appointed and shall serve until the last regularly scheduled meeting of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL of the following academic year, inclusive.

Sec 4: Each member shall make the utmost attempt to attend every meeting. If a member misses more than two meetings in a semester without notifying and receiving permission from the Chair, he or she shall be dismissed automatically from the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL.

Sec 5: Members may be subject to removal from the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL as per Article II, Section D of the Constitution of the Undergraduate Council of Students.

Sec 6: Non-voting members:

(a) In addition to the fifteen regular members, the chair of the Campus Life Committee of the UNDERGRADUATE COUNCIL OF STUDENTS shall serve as an ex officio, non-voting member of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL.

(b) In addition to the fifteen regular members, newly appointed members of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL who have not yet taken office (as per Article II, Sec 3) may serve as non-voting members of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL.

(c) Non-voting members shall be expected to take part in all activities of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL, but shall be barred from voting, seconding motions, or being an officer of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL.

Article III: Officers

Sec 1: The officers of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL shall be a Chairperson, a Secretary, and three Subcommittee Chairs. The Subcommittee Chairs shall be the Program House Chair, Housing Lottery Chair, and Policy Chair.

Article IV: Election of Officers

Sec 1: Elections shall take place at the last meeting of the academic year, which shall be attended by both incoming and outgoing members. Only incoming members may vote for the officers.

Sec 2: Each officer shall hold office for one academic year. Elected officers shall assume office immediately upon election.

Sec 3: The offices shall be elected in the following order: Chairperson, Program House Chair, Housing Lottery Chair, Policy Chair, and Secretary.

Sec 4: Any member may be nominated for an Office. No member may hold more than one office.

Sec 5: All elections shall be by a majority vote of the members of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL.

Sec 6: If an office becomes vacant, that office will be filled by a Special Election at the next regular RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL meeting. The procedure shall be the same as that for regular elections. The new officer shall hold office until the end of the current academic year.

Article V: Duties of the Officers

Sec 1: The Chairperson

(a) The Chairperson shall be responsible for the running of meetings. The Chairperson shall follow the procedures outlined in these By-Laws.

(b) The Chairperson shall be the designated contact person for the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL. The Chairperson shall remain in contact with the Undergraduate Council of Students, the administration, and shall be the contact for any news organizations that seek information. All resolutions of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL shall be disseminated by the Chairperson. This does not preclude other members of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL from sharing their views on specific resolution after decisions have been made public by the Chairperson.

(c) The Chairperson does not vote on issues except in the event of a tied vote.

Sec 2: The Secretary

(a) The Secretary shall take accurate minutes of each meeting. The Secretary will be responsible for insuring that a copy of those minutes are filed in the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL file cabinet in the office of Residential Life, and that a copy of the same minutes is posted on the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL website. The Secretary shall read these same minutes at the beginning of each RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL meeting.

(b) The Secretary shall be responsible for keeping track of attendance at meetings. The Secretary shall notify any member who has been absent.

(c) It shall be the Secretary's responsibility to excuse members from attendance at specific RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL meetings, provided that they have a valid excuse.

(d) The secretary shall notify the Chairperson of members who have indicated that they will be absent for a specific RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL meeting.

Sec 3: The Program House Chair

(a) The Program House Chair shall oversee the responsibilities of the members with regard to Program Houses. The Program House Chair shall assign each program house to a member of RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL to act as their liaison.

(b) In the event of the formation of a committee to deal with specific Program House issues, the Program House Chair shall chair that committee.

(c) It shall be the responsibility of the Program House Chair to oversee the process of Spring and Fall Review.

Sec 4: The Housing Lottery Chair

(a) The Housing Lottery Chair shall oversee the housing lottery process. The responsibilities of the Housing Lottery Chair shall include: developing the lottery system, overseeing outreaches designed to educate the members of the Brown Community about the housing lottery, maintaining the housing lottery website, and overseeing the lottery itself.

Sec 5: The Policy Chair

(a) The Policy Chair shall be responsible for bringing new policy to the attention of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL.

(b) When specific policy changes are suggested, the Policy Chair shall oversee a committee to investigate, and if need be, implement the changes.

Article VI: Regular Meetings of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL

Sec 1: The RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL shall meet every Tuesday during the academic year while classes are in session. Meetings shall run from noon until 1 o'clock P.M.

Sec 2: Regular meetings of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL may be canceled upon the vote of 2/3 of the members of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL.

Article VII: Special Meetings of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL

Sec 1: Upon the request of 2/3 of the members of RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL, special meetings of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL may be called.

Article VIII: Program House Reviews

Sec 1: It shall be the responsibility of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL to conduct a yearly review of every program house.

Sec 2: The RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL shall follow the guidelines outlined in the PROGRAM HOSUE GUIDELINES in conducting this review.

Sec 3: During the first semester, the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL shall conduct a review of program houses. Program houses which the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL has questions regarding shall be invited to attend this review. The purpose of this review shall be to assist houses which have had difficulties over the past year.

Sec 4: Program House reviews shall be closed, excepting for the attendance of individual Program Houses during the information session of their review. Discussion sessions on each Program House shall be closed, whether during an annual review or during a regular RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL meeting, to all non-members for the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL, including the Deans of Residential Life.

Article IX: Procedure of Meetings

Sec 1: The order of meetings shall be as follows

1. Attendance
2. Minutes of the Last Meeting
3. Committee Chair Reports
4. Businesss

Sec 2: ON all questions of parliamentary procedure in which the written or unwritten laws of the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL are not involved, Robert's Rules of Order shall govern to the extent enforced by the Chairperson.

Sec 3: Meetings are open to all interested members of the Brown Community. A meeting may be closed if sensitive information is to be discussed. In order for this to occur, a member must move that a meeting be closed. A majority vote is required to close the meeting. If a meeting is closed, all visitors must leave, excluding the members of RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL, the Deans of Residential Life, and those persons bringing forth information pertaining to the situation. Those persons bringing forth information must leave after they have completed their report.

Sec 4: The RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL shall strive to uphold the PROGRAM HOUSE GUIDELINES and shall interpret them to the best of their ability. These guidelines shall be binding upon the RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL.

Sec 5: The RESIDENTIAL COUNCIL will seek to examine precedent and use those findings in its decisions.