Chapter Constitution

Article I-Name 

1. The official name of this Organization shall be the Asian American Medical Students Association, hereafter abbreviated as AAMSA.

2. AAMSA is an official Chapter of the Asian Pacific American Medical Students Association (APAMSA).

Article II-Purpose

This Organization shall be guided by the following general principles: 

1. To represent Asian Pacific Americans as a group within the health care community at the Kansas University Medical Center (KUMC).

2. To be a resource for information on health matters related to Asian Pacific Americans. 

3. To provide a forum for discussion of issues concerning Asian Pacific Americans in health care  

4. To provide dialogue between students and faculty at KUMC.  

5. AAMSA works with other campus organizations to accomplish the aforementioned goals. 

Article III--General Nature of the Constitution

1. AAMSA is established as an Organization by this Constitution.

2. AAMSA shall conduct itself according to the provisions of this Constitution, the regulations of the University of Kansas, the regulations of the APAMSA, and the laws of the United States.

Article IV-Membership

1. The General Membership of AAMSA shall consist of students and faculty who are affiliated with KUMC and who are interested in issues related to Asian Pacific Americans and health care.

2. AAMSA will not deny membership on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, national or ethnic origin, sexual orientation, or physical disability.

Article V-Officers

1. AAMSA shall have five permanent officers: a President, an Internal Vice President, an External Vice President, Secretary, and a Treasurer.

2. The permanent officers shall hold equal power and responsibility while maintaining specific and separate duties outlined below:

a) The President will direct AAMSA towards the specific goals highlighted Article II of the Constitution.  Moreover, the course of the organization will be set by the President in order to better serve Asian American concerns, the community, and the KUMC population. 

b) The Internal Vice President will be responsible for the internal organization of AAMSA, coordinating the activities between the separate entities.  Moreover, programming of speakers and the coordination of events will be an integral part of the position.  AAMSA strives to bring knowledgeable, enlightening, and thoughtful speakers to KUMC to highlight Asian American concerns, issues, and pertinent current topics.  The Vice President will be the motivating force behind this action.  

c) The External Vice President will be responsible for working towards completion of the affiliation of AAMSA with the national group of APAMSA.  The task at hand involves drafting a charter for the group, seeking and completing affiliation protocols, and updating AAMSA on national events.  Moreover, the External Vice President will be responsible for the coordination of a party of delegates to the annual APAMSA convention.

d) The Secretary will be responsible for the dictation and dissemination of the minutes at every meeting.  Moreover, further duties will include scheduling meetings and notification of members, maintain a list of student membership and contact information, and create/upkeep an AAMSA listserv and email account.

e) The Treasurer will be responsible for the upkeep of the AAMSA Student Account that is setup through the Executive Vice Chancellor's office and all off-campus financial accounts.  In addition, the formation of a budget, application of funding through various sources such as the Student Governing Council (SGC) and the Medical Student Assembly (MSA), and reimbursements will be included in the duties.  The Treasurer will also collect group dues, if deemed necessary.   

f) In addition, the following responsibilities shall be shared equally among the permanent officers: delegating temporary projects and responsibilities, coordinating votes on special issues/events, holding final accountability for the functioning of the Organization.

3. To become eligible for the office of President, a member must be a student who is currently matriculated in the School of Medicine at the University of Kansas. 

4. The permanent officers shall be selected in a general election to be held annually during the Spring Semester; other officers shall be selected annually during the Fall Semester. 

5. The permanent officers shall serve for terms of one year.

6. No person may hold more than one office at a time.

Article VI--Faculty Advisor

1. AAMSA shall have one Faculty Advisor. 

2. The Faculty Advisor shall be consulted regularly to discuss and evaluate ongoing and future activities of the Organization. 

3. The selection of the Faculty Advisor shall be done in the following manner: 

a) The permanent officers may nominate any member of the faculty of the School of Medicine.

b) Permanent officers must be properly notified of the nomination and the time and place of the confirmation vote. 

c) Confirmation of the nominee must be by a two-thirds vote of those board members present. 

4. The Faculty Advisor may be replaced at any time in the manner outlined above, but otherwise may serve a term of indefinite length until he/she chooses to step down. 

Article VII--General Meetings 

General Meetings shall be held at least once every four weeks during the academic year for the purpose of determining policies, schedules, and other official business and should be publicized appropriately. 

Article VIII-Voting 

The power to vote shall be accorded to members who fulfill one of the following criteria: 

1. All people present at the time of the meeting.  In the event of a tie, current board members may vote to break the tie.  In the event of a tie with the current board members, the faculty advisor will make the final decision. 

Article IX-Amendments 

Once ratified, the Constitution may be amended only in the following manner: 

1. Amendments to the Constitution must be proposed by a member at a General Meeting. 

2. All people present must be properly notified of the proposed amendment and the time and place for the scheduled vote. 

3. Final approval of the proposed amendment must be by a two-thirds vote of those present. 

Article X-Ratification 

This Constitution was ratified by a unanimous vote of those present on this eleventh day of October, 2001.

This Constitution was ratified by John Weroha, Phong Hu, Jeff Woo, Hyon Cho, Nancy Chou, Sounida Douangpraseuth, Jamie Woo, and Marsha Lobmeyer.