Phi Beta Kappa
Pi of Massachusetts
College of the Holy Cross
Article I. Officers and Organization
Section 1.
The membership of the chapter includes:
1. Charter Members: the Phi Beta Kappa members of the Faculty to whom the charter of the chapter was granted;
2. Associate Members: members of other chapters who became members of the Faculty or officers of the Administration, or who are otherwise employed by the College of the Holy Cross;
3. Members in Course: all members of the chapter elected as undergraduates;
4. Alumni Members: graduates of the College of the Holy Cross elected in recognition of scholarly achievement after graduation;
5. Honorary Members: non-graduates of the College of the Holy Cross chosen on the same basis as alumni members.
Section 2.
Members of the chapter who have Faculty status at the College of the Holy Cross shall constitute the resident membership, together with members in course on campus. Other members of the chapter shall have full membership privileges, except the privilege of voting on candidates for election to membership and on amendments to these by-laws.
Section 3.
The officers of the chapter shall be a President, a Vice-President-Historian, and a Secretary-Treasurer. Officers shall be elected by majority vote at the annual meeting. The President and Vice-President shall be ineligible for election to more than two consecutive terms in the same office.
Section 4.
The Executive Committee shall be composed of the retiring President, the elected officers, and one student member appointed by the President. The Executive Committee shall have authority to conduct the affairs of the chapter between meetings, subject to instruction from the chapter and save as otherwise specifically provided in these by-laws.
Section 5.
The Committee on Members in Course shall be composed of the three current officers of the chapter and three chapter members appointed by the President. One member of the committee shall be appointed by the President each year for a term of three years, except that the first year one member shall be appointed for one year, one for two years, and one for three years. Membership on the committee shall be limited to Faculty members of the chapter who are giving instruction in liberal studies as defined in the chapter constitution and, if possible, so chosen as to give equitable representation to the humanities, the social studies, and the sciences.
Section 6.
The Committee on Alumni and Honorary Members shall be responsible for considering persons proposed for election to alumni and honorary membership. It shall be composed of the same membership as that of the Committee on Members in Course.
Section 7.
The retiring President shall appoint annually a Nominating Committee which shall present to all resident members at least one week before the annual meeting nominations for officers for the ensuing year. Other nominations may be made from the floor.
Section 8.
An Auditor shall be appointed annually by the President to review the accounts of the Secretary-Treasurer and make a report at the annual meeting. The Auditor shall not be a concurrent member of the Executive Committee.
Section 9.
Special committees shall be appointed by the President or the Executive Committee.
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Article II. Meetings
Section 1.
Arrangements for the annual meeting and for other regular meetings shall be made by the Executive Committee. At the annual meeting, the normal order of business shall be as follows:
1. Call to order
2. Reading of the minutes of the preceding annual and of intervening business meetings
3. Report of the Executive Committee
4. Report of the Secretary-Treasurer
5. Reports of other Committees
6. Unfinished business
7. Consideration of communications from the United Chapters
8. New business
9. Election of officers
10. Adjournment
Section 2.
Special meetings may be called by the President or the Executive Committee, and shall be called upon written request of four members. At the special meeting no business shall be transacted other than that stated in the notice of the meeting.
Section 3.
Written notice of meetings shall be sent by the Secretary to all resident members of the chapter at least one week in advance of the meeting. The notice shall state the purpose of the meeting and the business to be considered.
Section 4.
A quorum at meetings shall consist of one-third of the resident membership.
Section 5.
Any vote shall be by secret ballot if requested by one or more of the members present.
Section 6.
Locally resident members of other chapters who do not qualify for Associate Membership as defined in Article I, Section 1, of these by-laws may be invited to any meeting, but they shall not participate in the transaction of business.
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Article III. Election and Admission of New Members
Section 1.
Members in course shall be elected primarily on the basis of broad cultural interests, scholarly achievement, and good character. Juniors and seniors who are enrolled in the College of the Holy Cross and are candidates for the Bachelor of Arts degree shall be eligible for consideration, if their undergraduate record fulfills the following minimum requirements:
1. The candidate shall be majoring in liberal subjects and studies and be taking a course program expected to include not less than a proportion of three-fourths of liberal studies;
2. The candidate shall have completed at least three full semesters of work (twelve semester courses) in residence at the College of the Holy Cross and be fully registered for the fourth semester;
3. For election as a junior, the candidate shall have completed at least twenty semester courses of college work. The calibre of the work should be of exceptional distinction, including, for all graded work, a quality point ratio of at least 3.80. The minimum quality point ratio for election as a senior shall ordinarily be 3.50.
4. Grades earned in applied or professional work shall not be counted in computing the quality point ratio for purposes of eligibility. Applied and professional work shall be understood to include all training intended to develop skill or vocational techniques in such fields as business administration, education, engineering, home economics, journalism, library science, military and air science, physical education, radio, secretarial science, speech, and applied art and music;
5. Weight shall be given to the breadth of the program of each candidate as shown by the number and variety of courses taken outside the candidate's major. Weight shall also be given to balance and proportion in the candidate's degree program as a whole;
6. Candidates shall have demonstrated a knowledge of mathematics and of a foreign language appropriate for liberal education.
Section 2.
The number of undergraduates elected from any class, including those who may be elected as juniors, shall ordinarily not exceed ten percent, and in no case shall exceed fifteen percent, of the undergraduates expected to receive the liberal bachelor's degree in that class. A maximum of one-fifth of the members elected from any class may be elected on the basis of junior standing.
Section 3.
Election to membership in Phi Beta Kappa is wholly within the discretion of the members of this chapter, subject only to the limitations imposed by the Constitution and By-Laws of the chapter, and no right to election shall adhere to any student solely by reason of fulfillment of the minimum quality point ratio for election to membership in course.
Section 4.
Nominations for membership in course shall be made by the Committee on Members in Course. Election shall be by secret ballot and shall require an affirmative vote by three-fourths of the resident members present. Candidates may also be nominated from the floor; but in such cases an affirmative vote by four-fifths of the resident members present shall be required for election. Elections shall continue until ended by the passage of a motion from the floor or until a quota, determined in advance of the balloting, has been reached.
Section 5.
Nominations for election to alumni membership shall be referred to the Committee on Alumni and Honorary members. No nomination for alumni membership shall be brought before the chapter for action unless favorably reported by the committee. The committee shall be guided by criteria defined in Article III, Sections 5 and 6, of the chapter constitution, and committee recommendations shall include a written statement of the qualifications of each nominee. Election shall be by secret ballot; two negative votes shall serve to reject. No more than two alumni members may be elected in any year, nor more than four in any triennium.
Section 6.
Procedures for the nomination and election of honorary members shall be the same as for alumni members, except that one negative vote shall serve to reject. A statement of the qualifications of each candidate elected to honorary membership shall be sent to the Secretary of the United Chapters, as provided in Article III, Section 10, of the chapter constitution. No graduate of another institution having a chapter of Phi Beta Kappa shall be recommended for election without the consent of that chapter. No more than two honorary members may be elected in any triennium.
Section 7.
Provision shall normally be made for initiating in person new members in course. In its discretion, the Executive Committee may waive the initiation of an alumni member or honorary member.
Section 8.
Initiation shall take place at a meeting subsequent to election. The name of a member-elect who shall have been unable to attend the first initiation after election shall be continued on a waiting list. If such person shall have fulfilled all other conditions of membership the fact of the member's election may be published. Where necessary, initiation may be effected by another chapter at the request of Pi of Massachusetts, or by the Executive Committee.
Section 9.
Since good moral character is a qualification for membership, any member of the chapter found, after given due notice and an opportunity to be heard, to have lost this qualification may be expelled from Phi Beta Kappa by a four-fifths vote of the resident members present at the annual meeting. The name of any member so expelled shall be reported to the Secretary of the United Chapters, with a statement of the grounds for the action.
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Article IV. Fees
Section 1.
The initiation fee for members in course and for alumni members shall be determined by the Executive Committee. It shall cover, as a minimum, a ticket to the initiation banquet, the registration and Council Fund payments to the United Chapters, and the cost of the key. The chapter shall be responsible for registration and Council Fund payments for honorary members, who shall pay no initiation fee.
Section 2.
Payment of initiation fee shall be regarded as formal acceptance of election and shall be made before initiation.
Section 3.
Members in course and alumni members shall be requested to take out an initial subscription to The American Scholar at the special introductory rate for new members.
Section 4.
Resident members of the chapter, exclusive of professors emeriti and undergraduate members, shall pay annual dues of $15.
Section 5.
Special assessments may be levied against resident members by majority vote of the members present at any meeting, provided that written notice of the intention to propose such an assessment is given in the announcement of the meeting.
Section 6.
Registration and Council Fund payments shall be forwarded by the Secretary to the Treasurer of the United Chapters in accordance with Article IV of the By-Laws of the United Chapters.
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Article V. Amendments
Amendments to these by-laws, not inconsistent with the Constitution and other lawful regulations of the United Chapters, may be adopted by a two-thirds vote of the resident members present at any regular meeting, either upon motion presented and tabled at the preceding regular or special meeting, or upon condition that written notice of the proposed changes has been sent to all resident members at least three weeks in advance of the meeting. All amendments shall be subject to the approval of the Senate of the United Chapters.