The Tartan Bylaws

Article I: Preamble

These bylaws, in conjunction with the constitution approved April 19, 2011, shall serve as the governing documents of The Tartan. This document shall govern The Tartan’s operations. Should any conflict arise between the constitution and these bylaws, the constitution shall take precedence.

Article II: Definitions

1. Quorum: Quorum shall consist of two-thirds of the membership in question (e.g. editorial staff, editorial board) unless otherwise indicated. Quorum of the entire staff shall consist of the greater of one-fourth the size of the entire staff or five-fourths the size of the editorial staff. All members present at the vote as well as members voting via absentee ballot count toward achieving quorum.
2. The Tartan Online: The Tartan Online shall consist of the public website of The Tartan, including any multimedia, interactive content, or special features contained therein. It does not include any private, internal, or staging web pages, nor does it include The Tartan's presence on social media websites.

Article III: Personnel

Section 1: Elected Positions

1. In addition to the responsibilities defined in the constitution and elsewhere in the bylaws, the publisher has the following responsibilities:
   1. representing The Tartan by communicating with university administration, student government, and the student body
   2. working with the Office of Student Activities to maintain The Tartan’s status as a student organization
   3. communicating with The Tartan’s adviser
   4. fulfilling the duties of any vacant editorial staff position either personally, by delegation, or by appointment
   5. frequently checking The Tartan’s mailbox
   6. writing the yearly budget in consultation with the editorial staff, having the budget approved by the executive committee, communicating with the Joint Funding Committee about the budget, and making the budget available to the entire Tartan staff
   7. overseeing the function of the business, advertising, personnel, and systems managers
   8. co-overseeing with the editor-in-chief the function of the contributing editors
2. In addition to the responsibilities defined in the constitution and elsewhere in the bylaws, the editor-in-chief has the following responsibilities:
   1. reading and approving all pages of an issue before publication
   2. meeting with section editors and ensuring completion of all sections
   3. determining the publication schedule, including the dates of any special issues or sections, in conjunction with the advertising manager
   4. assisting the publisher in overseeing general and strategic operations
3. The Tartan shall have an operations manager, who is responsible for:
   1. assisting the editor-in-chief and the publisher in overseeing general operations
   2. ensuring that the editorial staff meets deadlines and produces deliverables
   3. fostering necessary communication among editorial staff members
   4. announcing, planning, and taking record of general staff, editorial staff, and executive committee meetings
   5. overseeing and expediting the production process
   6. ensuring that all designated advertisements are included in a specific issue
   7. informing the advertising manager of errors in advertising
   8. ensuring the correct printing and distribution on campus of each issue
   9. managing the office environment, including purchasing and maintaining inventory of office supplies
4. The Tartan is made up of the following sections: News, Science and Technology, Forum, Sports, Pillbox, and Comics. Each section shall be headed by one or more elected section editors, who have the following duties in addition to those listed in Article III Section 3 of the constitution:
   1. being responsible for the content and organization of the section
   2. ensuring that each content request in the section is assigned to a section staff member
   3. managing and communicating with the section staff
   4. holding weekly meetings with the section staff
   5. adhering to and enforcing deadlines
   6. ensuring that staff members receive proper credit for their work
   7. issuing warnings and dismissing staff members who do not perform their jobs properly
5. In addition to the duties listed in Clause 4, the elected Forum editor(s) will be responsible for:
   1. maintaining a list of all staff members eligible to write for the Forum section
   2. participating in the editorial board as defined in Article IV Section 2
   3. soliciting and publishing opinions from the Carnegie Mellon University community
6. The Tartan shall have one or more elected photography editors, who in addition to the duties listed in Clause 4 will be responsible for:
   1. keeping an inventory of photographic supplies
   2. managing lending and location of photographic supplies
   3. purchasing new photographic supplies when needed
   4. writing an annual photography section budget
7. The Tartan shall have one or more elected art editors, who in addition to the duties listed in Clause 4 will be responsible for:
   1. keeping an inventory of art supplies
   2. managing lending and location of art supplies
   3. purchasing new art supplies when needed
   4. writing an annual art section budget
8. The Tartan shall have one or more elected online editors, who in addition to the duties listed in Clause 4 will be responsible for:
   1. maintaining a high standard for the design and content of The Tartan Online
   2. working with the systems manager to improve the functionality of The Tartan Online
   3. expanding and maintaining the quality of The Tartan's online presence through social media
   4. working with other section editors to develop exclusive and breaking content for The Tartan Online
9. Multiple persons may share a position in accordance with Article V Section 1 Clause 5 or Article V Section 6 Clause 6.

Section 2: Appointed Positions

1. The Tartan shall have appointed managers, as defined in Clause 2, who have the following duties:
   1. managing and communicating with their staffs
   2. adhering to and enforcing deadlines
   3. ensuring that staff members receive proper credit for their work
   4. issuing warnings and dismissing staff members who do not perform their jobs properly
2. The Tartan shall have the following appointed managers. They are additionally responsible for the associated duties listed below:
   1. Business manager: manages weekly finances, invoicing, subscriptions, collections, and all staff wages; records staff hours; records revenue and purchases according to the budget; meets with The Tartan’s financial adviser
   2. Advertising manager: procures advertisements, maintains advertiser relations, and mediates advertising disputes; records staff hours; reports advertising revenue to the business manager and publisher
   3. Systems manager: ensures the proper functioning of systems equipment including but not limited to computer equipment, the servers, the intranet, and the printer; writes an annual systems budget; procures new equipment
   4. Copy manager: oversees copy editing; updates and enforces the Tartan style guide; schedules copy editing shifts; works with section editors to improve the writing precision of the staff
   5. Layout manager: oversees layout of the print edition; updates and enforces the layout style and templates; schedules layout shifts; works with section editors and the editor-in-chief to design the print edition; works with the operations manager to implement printing specifications
   6. Personnel manager: is responsible for staff recruitment; maintains good staff relationships; organizes staff social events; communicates with the publisher
3. The Tartan shall have appointed contributing editors who make substantial contributions to The Tartan in consultation with the publisher and editor-in-chief.
4. Multiple persons may share a position in accordance with Article V Section 1 Clause 5 or Article V Section 6 Clause 6.

Section 3: Senior Staff

1. The executive committee shall have the following composition:
   1. Publisher
   2. Editor-in-chief
   3. Operations manager
   4. Other members elected to the executive committee
2. The executive committee shall be responsible for working with the Dossier staff to ensure effective communication between the two publications.
3. Executive committee meetings shall be chaired by the publisher or by his or her designee.
4. The operations manager shall be responsible for recording the minutes at executive committee meetings.
5. The executive committee shall have the power to restrict attendance at its meetings. The meeting shall be restricted to executive committee members, presenters, and unanimously invited third parties.
6. Any person may be invited by an executive committee member to present at a committee meeting. This constitutes an exception to Clause 5 for the duration of his or her presentation.

Section 2: Editorial Board

1. The editorial board shall have seven members with the following composition:
   1. Publisher, if accepting the board position
   2. Editor-in-chief
   3. Forum editor
   4. Appointed members
2. Editorial board meetings shall be chaired by the editor-in-chief or his or her designee.
3. The editorial board shall have the power to restrict attendance at its meetings. The meeting shall be restricted to editorial board members and unanimously invited third parties.
4. Any assistant Forum editor not appointed to the editorial board in his or her own right shall be invited to attend board meetings as a non-voting observer.
5. The Forum editor shall ensure that editorial board discussion topics are made available to all staff members.
6. The number of editorials shall be set by the editor-in-chief in consultation with the editorial board.
7. Only board members shall vote on editorial topics; each member may vote as many times as there are editorials. No member may exercise more than one vote on any topic. Absentee votes shall be accepted by the editor-in-chief.
8. The topics receiving the most votes shall be selected for editorials. A topic need not receive a majority vote to be selected.
9. Ties shall be broken, when necessary, by the editor-in-chief. In the absence of the editor-in-chief, ties shall be broken by the designated meeting chair.
10. Any editorial board member who has a conflict of interest with a proposed topic shall not write the corresponding editorial, nor shall he or she participate in revising the editorial once written.
11. An effort shall be made by as many editorial staff members as practical to review each editorial.
12. Editorial changes will be finalized by the Forum editor.

1. The editorial staff consists of all positions listed in Article III Sections 1 and 2 of the bylaws, plus the members of the executive committee.
2. Except for contributing editors and members of the executive committee holding no other editorial staff role, all editorial staff members may appoint assistants according to Article V Section 13.
3. Editorial staff meetings shall be chaired by the publisher or his or her designee.
4. The operations manager shall be responsible for recording the minutes at editorial staff meetings.

Section 4: Performance Reviews

Article V: Elections and Appointments

1. The elections officer will preside over an elections meeting, during which nominees will advocate for themselves and answer questions. The elections officer must provide a period of discussion for each nominee during which the nominee in question is not present.
2. Nominations for elected positions shall begin no later than one week prior to the elections meeting and shall close no later than 11:59 p.m. the day prior to the elections meeting.
3. Unless otherwise noted, any staff member may nominate any Carnegie Mellon University student for any position.
4. Nominees who do not decline their nominations are added to the appropriate ballot.
5. Persons intending to share a position must declare their intent to do so prior to the close of the nominations period.
6. Members of the editorial and senior staffs, and any other staff members who attend the elections meeting or have attended at least 50 percent of staff meetings held during the current semester, are eligible to vote.
7. Voters may vote actively for no candidate (vacancy).

Section 2: Voting Procedure

1. The term of elected editorial staff members shall be one year, unless they resign or are removed from office. The term begins at noon on the day fall semester grades are due.
2. Elections for editorial staff positions shall be held and results shall be announced at least one week but no more than one month prior to the publication of the final issue of the fall semester.
3. Candidates for publisher and editor-in-chief must have served for at least one semester on the editorial staff.

1. The term of elected executive committee members shall be one year, unless they resign or are removed from office. The term begins at noon on the day fall semester grades are due.
2. Elections for editorial staff positions shall be held and results shall be announced at least one week but no more than one month prior to the publication of the final issue of the fall semester.
3. Candidates for the executive committee must have served for at least one semester on either the editorial staff or the senior staff.

Section 5: Special Elections

1. All vacant editorial staff positions at the end of the election period shall be filled as specified in Article V Section 2 of the constitution.
2. Unless otherwise specified, editorial staff appointments last until the end of the current editorial staff term.
3. Contributing editors may be appointed at any time by the publisher, subject to the restrictions in Article II of the constitution.
4. Contributing editor appointments last until the end of the semester in which they are made.
5. Confirmation for appointed positions requires a majority of the votes cast by the editorial staff.
6. In the case that an editorial staff member wishes to jointly share his or her position during his or her term of office, he or she may propose an appointment to the publisher, who shall follow the above procedures for appointing an editorial staff member.

Section 8: Editorial Staff Vacancies

Section 9: Executive Committee Vacancies

1. Vacancy positions elected to the executive committee as per Article V Section 2 shall remain vacant for the duration of the spring semester. They are then filled via a special election, which must take place within the first three weeks of the fall semester.
2. Elected executive committee offices that become vacant due to resignation, removal, or reassignment are filled via a special election, which must take place no later than the publication of the third issue after the vacancy begins.
3. Members elected to the executive committee via a special election shall hold office for the remainder of the current term.
4. Elected executive committee offices that remain vacant following a special election shall remain vacant for the duration of the semester currently in progress.
5. Elected executive committee offices that become vacant due to a leave of absence shall remain vacant.
6. Executive committee offices shall not be filled, either temporarily or permanently, by appointment.
7. Publisher and editor-in-chief vacancies shall be filled as specified in Article V Section 3 of the constitution. The acting publisher or editor-in-chief shall assume the executive committee duties of that position.

Section 10: Removal of Staff Members

1. Any editorial staff member may take a leave of absence by submitting a signed letter to the publisher, or, in the case of the publisher, to the editor-in-chief. The leave of absence must be approved by the person to whom the letter is submitted. An appeal can be made to The Tartan’s adviser if the leave of absence is not approved.
2. Members of the editorial staff taking leaves of absence are removed from the editorial staff, editorial board, and executive committee for the duration of their leaves. Their positions are considered vacant and are filled according to Article V Section 3 of the constitution (for the publisher or editor-in-chief) or Article V Section 8 of the bylaws (otherwise).
3. Persons filling temporary vacancies caused by leaves of absence will be “acting” in their position for the duration of their term, regardless of confirmation.
4. Leaves of absence may last no fewer than three issues.
5. Issues published during an unconfirmed editorial staff member’s leave shall not be counted toward his or her confirmation, and they shall not count toward his or her election eligibility.
6. Returning from a leave of absence requires submission of a letter of intent to the publisher (or the acting publisher) and a majority vote of the editorial staff.

Section 13: Assistants

1. An editorial staff member eligible for assistants according to Article IV Section 3 Clause 2 may appoint his or her first assistant at any time by notifying the personnel manager.
2. All subsequent assistant appointments must be approved by a majority vote of the executive committee.
3. An editorial staff member with an assistant may choose to remove his or her assistant at any time by notifying the personnel manager.
4. Assistants are not members of the editorial staff.

Article VI: Finances

1. The publisher shall communicate with the business manager to ensure proper management of weekly finances, invoicing, subscriptions, collections, and all other financial matters.
2. The publisher shall communicate with the advertising manager to ensure continued procurement of advertisements and regulation of any disputes.
3. The publisher shall provide a brief financial status report to the entire staff at least once per month.
4. The publisher shall work with the advertising manager and business manager to determine advertising rates and annual contracts.
5. All staff members are responsible for reporting any purchases to the business manager and publisher.

Article VII: Amendment

Section 1: Permanent Amendment

This is a living document and thus, if necessary, the staff members of The Tartan may cause it to be amended. Proposed amendments must be announced to all staff members at least one week prior to voting on the amendment. An amendment shall be passed if it receives at least three-fifths of the votes cast. Voting must occur at a staff meeting, and absentee votes are allowed.

Section 2: Suspending the Rules

Any part of these bylaws, excluding this article, may be suspended by a vote of the staff of The Tartan. Any suspension must be specifically limited in time, and can be enacted by a three-fifths majority at a regularly scheduled staff meeting. In emergency situations, the rules can be suspended by a two-thirds majority of the entire editorial staff, but these changes must be confirmed at the next regular staff meeting.

Article VIII: Establishment

These bylaws supersede prior bylaws effective the date of their adoption. These bylaws were voted into effect on November 8, 2011, and correspond to the constitution effective April 19, 2011.