I. The History of the Chapter

The Quixote Chapter of the Spanish Honor Society in the Taipei American School was established by Mr. David Blowers in 1982. This society promotes the study of the Spanish language and its cultures.

II. The Responsibilities of The Executive Board

The Executive board consists of a President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and the Chapter Sponsor. Officers are nominated and elected annually by the society members.

The President is responsible for ensuring that the officers and members of the society operate efficiently as a unit. The President at the beginning of the year must fill the Club Charter form for the year. The president conducts all general meetings, deals with the administration on any issues pertaining to the society, and supervises the society to make sure that it adheres to the Constitution. In August, the President submits to the Executive Board an activity plan for the year. The President is also responsible for taking attendance of only Committee One, of which he/she is an active member. (See VI. Responsibilities of the Members for details of committees)
The Vice President is responsible for ensuring that the officers and members of the society operate efficiently as a unit in the event that the President is unable to do so. At meetings, the Vice President supplements the President with details. He/she takes attendance at all society meetings and events and keeps all attendance records (of not only the General meeting but also of the other Committee meetings). He/she fills out all necessary request order forms concerning society activities and follows through on them. This officer also compiles membership information for the executive committee. The Vice President is also responsible of taking attendance of Committee Three, of which he/she is an active member.

The Secretary draws up the agenda for all Executive and general meetings in consultation with the President and the Sponsor. He/she takes notes at every meeting and keeps an organized, clear record of all society related documents. The Secretary submits natures of important activities to the appropriate school publications, updates the sponsor's personal calendar regularly, keeps all officers current, and takes care of all necessary correspondence. He/she also types periodically an e-mail, which is sent to the sponsor for examination and then forwarded to all society members when deemed appropriate. The Secretary takes attendance only of Committee Two, of which he/she is an active member.

The Treasurer manages all financial affairs of the Spanish Honor Society. He/she keeps a clear and organized record of all expenditures and revenues. The Treasurer prepares the beginning-of-the-year and the end-of-the-year financial statements, with the help of the Executive Committee if necessary. He/she provides and maintains all supplies necessary for the management of the society, and mails out annual American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese (AATSP) payments. At the conclusion of fund-raising activities, he/she will collect and count the proceeds, submit the money to the school Cashier, and giver a report at the Executive and general meetings. The Treasurer takes attendance only of Committee Four, of which he/she is an active member.

The sponsor of the chapter must belong to the American Association of Teachers of Spanish and Portuguese (AATSP) in order for the society to exist. The Organization assumes paying memberships fees of the sponsor. He/she must supervise all functional meetings.

The sponsor has one vote in the Executive board. The sponsor has the veto authority over any decisions made by the society and the Executive board. The veto authority is exercised only if decisions are contrary to school policies or they lack appropriate and full consideration of the consequences. If the veto power is used, he/she must explain to the rest of the Executive board the reason for (vetoing) the decision. The full executive board will then work to resolve problems caused by the veto. If the problems cannot be resolved, issues will be brought to the associate principal for final decision.
All officers and the sponsor attend weekly executive meetings and are responsible for supervising all activities.

III. Description of the Society

Throughout the school year, there will be organized sales and activities that allow the society to promote Spanish culture around the school. The activities will not only promote Spanish culture, but also assist in future funding for other Spanish Honor Society based activities.

Spanish culture remains an integral part of the society. The Culture committee is responsible for promoting Spanish culture and introducing cultural events and traditions to the school.

Since the society is not co-sponsored by other organizations, the resources for all activities, materials, sales, the induction, and all other important events need to be earned with the help of the members. With sales, the money that is earned will be deposited into the society's treasury for future events. Occasionally, the members are required to bring materials needed for various activities. Nevertheless, the money will be put into good use by exposing more Spanish culture to the members, or by organizing entertaining activities for the members to experience and enjoy. The main mission in fundraising, again, is to further expand on the spread of Spanish culture.

IV. Requirements For Entering The Spanish Honor Society

As this is an Honor Society, each inductee must have an overall average GPA of 3.0 or higher while maintaining an 'A' average in Spanish. They must be recommended by their Spanish teachers and be approved by their other teachers in a survey passed out by the Chapter Sponsor in January. The sponsor may make one exceptions per year if a student shows strong interest in the study of the Spanish language but is unable to meet the above requirements and name an honorary member. The Executive Board must agree upon the honorary membership.

V. Requirements for Remaining in the Spanish Honor Society

The active members of the society must remain in the program of Spanish study while maintaining an 'A' average in the course until they reach the highest obtainable level of the Spanish language offered by the school. Membership will be changed to associate membership once the member fails to continue with the study of Spanish during the school year. Members are permitted to three absences per quarter before he/she confronts the Chapter Sponsor or the Executive Board regarding membership in the society.

VI. Responsibilities of the Members

The active members of the Spanish Honor Society will participate in all activities. The general meetings for all members and officers will be held twice a month. Each member is required to take part in one of four committees, each of which take on an aspect of the society Committee One is responsible for the planning of the induction and banquet, revisions in the Constitution, and the organizing of other miscellaneous activities. Committee Two is responsible for publicizing the society and adorning the society bulletin board located outside 3b44 across from the George Y.L. Wu (Upper/Middle School) Library in Taipei American School. Committee Three is responsible for designing and managing the society web page, and for keeping up with the literary magazine. Committee Four is responsible for seeking Spanish cultural activities in the vicinity for members to go to and experience, and to arrange activities to promote Spanish culture around the school.

VII. The Voting Procedures

During the general meetings, all members will participate in voting for major decisions. The voting process, conducted by the Executive Board, allows the members to vote democratically by a show of hands. The Secretary and Treasurer will count the numbers and confirm it with the Executive Board. According to the majority of the votes, the decision will be finalized.

VIII. The Election Procedures of the Executive Board

Around April or May, the election of new officers will take place in which all members vote. During general meetings, nominations will occur. The nominee must agree to run for office before his/her name is placed on the ballot. The next general meeting will consist of short speeches from each nominee concerning the position that they are running for. The nominees for the positions of the President and Vice President should inform the members of his/her expectations and goals for the society for the coming year. These ideas must have been presented to the sponsor before the meeting for advice. Nominees for the other positions need only to introduce themselves as well as stating briefly contributions to the society. All nominees will be given the appropriate section of this constitution delineating their responsibilities.
Written ballots will be given to the members to ensure that the voting process is private and confidential. The officers will conduct the counting procedure with the sponsor in private and the majority of the votes for each position will be honored. The new officers will be notified of their new positions at the Spanish Honor Society Banquet. There will be a final executive meeting of the old and the new officers to turn over all materials and information to the officers to provide for continuity.