Constitution of Pi Tau Sigma Fraternity

In order to establish a closer bond of fellowship which will result in mutual benefit to those men and women in the study and in the profession of mechanical engineering, who by their academic or practical achievements, manifest a real interest and marked ability in their chosen work, we, the undersigned, do hereby ordain and establish the constitution of this National Honorary Mechanical Engineering Fraternity.

1. The name of the fraternity shall be "Pi Tau Sigma"

2. The colors of the fraternity shall be "murrey and azure"

3. The flower of the fraternity shall be the white rose.

4. The insignia of the fraternity shall be as represented on the following page. Either a replica in the form of a key or an adaptation in the form of the Carnot cycle portion as a pin of the insignia, as chosen by the initiate, but not both, may be worn.

5. The crest shall be as shown below.

The object of this organization shall be to foster the high ideals of the engineering profession, to stimulate interest in coordinate departmental activities, to promote the mutual professional welfare of its members, and to develop in students of mechanical engineering the attributes necessary for effective leadership and the assumption of the responsibilities of a citizen in a democracy.

1. Members in this organization, both men and women, shall consist of three classes, namely; Honorary, Active, and Graduate. Members are permanently classified upon their initiation.

2. Honorary members shall be selected on the basis of successful achievements in mechanical engineering; practicing engineers and full, associate, or assistant professors of mechanical engineering are eligible. Each chapter may elect two or more honorary members per year; two of these shall be exempt from payment of the national initiation fee.

3. Active members shall be chosen from students in a mechanical engineering curriculum on a basis of sound engineering ability, scholarship, and personality and shall be selected from the junior and senior classes, or their equivalent, as defined by the administration of the college of engineering and the department of mechanical engineering.

4. Graduate members shall be chosen under either of the following situations:
   1. Students who are working toward a graduate degree in mechanical engineering and who obtain written recommendations from two (2) Pi Tau Sigma faculty members. The number eligible per year under this option shall not exceed ten percent of the active membership or two (2) whichever is greater. Graduate students who attended, as undergraduates, schools having a chapter of Pi Tau Sigma and were not selected as active members should not be eligible for membership as graduate members.

   2. Students who would have been eligible had Pi Tau Sigma been established earlier in institutions now having chapters. Such members may be initiated by any other chapter at any time as a courtesy initiation. This graduate shall then be a member of the chapter at the school from which he graduated.

5. There shall be held during the academic year two elections for the selection of active members, the first not later than December 1, and the second not later than May 1. During any election, the following policy will prevail: the scholarship of the student must place in the Eligible Group and the total number of active members must not exceed the percent of the entire class as shown in the Maximum column:

   	Eligible Group Highest	Maximum Active Members
   First term Juniors	25%	17%
   Last term Juniors	33%	25%
   First term Seniors	35%	33%
   Last term Seniors	See A6	33%

   Three-quarters affirmative vote of the members present is required to elect a candidate to membership.

6. A last term senior who scholastically places in the highest 35% of the senior's class, and who is deemed worthy, may be initiated only upon permission of the national council. Requests for this permission, stating the circumstances, shall be signed by the chapter president and a member of the faculty who is also a member of Pi Tau Sigma, and shall be sent to the national secretary-treasurer.

7. Sufficient information, including complete name, date of initiation and membership category, shall be given on the key-order blanks to allow the national secretary to maintain a permanent record on file for each member at the national headquarters of Pi Tau Sigma.

   * Membership in the Association of College Honor Societies prevents the initiation of any candidate whose scholastic index is not in the top 35% of the candidate's class. The maximum active members refers to the percent of the respective graduation class.

1. The annual convention of the fraternity shall be the governing body. The convention shall have full authority in all matters pertaining to the constitution , ritual, insignia, and policies of the fraternity, the granting of new chapters, etc.

2. Each chapter of the fraternity (except the Chapter-At-Large) shall be represented at the convention by one delegate. Each of the members of the national council shall be entitled to one vote at the convention. No chapter may be represented by proxy.

3. All measures enacted by the convention shall require an affirmative vote of three-fourths of the delegates, members of the national council being considered voting delegates.

4. A special convention may be called by submitting a petition to this effect signed by one-half of the chapter, and unless otherwise specified in the petition this convention shall be held within two months from the date on which it is announced by the national secretary.

5. Each convention shall decide upon the place of the next convention and set an approximate date.

6. As the fraternity is a purely honorary organization, the following rules are laid down:
   1. The organization shall in no way enter politics, nor shall any member be obliged to support any man or woman for any office or position of honor or trust because of his connection with the fraternity.

   2. A house may be established by any chapter if it is sanctioned by the national council.

1. The national council shall be composed of five (5) members of the fraternity and shall be elected by the national convention for a term of three (3) years in such a manner that these officers shall be elected in a rotative sequence. The rotative order of election shall be President and Secretary-Treasurer the first year, Western Vice-President the second year, and Central and Eastern Vice-Presidents the third year. Vacancies may be filled for an unexpired term of office.

2. The first of the council members elected shall be the national president of the fraternity; it shall be his duty to preside over the meetings of the national council and over the annual convention, to install or deputize others to install new chapters, to inspect or deputize others to inspect any chapter whose condition may be considered as unsatisfactory, and to perform other appropriate duties.

3. The second, third, and fourth members of the council shall be the national vice presidents of the fraternity. Their duties shall be:
   1. To assume the duties of the national president in the absence or incapacitation of that officer.

   2. To cooperate with the national president and national secretary-treasurer as members of the council.

   3. To have charge of selection of nominees for the annual Gold Medal, Richards Memorial and Larson Memorial Award.

   4. To act as advisor to the official delegates in the preparation of an order of business to be presented at the national convention.

   These duties shall be delegated by the President on the approval of the council.

4. Each geographical division shall be represented by a vice president actively associated with a chapter in the respective division. The division shall be arranged by the national council and when a new chapter is added to the fraternity, it shall be assigned to the appropriate division by the council.

5. The fifth of the council members elected shall be the national secretary-treasurer; it shall be his duty to keep faithful and accurate records of fiscal transactions with the respective charters and creditors of the national fraternity, to render a complete financial report in writing at each national convention, to maintain an accurate, up-to-date roster of the membership of Pi Tau Sigma, to maintain current correspondence of the fraternity, and to advise each chapter concerning matters of general importance which should be brought before their meetings. The national secretary-treasurer will act as editor.

   The national secretary-treasurer shall have custody of all books, records, moneys, seals, constitution, and rituals of the fraternity. All communications of the fraternity-at-large shall be addressed through this office; and all assessments and collections authorized by the national convention or the national council shall be administered through this office.

   The secretary-treasurer shall be allowed a sum decided upon by the national convention each year.

6. The national council shall have the power to grant a charter for a new chapter upon an affirmative action by three-fourths of the active chapters voting within one year of the petition by the national council.

7. Through the national secretary-treasurer of the fraternity shall be obtained a certificate of membership, and a membership card for each new member initiated. Keys and pins may be ordered on blanks provide by the national secretary. Blanks shall be returned to the national secretary with the requested information on each person recommended for membership in Pi Tau Sigma.

   There shall be paid into the national treasury the sum of twenty dollars ($22) per initiate, out of which there shall be paid the cost of THE CONDENSER and the membership certificate. Each chapter may elect two or more honorary member per year; two of these shall be exempt from payment of national initiation fees.

   Orders shall not be processed by the national secretary-treasurer before the national dues are paid.

8. Tenure of office by each of the national officers shall be limited to two terms of three years each.
   1. Former tenure of any office shall not be construed as disqualifying each officer from election to another national office, provided the person has the necessary qualifications.

   2. Under exceptional circumstances, economic or otherwise, the terms of the national secretary-treasurer amy be extended beyond the above six year limit, if such extension appears to serve the best interest of Pi Tau Sigma; provided, however, that such total tenure shall in no case exceed four terms.

1. A chapter shall be granted a charter only upon the receipt of a petition addressed to the national council of the fraternity signed by at least twelve eligible students of a college whose mechanical engineering department is accredited by ABET. The petition must be countersigned by at least two professors or one professor and one assistant or associate professor of the mechanical engineering department of the college applying. This petition shall contain the following information:
   1. Name of college and location.

   2. Entrance requirements.

   3. Degrees granted annually in the mechanical engineering department.

   4. Class enrollment in the mechanical engineering department.

   5. Survey of the general condition of honorary fraternities in the institutions.

   6. A copy of the catalog fo the institution shall be furnished to the national council.

2. Peititon for a chapter must be in the hands of each chapter, and the national council before Januaray 1 to be considered for installation before the close of that school year.

3. The fee for a charter shall be ten dollars ($10).

4. The expense of the installation shall be paid by the national treasury.

   In the event of dissolution of any chapter installed after July 15, 1959, this chapter's assets must be transferred to another organization organized and operated for a similar exempt purpose, or to the Federal or State or local government. This transfer must be approved by the national council prior to any distribution of funds.

5. A chapter which has not initiated members for two consecutive years shall be classified as inactive upon the recommendation of the national council and three-fourths of a national convention. To reactivate, an inactive chapter would follow the same procedure as used in the installation of a new chapter.

1. The officers of each chapter (except the Cahpter-At-Large) shall consist of a president, vice-president, recording secretary, corresponding secretary, treasurer, and faculty advisor. At the direction of a chapter, the offices of corresponding secretary and recording secretary may be combined into a single office.

2. The duties of the president shall be to call and preside at all regular and special meetings, to appoint committees, and to approve on order of a quorum of the chapter all bills presented against the organization.

3. The duties of the vice-president shall be to preside at all regular and special meetings in the absence of the president and to act as president pro-tempore in case of the resignation or disability of the latter.

4. The duties of the recording secretary shall be to keep a record of the transactions at all regular and special meetings and to issue all necessary notices concerning chapter meetings.

5. The duties of the corresponding secretary shall be to handle all necessary correspondence with past and honorary members and all correspondence with active members, and all correspondence with the national council.

6. The duties of the treasurer shall be to issue notices of special assessments and to collect all dues and assessments. The treasurer shall have charge of all the funds of the chapter and shall pay on order of the president all bills presented against the chapter.

7. The faculty advisor who shall be a member will be consulted on matters of chapter policy and also will act as auditor of chapter finances.

8. Election of officer. There shall be held during the academic year, election of officers for the chapter.

   These elections may be held annually or semi-annually, the election for the fall term being held at the first regular meeting in May.

9. Initiation fee. The initiation fee per initiate for any chapter shall not exceed forty dollars($40).

10. Graduate Active Members. Graduate Members and Honorary Members shall not be allowed to vote or hold office unless local-by-laws permit.

1. The membership of the Chapter-At-Large is composed of eligible senior mechanical engineering students from institutions which do not have a chapter of Pi Tau Sigma.

2. Students at institutions that have curricula of Mechanical Engineering accredited by ABET in which there is no chapter of Pi Tau Sigma may be recommended for membership in the Chapter-At-Large.

3. Chapters of Pi Tau Sigma may initiate as honorary members of their respective chapter duly qualified faculty members from any institution where no chapter exists. These particular honorary members shall be exempt from payment of national initiation fees. This exemption is in addition to that provided in Article 3, Section, of the Constitution.

4. Honorary members in accredited institutions not having chapters of Pi Tau Sigma may recommend to a sponsoring chapter, seniors in their respective Mechanical Engineering Deparments who have the qualifications for membership in Pi Tau Sigma in accordance with Article 3 of the Constitution.

5. Students recommended for membership in the Chapter-At-Large shall be voted upon by the sponsoring chapter at the same time as their own members are selected, and if elected shall become members of the Chapter-At-Large by receiving the initiatory ceremony along with the candidates of the sponsoring chapter.

6. The initation fee shall not exceed an amount equal to that for active membership in the sponsoring chapter, which fee shall include $22 national initiation fees plus the cost of any jewelry.

7. Each member of the Chapter-At-Large shall receive a copy of the "Story fo Pi Tau Sigma," one issue of THE CONDENSER, membership card, and certificate of membership.

1. Any active member of the fraternity may be suspended temporarily upon presentation of written charges signed by three members. The case shall be taken up at the next regular meeting of the chapter unless there is some good reason for postponing action, such as the inability of the accused, or any of the witnesses to be present. If found guilty of the charges and if they are considered of sufficient seriousness, the member can be expelled by three-quarters vote of all the active members of the chapter. All members shall be notified to be present at the meeting by registered mail. The member so expelled shall be required to give up all insignia of the fraternity which expelled member owns or possesses.

2. A graduate member may be expelled upon charges signed by five graduate members after a thorough investigation has been made and after the member has been given ample opportunity to prepare a defense, either in person or by mail before the national council.

3. Fines, such as for non-attendance of meetings, etc., shall be left to the discretion of the local chapters.

1. The national council shall have the power to publish from time to time THE STORY OF PI TAU SIGMA and distribute the same to each member when initiated.

2. The national council shall have the power to edit an annual publication to be called THE CONDENSER and distribute the same to the active members of the various chapters. The cost of this publication shall be covered by subscription or as the national council may decide.

3. It shall be the duty of one person in each chapter to furnish an account of the chapter activities at such times as required by the editor of THE CONDENSER.

1. Any proposed amendment to the constitution passed by three-fourths of the convention, shall become effective by ratification of three-fourths of the active chapters voting within one year following the convention.

Last updated
September 26, 1997
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