Silver Circle Bylaws

October 20,1997

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Article I - Definitions

A. "The group" will refer to the set of active members at a given meeting of Silver Circle.

B. "The officers" will refer to the Co-Presidents, Secretary, and Treasurer of Silver Circle, whose duties are defined in the constitution of Silver Circle.

C. "The organization" will refer to Silver Circle as an officially recognized Penn State student organization.

Article II - Goals of Silver Circle

A. To foster a spiritual community.

B. To educate the Penn. State community about pagans and paganism.

C. To create an informed society.

D. To find others of like mind and belief.

E. To provide a meeting ground for pagans and those interested in pagan beliefs.

F. To provide support for individuals who are victims of religious intolerance.

G. To provide a safe and private place to practice spiritual ritual.

H. To promote understanding, acceptance, and tolerance of other spiritual paths.

Article III - Guidelines for Meetings

A. General meetings for Silver Circle will be held weekly at a time and place set early in the semester.

B. At two general meetings each semester, during the second and tenth weeks of the semester, time will be set aside to review and discuss these bylaws. These will be referred to as review meetings. 

C. The agenda for the general meetings will be:
1. Officer Reports: The officers will report on their activities and news relevant to Silver Circle.
2. Committee Reports: The chairperson of each committee will report the minutes of each committee meeting, the time and location of the next meeting, and the agenda for the next meeting.
3. Announcements: Those who have announcements to make may make them at this time.
4. Social Topic: A topic chosen and announced the previous week by the Social Topics Committee will be discussed by the group until such a time as the officers declare the meeting "degenerate".
5. The meeting is declared "degenerate": Once the officers observe the social discussion of the group degenerate from an organized state, the officers may declare the meeting "degenerate'. After degeneracy, no general business may be conducted.

D. These Rules of Order will be observed during meetings of Silver Circle:
1. During any Silver Circle meeting, a member will be chosen as the "pointer". The pointer is responsible for making sure that everyone is given a chance to speak during a discussion.
2. When members desire to be heard, they should raise their hands and wait until the pointer says it is their turn to speak.

E. The Secretary is responsible for compiling an attendance list of the general meetings.

F. Issues to be voted on by the group may be voted on during the same meeting at which they are discussed, unless they involve amendments to the Bylaws or the Constitution, or the election or removal of officers or holders of appointed positions. Such matters will be voted on no earlier than the next general meeting after they are first discussed.

G. Silver Circle will not permit religious or spiritual harassment during meetings.

Article IV - Membership

A. To remain an active member of Silver Circle, a person must:
1. Pay Dues
a. The amount of dues will be agreed upon by the group at the recommendation of the Treasurer.
b. This requirement may be waived in cases of personal hardship.
2. Attend at least one of two review meetings each semester as well as at least three other meetings. Attendance at one other organization event may be used as a substitute for one of the required three non-review meetings. This requirement may be waived at the discretion of the officers. Early in the semester, this criterion will be construed to refer to meetings attended during the previous semester a member was at Penn State.

B. A new member of the organization will be considered an active member immediately upon the beginning of the fourth meeting he or she attends. One of these four need not be a review meeting, but in that case, the new member
must attend the second review meeting of the semester.

C. Privileges reserved for active members in Silver Circle include:
1. Full participation in all decisions made by the group, including debating and voting on issues.
2. Eligibility to hold office in the organization (though a member must be a full time student to hold elected office).
3. Access to the organization's membership list.
4. The right to call for a general vote on any given issue.

D. Privileges granted to all participants of Silver Circle include:
1. Use of books and other materials owned by the organization.
2. Eligibility to serve on committees.
3. Access to information shared by the group regarding community and other events of interest.
4. The right to participate in all the organization's events, including social, educational, and other activities,
5. Receiving the support of other members of the organization.

Article V - Officers and Duties

A. Silver Circle will have six officer positions:
1. The 2 Co-Presidents (elected)
2. The Secretary (elected)
3. The Treasurer (elected)
4. The Sergeant at Arms will have the following duties:
a. To insure that meetings are kept orderly.
b. To ask highly disruptive people to leave,
c. To call security if such people refuse to leave.
d. To enforce (b) and (c) only at the discretion of the Co-Presidents.
e. Appointed by the Co-Presidents.
5. The Electronic Secretary will have the following duties: 
a. To maintain Silver Circle's Internet presence via maintenance of Silver Circle's web site, email, and electronic mailing list/listserve. 
b. To handle Internet correspondence with parties outside the University. 
c. Appointed by the Co-Presidents.

B. Holders of these positions must attend 75% of the organization's meetings.

C. A holder of one of these positions may be removed by a 2/3 vote of the group.

Article VI - Committees

A. The group shall appoint, at least once per semester, members to comprise each
of the following committees:
1. The Social Topics committee
a. To schedule the topics to be discussed during the social topics section of the general meetings.
b. To prepare ways of promoting the discussion before the general meeting.
2. The Social Events committee
a. To schedule Silver Circle sponsored events.
b. To plan and conduct preparations for these events.
3. The Public Relations committee
a. To attend to relations with the public media.
b. To advertise organizational events.
4. The Educational Programming committee
a. To handle requests for educational presentations.
b. To plan, prepare for, and conduct educational presentations.
5. The Bylaws committee
a. To advise the organization on matters concerning the Bylaws.
b. To recommend adjustments and amendments to the Bylaws necessary for the betterment of Silver Circle.
c. To conduct the Bylaws review during the second and tenth weeks of the semester.
6. The Correspondence committee
a. To act as official contact with other pagan groups.
b. To make official posts in the organization's name to USENET groups. This should not be construed to mean that other members cannot make such posts. 
c. To maintain US mail and electronic mail correspondence with outside parties including national groups of interest to members of the organization.
d. To keep records of such correspondence.
7. The Greeters committee
a. To welcome people to their first few meetings at Silver Circle and make them feel comfortable.
b. To meet and prepare members of the committee for their role as greeters of Silver Circle.

B. Each committee will have no fewer than two members.

C. A committee may choose to appoint a chairperson. No person will chair more than one committee.

D. Other committees may be created by the group if desired.

E. Committees must keep accurate minutes of their meetings and bring these minutes to the next general meeting.

Article VII - Voting Procedures

A. General Votes
1. General votes must be conducted at a general meeting.
2. Votes concerning the election or removal of officers, the amending of the bylaws, or issues of high importance (as determined by the officers or a general vote) must first be proposed at a general meeting and voted on no sooner than the next general meeting.
3. Votes qualifying under section 2 must be conducted by secret ballot.

B. Consensus Votes
1. In a consensus vote, each voter has four options. They may vote to agree, disagree, abstain, or block. In agreeing, the voter is saying that they agree with the decision and wish to implement it. In disagreeing, the voter is saying that
they do not agree with the decision but they are not going to prevent its implementation. In abstaining, they are saying that they are indifferent to the decision and its implementation. The final option is to block. If a voter chooses to
block, the vote fails and the decision may not be implemented,
2. A vote decision passes so long as there is no blocking vote. If even one voter blocks, the vote fails.
3. Consensus votes may not be done by secret ballot.
4. If a voter chooses to block, it is highly recommended that they state why they are blocking.
5. An issue may be voted on as many times as the group sees fit.

Article VIII - Crisis Committee Meetings

A. The Crisis committee will be formed and meet at times of organizational crisis.
An example of crisis would be a sudden drop in membership due to loss of interest or a large amount of hostility in Silver Circle meetings.

B. Formation of the Crisis Committee:
1. A general meeting will be called.
2. The Crisis committee will consist of six to twelve people chosen through the election method described in VIII.B.3.
3. Election of Crisis committee members:
a. The Silver Circle general membership will be divided into affinity groups.
b. The composition of each affinity group will be chosen in such a way that there will be six to twelve affinity groups of equal membership. To the greatest extent possible, each affinity group should be made up of members who agree on all relevant issues.
c. Each affinity group will elect a representative to be a member of the Crisis committee. The representative must be chosen by a consensus vote within the group.
d. In the possible event that there is a minority of one on a given issue, that member may be a member of the Crisis committee if 1/3 of the general members vote to allow it.

C. Responsibilities of the Crisis Committee Membership
1. To responsibly represent the views of their individual affinity groups. 
2. To work toward a solution to the crisis that all members of Silver Circle will accept and benefit from.

D. Crisis Committee Meeting Procedures
1. It is preferred that the members seat themselves in a circular arrangement.
2. The Crisis committee must make use of a talking stick. Only members holding the talking stick are permitted to speak. When members have finished what they have to say, they must pass the talking stick to the person on their left.
3. All decisions made by the Crisis committee must be made by a consensus vote within the committee.
4. Only those persons elected to be representatives by affinity groups are permitted to attend the Crisis committee meeting.
5. One member of the committee must keep record of the minutes of the meeting so that they may be presented at the next general meeting.
6. All votes and positions taken by members of the Crisis committee must be recorded and made available to the general membership through the minutes of the meeting.

E. Effects of Decisions made by the Crisis Committee
1. Decisions made by the Crisis committee are to be implemented immediately upon the next general meeting.
2. Decisions made by the Crisis committee may be nullified by a general vote of the Silver Circle membership. In this event, it is recommended that a new Crisis committee consisting of different members be formed and meet.

F. Officer and chairmanship positions are considered irrelevant in any business concerning a Crisis committee.

G. Statement of Intent
1. The Crisis committee is intended to bring together a group of rational people who are primarily concerned with the health and benefit of Silver Circle.
2. The above procedures are an attempt to balance and satisfy the following needs:
the need for a group of a size optimally capable of coming up with a solution; the need for every member of Silver Circle to have a say in the group's future; and the need to find solutions that will prevent to the greatest extent possible the brutality of majority rule and the dividing influences of power politics.
3. To fulfill the need for a group optimally sized for productivity, we have chosen a representative system. This system will keep the committee's membership at six to twelve people no matter what the size of Silver Circle is. We consider this to be important because too large a group will be unable to reach any decisions and too small a group will not provide the needed diversity of ideas.
4. To make sure that every member's views are represented at the meeting, the idea of affinity groups was formed. This way we hope that minority group will be represented by at least one representative.
5. Consensus voting will be used at all times in business concerning the Crisis committee. This tries to ensure that members elected to the Crisis committee are people trusted by all members of their respective affinity groups. This also attempts to make sure that minority groups are not forced into decisions by the majority.

Article IX - Guidelines Suggested by the Founding Members for Relations with the Media and other Non-Members

A. The organization's membership list is confidential; however, in accordance with ASA rules, the officer list is public information.

B. The organization will not support any negative or attacking communications directed at other individuals or groups. However, we may respond to criticism that others direct at the organization or its members.

C. Before inviting someone to become a member of the organization, or giving information about the organization to outsiders, a member should use his or her discretion to insure that the interests of those people are not contrary to the goals of the organization.

D. Rituals and celebrations performed by members of the organization are private, and members should use discretion in choosing whom to invite to such rituals and celebrations.

E. The group will have prepared standard public relations materials such as press releases.

F. When speaking to others about the subject of paganism, the following beliefs should be emphasized: 
1. Nature is a physical manifestation of deity. 
2. Harm none, including others, nature and the self 
3. There are multiple paths to deity:
a. Thus every religion serves its believers well and is correct to its adherents.
b. Thus we do not try to convert members of other faiths.
4. We are all responsible for our own lives and actions.

G. When speaking to others about the subject of magick, the following beliefs should be emphasized:
1. Harm none, including others, nature and the self.
2. The organization promotes only positive uses of magick.

Article X - Use of the Organization's Name

Before the name of Silver Circle is associated with a project, activity, or statement to the media, that use of the organization's name must be approved by a 2/3 vote of the group.

Article XI - Approval and Amendment of the Organization's Documents

A. To be put into effect, these bylaws or any amendments to them, must be approved by a 2/3 vote of the group.

B. Any amendment to this document must be proposed at a general meeting and voted on no sooner than the next general meeting.

Article XII - Member Sanctuary Rights and the Public use of Information from Silver Circle Functions

A. In order to ensure the sanctuary and safety of individual members of Silver Circle, no audio or visual recording intended for public distribution may take place at any Silver Circle general meeting, committee meeting, or Silver Circle event.

B. Audio or visual recording for public distribution is only permissible at a time and place set for the express purpose of that recording.

C. The recording (written or otherwise) of the personal experiences of an individual Silver Circle member without the express permission of that member is not permitted. The telling of a personal experience during a Silver Circle
meeting or event does not constitute permission to record or distribute such information.

D. The Co-Presidents, Secretary, Treasurer, and anyone who has consented to be on the Silver Circle web site are considered to have given their express permission to be publicly known as Silver Circle members. Only the identities of these members may be made freely available to the public.