The students and faculty advisors seeking club/organization recognition must complete a petition of recognition. Organization petitions for recognition will be heard only at the first meetings of the fall and spring quarters of Student Senate and the College Councils, as determined by the respective councils. The targeted class size for the college determines how many organizations they may recognize. The number of organizations for each college cannot exceed 20% of one targeted class size. For example, if the targeted class size is 40 students, the college can recognize up to 8 organizations. The maximum number of student organizations that can be recognized by the Student Senate shall be determined by the average of the other college organization maximums. Further considerations for the petitioning process may be detailed by the college councils/student government associations and student senate. Students in the clinical portion of their academic programs are prohibited from petitioning to start a new club/organization.
- The petition must include the club’s/organization’s goals (letter of intent with signatures from founding officers and faculty advisor(s)), proposed charter (constitution/bylaws), and list of at least 15 charter members (including officers). For campus-wide organizations, the 15 charter members must represent at least 2 academic colleges;
- Before requesting approval from the appropriate Student Senate/Student Government Association, the petitioning club/organization must schedule a meeting with the Office of Student Activities to review their documents at least one week before being scheduled to present at their respective Student Senate/Student Government Association meeting. All necessary and signed documents must be completed and approved by the Office of Student Activities prior to the time of the appropriate Student Senate/Student Government Association meeting;
- A petitioning club/organization must have met all the requirements, as stated above through the Office of Student Activities, before submitting their application to the appropriate Student Government Association. The appropriate Student Government Association will review the petition for completeness (Student Senate for campus-wide organizations);
- The appropriate Student Senate/Student Government Association has the authority to recommend to the Dean of Students and the respective Academic Dean(s) that the organization be approved or approved with additional conditions (for example: additional advisor if the petitioning club/organization is rather large, participation in a particular event such as community service events that overlap with other clubs, or other additional conditions that may be warranted based on the size or scope of the petitioning club/organization in terms of monetary needs or logistical needs, such that might involve space constraints and faculty supervisory needs), or denied because the club/organization’s scope of practice may be too duplicative with that of an existing student club/organization or not aligned or relevant to the mission of Midwestern University. In the case that an organization is not approved, the appropriate Student Senate/Student Government Association will notify the petitioners and Dean of Students or appropriate Academic Dean(s) of their decision. A majority vote of Student Senate/Student Government Association members shall determine the recommendation for the applicant group;
- If the recommendation is for denial, a petitioning club/organization may r appeal to the Dean of Students and/or the appropriate Academic Dean for reconsideration, who have the final authority for granting recognition or approval;
- The Office of Student Activities will review annually any organization’s status as described above; and
- A student club/organization may appeal a probationary status to the Dean of Students and the appropriate Academic Dean(s). In addition, a Student Senate/Student Government Association may also submit an appeal regarding a change in status for one of their student clubs/organizations to the Dean of Students and the appropriate Academic Dean(s).