Consider creating an Advisory Council to help manage your Chapter and its members. Although creating your own is not required, a strong and effective Advisory Council can be a tremendous asset to both new and well-established NSTEM™ Chapters.
Advisory Council members can help you manage your Chapter, and provide oversight for events and enrichment activities. They can offer a wide array of services, including sorting through our extensive Resource Library to discover the most suitable resources for your Chapter. Moreover, they can aid in writing small project grants or funding requests and provide support in marketing and PR efforts for your Chapter’s growth, along with many other valuable offerings!
These members should be those that have a vested interest in the outcomes and happenings of your Chapter and its members. Consider outreach to parents, staff, and members of the greater community.
We invite you to use the sample Advisory Council ByLaws we have created for you, which can be found below.
Please copy and paste these Sample Advisory Council Bylaws into a new document.
[NAME OF SCHOOL] CHAPTER
NATIONAL STEM HONOR SOCIETY
SAMPLE CHAPTER ADVISORY COUNCIL BYLAWS
Name of School Chapter: ________________________________________________
School Address: _______________________________________________________
Advisor First and Last Name: _____________________________________________
Advisor Email Address and Phone #: _______________________________________
Director First and Last Name: _____________________________________________
Director Email Address and Phone #: _______________________________________
Date: ________________________________________________________________
Member: _______________________________________________________________
Member: _______________________________________________________________
Member: _______________________________________________________________
Member: _______________________________________________________________
Member: _______________________________________________________________
Member: _______________________________________________________________
Member: _______________________________________________________________
ARTICLE 1
NAME AND PURPOSE
Section 1.The name of this organization shall be the [name of school] Chapter of the National STEM Honor Society (“Chapter”).
Section 2.The purpose of the Chapter shall be to inspire student participation in science, technology, engineering and math (“STEM”) disciplines and projects; to provide recognition of student achievement in STEM; to provide opportunities to engage youth in STEM; [and] to work in conjunction with the National STEM Honor Society™ (“NSTEM”™) to promote, encourage, and build a culture of STEM awareness and literacy.
ARTICLE 2
THE CHAPTER DIRECTOR
Section 1.The [Principal/ Headmaster/ Dean/ Director/President] of the school shall be the Chapter Director. Directors can be the head of only one Chapter, each individual school must all have a unique Director. The Chapter Director cannot be a Superintendent, STEM Curriculum Director or someone that provides an equivalent oversight to multiple schools. The Chapter Director shall have the right to approve all activities and decisions of the Chapter.
ARTICLE 3
THE CHAPTER ADVISOR AND ADVISORY COUNCIL
Section 1. The Chapter Director shall appoint annually an individual or organization as the Chapter Advisor. The Chapter Advisor may serve consecutive terms and must not be a student. The appointment of the Chapter Advisor shall be in accordance with the existing rules and regulations of the school.
Section 2. The Chapter Advisor shall be responsible for the direct, day-to-day supervision of the Chapter, and shall act as a liaison between faculty, administration, students, and community. Each Chapter is led by an Advisor who is often the school’s enthusiastic “STEM Champion”. Chapters can only be started by a school, not by a student that attends that school.
Section 3. The Chapter Advisor shall maintain files on membership, chapter history, activities, and financial transactions. The Chapter Advisor shall send an annual report to NSTEM on an NSTEM approved form.
Section 4. The Chapter Advisor frequently shall review each member of the Chapter (“Member”) for compliance with the standards and obligations of NSTEM and the Chapter.
Section 5. The Chapter Advisor shall pre-approve all STEM enrichment activities, as described in Article 4, Section 2(c) below, that are provided by any organization or group other than the Chapter or its sponsoring school. The Chapter Advisor shall approve such activities as being age and content appropriate for a STEM enrichment activity.
Section 6. Chapters can prorate the requirements of their members if a Chapter is created after the school year is in progress.
Section 7. The Chapter Advisor shall manage the officers of the Chapter (“Officers”) as described in Article 7.
Section 8. The Chapter Advisor, with the approval of the Chapter Director, shall form an Advisory Council consisting of the Chapter Advisor and other individuals who shall be [STEM] faculty members, Chapter Officers, and counselors. The role of the Advisory Council shall be to elect students for membership and to determine awards and recognition.
ARTICLE 4
SELECTION OF MEMBERS
Section1. For active Chapters, there are two levels of student membership:
Chapter Members: students who have achieved and maintain the requirements for membership
Provisional Members: students who have not yet achieved the minimum requirements for membership or who were once Chapter members and no longer meet the requirements for membership. Provisional members will have all of the rights and obligations of regular members except that they shall not be elected as an officer of the Chapter.
Section 2. Members shall be selected for membership by the Chapter Advisor who certifies that each student deemed a Chapter member meets the minimum requirements subject to the exception provided MEMBERSHIP ELIGIBILITY.
Section 3. All new Members shall be inducted at an induction ceremony held during the academic year. The substance of such a ceremony shall be determined by the [Chapter Advisor/Members of the Chapter].
Section 4. Each Chapter shall decide whether to charge individual member annual dues. The amount of such dues, if any, shall not exceed $20 per member. There is no student membership fee payable to the National STEM Honor Society.
Section 5. The Chapter Advisor may determine that students must complete and submit a Chapter Student Membership Application to the Chapter Advisor in order to be considered for membership.
ARTICLE 5
MEMBERSHIP ELIGIBILITY
Section 1. Membership is an honor bestowed upon a student.
Section 2. Membership requirements for STEM classroom hours and project based learning enrichment hours are established by verifying the past 12 months for each member to determine if students have fulfilled these requirements.
Section 3. Membership requirements for the GPA in STEM classes only is determined from the last grading period.
Section 4. The Chapter Advisor determines eligibility in all cases.
Section 5. A student must satisfy the following minimum requirements to be eligible for membership, and then must satisfy this criteria each year in order to maintain membership. Minimum member requirements are as follows:
a) Academic Standards: Chapter student members must achieve an average grade of a minimum of 85 (or a B, 3.0 on a 4.0 score, or equivalent standard of excellence) in all STEM courses only for the last grading period. A Chapter may require a higher level of academic performance in STEM disciplines but may not reduce the GPA requirement. A Chapter may not impose academic standards for non-STEM courses.
b) Academic Curriculum: To fulfill NSTEM’s member minimum requirements for STEM curricular hours, the Chapter Advisor decides which STEM courses from the student’s course of studies qualify. NSTEM requires that courses are in STEM disciplines. Interdisciplinary courses that include STEM disciplines are encouraged and the Chapter advisor determines classroom hour applicability. Chapter members must complete the following minimum number of hours of STEM courses over the past 12 months during school hours:
(i) Grades Kindergarten through 2: no hours
(ii) Grades 3 through 5: 180 hours
(iii) Grades 6 through 8: 240 hours
(iv) Grades 9 through 12: 360 hours
(v) College & University (years 1 & 2):
Part-time: 3 credit hours per semester
Full-time: 6 credit hours per semester
(vi) College & University (years 3 & 4):
Part-time: 4.5 credit hours per semester
Full-time: 9 credit hours per semester
c) Participation in NSTEM Enrichment Activities: NSTEM Chapter student members must participate in one or more STEM-related extracurricular activities designed to increase a student’s knowledge of and engagement in STEM related topics. Enrichment activities may be sponsored by the chapter or any other organization or group, as long as the activity has been reviewed and verified by the Chapter Advisor as being age and content appropriate for a STEM enrichment activity. Each grade level of NSTEM has required hours its members must engage in enrichment activities to become or remain an active member of their Chapter. Each Chapter must offer or approve a sufficient number of STEM extracurricular activities/programming to permit a student to satisfy the STEM enrichment activity requirements outlined in this subsection. Chapter members must complete the following minimum number of STEM enrichment hours over the past 12 months outside of the student’s STEM classroom hours:
(i) Grades Kindergarten through 2: 30 hours annually
(ii) Grades 3 through 5: 60 hours annually
(iii) Middle School: 80 hours annually
(iv) High School: 120 hours annually
(v) College & University (years 1 & 2):
-Part-time: 60 hours annually
-Full-time: 120 hours annually
(vi) College & University (years 3 & 4):
-Part-time: 90 hours annually
-Full-time: 180 hours annually
Examples of STEM enrichment activities include: science fairs and competitions, math contests, STEM-related clubs (e.g. science, math, cyber, Lego, robotics), tutoring other students in STEM disciplines, coding, individual or group STEM projects, attending a lecture or film on STEM topics, working at a STEM-related internship/job, drone and gaming technologies, computer sciences, etc.
Section 6. If a student meets all requirements for membership except the 3.0 GPA, but the Chapter Advisor observes that the student is motivated and engaged and their grades are improving significantly in STEM classes, accommodations may be made for this particular student. At the discretion of the Chapter Advisor, the student may not be required to meet the GPA requirement during the current grading period as long as they are striving to achieve the required 3.0 GPA.
Section 7. Once a student is inducted to a Chapter, they remain an active member as long as they maintain the three minimum requirements. If a member falls below any of the three minimum requirements at any time throughout the year, that member becomes a provisional member. Upon achieving the three minimum requirements, that provisional member becomes a Chapter member again.
Section 8. A member of any other Chapter who transfers to a new school will be accepted in this Chapter when proof of membership at the previous school is provided.
Section 9. A member must maintain behavior that is acceptable to the guidelines of the educational institution.
ARTICLE 6
DISMISSAL
Section 1. A Member may be dismissed as a member of the Chapter if the Member violates the standards or requirements of NSTEM or the Chapter.
Section 2. Any Member who fails to satisfy the standards and requirements set forth in these Bylaws shall be promptly warned. If such failure continues, then dismissal shall be approved and carried out by the [Chapter Advisor/Advisory Council].
Section 3. Upon dismissal, the Member shall return the membership card to the Chapter Advisor and the Member shall be divested of all benefits of membership in the Chapter and NSTEM.
Section 4. A Member may appeal dismissal by submitting a written request to the Chapter Director and Chapter Advisor. The decision of the Chapter Director shall be final.
ARTICLE 7
CHAPTER OFFICERS
Section 1. Officer positions and responsibilities shall be determined by the Chapter Advisor to fit the needs of the Chapter. Officers shall serve one-year terms.
Section 2. The Officers shall be chosen by:
[Option 1 for lower grades: the Chapter Advisor.]
[Option 2 for upper grades: majority vote of the Chapter members (with approval from the Chapter Advisor)
Section 3. The Officers shall be [elected/appointed] at the last regular meeting of the academic year.
Section 4. The Chapter Advisor shall manage the election process for the Officers and help the Officers understand and carry out their duties.
ARTICLE 8
MEETINGS
Section 1. Regular meetings of the Chapter shall be held [a minimum of __ times] during the academic year on dates and at times designated by
[Option 1 for lower grades: the Chapter Advisor,]
[Option 2 for upper grades: majority vote of the Officers, ]
and in accordance with school policy and regulations.
Section 2. The Chapter Advisor shall supervise and moderate all Chapter meetings.
Section 3. The agendas for the meetings shall be set by [mutual agreement of] the Chapter Advisor [and the Officers].
Section 4. Members are expected to attend all Chapter meetings, the induction ceremony for new Members, and any awards ceremonies.
Section 5.(optional) The Chapter shall conduct its meetings
[Option 1: following acceptable rules of conduct.]
[Option 2: in accordance with the most recent edition of Robert’s Rules of Order.].
ARTICLE 9
OFFICIAL INSIGNIA AND LOGO
Section 1. The Chapter has an official insignia and logo provided by NSTEM.
Section 2. The distribution of the NSTEM insignia and logo, and the rules for their use are under the exclusive control of the NSTEM National Board of Directors. Graphics of these items are available on the NSTEM website and may be used by the Chapter only in connection with its NSTEM activities, and only on paper (excluding induction certificates, graduation certificates, membership cards and any other items that are otherwise distributed by NSTEM) or in digital format. These items shall not be affixed to or printed on any clothing, banners, pins, certificates, or merchandise. Additional rules and conditions for use of the insignia and logo are set forth in the Trademark Usage Guidelines available on the NSTEM website.
Section 3. Each Member shall be entitled to wear the NSTEM insignia.
ARTICLE 10
NSTEM CONSTITUTION
Section 1. These Bylaws are designed to amplify provisions of the NSTEM Constitution and cannot contradict any provisions thereof. The Chapter shall adhere to the provisions of the NSTEM Constitution in all of its activities and undertakings.
Section 2. A copy of these Bylaws and any amendments thereto shall be filed with NSTEM.
ARTICLE 11
AMENDMENTS
Section 1. These Bylaws may be amended by (a) the Chapter Advisor at any time the Chapter Advisor deems necessary or appropriate, or (b) by affirmative vote of two-thirds of the Members with the approval of the Chapter Advisor.
