St. Patrick Parish ’ Stoneham, MA

CYO Constitution

Ratified December 6, 1999

ARTICLE I

This association shall hereinafter be called the Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) of St. Patrick Parish in Stoneham, Massachusetts.

ARTICLE II

Mission Statement

The CYO of St. Patrick Parish has been established as the means by which the parish can bring together the High School aged youth as a distinct group with specific interests and needs. The CYO program seeks to offer a balanced, four-fold program of Spiritual, Service, Social, and Athletic activities within a safe, and welcoming environment. The goal of the CYO is two-fold: 1) To foster the total personal and spiritual growth of each individual, and 2) To draw and welcome all young people into responsibility, understanding, and participation in the life of the Catholic Church and community.

ARTICLE III

Membership

Section 1: Membership is open to all persons in grades nine through twelve (or aged 14-18) regardless of race, gender, religion, or residence.

Section 2: All members are eligible to hold offices for which they are qualified.

Section 3: Term of membership is yearly, and runs from September 1^st until August 31^st of the following year. Members must re-register each year in order to maintain active status. Members are encouraged to serve on at least two of the four CYO department committees during each yearly term.

Section 4: Dues are collected upon registration of each individual member. The amount for membership dues shall be determined each year by the Pastor, Youth Minister, and/or Youth Council.

Section 5: Members agree to follow all rules at all times and to respect all other members and adults involved. The Ten Commandments, as well as the Great Commandment shall be followed at all times.

Section 6: Members are welcome to bring guests to any CYO event so long as the event has not been deemed ’ДъFor Members Only,’Дщ or that a restriction to the amount of guests allowed has been announced. All members are fully responsible for their guests actions and behaviors, and as such, could be disciplined if a guest breaks any rule or regulation. All guests are expected to follow all given and announced rules at all times.

Section 7: Members agree, to the best of their ability, to uphold daily each point of ’ДъThe Faith Challenge.’Дщ

ARTICLE IV

Youth Council

Section 1: The CYO shall form a Youth Council each year for the purposes of leading and governing all CYO matters and activities for that given year. The term for the Youth Council shall run concurrently with the membership term. One must be registered in CYO in order to serve on the Youth Council.

Section 2: The Youth Council shall meet at appointed times (approximately once a month) to brainstorm, plan, and organize all matters and events. In addition, each member of the Council shall have a specific function, and is therefore expected to report any and all information regarding his or her position without reservation.

Section 3: The Youth Council shall take part in at least one overnight retreat for the purposes of team building, spiritual growth, leadership training, and planning purposes. Attendance on this retreat is mandatory of all Youth Council members.

Section 4: The Youth Council as a whole, as well as each member of the Council individually, shall maintain a high level of integrity, respect and reverence at all times.

Section 5: The Youth Council and its members must accept the responsibilities to which it and/or they have themselves committed. An appropriate ’Дъswearing-in’Дщ ceremony shall take place, at which the members shall officially be installed onto the Council, and the Council itself shall be recognized and installed within the parish and community.

Section 6: The Youth Council must strive to become successful by fostering a sound foundation of committed members as well as securing a respected position in the parish, community, Archdiocese, and minds of youth.

Section 7: Members of the Youth Council are expected to attend all functions of the Youth Council. Absence from three Council events shall result in dismissal from the Council unless otherwise approved by the Youth Minister or Pastor. In addition, each Council member must be willing to work with others of all age levels, and to dedicate time and energy to CYO matters, events, and membership growth.

Section 8: Youth Council meetings are open meetings (unless otherwise announced) and may be attended by any person. Guests, as well as Adult Advisors from the Youth Ministry Team are free to participate in the discussion when recognized, after all council members have spoken. However, only Council members are entitled to vote on any matter.

Section 9: Should a member not be able to complete his or her term on the Youth Council for whatever reason, it shall be decided by the Youth Council how best to fill that position for the remainder of the term.

Section 10: The Youth Minister holds final responsibility for all decisions of the Youth Council and must report all decisions to the Pastor. The Pastor holds final decision in all Parish matters.

ARTICLE V

Structure of the Youth Council

Section 1: The Youth Council shall be divided into three sections: The Executive Council, the Class Representatives, and the Youth Representatives to the Parish Pastoral Council. All Council members have a shared responsibility to uphold and adhere to all parts of this Constitution, and to report any breaches of said Constitution at the next Youth Council meeting.

Section 2: The Executive Council shall have eleven members. It is comprised of the three Officer positions (President, Vice-President, and Secretary) and the eight Co-Chair positions (Spiritual, Service, Social, and Athletic).

Section 3: The Class Representatives shall have twelve seats on the Youth Council. Three representatives shall serve from each of the four high school grade levels (Freshman, Sophomore, Junior, and Senior).

Section 4: The Youth Representatives to the Parish Pastoral Council shall number two, unless otherwise determined by the Pastor.

ARTICLE VI

Youth Council Qualifications and Specific Job Descriptions

Section 1: The President must be a senior in high school. The President must be Catholic. The President must have served on the Youth Council previously for at least one year. The President’Дфs primary responsibility is the overall management of the CYO and overall adherence to the CYO Constitution. The President supervises, empowers, assists, and evaluates the Co-Chairpersons of the four departments (Spiritual, Service, Social, and Athletic). The President presides and establishes process of order at all meetings unless otherwise delegated. The President reports to the Youth Minister.

Section 2: The Vice-President shall assume the duties of the President in the event of his/her absence. The Vice-President is manager of overall CYO membership and growth. The Vice-President is manager of CYO Morale, and ’Дъquality control.’Дщ The Vice-President supervises, empowers, assists, and evaluates the twelve Class Representatives. The Vice-President reports to the President.

Section 3: The Secretary shall be responsible for all administrative needs of the CYO, and Youth Council. The Secretary shall keep minutes of all meetings, and distribute them, as needed, in a timely manner. The Secretary shall coordinate all aspects of communication and publicity (to include mailings, flyers, newsletters, etc). The Secretary shall assist in the registration of members. The Secretary reports to the President.

Section 4: The Co-Chairpersons are responsible for both planning and executing all events within their specific department (Spiritual, Service, Social, and Athletic). The Co-Chairpersons shall form (using CYO members of all grade levels) both a ’Дъplanning team’Дщ which will assist them in brainstorming, planning, and identifying all possible resources, as well as, a ’Дъworker team’Дщ which will assist in carrying out all aspects of every event within their specific department. The Co-Chairpersons shall solicit input from

all sources, and report their plans and needs to the Youth Council for approval and assistance. The Co-Chairpersons report to the President.

Section 5: The Class Representatives shall constantly communicate with the members of their grade, and gather their opinions, needs, desires, and dreams for CYO. The Class Representatives shall represent their grade level on the

Youth Council and provide feedback without reservation. The Class Representatives shall communicate the decisions of the Youth Council to all members of their grade. The Class Representatives shall each recruit at least five new members every month. The Class Representatives shall reach out to the people of their grade from other schools. The Class Representatives shall assist the Co-Chairpersons in recruiting members for their ’Дъplanning’Дщ and ’Дъworker’Дщ teams. The Class Representatives shall assist the Secretary in promoting all events. The Class Representatives report to the Vice-President.

Section 6: The Youth Representatives to the Parish Pastoral Council shall assist the Pastor in governing over all parish matters. The Youth Representatives to the Parish Pastoral Council shall communicate back and forth between the Youth Council and the Parish Pastoral Council as needed. The Youth Representatives to the Parish Pastoral Council shall represent the views of all youth within the parish community. The Youth Representatives to the Parish Pastoral Council report to the Youth Minister.

ARTICLE VII

Selection of Youth Council Members

Section 1: Paperwork shall be made available each year on Easter Sunday which includes the CYO Constitution, and explains the process by which the next Youth Council shall be selected.

Section 2: All eleven positions of the Executive Council are chosen by appointment following a nomination process. Nomination forms for all Executive Council seats shall be made available on Easter Sunday, and turned in no later than Ascension Thursday (40 days after Easter). Nomination forms may be submitted by anyone ’ youth or adult ’ within the parish community, and do not have to be signed. A team of adults, including the Youth Minister, Pastor and selected adults from the Youth Ministry Team, shall then appoint and announce the eleven members of the Executive Council no later than the 43^rd day after Easter (or 7^th Sunday of Easter).

Section 3: All Class Representative positions shall be chosen by way of a secret ballot election to be held on Pentecost (50 days after Easter). Those wishing to run for a Class Representative position will be allowed the brief opportunity to introduce themselves, and justify their reason for running for office. Class Representative results shall be made known the day of the election.

Section 4: Youth Representatives to the Parish Pastoral Council shall be appointed by the President, with assistance from the Youth Minister.

ARTICLE VIII

Amendments

This Constitution may be amended at any Youth Council meeting by a two-thirds vote of the Youth Council members present, provided the proposed amendment has been submitted in writing at a Youth Council meeting which is at least one month previous to the meeting at which it is to be voted upon.

FIRST AMENDMENT

Ratified January 8, 2001
Appointment of Freshman Class Representatives

Representatives for the Freshman class shall be appointed in January by the current Youth Council. Nominations shall be made at the December Youth Council meeting by anyone who attends that particular meeting, and arguments for or against the nominee will ensue. All nominees must be members of the freshman class and a signed document from the nominee must be submitted to the Youth Council certifying that he or she is willing to serve on the Youth Council as representative to the Freshman class. The youth council shall select Freshman representatives on the basis of the candidate’Дфs overall character; willingness to participate in all Youth Council events to help better the CYO; and various other items that deem the candidate "qualified" for the position. During the following full Youth Council meeting, the nominees shall be voted upon. Each member of the Youth Council shall vote for the three candidates whom they feel are most qualified. The three nominees who recieve the most votes will be selected for the position. If a consensus cannot be made, the Vice-President will work with the Youth Minister to solve any conflicts and finalize the selection process.