Sample Sport Club Constitution
Constitution of the Princeton University <name of sport> Club
Ratified/Revised on <Date>
Preamble
An introductory statement, usually no longer than 2-3 sentences, stating the club’s mission. A
mission statement defines the core purpose of the organization – why it exists. Effective mission
statements are concise, long-term in vision, and easily understood and communicated.
Article I. Name of Sport Club
The name of the club shall be Princeton University ___ Club, hereinafter referred to as
<shortened name of the club as it will appear throughout the constitution> [optional].
Article II. Purpose
Section 1. (In one, clear, concise statement, state the purpose of the club.)
Section 2. (Enumerate the aims and goals of the club, such as “to provide participation
opportunities for novices in [your club’s sport], to enhance the skills and strategies necessary to
win [your club’s division, section, state, nationals], to gain valuable management and leadership
experience through the efficient and creative administration of the club, etc.)
Article III. Membership
Reminder: Clubs must be open to all Princeton University students, faculty, and staff, who have
current Dillon Gym memberships and clubs may not discriminate in membership policies on the
basis of race, color, sex, gender, (including gender identity and expression), pregnancy, religion,
creed, marital status, partnership status, age, sexual orientation, national origin, disability,
military status, or any other legally protected status. A club may be required to limit participation
in certain kinds of activity (such as practice, competition or exhibition) to a certain class of
individuals (such as undergraduate students, men, women, individuals registered with the sport’s
National Governing Body, etc.), but membership in the club cannot be circumscribed.
Section 1. Eligibility (Indicate who is qualified for membership.).
Section 2. Active Membership (Enumerate what a member must do to be recognized as a
member-in-good-standing [such as pay dues on a timely basis, have a current and valid
individual membership in the club’s National Governing Body, attend 80% of all practices,
participate in competition].)
Section 3. Privileges (Enumerate the rights and privileges to which a member-in-good-standing
is entitled.)
Article IV. Officers
Reminder: Clubs must have undergraduate officers: President, Vice-President, Treasurer and
Secretary are recommended. Clubs may have as many committee chairs, captains, equipment
managers, competition managers, etc. as it likes, but the officers of a club are the only individuals
vested by the club’s membership to assume the fiduciary and liability responsibilities of the club.
Section 1. Duties of Office
A. President (List and define all of the President’s duties and obligations.)
B. Vice-President (List and define all of the Vice-President’s duties and obligations.)
C. Treasurer (List and define all of the Treasurer’s duties and obligations.)
D. Secretary (List and define all of the Secretary’s duties and obligations.)
Section 2. Eligibility (Indicate any requirements needed to hold office –e.g. President must
have been a member-in-good-standing for two semesters, must have served as a committee chair,
etc.)
Section 3. Elections (Identify the procedures used to elect the club’s Board of Officers, when
elections will occur, and who is eligible to cast a vote.)
Section 4. Term of Office (Define the length of an office term, if there are term limits, what the
resignation procedure is, and how [and under what grounds] an officer can be prematurely
removed from office.)
Article V. Committees
(Enumerate and define what standing and/or ad-hoc committees or what divisions [such as a
men’s division, a women’s division, a disabled athletes division, etc.] will exist in the club and
the duties and obligations of each.)
Article VI. Meetings
Section 1. Executive Board (Indicate the frequency with which the club’s Board of Officers
meet. It is suggested that club officers meet at least once a month to attend to the administrative
business of the club.)
Section 2. General Meetings (Indicate how many meetings of the general membership are to be
held during a year and when they are to be held. It is recommended that clubs have a minimum of
three general meetings each academic year: one early in the Fall Semester, one at the beginning
of the Spring Semester, and one near the end of the Spring Semester.)
Section 3. Special Meetings (Indicate the circumstances under which a special or emergency
meetings is to be called, by whom the meeting is called, and how members are to be notified.)
Article VII. Affiliations
Section 1. National Governing Body (Indicate whether the club has a collegiate, general or
masters membership in the sport’s NGB, enumerate the rules of NGB membership and enumerate
the obligations individual club members have to maintain the club’s NGB member status.)
Section 2. Leagues or Consortiums (Indicate any affiliations with local, state, regional, or
national organizations.)
Article VIII. Coaching / Instruction
Section 1. Goals (Explain the club’s performance goals and indicate the nature and scope of
coaching or instruction needed to meet those goals.)
Section 2. Consultant (Indicate the procedures of soliciting the services of an
Instructor/Consultant, the qualifications necessary for an ideal candidate, and the selection
process.)
Article IX. Amendments
(The amendment process should be defined to provide for a desire or need on the part of a club’s
membership to revise, correct, articulate, or augment an article or section of a ratified
Constitution.)
Reminder: A club’s Constitution is an evolving document and should keep pace with changes in
the sport, the club’s focus and composition and the club’s ever-evolving mission. The Club’s
Constitution should also be revised to reflect any changes in the policies and procedures of the
Club Sports program as a whole. A club should review its Constitution every two years. Once a
club has formally amended its Constitution and/or Bylaws, the amended Constitution must be
submitted to the Club Sports Governing Board for approval.
Section 1. Procedure for Amendment
(Indicate the procedure for presenting an amendment of the Constitution to the general
membership (whether amendment proposals require the formation of a Constitutional Committee
to review the proposal, and whether such a committee refers its recommendation to the club’s
Board of Officers). Define the form an amendment should take.)
Section 2. Ratification
(Define the process by which a proposed amendment is reviewed, discussed, revised and adopted.
Fix a timeline for each step in the ratification process. Indicate the margin of a vote of the club’s
general membership [in-good-standing] which must be in favor of a proposed amendment in
order to ratify an amendment.)
Article X. Bylaws
(While a Constitution is an instrument of governance, establishing the structure, composition and
fundamental principles of a club, By-laws are a set of policies and procedures that define how the
club executes the principles mandated in Constitution. By-laws are a set of separate and more
fluid clauses and should be revised and updated with more frequency than a club’s Constitution.
Certainly, By-laws should be amended when needed but routinely plan on doing so once a year.
Enumerate in this article the rules and regulations specific to the club.)
