Office of Residential Engagement and Wellbeing Constitution

I) Statement of Purpose

The French House is an academic theme house that is located within King Hall on the Amherst College campus. It was founded (1) to create a residential environment for students interested in developing and exercising their skills in the French language; (2) to provide a forum in which all Francophones at Amherst College can engage in activities conducted in French that are related to the French language and francophone cultures; (3) to establish an organizational structure that provides opportunities for interested members of the College community to familiarize themselves with various aspects of French language and francophone cultures.

II) Structure of the House

1) The French Department.

As an academic theme house, the French House is governed by the faculty members of the French Department of Amherst College (hereafter referred to as "The French Department"). The French House Constitution may be amended by the French Department at any time. All proposed amendments to this Constitution are subject to the approval of the French Department.

2) The French House Director.

Each year the French Department will choose from among its members a faculty advisor to the French House. In years in which no one member of the French Department is able to serve the entire year, one faculty advisor to the French House will be chosen per semester. The faculty advisor to the French House will be known as the French House Director. The French House Director will be responsible for (1) coordinating the application process for the French House; (2) selection of all French House residents; (3) serving as a liaison between the French Department and the French House.

3) Language Assistants.

French Department Language Assistants live in the French House and have all the rights and responsibilities of the residents of the French House, which include abiding by the Student Code of Conduct. Their primary responsibility is to foster an environment that invites and encourages residents to regularly communicate in French. The Language Assistants may choose to stand for leadership roles during the elections (see II.4 “Officers of the French House”), but are not required to do so, and are in fact strongly discouraged from doing so in light of their curricular duties. If they do not occupy a leadership role as an officer of the French House, they may act in an advisory capacity and offer suggestions to the house officers. They are expected to support the house officers in publicizing and carrying out the events, but the organization of events is the responsibility of house officers.

4) Officers of the French House.

The President. The residents of the French House will elect during the first week of Fall semester a President who will serve in that capacity for that academic year. The election will take place during a French House meeting that is attended by all French House residents. Names will be placed in nomination by the residents. The President will be elected by majority vote of the residents. If there are more than two nominees and no nominee receives a majority of the votes cast during the election, a second round of voting will be held. During the second round of voting the two nominees who received the most votes during the first round of voting will be the only remaining candidates. No resident will be elected an officer of the French House without their consent. The responsibilities of the President include: organizing and publicizing French House events; representing the French House at campus meetings at which a representative of the house is needed; and serving as a liaison to the French Department.

Other Officers. In any given year, the residents of the French House may decide to establish other officers of the French House for that academic year. These may include a Vice-President, Co-President, Treasurer, or any other officer that the French House residents deem necessary for the proper functioning of the house. The duties of the Other Officers will include aiding the President at their request with their responsibilities.

The definition of duties for any and all officers of the French House is subject to the approval of the French House Director. A list of the officers of the French House should be submitted to the French House Director by the end of the second week of Fall semester during each academic year. Any officer of the French house may be removed from office at any time by (1) a 2/3s vote of all residents of the French House; or (2) the French Department.

Ill) Selection of French House Residents.

The French House Director coordinates the application process for the French House and selects all French House residents. Applications for residency are normally gathered by the French Department in accordance with the timeline established by the Office of Residential Life each year. All applicants will be required to fill out an application online following the guidelines outlined by the Office of Residential Life for theme houses. If vacancies become available during the academic year, they are announced in the Daily Mammoth. Residency is open to Francophones of all levels of ability.

Priority in admission is given to declared French Majors. Among French Majors, priority is normally ranked in the following order: Seniors, Juniors, Sophomores (by year of French House residency). The selection of non-majors is done at the discretion of the French House Director. Criteria can include, but are not limited to, (1) level of ability in French; (2) the number and level of courses taken in French; (3) the willingness of the applicant to speak French in the French House and to participate fully in French House activities.

Current French House residents may remain residents of the house during the subsequent academic year (subject to the rules governing the maximum number of years that a student may be a resident in a Theme House of the College). If they intend to remain residents of the French House, they must inform the French House Director in writing of their intentions to do so prior to the publicized deadline for applications to the French House. Current residency in the French House does not imply priority in room selection for the following year.

Since many French House applicants are studying abroad during the application period, interviews of applicants will not be mandatory for admission to the house. However, at the discretion of the French House Director, French House residents may be asked to conduct interviews of some applicants who are currently residing on campus. Their assessments of the applicants will be taken under advisement by the French House Director during the selection process.

IV) French House Room Draw.

Each year rooms at the French House will be set aside prior to French House Room Draw by the French House Director to house the French Department Language Assistants.

The French House Director establishes a priority list for the French House Room Draw that is forwarded to the Community Development Coordinator (CDC) within the Office of Residential Life who is responsible for housing in the French House. The CDC will coordinate the students' selection of rooms according to the order established on the priority list during the week following college-wide Room Draw. Priority for French House Room Draw is given to declared French Majors. Among French Majors, priority is normally ranked in the following order: Seniors, Juniors, Sophomores (by year of French House residency). If there are more than one French major in each category, the French House Director will draw lots to determine Room Draw priority. Among residents who are not French majors priority will normally be ranked in the following order: Seniors, Juniors, Sophomores (by year of French House residency).

Although current residents of the French house have the right to remain in the French house during the subsequent academic year, current residency in the French House does not imply priority in room selection for the subsequent year.

V) Vacancies During a Semester.

1) The House President, the CDC of the French House, or another member of the Office of Residential Life will inform the French House Director and the Academic Department Coordinator (ADC) of the French Department of the vacancy.
2) The ADC will inform all the members of the French House of the vacancy.
3) Those residents who would like to move into the vacancy will indicate their desire to do so by sending a written message to that effect to the ADC no later than three working days after being notified of the vacancy.
4) If more than one person is interested in switching into the vacancy, the French House Director will compile a list of interested parties in the order in which they originally appeared on the priority list for obtaining rooms when they first entered the house. Residents who were given rooms after the Room Draw period in the spring will be placed on the bottom of this priority list.
5) The French House Director will forward the list of interested parties to the Office of Residential Life, who will follow the priority list in offering the room to interested parties.
6) Interested parties who are offered a room must decide to accept or decline that room by two working days after receiving the offer. Those who fail to answer in that amount of time will lose their place on the priority list.
7) This process can be repeated for the new opening that is created by the student who moved out of their original room until no current resident of the French House is interested in moving.
8) The new vacancy is then advertised to the community at large.
9) This process does not imply that during the normal spring Room Draw period, current residents take priority over new residents in the choice of rooms for the following fall.

VI) Responsibilities of House Residents.

All residents must read and sign a copy of the house Constitution that will be distributed to them as a Google Form, indicating that they understand and will abide by the responsibilities described therein.

These responsibilities include the following: French House Residents

1) will speak French to each other at all times while in the French House;

2) will attend French House meetings;

3) will agree to participate fully in French House activities, including organization of such activities and clean up after such activities;

4) will properly clean common areas after use; and

5) will respect all aspects of the Amherst College Student Code of Conduct.

If a resident does not contribute to the French House community, does not follow
French House policies, or contributes to an environment that is not conducive to the academic nature of the French House, they may be asked to move out by the French House Director or may not be readmitted for the following year.

VII) Expulsion from the French House.

If a resident does not contribute to the French House community; does not follow French House or French Department policies; or contributes to an environment that is not conducive to the academic nature of the French House, they may be required to move out. There are three ways in which this might occur.

(1) Violations of the Student Code of Conduct: if the Office of Residential Life finds that a member of the French House has committed a violation of the Student Code of Conduct (which constitutes a violation of item 5 in the Code of Responsibilities of French House Residents defined in section VI above), the Office of Residential Life should inform the French House Director of that fact. In this instance, at the discretion of the Office of Residential Life, the resident may be required to move out of the French House.

(2) Complaint brought forward by fellow residents: if in the judgement of at least four residents of the French House, a fellow resident is not attempting in good-faith to abide by items 1-5 of the Code of Responsibilities of French House Residents (defined in section VI above), they should inform the French House Director and the Office of Residential Life. The four residents may then bring their complaint before the Office of Residential Life.

The Office of Residential Life will review the evidence presented by the complainants and will provide the resident with the opportunity to respond. If the Office of Residential Life finds that there is plausible evidence that a serious infringement of the Code of Responsibilities of French House Residents has occurred, the Office of Residential Life will inform the French House Director of that fact.

The French House Director, in consultation with the Office of Residential Life, will then determine whether or not to expel the resident from the French House. In this instance, the decision to expel will remain at the discretion of the French House Director, who may also choose to consult with the tenured members of the French Department before making a determination.

(3) The Volek Rule: (Effective August, 2002) If a resident has gained priority in admission to the French House by declaring a French major under the provisions described in section III above, the French Department will expect that resident to complete the requirements for the major. Should the resident subsequently drop the major, the resident will be required to move out of the French House.

VIII) Amendments to the French House Constitution.

Proposals to amend the French House Constitution may be submitted to the French
House Director providing that at least 2/3s of the current residents of the French House have approved of the amendment in a vote that includes all current residents. All amendments to the French House Constitution are subject to the approval of the French Department. The French House Constitution may be amended by the French Department at any time.