2008 – 2009 UNC-CH STUDENT CO-CURRICULAR ORGANIZATIONS:
DATABASE AND ON-LINE INFORMATION AT HTTP://CAROLINAUNION.UNC.EDU

Thank you for your leadership of a University officially recognized student co-curricular organization. As the primary contact, it is your responsibility to maintain the information about your organization. The information you keep up to date is automatically posted to the student organization listing at http://cf.unc.edu/dsa/union/studorgs/index.html.

If you are new to the role of primary contact for your organization, please read the following information carefully as it is your responsibility to maintain compliance with all components of the 2008 - 2009 Official University Recognition Agreement for UNC-CH Student Co-Curricular Organizations in order to maintain official University recognition and access to state, public resources.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill supports an atmosphere where students can openly share ideas, interests, and concerns. Through involvement in co-curricular activities and attendance at programs sponsored by student groups, students can develop their skills, knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors in regard to ethics, pluralism, communications, management, vision, and aesthetics, as well as find opportunities to confront and discuss ideas that may be new to them. Involvement in co-curricular activities plays an important and complementary role to learning in the classroom and the University strongly supports student creation of and involvement in organizations.

The requirements for receiving and maintaining official University recognition are:

1. The majority of your organization’s membership must be registered students of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
2. All major officers (including the person who will serve as the primary contact) of your organization must be full-time, registered students of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
3.  One major officer of the organization must agree to serve as the primary contact of the organization, sign this Agreement, and arrange for review by the Office of Student Activities and Student Organizations.  The primary contact agrees to ensure compliance with all applicable University policies, instruct organizational members of these polices, and fulfill organizational responsibilities in a timely manner throughout the year.
4.  The organization must comply with University policies, including University policies on non-discrimination.  The University's commitment to equal opportunity for each member of its student body is unshakable.  The University does not discriminate in offering access to its educational programs and activities on the basis of age, race, color, gender, national origin, disability, religion, veteran status, or sexual orientation.  To be eligible for official recognition from the University -- and the privileges that accompany official recognition -- a student co-curricular organization must abide by the following:   Membership and participation in the organization must be open to all students without regard to age, race, color, national origin, disability, religious status or historic religious affiliation, veteran status, or sexual orientation.  Membership and participation in the organization must also be open without regard to gender, unless exempt under Title IX.   Student organizations that select their members on the basis of commitment to a set of beliefs (e.g., religious or political beliefs) may limit membership and participation in the organization to students who, upon individual inquiry, affirm that they support the organization’s goals and agree with its beliefs, so long as no student is excluded from membership or participation on the basis of his or her age, race, color, national origin, disability, religious status or historic religious affiliation, veteran status, sexual orientation, or, unless exempt under Title IX, gender.   See http://www.unc.edu/campus/policies/studentorgnondiscrim.html
5. The organization must comply with applicable federal, state, and local laws, including but not limited to state laws related to hazing and alcoholic beverages.
6. Your organization must provide students with disabilities accessible programming and facilities including, but not limited to, physical location, alternative printed materials and web pages, and communications (e.g., sign language interpreters). 
7. Your organization may be required to affiliate with appropriate University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill departments or offices (Greek Affairs, Campus Recreation).  Contact those offices for further information prior to signing this agreement and submitting an application.
8. If you are starting a new organization, you may reserve University space for two organizational meetings prior to receiving Official University Recognition status.  Room reservations are made through the Events Planning Office, 3105 Frank Porter Graham Student Union (9:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m., Monday - Friday, 966-3832/962-4408).
9. Your organization must have an advisor who is a full-time permanent employee of the faculty or staff of UNC-CH or UNC Hospitals or is extended the privileges thereof.

OFFICIAL UNIVERSITY RECOGNITION INCLUDES:

1. Use, through reservation, of specified University facilities, property, services, or equipment pursuant to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s Facilities Use Policy.
2. Use of the University’s name in the organization’s title, so long as University sponsorship or endorsement is not implied or stated.  If you desire to use the University’s name as part of your organization’s name, it should follow one of these forms.
1. “(The) University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill...” “UNC-CH…” or “UNC-Chapel Hill…” or “Carolina…” not “UNC…”
3. Access to funding from the Student Activity Fee that is legislatively apportioned by the Student Congress.
4. Assistance of the Division of Student Affairs including, but not limited to, Carolina Leadership Development, Carolina Union, Disability Services, Greek Affairs, and the Student Activities Fund Office.  Available are: leadership training and educational workshops, general organizational advisement, assistance in publicity and marketing, program planning advisement, reference materials, and more.

BY CLICKING IN THE BOX BELOW ON BEHALF OF MY ORGANIZATION, I CERTIFY MY ORGANIZATION MEETS THE REQUIREMENTS FOR OFFICIAL RECOGNITION.  I ALSO CERTIFY MY OWN AND MY ORGANIZATION’S UNDERSTANDING AND ACCEPTANCE THAT:

1. Official recognition does not mean that the University endorses the viewpoints of the organization.
2. Recognition expires annually on SEPTEMBER 30TH of each academic year, unless withdrawn earlier for cause.
3. Materials submitted in conjunction with a request for official recognition (application, agreement, constitutions, etc.) are considered public information and will be provided to any persons on written request to the Office of University Counsel.
4. My responses on the application must be truthful statements.  If reasonable grounds exist to believe responses are false, the matter will be reported to officials of the judicial system as possible violations of the Code of Student Conduct. 
5. Recognition may be withdrawn or denied should it be determined the application contains false information, the majority of the organization’s members are not registered UNC-CH students, all major officers of the organization are not full-time, registered UNC-CH students, the organization has no faculty/staff advisor, the organization fails to comply with University policies, including University policies on non-discrimination, or if the organization fails to comply with applicable federal, state, or local laws.  Recognition status also may be changed by sanctions imposed by student or Greek judicial procedures.

If you have any questions, please contact activities_organizations@unc.edu.

Thank you.