Pi Epsilon Tau at the University of Texas at Austin

Oh, gather round ye hearty folks,
And we'll drink a toast tonight.
For we are folks of Pi Ep Tau,
A frat with much foresight.

Brains are scattered here and there,
And some other stuff like that.
For in the petrol industry,
We're B.S. of the frat.

Chorus:
Pi Epsilon Tau: YaYa YaYa YaYa

Pi Epsilon Tau: YaYa YaYa YaYa YaYa YaYa YaYa
We're Happy to be members,
And we hope you will agree,
That Pi Ep Tau with us, we think
Is THE fraternity, HEY!!

Preamble  We, the members of Pi Epsilon Tau, in order to create, establish and maintain an organization for the meeting on common ground of engineers associated with the petroleum industry who have a sincere desire to foster for the Industry an organization of loyalty, good fellowship, and mutual cooperation, do hereby ordain and establish the constitution of this Petroleum Engineering Honor Society.

ARTICLE I

Title and Insignia

Section 1. The name of this society shall be Pi Epsilon Tau.

Section 2. The colors of this society shall be Black and Gold.

Section 3. The flower of this society shall be the Red Rose.

Section 4. The insignia of this society shall be the key which will be
described by the Bylaws.

Section 5. The banner of this society shall be the flag which will be
described by the Bylaws.

ARTICLE II

Object

Section 1. The object of this society shall be to foster a closer bond between its
members and the Petroleum Industry, to broaden the scope of activities
of its members, and to maintain the high ideals and standards of the
Engineering Profession.

ARTICLE III

Organization

Section 1. This society shall consist of Chapters established in engineering colleges
which offer a curriculum leading towards a bachelor of science or graduate
degree in petroleum engineering, or option therein. If the curriculum in
petroleum engineering, or option therein, is not clearly identified in the
college or university catalogue, the National Council shall investigate
further and furnish the results of their investigation to the local
chapters when the request for a charter is submitted for approval.

Section 2. The general government of the Society shall be vested in the National
Convention and the National Council.

ARTICLE IV

Government of the Society

Section 1. The National Convention and the National Council shall have control of all
matters and affairs of the Society as a whole, but shall not interfere with
the internal affairs of any Chapter, except in matters of discipline.

Section 2. Each Chapter shall have two votes in the National Convention. The number of
delegates that a Chapter sends to the Convention shall be left to the
discretion of the Chapter, but the total vote from each Chapter shall be
two.

Section 3. No Chapter shall be allowed to vote at the Convention by proxy.

Section 4. The National Convention should meet once every three years, thetime and
place to be set by the National Council.

Section 5. The quorum of the National Convention shall consist of two-thirds of the
active Chapters.

Section 6. a. The National Council shall consist of five members elected by the
National Convention to serve for a period of three years in the posts of
National President, National Vice-President, National Executive
Director, and two National Councilmen.

b. The National Executive Board shall consist of one Chapter Advisor from
each Chapter and shall act in an advisory capacity to the National
Council.

Section 7. The National Council shall meet as needed.

Section 8. The duties of the National President shall be to act as executive officer
of the National Council, to preside at meetings of the National Convention,
and to call National Council meetings.

Section 9. The duties of the National Vice-President shall be to perform the duties of
the National President in his absence, to act as the Director of National
Publicity of the Society, and will be responsible for the development of
new chapters.

Section 10. The duties of the National Executive Director shall be to keep accurate
minutes of all meetings of the National Council and the National
Convention, to be responsible for all correspondence of the Society, and
shall have custody of all money of the Society. He shall report at each
meeting of the Convention and of the Council on the financial condition of
the Society. He shall issue permits for all membership certificates, keys,
and other insignia of the Society.

Section 11. Normal administrative costs expended by the National Executive Director are
authorized by the Society. Larger than normal expenditures must be approved
by the National Council.

Section 12. Any action, duties or responsibilities under the jurisdiction of the
National Convention may be decided upon receipt of mail ballot, preferably
by certified mail, or other documentation from at least three-fourths of
the active chapters.

ARTICLE V

New Chapters

Section 1. Chapters of Pi Epsilon Tau shall be established by written petition from
eligible petroleum engineering students enrolled in a qualified petroleum
engineering curriculum. The eligibility of the petitioners must be
certified by the authorities of the school. Each new chapter must submit
bylaws for approval by the National Council before initiation. A payment of
$100.00, to cover chapter initiation fees, must be paid.

Section 2. A majority vote for the National Council with three-fourths vote of active
chapters shall be required to grant a Charter.

Section 3. The Chapters of the Society shall be designated by the letters of the Greek
Alphabet.

ARTICLE VI

Members

Section 1. Membership shall be of three classes: Active, Honorary and Alumnus.

Section 2. Active members are active undergraduate or graduate students as defined
below:

a. Active members shall be chosen on the basis of their scholastic
accomplishments leadership, and sociability, and shall be selected from
the undergraduate and graduate classes, as-defined by the administration
of the College of Engineering and the appropriate department and the
intent of VI-2c.

b. There shall be at least one election of members each academic year.
Eligible undergraduate candidates for membership in Pi Epsilon Tau must
have a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0 (based on a 4.0
system) or 2.0 (based on a 3.0 system), a simple majority vote, or must
have the favorable recommendation of the Chapter Advisor and 100%
approval of the membership of the Chapter. Limitations, if any, on the
number of eligible candidates who may actually be elected to membership
may by imposed by local Chapter bylaws. Local chapters are required to
have at least four members (including members-at-large) to conduct
initiation.

c. To be considered in an election, the undergraduate candidate must have
completed at least one semester or quarter of resident work at the
school and shown outstanding proficiency and Commitment in petroleum
engineering course work.

d. For a graduate student to be eligible for membership he must have
completed at least nine credit hours toward a degree in a program
approved under Article III, Section 1, and have a grade average on his
graduate work of 3.25 (based on a 4.0 system) or 2.25 (on a 3.0 system).
Graduate students shall be eligible to hold a Chapter office and shall
have voting privileges providing they are not a member of the full-time
school faculty.

Section 3. Honorary members shall be chosen by each Chapter as those who have proved
themselves to be worthy of membership in Pi Epsilon Tau by their technical
accomplishments in the field of petroleum engineering. A chapter may not
initiate more than four honorary members per year, except that all of the
eligible faculty members of a school may be initiated. Each candidate must
be approved by the National Executive Director and the wording of the
honorary certificate may be modified to reflect on the
recipient's achievements.

Section 4. Alumnus members shall be those active members who are no longer taking work
at the school.

Section 5. Faculty Advisors shall be required to be members or honorary members of Pi
Epsilon Tau and meet the approval of the local chapter.

ARTICLE VII

Government of Chapters

Section 1. Each Chapter shall have full control of its individual affairs subject to
this Constitution and Bylaws of the Honor Society.

Section 2. a. Each Chapter shall enact bylaws for its own government whichdo not
conflict with the National Constitution and Bylaws. Such Bylaws shall be
approved by a three-fourths vote for the Chapter and shall be approved
by the National Council.

b. The vote on amendments to Chapter bylaws shall not be taken until a
period of at least one week shall have elapsed following their
presentation to the Chapter. All amendments shall be approved by the
National Council.

Section 3. The officers of each Chapter shall be a President, Executive Vice
President, 2nd Vice-President, Secretary-Treasurer, and Corresponding
Secretary. A local chapter shall be allowed to function with the number of
officers deemed necessary with duties combined accordingly. .

Section 4. The duties of the President shall be to call and preside at all special and
regular meetings, and to appoint committees.

Section 5. The duties of the Executive Vice-President shall be to assist the President
and to preside in that officer's absence. In addition, the Executive Vice-
President shall be pledge trainer.

Section 6. The duties of the 2nd Vice-President shall be Publicity Director and
Historian.

Section 7. The duties of the Secretary-Treasurer shall be to keep a record of all
transactions at all regular and special meetings, and the Secretary-
Treasurer will be custodian of the finances.

Section 8. The duties of the Corresponding Secretary shall be to assist the Secretary-
Treasurer, and to handle all necessary correspondence.

ARTICLE VIII

Fees

Section 1. Each Chapter shall decide on the amount of its initiation fee but shall not
exceed $50.00 per initiate. Such fees shall include the national fee, which
includes the certificate of membership, and other fees as assessed by the
local chapter and/or National Convention. The cost of the key and/or bent
maybe included in such fees at she option of the local chapter.

Section 2. The initiation fee for Honorary Members shall be as prescribed by the
National Bylaws, Article V, Section lc.

ARTICLE IX

Discipline

Section 1. The method of discipline of a Chapter shall be by suspension of its
charter.

Section 2. A Chapter may have its charter temporarily suspended by any of the
following methods:

a. By the unanimous vote of the National Council.

b. By the complaint of three other Chapters and a three-fifths vote of the
National Council.

c. By written suggestion of the same presented to the National Council by
fifteen alumnus members and a three-fifths vote of the National Council.

d. By failure to regain active status after a two-year period of being
classified as inactive under Section 5 of this Article.

Section 3. Such temporary suspension shall only be until the meeting of the next
National Convention at which time the representatives from such Chapter
shall be allowed to present their case before the Convention. A three-
fourths vote of the National Convention shall be necessary to make such
suspension permanent. The decision of the National Convention shall be
final.

Section 4. During the time of temporary suspension, the Chapter shall not carry on any
function except those necessary for the preparation of its case for
presentation to the National Convention.

Section 5. Failure to initiate new members or report activities over a period of one
year results in a Chapter being placed on inactive status. Inactive status
results in the loss of all voting privileges. To regain active status a
Chapter must resume initiation of new members and/or report to the National
office.

Section 6. The methods of discipline of a member shall be by either suspension or
expulsion.

Section 7. A member may be suspended from his chapter if charges, signed by four
active members, are supported by a thorough investigation and that the
member is granted an impartial hearing of the charges and investigation.

Section 8. Any member may be expelled from the Honor Society by the action of Article
IX, Section 7, with the additional approval of the National Council.

Section 9. A suspended or expelled member shall be allowed to appeal his case to the
National Convention. A three-fourths vote of the Convention shall be
required for reinstatement.

ARTICLE X

Amendments

Section 1. Proposal of Amendments:

Any active Chapter may originate a proposed amendment. Proposed amendments
shall be forwarded to the National Council whose duty it shall be to supply
all active Chapters with a copy of such proposed amendments as soon as
possible after their receipt.

Section 2. Proposed amendments may be adopted by either of the following procedures:

a. The proposed amendment passed by three-fourths of the active Chapters.

b. By a three-fourths affirmative vote of the National Convention.

Proposed amendments to be voted on by the National Convention must have
been submitted to the National Council three months prior to the meeting
of the National Convention and each Chapter must be supplied with a
written copy of all proposed amendments to be voted on at the next meeting
of the National Convention two months prior to such meeting

1) Pledge meetings – We will meet every two weeks for roughly one hour. These meetings allow the pledge trainer to keep you informed of any new developments and to learn of your progress as well as any problems that have arisen since the last meeting. They are also an excellent opportunity to get to know your classmates better, as well as complete some of the below tasks. The first meeting is February 23, 2010 at 6pm in CPE 2.210. At this meeting a schedule will be handed out containing the other meeting dates. A maximum of one meeting may be missed by any candidate, but the candidate will need to contact the Executive Vice President if this does happen.
Maximum of 20 points (5 points for each meeting)
 
2) Tutoring – Tutoring will be held for some of the lower division petroleum engineering classes. Any candidate who has acquired an A grade in a class will be allowed to tutor for the class.
Maximum 20 points (10 points per hour)

3) Polishing bents– The bent is the symbol of your membership in Pi Epsilon Tau. It is recognized throughout the industry as the sign of an accomplished engineering student, and it is yours to keep for life. It has been cast in a sand mold and will require your commitment to polish it into an emblem you can be proud of. You will receive your bent as well as instructions on how to polish it when you pay your membership fee. This assignment will take more time than any other project, but the results are yours to keep and display in any manner you wish.
Maximum of 20 points

4) Signature sheets – You will be given sheets with the names of the department’s faculty, staff, and active members on it. Your duty is to get as many signatures as you can matching the names on the list. The purpose of this activity is to allow you to meet all of the members and faculty in our department.
Maximum 10 points for faculty and staff and an additional 10 points for students

5) Quiz – At the last pledge meeting you will be given a quiz over the material covered in your handouts – the constitution, club song, member lists, etc.
Maximum of 20 points

Please keep in mind that being invited to pledge is not an automatic invitation to become a full member. You need to earn at least 75 points to qualify. Good luck!