BYLAWS of the SOUTHWESTERN CONSORTIUM for INNOVATIVE PSYCHOLOGY IN EDUCATION
ARTICLE I: Name and Purpose
Section 1: The name of this organization shall be the Southwestern Consortium for Innovative Psychology in Education (known herein as SCIPIE).
Section 2: The Consortium is made up of Member Institutions. Member Institutions consist of southwestern universities who have paid the institutional membership fee.
Section 3: It is planned for SCIPIE to be incorporated as a non-profit,
educational corporation under the laws of the State of
Section 4: The purposes of SCIPIE shall be a) to support and facilitate innovative research in Psychology in Education, b) facilitate opportunities for development of research programs at member institutions, and c) to preserve educational psychology.
Section 5: Neither the name of, nor membership in, SCIPIE shall be used to promote personal benefit.
ARTICLE II: Membership
Section 1: Membership comprises four categories: charter, voting, active, and student.
Section 2: Active members shall be persons interested in promoting the purpose of SCIPIE and who pay annual dues. All participants of the Inaugural SCIPIE conference will be designated as Inaugural Members and will function as active members.
Section 3: Active members may apply for voting status. To achieve voting status, an active member must have achieved a standard of excellence as a scientist conducting empirical research in the field of educational psychology. The Membership Committee (see Article VI, Section 5) shall review applications and make recommendations to the Board of Directors. The Board of Directors shall make the final decisions regarding who shall receive voting member status (see Article IV). Voting member status shall continue as long as annual dues are paid.
Section 4: Student members shall be graduate students (full or part-time) in fields related to the study of educational psychology who are interested in promoting the purposes of SCIPIE and pay annual dues. Applications and renewals for student membership must be accompanied by evidence of graduate student status, e.g., by a certifying signature from a member of SCIPIE.
Section 5: Charter members are the founding members of
SCIPIE. Charter Members are Jenefer Husman; Barbara Greene;
Douglas Kauffman; Terri DeBacker; Terri Flowerday; Ralph E. Reynolds; Gale M.
Sinatra; and Lisa D. Bendixen.
ARTICLE III: Officers
Section 1: The elected officers shall be President, President Elect, Past President, and Secretary. The appointed officers shall be Treasurer and Historian (see Article III, Section 3). Officers must be Voting Members.
Section 2: The officers shall serve for a term of two years. Each officers’ term shall begin and on the final day of the SCIPIE Conference.
Section 3: The appointed officers shall be named by the President with the advice and consent of the Board of Directors (as indicated by a 2/3rds majority vote) for a term of two years. The responsibilities will start on the date specified at the time of appointment. Officers may be reappointed.
Section 4: Appointed and Elected officers may be removed from office at any time by a vote of at least three quarters of the members of the Board of Directors.
Section 5: The President shall act as the chief executive officer, chairing meetings of the members and of the Board of Directors, and exercising general leadership and supervision over the affairs of the organization in implementing its purpose. The President shall be responsible for approving and signing all contracts and other instruments of SCIPIE and, along with the Treasurer, authorizing the disbursement of funds in accordance with the annual budget. The President shall fulfill other duties as directed by the Board of Directors and shall assume the duties of any vacant office, until such time as the office is filled. At the expiration of the term of office, the President shall automatically become Past President.
Section 6: The President Elect shall serve as the Chair of the Program Committee (see Article VI, Section 2) and fulfill other duties as directed by the Board of Directors. In the absence of the President, the President Elect shall assume and perform the duties of the President. At the expiration of the term of office, the President Elect shall automatically become the President.
Section 7: The Past President shall serve as liaison between SCIPIE and other professional organizations or government bodies, Chair the Membership Committee, (see Article VI, Section 5) Chair the Nominations Committee (see Article VI, Section 4), and fulfill other duties as directed by the Board of Directors.
Section 8: The Secretary shall perform the duties necessary for the maintenance of records and correspondence of SCIPIE, ensure the recording of an accurate record of discussions and actions taken at meetings of the members and the Board of Directors, oversee the election process, keep abreast of and inform the Board of Directors of any necessary actions relative to incorporation, give copies of all minutes to all the members of the Board with an extra archival copy for the Historian, and fulfill other duties as directed by the Board of Directors.
Section 9: The Treasurer shall ensure the maintenance of all fiscal records and reports, oversee the custody of all SCIPIE funds and receipt of all dues and other monies owed to SCIPIE, authorize the disbursement of funds in accordance with the annual budget approved by the Board of Directors, cooperate with the Board of Directors in preparing the annual budget, and fulfill other duties as directed by the Board of Directors.
Section 10: The Historian shall keep archival copies of the program from the Conference, the minutes of all board meetings, and copies of incorporation records, bylaws, and the Policy and Procedures Handbook. The Historian shall also be responsible for distributing a copy of the bylaws and a Policies and Procedures Handbook to the new officers and members of the Board of Directors.
ARTICLE IV: Board of Directors
Section 1: The Board of Directors shall be empowered to hold and administer all property and funds and to direct the affairs of the organization. The Board of Directors will be made up of the elected and appointed officers, two member at-large, and conference coordinator. A representative will be elected from among the student members and serve exofficio. A Technology Coordinator will be appointed by the President and serve exofficio. Four of the voting Board Members must be faculty from a Member Institution. The Board of Directors shall maintain a SCIPIE Policy and Procedures Handbook which shall be reviewed and updated annually by the Historian.
Section 2: Members at-large are elected through the general membership. Voting members will vote for the members at-large but an active member can serve as a member at-large. The conference coordinator will be appointed by the President in consultation with the President Elect.
Section 3: The Conference Coordinator shall be responsible for planning the Conference. This includes site selection and arrangements with the host hotel, before, during, and after the meeting. All arrangements are subject to the final approval of the Board of Directors as indicated by a simple majority vote.
Section 4: As designated by the President, each Director shall serve as a liaison to committees, in addition to other duties.
Section 5: The Board of Directors shall meet at least once a year, whenever possible at the time and place of the Conference. Additional meetings may be held at the call of the President or upon the written request of any four members of the Board of Directors. The time and place of additional meetings shall be determined by the President, or by the group calling the meeting, so long as all members of the Board of Directors are given reasonable notice of the meeting. Members of the Board of Directors are authorized to use other means of communication to conduct necessary business of SCIPIE.
Section 5: The Secretary shall ensure the maintenance of a full set of minutes of all sessions. The minutes will be available for inspection by any member of the Board of Directors. A summery of the minutes will be made available to the general membership.
Section 6: A quorum shall consist of at least five members of the Board of Directors, three of whom shall be elected officers.
Section 7: If the position of any elected Director becomes vacant, the remaining members of the Board of Directors shall, by appointment by the president, fill the empty position until the next election.
Section 8: The Technology Coordinator will be appointed by the President. The president may appoint any active or voting member to this position. The Technology Coordinator, under the direction of the President, will assist the Board of Directors by maintaining the official website, provide technical assistance during official meetings and conferences, and make recommendations to the board concerning equipment purchases and electronic communications.
ARTICLE V: Elections
Section 1: The Nominations Committee (see Article VI, Section 4), shall prepare, prior to the conference, a list of nominations for each position to be filled.
Section 2: After securing the approval of the nominated individuals, the list of candidates shall be mailed to all voting members before the Conference (if possible). Other nominations may then be submitted by the written request of at least ten active members. Additional nominations must include a statement of consent to stand for office from each nominee.
Section 3: Election ballots listing the names of all properly nominated
persons accompanied by a brief vitae for each nominee
shall be mailed to all voting members. The ballot shall include a deadline for
its return to the secretary and the secretary's address.
Section 4: Voting shall be by regular or electronic mail. Only ballots received before the deadline stated on the ballot shall be counted.
Section 5: The Secretary shall be responsible for the counting of ballots. The Secretary, and at least two other members, shall certify the results to the President who shall report the results to the membership in the annual business report. Positions of elected officers shall be filled by those persons obtaining the highest number of votes. Ordinarily, tie votes will be decided by through a run-off election organized by the Secretary. All voting members will be eligible to vote in the run-off election.
Section 6: The members at-large will serve two year staggered terms.
Section 7: Elections shall take place during the calendar year preceding the date that elected officers shall take office.
ARTICLE VI: Committees
Section 1: Members of ad-hoc committees shall be appointed by the President with the advice of the Board of Directors. Committees shall serve for the term of the President unless otherwise specified at the time of appointment. The chair of each committee shall be appointed by the President, except for the chair of the standing committees as specified in these Bylaws. Vacancies on committees shall be filled by the President as they arise.
Section 2: The Program Committee shall advise the Conference Coordinator on the planning and organization of the SCIPIE Conference and function as a review board for program paper proposals. Any member is eligible to present a paper at the Conference. The Conference Coordinator shall serve as Coordinator and the President Elect shall serve as the Chair of this committee. Other members of this committee shall be appointed at the discretion of the Conference Coordinator.
Section 3: The Program Committee will be assisted by the On-Site Conference Committee. The chair of the On-Site Conference Committee will be the exoficio student representative to the Board of Directors. The On-Site Conference Committee will consist of student members. The Members will be appointed by the President Elect and the Conference Coordinator and will provide logistical support during the Conference.
Section 4: The Nominations Committee shall function as defined in these Bylaws. The Nominations Committee shall be composed of the four elected officers. The Past President shall serve as Chair.
Section 5: The Membership Committee shall deal with all issues involving membership; its primary function will be to make decisions regarding the conferral of voting status in SCIPIE. It will submit its criteria for voting status to the Board for its approval; the Board may review and change these criteria at any time. This committee will be responsible for informing members about criteria and about the form of applications. Each year the Committee will review applicants and make membership determinations by a simple majority vote. The Past-President shall serve as Chair of this committee.
Section 6: Ad hoc committees may be established and their members appointed by the President, with the advice of the Board of Directors, for special purposes and shall serve for such time as is specified at the time of appointment.
ARTICLE VII: Finances
Section 1: The Board of Directors shall have the power to allocate funds to carry out the purposes of the organization.
Section 2: All receipts and disbursements shall be made through accounts authorized by the Board of Directors. The President or Treasurer shall be responsible for authorizing the disbursement of funds in accordance with the annual budget.
Section 3: The Board of Directors shall be responsible for adopting an annual budget; the Treasurer shall be responsible for preparing the budget for the Board's consideration.
Section 4: Membership dues, subscription rates, and conference fees shall be established by the Board of Directors.
Section 5: The membership year shall run from November 1 to October 31. Members are expected to pay their dues during the last quarter prior to the beginning of the membership year. Members who fail to pay their dues by December 15 of a membership year will be dropped from membership.
Section 6: The fiscal year shall run from January 1 through December 31, or as otherwise determined by the Board of Directors.
ARTICLE VIII: Indemnification
Section 1: SCIPIE will indemnify any officer or director, former officer or director, or any agent or employee of SCIPIE against expenses actually and necessarily incurred in connection with the defense of any action, suit, or proceedings in which the defendant, having acted in the best interests of SCIPIE, is made a party by reason of being or having been an officer, director, agent, or employee of SCIPIE.
ARTICLE IX: Conference
Section 1: The Conference shall be (a) three days or less in length and (b) held at a time and place designed by the Board of Directors. The conference will be held at a Member Institution . The annual business report to the members shall beheld during the Conference at such time and place as shall be listed in the official program or will be made available through electronic publication.
Section 2: Additional meetings may be called by a simple majority vote of the Board of Directors.
Section 3: The conference program shall serve as official notification of the Conference and no notification other than the mailing of the program to the full membership list will be given. In the case of special meetings, a written notice stating the date, time, and location of the meeting and indicating the purpose(s) for which the meeting is being called shall be mailed to the full membership list not less than thirty days before the date of such meeting.
Section 4: Ten members or ten percent of the active members, whichever is fewer, shall constitute a quorum at any meeting of the members.
Section 5: The rules contained in Robert's Rules of Order, revised shall govern the conduct of all official meetings.
ARTICLE X: Amendments
Section 1: Amendments to these Bylaws may be initiated in two ways. The Board of Directors may formulate amendments and submit them, with any arguments it chooses, to the voting members for action by ballot. Or any ten percent of the voting members, as sponsors, may submit to the Board of Directors proposed amendments in writing and signed by the sponsors, along with any arguments they choose. The Board of Directors shall then submit the proposed amendments, with the arguments developed by the sponsors, along with any recommendations and arguments it chooses, to the voting members for action by ballot.
Section 2: Amendments may be adopted by the affirmative vote of two thirds of the voting members present at a regular or special meeting called according to these Bylaws, provided that the proposed amendments have been mailed to each voting member at least thirty days prior to the meeting at which the vote takes place.
Section 3: Amendments may also be adopted by ballots mailed to all the voting members and returned to the Secretary. When a mail ballot is used, only those ballots returned within forty-five days after the date of mailing shall be counted. The Secretary and at least two other SCIPIE members shall certify the results to the Board of Directors. Amendments shall be adopted if at least two-thirds of the ballots returned within the prescribed time are affirmative, provided that ballots are returned by at least twenty percent of the total voting membership.
Section 4: Amendments to these Bylaws become effective upon adoption unless otherwise specified. Amendments which might affect the Articles of Incorporation become effective only upon issuance of a Certificate of Amendment from the recorder of deeds or other proper authority.
ARTICLE XI: Exceptions for First Conference
It may not be possible or feasible to implement all of the provisions of the Bylaws during the first year after the organization is formed. For example the President, rather than the Past-President, will serve as the Chair of the Membership committee.