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BYLAWS OF THE NEW ENGLAND SECTION (In the
following text, "Society" shall signify the American Physical Society,
"Council" and “Executive Board” shall signify the Council and the
Executive Board of the Society, respectively; "Executive Officer"
shall signify that Officer of the Society, and “Regular Meeting" shall
signify either of the two principal meetings held each year by the Section.) ARTICLE I - NAME This
Section of the American Physical Society shall be called the New England
Section. ARTICLE II - OBJECTIVE The
objective of the Section shall be the advancement and diffusion of knowledge of
physics. ARTICLE III - ENABLING CONSTITUTIONAL PROVISION Article IX
of the Constitution of the Society, as said Article may be subsequently revised
or amended, is hereby incorporated in these Bylaws by reference. ARTICLE IV - MEMBERSHIP The members
of the Section shall consist of members of the Society who have indicated in
accordance with procedures established by Council their desire to join the
Section and who retain membership from year to year by the payment of designated
dues or by other method established by the Council. Any person
not a Fellow or member of the Society who is engaged in physics teaching,
research, or other activities related to physics, including graduate work in
physics, may be elected an Associate Member by the Executive Committee.
Associate Members have all rights and privileges of Section membership,
save those of voting or holding elective office. ARTICLE V - EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE 1. Governance.
The
Section shall be governed by an Executive Committee, which shall have general
charge of the affairs of the Section. 2. Composition.
The Executive Committee shall consist of the Officers of the Section, and
six Members-at-Large elected to staggered three‑year terms.
The Newsletter Editor shall serve as a nonvoting member of the Executive
Committee. 3. Executive Committee Meetings. The
Executive Committee shall meet at least twice each year.
One meeting shall be held during the Fall Regular Meeting of the Section,
and the other shall be held during the Spring Regular Meeting.
Any member of the Executive Committee unable to attend a meeting may name
a nonvoting alternate to represent him or her, subject to the approval of the
Chair. The Chair of the Section shall preside over the Executive Committee
meetings. A majority of the voting
members, including at least two Officers, shall constitute a quorum. ARTICLE VI - OFFICERS,
SECTION COUNCILLOR AND COUNCIL OBSERVER 1. Officers.
The Officers of the Section shall be a Chair, a Past Chair, a Vice-Chair,
and a Secretary-Treasurer. 2. Duties of the Chair.
The
Chair shall preside at all meetings of the Executive Committee and Business
Sessions of the Section at which his or her attendance is possible.
The Chair shall be an ex officio member of all operating committees and shall be
responsible for all appointed positions. 3. Duties of
the Vice-Chair. 4. Duties of
the Secretary-Treasurer. The
Secretary-Treasurer shall keep the Council and Executive Officer of the Society
informed of the activities and needs of the Section. The
Secretary-Treasurer shall have responsibility for all funds in the custody of or
placed at the disposal of the Section and shall authorize disbursements from
such funds for expenses in a manner that is consistent with the general policies
of the Society and the Section. Financial
records shall be kept on an annual basis consistent with the fiscal policies of
the Society. The Secretary-Treasurer
shall present a financial report at each meeting of the Executive Committee and
at the annual Business Session of the Section. 5. Duties of the Section Councillor. When
it is the Section’s turn in the rotation among sections as established by the
Council, a Section Councillor will be elected as prescribed below.
The Section Councillor shall serve as liaison between the Council of the
Society and the Executive Committee of the Section.
Following each Council meeting, the Section Councillor shall report to
the Chair and the Secretary-Treasurer regarding Council actions that affect the
status and operations of the Section. Reports
shall be made to the entire Executive Committee during their regularly scheduled
meetings. 6. Council Observer.
During years in which the Section does not have an elected Councillor,
the Executive Committee will appoint a Council Observer.
This person will attend Council meetings and will perform the duties
described in Article VI.5 of these Bylaws. ARTICLE VII ‑ ELECTION AND TENURE OF THE
OFFICERS, EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEMBERS, AND SECTION COUNCILLOR 1.Qualifications. Officers
and Members-at-Large of the Executive Committee must be members of the Society
for at least two years prior to nomination. 2. Ballot.
The Vice-Chair, Secretary-Treasurer, Section Councillor and Members-at-Large
of the Executive Committee shall be elected by electronic mail or postal mail
ballot as hereinafter provided. 3. Nomination
and Election of the Vice-Chair,
Secretary-Treasurer,
and Executive Committee Members. Each year the
Nominating Committee shall nominate at least one candidate for the office of
Vice-Chair, for Secretary-Treasurer during the final year of the term of the
current Secretary-Treasurer, and for open positions of Members-at-Large of the
Executive Committee. The Nominating
Committee shall notify the Secretary-Treasurer of the results not later than
eight weeks before the Fall Regular Meeting, except under extraordinary
circumstances. The
Secretary-Treasurer shall provide the Section membership with a ballot,
including space for write-in candidates, at least four weeks prior to the Fall
Regular Meeting. Those members
having electronic mail will receive ballots electronically; other members will
receive postal mail ballots. Ballots
may be returned either electronically or postally to the Secretary-Treasurer,
who will tally the results. Election
shall be decided by a plurality of those voting.
If there is a tie, the Executive Committee shall decide the election,
with the Chair voting only in the case of a tie among the other Executive
Committee members. 4. Official Year. The
official year shall extend from January 1 following the close of one Fall
Regular Meeting to December 31 following the close of the next Fall Regular
Meeting. 5. Vice-Chair,
Chair, and Past Chair. The
member elected as Vice-Chair shall serve in that office for one year, then for
one year as Chair, then for one year as Past Chair.
The Chair shall not be eligible for the office of Vice-Chair in the year
following his or her term of office. 6. Terms of Office.
The terms of office of the Officers and Members-at-Large of the Executive
Committee shall begin on January 1 following the close of the Fall Regular
Meeting of the Section following their election.
The Secretary-Treasurer shall serve for a term of three years and may not
serve more than two consecutive terms. The
tenure of a Member-at-Large of the Executive Committee shall terminate in the
event of his or her assumption of a post as an elected Officer of the Section,
and the unexpired portion of his or her term shall be filled as hereinafter
provided for a vacancy. 7. Section Councillor. Two
years prior to the first year of the Section’s turn in the rotation
established by the Council, the Section will elect a Section Councillor. The nominating Committee shall nominate at least one
candidate for this position, following the same procedure as that for election
of officers of the Section and Members-at-large of the Executive Committee.
The Section Councillor shall serve for one year as a non-voting Council
Observer and then for a term of four years as a voting member of the Council,
except when a different term is specified by the Council. 8. Vacancies in Offices. If
a vacancy occurs in the office of Chair, the Vice-Chair shall succeed and
complete the term and shall serve as Chair also in the following year. If a vacancy
occurs in the office of Vice-Chair otherwise than through advancement to Chair,
the Executive Committee shall designate a Vice-Chair who shall then be placed on
the slate of candidates for Vice-Chair in the next scheduled election. In the
next scheduled election, candidates for both Chair and Vice-Chair shall be
nominated. Vacancies in
any other elected office shall be filled (or left unfilled) by the Executive
Committee until such time as the vacancy can be filled by regular election
procedures. ARTICLE VIII - APPOINTED COMMITTEES 1. Nominating Committee. The
Nominating Committee shall consist of three members appointed by the Chair to a
one‑year term, with not more than two members of the Executive Committee
so appointed, and one member appointed by the Council for a one-year term.
The Chair shall ascertain through the Executive Officer the identity
of this member. The Nominating
Committee shall prepare a slate of candidates for the positions of Vice-Chair,
Secretary-Treasurer, and Members-at-Large of the Executive Committee according
to Article VII.3 of these Bylaws. The
Nominating Committee shall advise the Chair on suitable candidates for Society
committees and on candidates for Society offices.
The Nominating Committee shall perform such other duties as described in
the Bylaws. The Past-Chair shall
oversee the work of the Nominating Committee. 2. Program
Committee. The Program
Committee shall consist of the Local Organizing Committee, together with the
Vice-Chair of the Section. 3. Academe-Industry
Committee. 4. Physics Education Committee. The
Physics Education Committee shall be chaired by the Past Chair or his or her
designate. 5. Term of
Office of Appointed Committee Members. The
terms of committee members recommended by an incoming Chair and appointed by a
majority vote of the Executive Committee shall commence at the beginning of the
year in which incoming Chair assumes office. 6. Ad Hoc
Committees. The Chair shall appoint
other ad hoc committees as necessary, which shall serve only during his or her
term as Chair. ARTICLE IX - MEETINGS 1. Regular Meetings. Two
meetings of the Section, to be known as the Fall Regular Meeting and the Spring
Regular Meeting, shall be held annually at such time and place as shall be
ordered by the Executive Committee, subject to approval by the Executive Board.
Whenever it shall be feasible and not to the disadvantage of the members of the
Section, the Executive Committee may order this or any other meeting to be held
conjointly with a Meeting of the Society or of another society, conference, or
group, so long as such joint meeting does not conflict importantly with the
schedule of Meetings of the Society as determined by the Executive Board.
The registration fee for the Regular Meetings, when not held jointly with
a Meeting of the Society, shall be fixed after consultation with the Executive
Officer. Non-members of the Society
shall pay a surcharge to be set each year by the Executive Board. 2. Regular Business Session. Each
year the Section shall hold a Business Session which shall be a session of a
Regular Meeting. This Business
Session shall be devoted exclusively to the reports of officers and committees,
election results, and the transaction of business affairs. No scientific program of the Section shall be presented
simultaneously with the Business Session. The
Secretary-Treasurer shall post the agenda for the Business Session no later
than the beginning of the Regular Meeting. 3. Other Meetings. Meetings
of the Section, other than the two Regular Meetings, may be initiated by the
Executive Committee or by petition of twenty percent of the members of the
Section, subject to approval by the Executive Board.
Special conferences may be sponsored in whole or in part by the Section,
subject to the rules and regulations specified in the Society Constitution and
Bylaws. 4. Papers at Meetings.
Programs of meetings of the Section may provide for the inclusion of both
invited and contributed papers. The
Local Organizing Committee shall prescribe the subject and character of the
meeting, which may include limitations on the subject matter of submitted
papers. The Local Organizing
Committee shall fix the deadline date for receipt of titles and abstracts in
consultation with the Executive Officer and shall designate the place to which
they should be sent. The amount of
time to be allowed for the presentation of a paper at the Regular Meetings shall
be determined by the Local Organizing Committee, except as otherwise directed by
the Executive Committee. These
allotments of time shall be consistent with the Constitution and Bylaws of the
Society and with regulations of the Council. ARTICLE X - DUES Dues
for maintenance of membership in the Section shall be established by the
Council. ARTICLE XI - NEWSLETTER The
newsletter of the Section shall be managed and edited by an Editor, who shall be
elected by the Executive Committee for a term of three years.
The Editor shall oversee the preparation and distribution of the
Newsletter. There shall be at least
one issue per year. The frequency
and timing of the issues shall be determined by the Editor in consultation with
the Secretary-Treasurer, subject to approval of the Executive Committee or its
delegate. The Executive Committee
may direct the Secretary-Treasurer to distribute complimentary copies of the
newsletter to specified non-members of the Section. The Editor shall be assisted in policy decisions by the
Executive Committee. ARTICLE XII - OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS Official
announcements shall be made in the APS
News, in the Section Newsletter, and in such other publications as the
Executive Committee may direct. ARTICLE XIII - PROCEDURE OF AMENDMENT OF BYLAWS Proposal of an Amendment to these Bylaws may be
made by the Council, by the Executive Committee, or by a petition to the Chair
signed by not fewer than ten percent of the members of the Section.
If the proposed amendment originates within the Section, it must be
approved by the Council before further action can be taken.
Following Council approval, the Secretary-Treasurer shall distribute
copies of the proposed Amendment not less than three weeks before the Regular
Meeting and opportunity shall be given for discussion during the Business
Session. At the time of the next
regular election, the Secretary-Treasurer shall again distribute copies of the
proposed amendment accompanied by ballot forms to the members of the Section.
Adoption of the Amendment shall require a two-thirds vote by those
voting. |
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