Bylaws of the

Association for Women Geoscientists, Lone Star Chapter

 

Article I.  Name

Section 1.  The name of the organization is the Association for Women Geoscientists, Lone Star Chapter (AWG-Lone Star).  The organization is referred to as AWG-LS or the Chapter for purposes of these bylaws.

Article II.  Chapter Status

Section 1.  The organization is a duly authorized Chapter of the Association for Women Geoscientists (AWG), a corporation with a principal office in the County of San Mateo, State of California.

 

Section 2.  In the event of any conflict, the Bylaws of AWG shall take precedence over the Bylaws of the AWG-LS.

 

Section 3.  The interests and goals of AWG-LS are in keeping with those of the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws of AWG.  The goals of the Association for Women Geoscientists are: 1) to encourage the participation of women in the geosciences, 2) to exchange educational, technical, and professional information, and 3) to enhance the professional growth and advancement of women in the geosciences.

Article III. Membership

Section 1.  Membership in AWG-LS shall be open to persons whose professional activities and interests are in keeping with the objectives of AWG.

 

Section 2.  Members include all professionals, students, corporations and institutional members with dues in good standing in AWG that have chosen affiliation with AWG-LS (which serves the lower south central Region and is based in the Houston/Austin, Texas area).

 

Section 3.  Each individual Chapter member shall have the right to vote and other rights as provided by these Bylaws or as provided by law.  Membership rights and all title to and interest in AWG-LS shall cease upon the termination of membership.

 

Section 4.  Corporate and institutional members shall not have the right to vote or hold office.

Article IV.  Membership Meetings

Section 1.  All meetings (program and/or business) will be held at the request of the AWG-LS Executive Committee and/or any AWG-LS member, who shall determine the times and places of meetings.

 

Section 2.  At any business meeting of members of AWG-LS, the presence of one-fourth (1/4) of the Chapter members or the AWG-LS Executive Committee shall constitute a quorum.  No official business may be transacted at a meeting without a quorum.

Article V.  AWG-Lone Star Executive Committee

Section 1.  The AWG-LS Executive Committee  (the Executive Committee) shall include the current Chapter President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer. These officers shall be members in good standing affiliated with the Chapter and shall be elected as outlined in these Bylaws. Offices may be shared or combined as long as there is a minimum of three elected officers.  Non-elected Executive Committee members shall include any Chapter member who is a Regional Delegate to the AWG Board and chairpersons of any standing committees.

 

Section 2.  The Chapter President shall serve as chairperson of the Executive Committee, shall assure that AWG and AWG-LS policy is observed, shall appoint the chairpersons of all committees subject to approval of the Executive Committee and shall perform duties as directed by the Executive Committee.

 

Section 3.  The Chapter Vice-President shall assist the President in her duties and, in the absence or inability of the President, shall perform the duties of that office.

 

Section 4.  The Chapter Secretary shall keep a record of the proceedings of the meetings of the Chapter and Executive Committee, shall keep the records of Chapter membership and shall conduct correspondence not specifically assigned to others.

 

Section 5.  The Chapter Treasurer shall have custody of all the funds of the Chapter, shall disperse these funds in accordance with Executive Committee approval and shall make regular reports to the membership and Executive Committee.  The Chapter Treasurer shall be required to send a financial report covering all income such as from dues rebates, donations and grants, and expenses or other disbursements, every six (6) months to the AWG Treasurer, or as required by the AWG Board of Directors.  The Chapter Treasurer shall be responsible for all income reporting and tax requirements of the jurisdiction under which the Chapter is organized. This requirement is met when the regular financial reports are submitted.  The chapter's fiscal year beings October 1, which is in accordance with AWG Bylaws.

 

Section 6.  Candidates for all officer positions shall be limited to three (3) consecutive terms of office of one (1) year each.  However, any person who serves a consecutive term in one office may be elected to another office.

 

Section 7.  An Executive Committee member may be removed from the Executive Committee for non-performance of duties and responsibilities by a unanimous vote of the other Executive Committee members.

 

Section 8.  Vacancies on the Executive Committee shall be filled by appointment by the Chapter President with a concurring majority vote of the Executive Committee until the next Chapter election.

 

Section 9.  At any meeting of the Executive Committee, the presence of three (3) Executive Committee members shall constitute a quorum.  In the absence of a quorum, no business can be transacted at the meeting.

 

Section 10. The Chapter President shall submit an annual activity report to the national AWG Secretary bu September 1, or as required by the AWG officers.

Article VI.  Election of Officers

Section 1.  Each year, the Executive Committee shall solicit at least one candidate from the membership of AWG-LS for each of the open officer positions.  All candidates must be members in good standing.

 

Section 2.  The candidates shall be announced via email along with an electronic ballot.  Additional nominations may be made by a write-in on the ballot.

 

Section 4.  The ballots shall be returned before a certain date (stated on the ballot) to AWG-LS for tallying.  The ballots will be made available to the Executive Committee for review if they desire.  After certification of the ballot results, the ballots shall be destroyed.

 

Section 5.  Only members in good standing shall vote, including student members who can not vote at the national level.

 

Section 6.  The candidates receiving the highest number of ballot votes shall be duly elected to the office for which they are running.  All candidates, the Chapter membership, and the AWG Secretary shall be notified of the results of an election in a timely manner.

Article VII.   AWG-LS Committees

Section 1.  The Executive Committee shall establish and maintain committees as needed to further the goals of the organization.  The President shall have authority to appoint the chairpersons of all committees, with a concurring majority vote of the Executive Committee. 

 

Section 2.  Committee members shall be any members in good standing that wish to serve on a particular committee.  The term of office of a chairperson or member of a committee is one (1) year.  Members and chairpersons may succeed themselves.

Article VIII.  Finances

Section 1.  Dues are collected by AWG.  A portion of each Chapter memberŐs dues is rebated to AWG-LS.  The AWG Board of Directors determines the rebate amount.

 

Section 2.  The fiscal year of AWG-LS shall begin on October 1st of each year.

 

Section 4.  The financial position of the AWG-LS, along with a semi-annual financial statement shall be reviewed twice yearly at Executive Committee meetings.

 

Section 5.  The Treasurer shall have financial authority over the ChapterŐs funds.  Only the Treasurer, President, or other business representative approved by the Executive Committee shall make payments, withdrawals, or issue checks from these funds.

Article XI.  Amendments to Bylaws

Section 1.  Amendments to these Bylaws may be initiated by any Chapter officer or member, at a chapter meeting.

 

Section 2.  On any matter that is required by law or by these Bylaws to be put to a membership vote, the Executive Committee must first approve the proposed amendment through a mail vote.  A chapter-wide mail vote will then be held.  To be implemented, affirmative votes must be received from a majority of those who vote.

 

Article XII.  Dissolution

Section 1.  AWG-LS may be dissolved by a majority vote of the members affiliated with the Chapter sixty (60) days after they are notified of the proposed action, or by action of the AWG Board of Directors subject to their policy for chapter dissolution.  Upon dissolution, all financial assets of AWG-LS shall be turned over to the AWG Board of Directors.

Article XIII.  Parliamentary Authority

Section 1.  The rules contained in the current edition of RobertŐs Rules of Order shall govern the AWG-LS meetings when applicable.