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Michigan
Tutorial Association Constitution
The name of the Association
shall be the Michigan Tutorial Association, which may also be
referred to by the initials MTA
The purpose of the
MTA is to:
- Promote interaction
among all members of the educational and tutorial communities
in higher education by building open and effective networks
for sharing.
- Enhance the professional
development and training of tutorial personnel by providing
opportunities to exchange theories, methods and strategies.
- Provide opportunities
for tutors to develop their leadership and communication skills
through active involvement.
- Create and encourage
an exchange of tutorial resources, research, and information.
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Section A: Types of
membership shall be as follows:
- Active Professional
- Tutor
- Associate
Section B: Active
Professional Memberships
- Active Professional
Membership shall be restricted to those persons who are actively
engaged in the administration or general operation, inclusive
of counseling and instruction, of tutorial programs.
- Each Active Professional
Member is entitled to one vote at General Assembly and committee
meetings, and is eligible to hold office.
Section C: Tutor Memberships
- Tutor Membership
is available to persons working as part-time tutors in a tutorial
program in higher education who meet the following criteria:
- Employed exclusively
as part/time tutors and/or are enrolled as students.
- Do not hold
faculty or staff positions at institution.
- Each Tutor Member
is entitled to one vote at General Assembly and Committee meetings,
and is eligible to hold office.
Section D: Associate
Memberships
- Associate Membership
is available to those persons who do not qualify for Active
Professional Membership or Tutor membership, but support the
purposes and objectives of the Association.
- Each Associate Member
is entitled to one vote at General Assembly and committee meetings,
but is not eligible to hold office.
Section E: Dues and
Membership
Annual dues for members
shall be established by the action of the Executive Board, and
membership shall run from conference to conference.
Section F: Severance
of Membership
Any member of the Association
may be removed from membership by action of the Executive Board
for non- payment of dues or for conduct which in any way tends
to injure the Association by adversely affecting its reputation
or through conduct which is contrary or destructive to its objectives.
No member shall be dropped without the opportunity to be heard.
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Section A:
- The officers of
the Association shall be President, President-Elect, Secretary,
Treasurer, and Past President.
- The President-Elect,
Secretary, and Treasurer shall be elected at large from the
Active Professional and Tutor Memberships.
- The term of elected
officers shall be:
- one year for
President- Elect
- two years for
Secretary and Treasurer.
- a one year term
of office shall run from the first Executive Board meeting
after the annual conference through the next annual conference.
- The President-Elect
will assume the office of President at the end of one year and
hold that position for one year.
- The impeachment
of elected officers may be ruled by two-thirds vote of a general
assembly of the membership upon:
- recommendation
of the Executive Board and/or
- petition signed
by one-half of the eligible voting membership.
Section B: Duties
of the Officers
- The President shall,
within one month of assuming this position, meet with the Executive
Board to develop a plan of action for the organization, its
offices, and committees for the operating year of the president's
term of office. The President shall preside at all meetings
of the Association and shall be Chairperson of and preside at
meetings of the Executive Board. The President shall appoint
the chairpersons of all committees, subject to confirmation
by the Executive Board, except as otherwise specified by the
constitution and by-laws, and shall be an ex-officio member
of all committees. The President shall perform the duties customary
to that office and such additional duties as directed by the
Executive Board. The President shall submit an Annual Report
to the Association's Membership at the General Assembly at the
Annual Fall Conference. The President shall serve on the Executive
Board as Immediate Past President for the year following his/her
term of office.
- The President-Elect
shall perform the duties of the President in the absence or
incapacity of the President as determined by the Executive Board
and shall assume the office of President at the conclusion of
his/her term of office.
- The Treasurer shall
represent the Association in assuring the receipt and expenditures
of funds in accordance with the directives established by the
Executive Board, and shall be under such bond as may be determined
by the Board. The Treasurer shall submit an annual report prior
to or at the annual conference assembly of the membership. The
Treasurer shall serve as Ex-Officio Chairperson of the Membership
Committee and has the responsibility of processing all membership
applications and collection of dues. The Treasurer is the agent
responsible for validation of membership.
- The Secretary shall
perform the duties customary to the office and such additional
duties as may be directed by the Executive Board. The Secretary
shall be responsible for the minutes of all Executive Board
meetings and shall submit such minutes in written form for approval
by the Board. The secretary is responsible to maintain an updated
mailing list for use by the organization.
- The Past President
shall serve as Parliamentarian. The Past President, or a designee
chosen by the Executive Board, will represent the Association
at meetings of other associations as necessary.
Section C: Nomination
and Election of Officers
- There shall be a
Nomination and Election Committee appointed by the President,
subject to confirmation by the Executive Board and chaired by
the President-Elect. No member of the Nominations and Elections
Committee may become a candidate for any office while a member
of the Committee.
- The Nomination and
Election Committee shall poll each member of the Association
for nominations for President-Elect, Secretary and Treasurer
and shall select appropriate candidates from among these nominees.
No person nominated and accepted as a candidate shall be placed
In nomination for a second office during the current election.
The candidates for office shall be introduced at the annual
conference.
- The Nomination and
Election Committee shall conduct the election of officers by
secret ballot at the annual conference or by mail if deemed
more appropriate. A candidate must receive a majority of votes
of the eligible members responding to be elected. Absentee ballots
will be accepted prior to the election in the event it takes
place at the annual conference. The Membership Committee will
be responsible for verification of membership of voters.
Section D: Compensation
and Expenses of Officers
- None of the elected
officers of the Association shall receive any compensation by
the Association for their services to the Association.
- Officers whose duties
require Association business incurred expenses may be reimbursed
under the policies established for such payment.
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Section A: Composition
The executive Board
shall be composed of the officers, the Chairperson of each standing
committee, the Historian, and the Immediate Past President of
the Association. The President may appoint two tutor representatives
to serve on the Board.
Section B: Function
The Executive Board
shall have full authority to conduct the affairs of the Association
during the interim period between general meetings of the membership.
Such authority must remain within the provisions of this Constitution
and not conflict with decisions, actions, or policies established
by the membership.
Section C: Meetings
- The Executive Board
shall convene at, and during annual meetings of the Association.
Additional meetings of the Executive Board may be called by
a majority vote or petition of the members of the Executive
Board and/or upon the call of the President. The time and place
of additional meetings shall be fixed by the President.
- The President shall
preside at meetings of the Executive Board and, in the President's
absence, the President-elect shall preside.
- A quorum shall consist
of the majority of the Board.
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Section A: Authority,
Time and Place of Meeting
The supreme authority
of the Association shall be the General Assembly of the Membership.
The General Assembly of the Membership shall meet annually at
the fall tutorial conference.
Section B: Membership
and Voting Eligibility
- All categories of
the Association membership are allowed to participate in the
General Assembly meetings as stipulated in Article III of the
Constitution.
- The Treasurer will
certify and designate eligible voting members as needed.
Section A: Severable
or Transferable Interest
No member shall have
any severable or transferable interest in the property of the
Association.
Section B: Control
and Management
All property of the
Association shall be subject to the control and management of
the Executive Board. Any accumulation or disposal of property
except upon dissolution of the Association must be approved in
advance by the Board.
Section C: Disposal
upon Dissolution
Upon dissolution of
the Association none of its property shall be distributed to any
of the members and all of such property shall be transferred to
such organization or organizations as the Executive Board shall
determine to have purposes and activities most nearly consonant
with those of the Association.
Section D: Appropriation
of Association Funds
No appropriation of
Association funds shall be made except pursuant to the authority
of the Executive Board.
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Section A: Appointment
of Committees
Except in those cases
specified elsewhere in this Constitution and By-laws, the President
shall name such standing and special committees as may be needed
to conduct the activities of the Association subject to confirmation
by the Executive Board.
Section B: Standing
Committees
The Association shall
have the following standing committees:
- Membership: It will
be the responsibility of the Membership Committee to promote
active membership in the Association through outreach and recruitment
activities. The Membership Committee shall be responsible for
monitoring and tallying votes as necessary using the membership
list verified by the Treasurer for each Association meeting.
The Treasurer shall serve as Ex-Officio Chairperson of this
committee.
- Professional Development:
The Professional Development Committee shall be responsible
for professional preparation and standards in keeping with the
Association's goals and objectives. It will be the responsibility
of the Professional Development Committee to assist in recruiting
presenters, speakers, and resource people for the Annual Fall
Tutorial Conference.
- Annual Conference:
It will be the responsibility of the Annual Conference Committee
to plan and organize the annual Connections conference with
the approval of the Executive Board and appropriate committees.
- Editorial and Publications:
The Editorial and Publications Committee will address itself
specifically to the Association goals and objectives. It will
have responsibility for the development and continuing publication
of the Association Newsletter and shall in other appropriate
ways encourage scholarly efforts toward publication related
to, and supportive of, Association philosophy and goals.
- Historian: The Historian
shall be responsible for collecting documents for and maintaining
the archives.
- Website: The duty
of this committee will be website maintenance, not reconstruction.
It will be the responsibility of the website Chair to: A) with
Executive Board approval, post association web material; B)
systematically check all links for accuracy; C) review all pages
monthly to ensure their relevance; D) edit web pages as approved;
E) upload pages to the server; F) provide an e-mail link to
the President and the Treasurer for comments and questions.
Section C: Special
Committees
Task oriented special
committees may be established from time to time as the President
and Executive Board see fit. Such committees will operate within
the purposes and objectives of the Association, shall be specifically
charged, and dismissed upon completion of their task.
Section D: Reports
Each committee shall
submit an annual written report of its activities and status by
the date specified by the President for presentation at the annual
meeting, and shall report at any other time as requested to do
so by the Executive Board.
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Section A: Initiation
Proposals to amend
this constitution may be initiated by the Executive Board, a duly
constituted committee of the Association, or any member of the
Association. Such proposals must be in writing and, if initiated
by a member, they shall be signed by seven members in good standing.
Copies of such proposed amendments shall be delivered to the Secretary
for distribution to all members of the Association. No vote shall
be taken until at least thirty (30) days after copies of such
proposed amendments have been available to all members.
Section B: Association
Approval
The Constitution may
be amended by:
- A duly called meeting
of the General Assembly, and/or
- Mail. In the first
instance, a majority vote of those eligible members registered
and physically present during the ballot is required. In the
second instance, a majority vote of those eligible members responding
is required. Proxy votes are prohibited.
The New Robert's Rules
of Order, (Mary A. De Vries, Signet, New American Library, 1989)
shall be the parliamentary authority of all proceedings for the
Association unless otherwise specified in the Constitution. Approved
and Adopted, 23 August 1988 Revised 18 May 1992 Revised 11 October
1997.
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Michigan Tutorial
Association