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Special Libraries Association Education Division

Bylaws

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Adopted 1976
Amended June 1984
Amended June 1999

Article I: Name and Objectives

Section 1. The name of this organization shall be the Education Division, Special Libraries Association.

Section 2. The objectives of this Division shall be those of the Special Libraries Association: to provide an association of individuals and organizations having a professional, scientific or technical interest in library and information science, especially as these are applied in the recording, retrieval and dissemination of knowledge and information in areas such as the physical, biological, technical, social sciences, and the humanities; to promote and improve communication, dissemination and use of such information and knowledge for the benefit of libraries or other educational organizations; and specifically, to facilitate communication among librarians/information managers in the interdisciplinary field of education, and to contribute to the development of materials, methods and services to attain these objectives.

Section 3. Additional objectives of this Division are to:

Serve as a forum for exchange of information and knowledge in the fields of education, library education and special librarianship
Promote education librarianship and information services
Support members in the performance of their professional duties
Provide opportunities for professional development
Promote high professional standards
Promote, facilitate and improve networking and communication
Stimulate research in the field of education information services
Enhance learning and use of new technologies as they affect the library profession and promote understanding of their changing role in library andinformation science curriculum
Cooperate with organizations that have similar or allied interests

Article II: Membership

Section 1. Membership in the Division shall be open to all those members of the Special Libraries Association who elect to affiliate with the Division.

Section 2. Members, Associate Members and Retired Members of the Association who are members of the Division shall have the right to vote and to hold any elective or appointive office in the Division.<\p>

Section 3. Student Members of the Association who are members of the Division shall have the right to vote and to hold any appointive, but not elective, office in the Division.

Section 4. The rights and benefits of Sustaining Members and Honorary Members shall be determined by the Association Board of Directors.

Article III: Executive Board

Section 1. There shall be an Executive Board which shall have the power and authority to manage the Division's property and to regulate and govern its affairs. The Board shall determine policies and changes therein, within the limits of the bylaws of the Association and of the Division, shall take such actions as it considers necessary to carry out the objectives of the Division, and shall perform such other functions as the membership may direct.

Section 2. The Executive Board shall be composed of the Chair or Co-Chairs, the Chair-Elect or Co-Chairs-Elect, the Secretary-Treasurer and the immediate Past-Chair or Past-Co-Chairs. The Chair or Co-Chairs, and the Chair-Elect or Co-Chairs-Elect shall be Members, Associate Members or Retired Members of the Special Libraries Association. Henceforth, any reference to Chair will mean Chair or Co-Chairs, any reference to Chair-Elect will mean Chair-Elect or Co-Chairs-Elect, and any reference to Past-Chair will mean Past-Chair or Past-Co-Chairs.

Section 3. The Board shall hold at least one meeting annually and may hold additional meetings upon call of the Chair or upon written request from any member of the Board. Forty percent of the membership of the Board shall constitute a quorum.

Section 4. A vacancy in the membership of the Executive Board, except in the office of the Chair, shall be filled by majority vote of the remaining members of the Board, this Board-elected member to serve until the next annual election. A vacancy in the office of Chair, when there is a single person occupying the office of the Chair, shall be filled automatically by the Chair-Elect. If the position of one of the Co-Chairs is vacant, the other Co-Chair shall assume sole charge if possible. Otherwise the office shall be filled by the Chair-Elect when there is a single Chair-Elect. When there are Co-Chairs-Elect, one of the Co-Chairs-Elect will assume the office of the Chair by mutual consensus, and the other will then become sole Chair-Elect.

Section 5. The term of office of Chair, Chair-Elect, and immediate Past-Chair shall be one year. The term of office of the Secretary-Treasurer shall be two years. All members of the Executive Board shall serve until their successors are elected and have assumed their duties. The term of office shall commence at the adjournment of the Annual Business Meeting of the Association, or if there is no Annual Meeting, on July 1, following the election.

Article IV: Officers

Section 1. The Chair shall be the chief executive officer of the Division and, subject to the Executive Board, shall:

Have general supervision and control over its affairs;
Be responsible with the Chair-Elect for the Division program planning for the Association Annual Conference during the year the office is held;
Preside at all meetings of the Division and of the Executive Board;
Recommend to the Board such measures considered desirable to further the objectives and broaden the effectiveness of the Division;
Sign all contracts and other legal documents jointly with the Secretary/Treasurer;
Approve all bills before submitting them to the Secretary/Treasurer for payment;
Be a member ex-officio of all committees except the Nominating Committee;
Represent the Division, together with the Chair-Elect, at meetings of the Division Cabinet and Joint Cabinet during the Association Year in which the office is held, or, if either is unable to attend, shall designate a Member, Associate Member or Retired Member of the Division to serve as alternate representative;
Prepare such reports as may be required by the Association; and be responsible for supervising the preparation of such reports as may be required of other Division officers by the Association.

Section 2. The Chair-Elect shall:

assist the Chair in the performance of the duties of the Chair;
represent the Division, together with the Chair, at meetings of the Division Cabinet and Joint Cabinet during the Association Year in which the office is held; and
assume all the duties and obligations of the Chair in the event of absence or withdrawal of the Chair.

Section 3. The Secretary/Treasurer shall:

keep a record of all meetings of the Division and of the Executive Board;
sign all contracts and other legal documents jointly with the Chair;
have custody of the Division funds;
sign all checks drawn upon Division funds for payment of bills previously approved for payment by the Chair;
furnish such financial statements as may be required by the Executive Board, the Chair, and the Association;
perform such other duties as the Chair may assign.

Section 4. The immediate Past-Chair shall be a member of the Executive Board and shall carry out such duties as the Chair or Board may assign.

Article V: Meetings

Section 1. The annual business meeting shall be held during the Association Annual Conference, or, if there is no conference, upon call of the Chair. At least one business meeting shall be held during the term of office of each elected Executive Board.

Section 2. Special meetings may be held upon call of the Executive Board or on petition of ten (10) members of the Division. Notice of a special meeting shall specify the business to be transacted, and no business other than that stated in the notice shall be considered.

Section 3. Notice of meetings in writing or printed in the Division official bulletin shall be sent to each member at least thirty (30) days before the meeting.

Section 4. A quorum for the transaction of business shall be twelve (12) Division members.

Section 5. Whenever, in the judgment of the Executive Board, a question arises which cannot await the annual business meeting, the Executive Board may submit the question for vote by mail and shall state the closing date by which mail votes must be returned. The question presented shall be resolved by a majority of the votes cast, provided forty (40) percent of the members have voted.

Section 6. When not in conflict with these Bylaws, Robert's Rules of Order, Revised (latest edition) shall govern all deliberation.

Article VI: Committees

Section 1. Standing and special committees of the Division shall be established by the Executive Board. These committees shall be responsible to the Board, which will delegate such powers and functions to them as the Board finds desirable for the conduct of its business and for carrying out the objectives of the Division. These committees shall be responsible to the Board.

Section 2. The Division Chair shall appoint the members and designate the Chair of all committees except the Nominating Committee. Appointment to standing committees shall be for overlapping terms of two years. No member may serve continuously on any one committee in excess of four consecutive years.

Section 3. Committee Chairs may participate in meetings of the Executive Board, but shall not have the right to vote.

Section 4. Each committee shall submit to the Executive Board a written annual report of its activities, together with any recommendations considered necessary or advisable. Additional reports may be submitted by a committee or requested by the Board or the Chair.

Section 5. Funds for committee expenses shall be authorized by the Executive Board upon request.

Article VII: Funds, Contracts and Property

Section 1. Funds for Division expenses shall be derived from the Association as an allotted share of the annual dues paid by Division members. Eligibility for this allotment is based on the submission to the Association of the Division financial statement for the previous year and on its acceptance by the Association. Requests for additional funds or loans may be submitted to the Division Cabinet officers for presentation to the Association Board of Directors for its consideration. All funds received by the Division shall be used for purposes incident to the fulfillment of the Division's objectives. Should dissolution or affiliation of the Division become necessary, its assets shall revert to the Association.

Section 2. Any agreement, contract, or obligation entered into by the Division, including the purchase of property such as office machines, filing cabinets, computer equipment, etc. shall have advance approval of the Executive Board. If cost or liability exceeds $1000, it shall have the advance approval of the Division members. If cost or liability exceeds $5,000, the transaction must be reviewed and signed by the Association's Executive Director. If the cost or liability exceeds the Division's available or budgeted funds, the transaction must be reviewed and approved by the Association's Board of Directors. Note: The $5,000 figure comes from the Association's Property Administration Policy and this dollar amount will be reviewed from time to time by the Association's Board.

Section 3. All affiliate and contractual relationships shall be directed toward the best interest of the Division and the Association and shall protect the property and identity of the Division and the Association.

Article VIII: Nominations and Elections

Section 1. A Nominating Committee for each election of members to the Executive Board shall be appointed by Board no later than six (6) months prior to the Division annual business meeting. This committee shall be composed of three members, no one of whom shall be a member of the Board but one of whom shall be a former officer or member of the previous Nominating Committee. The Nominating Committee shall elect its own Chair from among its three members.

Section 2. Each year the Nominating Committee shall present at least one candidate for the position of Chair-Elect and, every other year, for Secretary/Treasurer, the latter office being filled every two years. The Committee shall obtain the written acceptance of each nominee prior to submission of its report.

Section 3. The report of the Nominating Committee shall be published in the official bulletin or otherwise sent to Division members at least sixty (60) days before the Division annual business meeting. Further nominations, accompanied by written acceptance of the nominee, may be entered by petition of five (5) Division members and shall be filed with the Nominating Committee at least forty (40) days before the annual business meeting. The report of the Nominating Committee shall be prepared for approval by the membership at the Division annual business meeting.

Section 4. If the slate includes more than one candidate for any office, election shall be by secret ballot mailed to each Division member thirty (30) days before the Division annual business meeting. The candidate who receives the largest number of votes for any office shall be elected. In the event of a tie, election shall be by majority vote of the membership present at the Division annual business meeting.

Article IX: Publications

Section 1. Control of all publications of the Division for its members shall be vested in the Executive Board.

Section 2. The Division shall not be responsible for statements or opinions advanced in its publications or at meetings of the Division, or for statements by any of its members except those authorized by the Division Executive Board or those reflecting duly established policies of the Division or the Association.

Section 3. The Division Chair shall appoint the Editor of its official bulletin. This person may be a current or past officer of the Board.

Article X: Division Representation and Affiliation

Section 1. Division representatives to joint committees and meetings of other societies having objectives allied to those of the Division and of the Association shall be appointed by the Division Chair. Such representative shall submit at least one written report to the Executive Board during the year.

Section 2. The activities of that organization are not in conflict with Article I, Sections 3, 4 and 5 of the Association Bylaws. Any other affiliation, including that with a national or international organization, shall be approved by the Association Board of Directors. Notices of affiliations and disaffiliations shall be reported to the Association.

Article XI: Dissolution or Merger

Section 1. The Division may petition for dissolution or merger with another Division by mail vote of its membership, the ballots to be mailed not more than forty-five (45) days after an annual business meeting at which a majority of the members present vote that it no longer meets the needs of the membership. If two-thirds of the mail ballots favor dissolution or merger, the petition shall be submitted to the Division Cabinet officers for presentation to the Association Board of Directors, which shall make the final decision.

Section 2. In the event of dissolution, all assets of the Division shall revert to the Association. In the event of merger, assets shall become a part of the new merged unit as decided upon by the two bodies concerned. Any other monies revert to the Association.

Article XII: Amendments

Section 1. These bylaws may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the members present and voting at any meeting of the Division, provided that the text of any proposed amendment has been published in an official publication of the Division or sent to each member at least thirty (30) days before the meeting at which it is to be considered.

Section 2. Amendments may be proposed by the Executive Board, the Bylaws Committee, or by a written petition signed by nine (9) members. Proposed amendments offered by the Executive Board or a Bylaws Committee shall be approved by a two-thirds vote of the Executive Board before submission to the members. Proposals originating by petition shall be submitted to the Executive Board in writing and shall be presented to the members with the recommendation of the Executive Board.

Section 3. Any revisions in or amendments to the Division Bylaws shall be submitted to the Association Bylaws Committee for review before presentation to the Division membership.

These Bylaws were

Approved by the Bylaws Committee, Special Libraries Association

[Elizabeth B. Eddison], Chair
(signed)
[July 1999]
(date)

Approved by Division Membership

[Jacqueline Snider], Chair
(signed)
[June 21, 1999]
(date)