Midwestern Sectional Society

Constitution of the

American Society of Plant Biologists

MIDWESTERN SECTION

 

ARTICLE I. NAME

 The name of this organization shall be the Midwestern Section of the American Society of Plant Biologists (MWASPB).

 ARTICLE II. PURPOSES

 The purposes of this organization are to encourage the growth of plant physiology and to promote the general welfare and good fellowship of plant biologists in the middle-western states of the U.S.A. and provinces of Canada.

 ARTICLE III. MEMBERSHIP 

    1. All members of the American Society of Plant Biologists resident in the areas designated above and in sympathy with the purposes of this Section shall be eligible for membership in the Midwestern Section.
    2. All individuals who are not members of the American Society of Plant Biologists but who are in sympathy with the purposes of the Midwestern Section are eligible to become members.
    3. Individuals eligible under the provisions of paragraph 1 or 2 of this Article shall be considered members upon payment of dues of three dollars per calendar year.
    4. Students eligible under the provisions of paragraph 1 or 2 of this Article shall be considered members upon payment of dues of one dollar per calendar year.

 ARTICLE IV. MEETINGS 

    1. There shall be a meeting each calendar year.
    2. The place and time of this meeting shall be determined by the Executive Committee.
    3. Other meetings may be held at such times and places as may be determined by the Executive Committee.
    4. A business meeting will be conducted during the annual meeting and action taken by participating members during that meeting is final and need not be submitted to the Society as a whole for ratification.

  ARTICLE V. OFFICERS AND DUTIES 

    1. The officers of this organization shall be a Chair, Chair-Elect, and Secretary-Treasurer. Their duties include: Chair, preside over the annual meeting; Chair-Elect, organize fund raising and symposium for annual meeting; Secretary/Treasurer, organize annual meeting and oversee receipt, care, and disbursement of section funds. These officers, together with the most recent past-chair and the section representative to the National ASPB, shall constitute the Executive Committee of the Section and shall carry on any business of the Section which may require action between business meetings.
    2. The Chair and Chair-Elect shall serve for one year. The Secretary-Treasurer serves for two years and then assumes the office of Chair-Elect. Every other year a Chair-Elect is elected directly from the membership. The Chair-Elect ascends to Chair after one year. No individual shall serve for more than one term in any one office. New officers shall be installed at the termination of the annual meeting.
    3. The election of officers and representatives to the National ASPB for this organization shall be conducted by the Secretary-Treasurer as follows:
        1. On or about February 1, the Secretary-Treasurer shall send to the members a call for nominations for the offices to be vacated. Each member may nominate one member for each office.
        2. On or about March 15, the Secretary-Treasurer shall send to the members the election ballots. These shall contain the names of the three members receiving the highest number of nominations for each office. If a member is nominated for more than one office, he/she shall be placed on the ballot for the office for which he/she receives the most nominations. Names will be placed on the ballot in alphabetical orders. Balloting shall be completed by mail prior to April 1.
        3. The consent of the nominees for all offices shall be obtained before their names are placed on the ballot.
        4. If only one candidate for an office has been nominated as prescribed in (b & c) above, the Secretary/Treasurer shall declare the candidate elected to that office.

 ARTICLE VI. REPRESENTATION IN OTHER ORGANIZATIONS

A member of the MWASPB will be elected every three years to represent the section on the Executive Committee of the American Society of Plant Biologists. This person must also be a member of the national Society and will be limited to a single term in office.

ARTICLE VII. AMENDMENTS 

Proposed amendments to the Constitution must be submitted in writing to the Secretary-Treasurer before February 1. Such proposals shall be reviewed by the Executive Committee, mailed to the membership, and placed on the agenda for consideration at the annual meeting. A two-thirds majority of those present shall be required to pass any proposed amendment.

 ARTICLE VIII. OTHER MATTERS

Section traditions regarding student stipends, awards, and similar expenditures will be decided at the Annual Business Meeting by the membership at large or, if necessary, by the Executive Committee if action is required before the next business meeting. Once established, section traditions and policies will remain in place until explicitly altered at the Annual Business Meeting.

  

As accepted at the Annual Meeting, April1 16, 1993