North Central Iowa Genealogical
Society By-laws
(Revised 2016)
Mission Statement
Founded in
1972 as a non-profit volunteer educational organization, the mission of
the North Central Iowa Genealogical Society is to create and foster an
interest in genealogy and to aid others in researching their family
history.
ARTICLE I - NAME
The name of this Society shall, be the NORTH CENTRAL IOWA GENEALOGICAL
SOCIETY.
ARTICLE II - OBJECTIVES
The objectives of this Society shall be:
1.
To
create and foster an interest in genealogy.
2.
To
preserve genealogical and historical data.
3.
To
aid individual members in compiling family genealogies.
4.
To
establish and maintain a genealogical library.
5.
To
furnish the Iowa Genealogical Society information for publication.
6.
To
cooperate with any group or individual interested in furthering genealogical
research.
7.
To establish and maintain a society website,
8. To establish and maintain a research data base in the library (e.g., research requests).
The Society shall operate as a non-profit organization as required for tax exemption under the laws which apply.
ARTICLE III - MEMBERSHIP
Section
1. Membership in this Society shall
be open to all persons interested in genealogical, biographical, or historical
research.
Section 2.
Membership shall be issued upon application and payment of the
annual dues.
Section 3.
The dues shall be set by the Executive
Board and recommended to the membership for approval. Dues shall become
payable in advance September 1 and shall be paid on or before December 31 of the
current year. Members not renewing prior to January 15th shall be dropped from membership.
New members who join and pay dues after September 1st shall be
credited for the remaining months of the current year and the entire following
year.
Section 4. Paid membership includes copies of the newsletter The Genie
Bug issued during time of
membership. Another membership benefit
is the publication of one free query per year in The Genie Bug.
ARTICLE IV - OFFICERS
Section 1. The officers of this
Society shall be President, Vice
President, Secretary, Treasurer, Librarian, Research Chair, Publicity Chair,
Membership Chair, and Website Chair.
Section 2. Membership of at least one full year is required for eligibility
to office.
Section 3. Officers shall be elected to serve one year or until their
successors shall be elected, and their term of office shall begin at the close
of the December meeting after they are elected. (See Article VI Section 7 for Treasurer.)
Section 4. No member shall be eligible to hold more than one office at a
time.
ARTICLE V - NOMINATIONS AND
ELECTIONS.
Section
1.
At the regular meeting in the month of September the President shall announce a nominating committee of three members.
Section 2.
At the October meeting, the nominating committee will present a written slate of
candidates for each office.
Section 3. Additional nominations from the floor as
well as write-in candidates shall
be permitted.
ARTICLE VI - DUTIES
OF THE OFFICERS
Section 1.
The nine elected officers shall serve as the Executive Board and as the Budget
Committee. (See Article VII Sections 1 and 4.) .
Section 2. The President shall be the presiding officer at meetings
of the Society and serve as chairman of the Executive Board.
S/he, after consultation with each chair person, shall
appoint committees/sub-committees. The President shall be an
ex officio member of committees (except the Nominating Committee).
S/he will serve as Liaison Officer, maintaining an on-going relationship with
the Director of the Mason City Public Library.
Section 3.
The Vice President shall assume the duties of the President whenever necessary.
The Vice President shall serve
as chairperson of the program committee and
shall be responsible for making reservations for meeting places and for program
arrangements, including poster and press release information, for all regular
meetings and special workshops of the Society. Appropriate publicity forms
for each meeting shall be forwarded to the President,
Publicity/Website/Membership Chairs and the Librarian.
Section 4.
The Secretary shall keep and read the minutes and shall provide a copy of
the same to the Executive Board. S/he shall keep a record book in which all
bylaws, special rules of order, standing rules, any amendments, committee assignments
and copies of committee reports are entered and shall have the record book
available at each meeting. The Secretary shall be responsible for the
courtesy correspondence and such other outgoing correspondence as the President may direct.
The Secretary’s records will be transferred to
the new Secretary, within 45 days of term completion, with appropriate
copies added to the NCIGS Archives contained within the NCIGS Library Data Base.
Section 5.
The Treasurer shall serve as chairman of the Budget Committee. (See Section 1 above and Article VII Section
4.)
1. The Treasurer
shall receive all monies of the Society and
shall deposit the same to the checking and savings
accounts of the Society.
2. When payments for research are received, the Treasurer shall, in a timely manner, notify the Research Chair. When member dues are received, the Treasurer shall, in a timely manner, notify the Membership and Website Chairs and the Editor of THE GENIE BUG
3.
The
Treasurer shall pay all bills falling within the approved operating
budget.
4.
Reimbursement of authorized bills shall be submitted
with a completed NCIGS Expense form prior to payment.
5. Unbudgeted major expenditures shall be recommended by the Executive Board and approved by the membership.
6.
The Treasurer shall keep up-to-date records of
the financial condition of the Society, shall report to the society at regular
meetings and shall make the records available upon request.
7.
The Treasurer shall be issued a key to the
society’s P.O. Box and is authorized to pick up and distribute the mail.
8. The Treasurer shall file a yearly report with the IRS.
9. The Treasurer shall close the financial records as of December 31 and prepare the annual report.
10. The President, in coordination with the
Treasurer, shall appoint an Audit Committee to audit
the books and report the results of the audit to the membership at each
February meeting.
Section 6.
The Research Chair shall serve as chairperson for the Research Committee
and shall, with the assistance of committee members, undertake to answer
requests for research help. The Research Chair
shall maintain a record of Research Requests and the subsequent results.
The Research Chair shall bill, collect and transfer research payments to
the Treasurer. The Research Request records shall be
transferred to the in-coming Research Chair within 45 days of term
completion, with appropriate copies added to the NCIGS Archives contained within
the NCIGS Library Data Base.
Section 7.
The Publicity Chair shall send announcements of meetings, programs,
workshops, and newsworthy events to the media in time for publication or
broadcast before each such event. S/he
shall promote the Society and its projects.
S/he will provide the President with a current copy of press release
contacts at the beginning of each year. The Publicity Chair’s
records shall be transferred to the in-coming Publicity Chair within 45
days of term completion with appropriate copies added to the NCIGS Archives
contained within the NCIGS Library Data Base.
Section 8. The Librarian shall serve as
Chairman of the Library Committee. The genealogical library shall be a major
focus of the Society. The library collection shall be housed at the Mason City
Public Library and shall be available for use in the library by members and
library patrons alike. The stamp of the society shall be upon society property.
Whenever possible, all of the society's library collection shall be available
for use in the genealogy area. If items in the collection are stored off-site,
retrieval of the requested items will be as timely as possible. The President,
in coordination with the Librarian, shall appoint a Surname sub-committee which
shall be responsible for encouraging society members to submit of 4-generational
ancestral chart, organize said charts and promote their use. In the event of
the dissolution of the Society, its library property and all other assets shall
become the property of the Mason City Public library. The Librarian and/or
Library Committee/Volunteers shall:
1. Select, deselect, prepare,
process, preserve, record and arrange library materials to facilitate the
development and use of the genealogical collection.
2. Provide one-on-one and group training on how to do genealogical
research.
3. Assist researchers in the use of the genealogical collection as
well as electronic resources and devices.
4. Create, organize and maintain the card catalog, data bases and pathfinder aids.
5.The Librarian shall supervise the activities and contributions of volunteers.
6. The Librarian shall maintain a volunteer work schedule for the library. The Librarian shall be issued a key to the society P.O. Box and is authorized to pick up and distribute mail.
7. The Librarian shall write a quarterly column for THE GENIE BUG reporting on new acquisitions and progress in library projects.
8. The Librarian shall submit to the Executive Board a written monthly progress report.
Section 9. Membership
Chair shall
serve as chairperson of the membership committee. The major emphasis of the
Membership Committee shall be to increase membership and participation in the
Society. To that end, the Membership Chair shall submit to the Executive Board a
monthly progress report detailing the efforts made by the Membership Committee
to promote membership growth. Approximately one week prior to the monthly
meeting, the Membership Chair shall send an electronic reminder of meetings to
local members of the society. The President, in coordination with the
Membership Chair shall appoint a sub-committee, known as the Hospitality
Committee. This committee shall be responsible for arranging for program
refreshments. The Hospitality Committee shall greet individuals who attend
society meetings and maintain an attendance record for both members and guests.
The attendance record will include the month of the meeting and the name and
address of the attendees. Also, at the time of registration, the members and
guests will be offered name tags and access to membership forms, copies of THE
GENIE BUG and other promotional materials.
Section 10. Website Chair shall serve as chairperson of the society's
website project. The Website Chair is responsible for maintaining and updating
the NCIGS website. Only changes to programming and officers/committee members
shall be made to the website without prior approval of the Website Committee.
The Website Chair shall be responsible for maintaining an updated list of
usernames and passwords and other pertinent information necessary to the
operation of the website. As this information changes, the Website Chair shall
transmit a copy of the updated lists to the Treasurer, to be kept by that
officer as a back-up copy. The Website Chair shall be responsible for
communicating with new members on how to access the Members Only portion of the
website. The President, in coordination with the Website Chair, shall appoint a
sub-committee, known as the Obituary Project Committee. This sub-committee
shall be responsible for the on-line obituary project, including maintenance,
updating, and training of volunteers as well as briefing the Executive Board
regarding progress and concerns.
ARTICLE VII -
EXECUTIVE BOARD & OTHER APPOINTMENTS
Section
1. The Executive Board shall be the nine elected officers enumerated in
Article IV. The President shall
chair the Executive Board, shall
schedule regular meetings, may call special meetings, and must call a meeting
upon written request of three board members.
1. The Executive Board shall recommend an operating budget for the year, prepared
by the Budget Committee under the chairmanship of the Treasurer, which
shall then be submitted to the membership for approval.
2. The Executive Board shall have general supervision of the affairs of the
Society between business meetings and may make recommendations to the Society.
3. The Executive Board shall be subject to orders of the Society and none of its actions shall
conflict with action taken by the
Society. Four shall be a quorum for regular
and called meetings of the Executive
Board. The quorum, including the
President, shall be six when expenditures of over $1,000 are to be discussed.
4. The
Executive Board shall have authority to fill vacancies which occur during unexpired terms of office.
Section 2. The President shall
appoint an Editor for THE GENIE BUG newsletter. The Editor is a non-voting
member of the Executive Board and is expected to attend Executive Board and
monthly society meetings on a regular basis. The newsletter will be issued in
February, May, August, and November. Copies of the newsletter will be
distributed by mail or electronically, with the annual membership list included
in the May issue.
Section 3. The President shall appoint a Publications Committee (or committees) as needed to collect, compile, and publish genealogical materials, either locally or in cooperation with the Iowa Genealogical Society.
Section 4. The President, in coordination with the
Treasurer, shall appoint an Audit Committee to audit the books and
report the results of the audit to the membership each February meeting.
Section 5. Nominating Committee (See Article V.)
Section 6. Other Committees may be appointed as deemed advisable for the
growth and success of the Society.
ARTICLE VIII - MEETINGS
Meetings
of the Society shall be held on the second Saturday of each month (January
through November) except as the Executive
Board may make exception for a national holiday or to permit attendance at
the State Conference or other genealogical event.
There will be no meeting in December.
ARTICLE X - PARLIAMENTARY
AUTHORITY
The
rules contained in the current edition of Robert's Rules of Order
Newly Revised shall govern the Society in all cases in which they are
applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with these bylaws and any
special rules of order the Society may adopt.
ARTICLE XI - AMENDMENT
OF BY LAWS
These bylaws may be amended at any regular meeting
of the Society by a two-thirds vote of those in attendance provided that the
amendment has been submitted to the membership and a written copy posted in the
genealogical library for perusal by members.
Standing Rules
1.
The first year of this Society will be from
the time of organization until November 1973. All members joining the Society
during the first year shall be considered charter members.
2. Regular
meetings of the Society shall be held at a location designated by the Executive Board. A temporary change in place may be designated
by the President if necessary. A permanent location change shall be approved
by a vote of the members.
3.
The regular meeting shall begin at 1:30 p.m.
5. Chairmen of committees shall be informed of
meetings of the Executive Board and
may attend but shall have no vote,
with the exception of the positions named above in Article IV