Friends of Braille Institute San Diego
By-Laws
Article I. - Name
The name of this organization
shall be Friends of Braille Institute San Diego ("Friends").
Article II. - Purpose
The purpose of Friends shall be to
assist Braille Institute of America, Inc., (“Braille Institute”) to raise
awareness in the greater San Diego community of the works and services of
Braille Institute San Diego through contributions of funds and support.
Article III. - Membership
Section
I
Membership shall be open to those
in accord with the projects and purposes of Braille Institute and who have been
accepted by a majority vote of the Board of Directors of Friends as provided
herein.
Section
2
Classifications of membership
shall be Active, Supporting, Lifetime and Honorary.
• An Active member is one who assumes all
responsibilities and privileges of membership.
• A Supporting member is one who supports Friends
financially, with dues higher than those of Active members with
optional participation in meetings and events.
• A Lifetime member is one who supports
Friends financially with a significant one
time payment.
• An Honorary member is an individual in
the greater San Diego area, who has given
extraordinary support to Braille Institute and/or Friends of Braille Institute San Diego, but is not an
Active, Supporting or Lifetime member of
Friends; elected to membership by the Board; presented to the General
Membership at the Annual Meeting; and entitled to the privileges of membership except those of making
motions, of voting, and of holding office.
All new members of Friends are encouraged
to tour San Diego Braille Institute during their first year of membership.
Section
3
Nominations for membership shall
be submitted to the Membership Chairperson by members of Friends in good
standing. Acceptance of the nominees is
subject to the approval of the Board of Directors. Members so elected shall be notified of their admission to Friends
by the Secretary and presented at the next General Meeting.
Section
4
Membership in Friends may be
limited to a number determined by the Board of Directors based upon the
recommendation of the Membership Chairperson.
Section
5
The membership obligations
associated with Friends shall be:
a. Membership Dues:
Active: $35.00 annual dues
Supporting: $50.00 annual dues
Lifetime: $350.00 in one payment only and
shall not be subject to annual membership
dues.
Dues
are payable June 25 and will be delinquent July 31.
b. Fundraisers and Events:
All
members are responsible for supporting the annual fundraiser(s). Financially, members will support the event(s)
either by attending or donating ticket price of the event(s). Active
members shall also be responsible to work on the fundraiser(s) in some capacity.
Section
6
Members are encouraged to attend
all General Membership meetings of Friends and should notify the Membership
Chair if they are unable to attend. The Board of Directors may terminate any
membership for just cause with a two-thirds vote of the Board.
Section
7
All changes of membership status
shall be made by July 31. Any member
desiring to resign from Friends shall submit a resignation in writing to the
Membership Chairperson.
Section
8
The original “Committee of 14”
persons who organized Friends as of May 25, 2005 shall be known as the Founding
members.
Article IV. - Board of Directors
Section
1
The Board of Directors ("Board")
shall consist of eight (8) elected officers, one (1) ex-officio member, and three
(3) non-elected members which shall include:
a. Elected
Officers:
1. President
2. Vice President
3. Secretary
4. Treasurer
5. Membership Chairperson
6. Events Chairperson
7. Public Relations Chairperson
8. Historian
b. Ex-officio
member
Immediate
past President
c. Non-elected,
non-voting members
Regional Director - Braille Institute San Diego
Auxiliary Liaison - Braille Institute
Volunteer Coordinator - Braille Institute San Diego
The President shall, with Board
approval, appoint any Chairperson deemed necessary for the function of Friends.
These appointees shall not be considered members of the Board of Directors.
These Chairperson positions serve at the discretion of the Board.
Section
2
Officers shall be elected for a
term of one (1) year and shall not serve in the same position for more than two
(2) consecutive years.
Section
3
The President, with the approval
of the Board, may fill vacancies occurring on the Board during the year.
Section
4
Elections of officers shall be at
the Annual Meeting in May. Sixty (60) days before the Annual Meeting the President
shall appoint a three (3) member Nominating Committee. The Nominating Committee
shall submit the names of nominees to the general membership prior to the
Annual Meeting. Nominations may also be made from the floor. Voting shall be by
ballot or voice vote and a majority shall govern. The newly elected officers shall
take office on July 1.
Article V. - Duties of the Officers
Section
1 - President
The President shall preside at all
Board of Directors meetings and all General Meetings and shall be an ex-officio
member of all committees, except nominating committee.
Section
2 - Vice President
The Vice President shall assume
all duties and powers of the President in the absence of the President. The Vice President shall also assist the Membership
Chairperson with the organization and development of membership; and the Events
Chairperson with annual fundraising events.
Section
3 - Secretary
The Secretary shall keep a
permanent record of the minutes of all Board of Directors meetings and all
General Meetings. The minutes shall be made available to the members. Upon
approval a copy shall be submitted to the President for distribution to the
Auxiliary Liaison at Braille Institute, Los Angeles. The Secretary shall be
responsible for all necessary correspondence of Friends
Section
4 - Treasurer
The Treasurer shall:
a.
be custodian of the funds;
b.
keep all accounts as designated by Friends;
c.
have all expenditures approved by the Board;
d.
make financial reports at all Board and General Meetings;
e.
establish or maintain a bank account in the name of Friends: eligible
signatories to be the President, Vice President, and the Treasurer;
f.
two (2) signatures required for all checks over $200.00;
g.
conform to the accounting and financial procedures of Braille Institute including providing an annual report
to the Braille Institute by June 30; Semiannual
and/or quarterly reports may be submitted if deemed necessary.
Section
5 – Membership Chairperson
The Membership Chairperson, assisted
by the Vice President, shall:
a. form and chair the Membership Committee;
b. keep an accurate roster of members (Active, Supporting,
Lifetime and Honorary);
c. adhere to the rules of membership as stated in Article III;
d. be responsible for the collection of annual dues;
e. monitor meeting attendance;
f.
produce and distribute a
current membership roster yearly.
Section
6 - Events Chairperson
The Events Chairperson, assisted
by the Vice President, shall form and be in charge of a Fundraising Committee
which shall organize all fundraising events.
Section
7 - Public Relations Chairperson
The Public Relations Chairperson
shall strive to raise the public awareness in the greater San Diego community of
the works and services of Braille Institute and Friends of Braille Institute
San Diego.
Section
8 – Historian
The Historian shall maintain a permanent
record of significant activities of Friends.
Article VI. - Meetings
Section
I
Board meetings shall be held
monthly or at the discretion of the President (but in no event shall be less
than three meetings a year). The place,
date and time of these meetings is to be determined by the Board.
Section
2
All members shall be encouraged to
attend the General Membership meetings. The date, time and locations of General
Meetings shall be determined by the Board (but in no event shall be less than
four meetings a year). The May meeting shall
be designated as the Annual Meeting.
Section
3
One third (1/3) of the members of the
Board of Directors shall constitute a quorum at any meeting of the Board of
Directors. One third (1/3) of the
general membership shall constitute a quorum at any general meeting.
Article VII. - Events and Activities
Section
1
All Friends’ fundraising events,
activities, projects or purposes for which funds are to be used or collected
are subject to prior approval of the Board of Directors of Braille Institute.
This approval may be obtained through the Auxiliary Liaison. It is to be
remembered that the Institute's primary need is for the funding of the
operational costs of ongoing programs.
Section
2
Contributions made to Friends are
tax deductible due to the Friends’ relationship to Braille Institute, a non-profit,
tax-exempt organization. Any questions that arise concerning deductibility for
tax purposes of contributions to Friends should be referred to Braille
Institute.
Section
3
Friends’ annual fundraising
expenses for any special event shall not exceed 50% of total annual revenue.
Article VIII. - Accounting and Financial
Procedures
Section
1
All funds contributed to, raised
by, or received by Friends shall be retained or utilized solely for Friends’
purposes approved by the Braille Institute of America, Inc. Board of Directors.
Section
2
Reports of Friends’ financial
activities are to be submitted to Braille Institute annually for the period
ending June 30. Semiannual and/or quarterly reports may be submitted if deemed
necessary. The fiscal year begins July 1 ending June 30.
Section
3
Funds in excess of Friends’
operating requirements shall be remitted annually to Braille Institute no later
than ninety (90) days following the close of the fiscal year. This shall
normally include funds in excess of $3,000.00 held by Friends as of June 30.
The annual audit of the Braille Institute's records will thus properly reflect
all such funds raised in its behalf.
Section 4
In the event of dissolution,
Friends’ designated funds will be paid and any remaining funds turned over to
Braille Institute San Diego.
Article IX. - Amendments
These bylaws may be amended at any
general meeting by a two-thirds vote, provided notice has been given at the
preceding general meeting of the proposed amendments. Amendments shall not become effective until approved by the Auxiliary
Representatives on the Braille Institute Board of Directors. Any change in Braille Institute policies
that necessitates amendment of these bylaws shall be incorporated herein
without requirement of a vote to approve.
Article X. - Order of Business
Robert’s Rules of Order Newly Revised shall govern Friends’ meetings and be used for purposes of
conflict resolution.