Bylaws of the Illinois Section of the
Mathematical Association of America

Revised September 16, 2006,

Editorial changes approved December 1, 2006

Article I - Name and Purpose

1.      The name of this Section is the Illinois Section of the Mathematical Association of America.

2.      The purpose of the Illinois Section is to advance the mathematical sciences at the collegiate level by carrying out the purposes of the national organization within the territory defined below in Article II.

Article II - Membership

The membership of the Illinois Section consists of the members of the Mathematical Association of America residing in Illinois, zip codes 60002-62999.   Exceptions may be made by the national office.

Article III - Officers and Board of Directors

1.      The Officers of the Section are Chair, Chair-Elect in the second year of the Chair's term, Past-Chair, and Secretary-Treasurer.

2.      The voting members of the Board of Directors are six Directors at Large, one Director for Public Universities, one Director for Private Colleges, one Director for Community Colleges, the Section Information Coordinator, the Section NExT Coordinator, the Officers of the Section, and the Governor of the Section. An MAA Governor at Large who is a member of the Illinois Section is a non-voting member of the Board of Directors.

3.      Each member of the Board of Directors must be a member of the Illinois Section.

4.      The voting members of the Board of Directors, other than the Governor of the Section, are elected at the Annual Meeting and assume office upon adjournment of that meeting.

5.      Nominations for vacant positions are made by the Nominating Committee for election at the Annual Meeting. Additional nominations may be made from the floor at the time of the Annual Meeting.

6.      The Chair-Elect is elected biennially. Election as Chair-Elect presumes a five-year service cycle of one year as Chair-Elect, two years as Chair, and two years as Past-Chair. Re-election as Chair-Elect may not occur until the end of the five-year cycle. The Past-Chair assumes the responsibilities of the Chair in the absence of the Chair.

7.      The Secretary-Treasurer is elected to a six-year term. The Secretary-Treasurer may be re-elected.

8.      The Directors at Large, the Section Information Coordinator, and the Section NExT Coordinator are elected to three-year terms with two Directors at Large elected each year. Directors at Large, the Section Information Coordinator, and the Section NExT Coordinator may be re-elected.

9.      The Directors for Public Universities, Private Colleges, and Community Colleges, called Designated Directors, are elected to three-year terms with one of the three Designated Directors being elected each year. A Designated Director may not serve successive terms as a Designated Director.

10.  The Chair presides at all business meetings of the Section and all meetings of the Board of Directors. The Chair has general charge of, and executes the affairs of, the Section. The Chair appoints all ad hoc committees of the Section and is an ex officio member of such ad hoc committees, unless directed otherwise by the members of the Section at a meeting of the Section. The Chair appoints the appointed members of standing committees.  The Chair also appoints the Coordinator of Student Chapters and annually appoints the chairs of the standing committees, with the exception of the Program Committee and the Nominating Committee.

11.  The Secretary-Treasurer keeps all the books, accounts, and records of the Section. The Secretary-Treasurer writes minutes of the meetings of the Board of Directors and business meeting held in conjunction with the Annual Meeting.  The Secretary-Treasurer sends a report of the Annual Meeting to the Chair of the MAA Committee on Sections each spring. The Secretary-Treasurer receives all monies paid to the Section, taking regular receipt of deposits thereof. The Secretary-Treasurer pays all bills of the Section out of Section funds and notifies the members of all meetings of the Section. The Secretary-Treasurer sends an annual financial report to the national office each January

12.  The Directors at Large serve on committees as needed.

13.  The Board of Directors conducts the affairs of the Section between meetings of the members. It is empowered to fill any vacancy among the officers of the Section until the time of the annual election. The Chair fills, until the next annual election, any vacancy that occurs on the Board of Directors with the exception of the Officers and Governor of the Section. The Board of Directors meets at least twice a year.

14.  A quorum for a Board of Directors meeting consists of a majority of the voting members.

Article IV - Meetings

1.      The Section holds one or more meetings each year. The Board of Directors sets the dates for each meeting. At least six months notice of the dates for the Annual Meeting must be given to the membership.

2.      The place of each meeting is set by the Board of Directors.

3.      Meetings other than the Annual Meeting must be called by the Chair after either majority approval by the Board of Directors or by resolution of the members at a previous meeting.

4.      Each member of the Section is notified in writing at least ten days in advance of any meeting of the Section.

5.      The members present at any meeting constitute a quorum, provided the members of the Section were notified in writing of such a meeting at least ten days in advance.  

Article V - Fees and Use of Assets

1.      The Board of Directors is authorized to assess a registration fee for those members and guests attending the Annual Meeting or any other meeting sponsored by the Section.

2.      The assets of the Illinois Section are used exclusively to further the purpose of the Section, and in the event of the dissolution of the Section, the remaining assets will be returned to the national organization to be used for a purpose consistent with the purposes of the national organization.

Article VI - Committees

1.      The Standing Committees of the Section are:

    1. The Two Year College Committee
    2. The Nominating Committee
    3. The Program Committee
    4. The Committee on Secondary School Lectures
    5. The Committee on Awards
    6. The Committee on Teacher Education
    7. The Committee on Finance

2.      The Two Year College Committee and the Committee on Secondary School Lectures consist of five members each appointed to three-year overlapping terms. At least one Director at Large of the Section is appointed to serve on each of these committees.

3.      The Nominating Committee consists of three members each appointed to three-year overlapping terms plus the Past-Chair of the Section, who serves as Chair of the Committee.

4.      The Program Committee consists of the three Designated Directors, the Section Coordinator of Student Chapters, the Section NExT Coordinator, and a representative of the host institution. The Designated Director in the second year of office serves as chair of the Program Committee.

5.      The Committee on Awards consists of three members each appointed to three-year overlapping terms.

6.      The Committee on Teacher Education consists of five members, who are appointed to four-year staggered terms.  In addition to the chair, the members are representatives from a public university, a private college or university, a community college, and a public school.

7.      The Committee on Finance consists of four members, one of whom is the Secretary-Treasurer of the Section (ex-officio), and three others each appointed to six-year overlapping terms (one replacement each two years).

8.      Terms of committee members expire at the close of the Annual Meeting in the designated year.

9.      The chair of each standing committee is responsible for a written report of the committee's activity to be submitted for each regular meeting of the Board of Directors. Committee chairs are notified of the dates of such regular meetings by the Chair of the Section.

10.  Each committee annually reviews the description of the committee's responsibilities, and submits any recommendations for change to the Past-Chair of the Section who is responsible for maintaining up-to-date descriptions of committee responsibilities.

11.  The Chair-Elect reviews the descriptions of responsibilities for each committee and may develop additional or specific charges for committees for approval by the Board of Directors.

Article VII - Amendments

These bylaws may be amended by a majority vote of the members present at the Annual Meeting, provided notice of such amendments has been submitted in writing to the members of the Section by the Secretary-Treasurer at least fifteen (15) days prior to the date of the meeting and provided that these amendments are approved by the Board of Governors of the Mathematical Association of America.  

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