BYLAWS
OF
THE MORGAN COUNTY MASTER GARDENERS ASSOCIATION
The name of the association
shall be “The Morgan County
The
The objectives of this
Association shall be:
a.
Enhance and
supplement the Consumer Horticulture programs in extension, teaching, and
research of the Alabama Cooperative Extension Universities;
b.
Enhance
c.
Provide community
service to residents of Morgan County and surrounding counties in the State of Alabama,
by way of horticultural projects and dissemination of information on
horticultural practices and techniques as approved by the Alabama Cooperative
Extension System; and
d.
Provide
opportunities for
Section 1. There shall be six classes of
membership: Active, Provisional,
Associate, Honorary, Patron, and Inactive.
Section 2. Active member: Active membership shall be limited to
individuals who have successfully completed an approved Cooperative Extension
Service Master Gardener Training Program (hereinafter referred to as “the
Program”) and also fulfilled the Program’s volunteer service requirements. Active members must pay annual dues.
Section 3. Provisional Member: Provisional membership in the Association
will be granted for a period of one year to
Section 4. Associate Member: An Associate member is an Alabama Extension
Service employee working with an office which offers the Program, or which
cooperates with other units in offering the Program, or which plans to offer
the Program within one year of his/her application for membership in the
Association. Associate members pay no
dues, but receive Association mailings.
Section 5.
Honorary Member: Honorary memberships
are bestowed by the Executive Board on individuals who have rendered
outstanding contributions to the Program or to the Association. Honorary members may occupy an advisory capacity. Honorary members pay no dues.
Section 6. Patron Member: Patron memberships are available to persons,
organizations, or businesses who contribute to the Program, either financially
or through service, but who do not qualify for active membership. Patrons must
pay dues, but do not have voting rights.
Section 7. Inactive Member: An Inactive Member is a former Active or
Provisional member who has not participated in the activities of the
Association for more than a year or has failed to pay annual dues, as required
by Section 9. An Inactive Member may be
reinstated in good standing after paying current annual dues and pledging to
provide the number of volunteer hours required for Active Members.
Section 8. Only active members are eligible to make
motions, second motions, vote, and to hold office.
Section 9. Annual dues for each class of membership
shall be established each year by the Executive Board and shall be payable on
or before the first of each calendar year.
Annual dues shall include both state and local dues. The treasurer shall notify members who are
three months in arrears and those whose dues are not paid by that time will be
automatically transferred to Inactive Member status.
Section 10. In the event a member must request a leave of
absence, the leave will be granted for one calendar year. Dues for that year will be required, and
member will remain on the Association’s mailing list. Requests for leave should be presented to the
Executive Board in writing for approval.
Voting for this period can be made by proxy. If more that one year is needed, see Section
11.
Section 11. Alabama Master Gardener Transfer: An Alabama Certified Master Gardener from
another County may join the Morgan County Master Gardener Association by providing
proof of state certification, paying annual dues, and volunteering the yearly
required 20 hours of service. A Master
Gardener who has been certified, but has not remained “active” for more than
one year, may join the Association by providing proof of certification, paying
annual dues, and volunteering the yearly required 20 hours of service.
Section 12. Out-of-state Master Gardener Transfers:
Section 1. The officers of the Association shall be a
President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer. The Treasurer shall serve without bond.
Section 2. Duties of Officers:
a.
President: The President shall preside at all meetings
of the Association and of the Executive Board.
He/she shall be the chief executive officer. Subject to the approval of the Executive
Board, he/she shall appoint standing committee chairpersons, all other special
committee chairpersons, and a newsletter editor.
b.
Vice-President: The Vice President, in the absence or inability
of the President, shall perform the duties of President. If the office of President becomes vacant,
the Vice-President, shall perform the duties of
President. If the office of President
becomes vacant, the Vice President shall become President.
c.
Secretary: The Secretary shall keep a record of the
proceedings of the meetings of the Association and of the Executive Board and
conduct correspondence not specifically assigned to other Officers or
Committees.
d.
Treasurer: The Treasurer shall receive all funds of the
Association and shall deposit them in such bank or banks as may be designated
by the Association. He/she shall
disburse these funds by check or other commonly used means of payment, as
directed in the approved budget or by the Executive Board. The Treasurer shall keep an account of all
monies and make reports to the Association at regular or special meetings. In addition, the Treasurer shall prepare a
final financial report at the end of each calendar year and at the end of the
Treasurer’s term of office.
Section 3. Election of officers:
a.
Officers shall be
elected by a majority vote of the membership at the annual meeting. Votes may be cast in person or by proxy.
b.
Candidates for
office shall be chosen by a Nominating Committee. Nominations for any office will be accepted
from the floor at the election or by submission prior to the annual meeting.
c.
The Nominating
Committee shall be composed of three members appointed by the President. The Nominating Committee shall report at
least thirty days prior to the date for the annual meeting and shall prepare a
ballot for the election of officers and the Advisory Representative to the
State.
Section 4. Term of Office: Officers shall serve for a term of one year
or until their successors are installed. Officers shall take office immediately
following the December meeting after their election in October. No officer shall serve more than two
consecutive elected terms in the same office, except Treasurer may serve additional
terms due to unique qualifications required. Any vacancies that may occur among the
officers shall be filled by the Executive Board, subject to approval at the
next regular business meeting.
Section
1: The Executive Board shall consist of the elected officers, the immediate
past President, the Chairperson of the Project Committee, the Advisory
Representative to the State, and any advisors invited by the President. This
board shall have general supervision of the affairs of the Association between
meetings provided that none of its acts shall conflict with action taken by the
Association. Four members of the
Executive Board shall constitute a quorum for the transaction of business.
Section
2: Chairpersons of standing committees shall
be appointed by the President and members of the standing committees shall be
appointed by the standing committee chairpersons subject to the approval of the
President.
Section 1. Annual Meeting: The Association's annual meeting shall be
during the regular October meeting. The
membership shall elect officers and transact such other business as may
properly come before the annual meeting.
Section 2. Regular Meetings: Regular meetings shall be monthly, except for
November, with the time and place of the meetings announced in advance.
Section 3. Quorum:
Attendance of the voting membership at a properly announced meeting
shall constitute a quorum.
ARTICAL VIII:
ADVISORY REPRESENTATIVE TO THE STATE ASSOCIATION
Section 1. The Advisory Representative to the State
Association shall be elected by the voting Association members and must be a
member of the Association.
Section 2. The Advisory Representative shall:
a.
Serve as a link
to the State Association and keep the
b.
Act as an advisor
and liaison between the local Association and the State Association and serve
on the local Executive Board.
c.
Perform the
duties required by the State Association.
d.
The Association
President will appoint one alternate to serve in addition to the elected
representative. If both the elected
member and the alternate attend the state meetings, only the elected
representative is eligible to vote.
e.
The term of the
elected representative will be for one year.
The Association President will specify the term of the alternate.
Section 1. The Association’s fiscal year shall be from
January 1 to December 31.
Section 2. A financial report of the Association shall
be given at each monthly meeting. All
major expenditures should be pre-approved by the membership and then submitted
to the Treasurer for reimbursement.
Section 3. An Audit Committee shall audit the financial records
of the Association when there is a transition to new Treasurer or as deemed
necessary by the Executive Board.
The
rules contained in the current edition of Robert’s Rules of Order shall govern
the Association in all cases in which they are applicable and in which they are
not inconsistent with these Bylaws and any special rules of order adopted by
the Association. The President may
appoint a parliamentarian either to assist or to assume the duties of the
Bylaws Committee.
These
Bylaws may be altered, amended or repealed by a majority vote of the Members
present or represented by proxy at a regular or special meting at which a
quorum is present, provide that notice of the proposed amendment(s) shall have
been given to the membership at least thirty days prior to the meeting.
Section
1.
All service shall be voluntary with no remuneration except for
out-of-pocket expenses for Association-related activities as approved by the
elected officers and/or membership.
Section
2.
Within the Association, there will be no discrimination with respect to
race, color, sex, age, creed, or national origin.
Section
3.
Recognizing that “
Approved
and adopted by the Morgan County