WVW, Inc. Constitution

CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS

WEST VIRGINIA WRITERS, INC.

West Virginia Writers, Inc., founded as the Committee of West Virginia Writers, February 26, 1977, by invitation of the Director of the West Virginia Arts and Humanities Council, is a nonprofit organization that, by providing community programs, regional and national resources, and statewide opportunities for creative and professional development, supports, develops, and promotes writers, the writing process, and a statewide literary environment.

The name of this association shall be West Virginia Writers, Inc., hereinafter referred to as WVW.

ARTICLE II. MEMBERSHIP

Section 1. Membership in WVW requires interest in writing and the timely payment of annual dues. Regular members shall have full voting privileges.

Section 2. Student membership in WVW requires, in addition to the above, at least eighteen years of age and full-time enrollment in a high school or institution of higher learning. This shall be a voting membership.

Section 3. Honorary membership in WVW may be bestowed upon individuals upon recommendation of the executive board and a majority vote of members in attendance at the annual meeting. This shall be a nonvoting, lifetime membership.

ARTICLE III. OFFICERS

Section 1. The elected officers of this association, who shall be residents of West Virginia and shall have been members of WVW for at least the two years preceding nomination, shall constitute the Executive Committee and shall include

Second Vice President

Section 2. Duties of the Officers

The PRESIDENT, when available, shall preside at all meetings. He/she shall be an ex-officio member of all committees except the Nominating Committee and shall have such other duties as outlined in Robert's Rules of Order.

The VICE PRESIDENT shall preside in the absence of the president and shall perform the duties of the president in his/her absence and shall perform other duties as assigned by the president. The vice president shall have overall responsibility for the publication and distribution of the organization newsletter no less than three (3) times per calendar year.

The SECOND VICE PRESIDENT shall facilitate the coordination of the activities of regional and granted projects and shall perform other duties as assigned by the president. The second vice president shall serve as liaison between the board and the committee chairs, project directors, and regional representatives.

The SECRETARY shall keep accurate minutes of all board and full membership meetings, shall keep a register of attendance at such, and shall take charge of all documents belonging to the association. Should the secretary resign or expire while in office, these documents shall be considered the property of WVW and shall be delivered to the succeeding secretary or to the president of WVW. The secretary shall read minutes of previous meetings when requested and shall report important correspondence. In the absence of the president and vice president, the secretary shall call the meeting to order and preside over the immediate election of a chairman pro tem. He/she shall notify the membership of all full membership meetings, annual or called.

The TREASURER shall receive and bank all monies belonging to the association. He/she shall keep accurate records in accordance with acceptable accounting practices and shall make timely reports of all financial transactions, usually at every regular board meeting and every annual meeting of the association. He/she shall see that audits take place as warranted.

The PARLIAMENTARIAN shall familiarize himself/herself with Robert's Rules of Order and shall settle any questions of organization or procedure.

The EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE shall act on behalf of the board when so ordered and in cases of dire emergency, the latter to be reported to the full board as soon as possible.

Section 3. Election and Terms of Office

Officers shall be elected in open forum at an annual meeting to be held in May or June, ordinarily in conjunction with the annual conference of the association, and shall take office on July 1. Any regular member of WVW not attending the conference may mail to the WVW secretary, before the conference, votes for the elected officers and the member's own regional representative. Officers shall serve a term of one year and may be reelected to that office only once, for a total of two consecutive terms. At least one year must elapse before that person can be elected to that office again. This does not preclude election to another office.

Section 4. Removal from Office and Filling of Vacancies

Any elected officer may be removed from office only for dereliction of duties and only by two-thirds secret ballot vote of all members of the board OR by majority vote of WVW members attending any called and duly noticed full membership meeting.

Should any officer find it necessary to resign, such intent shall be delivered in writing to the president. The board shall at its next meeting act on the intent.

In case of a vacancy in an elected office, the board shall elect a member of the association to complete the unexpired term.

Section 5. The Board of Directors (also known herein as "board") shall be composed of the elected officers, the immediate past president, and a regional representative from each of the ten (10) regions. All shall have voting privileges.

Region 1: Counties of Calhoun, Gilmer, Braxton, Roane, Clay

Region 2: Counties of Pendleton, Randolph, Pocahontas, Webster

Region 3: Counties of Greenbrier, Monroe, Nicholas, Summers

Region 4: Counties of McDowell, Fayette, Mercer, Raleigh, Wyoming

Region 5: Counties of Cabell, Lincoln, Logan, Mingo, Wayne

Region 6: Counties of Boone, Kanawha, Putnam

Region 7: Counties of Jackson, Pleasants, Ritchie, Wirt, Wood, Mason

Region 8: Counties of Brooke, Hancock, Marshall, Ohio, Tyler, Wetzel, Doddridge

Region 9: Counties of Barbour, Harrison, Lewis, Marion, Monongalia, Preston, Taylor, Tucker, Upshur

Region 10: Counties of Berkeley, Grant, Hampshire, Hardy, Jefferson, Mineral, Morgan

The regular members who are residents of one of the ten (10) regions shall elect as their regional representative a regular member of WVW who is a resident of that region. The election of the regional representative shall be by secret ballots, by mail to and from all regular members of the WVW residing in that region, and by plurality vote. Such election shall be held within twenty-one (21) days following each annual meeting of WVW and shall be conducted by a person or persons appointed by the president in office at the time of the annual meeting. Any regular member of WVW may submit nominations for the regional representative provided that such nominations are received by the chair of the nominating committee at least sixty (60) days preceding the annual meeting. Should no nomination be received for a particular region, the Nominating Committee will provide such. The board in office at the time of the annual meeting shall oversee this election. Any regular member of WVW may oversee the handling of the ballots. In case of a tie, the board taking office July 1 shall at their first meeting elect one of those tied. The regional representatives shall serve for a period of one (1) year and may be reelected for no more than four (4) consecutive terms. They shall be voting members of the board.

Section 6. Quorum and Duties of the Board of Directors

A quorum of the Board of Directors shall be a majority of its members. The board shall have general supervision of the affairs of WVW between full membership meetings and shall have the authority to carry out all decisions of the full membership and the board.

ARTICLE IV. MEETINGS

Section 1. WVW shall have one regular full membership meeting annually, between May 15 and July 1 and usually in conjunction with the annual conference. Other full membership meetings may be called by the board. Notice of all full membership meetings must be mailed to WVW members at least thirty (30) days prior to the meeting day. The notice of the meeting will include the intended agenda and the report of the Nominating Committee.

Section 2. The Board of Directors must meet at least quarterly but may meet more frequently at the discretion of the president or a majority of other board members.

ARTICLE V. COMMITTEES

Section 1. With the exception of the Nominating and Finance Committees, all committee chairpersons, members of the WVW, shall by September 1 be appointed by the president to serve terms concurrent with those of the elected officers. The needs of the association shall determine formation of committees. Committee members may be appointed by the president or chosen by the committee chair. They must also be members of WVW and must be approved by the board.

Section 2. The Nominating Committee shall consist of three (3) members elected by the full membership at the annual meeting and two (2) appointed by the president. The first person named will call the first meeting, at which time the group will elect its own chair. The committee shall present its proposed slate to the secretary in time for inclusion in the annual meeting notice as set forth in Article IV. Each member while in office shall receive minutes of all board meetings and shall attend at least one board meeting before the slate for the next year is finalized. Members of the Nominating Committee shall not have voting privileges at board meetings unless by virtue of also being a regional representative or a member of the executive committee.

Section 3. The Finance Committee shall be composed of the treasurer, who shall serve as chairman, plus two members appointed by the president. One of these shall serve as grants coordinator. The other shall, with the treasurer, prepare and administer the budget and audits.

ARTICLE VI. DUES

Dues shall be payable prior to the beginning of the WVW fiscal year, July 1-June 30. During a grace period from May 1 to July 1, a dues payer may indicate whether the dues are to be applied to the current or the coming fiscal year. If no indication is presented the dues will be applied to the current year. The amount of dues shall be set by vote of the full membership. Honorary members shall be dues-free. Student members shall pay fifty per cent (50%) of regular dues.

ARTICLE VII. PARLIAMENTARY AUTHORITY

A quorum for full membership meetings shall consist of members present. Robert's Rules of Order, Revised Edition, will govern the conduct of business of WVW. Job descriptions will also follow this guide except as otherwise determined by the board.

ARTICLE VIII. AMENDMENTS

The constitution and bylaws may be amended at the annual meeting by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the members present, providing written copies of the proposed amendment(s) have been submitted to the membership at least thirty (30) days prior to that meeting.

West Virginia Writers, Inc.

Bylaws Voted for by WVW Board

June 9, 2001 Compilation Date*

During announced board meetings the following amendments to the constitution and bylaws of West Virginia Writers, Inc., were acted upon.

6-1-77: In order to become a member of West Virginia Writers, Inc., it is necessary to pay dues.

Membership list of West Virginia Writers, Inc., is public information to the extent that copies of said list be allowed to be duplicated and mailed to persons requesting said list. Costs of duplication and mailing shall be paid by the requestor.

8-25-79: Pen point logo will be the official logo of West Virginia Writers, Inc.

7-22-90: The Contest Administrator and Conference Director shall have their Honoraria written into each year's budget and said honoraria shall be no less than $500.

6-5-93: Whenever possible, West Virginia Writers, Inc. will look to members first and will hire members within our group for such endeavors as the newsletter, etc.

1-22-94: The newsletter shall carry the name WVW NEWS and the pen point logo.

8-16-94: Minutes will be sent to board members within two weeks of meetings and will include date, time, and location of next meeting.

11-6-99: The board resolves that in order to effect an orderly transition between administrations, the outgoing treasurer shall transfer the organization's financial and bank records within 30 days of July 1 to the newly elected treasurer.

1-17-00: Motion moved that we not sell or give out addresses to individuals or organizations who request them and thus stand by previous board action in regard to sale of WVW mailing lists.

1-17-00: Due to financial deficits, the board decided that for the 2000 writers contest, there will be a contest coordinator, not administrator, with reduced duties and a committee all of whom shall work gratis for this year, except expenses such as promotion, postage, and telephone, which will be paid by the organization. Division of responsibilities:

Vice President (sty) will handle the promotion of the contest with reimbursement of promotional expenses.

Treasurer will deposit entry fees.

Secretary will make and send award certificates.

Coordinator will respond to contest inquiries, receive and handle entries, and organize the award ceremony.

Designated officer will coordinate the contest regarding obtaining judges, getting contracts, and writing contest grant applications.

Contest Procedures and Regulations:

10-14-89: If no more than 30% of a manuscript has been published, it can be included in the contest.

12-4-89: Any contest entrant contacting a judge about his/her entry will be disqualified.

1-17-00: Coordinator will collect entries, separate dues from entry fees with a notation, and send the copies and fees/dues to the Treasurer, who will record membership dues, add up totals, and deposit checks and dues into WVW account. Copies of checks/money orders will be kept in the Treasurer's file.

*Respectfully submitted,