| ARTICLE I | NAME |
| SECTION 1.1 | This society shall be known as: The Centre County Genealogical Society. |
| SECTION 1.2 | Hereinafter, in this document, The Centre County Genealogical Society shall be referred to as “the Society.” |
| ARTICLE II | PURPOSE |
| SECTION 2.1 | The Society shall serve as a non-profit association of people interested in genealogy and family history and shall provide for: informative and educational programs, opportunities for the exchange of ideas and techniques dealing with genealogical research problems, and the organization of joint research trips. |
| SECTION 2.2 | The Society shall maintain a surname file. |
| SECTION 2.3 | The Society may, upon occasion, issue publications of genealogical interest to locate, preserve and index public and private records, and to make those records available to members and to the general public. “Publication” is defined here as release by sale or gift of genealogical data in print or electronic media. |
| SECTION 2.4 | The Society shall publish a newsletter and maintain a presence on the Internet. |
| SECTION 2.5 | The Society is and shall remain free from affiliation with any religious group or organization. |
| ARTICLE III | MEMBERSHIP AND DUES |
| SECTION 3.1 | All persons interested in genealogy and family history shall be eligible for membership. |
| SECTION 3.2 | Membership categories and definitions: A. Individual Member: A person who meets the requirements for membership and has paid the annual dues. B. Family Members: Individuals living at the same address, which individuals include spouse and unmarried children of the named member. A Family membership will receive only one member number and one copy of Society publications. C. Honorary Lifetime Member: This membership is bestowed upon a person for exceptional service to the Society or to the practice of genealogy. An honorary lifetime membership shall be bestowed after a two-thirds vote by members of the Executive Committee, followed by a 2/3 vote at a regular meeting of the Society. Honorary Life Members are entitled to all of the privileges of Individual Members, but are exempt from paying dues. |
| SECTION 3.3 | Dues shall be set by a majority vote of members present upon recommendation of the Executive Committee. Dues are payable in advance for the calendar year. Dues not paid by February 1 are delinquent, and the member’s name shall be removed from the membership roll. Members admitted after November 1 shall be credited with dues paid for the following year. |
| ARTICLE IV | MEETINGS AND QUORUM |
| SECTION 4.1 | Normally, the Society shall meet monthly. The time and place of meetings shall be decided by the Executive Committee. |
| SECTION 4.2 | As necessary, business may be transacted at any meeting where a quorum is present and at the discretion of the President. |
| SECTION 4.3 | For purposes of amending the Constitution or By-Laws under Article X, a quorum shall be composed of nine members in good standing. For regular business including the Election of Officers under Article VII, a quorum shall be composed of five members in good standing. For regular business, if a proposed action to be voted at a meeting is presented to the membership in writing at least two weeks prior to the meeting, a quorum will be composed of all members in good standing who are present and voting. |
| ARTICLE V | OFFICERS AND THEIR DUTIES |
| SECTION 5.1 | The officers of the Society shall be: President, Vice President, Recording Secretary, Treasurer, Corresponding Secretary, Editor of the Newsletter, Website Coordinator, and Membership Secretary. Except for the Newsletter Editor and Website Coordinator, officers shall be elected in April for terms to begin in July, and they shall serve until their successors are elected. Only members in good standing may be elected to office or appointed to serve as committee chairs. Any vacancy occurring in the Executive Committee will be filled (for the remainder of the unexpired term) by a majority vote of the remaining members of the Executive Committee. |
| SECTION 5.2 | The term of service for President and Vice President will be one (1) year. The President and Vice President may serve no more than three (3) consecutive years in their respective Offices. |
| SECTION 5.3 | The Recording Secretary, Treasurer, Corresponding Secretary, and Membership Secretary shall each serve for a term of two years. The Recording Secretary and the Treasurer shall be elected in even-numbered years; the Corresponding and Membership Secretaries in odd-numbered years. |
| SECTION 5.4 | The Editor of the Newsletter and Website Coordinator shall be (re)appointed annually by the President, with the consent of the Executive Committee, or when a vacancy in the office occurs. The Editor of the Newsletter and Website Coordinator shall serve a term of office as long as he/she is able and willing to do so. |
| SECTION 5.5 | Officers shall perform the duties of their office as specified. A. The President shall preside at all meetings including all those specially called. He/she may appoint an auditor and is an ex-officio member of all committees. The President shall sign all checks in the absence or inability of the Treasurer to perform this duty. B. The Vice President shall serve as an active aide to the President. In the absence of or at the request of the President, the Vice President shall perform the duties of the President. The Vice President will also be a member of the Program Committee, and may serve as Chair of that Committee. C. The Recording Secretary shall keep a record of all meetings and provide a copy to the President within ten days. Minutes of actual business transacted shall be read at the following meeting for approval by the membership. He/she shall preserve all published accounts of the Society’s activities. D. The Treasurer shall collect all dues and provide for the regular financial operations of the Society. The financial records shall be audited at the end of the Treasurer’s term in office. E. The Corresponding Secretary shall attend to the correspondence of the Society and maintain the Membership Surname Research File. With the approval of the Executive Committee, he/she may delegate the surname file task to another member. F. The Editor of the Newsletter shall collect and edit information for the newsletter, and oversee the preparation and distribution of the newsletter to all current members. The Editor shall also be a member of the Publications Committee. G. The Membership Secretary shall maintain a current listing of all active members of the Society and provide same to other members as requested. The Membership Secretary is responsible for providing new members with appropriate information regarding membership in the Society. H. The Website Coordinator shall collect and edit information for the Society’s Internet website, and oversee the preparation of any online membership or conference registration forms. The Coordinator shall also be a member of the Publications Committee. |
| ARTICLE VI | COMMITTEES |
| SECTION 6.1 | Standing committees as may be required for the proper functioning of the Society shall be appointed by the President with the approval of the Executive Committee. |
| SECTION 6.2 | The officers and standing committee chairpersons shall constitute the Executive Committee. A. A simple majority of the Executive Committee shall constitute a quorum. B. The Executive Committee shall keep the rules up-to-date, approve the ordinary expenses of the Society, bring recommendations to the membership for the approval of unusual disbursements of the Society’s funds and dues, and operate as the Nominating Committee. |
| ARTICLE VII | NOMINATIONS AND ELECTIONS |
| SECTION 7.1 | Nominations shall be presented as follows: A. By the Executive Committee at the April meeting. B. By the membership from the floor of the April meeting with the consent of the nominee(s). C. Immediately following the close of nominations, the membership of the Society shall vote. |
| SECTION 7.2 | When there is only one nominee for office, the President shall instruct the Recording Secretary to cast the ballot for the sole nominee. Should there be more than one candidate for the same office, a written ballot shall be taken and the candidate receiving a plurality of votes is elected. |
| SECTION 7.3 | Any vacancy occurring during an officer’s term in office shall be filled, for the balance of the term, by Presidential appointment with the approval of the Executive Committee. |
| ARTICLE VIII | INTERPRETATION AND AUTHORITY |
| SECTION 8.1 | Questions of interpretation or meaning of this Constitution and Bylaws shall be decided by the Executive Committee. |
| SECTION 8.2 | The parliamentary authority in areas omitted by this Constitution and Bylaws shall be Robert’s Rules of Order(current edition). |
| ARTICLE IX | OPERATION OF THE ORGANIZATION |
| SECTION 9.1 | No part of the net earnings of the Society shall inure to the benefit of, or be distributable to its members, trustees, offices, or other private persons, except that the Society shall be authorized and empowered to make payments and distributions in furtherance of the purposes set forth in Third Article hereof. No substantial part of the activities of the Society shall be the carrying on of propaganda, or otherwise attempting to influence legislation, and the Society shall not participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distribution of statements) any political campaign on behalf of or in opposition to any candidate for public office. Notwithstanding any other provision of these articles, the Society shall not, except to an insubstantial degree, engage in any activities or exercise any powers that are not in furtherance of the purposes of this organization. |
| SECTION 9.2 | Upon the dissolution of the Society, assets shall be distributed for one or more exempt purposes within the meaning of section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or the corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or shall be distributed to the Federal Government, or to a state or local government, for a public purpose. Any such assets not so disposed of shall be disposed of by a Court of Competent Jurisdiction of the county in which the principal office of the Society is then located, exclusively for such purposes or to such organization or organizations as said court shall determine, which are organized and operated exclusively for such purposes. |
| ARTICLE X | AMENDMENTS |
| SECTION 10.1 | This Constitution and Bylaws may be amended at any regular meeting where a quorum is present by unanimous consent. |
| SECTION 10.2 | This Constitution and Bylaws may be amended at any regular meeting where a quorum is present by a 2/3 vote, provided the written amendment has been submitted at the previous regular meeting or if a copy has been provided to each active member at least two weeks prior to the meeting. |
As amended and revised, May 2005.
As amended and revised, November 2013.
As amended and revised, September 2017 (Sections 5.2, 5.5B).
As amended and revised, September 2018 (Section 4.3).
As amended and revised, November 2018 (Sections 5.1, 7.1)