CONSTITUTION

Montana Association of Teachers of English and Language Arts
(A Montana Nonprofit Corporation)

Section 1. This organization shall be known as the Montana Association of Teachers of English and Language Arts (MATELA).

Section 2. The purposes of this nonprofit corporation shall be
a. to improve the quality of English language arts instruction in the State of Montana.
b. to provide the opportunity for professional development through study and discussion of issues which confront English language arts teachers.
c. to circulate information and resource materials regarding English language arts to teachers, librarians, administrators, and the general public.
d. to promote the cross-curricular and interdisciplinary nature of the English language arts.
e. to promote the growth of a wide range of print and nonprint literacies.
f. to sponsor conferences and meetings designed to promote the improvement of teaching the English language arts and to enable teachers to share their knowledge and expertise with others.
g. to publish articles, reports, and research of particular interest and value to Montana English language arts teachers.
h. to secure cooperation in establishing conditions that will render the efforts of English language arts teachers more effective.
i. to participate in the efforts of all those who are concerned with the improvement of English language arts instruction including forensic, dramatic, journalistic, library-media, and reading organizations.
j. to facilitate the communication among college English programs, K-12 teacher preparation programs, and the state Office of Public Instruction regarding the needs of elementary and secondary school English language arts teachers.
k. to cooperate with the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) and other organizations in the furtherance of the above purposes.

Article II - MEMBERSHIP

Section 1. Membership in this organization shall be open to all persons engaged in the teaching or supervision of English language arts and related fields at any level and to all others interested in the purposes of MATELA.

Section 2. The Board of Directors will strive for membership from all regions in the State.

Section 3. The Board of Directors will strive to recruit members who are people of color.

Section 4. District branches may be established by the Board of Directors at the instigations of the Membership Committee for the convenience of meetings and other professional activities. These district branches may have officers of their own, remaining subordinate to the Board of Directors. District Presidents serve as members of the Board of Directors.

Article III - BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Section 1. The Board of Directors shall be comprised of the Executive Committee, the Immediate Past President, District Presidents, Editors of Publications, all Liaison Representatives, and Chairpersons of Standing Committees.

Section 2. All members of the Board of Directors shall be members of MATELA and NCTE.

Section 3. The officers of this organization shall be President, First Vice-President, Second Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer. These officers shall comprise the Executive Committee.

Section 4. Officers shall be nominated by the Nominating Committee and elected by ballot at the annual business meeting. Their term of office shall be one year.

Section 5. Officers shall be eligible for re-election to the same office or for election to other offices.

Section 6. A vacancy in any office except the Presidency shall be filled by an appointment by the Executive Committee. A vacancy in the Presidency shall be filled by the First Vice-President.

Article IV - MEETINGS

Section 1. The time, number, and place of the meetings shall be determined by the Executive Committee.

Section 2. Special meetings may be called by the President.

Section 3. An annual business meeting shall be held in conjunction with the annual Fall Conference. Notice of this meeting shall be given to all members at least thirty days in advance.

Section 4. District branches shall hold at least one meeting per year. District branches which do not meet for a professional activity at least once per year shall be considered inactive.

Section 5. A regular meeting is one attended by general membership. An executive meeting is one attended by the Board of Directors. All executive meetings are open to general membership.

Article V - AMENDMENTS

Section 1. Amendments to the Constitution may be made by a two-thirds majority at any regular meeting, provided that notice has been given at the previous meeting or by mail at least thirty days before amendments are voted upon.

BY-LAWS

Article I - DUTIES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Section 1. All members of the Board of Directors shall
a. attend executive meetings.
b. assist other Board members by their expertise.
c. coordinate their activities with the ongoing projects of MATELA.
d. be fully responsible for the duties of their respective positions. "Being fully responsible" means that each Board member initiates activity which falls within his or her duties, carries out that activity through his or her committee, and reports on the activity regularly to the Board.

Section 2. The President shall
a. preside at all meetings.
b. have charge of conducting the business of the organization.
c. appoint the chairpersons of all standing committees.
d. serve as ex-officio member of all standing committees except the Nominating Committee.
e. review the duties of the Board of Directors with new Board members.
f. identify the major professional concerns of this organization.
g. seek annual affiliation and file the necessary reports with NCTE.
h. ensure a smooth transition of this office.

Section 3. The First Vice-President shall
a. preside at meetings in the absence of the President.
b. assist the President in the execution of business.
c. serve as chairperson of the Fall Conference Planning Committee.
d. assume the duties of the President should there be a vacancy in the Presidency.
e. run for the office of President at the end of the President's term of office.
f. ensure a smooth transition of this office.

Section 4. The Second Vice-President shall
a. serve as public relations director of the organization.
b. work with the Membership Committee to solicit new members.
c. serve as chairperson of the Membership Committee.
d. maintain and distribute membership lists to members of the Board of Directors.
e. coordinate the district branch activities.
f. maintain close communication with District Officers.
g. serve as liaison between the Executive Committee and District Presidents.
h. assist the First Vice-President in the planning of the Fall Conference.
i. ensure a smooth transition of this office.

Section 5. The Secretary shall
a. keep all records and distribute minutes of meetings to members of the Board of Directors.
b. file a copy of the annual business meeting records with the Treasurer for inclusion with the report to the Internal Revenue Service.
c. ensure a smooth transition for this office.

Section 6. The Treasurer shall
a. be responsible for receiving and recording membership dues and other monies.
b. maintain the bank account(s) and pay debits accrued according to the dictates of the Board of Directors.
c. prepare a written financial report for each executive meeting.
d. submit the financial records of this organization to the Auditing Committee for the annual audit.
e. file the necessary reports, including the Secretary's annual business meeting records, to the Internal Revenue Service.
f. ensure a smooth transition for this office.

Section 7. The Immediate Past President shall
a. assist with the execution of the business of this organization in duties as requested by the President.
b. serve as chairperson of the Nominating Committee.
c. serve as an advisor to the Board of Directors.

Section 8. The District Presidents shall
a. represent their district membership on the Board of Directors.
b. serve on the Membership Committee.
c. assist with public relations and the dissemination of information and materials in the district as requested by the Second Vice-President.
d. ensure a smooth transition of this position.

Section 9. The Montana English Journal Editor shall
a. publish one journal per academic year.
b. give highest consideration to quality articles which reflect the purposes and interests of this organization.
c. distribute the journals to the membership.
d. be responsible to the Board of Directors for recording and reporting financial transactions related to the MEJ budget.
e. ensure a smooth transition of this position.

Section 10. The UPDATE Newsletter Editor shall
a. publish three newsletters per academic year.
b. inform membership of upcoming issues and professional opportunities.
c. distribute the newsletters to the membership.
d. be responsible to the Board of Directors for reporting costs related to the publication of the newsletters.
e. ensure a smooth transition of this position.

Section 11. The NCTE Liaison shall
a. maintain communication between NCTE, The Region 7 Standing Committee on Affiliates (SCOA) Representative, and MATELA.
b. serve as a director on the NCTE Board of Directors at its annual meeting.
c. ensure a smooth transition of this position.

Section 12. The support for Learning and Teaching of English (SLATE) Representative shall
a. maintain communication between NCTE, the Region 7 SLATE Representative, and MATELA.
b. inform MATELA about issues and policies such as censorship cases, education legislation, and media coverage.
c. represent MATELA's position on political action issues.
d. Assist in the recommendation of candidates for the NCTE/SLATE and MATELA Intellectual Freedom Awards.

Section 13. MATELA wishes to maintain a Liaison with the State Office of Public Instruction. The OPI Liaison shall
a. be responsible for informing the Board of Directors of state programs, policies, and regulations affecting English language arts teachers.
b. apprise the state department of education of the views and policies of this organization.
c. inform the Board of Directors regarding professional issues and practices in the state relating to English language arts.

Section 13. The College Liaison Representatives shall
a. represent the state teachers of English at the college level.
b. act as liaisons between pre-service and in-service teacher education programs.
c. keep the Board of Directors informed of current professional issues and practices at their educational institution.

Section 14. The State Coordinators of NCTE and MATELA Awards shall

a. Coordinate the award programs.
b. Report on the award programs at MATELA Board Meetings
Section 16. The Chairpersons of Standing Committees shall

a. conduct the business of their respective committees.
report the progress of their committees at the Board meetings.

Section 15. Liaisons to other state organizations concerned with the improvement of English language arts instruction shall
a. encourage cooperative efforts among organizations.
b. report to the Board of Directors on those organizations' activities and projects.
c. represent MATELA concerns and views to their respective organizations.

Article II - STANDING COMMITTEES

Section 1. The standing committees of this organization shall be the Executive Committee, the Program Committee, the Membership Committee, the Auditing Committee, the Publications Committee, the Public Policy Committee, and the Nominating Committee.

Section 2. The President, with the concurrence of the Board of Directors, shall appoint such other standing committees as deemed necessary.

Section 3. The President shall appoint the chairpersons of standing committees. The chairpersons shall serve as members of the Board of Directors and shall file a written annual report with the Secretary prior to the annual business meeting.

Section 4. The President shall serve as ex-officio member of all standing committees except the Nominating Committee.

Section 5. The Executive Committee shall be chaired by the President and shall consist of the First Vice-President, Second Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer. The Executive Committee shall
a. appoint District Representatives;
b. appoint Editors of Publications and oversee their activities;
c. audit the Treasurer's accounts prior to the annual business meeting and present its report at that meeting.

Section 6. The Program Committee for the Fall Conference shall be chaired by the First Vice-President and shall arrange all details for the annual Fall Conference.

Section 7. The Public Policy Committee shall be chaired by the Public Policy Chair and shall develop MATELA's position on issues concerning English language arts. The committee shall present positions to the Board for formal adoption; the committee may authorize its chair to act on positions before they are formally adopted.

Section 8. The Nominating Committee shall be chaired by the Immediate Past President and shall consist of two other members appointed by the President. The function of this committee shall be to prepare a slate of officers for the annual election. The slate must be distributed to the membership at least 30 days prior to the annual business meeting.

Article III - NCTE AFFILIATION AND DELEGATES

Section 1. The President shall seek annual affiliation with the National Council of Teachers of English, subject to such criteria for affiliation as determined by NCTE.

Section 2. The Board of Directors shall elect annually a representative to serve as Director of the Board of Directors of NCTE. The Director shall attend the NCTE Board of Directors meetings and represent MATELA's interests at such meetings.

Section 3. The liaison officer shall serve as contact between MATELA and NCTE and shall keep this organization and NCTE mutually informed.

Article IV - DUES

Section 1. The executive committee will determine the dues structure. Changes in dues must be approved by a 2/3 majority of the membership present at the annual business meeting.

Section 2. Special assessments may be levied by a majority vote of the members present at a board meeting.

Article V - QUORUM

Section 1. The members present at a regular meeting or at an executive meeting shall constitute a quorum.

Article VI - STANDARD AUTHORITY

Section 1. The rules contained in Robert's Rules of Order (Revised) shall be followed.

Article VII - AMENDMENTS

Section 1. Amendments to the By-Laws may be made by a two-thirds majority vote at any regular meeting provided that notice has been given at a previous meeting or by mail at least thirty days before the amendments are voted upon.

©2004 Montana Association of Teachers of English Language Arts
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