University of Houston-Clear Lake
Educational Support Association
An affiliate organization of the Texas Educational Support Staff Association (TESA)
An affiliate organization of the National Association of Educational Office Professionals (NAEOP)

BY-LAWS

Approved by ESA Membership 6/26/08

ARTICLE I
Order of Business

The order of business at any business meeting of the University of Houston-Clear Lake Educational Support Association (UHCL ESA) shall be as follows:

1.   Call to Order
2.   Approval of the Minutes
3.   Report of the President
4.   Report of the Treasurer
5.   Reports of the Liaisons and Committee Chairs
6.   Unfinished Business
7.   New Business
8.   Adjournment

ARTICLE II
Officers of the Board

The Board shall consist of all elected officers of the association, the non-voting liaisons and committee chairs.  The Executive Board shall consist of the elected officers.  Executive sessions of the Board may be called at the discretion of the President, which would include only elected officers of the Board:  President, President-Elect, Immediate Past President, Secretary, Treasurer, and Historian. 

Duties of Officers

Section 1. President:  The President shall preside at all meetings of the association and perform all duties pertaining to the office.  The President shall, with the approval of the Executive Board, appoint all special committee chairs and shall be ex-officio member of all committees except the nominating committee.  With the Treasurer, the President shall approve the payment of all monies of the association.  The President shall approve all communications sent out in the name of the association. 

Section 2. President-Elect: In the absence of the President, the President-Elect shall perform the duties of the President and such other duties as the president may designate.  In the event the office of President shall be vacated, the President-Elect shall automatically become president.   The President-Elect shall also serve as Program and Events Committee Chair and may serve as ad hoc on all ESA event sub-committees. 

Section 3:  Past-President:  The Immediate Past President shall serve as a non-voting member, except in the event of a tie vote, and shall assist the President and President-Elect as requested, serve as chair of the Past Presidents Advisory Committee when convened; and fulfill any other function as the President may direct.  The Past President may be asked to serve on standing or ad hoc committees and/or represent the association at the state association level.

Section 4. Secretary:  The Secretary shall keep an accurate record of the proceedings of all meetings of the association and the Board.  The Secretary shall furnish a copy of the minutes to the membership at least one week prior to the next meeting for review.  The Secretary shall conduct all the correspondence of the association and issue notices of meetings.  The Secretary shall maintain an updated list of members, coordinate information for the website, follow procedure established by UHCL Library to archive ESA files as needed.

Section 5. Treasurer:  The Treasurer shall receive, deposit, and disburse all monies of the association in the name of the organization in such depository as shall be designated by the Executive Board.  All bills shall be approved by the President before payment and all checks shall be signed by the Treasurer.  The Treasurer shall fulfill other duties as directed by the President.  Other criteria shall include a working knowledge in using the current University financial records system, in particular that which deals with preparing vouchers, account reconciliations and journal entries.

Section 6. Historian:  The Historian shall be responsible for maintaining a record of all events and for presenting a history of the year's work at the final meeting.  The Historian shall coordinate reports of events for publication with the Publicity Committee Chair and fulfill other duties as directed by the President. 

Section 7. Organizational Liaison:  As an ex-officio officer of the ESA Board, the President of the UHCL Support Staff Association (SSA) will serve as SSA Liaison to ESA, to encourage cooperation and facilitate communication between the two organizations for the benefit of the ESA organization and to keep SSA aware of all ESA training opportunities.

Section 8. Training Liaison:  As ex-officio officer of the ESA Board, the Human Resources Training Specialist for the University of Houston-Clear Lake (UHCL) shall serve as Training Liaison to ESA.  This Liaison will serve as a member of the ESA Training Committee to promote, provide and/or coordinate training opportunities for the professional development of all ESA members, to include but not limited to Staff Training for Effective Management (STEM) classes at UHCL.  

Section 9.  Within thirty days of retiring from office, each officer shall deliver to the respective successor records specific to that position.

ARTICLE III
Appointed Committees

Appointed committee chairs are invited to attend regular ESA Board meetings not in Executive Session.  Committee chairs will present reports of their respective committee as listed on the agenda. 

Duties of Appointed Committee Chairs

Section 1:  Chair of the Program and Events Committee:  The President-Elect will chair this committee.  This committee is responsible for organization of programs for the general membership meetings and for the planning and implementation of all standing events throughout the year, such as the Supervisors’ Appreciation Luncheon, CEOP Reception/Graduation, and Installation of Officers, as well as special events added during the year.  Standing and special event committees are considered sub-committees under the Program and Events Committee with separate event chairs appointed at the discretion of the President.  The President-Elect may serve as ad hoc on any ESA event sub-committee.

Section 2:  Chair of the Membership Committee:  The Chair of the Membership Committee shall serve as a non-voting member and give reports at Board meetings regarding committee progress.    This committee is responsible for recruitment and renewal of memberships and coordinating with Human Resources for outreach to new employees.  The Chair shall issue receipts for membership, update the roster of membership and provide roster copies to the President, Treasurer and Secretary.   Any membership dues collected shall be forwarded to the Treasurer with appropriate back up documentation.

Section 3:  Chair of the Training Committee:    The Chair of the Training Committee shall serve as a non-voting member and give reports at Board meetings regarding ESA training activities, including the ESA STEM activities designed to enhance the professional development of all ESA members.  The Training Chair will serve as, or appoint with advisement of the president, a chair of the ESA STEM Committee – as a subcommittee of the Training Committee.  The STEM committee shall maintain STEM class criteria to develop and update calendars for posting; provide registration, and implementation of the class activities in compliance with certification and other requirements of the TESA office, guidelines of the UHCL HR designated coordinator for the training event, and discretion of the ESA Training Committee and ESA President.

Section 4:  Chair of Publicity Committee:  The Chair of the Publicity Committee shall serve as a non-voting member; give reports at Board meetings, and present publicity items for Board approval.  The chair shall coordinate with the Historian and other committee chairs and members to stay current on ESA activities and events; and may assist the President with articles for publication in UHCL and community publications, and in the state magazine, TESA Connection, to enhance the image of ESA and to inform constituencies of association activities.

Section 5:  Chair of Fundraising Committee: The Chair of the Fundraising Committee shall serve as a non-voting member; give reports at Board meetings, and present fundraising items for Board approval.  The chair shall, with committee members, plan and implement fund raising events to support association activities and operating costs, the Awards and Stipends fund and to promote awareness of the mission and needs of ESA.  Any fundraising monies collected by this committee shall be forwarded to the Treasurer with appropriate documentation.

Section 6:  Chair of the Awards and Stipends Committee:  This committee shall be appointed or renewed annually and convened by the President as funds for awards are available, with call(s) for applications not to exceed once or twice annually.  The purpose of the Awards committee is to assist the ESA membership in achieving professional growth.  Applications for awards may include assistance to attend professional conference workshops, registration for development classes, tuition, books, and other expenses as set forth by this committee and approved by the Board.  All stipend and award applications will be processed in accordance with UHCL financial and endowment guidelines as applies to the award and will be administered through the ESA Awards and Stipends Committee during the announcement period.

Section 7:  Chair of Past President’s Advisory Committee:  This committee shall be convened by the President as needed, to assist the President and President-Elect as requested.  Its primary function is of an advisory capacity in matters requiring ESA past experience or knowledge.   The Advisory Committee shall be chaired by the current Immediate Past President and shall include two or more past ESA Presidents.  At the discretion of the President, the Advisory Committee may be asked to serve as an ad hoc committee to assist with By-Laws revision, to evaluate new programs to be considered by ESA, or to advise the Executive Board.  

Section 8: Within thirty days of retiring from committee appointment, each Chair shall deliver to the respective successor any records specific to the on-going duties of the committee.

ARTICLE IV
Elections

The Executive Board shall appoint a nominating committee of three members.  The nominating committee shall call for nominations in February and present qualified nominations to the membership for election at the April meeting.  The entire membership shall be solicited to submit nominations.  Each person nominated to serve shall be contacted regarding his/her willingness to run for the designated position.  After the nomination deadline, candidate profiles will be prepared and distributed to ESA memberships.  Nomination confirmation will include verification with Treasurer that ESA membership is current; dues must be paid to hold an office and to vote.

Ballots will be sent out to members via email and the deadline to return a completed ballot shall be clearly stated on the ballot.  A tie vote shall be decided by the majority vote of the Executive Board by secret ballot.  In the event that only one candidate is nominated for a specific position, with the approval of the President, the Nominating Committee may announce that position candidate to be elected by acclamation. 

ARTICLE V
Terms of Office

Terms of office shall be for one year beginning September 1 and ending August 31.  No officer shall serve in the same capacity for more than two consecutive terms.  Vacancies shall be filled by special election, or at the discretion of the Executive Board, the President may appoint an officer to finish the term.

ARTICLE VI
Dues

Section 1.  The annual dues shall be $10.00 payable to the Treasurer with initial membership form and renewed annually thereafter on September 1.

Section 2.  The fiscal and membership year of the association shall be defined as from September 1 through August 31.