The Constitution of the
Mid-Atlantic Popular American Culture Association
Approved by unanimous vote of the interim Executive Board,
Louisville KY, 20 March 1992.
ARTICLE I. (Name and Purpose)
Section 1. The name of this association shall be the Mid-Atlantic Popular Culture/American Culture Association (hereinafter "the Association").
Section 2. The purpose of the Association shall be to promote and to assist in the study of popular and American culture by bringing together academic and nonacademic students from various intellectual disciplines, and by encouraging interested persons to study popular and American culture and to belong to the Association.
ARTICLE II. (Membership: Composition and Privileges)
Section 1. The members of the Association shall consist of all persons who have paid their annual dues.
Section 2. Members of the Association may participate in the annual convention and in the annual business meeting; and they shall nominate and elect two Members-at-Large and the Vice-President/President-Elect.
ARTICLE III. (Executive Board: Composition, Selection, Responsibilities)
Section 1. The activities of the Association shall be directed by an Executive Board which shall be composed of the following ten officers: President, Vice-President/President-Elect, Executive Secretary, Local Arrangements Chair, Program Director, Editor of the Journal, Editor of the Newsletter, Immediate Past President, and two Members-at-Large. The Board shall be chaired by the President.
Section 2. The selection of officers shall be as follows:
A. The following member of the Board shall be elected by the general membership for a one-year term of office: the Vice-President/President-Elect. At the end of the annual business meeting following the election of a new Vice-President/President-Elect, the standing Vice-President/President-Elect shall assume the office of President and the President shall assume the office of Immediate Past President.
B. The following members of the Board shall be elected by the general membership for a two-year term of office: the two Members-at-Large. The two-year terms shall be staggered; one Member-at-Large shall be elected each year.
C. The following members of the Board shall be elected by the Executive Board for a one-year term of office: the Local Arrangements Chair and the Program Director. The Immediate Past Program Director shall assist the Board in an ex officio capacity.
D. The following members of the Board shall be elected by the Executive Board for a three-year term of office: the Executive Secretary, the Editor of the Journal, and the Editor(s) of the Association's Newsletter. The selection of these officers shall be made in the third year of service.
E. If any office is vacated before the term of service has expired, the Executive Board shall appoint an Association member to fill the position, and shall inform the general membership of such action at the annual business meeting.
Section 3. In addition to the nomination and the selection of some of its officers, the collective annual responsibilities of the Executive Board shall be as follows:
A. The Executive Board shall create, and on an annual basis review and revise as appropriate, a description of the responsibilities of each of the Association's offices to be maintained by the Executive Secretary and provided to each officer as they assume their duties.
B. The Executive Board shall consider applications for hosting annual conventions; for such conventions, the Board shall designate the time and place of meeting, the amount of annual dues and the registration fee; and at such conventions, the Board shall convene in closed session and also shall arrange a business meeting open to the general membership, during which meeting it shall solicit from the membership volunteers to be Area Chairs and Regional Coordinators.
C. The Executive Board shall advise and consent to the times at which the Association will publish its Journal and its Newsletter.
D. The Executive Board shall elect or appoint various committees for specific assignments as it deems appropriate.
E. The Executive Board shall otherwise direct the activities of the Association between annual meetings.
ARTICLE IV. (Nominating Committee: Usual Composition, Condition of Exclusion, and Responsibilities)
Section 1. The election of the two Members-at-Large and the Vice-President/President-Elect shall be supervised by a Nominating Committee. With the exception of those members excluded under Section 2 below, the Committee shall usually be composed of the two standing Members-at-Large, the standing Vice-President/President-Elect, the standing President, and the standing Immediate Past President; all former Immediate Past Presidents shall have the right to be members of the Committee. The Committee shall be chaired by the standing Executive Secretary, who shall be without vote except in the case of a tied vote.
Section 2. Standing Executive Board members who were elected by the General Membership and who are nominated for election or re-election by the General Membership to an Executive Board office may not serve on the Nominating Committee. The Chair shall be responsible for enforcing this rule.
Section 3. The Chair of the Nominating Committee shall solicit the names of possible candidates for Association offices from the general membership through the Association's newsletter and at the annual convention. The Chair shall receive nominations and shall call together the Committee. The Committee's final slate shall be presented to the Executive Secretary by January 1st. The Executive Secretary shall prepare the ballot by February 1st, shall supervise the mailing of ballots to the general membership by March 15th, shall tabulate the ballots by May 1st, and shall promptly report the results to the Executive Board and to the Chair of the Nominating Committee. The Chair of the Nominating Committee shall communicate the results to all candidates and, after them, to the general membership by means of the Association newsletter.
ARTICLE V. (Ad Hoc Convention Committee: Composition and Responsibilities)
Section 1. The Association's annual convention shall be supervised by an ad hoc Convention Committee that shall consist of the President, the Vice-President/President-Elect, the Local Arrangements Chair(s), the Program Director, and the Immediate Past Program Director, and that shall be chaired by the Program Director.
Section 2. In addition to supervising and meeting at the annual convention, the Chair of the Committee shall issue to the general membership and to other parties a yearly Call for Papers and shall solicit from convention registrants comments and suggestions.
ARTICLE VI. (Journal Editorial Board: Composition and Responsibilities)
Section 1. The publication of the Association's journal shall be supervised by an Editorial Board that shall consist of the President, the Executive Secretary, one Member-at-Large, one other member of the Executive Board selected by the Board, and the Editor of the Journal; the Board shall be chaired by the Editor.
Section 2. The Editorial Board shall work with the editor to approve Associate Editors and to create and approve editorial and logistical policies. Among the Editor's responsibilities shall be the execution of those policies.
Section 3. Along with the Editor, the Associate Editors shall provide peer review, constructive comments, and publish/no publish recommendations for submissions sent to them.
ARTICLE VII. (Newsletter Editorial Board: Composition and Frequency of Publication)
Section 1. The publication of the Association's newsletter shall be supervised by an Editorial Board that shall consist of an Editor or Editors and the two Members-at-Large. The Executive Secretary and the Regional Coordinators shall be ex officio members of the Editorial Board.
Section 2. The publication of the Newsletter shall occur not less than three times per year.
ARTICLE VIII. (Annual Financial Statement)
Section 1. An annual financial statement shall be issued annually to the general membership by the Executive Secretary both at the annual business meeting and in the Association's newsletter.
ARTICLE IX. (Amendments)
Section 1. The Constitution of the Association may be amended as follows: Amendments must be submitted to the Executive Board at least one month prior to the annual Board meeting, at which they shall be discussed. After the annual Board meeting, the Executive Secretary shall communicate the wishes of the Board to the general membership both at the annual business meeting and by a mailed ballot. The membership may amend the Constitution by a two-thirds majority of those voting.
AMENDMENT I. (Tax-Exempt Status)
[The purpose of this amendment is to enable the organization to be exempt from state sales taxes. Approved by the General Membership, 4 November 1995]
Section 1. Dissolution Provision. In the event of dissolution, all remaining assets and property of the organization shall after necessary expenses thereof be distributed to such organizations as shall qualify under section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or corresponding provisions of any subsequent federal tax laws; or to the federal government, or to a state or local government for a public purpose.
Section 2. Non-Inurement Provision. No part of the net earnings of the organization shall inure to the benefit of any member, trustee, director, officer of the organization, or any private individual (except that reasonable compensation may be paid for services rendered to or for the organization), and no member, trustee, director, officer of the organization, or any private individual shall be entitled to share in the distribution of any of the assets on dissolution of the organization.
Section 3. Restrictive Legislation Provision. No substantial part of the activities of the organization shall be carrying on propaganda, or otherwise attempting to influence legislation except as otherwise provided by Internal Revenue Code section 501(h) or participating in (including the publication or distribution of statements) any political campaign on behalf of any candidate for public office.
Section 4. Restrictive Purposes and Activities Provision. Notwithstanding any other provision of these articles, the organization is organized exclusively for one or more of the following purposes: scientific, literary, or educational purposes, as specified in section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, and shall not carry on any activities not permitted to be carried on by an organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c) (3) or corresponding provisions of any subsequent federal tax laws.
