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Constitution and By-Laws

Constitution

Article I: Name
The name of this organization shall be the Alumni/ae Association of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens.

Article II: Purpose
The purpose of the association shall be to establish more effective relations between the Alumni/ae, the School, and its supporting institutions and individuals, to cooperate with the school in suggesting or carrying out proposals looking toward its progress and welfare, and to increase the influence and usefulness of the School.

Article III: Membership

  1. Eligibility for membership is available to the following groups:
    a.    Former ASCSA members
    b.    Current and former members of the staff of the school in Greece and the United States
    c.    Persons who have worked on ASCSA-affiliated projects or excavations in Greece, 
    d.    Persons who are or have served on the Managing Committee.
  2. Full membership shall be extended, upon petition to the Alumni/ae Council, to individuals who are interested in the work of the ASCSA. 
  3. Voting privileges extend to those members who have paid either annual dues within the previous twelve months or who have paid lifetime membership. Any member who has made a financial contribution to the ASCSA Alumni Association equal to or in excess of annual dues shall be considered to have paid annual dues in the year of their contribution.
  4. Honorary membership without voting privileges may be granted to those individuals whose contributions to the ASCSA have been extraordinary through election at any regular meeting of the Association. 

Article IV: The Council

  1. The activities of the Association shall be regulated by a Council, which shall be known as the Alumni/ae Council of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens.
  2. The officers of the Council shall be the officers of the Association.

Article V: Organization of the Council
The Council shall be composed of the following representatives (all members are voting members):

  1.  The Chair of the Managing Committee of the School, ex officio.
  2. The President/Co-Presidents of the Association (three-year term). After their elected term, the President/Co-President shall remain a member of Council as Past President(s) for another three years. 
  3. The Secretary-Treasurer of the Association (five-year term).
  4. Five Members elected by the Alumni/ae Association (five-year term). 
    a.    The Council will actively solicit a diverse set of candidates for each election with a range of experiences and welcomes participation by underrepresented groups and those who have not been active previously with School governance. 
  5. Two Representatives of the Association to the Managing Committee (three-year term). 
    a.    In seeking candidates for Representative, preference will be given to at least one person who has spent at least one academic year at the ASCSA within the last five years.
  6. The Liaison of the Association in Greece (two-year term). 
  7. “Council members for exceptional reasons”, whether members of the Association or not, who for exceptional reasons shall be appointed by the Council to the Council for a two-year term. Such members shall not exceed two in number at any one time. 

Article VI: Meetings

  1. Of the Association: An annual meeting of the Association shall be held at such time and place as the Council shall determine, unless extraordinary conditions seem to the Council to warrant it. Special meetings may be called at any time by the President of the Association, to include meetings conducted by e-mail, phone, and/or other means of long-distance communication. A quorum of the Association shall be 40. 
  2. Of the Council: An annual meeting of the Council shall be held at such time and place as the Council shall determine, unless extraordinary conditions seem to the Council to warrant its omission. Special meetings may be called at any time by the President(s) of the Council, to include meetings conducted by e-mail, phone and/or other means of long-distance communication. A quorum of the Council shall be 5.
  3. If the annual meeting of the Association is omitted in accordance with the provision in Section 1, the Council shall transact the general business of the meeting and shall conduct the annual elections by mail, e-mail, and/or other means of long-distance communication.

Article VII: Fiscal Year
 The Fiscal Year for the Association and the Council shall end June 30.

Article VIII: Representatives to the Managing Committee
Two members of the Association shall be elected by the Association to serve on the Council as representatives on the Managing Committee of the School. Such representatives shall not be members already of the Managing Committee nor, if possible, from member institutions. Their term of office shall be three years from May 1 of the year elected. The President of the Association shall serve as an ex officio member of the Managing Committee, and these three members, the President and the two elected representatives, will constitute the delegation of the Association to the Managing Committee for the purpose of voting by institution on matters of substance, as specified in the regulations of the Managing Committee.

Article IX: Athens Representative
One member of the Association shall be elected by the Association to serve on the Council as the Association’s representative in Athens. Candidates for this post shall normally be chosen from alumni/ae who, during their term of office, will be either resident in Greece or otherwise capable of visiting the School’s facilities in Greece frequently. The term of office shall be two years, after which time the incumbent may request re-appointment to one additional two-year term. If the Council approves of this request, it will present the re-appointment as a proposal to the Association to be voted on at its annual meeting. If the council and Association approve the reappointment, no election for the post will be held. At the end of a representatives’ second term, and of any subsequent term, an election must be held, although the incumbent representative may stand as a candidate. 

Article X: Joint Appointments
Two people may be elected to serve jointly as President, Secretary-Treasurer, or Athens Representative. In such cases those two people will share one vote on the Council, but maintain their individual voting status in votes of the Association.

Article XI: Amendments
This Constitution may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the Association, provided thirty days’ written notice of such amendments shall have been given to the President of the Association. In the event of the omission of the annual meeting of the Association in accordance with the provision in Article VI, Section 1, this constitution may be amended by a two-thirds vote of members voting by mail, e-mail, and/or other electronic means. 
 

By-Laws

I. Officers 
The Officers of the Alumni/ae Association and of the Alumni/ae Council shall be President/Co-Presidents, Secretary-Treasurer, and an Athens Representative who shall be elected by the Association. The term of the President shall be three years, of the Secretary-Treasurer five years, and of the Athens Representative two years. Their duties include the following:

    A. The duties of the President(s):

  1. To  preside at all meetings of the Council. In their absence the Association or the Council may elect its presiding officer. In the event of Co-Presidents, one may preside if the other is absent. 
  2. To be ex-officio a member of every committee. Co-Presidents may choose to split Council committee assignments so only one serves on each committee.
  3. To create an agenda in consultation with the Secretary-Treasurer(s), for each meeting of the Alumni/ae Council and distribute it to Council members at least 24 hours in advance of a meeting.
  4. Shall have power to appoint committees of the Association.
  5. To chair the Committee on the Aristeia Award for distinguished alumni/ae and shall keep the records and documents of that Committee. In the event there are Co-Presidents only one at a time chairs the Aristeia committee meetings; they may alternate years serving as chair .
  6. To serve ex-officio on the Executive Committee of the School’s Managing Committee. In the event there are Co-Presidents only one at a time attends the Executive Committee meetings; they should arrange service in consultation with the Chair of the Managing Committee.

    B. The duties of the Secretary-Treasurer(s):

  1. To keep the records of the Association.
  2. To give notice of meetings of the Association.
  3. To send to each member of the Council, after meetings of the Association or the Council, condensed copies of the minutes thereof. 
  4. To supervise the keeping of the roster of membership in the Association.
  5. To keep the books, papers, documents, etc. of the Association and the Council, and to exercise oversight of official publicity and communications of the Association and the Council, including any aspect of the Association’s official presence on the World Wide Web.
  6. To serve ex-officio as a member of every committee.
  7. To receive and disburse moneys of the Association as directed by the Association or its Council and shall report on receipts and expenditures to the Association at its annual meeting.
  8. To ensure that elections of the Association are conducted in accordance with Section III of the bylaws.

    C. The duties of the Athens Representative.

  1. To maintain communication with the faculty, staff and membership of the School in Athens, Corinth and elsewhere in Greece, and report to the Council on any matter that needs the Council’s attention.
  2. Normally by December 15 of each year the Athens Representative should gather suggestions from the School community in Greece for the annual Association gift to the School and forward recommendation(s) to the Council. The Athens Representative should consult with pertinent members of the School staff (e.g., the Director, the Manager of Loring Hall, etc.) on the appropriateness and feasibility of the proposed gift(s).
  3. The Athens Representative will work with the Secretary-Treasurer and the School staff in Greece to manage the purchasing, delivery and installation of the annual Association gift.

II. Dues
Annual dues of members of the Association shall be $30 for employed members and $10 for students, retired, or un- & under-employed members. Members may also purchase a Life Membership for $700, exempting them from payment of annual dues. There shall be a small charge added to credit card and electronically paid dues to cover service charges. Changes in dues must be approved by majority vote of the Council, followed by majority vote of the Association.

III. Voting and Elections

  1. Proposals presented to the Association will be voted on at the annual meeting, with decisions determined by majority vote unless specified otherwise in the Constitution or Bylaws.
  2. For the election of Association officers, Council members, and Representatives to the Managing Committee, the Council will be responsible for proposing to the Association at its annual meeting a slate of candidates. The Council will actively solicit a diverse set of candidates from a range of experiences and welcomes participation by underrepresented groups. Additional nominations will be accepted from the floor. 
  3. Voting on the election slate will commence at the meeting and continue after the meeting by e-mail and/or other electronic means. A voting deadline will be announced with the ballot and will normally be set at a date no later than four weeks following the meeting. Elections will be decided by a plurality of votes from a quorum of voting members.
  4. Members who do not attend the annual meeting but who wish to vote in elections in any given year are responsible for providing the Secretary-Treasurer with their current e-mail address at least one week in advance of the voting deadline.
  5. The terms for those newly elected will normally commence on May 1 of the year in which the election takes place. 
  6. If only one valid nomination for a position is received, the person(s) nominated shall be declared elected by acclamation.
  7. If a Council position becomes vacant, the Council will appoint someone to fill the position for the remainder of the original term. Preference will be given to individuals on the most recent ballot. 

IV. Removal of Council Members
Disciplinary concerns raised against any member of Council shall be pursued following the guidance provided by Roberts Rules of Order (current edn.), §62 and 63.

V. Amendments
These by-laws may be amended by a majority vote of the total membership of the Council, or by a majority vote of those present at any meeting of the Council subsequent to one at which notice of proposed changes has been given. 
 

History of the Constitution and By-Laws

1940 
Adoption of the Constitution & By-Laws
1944 
Article V.5 added
Article VI.1 amended (”, unless extraordinary conditions seem to the Council to warrant its omission” added)
Article VI.2 amended (from “There shall be a meeting of the Council in December” to “An annual meeting of the Council shall be held”)
Article VI.2 amended (from “There shall be a meeting of the Council in December” to “An annual meeting of the Council shall be held”)
Article VI.3 added
Article IX emended (last sentence added)
1945 
Article III.3 amended (”(upon application)” added, and spelling corrected)
Article V.2 added
Article V.6 amended (“two years” to “three years”)
Article V.6 amended (“two years” to “three years”)
Article VIII amended (from “two years” to “three years”)
11 May & 27 Dec.
By-Laws I emended (from “annual meeting of the Association in even years for a term of two years and until their successors shall be chosen” to “annual meeting of the Association. The term ...”)
29 Dec.
By-Laws III emended (from “The Council” to “The Chairman of the Council”)
1990s 
Article I (and throughout): name emended from “Alumni Association” to “Alumni / Alumnae Association”
By-Laws IV emended (from “shall be one dollar” to “$20 for employed members and $10 for students, retired, or un- & under-employed members”)
1999 
Article VIII emended (from “Two members” to “Three members”; and last sentence added) 
2011
Throughout: references to “Alumni / Alumnae Association” changed to “Alumni/ae Association”; references to “chairman” of the Association changed to “president.”
Constitution:
Article III amended to allow associate membership to applicants who have served the School in Greece.
Article V: Number of Council members elected by the membership emended to five, reference to Council members appointed by the Managing Committee removed; reference to the Athens Representative added.
Article VI: emended to allow for balloting and communication by electronic and other long-distance means.
Article VIII: reference to “Three members” emended to “Two members”; last sentence added.
Articles IX, on the Athens Representative, and X, on joint appointments, added
By-laws:
Chapter 1: Duties of the President and Secretary/Treasurer amended to include responsibilities related to the Aristeia Award and to electronic communications; section C on the Athens Representative added.
Chapter II: Changed amounts for annual dues following a vote of the Association; added language pertaining to Life Membership.
Chapter III: Language added to allow for electronic and other long-distance balloting and communications
2020
Constitution:
Article III: updated to reflect a desire to open membership and participation.
Article V: updated to clarify short term appointments and encourage diversity.
Article VIII: removed language about 1940. 
Article IX: Clarified language to make it possible for someone who is not continuously in Athens can serve as Athens Rep.
By-Laws:
Chapter III: Made elections electronic or in person and the length has been extended to four weeks.
2025
Constitution:
Article V: Language on selecting candidates updated and clarified.
Article VIII: Clarified that all terms begin May 1.
Article IX: Language clarified to be consistent with current and past practice.
By-Laws:
Chapter 1: Added language to recognize Co-Presidents and Co Secretary-treasurers. Duties of all officers clarified and updated.
Chapter III: Added language to address acclamations and filling vacated terms.
Chapter IV: New chapter created to address removal of officers.
Chapter V: Formerly IV became V.