The Ottawa ACM SIGART Chapter

Bylaws

Article I - Name and Scope

  1. This organization shall be called the Ottawa Association for Computing Machinery Special Interest Group for Artificial Intelligence also known as the Ottawa ACM SIGART. In these bylaws it will be referred to as "the Chapter" and the Association for Computing Machinery will be referred to as the "ACM".

  2. The scope of the Chapter is Artificial Intelligence research and applications.

  3. The Chapter activities will be supportive of SIGART, the ACM, and other ACM activities in the Ottawa area.

Article II - Purpose

  1. The Chapter is organized and will be operated exclusively for educational and scientific purposes. Specific objectives are:

    1. To promote an increased knowledge of and greater interest in the science, design, development, management and application of modern computing in Artificial Intelligence.

    2. To provide a means of communication between persons having an interest in computing and artificial intelligence.

    3. To promote interaction between students, researchers, product developers, consultants and computer system users.

  2. The activities of this Chapter will include but is not limited to the following:

    1. Collecting and disseminating information through a newsletter, announcements, electronic mail and other publications.

    2. Sponsoring meetings, conferences, symposia, discussion groups and workshops.

    3. Organizing sessions at ACM conferences and local seminars.

    4. Serving as a source of information for its members, other ACM units, and the general public.

    5. Working with other ACM units on activities such as lectures, professional development seminars and technical briefings.

Article III - Charter

  1. This Chapter is chartered by the ACM. It is formed and will operate under the sponsorship of the ACM, the ACM Local Activities Board, ACM SIGART and the ACM SIG Board.

  2. This Chapter can be dissolved by consent of its members, or by action of the Local Activities Board with the concurrence of the SIG Board.

  3. These bylaws neither supersede nor abrogate any of the provisions in the ACM Constitution and Bylaws or Policies and Procedures of the ACM that regulate SIG or chapter affairs.

Article IV - Membership

  1. Voting membership in the Chapter shall be open to all ACM members and ACM SIGART members in the locality served by the chapter upon request and payment of any local dues, as determined by the Executive Committee.

  2. Non-voting affiliate membership may be granted to other interested persons, upon request and payment of dues.

  3. Student membership shall be open to all full-time students; student membership dues shall be 50 percent of the regular dues appropriate to the membership category for which the student is eligible.

Article V - Officers

  1. The present officers of this Chapter shall be: Chair, Vice Chair, Second Vice Chair, Secretary, and Treasurer.

  2. All officers of the Chapter must be voting Members of the ACM and members of ACM SIGART.

  3. Officers shall be elected by a plurality of votes cast by the voting members of the Chapter.

  4. The officers shall take office on July 1, the beginning of the fiscal year, and serve for 2 years. The Chair, Second Vice Chair and Secretary shall be elected in even years; the other officers shall be elected in odd years.

  5. Vacancies left by resignations shall be filled by a vote of the Executive Council only (excluding the Past Chair), the winning candidate must receive more than half of all votes and will serve until the termination of the current term of the resigning officer.

  6. Only one representative from an institution, organization or company may be an officer to ensure the executive is not dominated by one group.

Article VI - Duties of Officers

  1. The Chair is the principal officer and is responsible for leading the Chapter and managing its activities in accordance with the policies and procedures of the ACM. The Chair shall preside at all meetings of this Chapter and of its Executive Council.

    With the advice of the Chapter's Executive Council, the Chair shall appoint all members of committees of this Chapter and all Committee chairs.

  2. The Vice Chair shall preside at meetings in the absence of the Chair, assist the Chair in the management of the Chapter, and perform other duties that may be assigned by the Chair.

  3. The Second Vice Chair shall be responsible for coordinating the day to day activities of the Standing Committees and shall perform other duties that may be assigned by the Chair.

  4. The Secretary shall keep the minutes of all business and Executive Council meetings of the Chapter. Other duties of the Secretary include:

    1. Maintaining the records of the Chapter.

    2. Preparation of the Chapter's Activity Report and submission of this report to ACM Headquarters.

    3. Notification to ACM Headquarters of any changes in the officers of the Chapter.

    4. Submission of any proposed amendment to these bylaws to the Chairs of the Local Activities Board and the ACM Constitution and Bylaws Committee for approval.

    5. Performing other duties that may be assigned by the Chair.

  5. The Treasurer is the chief financial officer of the Chapter. Duties of the Treasurer include:

    1. Managing the finances of the Chapter according to the policies and procedures of the ACM, including collecting dues and paying all bills.

    2. Keeping full and accurate accounts of receipts and expenditures of the Chapter.

    3. Completing and submitting the Annual Financial Report to ACM Headquarters.

    4. Performing other duties as may be assigned by the Chair.

Article VII - Executive Council

  1. The Executive Council shall consist of the present officers of the Chapter and the immediate Past Chair.

  2. The term of the members of the Council shall be coincident with the terms of the officers. They shall take office on the first day of the fiscal year and serve for two years.

Article VIII - Standing Committees

The Standing Committees of the Chapter shall be Program/Education, and Membership/Publicity.

  1. The Program Committee shall plan and make arrangements for the technical and educational programs of the Chapter's meetings in accordance with the membership's interests and the aims of the Chapter as set forth in Article II.

  2. The Membership/Publicity Committee shall plan and coordinate activities to increase the membership of the Chapter and to ensure current members' interests are being met. This Committee also shall be responsible for distributing announcements, newsletters and publications to interested persons via printed matter, electronic mail and other media.

Article IX - Temporary Committees

  1. With the advice of the Executive Council, the Chairman may appoint such temporary committees as appropriate.

  2. A Nominating Committee, consisting of at least three members of this Chapter, at least two of whom shall not be members of the Executive Council, shall be appointed by the Chairman at least two months prior to the time the election is to be held.

Article X - Meetings

  1. Meetings shall be held as planned by the Program Committee. The Chapter will conduct at least two meetings a year for the general membership.

  2. Written or electronic mail notices of all meetings shall be distributed to all members at least one week prior to any meeting.

  3. The Chapter shall hold meetings only in places that are open and accessible to all members of the Association.

  4. The Annual Business meeting shall held at the last meeting of the program (fiscal) year. At this meeting, the Secretary and Treasurer each shall present a report. Also, the election of officers shall be held at this meeting.

Article XI - Disbursements and Dues

  1. Disbursements from the Treasury for expenditures of the Chapter shall be made by the Treasurer with authorization of the Executive Council and shall be included in the minutes of its meetings.

  2. Dues shall be fixed annually by the Executive Council.

Article XII - Amendment and Election Procedures

  1. All proposed changes to these Chapter Bylaws shall have been approved by the Chairmen of the Local Activities Board and the ACM Constitution and Bylaws Committee before being presented to the Chapter membership for a vote.

  2. No official business of the Chapter shall be conducted unless a quorum of the Chapter is present.

  3. A quorum of the Chapter shall be defined as 25 percent of the voting membership of the Chapter or at least 10 voting members, whichever is greater.

  4. A simple majority of the members present and voting shall be required to carry a motion.

  5. Officers will be elected by a plurality of votes cast.

Article XIII - Dissolution of the Chapter

  1. Dissolution of this Chapter by consent of the members shall consist of unanimous agreement of all its officers together with a majority vote at a meeting which has been publicized in advance to all members of the Chapter for the purpose of taking this vote.

  2. Should this Chapter be dissolved, its assets and liabilities shall be transferred to ACM and shall be supervised by the Local Activities Board.

[ Home | Meetings | Officers | Bylaws ]

Problems, comments or suggestions to ttoyooka@pobox.com.