Statesboro Business & Professional Women:    By-Laws Charter Established     March 18, 1947

Mission...."to achieve equity for all women in the workplace through advocacy, education and research."

Article I Name

The name of this organization shall be the Statesboro Business and Professional Women’s Club of Statesboro, Georgia, known as and hereinafter referred to as Statesboro BPW.

Article II Mission

The mission of Statesboro BPW shall be to achieve equity for all women in the workplace through advocacy, education and information.

Article III Emblem

The emblem shall be the form of a circle in which the symbols of the Nike, Scroll, Torch, Wand, and Ship of Commerce are imposed above the initials NFBPWC.

Article IV Policies

Section 1. Statesboro BPW shall be nonsectarian, nonpartisan, and nonprofit.

Section 2. The mission, objectives and policies and procedures of the state and national federations as applicable shall in every case also be the mission, objectives and policies and procedures of Statesboro BPW.

Article V Membership

Section 1. Membership shall be held by those who support the mission and objectives of BPW/USA.
Membership categories shall be:
(a) Active
Membership shall be open to all individuals.

(b) Student
Individuals enrolled in college or a university, or any other accredited educational institution above the high school level.

Section 2. Membership in Statesboro BPW shall be all inclusive for membership in:

(a) The Georgia Federation of Business and Professional Women’s Clubs, Inc., (BPW/GA);

(b) The National Federation of Business and Professional Women’s Clubs Inc., of the United States of America (BPW/USA).

Section 3. A member in good standing may request transfer from one local organization to another.

Section 4. A local organization may not refuse to accept the transfer of a member in good standing.

Section 5. The only criteria for membership shall be per Article V, Section 1, and the payment of appropriate dues.

Article VI Local Organization Requirements

Section 1. This local organization, to remain in good standing:

(a) Shall maintain a membership of at least five (5) active members,

(b) Shall not be an integral part of any other national organization, and;

(c) Shall insure that the local organization bylaws are current and not in conflict with state and national bylaws and policies.

Section 2. Should membership fall below five (5) active members, this local organization shall be dropped from the state and national federations at the end of the second fiscal year.

Article VII Dues

Section 1. Dues are payable upon application for membership and renewable annually on the first day of the following month.

Section 2. Annual dues for each active member shall include local, state, and national dues as specified in the current respective bylaws. (See Appendix for current amount.) State dues shall include a subscription to the official state publication.

Section 3. Dues for each student member shall include local, state and national dues as specified in the current respective bylaws. (See Appendix for current amount.) State dues shall include a subscription to the official state publication.

Section 4. Each local organization shall pay national annual conference dues of ten dollars ($10.00). National conference dues shall be postmarked to BPW/USA by June 15 of each year.

Section 5. A continuing member is one whose dues are paid in the same local organization through the close of the previous fiscal year.

Section 6. A member is in good standing only when local organization, state and national dues are paid.

Section 7. Any member who does not pay dues by the first day of the month following their anniversary date shall be removed from the local organization roster.

Section 8. A person who has been removed from the local organization roster for nonpayment of dues may be reinstated upon payment of all delinquent dues for local, state, and national organization.

Article VIII Fiscal Responsibility

Section 1. The fiscal year shall commence on the first day of June (June 01) and shall end on the 31st day of May (May 31).

Section 2. An auditor or auditing committee of three (3) members shall be elected at the April meeting. The committee shall review the treasurer’s records within ten (10) days after the close of the treasurer’s term of office and shall report to the local organization at the next regular meeting.

Article IX Officers

Section 1. The officers of Statesboro BPW shall be a president, a president-elect, a vice-president, a recording secretary, a corresponding secretary and a treasurer.

Section 2. A term of office shall be one year.

Section 3. Officers shall assume their duties immediately following the May meeting and shall serve for one year and/or until their successors are duly elected.

Article X Nominations And Elections

Section 1. Officers shall be elected at the Statesboro BPW’s annual meeting in April.

Section 2. Only individuals who are members in good standing shall be eligible for office.

Section 3. At a business meeting preceding the annual meeting, a nominating committee of at least three (3) members shall be elected. The nominating committee shall present to the annual meeting, a slate of one or more nominees for each office. Nominations may also be made from the floor.

Section 4. Vacancies in office shall be handled as follows:

(a) In the event of death, resignation, or incapacity of the president, the vice-president shall become the president for the unexpired portion of the term.

(b) Vacancies in offices other than the president shall be filled for the unexpired term by the executive committee.

Section 5. No member shall hold the same office for more than two consecutive years.

Section 6. Six months or more shall be considered a term of office in determining eligibility for re-election.

Article XI Duties of Officers

Section 1. The president shall be the principal officer of the local organization and shall:

(a) Preside at all meetings of the local organization, the board of directors, and the executive committee;

(b) Appoint standing and special committee chairs and committees with the approval of the executive committee and may also appoint a parliamentarian;

(c) Serve as ex-officio member of all committees except the nominating committee;

(d) Bring to the attention of the local organization, all pertinent information from the state and national federations;

(e) Authorize all orders upon the treasurer for disbursement of funds, as directed by the organization;

(f) Be responsible for sending to the state recording secretary:

(1) the names and addresses of all officers and chairs immediately following their election or appointment;

(2) an immediate reports of all changes affecting the above items.

Section 2. The president-elect shall:

(a) Act as representative of the president when requested;

(b) Serve as ex-officio member, without vote, on all committees except the nominating committee;

(c) Serve in such other capacities as assigned by the president.

Section3. The vice-president shall:

(a) Perform the duties of the president in the absence of the president;

(b) Become president for the unexpired term in case of death, resignation, or incapacity of the president;

(c) Schedule and provide valuable monthly programs for members;

(d) Serve in such capacities as assigned by the president.

Section 4. The recording secretary shall:

(a) Take and record accurate minutes of the proceedings of all meetings of Statesboro BPW;

(b) Maintain club records in a permanent file.
Section 5. The corresponding secretary shall:

(a) Conduct the correspondence of Statesboro BPW under the direction of the president;

(b) Collects information and news of interest; publishes and mails a monthly newsletter to all members;

(c) Preserve all records and letters of value to the Statesboro BPW and its officers.


Section 6. The treasurer shall:

(a) Be responsible for all monies of Statesboro BPW and shall report them at all meetings;

(b) Collect all monies coming into Statesboro BPW from whatever source and give a proper receipt therefor;

(c) Keep a list of names, addresses, and occupations of all members;

(d) Pay all bills upon written authorization of the president;

(e) Keep an itemized record, in a permanent file, of all receipts and expenditures;

(f) Forward promptly to the state treasurer, all monies payable to the state federation: Forward promptly to BPW/USA all funds payable to the national federation and all local, state, and national dues for all new members;

(g) Serve as ex-officio member of the finance committee; and other committees dealing with finance;

(h) Deliver to the successor, within 15 days after expiration of term of office, all books, records, and papers, requesting receipt therefor.

Section 7. Each officer, except the treasurer, shall deliver to the successor immediately after retiring from office, all accounts, records, books, papers, and other property belonging to Statesboro BPW.

Article XII Meetings

Section 1. Regular meetings shall be held monthly on the fourth Tuesday of the month unless ordered by the Statesboro BPW or the executive committee.

Section 2. The regular April meeting of each year shall be designated the annual meeting, at which time reports summarizing the year’s activities shall be given.

Section 3. Special meetings may be called by the president or by any three (3) members, provided all members are notified in writing of time, place, and purpose of such meeting.

Section 4. One fourth of the voting members shall constitute a quorum.

Section 5. No member shall have more than one vote, and no voting by proxy shall be allowed.

Article XIII Board of Directors

Section 1. The elected officers and standing committee chairs shall constitute a board of directors.

Section 2. The board shall:

(a) Supervise the affairs of Statesboro BPW;

(b) Make recommendations for the Statesboro BPW’s growth and prosperity;

(c) Make recommendations to the Statesboro BPW regarding proposed amendments to the bylaws;

(d) Transact any business between meetings of Statesboro BPW and report thereon at the next business meeting of the Statesboro BPW;

(e) Report at the annual meeting the business transacted by the board of directors during the Statesboro BPW year.

Section 3. Regular meetings of the board shall be held monthly on the second Tuesday of the month, unless otherwise ordered by the president.

Section 4. Standing and special committee appointments made by the president shall be subject to the approval of the executive committee.

Section 5. A majority of the voting members shall constitute a quorum for a meeting of the executive committee.

Section 6. No member shall have more than one vote, and no voting by proxy shall be allowed.

Section 7. All Statesboro BPW board meetings shall be open to all members in good standing.

Article XIV Executive Committee

Section 1. The standing committees of the Statesboro BPW shall be finance, foundation, issues management, legislation, membership, public relations, young careerist and individual development.

Section 2. Only individuals who are active members in good standing shall be eligible to serve as chair of standing committees.

Section 3. Committee chairs and members shall be appointed for a term of one year and may be reappointed. No person shall serve more than three (3) consecutive years on the same committee.

Section 4. The finance committee shall be comprised of a chair and at least two (2) members. The treasurer shall also serve as an ex-officio member, without vote. It shall be the duty of the finance committee to prepare an annual budget for the Statesboro BPW, to raise money to support the budget, to have general supervision of all expenditures, and to assist the Statesboro BPW in developing a sound financial policy. The finance chair shall be a member ex-officio, without vote, of all committees which requires the expenditure of monies.

Section 5. The foundation chair shall promote interest in and support of the National Business and Professional Women’s Foundation.

Section 6. The issues management committee shall be composed of a chair and at least two (2) members. It shall be the duty of the issues management committee to plan and implement a well coordinated annual program based on federation objectives. The committee shall meet immediately after appointment to consider the annual program suggested by state and national federations and develop a program which shall involve all areas of Statesboro BPW’s activities.

Section 7. The legislation committee shall be composed of a chair and at least two (2) members. It shall be the duty of the legislation committee to carry out the legislative programs adopted by the state and the national federations. The committee shall study local legislative needs in order to make recommendations to the Statesboro BPW.

Section 8. The membership committee shall be composed of a chair and at least two (2) members. It shall be the duty of the membership committee to promote, expand, stabilize, and orient the membership.

Section 9. The public relations committee shall be composed of a chair and at least two (2) members. It shall be the duty of the public relations committee to present national, state, and local programs and activities through available news media.

Section 10. The young careerist committee shall be composed of a chair and at least two (2) members. It shall be the duty of the young careerist committee to encourage recruitment of young people into membership, organize and coordinate the young careerist program, and promote activities that involve the participation of young people.

Section 11. The individual development committee shall be composed of a chair and at least two (2) members. It shall be the duty of the individual development committee to encourage recruitment of individuals and assist them with leadership development.

Article XV Representation

Section 1. The voting body at all meetings of the Georgia Federation of BPW shall be any individual who has paid a full conference registration fee and is a member is good standing.

Section 2. The local organization shall have representation at the annual conference of BPW/USA as follows:

The voting body at the national conference shall be any individual who has paid a full conference registration fee and is a member in good standing.

Section 3. No individual shall have more than one vote, and no voting by proxy shall be allowed.

Article XVI Parliamentary Procedure

The rules of parliamentary procedure comprised in the current edition of ROBERT’S RULES OF ORDER, NEWLY REVISED shall govern all proceedings of the Statesboro BPW, the board of directors, and the executive committee, subject to such special rules as have been or may be adopted.

Article XVII Amendments

Section 1. Amendments to these bylaws may be proposed by the board of directors, the executive committee or the bylaws committee.

Section 2. All proposed amendments shall be published in the monthly newsletter and sent to every member at least ten (10) days before they are to be voted upon.

Section 3. All proposed amendments shall be presented to the board of directors prior to presentations to the local organization.

Section 4. These bylaws may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the members present and voting at any regular meeting.

Section 5. The final adoption by the local organization of amendments to or revisions of these bylaws shall be contingent upon the approval of the state president.

Section 6. When an amendment is adopted to national or state bylaws which affects local organization bylaws, the local organization shall automatically amend its bylaws to conform.

Any conflict shall be resolved in accordance with state and national federation policy and procedure.

Article XVIII Dissolution

Upon dissolution of Statesboro BPW, all of its assets remaining after payment of all costs and expenses of such dissolution shall be distributed to a BPW state federation, a BPW district (region), a BPW local organization, the BPW Foundation, or a state BPW Foundation that has qualified for exemption under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code and state tax regulations. None of the assets will distributed to any member, officer, or trustee of the Statesboro BPW.
[Note: Procedural steps are defined in the BPW/USA Handbook of Policies andProcedures.]