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Constitution

CONSTITUTION

of the

NORTH AMERICAN COMMUNITY:Uniting for Equity (NAC:UE)

October 2016

PREAMBLE

As members of the world community, educators have a responsibility to ensure that education contributes to the promotion of equity, peace, social justice and the universal realization of human rights. To this end, programs of all educational enterprises for children, youth and adults should aim to develop in each person self-respect, social awareness, and the capacity to participate at all levels of society, from local to global.

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To assist and support one another in the fulfillment of their responsibility, educators from the North American Community:Uniting for Equity (NAC:UE) – Canada, Mexico and the United States have joined together to form a person-to-person, non-governmental, non- profit, regional association.

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ARTICLE I ~ NAME

The name of this organization shall be – the North American Community:Uniting for Equity (NAC:UE).

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ARTICLE II ~ PURPOSES

The purposes of NAC:UE shall be:

A. to provide a variety of opportunities for educators in the NAC:UE to work together to fulfill the responsibilities stated in the Preamble to this Constitution;

B. to facilitate exchange, across national borders, of existing and newly created professional knowledge in the realms of both theory and practice relevant to the needs of a multi-cultural world community;

C. to stimulate and facilitate communication and collaboration with members of other global organizations in order to promote the kinds of progams designed to foster intercultural, interracial, interfaith, and international understanding and cooperation;

D. to cooperate with other organizations having compatible purposes; and

E. to employ education as a vehicle for the promotion and realization of social justice and human rights

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ARTICLE III ~ MEMBERSHIP

A. Any individual who lives in North America is eligible for membership in the NAC:U A NAC:UE member in good standing is one who participates in the activities of the organization and who pays the dues assessed by the NAC:UE for the current membership year or renewal cycle.

B. The decision-making responsibilities of the membership are: 1) election of officers and representatives, where and if applicable, and 2) amendment of the Constitution of the NAC:UE.

C. Membership is open to individuals subscribing to the purposes set forth in the Preamble and in Article II of this Constitution.

D. All individual members in good standing shall have the privilege of:

  1. making proposals to the Executive Council;

  2. suggesting candidates for election or appointment;

  3. being nominated for election or appointment;

  4. voting in elections;

  5. attending meetings/conferences sponsored or co-sponsored by the NAC:UE; and

  6. contributing to and/or receiving publications designed for distribution to the membership.

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ARTICLE IV ~ OFFICERS

The officers shall be a President, a Vice-President, a Secretary, and a Treasurer.

A. The President and Vice-President shall be elected as provided in Article VI The Secretary and the Treasurer shall be appointed by the President to remain in office only during the term of the President. In case a Vice-President completes the term of a President, the Vice-President shall appoint a new Secretary and Treasurer (or re- appoint the ones currently in office) to serve until the term of the next, elected President begins. All officers must be members in good standing, as specified in Article III of this Constitution.

B. The President, as the chief elected executive officer of the NAC:UE, shall preside over meetings of the Executive Council, publications and membership.

C. The Vice-President shall preside at any meetings at which the President is unable to preside and shall undertake such other duties as the President may assign. Should the President be unable to serve a full term, the Vice- President shall so serve until the next regular election.

D. The Secretary shall maintain the files of the NAC:UE, serve as a mailing point for notices and ballots to the membership, and receive ballots. The Secretary shall be responsible for recording the proceedings and decisions of all meetings of the Executive Council and the membership, and shall be responsible for sending minutes of meetings to the Executive Council and the membership.

E. The Treasurer shall collect dues and other payments, maintain the NAC:UE accounts, and pay the NAC:UE’s bills.

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ARTICLE V ~ THE EXECUTIVE COUNCIL

A. The Executive Council shall consist of the President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, immediate Past President, and five additional members elected by the membership.

B. The functions of the Executive Council shall be to:

  1. appoint committees;

  2. supervise elections;

  3. decide upon the budget and set dues;

  4. take responsibility for NAC:UE conferences;

  5. expand membership;

  6. make proposals to the Board of Directors of other global organizations;

  7. provide for communication with the membership through a newsletter or other means; and

  8. maintain the NAC:UE web page and other electronic connections.

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C. The Executive Council shall conduct its business by mail, telephone, e-mail, facsimile (FAX), Skype or related means, face-to-face meetings, or any combination thereof and the decision of the majority of the Council shall constitute the decision of the Council.

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ARTICLE VI ~ PAST PRESIDENT’S COUNCIL

The Past President’s Council is comprised of all NAC:UE Past Presidents. The Council serves in an advisory capacity to the NAC:UE board. Past Presidents have a standing invitation to participate in NAC:UE board meetings as non-voting participants.

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ARTICLE VII ~ NOMINATIONS AND ELECTIONS

A. A Nominating Committee consisting of a least three members (which, to the extent possible, shall include at least one each from Canada, Mexico, and the USA), shall be appointed by the Executive Council at least four months prior to an electio The committee shall have the benefit of suggestions from the membership, which have been solicited three months prior to the election. The Nominating Committee shall prepare a slate of nominees for the positions of: President, Vice-President and the five additional members elected by the membership to the Executive Council. The immediate Past President of the NAC:UE holds an ex officio position on the NAC:UE Executive Council. Nominees must all be members in good standing of the NAC:UE and must have indicated a willingness to serve if elected.

B. The President shall be the ex officio representative to other global organizations unless unable to serve/attend in which case the Vice-President shall serve/attend in his/her place. If neither of these individuals is able to attend, the President shall designate one of the elected members of the Executive Council to serve/attend in that capacity until the next election or until the President or Vice-President is able to participate.

C. Nominations for President, to the extent possible, should alternate among members who are citizens of Canada, Mexico and the United State All three countries, to the extent possible, should also be represented among the five at-large members of the Executive Council. Likewise, to the extent possible, members of all three countries should be periodically represented among all other NAC:UE Executive Council positions.

D. The President, Vice-President and five additional members elected by the membership to the Executive Council shall be elected by secret ballot for two-year te The position of Past President shall end when the next, new President is elected. Those elected, appointed or in ex officio positions shall take office January 1st following the bi- annual, NAC:UE conference.

E. Elected and appointed members of the Executive Council may immediately succeed themselves in the same position only The terms of those in ex officio positions end when their term expires.

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ARTICLE VIII ~ AMENDMENTS

The Constitution of the NAC:UE may be amended by a simple majority of the total membership in a mailed ballot or by two-thirds of the members present at a bi-annual, NAC:UE conference. Amendments may be proposed by a majority vote of the Executive Council or by ten percent of the Chapter members, with at least 30 days’ notice of the proposal(s), before a vote is taken and ballots are counted.

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