Bylaws

Professional Engagement, Growth, and Advancement Special Interest Section Bylaws

Article I: Name

The name of this Special Interest Section (SIS) of the American Association of Law Libraries (AALL) shall be Professional Engagement, Growth, and Advancement SIS (PEGA-SIS).

Article II: Object

Section 1. The object of this SIS is to help newer members of AALL become active participants in the organization and profession. It is our goal to facilitate the engagement of members by providing a forum for librarians from different organization types and departments to learn, contribute, innovate, and network.

In order to accomplish this goal, this SIS will focus its energy on 1) providing opportunities to increase the professional knowledge and abilities of our members through educational and leadership training and programs; 2) encouraging collaboration and exploration of new methods, resources, and technologies with other members, caucuses, and SISs; 3) providing networking and mentoring opportunities for newer and established members; 4) promoting and highlighting the contributions and innovations of our membership to the broader organization and profession; 5) providing outreach to current library school students as a method of promoting participation in the law librarianship profession.

Section 2. This SIS shall conduct its affairs in conformity with the AALL Bylaws.

Article III: Antidiscrimination

Membership in this SIS or participation in any activity of this SIS shall not be denied or abridged to any individual on account of race, color, religion, gender, age, national origin, disability, sexual orientation, or gender identity.

Article IV: Membership

Membership shall be open to any AALL member requesting affiliation with the SIS as provided in the AALL Bylaws. Membership is effective upon payment of additional SIS membership dues. The year for dues begins on June 1. Membership shall be renewable each year.

Article V: Annual Business Meeting

Section 1. Annual Business Meeting Requirement

There shall be an Annual Business Meeting of the SIS. Annual Business Meetings shall be open to all members of AALL, but no person may vote in any Annual Business Meeting who is not a PEGA-SIS member in good standing.

Section 2. Quorum at Annual Business Meeting

A quorum shall consist of ten PEGA-SIS members in good standing present. Good standing means that PEGA-SIS dues have been paid for the current year. Presence may be either in person or electronic.

Section 3. Time and Place of Annual Business Meeting

The Executive Committee may choose whether to hold the Annual Business Meeting in person or electronically.

If the Annual Business Meeting is held in person, it should preferably be held during the Annual Meeting of AALL. The scheduling of the Annual Business Meeting during the Annual Meeting of AALL shall be cleared with AALL’s Annual Meeting Program Chair, or as otherwise provided by the AALL Bylaws.

If the Annual Business Meeting is held electronically, it should preferably be held approximately two weeks prior to the Annual Meeting of AALL. The electronic means used to hold the Annual Business Meeting must allow all participants to communicate in real time, such as in a conference call or webinar.

Article VI: Officers and Elections

Section 1. Officers

The officers shall consist of a Chair, a Vice-Chair / Chair-Elect, a Secretary / Treasurer, Immediate Past Chair, and a Member at Large.

Section 2. Terms of Office

The Vice-Chair / Chair-Elect shall serve a three year term, the first year as Vice-Chair, the second year as Chair, and the third year as Immediate Past Chair. A new Vice-Chair / Chair-Elect shall be elected each year. The Secretary / Treasurer shall serve a two-year term, and shall be elected every other year. The Member at Large shall serve a two-year term, and shall be elected every other year. Officers shall serve until the adjournment of the Annual Business Meeting.

Section 3. Duties of Officers

1. The Chair shall:

  1. Provide leadership for the SIS and serve as a liaison to AALL
  2. Preside at meetings
  3. Prepare an agenda for the Annual Business Meeting
  4. Coordinate AALL Annual Meeting activities, such as reserving a date and time for the meeting to be held during the AALL Annual Conference, reserving a table in the activities area/exhibit hall for marketing the SIS, reserving and working a SIS table at CONELL, and other activities and requirements as necessary
  5. Coordinate marketing for the SIS at AALL, including, but not limited to, ordering buttons,
    making signs, and disseminating information to SIS members through digital means
  6. Provide a Chair’s report at the Annual Business Meeting, as well as prepare and submit an annual report to AALL of SIS events
  7. Transfer past records (print and electronic) to the succeeding Chair within sixty days of leaving office
  8. Appoint any persons to perform duties for the SIS as needed

2. The Vice-Chair / Chair-Elect shall:

  1. Perform the duties of the Chair if they are unable
  2. Assist the Chair in fulfilling their duties
  3. Serve as the Chair of the Program Committee
  4. Provide a Vice-Chair / Chair-Elect report at the Annual Business Meeting
  5. Transfer past records (print and electronic) to the succeeding Vice-Chair / Chair-Elect within sixty days of leaving office

3. The Secretary / Treasurer shall:

  1. Maintain the SIS financial records
  2. Record and report minutes of all SIS meetings
  3. Provide a Secretary / Treasurer’s report at the Annual Business Meeting
  4. Keep a current roster of SIS members
  5. Disseminate notices of meetings to members
  6. Keep an official, current copy of the Bylaws and other records of the SIS
  7. Assist the Chair and Vice-Chair / Chair-Elect in the administration of their duties as requested
  8. Transfer past records (print and electronic) to the succeeding Secretary / Treasurer within sixty days of leaving office

4. The Member at Large shall:

  1. Represent the general membership on issues of interest or concern, particularly those that arise outside of the standing committee structure
  2. Conduct projects to further the goals of the organization
  3. Serve as chair of any ad hoc committee formed to develop these projects
  4. Develop services for the membership
  5. Listen to membership and communicate their issues, needs, and interests to the Executive Committee

5. The Immediate Past Chair shall:

  1. Serve on the Executive Committee

Section 4. Nominating Committee

There shall be a Nominating Committee appointed by the SIS Chair and Vice-Chair / Chair-Elect, consisting of three members, none of whom shall be a member of the SIS Executive Committee, and none of whom shall be a candidate for office at the succeeding election. Each member of the committee shall serve for a term of one year and can be reappointed to the position. The Chair shall recommend a Nomination Chair and the Executive Committee shall vote on the recommendation.

Section 5. Election Procedures

  1. The Nominating Committee shall present at least one candidate for each office to be voted on – Vice-Chair / Chair-Elect every year and Secretary / Treasurer and Member at Large on alternating years.
  2. All candidates must be members in good standing of the SIS.
  3. Names of the candidates, together with written acceptances, shall be presented by the Nominating Committee to the Chair in sufficient time to enable the Chair to inform the members of the nominations. Members may be notified by announcements through the SIS community board, email, or in a newsletter transmitted to all members of the SIS.
  4. Further nominations may be made upon written petition of five members. Such petitions, with the written consent of the nominees, should be filed with the Secretary / Treasurer, who prepares an official ballot, including nominations by petition.
  5. The Secretary / Treasurer shall provide a copy of the ballot to each member of the SIS in either print or electronic format. Ballots must be submitted to the Secretary / Treasurer by a specified deadline. The candidate receiving the largest number of votes shall be elected and shall be so reported at the SIS’s Annual Business Meeting. All candidates shall be notified of the results of the election at the earliest possible time.
  6. All of the above procedures must be scheduled and executed so that elections are completed at least two months prior to the date of the AALL Annual Meeting.
  7. In the case of a tie vote, a run-off election shall be held at the Annual Business Meeting. Run-off elections shall be by secret ballot. The ballots shall be immediately counted and the candidate with the largest number of votes declared elected. Should the run-off election result in a continuing tie, the candidates shall be named co-officers. In the event the Secretary/Treasurer is a candidate, the Chair shall appoint another member to perform all election-related functions with the exception of the preparation and distribution of the ballot.
  8. If there are no challenges to the results of the election, ballots will be destroyed by the Secretary / Treasurer after the AALL Annual Meeting.

Section 6. Vacancies

All vacancies of office shall be filled by the Executive Committee for an interim term until the next regular election of officers, at which time said vacancies shall be filled by election, except that the Vice- Chair / Chair-Elect shall automatically become Chair upon a vacancy in such office and shall continue in that office until the expiration of the term for which that person was originally elected to serve as Chair.

Article VII: Executive Committee

There shall be an Executive Committee consisting of the officers named above and the Immediate Past
Chair.

There shall be the following Standing Committees:

  1. Nominations,
  2. Bylaws,
  3. Programming & Education,
  4. Beer & Edits,
  5. Social, and
  6. Outreach & Publications.

The Executive Committee or a majority vote by SIS members, present physically and electronically, may create other Standing or Special Committees. Unless otherwise provided, committee chairs shall be designated by the Chair of this SIS.

Article IX: Parliamentary Authority

This SIS shall conduct its affairs in conformity with the AALL Bylaws. The rules of order mandated by the AALL Bylaws shall govern all deliberations of the SIS.

Article XI: Amendments

Section 1. Proposed amendments to these bylaws shall be submitted to the AALL Bylaws and Resolutions Committee by the Secretary / Treasurer for approval.

Section 2. These bylaws may be amended at the Annual Business Meeting of the SIS by a majority of the members present and voting, or by a majority of the votes cast by email or electronic ballot conducted by the Secretary / Treasurer.

Section 3. Notice of proposed amendments shall be provided to the SIS’s members 30 days in advance of the Annual Business Meeting or of the emailing of ballots.