Bylaws

CSAS Bylaws – August 2019
Bylaws of the Central States Anthropological Society

 

ARTICLE I. Name
1. The name of this organization shall be the Central States Anthropological Society (CSAS), a section of the American Anthropological Association (AAA).

ARTICLE II. Purpose
1. Its purpose shall be to advance the study of anthropology and to encourage communication of the results of such study.

ARTICLE III. Powers
1. The Society shall be autonomous in all matters within its field that are not reserved by the Bylaws of the American Anthropological Association, inimical to the American Anthropological Association’s interests, or prohibited by law.

2. The Society shall have elected Executive Committee officers and Society Board members as set forth in these Bylaws.

3. The Society is empowered to determine membership dues.

4. The Society shall determine voting requirements on all Society matters.

5. The Society may engage in publishing and program activities, appoint editors, committees and other agents, and set publication and program policies appropriate to its purposes.

6. The Society shall adopt and maintain Bylaws or Rules of Procedure consistent with American Anthropological Association Bylaws. The Society shall file with the American Anthropological Association main office a copy of its current Bylaws, Rules of Procedure, and Table of Organization.

ARTICLE IV. Membership
1. Membership in the Society shall be open to any member in good standing of the American Anthropological Association upon payment of AAA and CSAS dues, and who supports the above purposes of the Society.

2. A Member in good standing shall be eligible to hold elective or appointive office, participate in meetings of the Society, receive publications, and have one vote in electing officers and in transacting other business of the Society.

3. Membership dues shall be payable annually as part of the AAA’s billing cycle and will be paid to AAA. CSAS membership may be added to a AAA membership mid-billing cycle per AAA guidelines.

4. For just cause, a Member may be deprived of membership by a two-thirds vote of the Society Board, subject to appeal to the Members at the Annual Meeting.

ARTICLE V. Dues
1. The Society Board shall set the annual dues of Members and may establish rates for special categories.

2. Any Member in arrears in the payment of dues shall lose all membership privileges.

ARTICLE VI. Executive Committee Officers
1. The officers of the Executive Committee shall include a President, Immediate Past President, President-Elect, and Secretary/Treasurer. All begin their respective terms at the Annual Business Meeting held during the CSAS Annual Meeting.

2. President. The President shall preside at all meetings, shall appoint all standing and special committees and designate their respective chairs, and shall be an ex officio member of all committees. The President shall serve as the Section Program Editor for the CSAS program at the AAA National Meeting. The President shall be the Society’s apprentice representative to the AAA Section Assembly. The President is elected first as President-Elect, serving for one year. The following year they will serve as President, followed by a one-year term as Immediate Past President.

3. Immediate Past President. The Immediate Past President shall continue as an official of the Section for one year beyond the term of office as President. The Immediate Past President shall be the Society’s representative to the AAA Section Assembly. The Immediate Past President shall perform any additional duties as assigned by the President.

4. President-Elect. The President-Elect shall have the power to perform the President’s duties in the absence of the President. President-Elect shall chair the conference committee, working with the local conference organizer to make decisions regarding the annual conference. The President-Elect shall be responsible for booking the Distinguished Lecturer(s) and chairing the annual Student Paper Competition Committee for said conference. The President-Elect shall perform any additional duties as assigned by the President.

5. Secretary/Treasurer. The Secretary/Treasurer shall have general charge of the minutes, transactions, and other reports of the Society. The Secretary/Treasurer shall be responsible for the administration of the finances of the Society subject to budgetary and other policies approved by the Society Board and by the AAA. The Secretary/Treasurer shall submit a draft budget for the approval of the Society Board of the Society not less than thirty (30) days before the close of the fiscal year and shall present a complete financial statement at the Annual Meeting of the Society. The Secretary/Treasurer shall be elected for a three-year term. The Secretary/Treasurer shall perform any additional duties as assigned by the President.

ARTICLE VII. Organization and Society Board
1. The Society Board shall consist of the four officers described above, six additional members-at-large, the two members of the Nominations Committee, and any officials appointed by the Executive Committee.

2. All members of the Society Board are expected to maintain their good standing of CSAS membership throughout the term of their office. Members of the Society Board who do not maintain their membership will be removed from office after at least two notices of expired membership.

3. Two members-at-large shall be elected each year for three-year term. One Nominations Committee member shall be elected each year for a three-year term.

4. The Society Board shall make all non-elective appointments of officials and determine the length of each appointment unless otherwise defined in these Bylaws.

5. Non-elected officials appointed by the Society Board include the CSAS Bulletin Editor, Anthropology Newsletter column Editor, Archivist, Web Master, and Student Board Representatives.

6. Members-at-large, members of the Nominations Committee, and appointed officials to the Society Board shall attend all meetings of the Society Board and may vote on all matters brought before the Society Board, as well as any additional duties assigned by the President.

7. Subject to directives and limitations imposed by the Members of the Society, the Society Board shall have the authority to execute on behalf of the Society all powers and functions defined in these Bylaws.

8. The Society Board shall meet at least twice annually at the time of the Society’s Annual Meeting and during the AAA National Meeting and may meet at other times on the call of the President or by a majority vote of the Society Board.

9. Each officer and official listed in these Bylaws has one (1) vote in any matter brought before the Society Board and Society business meeting.

10. For just cause, a Society Board Member may be removed from his or her position by a two-thirds vote of the Society Board, subject to appeal to the Members at the Annual Meeting.

11. All past presidents of the Society are entitled to ex-officio, non-voting, status on the Executive Board.

12. The Society Board shall make interim appointments to fill vacancies in any elective office until the next regularly scheduled election.

ARTICLE VIII. Annual Report
1. At the end of each calendar year, the Immediate Past President shall report the activities of the Society to the Executive Board of the AAA. The report shall follow the guidelines outlined by the AAA but may include the reports of the Secretary/Treasurer, editors of publications, committees, and other agents representing the Society. The report, appropriately supplemented, shall be presented to the Members at the time of the Society’s Annual Meeting.

ARTICLE IX. Meetings
1. The Society shall hold an Annual Business Meeting at the time of the Annual Meeting of the Central States Anthropological Society, held in late winter or early spring of each year. Additional Society meetings may be held at National Meeting of the American Anthropological Association.

2. The place and date of the Annual Meeting shall be disclosed to the Members not less than one hundred twenty (120) days in advance of the meeting.

3. Special meetings may be called by the Society Board or upon written request of five (5) percent of the Members.

4. Joint meetings may be held with other organizations if deemed desirable by the Society Board. Arrangements must be made at least one year in advance of such a meeting and must include written agreements between the cooperating organizations specifying the obligations and financial arrangements pertaining to each. Any such agreements must be approved by the American Anthropological Association.

ARTICLE X. Quorum
1. Five (5) percent of the Members in good standing shall constitute a quorum at the Annual Business Meeting.

2. A majority of the members of the Society Board shall constitute a quorum for transacting business.

3. The business of the Society shall be transacted by majority vote unless otherwise provided for in these Bylaws.

4. Proxies shall not be permitted.

ARTICLE XI. Nominations
1. Candidates for any CSAS elective office may be nominated by the Society Board, by a Nominations Committee Member, or any Member in good standing. Names of proposed candidates should be forwarded to the Nominations Committee. The Nominations Committee shall consider all such proposals and prepare a slate of candidates which is submitted to the Society Board for final approval and placement on the ballot. All candidates must be Members of the Society in good standing. A call for nominations shall appear each year in the CSAS Bulletin and in the Anthropology Newsletter not less than sixty (60) days prior to the candidacy deadline announced by the AAA.

2. A Nominations Committee of two (2) Members shall be elected by the membership. Each member of the nominations committee shall serve a three-year term. Committee members will serve staggered terms, with one new member being elected each year to replace the outgoing member. Members shall serve as the Committee Chair in their second and third years.

3. The Nominations Committee shall nominate at least one person for each vacant office. These nominations shall be made known to Members at the Annual Meeting and through the AAA ballot mailed to Members in spring of each year.

4. Identifying vacancies: AAA elections normally take place in early summer and candidates elected to the Board normally begin their terms the following April. As such, candidates identified in fall of year X will stand for election in year X + 1 to start positions in April of year X + 2. The exception to this pattern is Nomination Committee members themselves, who begin their terms in August of the same year in which they are elected.

5. The Secretary/Treasurer shall have the authority to examine the eligibility of any candidate.

6. The Society Board shall approve the slate of candidates prior to balloting.

ARTICLE XII. Elections
1. Elections shall be conducted by mail ballot which must be sent to the membership at least forty-five (45) days prior to the deadline announced by the AAA.

2. A Member in good standing shall be entitled to cast one ballot in any election or referendum.

3. Ballots shall be secret and enclosed in a signed envelope. The Secretary/Treasurer shall have the authority to examine the eligibility of any voter.

4. A minimum of thirty (30) days shall be allowed for the return of ballots. Ballots must be received by the American Anthropological Association not later than the stated return date in order to be counted.

5. The American Anthropological Association shall be responsible for tallying the votes and certifying the results to the Society Board.

6. The candidate receiving the most votes for a contested office shall be elected. In the event of a tie the candidate elected will be determined by a flip of the coin tossed by the President.

ARTICLE XIII. Publications
1. The Society shall publish a newsletter entitled the CSAS Bulletin.

2. The Society Board shall appoint a Member in good standing who shall serve as contributing editor for “Section News” in the American Anthropological Association’s Anthropology Newsletter. The AN Editor shall serve a term of one (1) year, renewable upon the approval of the Society Board.

3. The CSAS Bulletin editor shall serve a three (3) year term, renewable upon the approval of the Society Board.

4. The President shall inform prospective nominees of the extent of the editor’s duties. The appointment becomes effective only when the nominee files with the Secretary/Treasurer a statement of willingness and ability to devote such time to the affairs of the Society necessary to effectively discharge the duties and responsibilities of the position. Editors may be replaced by the Society Board in cases involving resignation or nonperformance of editorial duties.

ARTICLE XIV. Referenda
1. A referendum may be conducted by mail ballot at any time upon initiation of the Society Board or upon receipt by the Secretary/Treasurer of a petition signed by fifteen (15) Members in good standing. A majority of votes received shall determine whether or not the referendum passes.

ARTICLE XV. Finances
1. The fiscal year of the Society shall be that of the American Anthropological Association.

2. The Society shall submit an annual operating budget to the American Anthropological Association Executive Board, which, when approved, shall govern Society activities.

3. The income from annual dues and from investments and other sources shall constitute a working fund, available for operations, publications, and current expenses consistent with the purposes of the Society.

4. No financial obligation in excess of funds available in the treasury shall be proposed by the Society Board or by any officer on behalf of the Society except that, for the purpose of this Society, estimated receipts from annual dues and other accounts receivable for the current year may be considered as available funds.

5. The Society may establish special funds to be administered by the American Anthropological Association for purposes the Society may designate. Two such currently established funds are entitled the “Leslie A. White Memorial Fund” and the “Beth Wilder Dillingham Memorial Fund” which are maintained separately in a manner permitting interest earnings to be used in financing the periodic “Leslie A. White Award” and “Beth Wilder Dillingham Award.” The principal in the White and Dillingham funds may not be spent for any purpose.

ARTICLE XVI. Awards
1. The Society shall periodically confer a “Leslie A. White Award” and a “Beth Wilder Dillingham Award.”

2. The Society shall sponsor an annual Student Paper Competition. There shall be separate divisions for Graduate and Undergraduate students with separate prizes for the winners. The President-Elect shall serve as the Chair of the Student Paper Competition Committee consisting of three additional members of the Society, chosen at the board meeting held during the CSAS Annual Meeting. The committee shall be responsible for maintaining updated guidelines for granting the award and for ensuring that the guidelines are submitted to the CSAS Bulletin, the CSAS “Section News” in the Anthropology Newsletter, and to the CSAS web site. Updates to the guidelines must be filed with the Secretary for Society records.

3. The Leslie A. White and Beth Wilder Dillingham Award Committees will be chosen at the board meeting held during the CSAS Annual Meeting. The Chair shall be responsible for recruiting of committee members as well as coordinating the collection and review of any award applications. The committee shall be responsible for maintaining updated guidelines for granting the award and for ensuring that the guidelines are submitted to the CSAS Bulletin, the CSAS “Section News” in the Anthropology Newsletter, and to the CSAS web site. Updates to the guidelines must be filed with the Secretary for Society records.

4. The competition for each award will be initiated by an announcement in January of each year.

5. The Student Paper Competition will be open to any student who presents a paper or poster to the Society’s annual meeting.

6. There will be no limitation on the number of times a Member may apply for or receive an award or the number of awards a Member may receive in any given year.

ARTICLE XVII. Amendment
1. These Bylaws may be amended by the Members by mail ballot, provided that a proposed amendment is approved by two-thirds of the votes cast.

2. Amendments may be proposed by the Society Board or by fifteen (15) Members in good standing. The Society Board shall have the proposed amendment(s) circulated to the Members at the time of the annual election or by decision of the Society Board, and it shall allow thirty (30) days for the return of ballots.

3. The amendments and provisions of these Bylaws shall be effective immediately upon adoption and shall supersede and nullify all previous amendments and provisions.

Ratified: April 1987
Previously Revised: April 1994
Subsequently Revised: June 2005; July 2008
Current Revision: May 2019