Bylaws

Revisions to the Bylaws were put to a vote of the Membership in November of 2022 and accepted. A PDF version is available for download.

OK-ACRL Bylaws

Revised and adopted November 18, 2022

ARTICLE I. Name

Sec. 1 The name of this organization shall be Oklahoma Chapter of the Association of College and Research Libraries, Inc. (OK-ACRL).

ARTICLE II. Goals

Sec. 1 The Chapter shall provide opportunities for professional growth and communication among academic and research librarians, encourage the exchange of ideas and information relating to library development, and enhance library service to all users of academic and research libraries in the state.

ARTICLE III. Affiliation

Sec. 1 This organization is an affiliate of the American Library Association. It is subject to Article XIV: Chapters of the ACRL Bylaws and Chapter 5 of ACRL’s Guide to Policies and Procedures.

ARTICLE IV. Membership Categories and Dues

Sec. 1 Eligibility. Any student, librarian, institution, or individual residing in the state of Oklahoma with an interest in academic librarianship can become a member of OK-ACRL.

Sec. 2 Membership Requirement. Any individual who is a member of the OK-ACRL mailing list is considered to be a member of OK-ACRL.

Sec. 3 Dues. There are no dues or fees associated with becoming a member of OK-ACRL. Membership is free of charge.

ARTICLE V. Officers

Sec. 1 Officers. The officers of the Chapter shall be a President, a President-Elect, a Secretary, and a Treasurer. In compliance with Chapter 5.7.1 of ACRL’s Guide to Policies and Procedures, at least one member of the OK-ACRL Board of Directors must be a member of ACRL.

Sec. 2 Terms. The officers shall serve for one year or until their successors are elected, except for the Treasurer and the Secretary, who shall both serve for two years. All officers shall take office January 1 and shall serve through December 31 of the same year except for the Treasurer and the Secretary, who shall serve through December 31st of the second year following election. The elections of Treasurer and Secretary shall occur on alternating years.

Sec. 3 Duties. The duties of the officers shall be those which normally pertain to those officers and any other duties specified in the Bylaws. In addition,

President:

The President shall chair the board meetings.
The President shall serve as Chapter program chair-person or shall appoint the President-Elect to serve as Chapter program chair.

iii. The President shall function as the Chapter’s representative and participate in Chapter Council (5.7.1).

The President shall issue annual chapter reports to ALA/ACRL.
The president shall facilitate communication among board members.
The President shall distribute the OK-ACRL bylaws to the incoming board members at the first meeting of the new year for review and possible revision.

vii. In the second year of the secretary’s term, the current President shall appoint a committee to review and update the Policies & Procedures, and recommend any relevant bylaw revisions. Should any amendments to the bylaws be approved, the Past President shall provide the new bylaws to the ACRL office.

vii. The President shall ask at least one Member-At-Large to maintain communication outlets beyond the email list and the website that are in use by OK-ACRL.

President-Elect:

The President-Elect shall preside over board meetings in the absence of the President.
The President-Elect shall chair the nomination committee for new officers and board members and coordinate the nomination efforts of the interest groups.

iii. The President-Elect shall oversee the chapter’s elections.

Treasurer:

The Treasurer shall maintain the treasury, which includes balancing and reconciling the chapters’ various bank accounts each month, and pay invoices approved by the board or the president.
The Treasurer shall make financial reports to the board at its monthly meetings, and prepare an annual financial report for general distribution to the chapter members.

Secretary:

The Secretary shall record minutes of all meetings, and shall make available copies of the minutes to the webmaster for the chapter website. The Secretary shall also send the new list of Board Members and Interest Group Chairs to the Webmaster.
The Secretary shall maintain the chapter’s history during the term, including copies of records of minutes, newsletters, Treasurer’s reports, election results, and correspondence. At the end of their term, the Secretary shall ensure said materials are available to the Archivist.

iii. The Secretary shall maintain any shared documents for the OK-ACRL board.

Sec. 4 Vacancies. A vacancy in any office shall be filled by an appointment made by the Board of Directors.

Sec. 5 Resignations.

An officer may resign his or her membership on the OK-ACRL Board at any time by submitting a resignation in writing to the President. In the case of the resignation of the President, a resignation shall be submitted in writing to the President Elect. A resignation shall become effective upon the date specified in such notice, or, if no date is specified, upon receipt of the resignation by the President.
Three (3) consecutive absences from regularly scheduled meetings (either in person or online) of the OK-ACRL Board without an excuse approved by the President shall constitute a de facto resignation of the officer.

Sec. 6 Removal for Cause.

Any Officer may be removed with cause (as defined below) by vote of a majority of the members of the Board and such Officer’s successor shall be appointed at any regular meeting of the Board or any special meeting called for such purpose.
“Cause” is defined as follows:
An Officer’s breach of any material duty or obligation under the Chapter’s Bylaws or policies;
An Officer willfully or recklessly engages in misconduct that causes or will cause material harm to the Chapter, including the reputation of the Chapter;
An Officer willfully engages in an act that constitutes a conflict of interest with the Chapter without the express approval of the Board of Directors.

ARTICLE VI. Meetings

Sec. 1 Business Meetings. A regular business meeting shall be held at least once a year.

Sec. 2 Special Meetings. Special meetings may be called by the Board of Directors or by petition of ten Chapter members.

Sec. 3 Quorum. One tenth of the current membership shall constitute a quorum for a business meeting of the Chapter.

Sec. 4 Programs / Workshops. The Chapter shall sponsor at least one program each year. Programs shall be approved by the Board of Directors.

ARTICLE VII. Board of Directors

Sec. 1 Composition. The Board of Directors shall consist of the four officers, as well as the Past President, three Members elected At Large, a Web Manager, a Development Coordinator, an Archivist, and the chairpersons from each special interest section. All members of the Board shall be voting members with the exception of special interest section chairpersons and the Archivist, who are considered ex officio, non-voting members of the Board. All members of the Board shall perform other duties as specified in the OK-ACRL Guide to Policies and Procedures.

Past President:

The Past President shall serve as a member of the Board Of Directors, with those powers and duties.
The Past President shall serve as adviser to the current officers, and shall work closely with the President toward the organization’s goals for the year.

iii. The Past President shall submit information about the incoming President, President-Elect and Past President, as well as changes to chapter bylaws, to national ACRL.

Web Manager:

The Web Manager shall work with the interest group Web Managers to keep the websites for OKACRL.org current.
The Web Manager shall maintain the membership roster and administer the email list for the general membership.

Archivist:

The Archivist, when notified by the Secretary that all documents are ready and final for

the year, will print documents and store them in a secure place.

The Archivist will submit a report to the board detailing which documents were printed

and where they are stored.

iii. The Archivist will be appointed by the President, with approval by the majority of the

Board, and will serve a three-year term, which can be renewed indefinitely by majority

approval.

Outreach Coordinator:

The Outreach Coordinator will be responsible for coordinating messaging to the

members and the public through the email listserv, social media, and other appropriate

channels.

The inaugural Outreach Coordinator will be appointed by the President, with approval by

majority of the Board, and will serve a one-year term. The position will become an elected

position following the initial one-year appointment.

Development Coordinator

The Development Coordinator directs OK-ACRL fundraising activities and manages any endowments. Ii. The Development Coordinator performs other duties as specified in the OK-ACRL Guide to Policies and Procedures.

Members-At-Large:

Each Member-At-Large shall attend scheduled meetings of the Board.
Each Member-At-Large shall participate in discussions of Board business conducted via e-mail or other means.

iii. Each Member-At-Large shall vote on matters of Board business.

The President may request that a Member-At-Large take on additional duties in the manner of committees as described in Article VIII below.

Sec. 2 Terms. Officers shall serve the term of their office. The three Members-At-Large and the Web Manager shall serve for two years and shall be elected in alternate years. The Development Coordinator shall be elected and serve a renewable three year term, automatically renewable once.

Sec. 3 Powers and Duties. The Board of Directors shall have general oversight and direction of the affairs of the Chapter. It shall have authority to make decisions for the Chapter during the periods between meetings.

Sec. 4 Meetings. The Board of Directors shall hold at least two meetings a year. Other meetings may be called as necessary. A quorum for the Board shall be four members, at least three of whom are officers.

Sec. 5 Notification and Attendance. Except for emergency meetings, all meetings shall be announced at least fourteen (14) days in advance at a prior meeting or through email or other means. All members are expected to attend regularly. Emergency meetings may be called for good cause at any time by the President or President-Elect and may be held upon the attainment of a quorum with subsequent, immediate notification via email to all members not in attendance as to all actions taken. Generally the Board will meet monthly. Meetings may be in-person, electronic, or a combination.

Sec. 6 Vacancies. If any Board member cannot complete their term on the Board, the position shall be filled by an appointment made by the remaining members of the Board.

Sec. 7 Resignations.

A Board Member may resign his or her membership on the OK-ACRL Board at any time by submitting a resignation in writing to the President. A resignation shall become effective upon the date specified in such notice, or, if no date is specified, upon receipt of the resignation by the President.
Three (3) consecutive absences from regularly scheduled meetings (either in person or online) of the OK-ACRL Board without an excuse approved by the President shall constitute a de facto resignation of the Board member.

Sec. 8. Removal.

Any Board Member may be removed with cause (as defined below) by vote of a majority of the members of the Board and such Board Member’s successor shall be appointed at any regular meeting of the Board or any special meeting called for such purpose.
“Cause” is defined as follows:
A Board Member’s breach of any material duty or obligation under the Chapter’s Bylaws or policies;
A Board Member willfully or recklessly engages in misconduct that causes or will cause material harm to the Chapter, including the reputation of the Chapter;
A Board Member willfully engages in an act that constitutes a conflict of interest with the Chapter without the express approval of the Board of Directors.

ARTICLE VIII. Committees and Sections

Sec. 1 Standing Committees may be authorized by the Board of Directors. The name, purpose, and size of the committee shall be specified at the time of its authorization. The Chairperson and other members of each committee shall be named by the President of the Chapter.

Sec. 2 Ad hoc committees may be authorized by the President of the Chapter as needed.

Sec. 3 Discontinuance. Any committee may be discontinued or declared inactive by the Board of Directors.

Sec. 4 Special Interest Sections may be formed within the structure of OK-ACRL, subject to the Bylaws of the Chapter. Any individual/entity who is a member of the Section mailing list is considered to be a member of that Section. Members of any Section must also be members of OK-ACRL. Each Special Interest Section may elect a Chairperson, a Chair-Elect, a Webmaster and, if needed, a Secretary. The Section Chairperson shall represent their group at OK-ACRL Board meetings in a non-voting capacity. Sections may create any other positions they feel are necessary but must notify the Board each year of new positions.

Terms
A Section Chairperson shall serve a one year, elected term. No Section Chairperson may serve more than three consecutive terms.
Powers and duties
Each Chairperson shall be an ex officio non-voting member of the Board. A report summarizing the activities of the Special Interest Section shall be submitted to the OK-ACRL President at the end of each year. Each Special Interest Section shall assist in planning and implementing any programs or workshops sponsored by OK-ACRL. Each Chairperson shall administer the email list and any shared documents for that particular Section.

ARTICLE IX. Nominations and Elections

Sec. 1 Election. The election shall be held no later than November 30. The President-Elect shall compose and present a slate of candidates to the members one week before election. The President-Elect shall utilize all available means to advertise available positions and make every effort to procure at least two candidates per vacancy. Members may submit the names of candidates of their choice during the open call for nominations and before the deadline set by the President-Elect in the call, and those names will be added, upon consent of the nominee to serve if elected is obtained. All members shall receive a ballot. Ballots must be returned and counted by December 5. Candidates receiving a plurality of votes cast shall be elected. In the case of a tie vote, the successful candidate shall be determined by lot.

ARTICLE X. Adoption and Amendments

Sec. 1 Adoption of the Bylaws requires a majority vote by OK-ACRL members present and voting at a meeting at which they are to be considered.

Sec 2. Amendments. The Bylaws may be amended by an affirmative majority of members voting at a Chapter meeting provided such amendments are consistent with the ACRL Bylaws. Notification of changes which are substantive must be sent to all members a minimum of one week prior to the meeting at which they are to be considered.

Sec. 3. Board Review. The Board will conduct a brief bi-annual review of bylaws to determine if bylaws amendments are necessary. The review will occur in the second year of the Secretary’s term.

ARTICLE XI. Year

Sec. 1 Membership year. The membership year shall be the calendar year.

ARTICLE XII. Dissolution

Sec. 1 Upon the dissolution of OK-ACRL, the Board shall, after paying or making provision for the payment of all liabilities of the organization, dispose of all assets of the organization exclusively for the stated purposes of the organization.