The South Hull Home and School Association’s
CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS
Amended June 21, 2018 V6.3
Constitution and By-Laws Approved at the Annual General Meeting of the
South Hull Home and School Association on June 21, 2018
NAME
1. The name of this organization is the South Hull Home and School Association.
CONSTITUTION
2. The South Hull Home and School Association has as its purposes:
2.1 To act as an independent, volunteer, not for profit organization dedicated to enhancing the education and general well being of children by bringing into closer relationship the home, the school and the community, including:
2.1.1 To promote the involvement of parents, students and educators to secure for every child the highest level of learning and advancement.
2.1.2 To act as a voice for all member parents.
2.1.3 To make all parents aware of current educational practices and major issues which affect education.
2.1.4 To carry out fundraising to support extra-curricular activities at the school.
2.1.5 To rent or purchase equipment for approved activities.
POLICY
3. Membership and activities of this Association shall be free of partisan and sectarian bias and discrimination.
DISSOLUTION
4. In the event of wind-up or dissolution of the Association, and following payment of all outstanding debts, the Association shall determine, at the general meeting called to enact the wind-up or dissolution, the disbursement of all its remaining property and assets.
BY-LAWS
PART 1 PREAMBLE
1.01 The South Hull Home and School Association falls under the Quebec Civil Code. Please refer to APPENDIX I (Articles 2186, and 2267 to 2279).
PART 2 INTERPRETATION
2.01 It shall be understood that when the following terms appear in the By-Laws and Constitution unless the context otherwise requires:
“Federation” means the Quebec Federation of Home and School Associations Inc., the provincial organization composed of member Home and School Associations;
“Association” means the South Hull Home and School Association, composed of individual/family members, affiliated with the Federation;
“Constitution” means the body of fundamental principles according to which the Association is governed;
“By-Laws” means regulations by which the Association will fulfill the Constitution;
“member in good standing” means an individual/family who has paid the annual fees to the Association and is not currently suspended;
“Canadian Home and School Federation” means the federal organization composed of representatives from provincial public-school parent organizations;
“general meeting” means a meeting of which all members of the Association are duly notified;
“regular meeting” means the periodic business meetings called by the Association; and
“Quebec Civil Code” means the laws of the Province of Quebec pertaining to governance of corporations and associations, including the not-for-profit sector, from time to time in force and all amendments to it.
“Suspension” means a status an individual has with the local home and school association which does not permit them to attend any meetings or volunteer for any home and school events for a specified time or until the status is changed.
“Expulsion” means a status an individual has with the local home and school association which does not permit them to attend any future meetings or home and school events as a volunteer.
“Probation” means a status an individual has for 3 months after a status of Suspension has been lifted, if the individual breaks the code of conduct during the probation they may be suspended or expelled.
PART 3 MEMBERSHIP
Member Classes, Eligibility, and Admission
3.01 Members of the Association shall be any individual/family who pays the annual Association membership fee.
Duty of Members
3.02 Every member shall uphold the Constitution and comply with the By-Laws of the Association.
3.03 Members shall:
(a) keep up to date on the affairs of the Association.
(b) carry out the responsibilities delegated to them by the Association.
(c) abide by the Code of Conduct, as approved.
3.04 No member may act on behalf of the Association without authorization.
Membership Fees
3.05 (a) The annual membership fee, applicable to all members, shall be set by the Association and shall take into account the fee payable to the Federation.
(b) Membership fees are due by the 2nd (second) regular meeting of the Association. New members will be accepted up to the April regular meeting, when the general meeting will be set.
Good Standing and Suspension
3.06 A member is in good standing who has paid the current annual membership fee and is not in debt to the Association.
3.07 A member may be suspended by a resolution passed by a2/3 vote at a regular meeting. This suspension shall remain in effectuntil it iseither revoked at a subsequent regular meeting (and placed in probabtion) or until the next annual general meeting when the members shall either reinstate, continue the suspension or expelthe member. The member will be notified if the suspension has been lifted.
Membership in Quebec Federation of The Home and School Associations Inc.
3.08 The Association shall maintain its membership in the Quebec Federation of Home and School Associations Inc. Members of the Association are automatically non-voting members of the Federation.PART 4 OFFICERS
4.01 The following Officers of the Association shall be elected at the Annual General Meeting, and will form the Association’s Executive Committee:
(i) President (iii) Secretary (v) Membership and Communications Chair
(ii) Vice-President (iv) Treasurer
(Other permanent posts may be listed. These should also be filled at the AGM.)
4.01.01 The members of the Executive Committee shall carry out the business of the
Association between regular meetings, for decisions including monetary value, not exceeding $500, and will advise members at the next meeting.
Ex officio Position
4.01.02 As a recognition of their expertise, an outgoing President or Treasurer with 3 consecutive years’ experience, may serve in this advisory role, by agreement of the Association. The Ex Officio is a non-paying member, with the right to discuss and debate, but not to vote. The Ex Officio position is not included in any calculations for quorum at meetings.
Eligibility
4.02 Only fully paid up members in good standing shall be eligible to be Officers of the Association.
Terms of Office
4.03 Officers of the Association shall be elected annually and shall hold office until their successors are elected or until they cease to be eligible.
Vacancy
4.04 If there is a vacancy in any office, the vacancy shall be filled from among the members in good standing who attend the regular meetings on a regular basis.
Suspension
4.05 An Officer of the Association may be suspended by the Executive Committee for one or more of the following reasons:
(a) Absence from three consecutive regular meetings without prior notice;
(b) Non-payment of monies owed to the Association after a delay of two (2) months following a written request for payment.
(c) Violation of the Code of Conduct, as approved.
4.06 The suspension shall be for a specific time or until the next annual general meeting. Suspension from office does not necessarily mean suspension of membership in the Association.
4.07 The suspension must be confirmed, annulled , put on probation, or moved to expulsion at the next regular meeting of the Association.
4.08 A two-thirds (2/3) vote is required at the regular meeting or at the annual general meeting for a suspension, probation or expulsion.
4.09 During the debate on a Motion to Suspend, the Officer impacted by this proposed resolution, has the right to participate in and/or address the members at the meeting.
PART 5 MEETINGS
Quorum
5.01 Quorum shall be set at one-third (1/3) of the Association’s members in good standing, for both a regular or general meeting to proceed.
Regular Meeting
5.02 Regular meetings are called monthly to carry out the regular business of the Association.
Notice of a regular meeting shall specify the place, day and hour of the meeting, and shall be distributed seven (7) days prior to the meeting.
Annual General Meeting
5.03 An Annual General Meeting shall be held during May or June at a time and place decided by the Executive Committee at the April regular meeting. At least seven (7) days’ notice shall be given in writing, to all members, for the Annual General Meeting; this notice shall specify the place, day and hour of the meeting.
Special General Meetings
5.04 (a) Special General Meetings of the Association may be called by the President, or by either the President or the Secretary, upon receipt of a request by three (3) voting members.
Notice of a Special General Meeting shall be given to all members and shall specify the place, day and hour of the meeting, along with an agenda, at least five (7) days prior to the meeting. Public notice shall also be given.
(b) The Special General Meeting called under this section shall deal only with the business stipulated in the request as listed on the agenda.
Chairperson
5.05 If at any regular or general meeting neither the President, nor the Vice-President is present 15 minutes after the time appointed for holding the meeting, the Secretary chairs the meeting. In the absence of the Secretary, the Treasurer chairs the meeting. In the absence of the Treasurer, the Membership Chair chairs the meeting. If no Officers of the Association are present, the regular/general meeting is postponed.
Voting
5.06 Only members who are in good standing and who are present are entitled to vote.
5.07 In case of a tie in any vote the chairperson (see 5.05) shall only have a tie breaking vote if he/she did not participate in the original vote, otherwise a tie vote shall be considered a defeat of the resolution.
PART 6 COMMITTEES
6.01 Committees may be formed as needed to carry out the work of the Association and the chairperson of the committee reports to the Executive Committee for emergency and/or time-sensitive monetary or scheduling decisions.
6.01.01 The Chairperson will be so designated from the pool of interested Members. In the event that there is more than one Member interested in serving as Chair for a particular committee, a vote will be held by the Association, and a simple majority (50% + 1) of Members present will determine the outcome.
6.01.02 No Member shall chair more than one committee at any time.
6.01.03 Committees can be constituted of only one Member. Any committee whose purpose is large-scale fundraising must be composed of at least two Members.
Remuneration
6.02 At no time shall remuneration be paid to members for their services to the Association. However, reasonable expenses may be claimed with prior approval of the Executive Committee at a regular meeting.
PART 7 REGIONAL COUNCIL
7.01 The Association shall send a delegate to the Federation Regional Council established in the region. The delegate shall be a member in good standing of the Association.
PART 8 FINANCE
8.01 The fiscal year of the Association shall be from July 1 to June 30.
8.02 A financial statement for the current year to date, shall be presented at the Annual General Meeting, along with the final financial statement for the previous year, or as soon as it operationally feasible and available.
Banking and Cheques
8.03 The Association shall open a bank account or accounts with any branch of a chartered bank selected by the Executive Committee.
8.04. There shall be a maximum of four (4) signing officers with cheques to be signed by any two (2) of them. The signing officers shall be chosen from among the Officers of the Association.
8.05 All expenditures must receive prior authorization at either a regular meeting, or from the Executive Committee.
PART 9 AMENDMENTS TO THE CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS
9.01 The Constitution and the By-Laws may be amended, by a majority of two-thirds (2/3) of the votes, at the Annual General meeting or a Special General Meeting called for this purpose, provided that due notice of the proposed amendments have been sent to all members at least seven (7) days prior to the meeting.
9.02 Amendments to the By-Laws shall take effect as soon as approved, but in no case may be applied retroactively.
9.03 Amendments to the Constitution shall take effect after acceptance by the Federation, and the Local Association’s Constitution may not be in conflict with that of the Federation.
PART 10 RULES OF ORDER
10.01 The rules contained in the latest edition of Robert’s Rules of Order shall govern all matters of procedure, not covered in these By-Laws.