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Helene Messner, Chair-Elect -

Constitution


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New York State Nutrition Council
Constitution

Article I
NAME

The organization shall be known as the New York State Nutrition Council. This Council is a voluntary non-profit organization concerned with the promotion of optimum nutrition.

Article II
PURPOSE

The purpose of the organization is to assist the people of New York State in obtaining and achieving optimum nutrition through the:
  1. Promotion of cross-agency communication.
    The Council will:
    • Identify agencies, organizations, educational institutions and industries concerned with nutrition activities,
    • Share updates on statewide and community programs, initiatives, meetings and interventions, and
    • Cosponsor meetings, workshops, and teleconferences.
  2. Dissemination of reliable sources of nutrition information and identification of opportunities for continued professional development via electronic and newsletter networks.
  3. Coordination of efforts to influence state nutrition policy.

Article III
MEMBERSHIP

Membership shall be open to representatives of official and voluntary agencies, members of local nutrition councils, colleges and universities, professional, industrial, commercial and other organizations and individuals concerned with nutrition and health. Membership approval shall be based on established procedures approved by the Executive Board.

There shall be four types of memberships:
  1. Individual members shall be persons having a minimum of an associate degree (two year program) or higher in nutrition, food service, allied sciences or human ecology from an accredited institution.
  2. Retired members shall be members who have retired from active professional employment in a nutrition-related field.
  3. Honorary members shall be former members of the Council, who have made outstanding contributions to the work of the Council as designated by the Executive Board. They may attend meetings but have no vote.
  4. Student members shall be persons enrolled in a two or four-year program in nutrition, food service, allied sciences or human ecology of an accredited institution.

Article IV
OFFICERS, DUTIES AND ELECTION
  1. The elected officers shall be: Chairperson-elect, Chairperson, Past-Chairperson, Program Chairperson-elect, Program Chairperson, Secretary, Treasurer, and Nominating Committee Member.
    1. The Chairperson-elect will be elected to serve one year as Chairperson-elect and the second year as Chairperson and a third year as Past-Chairperson. The Program Chairperson-elect will be elected to serve one year as Program Chairperson-elect and the second year as Program Chairperson. Secretary and Treasurer shall be elected for two-year terms. The Secretary is elected in the odd years and the Treasurer is elected in the even years.
    2. A Nominating Committee member will be elected each year to serve a three (3) year term, the third year of the term to serve as Chairperson of the committee and serve on the Executive Board.
  2. The officer's responsibilities are:
    1. The Chairperson shall preside at the meetings of the New York State Nutrition Council and at the meeting of the Executive Board, shall perform such other duties incident to the office, and may serve as an ex-officio member on all committees. The Chairperson, when necessary, appoints an Ad Hoc Constitution Committee, upon request of the Past-Chairperson. The Chairperson prepares an Annual Report.
    2. The Chairperson-elect shall act during the absence of the Chairperson. The chairperson-elect serves as a member of the Program Committee and may undertake special projects at the direction of the Chairperson.
    3. The Past-Chairperson shall serve as Parliamentarian. The Past-Chairperson shall be responsible for the yearly examination of the Constitution and Procedures, and, when necessary, initiates a request to the Chairperson for an Ad Hoc Governing Policies committee.
    4. The Program Chairperson-Elect serves on the Program Committee.
    5. The Program Chairperson is responsible for planning the annual meeting program and any additional membership meetings as called by the Executive Board.
    6. The Secretary shall prepare the minutes of meetings, appropriate letters and correspondence.
    7. The Treasurer shall act as custodian of funds for the Council and disburse them according to the approved budget or through the action of the executive board. The Treasurer shall report the state of the treasury at each meeting of the Council and Executive Board.
    8. The Nominating Committee chairperson shall be responsible for the preparation of the slate of officers to be elected each year.
    9. The Chairperson-elect and Program Chairperson- elect shall be elected each year. The Secretary shall be elected in the odd years. The Treasurer shall be elected in the even year. A Nominating Committee member shall be elected each year to serve a three-year term.
    10. The ballots must be mailed to reach members no later than 30 days prior to the Annual Meeting, to be returned to the Chair of the Nominating Committee postmarked no later than10 days prior to the Annual Meeting. The results of the mail ballot will be announced by the Nominating Committee Chairperson at the Annual Meeting.
    11. In the event of a vacancy in any office, the Chairperson shall appoint, with the approval of the Executive Board, a member to complete the unexpired terms.

Article V
Executive Board, Duties and Appointments
  1. The Executive Board shall consist of the elected and appointed officers: Chairperson-elect, Past Chair-person, Chairperson, Program Chairperson-elect, Program Chairperson, Secretary, Treasurer, and Nominating Committee Chairperson, the Historian, the designated Representative of the Local Nutrition Councils, and the Chairperson of each standing and ad hoc committee.
  2. The Executive Board shall transact and direct the business of the New York State Nutrition Council.
  3. A majority of the elected members of the Executive Board shall constitute a quorum.
  4. Liaison members shall be appointed to serve on the Executive Board in an advisory and update capacity.
    1. One liaison member shall be recruited by the Board from each of the following: NYS Department of Health, NYS School Food Service Association, NYS Dietetic Association, NYS Family and Consumer Science Educators,, WIC, Cornell Cooperative Extension, NYS universities and colleges with nutrition programs, NYS Education Department, American Association of Family and Consumer Sciences - NY Affiliate, NYS Nutrition Consortium, and any other statewide nutrition organization having mutual purposes.
    2. Liaisons are appointed by the Chairperson for a term of two years. They shall be appointed on a rotating basis to serve either on odd or even year terms.
    3. Liaisons will be responsible for writing a periodic update on their agency's activities for the Nutrition Council newsletter.

Article VI
MEETINGS
  1. At least one meeting of the Council shall be held each year during the period March through July. This shall be the Annual Meeting. The date of the Annual Meeting will be determined by the Executive Board.
  2. A majority of the membership present at the Annual Meeting shall constitute a quorum.
  3. Other meetings shall be called at the direction of the Chairperson, or by the Chairperson at the request of the Executive Board, or at the written request of three members of the Council.

Article VII
STANDING COMMITTEES AND AD HOC COMMITTEES
  1. The following serve for a two-year term, as appointed by the Chairperson in the following rotation: even year: Historian and Local Council Representative odd year: Councilor Editor(s) and Membership
  2. The Chairperson of each committee is a member of the Executive Board and is responsible for appointing the committee members as needed.
  3. The Chairperson of each committee shall submit three copies of the committee report at the Annual Meeting.
  4. The following are the Standing Committees:
    1. Nominating Committee shall be composed of the three elected members who serve a three-year term. The member in the third year of the term serves as Chairperson.
    2. The Program Committee shall have the responsibility for planning the Annual Meeting.
    3. The Membership Committee shall be charged with 1) coordinating the annual membership campaign, 2) maintaining the membership database, and 3) producing the membership directory.
    4. The Councilor Committee shall be charged with the preparation and circulation of the Councilor on a schedule to be established by the Executive Board.
    5. The Historian shall be appointed by the Chairperson to see that all pertinent historical data is on file in the Olin Library, Cornell University
    6. Local Council Representative shall maintain communications with local organizations and encourage their participation in NYSNC.
  5. At any meeting of the Council or the Executive Board, such Ad Hoc committees as are needed to further the purposes of the organization may be appointed to serve until discharged. The Chairperson of such an Ad Hoc Committee becomes a member of the Executive Board.

Article VIII
DUES
  1. Annual dues are for the membership year beginning September 1 and are payable no later than October 15 for inclusion in the membership directory. New members are accepted at any time. Dues paid after June 1 will be credited to the next membership year.
  2. Dues and any increases in dues shall be recommended by the Executive Board and approved by the membership of the Council at the following Annual Meeting.
  3. There shall be no dues assessed for HONORARY LIFE MEMBERS. RETIRED MEMBERS and STUDENT MEMBERS shall be assessed one-half the sum assessed PROFESSIONAL MEMBERS.

Article IX
CHANGES OR ADDITIONS TO CONSTITUTION
  1. Changes or additions to these Governing Policies may be voted on at the Annual Meeting of the New York State Nutrition Council or by mail.
  2. Notice of changes or additions to the Constitution shall be included in the call to the Annual Meeting.
  3. Changes or additions become effective upon ratification by a majority vote of the membership attending the Annual Meeting or of the membership response to a mail ballot.

Article X
DISSOLUTION
  1. New York State Nutrition Council will follow Robert's Rules of Order for dissolution with the following additions:
    1. no response to the dissolution ballot will be assumed to be a vote for approval of dissolution,
    2. a second vote by members of the Executive Board will be held following the general membership vote.
  2. In the event of the dissolution of the New York State Nutrition Council, all assets remaining after settlement of outstanding debts shall be divided equally to the scholarship funds of the New York State Association of Family and Consumer Sciences and the New York Dietetic Association.

Adopted July 7, 1960
Amended July 11, 1962
Amended July 12, 1963
Revised November 1968 (Adopted January 1969)
Revised April 1977 (Adopted June 1997)
Revised September 1978 (Adopted January 1979)
Amended, revised and adopted June 1987
Amended, revised and adopted April 1989
Amended, revised and adopted June 1992
Amended, revised and adopted March 2000
Amended, revised draft for approval at Annual Meeting, June 12, 2003