IEEE Education Society: Constitution

CONSTITUTION AND BY-LAWS

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Original Constitution approved: 10/10/57 Amended: 5/11/70, 7/3/72, 10/17/74, 9/22/76, 6/24/86, 6/24/96, and 11/7/97

CONSTITUTION

IEEE EDUCATION SOCIETY

Article I — Name and Object

Section 1. This organization shall be known as the Education Society of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc.

Section 2. Its objectives shall be scientific, literary, and educational in character. The Society shall strive for the advancement of the theory and practice of electrical and computer engineering and of the allied arts and sciences, and the maintenance of a high professional standing among its members and affiliates, all in consonance with the Constitution and Bylaws of the IEEE and with special attention to such aims within the field of interest of the Society as are hereafter defined.

Section 3. The Society shall aid in promoting close cooperation and exchange of technical information among its members, and to this end hold meetings for the presentation of papers and their discussion, and through its committees shall study and provide for the needs of its members.

Article II — Field of Interest

Section 1. The field of interest of the Society shall be Educational Methods, Educational Technology, Instructional Materials, History of Science and Technology, and Educational and Professional Development Programs within Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, and allied disciplines.

Section 2. The field of interest of the Society may be enlarged, reduced, or shifted moderately as the needs of the occasion indicate with the provision that such revisions shall be processed as an amendment to this Constitution.

Article III — Membership

Section 1. Membership in the Society shall be available to all members of the IEEE in any grade, including students, having a professional interest in any phase of the field of interest of the Society.

Section 2. Society membership privileges are available to other qualified personnel in accordance with IEEE policies concerning affiliates. The Education Society bylaws shall define any special limitations in the application of these policies to the Education Society.

Article IV — Financial Support

Section 1. The Society shall collect from its members and affiliates an annual assessment or fee, in accordance with the IEEE bylaws and applicable rules and regulations. The amount of the fee shall be prescribed in the bylaws.

Section 2. The society may make registration charges at its Society meetings, symposia, conferences, and conventions. The registration fee for non-members of the IEEE may be higher than for IEEE members or affiliates.

Section 3. The society may raise revenues by other means, such as advertising, shows, requests for contributions, and charges for sending out notices to non-Society members, provided such means are consistent with applicable IEEE rules and regulations. Any new revenue means not explicitly covered by IEEE rules and regulations must be approved by the General Manager before being adopted by the Society.

Article V — Administration

Section 1. The Society shall be managed by an Administrative Committee of 12 elected members of the Society plus members “ex-officio with vote” as specified in the bylaws. (There may also be members “ex-officio without vote.”)

Section 2. Sub-Societies may be formed as provided in the IEEE rules and regulations, and the nature of sub-Societies, and the supervision of sub-Society affairs other than by the Administration Committee, shall be prescribed in the bylaws.

Section 3. The terms of the 12 members-at-large of the Administrative Committee shall be for three years, four (1/3 total member of number of members-at-large) members to be elected each year. Only two consecutive full terms are permitted, but eligibility is restored after a lapse of one year.

Section 4. The Administrative Committee shall, prior to December 1 of each year, elect a President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer. These terms shall be for one year, January 1 - December 31. A President may not be reelected for more than two consecutive terms.

Section 5. Newly elected President, Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, and members of the Administrative Committee shall assume office on the first of January each year, unless a different time is provided by the bylaws.

Section 6. The duties and responsibility of the officers shall be as defined hereunder and in the bylaws and as delineated by the Administrative Committee.

Section 7. The President, under direction of the Administrative Committee, shall have general supervision of the affairs of the Society. He/she shall preside at meetings of the Administrative Committee, at general meetings of the Society, and at the “Annual Meeting of the Society”, and have such other powers and perform such other duties as may be provided in the Society bylaws, or as may be delegated to the President by vote of the Society Administrative Committee. In the President’s absence or incapacity, the President’s duties shall be performed by the Vice-President.

Section 8. The President shall be an ex-officio member of all Committees of the Society. Further, as a member of the IEEE Technical Activities Board, the President shall represent the Society at meetings of the Board, or designate an alternate, such as the Vice-President or Secretary, to represent the Society. If an alternate cannot be found, the President shall present the views of the Society by a letter of proxy.

Section 9. The Administrative Committee may establish standing or ad hoc committees as prescribed in the bylaws, including both functional committees (e.g. Awards, Chapters, Membership, Nominations) and technical committees. Technical Committees may be established as needed to develop specific areas of the field of interest. All appointments to committee and similar posts will be for a term of one year or until successors are appointed or the committee is dissolved.

Section 10. The Administrative Committee may utilize the services of Headquarters as bursar, for all or part of the Society funds, as provided by the IEEE bylaws and rules and regulations. If any part of the Society funds are received and deposited separately, the terms and conditions shall be in accordance with IEEE policies and subject to the provisions of the Society bylaws and to any special limitations imposed by the Administrative Committee.

Section 11. Neither the Education Society, nor any officer or representative thereof, shall have any authority to contract debts for, pledge the credit of, or in any way bind the IEEE except within prior approved budgets.

Article VI — Nomination and Election of Administrative Committee

Section 1. The nominating procedure shall include provision for petition by Society members to place a name on the ballot.

Section 2. Election of the 12 members-at-large of the Administrative Committee shall be as prescribed in the bylaws.

Section 3. Within-term-vacancies on the Administrative Committee shall be filled by appointments, for the unexpired terms, by the President with the consent of the Committee.

Article VII — Meetings

Section 1. The Societies may hold meetings, conferences, symposia, or conventions either alone or in cooperation with Sectional, Regional, or National Convention Committee of the IEEE, or other technical organizations, subject to IEEE rules and regulations. The Society shall sponsor at least one technical conference of national scope each year, which may be held during the International Convention, or during some other IEEE meeting, or as separate conference.

Section 2. Meetings, Conferences, or Conventions of the Society shall be open on an equal basis to all members of the IEEE. The Society may not sponsor or cosponsor a meeting which is subject to security clearance.

Section 3. The Administrative Committee shall hold at least two meetings, one an Annual Meeting at a time specified in the bylaws. Other meetings of the Administrative Committee shall be held at such times as are found necessary and/or convenient. Special meetings of the Committee may be called by the President of the Society at his/her own discretion or upon request of three other members of the Committee.

Section 4. Nine members of the Administrative Committee shall constitute a quorum. All members shall have an equal vote. Ex-officio members will not have a vote unless the bylaws specifically provide otherwise.

Section 5. A majority of the legal votes cast by those members of the Administrative Committee attending a meeting shall be necessary for the conduct of its business except as otherwise provided in this Constitution.

Section 6. Business of the Administrative Committee may be handled by correspondence, telephone, or other electronic means, where in the opinion of the President matters requiring action can be adequately handled in that manner. A majority of the legal votes cast by the members of the Committee is necessary for approval of actions handled in that manner, unless otherwise provided. Telephone acts are to be promptly confirmed in writing.

Article VIII — Publications

Section 1. Publications undertaken by the Society shall be subject to IEEE policies and to any further guidance or controls prescribed by the Administrative Committee or its duly appointed committees. The Society shall be responsible for the financial aspects of its publication program.

Section 2. The President, with the advice and consent of the Administrative Committee, shall appoint such editors as may be required to implement the publication program. The duties of an editor, and the editor’s compensation, if any, shall be prescribed in the bylaws.

Article IX — Amendments

Section 1. Amendments to this Constitution may be initiated by petition submitted by twenty-five members of the Society or by the Administrative Committee, such petition being submitted to the IEEE Technical Activities Board, and to the Executive Committee of the IEEE for approval. After such approval, the proposed amendments shall be published in the Society Transactions or Newsletter, or otherwise publicized by direct mailing to the membership with notice that it goes into effect unless ten percent of the Society members object within 30 days. If such objections are received, a copy of the proposed amendment shall be mailed with a ballot to all members of the Society at least 30 days before the date appointed for return of the ballots, and the ballots shall carry a statement of the time limit for their return to the IEEE office. When a mail vote of the entire Society membership is made necessary, approval of the amendment by at least two-thirds of the ballots legally cast shall be necessary for its enactment.

Section 2. Suitable bylaws, and amendments thereto, may be adopted by a two-thirds vote of the Administrative Committee present in meeting assembled, provided that notice of the proposed bylaws, or amendment, has been sent to each member of the Administrative Committee at least a week prior to such a meeting; or a bylaw, or amendment, may be adopted by a two-thirds mail vote of the members of the Administrative Committee provided a 30-day period is provided for such responses. In either event, the proposed bylaw or amendment shall be published in the Society Transactions or Newsletter. No bylaw, or amendment, shall take effect until it has been published and has been mailed to the Technical Activities Secretary of the IEEE, and he/she has obtained approval of the General Manager.

Section 3. All amendments to the Constitution or bylaws shall become effective immediately after the affirmative vote, and all required approvals have been obtained, unless a later date has been specified at the time the vote is taken.

Bylaws Amended: 11/3/95, 11/7/97, 6/30/98, 6/18/02, 11/7/03, and 10/22/04

BYLAWS

IEEE EDUCATION SOCIETY

1. These Bylaws provide detailed guidance for the supervision and management of the Society affairs; in accordance with the Society Constitution, amendments may be made by means of the procedures described in Article IX, Section 2, of the Constitution.

2. Membership: There shall be only one grade of general Society membership available to all IEEE members or to members in other societies that have been recognized by specific action of the Society Administrative Committee. A list of approved societies will be maintained by the Technical Activities Secretary of IEEE. Further, other members may join in accordance with any other provision that may be incorporated in the IEEE rules and regulations.

2.2 Students: An exception to the annual fee shall be made for students, as prescribed by IEEE rules and regulations.

2.3 Special Provisions: Any special members (life, or other honorary) and affiliates of the Society on January 1, 1970 may continue even though their respective attainment of such special membership or affiliation was by a means other than as defined above.

3. Administrative Committee: Article V, Section 1, of the Constitution provides that the Administrative Committee shall consist of 12 elected members-at-large plus ex-officio members. Article VII, Section 4, provides that a quorum shall be nine members, without distinction between the members-at-large and the ex-officio members with vote, and that all members shall have an equal vote. Ex-officio members with vote are the four elected officers, the Junior and Senior Past presidents, and the chairs of the standing committees.

3.1 Each retiring Society President shall be designated the Junior Past President, and his/her immediate predecessor shall be designated the Senior Past President. These persons shall serve as ex-officio members with vote. If either or both are elected member-at-large or are appointed a Standing Committee Chair, there shall be only one vote.

3.2 Unless otherwise provided, a majority vote of the members attending an Administrative Committee meeting shall be sufficient for the conduct of its business.

3.3 In order to ensure a continuously active Administrative Committee, elected Administrative Committee members who miss three consecutive meetings will be dropped from membership in the absence of extenuating circumstances. Vacancies thus or otherwise created shall be filled by the appointments for the unexpired terms by the President with the consent of the Administrative Committee.

3.4 Robert’s Rules of Order shall govern conduct of Administrative Committee meetings on all matters not otherwise specified in these Bylaws or the Constitution.

4. Nomination and Election of the Administrative Committee: The Nominating Committee shall be reconstituted by the Society President on or before July 15th each year. The Nominating Committee shall consist of a chair and four or more members of the Society, not more than half of whom may be members of the Administrative Committee. The Junior Past President shall serve as the committee chair, and one of the other committee members shall be designated as the committee secretary.

4.1 A slate of nominees for members-at-large vacancies of the Administrative Committee shall be prepared by the Nominating Committee. Recommendations for such nominees shall be solicited by a letter and/or e-mail sent to the Chairs of all Sub-Societies and Standing Committees by August 1st. In addition, the Chair of the Nominating Committee shall publish a call for nominations and distribute it to the entire Society membership by August 1st; such distribution shall be done electronically (e-mail distribution list and Society web site) and/or in print (Society newsletter). A nominating petition carrying a minimum of 25 names of Society members, excluding students, shall automatically place a nominee on the slate to be presented to the Administrative Committee. Recommendations and petitions are to be submitted to Nominating Committee by September 15th.

4.2 The Administrative Committee shall hold a meeting each fall, at which elections will be held to fill vacancies in the Administrative Committee to occur on the succeeding January 1st. If two nominees are not available for each vacancy, the Administrative Committee may add nominees if any members thereof see fit to do so. A plurality of votes shall elect. Ties shall be broken by the Administrative Committee. The Administrative Committee may make contingent elections to be effective in case an elected member fails to accept the office, or a disapproval is received from Headquarters. The President and Secretary of the Nominating Committee shall submit the names of such elected members to the Chairman of the Technical Activities Board. Unless disapproval of such elected members is received within 60 days of such transmittal, the election shall become final.

4.3 The Society President each year shall issue instructions to the Chair of the Nominating Committee prior to July 15th to ensure an orderly progression and completion of the election procedures.

4.4 In the preparation of the slate of nominees and in the election, proper consideration shall be given to both geographical representation and technical interests. In particular, the Nominating Committee shall actively encourage trans-national participation in the Administrative Committee by nominating candidates from outside Regions I through VI.

5. Officers: The Nominating Committee shall submit nominations for President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer to all members of the Administrative Committee. Ballots shall be completed prior to December 1st and a majority of ballots shall determine election.

5.1 The term of elected officers shall be one year, commencing on January 1st. The President may be re-elected to a second term of one year. He/She shall not again be eligible for election to the Presidency until a lapse of one year. The Vice-President and Secretary may hold office for not more than two consecutive years. Eligibility is restored after a lapse of one year. The Treasurer may hold office for up to 6 consecutive years. Eligibility is restored after a lapse of one year.

5.2 All officers shall continue to serve until their successors take office.

5.3 The President shall supervise the affairs of the Society and shall speak for the Society on all matters not specifically delegated to others.

5.4 The Vice-President shall fulfill the duties of the President in his/her absence or incapacity. He/she shall fulfill such other functions as the President of the Society from time to time directs. The Vice-President shall serve as the chair of the Awards Committee. In lieu of the history committee, the Vice-President shall serve as liaison to the IEEE Center for the History of Electrical Engineering.

5.5 The Secretary shall be responsible for keeping the records of the Administrative Committee in the areas commonly ascribable to this function. He/She shall prepare and distribute reports, notices, or such documents as may be required by the President and the Administrative Committee.

5.6 The Treasurer shall be responsible for keeping the records of the Administrative Committee in the areas commonly ascribable to this function. Any nominee for Treasurer must have served the Society as Finance Chair for at least two years, or served in a similar capacity within the IEEE organization for the same time, in order to be able to understand the complexities of IEEE finances.

6. Sub-Societies: Sub-Societies are voluntary associations of a significant portion of the total Society membership and, hence are not equivalent to the Standing Committees, which are appointive.

6.1 Chapters: Chapters are Sub-Societies organized on a geographical basis. This subject is fully treated in the IEEE Bylaws, in the IEEE Societies Section of the Technical Activities Manual, and in the Section Manual.

6.2 Technical Sub-Societies: A technical Sub-Society may be organized to cover a specified portion of the field of interest of the Society. Each technical Sub-Society shall be governed by a Technical Committee. Sub-Societies may organize sessions at a Society Symposium or Technical Conference and may also organize separate, specialized symposia. Sub-Societies may organize special issues of the Transactions or special section in an issue. Any service for Sub-Society members, beyond those provided all Society members, must be paid for by the Sub-Society members. If this takes form of a special Sub-Society assessment, its form and amount must be endorsed by the Administrative Committee and approved by the General Manager of the IEEE.

7. Publications: The Society shall sponsor such publications as are recommended by the Publications Committee and approved by the Administrative Committee. The President, with the advice and consent of the Administrative Committee, shall appoint the editor for each publication.

7.1 Term Of Office: An editor may serve indefinitely subject to mutual agreement with the President. The compensation for an editor may be set by the President, with the advice and consent of the Administrative Committee.

7.2 The editor of the Transactions shall serve as a co-chair of the Publications Committee.

7.3 The editor shall be responsible for implementing the publication program defined by the Publications Committee. In accordance with the guidance of this Committee and general IEEE rules and regulations, the editor shall designate associate editors, special guest editors, and manuscript reviewers.

7.4 The editor of the Interface (the Society newsletter) shall serve as a co-chair of the Publications Committee.

7.5 Editorial expenses shall be subject to review and approval of the Society Treasurer, who shall be responsible for adherence to the annual publications budget.

7.6 The Society shall maintain a presence on the World Wide Web (a web site). The webmaster responsible for this web site shall be appointed by the President of the Society, with the advice and consent of the Administrative Committee. The webmaster may serve indefinitely subject to mutual agreement with the President. The Society’s web site should include a listing of the Society officers, members of the Administrative Committee, and committee chairs and members, as well as meeting agendas and minutes, materials for Society events, Society reports and newsletters, and other materials as requested by the President of the Society.

7.7 The Society shall maintain several electronic e-mail lists. One list shall be used for rapid dissemination of information of interest to the membership, such as conference announcements, calls for papers, regional events, and submission deadlines; all members should be automatically added to this list, with a simple provision for unsubscribing. Another list shall be used for discussion by the membership of topics within the field of interest of the Society; subscription to this list shall be voluntary. Other lists shall be created as necessary, as recommended by the Society President with the consent of the Administrative Committee.

8. Society Funds: The Society may raise funds as specified in Article IV of the Constitution and in the IEEE Bylaws and rules and regulations.

8.1 The annual Society fee shall be $20.00.

8.2 IEEE Headquarters shall act as bursar for all Society funds except as specified hereunder. Billings and receipt of the annual fee shall be via the IEEE Membership and Fiscal Departments. All other fiscal affairs shall be handled through the office of the Technical Activities Secretary.

8.3 The general committee for a symposium or technical conference may, with the advice and consent of the Administrative Committee, authorize the symposium treasurer or fiscal officer to open an account to be used for the deposit and disbursement of funds related to the symposium. In each case, the Administrative Committee shall be advised of the name of the bank, the anticipated size of the account, the names of the account signatories, and of arrangements of insurance and for bonding. Symposia jointly sponsored with other technical societies are excluded where a charter of operations with those societies is approved by the Administrative Committee and the IEEE.

8.4 For other special circumstances, such as co-sponsorship of a Symposium, the Administrative Committee shall make prudent arrangements to safeguard the Society funds that may be involved.

9. Group Business: The President and Officers shall conduct the Society affairs subject to the advice and consent of the Administrative Committee, except where authorization is specified.

9.1 No Administrative Committee meetings shall be held for the purpose of transacting business unless each member shall have been sent notice of the time and place of such meeting 20 days prior to the scheduled date of the meeting. Provided, however, that if less than a quorum attend a duly called meeting, tentative actions may be taken which will become effective upon subsequent ratification, either at a meeting or by mail and/or e-mail, by a sufficient number of members as to constitute a majority. Minutes of such meetings shall be mailed or sent by appropriate electronic means by the Secretary to each Committee member, who shall register his/her disapproval of any actions taken at such meetings within 10 days after receiving said minutes or he/she shall be deemed to have ratified.

9.2 An appropriate order of business at the annual meeting of the Administrative Committee shall be:

1. Roll Call
2. Reading of minutes of previous meeting
3. Reading of report on business transacted other than at meeting
4. Reports of Communications
5. Reports of Officers
6. Reports of Committees
7. Unfinished Business
8. New Business
9. Elections if not otherwise provided for
10. Adjournment

10. Technical Committees: A Technical Committee, which may organize a Sub-Society if desired, functions in a specific technical area with a scope to be approved by the Administrative Committee.

10.1 Appointment: Members and officers shall be appointed by the President of the Society.

10.2 Functions: Each Technical Committee shall promote activities in its field and shall provide the expert knowledge and assistance to:

a. Receive, generate, and review papers within its scope in cooperation with the Transactions Editor and the Papers Review Committee
b. Organize and operate sessions at the meeting of IEEE at all levels and at meetings of other organizations with which the Education Society is desirous of cooperating, in accordance with the rules in effect at such Committee.
c. Arrange through appropriate editors for publishing pertinent papers in IEEE publications in cooperation with the cognizant Technical Program Committee.
d. Generate and develop appropriate standards in its field for processing by the IEEE Standards Committee, through the Society Standards Committee and otherwise in accordance with Institute policies.

10.3 Operations: The operations of each Technical Committee shall be in accordance with the Manual for Operation of Technical Committees, or other Administrative Committee rules.

10.4 Council: The chairs of all the Technical Committees shall constitute a Council to coordinate their activities. The Council shall organize itself. Members of the Council shall be members ex-officio without vote of the Administrative Committee.

11. Standing Committees: Standing Committees shall be appointed by the Society President, with the advice and consent of the Administrative Committee. It will be discretionary with the Society President to appoint any part or all of any Standing Committees, or to appoint the Chair only of a Committee and request the latter to appoint additional Committee members.

11.a The terms of office of the Chair and members shall be for one year or until a successor is appointed, unless a different term of office is designated by the Administrative Committee.

11.b Special or Adhoc committees may be created by the Administrative Committee. For each such case, the Administrative Committee shall specify the number of members the committee shall have and how the members are to be selected, and the terms of the members if other than for the life of the committee. Special or adhoc committees shall be automatically dissolved after two years unless the Administrative Committee sets an expiration date.

11.c Rosters of these Committees shall be prepared by the respective Chair and forwarded to the Administrative Committee.

11.1 Awards Committee: The Vice President shall serve as the Chair of the Awards Committee. At least one-half of the members of the Awards Committee shall hold Fellow grade. This Committee shall be responsible for recommending various forms of recognition for noteworthy contributions to the fields of interest to the Society. It shall see that deserving members are nominated for awards and prizes administered by the IEEE and other relevant organizations. This Committee shall be responsible for administering the Society’s awards programs. The Committee Chair may appoint sub-committees for individual Society Awards, as well as representatives to committees involved in the selection of other awards in which the Society participates. Nominations for Society Awards shall be considered annually, although awards need not be made annually. The Committee’s decisions are final and need not be ratified by the AdCom. The Committee shall review the Society’s awards from time-to-time, and may propose modifications to existing Society Awards, as well as additional Society Awards, subject to approval by the AdCom and the IEEE TAB. The Committee Chair shall prepare an annual report covering all of the awards activities.

11.2 Chapter Committee: This Committee shall assist in the formation of new Society Chapters and maintain liaison between Chapters and the Administrative Committee. The Committee shall be responsible for the promotion of the Society’s area of interest within the regional and sectional organizations of the IEEE.

11.3 Constitution and Bylaws: This Committee shall be responsible for the preparation of Constitutional Amendments and changes to the Bylaws for Administrative Committee action, when such amendments or changes either appear necessary or are so directed by the Administrative Committee. The Committee is also responsible for examining society actions to determine whether these are in accordance with the Constitution and Bylaws of the Society and with the Constitution and Bylaws of IEEE.

11.4 Publications: The function of the Publications Committee will be to:

a. Solicit or otherwise obtain sufficient quantity of suitable material and technical articles for publication of the Transactions on a regular schedule.
b. Supervise and otherwise arrange for the publication of the Transactions on this basis.
c. Supervise Newsletter.
d. The Newsletter Editor and the Transactions Editor shall serve as co-chairs of the Publications Committee, and both shall serve as ex-officio members with vote of the Administrative Committee.

11.5 Meetings: This Committee shall, as required, assist the respective Program Committees in planning and selecting programs for meetings, including conferences, conventions and symposia, within the field of interest of the Society. In addition, this Committee shall investigate and propose new meetings, and shall evaluate proposals for new meetings.

11.6 Membership: This Committee shall encourage membership in the Society and shall maintain records of Society membership.

11.7 Nominating: This Committee shall nominate candidates for elected membership-at-large of the Administrative Committee and for President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer of the Society in accordance with the Bylaws. The Nominating Committee shall consist of a Chair and four members of the Society, not more than two of which shall be members-at-large of the Administrative Committee.

11.8 Finance: This Committee shall be responsible for all financial activities of the Education Society. The Finance Committee shall consist of a Chair and four members of the Society, not more than two of which shall be members-at-large of the Administrative Committee. The Treasurer shall serve as an ex-officio member with vote of the Finance Committee.

11.9 Fellow: Each year, this Committee shall evaluate the nominations to IEEE Fellow grade of candidates whose accomplishments are in the fields of interest of the Education Society, and shall report its findings in a timely manner to the IEEE Fellow Committee. This Committee shall consist of a chair and at least four other members, all of whom must be Fellows of the IEEE.