Constitution and By-Laws of the Society of the Alumni
Article I
SOCIETY OF THE ALUMNI
1. Name. This association shall be called the Society of the Alumni of Amherst College.
2. Object. The object of the Society shall be to establish closer relations between Amherst College and its alumni, to promote universal and systematic gifts from the alumni for college purposes, and to advance the interests of the College.
3. Membership.
(a) All graduates of the College, those who have received from it an honorary degree, and all non-graduates who have matriculated and whose classes shall have graduated, shall be members of the Society.
(b) There shall be an additional class of membership in the Society, without voting privilege, known as "Associates;" such membership to comprise such surviving spouses of Amherst alumni, faculty and staff of the College, parents of present and former students, and friends of the College who have maintained a close interest and demonstrated support, as the Executive Committee of the Alumni Council shall, from time to time, elect to membership.
4. Officers. The officers of the Society shall be as follows: An Honorary President, a President and five Vice-Presidents, who shall be elected by ballot at the annual meeting of the Society. The Honorary President and Vice Presidents shall severally hold their offices for one year from their election and until their successors are elected. The President shall hold office for the term for which nominated (not to exceed three years) from the date of election, and until a successor is elected. There shall also be a Secretary and a Treasurer, who shall be appointed by the Executive Committee of the Alumni Council after conference by the Committee or a member or members thereof with the President of the College. Vacancies may be filled by the Executive Committee of the Alumni Council.
5. Honorary President. The Honorary President shall be chosen as a mark of special recognition. His/her duties shall be advisory.
6. President. It shall be the duty of the President to preside at all meetings of the Society and of the Executive Committee of the Alumni Council in the absence of its Chair, and to perform the usual duties pertaining to the office. In the absence of the President at any meeting of the Society a Vice-President shall preside and for the time being perform all the duties of the President.
7. Treasurer. The Treasurer of the Society shall provide for the keeping of full and accurate accounts of all receipts and disbursements of the Society. All funds of the Society shall be in the care and custody of the Treasurer of Amherst College.
8. Secretary. The Secretary shall keep the records of the Society, shall give notice of all special meetings of the Society, and shall perform such other duties as may be prescribed by the Executive Committee of the Alumni Council. The Secretary shall be paid a salary as determined by the Executive Committee of the Alumni Council after consultation with the
President of the College.
9. Committees. At the annual meeting of the Society there shall also be elected, to hold office
(a) Three Inspectors of Election of Alumni Trustees, each to serve a term of one year;
(b) Three members of a Nominating Committee on Alumni Trustees of nine members,
each to serve a term of three years. No member of the Board of Trustees or of the faculty of Amherst College shall be a member of this committee and no person shall serve more than two consecutive terms.
The Executive Committee of the Alumni Council may fill the unexpired term of any vacancy on these committees.
10. Regulations for Election of Alumni Trustees. The regulations for the election of Alumni Trustees shall be determined by the Society.
11. Meetings. The annual meeting of the Society of the Alumni shall be held at Amherst at such time and place as shall be designated by the Executive Committee of the Alumni Council. Special meetings may be held at such times and places as may be designated by the Executive Committee of the Alumni Council or may be called at the request in writing of twenty-five members of the Society of the Alumni. Notice of all special meetings of the Society shall be sent to all members thereof at their last known addresses as recorded by the Society at least thirty days before such meeting. Notice of the annual meeting as announced in the Reunion program of the College shall be deemed a sufficient notice of the annual meeting. Twenty members of the Society shall constitute a quorum.
Article II
ALUMNI COUNCIL
1. Object. There shall be an executive council of the Society of the Alumni to be known as the Alumni Council. The object of the Alumni Council shall be to transact the business of the Society between its annual meetings.
2. Powers. The Alumni Council, between the meetings of the Society, shall have all the powers of the Society of the Alumni, except those relating to the nomination and election of alumni trustees. Among other duties it shall consider any matters that may be brought to its attention by the trustees or by the faculty, and when so requested, give its opinion thereon and take
such other action as shall seem advisable.
3. Alumni Fund.
(a) The Alumni Council shall be specially charged with the responsibility of developing and increasing the Alumni Fund of Amherst College. Gifts to the fund may be either unrestricted or for additions to the Principal Fund. When so specified gifts shall form a part of the Principal Fund and be invested by the Trustees of Amherst College.
(b) Unrestricted gifts and the income or principal of the Alumni Fund shall be appropriated annually by the Alumni Council with the approval of the Board of Trustees, for any or all of the following purposes:
(1) General college purposes.
(2) The Principal Fund of the Alumni Fund.
(3) Expenses of the Society of the Alumni.
(c) The title to the Alumni Fund shall be in The Trustees of Amherst College. All remittances of subscriptions secured from the alumni through the efforts of the Alumni Council shall be made to the Treasurer of Amherst College, who shall be the treasurer of the Alumni Fund.
(d) There shall be an Alumni Fund Committee whose members shall be elected by the Alumni Council. The number of members of the Committee and the length of the term of service on the Committee (not less than one year) shall be as prescribed by the Executive Committee from time to time. The Committee shall elect each year from among its members a Chairman and such other officers, if any, as it deems appropriate. In the event of the resignation or inability to serve of any member of the Committee,
the vacancy shall be filled by the remaining members of the Committee. The Alumni
Fund Committee shall supervise and manage the collection of the Alumni Fund.
4. Other Funds and Gifts. The Alumni Council shall also assume responsibility for developing and increasing all gifts to Amherst College.
5. Membership of Alumni Council.
(a) The Alumni Council Representatives shall be chosen as follows: One representative from every class graduated from Amherst College, duly elected therefrom; one representative from every alumni association or club recognized by the Society, duly elected therefrom, and one additional representative from every such association or club certifying to a membership of one hundred or more members, duly elected therefrom. In the event there is no duly elected representative of any class, association, or club, the duly elected President thereof shall serve as its representative.
(b) All members of the Executive Committee and the Alumni Fund committee shall be members of the Alumni Council ex-officio.
(c) The representatives of classes shall be elected at graduation, and at every fifth year reunion thereafter, or as near thereto as practicable, to serve until the next succeeding reunion and until their successors are elected. Any vacancies occurring under this paragraph may be filled by the Executive Committee of the Alumni Council.
(d) The representatives of alumni associations and clubs shall be elected at the annual meetings of such associations and clubs for a term of three years and until their successors are elected. Whenever an association or club shall be entitled to two representatives, the second representative shall be elected one year after the first. Any vacancies occurring under this paragraph may be filled by the Executive Committee of the Alumni Council.
(e) No representative shall be eligible for reelection by the group he/she is representing.
6. Meetings of Alumni Council. There shall be an annual meeting of the Alumni Council held at such time and place as the Executive Committee shall appoint. Special meetings may be called by the Executive Committee. Notice of the annual meeting and of special meetings shall be sent to each representative at least thirty days before such meetings. At the annual meeting and at all special meetings fifteen members shall constitute a quorum.
7. Executive Committee.
(a) There shall be an Executive Committee of the Alumni Council composed of the president of the Society, the chairman of the Alumni Fund Committee, and fifteen members-at-large from the Society.
(b) At each annual meeting of the Alumni Council five members-at-large of the Society shall be elected to serve upon the Executive Committee for the term of three years. Any vacancy in the Executive Committee may be filled by the remaining members of the Committee by the election of a new member to serve until the end of the unexpired term; or in the discretion of the Executive Committee the vacancy may be allowed to continue until the next annual meeting of the Alumni Council, at which time it shall fill the vacancy by the election of a member to serve for the balance of the unexpired term. No person shall be eligible for election to the Executive Committee if at that time he/she has served continuously for six years as a member of the Executive Committee.
(c) The Executive Committee shall elect as its chairman one of its own members other than the president of the Society and the Chairman of the Alumni Fund Committee. He/she (or in his absence, the President of the Society of the Alumni) shall preside at all meetings of the Executive Committee and of the Alumni Council. Nine of the Executive Committee shall constitute a quorum. The Committee shall prescribe and direct the work of the Secretary of the Society and shall transact the necessary business of the Alumni Council between its meetings. The Secretary of the Society shall be the Secretary of the Alumni Council, of the Executive Committee and of all committees of both.
(d) The Executive Committee shall appoint five of its members for terms to be specified (but not less than one nor more than three years) to serve as a Nominating Committee of the Society of the Alumni.
8. Other Committees. The Executive Committee shall, from time to time, create or eliminate such standing and special committees as it may deem appropriate whose duties it shall prescribe and whose members it shall appoint from the membership of the Alumni Council, the Society-at- large, the faculty, the administration or the undergraduates of Amherst College.
9. Nominating Committee. The Nominating Committee appointed by the Executive Committee of the Alumni Council in accordance with Article II, Paragraph 7d hereof, shall nominate candidates for:
(a) All officers and committees to be elected by the Society at the annual meeting of the
Society.
(b) The Executive Committee of the Alumni Council, the Alumni Fund Committee and any other offices to be filled by the Alumni Council at the annual meeting of the Alumni Council held during the Nominating Committee's incumbency and shall report its nominations at that meeting.
(c) The Nominating Committee may not nominate any of its members for any office or committee.
The committee shall prepare a list of nominees for the Executive Committee, Alumni Fund Committee and any other offices to be filled by election by the Alumni Council at its next annual meeting in accordance herewith. The Committee shall mail its list of nominees to each of the Alumni Council representatives not later than thirty days before the date fixed for the meeting at which such persons are to be elected, and shall also present its nominations to said meeting; provided that nothing herein contained shall be construed to prevent the nomination of other persons for the respective offices at the meeting at which such persons are to be elected, nor to curtail in any way the Alumni Council in the election of any eligible persons to its respective offices.
Article III
GENERAL
1. Procedure. The method of procedure at all annual or special meetings of the Society of the
Alumni and of the Alumni Council shall be governed by Roberts Rules of Order.
2. Amendments. The Constitution, By-Laws and Regulations for the Election of Alumni Trustees may be amended by a majority vote of the members of the Society present at a meeting, provided a notice of the proposed amendment has been mailed to all members at least thirty (30) days before such meeting.
3. Electronic and Other Means of Communication. The terms "mail", "mailed", "mailings", "send", "sent", "communicate", "communicated", "communications", and "notify", herein and in the accompanying "Rules and Regulations for the Election of Alumni Trustees by the Graduates of Amherst College" shall be deemed to include all communications by electronic means (including e-mail) judged by the Executive Committee to be as reliable as the United States Postal Service in insuring that every recipient receives all communications intended for him/her.
4. Transitional Provisions. Notwithstanding Section 7(b) of Article II above, at the Annual Meeting of the Society of the Alumni held on June 1, 2013, five members of the Executive Committee shall be elected for 3-year terms, two for 2-year terms, and two for a 1-year term.
Adopted: June 15, 1929
Amended:
June 19, 1937
Nov. 10, 1939
June 03, 1944
Nov. 12, 1960
June 10, 1961
June 04, 1966
June 01, 1969
Nov. 18, 1972
June 12, 1976
June 06, 1981
June 03, 1989
October 20, 2001
June 8, 2011 (language changes to reflect what we now know as a "mailing" from mail to "sent" or "communicated."
June 1, 2013
Rules and Regulations for the Election of
Alumni Trustees by the Graduates of Amherst College
The six trustees of Amherst College, who under its amended charter are to be chosen by the graduates of said college, shall hereafter be nominated and elected and shall hold office in the manner following:
1. The Society of the Alumni shall elect annually one such trustee to hold office for the term of six years, who, after serving one such term, shall not be eligible for immediate re-election.
The said Society may in like manner fill a vacancy caused by death, resignation or otherwise in the office of any such trustee for the remainder of the term for which he/she was chosen; but such shorter term shall not be reckoned as part of a full term for which a trustee is eligible as aforesaid.
2. The terms of office of trustees hereafter elected as above for full terms of six years each shall begin respectively with the first day of July in the year of their election, and shall end with the thirtieth day of June in the sixth year thereafter. The term of office of trustees heretofore chosen shall end when the terms of their respective successors begin as aforesaid.
3. The Nominating Committee on Alumni Trustees ("the Committee") shall be elected by said Society in accordance with Article I, Paragraph 9 of the Constitution and By-Laws of the Society of the Alumni.
4. The Committee, by the 1st day of January each year, shall select three times as many nominees as there are vacancies to be filled, shall notify such nominees of the choices thus made, and shall secure the consent of each nominee to stand for election. In making such selections, the Committee shall consult, to the extent it deems helpful to it, with trustees, faculty, administrators and undergraduates of Amherst College. The names of the nominees so selected shall be printed in a notice to be sent to the Alumni on or before January 15 each year, with a view also of securing the names of other nominees. If more than one vacancy is to be filled, the Committee may designate groups of three particular nominees as competitors for each particular vacancy. This notice shall contain a list of the Alumni Trustees then in office, and shall be substantially in the form as indicated by Appendix A.
5. After receiving and counting the votes for nomination, the name of each nominee suggested by the alumni who has received at least as many votes as equals one percent of the number of persons eligible to vote as of the date of the mailing of the Call for Nominations (as certified by the Secretary of the Society of the Alumni from his/her records), provided the list of such names has been sent to the nominees and the consent of the proposed nominees to stand for election has also been secured, shall be added by the Committee to the list of nominees previously selected, and the names of all the candidates competing for each particular vacancy shall be arranged alphabetically. If more than one vacancy is to be filled and the Committee has designated groups of three nominees as competitors for each particular vacancy, each nominee added by the Committee in accordance with the immediately- preceding sentence shall be placed by the Committee in competition within the group whose members are most similar to the added nominee. If the added nominee disagrees with that placement, he/she may appeal the placement to a committee composed of the president of the Society, the chairman of the Executive Committee of the Alumni Council and the Secretary
of the Society whose judgment shall be final. Nevertheless, the Committee may instead place an added nominee in competition within a particular group by lot, in which event the placement shall be final. The Inspectors of Election shall be notified by said Committee on or before the first day of March of each year of the names of the candidates nominated. The Inspectors of Election shall, on or before the fifteenth day of April of each year, send a list of all nominees competing for each particular vacancy arranged in alphabetical order to all persons entitled by the charter of the College to vote for Alumni Trustee, with a ballot, and request each of them to send a written vote to said inspectors over his/her own signature, for as many trustees as are to be elected. Electronic and other means of casting votes may be permitted in accordance with rules and verification procedures established from time to time by the Executive Committee of the Alumni Council and delineated on the ballot.
(a) Appendix B: For use when (i) only one vacancy is to be filled or (ii) more than one vacancy is to be filled but the Committee has not separated the candidates into groups.
(b) Appendix C: For use when more than one vacancy is to be filled and the Committee has separated the candidates into groups.
(c) Each candidate shall be afforded the opportunity to enclose with such notice and ballot a supplemental statement on a single 8 1/2" x 11" sheet if he/she wishes.
6. The polls for the election of trustees shall be open until noon of the seventh (7th) day prior to Commencement Day unless such seventh (7th) day is a Sunday or a holiday when the polls shall remain open until noon of the following day. The Inspectors shall meet for the purpose
of counting the ballots as soon as possible after the close of the polls at such time or times and at such place or places in Amherst, Mass. as is most convenient to them.
7. Said Inspectors of Election or a majority of them shall receive and count all votes and ballots according to the following rules (which if the Committee has separated the candidates into groups, each group competing for a separate vacancy, shall be applied group by group):
(1) All the ballots shall first be counted according to the first choices indicated on them and the total number of valid ballots cast for each candidate as first choice determined.
(2) If any candidate receives a majority of the first choices, he/she shall be declared elected.
(3) If no candidate receives such a majority, the candidate with fewest first-choice ballots to his/her credit shall be declared defeated and his/her ballots shall be transferred each to the candidate marked on it as next choice among the undefeated candidates. Any ballot which indicates no choice among the undefeated candidates shall be set aside as ineffective.
(4) If still no candidate has a majority of the effective ballots to his/her credit, the candidate then lowest on the poll shall be declared defeated and his/her ballots transferred similarly each to the candidate marked on it as next choice among the undefeated candidates.
(5) Lowest candidates shall be declared defeated successively and their ballots transferred in the same way until one candidate is found to have more ballots to his/her credit than all the other undefeated candidates together.
(6) As soon as a candidate is found to have a majority of the effective ballots he/she shall be declared elected.
(7) If, when a candidate is to be declared defeated, two or more candidates are tied at the bottom of the poll that one of the tied candidates shall be declared defeated who was credited with fewest ballots just before the last transfer of ballots. If two or more of the tied candidates were tied at that stage of the count also, the second tie shall be decided, if necessary, by referring similarly to the standing of candidates just before the last transfer of ballots before that. This principle shall be applied successively as many times as may be necessary, a tie at any stage of the count being decided by referring to the standing of the tied candidates just before the last preceding transfer of ballots.
Any tie not otherwise provided for shall be decided by lot.
(8) If a second Trustee is to be elected from among the same group of candidates, he/she shall be determined by a recount of all the ballots according to the preceding rules, all choices marked for the first candidate elected being disregarded.
(9) If more than two Trustees are to be elected from among the same group of candidates, they shall be determined by further successive recounts of all the ballots according to the same rules.
(10) In carrying out such a recount the highest choice marked on each ballot for an unelected candidate shall be treated as the first choice, the next choice for an unelected candidate as the second choice, and so on. All candidates except those previously elected shall be considered in the running until defeated in connection with the particular recount which is in progress.
(11) Whenever more than one Trustee is to be chosen from among the same group of candidates at the same election, the candidate first elected shall serve for the longest term, the candidate next elected shall serve for the term which is next to the longest, and so on.
8. No ballot once mailed or vote otherwise cast in accordance with rules established by the Executive Committee of the Alumni Council can be revoked or changed except in circumstances deemed by the Secretary of the Society to be extraordinary.
9. Said Inspectors shall without delay make a written return of the count and of the persons elected as Trustees to the Secretary of the Society of the Alumni, who in turn shall forthwith send notice of such choice, under his/her attestation, to the Board of Trustees.
10. No Inspector shall communicate the condition or the result of the count of votes to any person other than an Inspector until after the written return of the count and of the persons elected as Trustees has been made to the Secretary of the Society.
11. If any Inspector shall die, resign, or fail for any reason to act, the remaining Inspector or Inspectors may fill his/her place, and shall have full power and authority to act until another Inspector or Inspectors shall be appointed.
12. These rules and regulations shall take effect January 1, 2002, and all previous regulations for the election of trustees of Amherst College by the graduates thereof shall be of no effect after December 31, 2001.
Appendix A
Call for Nominations
To the Alumni of Amherst College:
Notice is hereby given that one six-year term vacancy will exist after June 30,____on the Board of Trustees of Amherst College, caused by the expiration on that date of the term of___________________________ , Class of_____, who is not eligible for immediate re-election. The vacancy will be filled by vote of the alumni. [If more than one vacancy is to be filled the notice should be modified accordingly.]
Alumni Trustees now in office (insert names and classes):
Every alumnus/a is entitled to nominate, over his or her signature up to three candidates for the vacancy. Each nominee receiving nominations from not less than one (1) percent of the eligible voters (approximately 180) will be added to those selected by the Committee to Nominate Alumni Trustees. The members of that Committee are (insert names and classes):
To fill the six-year term vacancy, the Committee to Nominate Alumni Trustees met numerous times and spent many hours interviewing and evaluating possible candidates. The criteria included demonstrated interest in the College, professional and civic achievements, and potential for significant contribution to the work of the Board.
The Committee to Nominate Alumni Trustees submits the following slate of nominees:
Name, Class, Position, Business Name, City, State
Nominations should be addressed to The Committee to Nominate Alumni Trustees, Amherst College, PO Box 5000, Amherst, MA 01002-5000. They should be sent in time to be received on or before March 1, . Please use the nomination blank below to make nominations.
NOTE: The following Nomination Blank is to be used only if an alumnus wishes to nominate others than the following alumni who have been nominated by the Committee on Alumni Trustees.
Appendix B
Notice of Election
To the Alumni of Amherst College:
Earlier this year, the Committee on Alumni Trustees invited nominations from alumni of candidates for the one (two, etc.) vacant trusteeship to be filled by the alumni this May. The nominations which have been received for the one (two, etc.) vacant trusteeship to be filled by the alumni have been sorted and counted by the Committee on Alumni Trustees.
Announcement is hereby made that, in alphabetical order, the names of the candidates nominated by the Committee or by write-in ballot from not less than one (1) percent of the eligible voters are as follows:
__________________________________, Class of_____
__________________________________, Class of_____
__________________________________, Class of_____
Every alumnus/a is entitled to cast his/her ballot in the election of one (two, etc.) trustee(s) from among the above-named nominees, by mail over your own signature or by any other means of voting delineated on the ballot. If you are voting by mail, please use the blank ballot enclosed with this notice and the envelope provided. The polls will close at noon of the seventh day prior to Commencement Day namely, on_____. Ballots to be counted must be received at Amherst, Massachusetts on or before noon of that day unless it is a Sunday or holiday when receipt by noon of the following day will be sufficient.
Each candidate has been afforded the opportunity to enclose with this communication a supplemental statement if he/she wishes. Separate, independent mailings or other communications are not encouraged
The Executive Committee of the Alumni Council presented the following to each candidate:
(Printed signatures of) Inspectors of Election Amherst College, date
Ballot for Election of Alumni Trustee(s).
One Vacancy (or two vacancies, etc., as the case may be)
To the Inspectors of Election, Amherst College:
The candidate opposite whose name below I have circled the figure (1) is my first choice; the candidate opposite whose name I have circled the figure (2) is my second choice; and my further choices are similarly indicated by other figures so far as I care to express them.
[Here should appear the names, in alphabetical order, and the classes of all candidates regularly nominated, with appropriate voting spaces preceding the names.]
(1) No candidate may be voted for whose name is not printed on this ballot.)
(2) No matter how many vacancies are to be filled, mark only one candidate 1, only one candidate 2, and so on. You may, however, mark as many successive choices as you please, regardless of the number to be elected. If more than one vacancy is to be filled, the candidate receiving the highest vote is elected to the longest term, and so on.
(3) Your ballot will be counted for your first choice if it can help that candidate, and if not, then for the first of your choices whom it can help.
Appendix C
Notice of Election
To the Alumni of Amherst College:
Earlier this year, the Committee on Alumni Trustees invited nominations from alumni of candidates for the two (three, etc.) vacant trusteeship to be filled by the alumni this May. The nominations which have been received for the one (two, etc.) vacant trusteeship to be filled by the alumni have been sorted and counted by the Committee on Alumni Trustees.
Announcement is hereby made that, in alphabetical order, the names of the candidates nominated by the Committee or by write-in ballot from not less than one (1) percent of the eligible voters
separated into groups with each group competing for one of the vacancies are as follows:
Nominees for Term Expiring:
__________________________________, Class of_____
__________________________________, Class of_____
__________________________________, Class of_____
Nominees for Term Expiring:
__________________________________, Class of_____
__________________________________, Class of_____
__________________________________, Class of_____
Every alumnus/a is entitled to cast his/her ballot in the election of two (three, etc.) trustees, one from each of the two (three) groups from among the above-named nominees, by mail over your own signature or by any other means of voting delineated on the ballot. If you are voting by mail,
please use the blank ballot enclosed with this notice and the envelope provided. The polls will close at noon of the seventh day prior to Commencement Day namely, on_____. Ballots to be
counted must be received at Amherst, Massachusetts on or before noon of that day unless it is a
Sunday or holiday when receipt by noon of the following day will be sufficient.
Each candidate has been afforded the opportunity to enclose with this mailing a supplemental statement if he/she wishes. Separate, independent mailings or other communications are not encouraged
The Executive Committee of the Alumni Council presented the following to each candidate:
Printed version of question
(Printed signatures of) Inspectors of Election Amherst College, date
Ballot for Election of Alumni Trustee(s).
Two Vacancies (or three vacancies, etc., as the case may be)
To the Inspectors of Election, Amherst College:
Within each of the following groups of candidates, the candidate opposite whose name below I have circled the figure (1) is my first choice among that group, the candidate opposite whose name I have circled the figure (2) is my second choice, and my further choices are similarly indicated by other figures so far as I care to express them.
[Here should appear the names, in alphabetical order within groups, and the classes of all candidates regularly nominated, with appropriate voting spaces preceding the names.]
(1) No candidate may be voted for whose name is not printed on this ballot.
(2) No matter how many vacancies are to be filled from among each group of candidates, mark only one candidate 1, only one candidate 2, and so on. You may, however, mark as many successive choices as you please, regardless of the number to be elected. If more than one vacancy is to be filled, the candidate receiving the highest vote is elected to the longest term, and so on.
(3) Among each group of candidates, your ballot will be counted for your first choice if it can help that candidate, and if not, then for the first of your choices whom it can help.