Chapter I –
Introduction
The Policy Manual contains policies adopted by the Board of
Directors of The Amherst Club. These policies are intended to assist in the
governance of The Amherst Club. From time to time the Manual will be
supplemented, amended, or changed by majority votes of the Board of Directors,
to take effect at the close of the Board Meeting in which they are voted. To
the extent that any policy or practice is deemed inconsistent with the Bylaws,
the Bylaws shall take precedence.
Chapter II –
Membership
1.Full Members:
Those members who have all the rights described in the Articles of
Incorporation, the Bylaws, and the Policy Manual.
2.Partnership Members: When two members who
have been elected, are married, living together in domestic partnership, job
sharing, or working together as co-principals of a business organization, the
Board of Directors may, if desired by such members, classify them as
“partnership members.”
a. The Board of Directors shall establish
the annual dues of partnership members.
b. Whenever payment for the weekly
luncheon is included in the dues of regular members, only one of the two
partners may attend any luncheon without further payment. If both attend the
same luncheon, they shall pay one additional meal charge.
c. Concerning termination for non-payment
of dues, the two partnership members shall be treated as a unit, and the
membership of both partnership members shall be terminated.
d. Concerning termination for other causes,
each partnership member may be considered separately, and if one is terminated,
the other may continue as a full member.
e. For other purposes, including the
establishment of a quorum, voting, and participation in the club’s service
projects, each partnership member shall be treated as a separate member of the
Corporation.
f. Should the relationship leading to the
partnership membership be dissolved for whatever reason, the individuals may
assume regular membership or resign at their discretion.
3. Associate Members:
(July 6, 2010):
New members may join as Associates.
The fee of $30 a quarter entitles the
Associate Member to one lunch per quarter. If the Associate Member attends more
lunches, the charge would be on a per lunch basis.
For
purposes of the Bylaws, including the establishment of a quorum, voting, and
participation in the club’s service projects, an Associate Member shall be
treated as a member of the corporation.
(The Welcoming Membership category was dropped July 2010)
4. New Members: Members shall submit the new member
nomination form with supporting material to the Membership Committee, which
shall assure that the application is complete. The Membership Committee shall
submit the completed application to the Board for approval. (See Chapter VI –
Membership Committee)
Amendment
adopted August 4, 2010: The membership application no longer requires a
sponsor but requires 2 references instead.
New Member start date – (adopted May 12, 2009): The
membership of new members shall date from the date of approval by the
Board. The dues shall be prorated
from that date.
Procedure
for bringing in new members – (adopted March 2004):.
The President will send out the letter of invitation and New Member
Information Form. The new member
should then reply to the Chair, accepting invitation and enclosing information
form. Chair gives form to Registrar, orders name badge. Badge is given to President who
presents badge and membership directory to new member during induction. Chair finally files nomination form and
acceptance letter in club archives.
Registrar maintains information form and keeps President supplied with
directories.
Membership
Resignation: (adopted May 11, 2010):
- Whenever a member
indicates the intention to resign, whether to the President or the Registrar,
that officer shall notify the Membership Chair who will talk to the member in
order to understand the reasons for the resignation and explore possible
alternative membership options.
The membership Chair will report back to the Board.
Chapter III –
Meetings of Members
1.Special Meetings: Special meetings of the members shall
be called by the President, 2 or more directors, or any officer upon written
application of at least ten percent (10%) of the members. Such a call shall
state the time, place, and purposes of the meeting.
2. Consent in Lieu of Meeting: Any action by the
members may be taken if a majority of members agree with action either written
or by e-mail and filed with the records of the members’ meetings. Such consent
shall be treated as a vote of the members for all purposes.
Prospective
Member Lunches – (adopted December 9, 2008): The
Club will pay for a prospective member’s meal one time and the member bringing
the candidate for membership should contact the registrar in advance. The hospitality fund would be used to
pay this guest fee. Amendment
to Guest Lunches policy – (adopted August 4, 2010): No
advance notice now needs to be given to registrar, The one time meal for prospective member program will continue for a 3 month period
until November 25,2010.
Solicitation :
The Amherst Club does not permit direct
solicitation for contributions or sales at its weekly luncheons, except on
behalf of the Club’s own charitable activities. Club members and guest speakers may bring and distribute
brochures and other literature about their projects.
Petitions should be placed on a back table rather than
circulated. They may be announced,
but not promoted.
Snow Policy: (adopted February 8, 2011) The Club will not meet if schools are cancelled. The Club will meet if schools open late.
Announcements
– (adopted November 13, 2006): Any announcement at the weekly
luncheon should be limited to less than 30 seconds and should conform to a
reasonable format of who, what, where and when only.
Member
Seeking Backing of the Club – (adopted June 19, 2007): Members are welcome to make brief announcements about their
participation in various events, and may ask other Amherst Club members
interested in supporting their efforts to check further with them. A member interested in seeking the
backing of the Club for a particular cause should contact the Club President
for prior Board approval.
Membership Directory – (adopted February 2, 2010)- The
Amherst Club Membership Directory may not be used to solicit for one’s own
choice of charities or shared with anyone else to promote individual interests.
Chapter IV – Board
of Directors
1.Special Meetings: Special meetings of the Board of
Directors may be called by the President or by two (2) or more directors,
reasonable notice being given to each director.
2. A member in any category may serve on the Board of
Directors.
Chapter V
(Duties beyond the
ByLaws mandate)
1. Treasurer: The
Treasurer shall oversee and make regular reports on the following funds.
a. The operations account for regular
revenue and expenses of the club
b. The raffle account, which supports both
the hospitality fund (cards and flowers for members in need) and donations for
such projects as the Trivia Bee, The Tree Initiative, etc.
c. The event account for revenue and
expenses related to the club’s main fundraising event
d. The endowment fund, was established in
2004 on the 20th anniversary of the Amherst Club. This fund shall serve the Amherst
Community into the future and is supported by contributions and bequests from
club members and non-members.
e. Any other financial account or activity which might from time to time be established. Any existing account may be altered or eliminated by action of the Board.
2. Registrar:
The Registrar with the concurrence
of the President may appoint an Assistant Registrar to be responsible for
taking attendance at all luncheon meetings and assisting the Registrar in other
responsibilities.
3.
Secretary: The Secretary shall be responsible for updating the
policy manual.
Chapter VI –
Committees
1. Activities Committee: This committee shall plan
social activities and events for members and their families. The Activities Committee will be responsible for the
hospitality acknowledgments – cards, gifts, flowers – as appropriate. (adopted
June 9, 2009)
2. Allocations Committee: The Allocations Committee, which shall be chaired by the
Vice-President, shall solicit and review applications for charitable
contributions by the club and make all decisions on the allocation of club
funds for such purposes.
4/13/04
(amendment): The Allocations Committee will advise the Board of
Directors on a year-round basis.
Any off-season requests for funds (apart from Love Notes) must be in
writing and go first to the President who shall signal the Committee to meet to
discuss and make a recommendation to the Board. The Committee will meet when an off-season application for a
grant is received.
3. Archives Committee: The Archives Committee shall be responsible for collecting and
archiving/storing all records of the Amherst Club and for making them available
as needed. The archives shall be stored in a location secure from heat and damp
that will protect paper and photos. Archival paper is not required for the
following records.
The following items shall be entered in the archive
of the Club:
a. List of officers (in list separate from
minutes)
b. Membership forms (to be saved by the
Membership Chair and handed to the Archivist)
c. Records of the luncheon meetings (to be
forwarded to the Archivist by the recorder at any given lunch)
d. Minutes of the Board meetings (to be
saved by the Archivist and/or the Secretary)
e. Annual and monthly reports by the
Treasurer (to be saved and handed to the Archivist by the Treasurer)
f. Fund-raising projects and events
(documentation to be saved by Chairs, etc., and handed to Archivist)
g. Copy of the Membership
Directory (to be saved by the Archivist)
h. Requests for proposals
for proceeds of Love Notes concerts of other current fund-raising projects (to
be saved by the Allocations Chair or other relevant Chair)
i. Record of Love Notes allocations (to be
saved by Allocations Chair and handed to Archivist)
j. Records of Love Notes committee
meetings, especially of those proceedings helpful to future committees working
on this project
k. Two copies of the Love
Notes program (to be saved by the Archivist)
l. Notes concerning one-time
projects/donations, e.g. West Cemetery Mural, bench donated to Amherst Commons,
etc. (to be saved by the committee chair and handed to the Archivist)
m. Items concerning the Community
Foundation of Western Massachusetts
n. Records of anniversary events (to be
saved by the relevant persons and handed to the Archivist)
o. Copy of the Club logo (to be retained
in the Archives after use)
p. Records of the purchase of mugs that
are given to speakers at each luncheon meeting (information to be given to the
Archivist)
All items handed to the Archivist shall be dated.
All of the above mentioned items are to be retained
in the Archives indefinitely and not to be removed for disposal unless by
decision of the Board.
A copy of the Archives policy shall be distributed to
all new incoming Board members after election.
Board minutes shall not be attached to luncheon
minutes in order to facilitate archiving.
The Archivist shall check electronic disks, etc.,
from time to time to assure that they have not become obsolete. If the current
mode of storage is in danger of becoming obsolete, the information should be
copied to the next generation of electronic or other storage items.
Items that are NOT to be retained are 1) records of
attendance at luncheon meetings and 2) completed forms for nominations for
membership.
4. Attendance Committee: This
committee is responsible for keeping a record of luncheon attendance and
reporting to the registrar weekly.
5. Fundraising Committee: The Fundraising Committee
shall organize the primary event to raise funds for allocations to worthy
community cause and to the Amherst Club Endowment Fund.
TWO chairs of Love Notes shall be appointed each year,
with a third person - a past chair- collaborating.
a.
The major fund raising event shall be “Love Notes,” or other
entertainment with a party afterward in February.
b.
Other fund raising events may be organized for additional
purposes.
6. Luncheon Report Committee: This committee shall
prepare and circulate a regular report of the luncheon, weekly, through which
the membership is informed of the activities of the club.
7. Membership Committee: The Membership Committee
shall oversee the process of nominating new members.
a. The
Committee shall encourage members to nominate candidates for membership and
shall distribute the Amherst Club information brochure and nomination forms to
members. (adopted August 4, 2010): The
membership application will require two references and no longer requires a
sponsor.
b.
The Membership Committee shall review all applications for
eligibility according to the criteria, and submit completed applications to the
Board of Directors for approval.
c. (Adopted October 5, 2010) The Board may act by e-mail on the recommendations of the Membership Committee for new member applications unless the Membership Committee or any Board Member requests a meeting. Rationale: timliness, limits on extra meetings, privacy of deliberations
8. Nominating Committee: In
preparation for each annual election, the Nominating Committee shall propose a
slate of officers and standing committee chairs who shall, if elected, serve
for one year beginning July 1st. The immediate Past President shall Chair the Nominating Committee.
9. Program Committee: The Program Committee shall obtain
speakers or other programs for the weekly luncheon meetings and shall inform
the Web Master about the speakers and subject matter.
10. Web Master: This officer shall maintain the Club website and be
informed of upcoming programs, events and luncheon speakers.
OTHER
March 2004: Leave of Absence language was dropped from Club
policy.
Dues
increase: October 1,2009 – Full Member: $100, Associate Member:
$30, Partnership: $115, (Welcoming
member category ($70) dropped July 6, 2010)
Updated March 2011
Policies and amendments shall be dated
