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Class by Laws

 

BY-LAWS

MISSION AND BY-LAWS OF THE UNITED STATES NAVAL ACADEMY

CLASS OF 1971 ALUMNI ASSOCIATION

1 January 2020

 

Article I – Name

  1. The name of this organization shall be the U. S. Naval Academy Class of 1971 Alumni Association.

Article II – Objectives

  1. The objectives of this organization shall be:

(a) To perpetuate the friendships and associations formed by the members through their common experience and their interest in the Naval Academy and the Naval Service.

(b) To maintain class unity through membership in the Naval Academy Alumni Association and by continuous class wide communication.

(c) To support the mission of the Naval Academy by contributing our time, energy, and resources to build a legacy of leadership and ethical behavior.

Article III – Membership

  1. Active/Honorary Members:

(a) Any member who has been sworn in as a Midshipman on June 28, 1967 as a member of the Class of 1971 for the full and regular course prescribed by the Academic Board for 1971 at the Naval Academy shall be a qualified active member of the Class of 1971 Alumni Association.

(b) Any spouse who has been predeceased by her husband shall remain an honorary member of the Class of 1971 Alumni Association and be afforded all the privileges assigned to an active member.

Article IV – Officers and Trustees

  1. The officers of the Class of 1971 Alumni Association shall consist of a President, Vice-President, Secretary, and a Treasurer. They shall be nominated and elected as herein provided.  The President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer shall serve for a period of ten years. Trustees shall serve for a period of up to ten years.  All serve without compensation.
  2. The term of office for Class Officers shall normally begin on January 1 of the year following a decennial reunion and end on December 31 of the year following the next decennial reunion. Trustees will serve in the same manner and be appointed by the new class officers.  Class officer elections will be held in 2011, 2021, etc.  Trustees will be appointed or re-appointed at the first Class Officer meeting held in 2012, 2022 etc.
  3. Succession of Officers – Should any officer be unable to complete his full term, the remaining officers shall appoint an interim officer (one of the existing elected officers) to that position until a special election is held per Article VI to fill the unexpired term of that officer.

Article V – Duties of the Officer and Trustees

  1. President: The President shall preside at all meetings of the Class of 1971 Alumni Association and shall exercise the powers and perform the duties usual to that office.  He shall ensure that class officer meetings are held at least twice a year and that communication is maintained for decisions with the Board of Trustees.  He may be called upon to serve on committees of the U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association, the Council of Class Presidents, or assign other class members to serve as well. He shall attend, or appoint one of the class officers to represent him, all semi-annual meetings of the Council of Class Presidents. All class standing committee chairman assigned by the President will report to him upon completion of duties.
  2. Vice-President: The Vice-President shall perform the duties of the President in his absence or in the event he is unable to serve his full term of office and such duties as are assigned by the President.
  3. Secretary: The Secretary shall keep a record, in concert with the USNA Alumni Association, of the names and addresses of all the members of the Class of 1971.  He shall publish a periodic article for publication in Shipmate to announce class news regarding all active and honorary members of the Class of 1971. He shall keep a record of all meetings of the Class of 1971 and shall prepare and publish the minutes of these meeting as deemed appropriate in Shipmate. He shall attend, when possible, all meetings held for Class Secretaries at the U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association. He shall chair standing committees related to Class of 1971 communications and U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association membership.
  4. Treasurer: The Treasurer shall receive all funds of the Class of 1971 and invest these funds or deposit them for safekeeping with the U.S. Naval Academy Alumni Association as a separate Class of 1971 account. He shall prepare and present for review a statement of all receipts and expenditures on 31 December of each calendar year and present this at the next meeting of Class Officers.  Furthermore, he shall have the authority to spend money from this account for all expenditures less than $1000 with concurrence of the Class President.  He shall also have the authority to spend money from this account exceeding $1000 with the majority approval of the Class Officers.
  5. Trustee: Trustees, as appointed by the Class Officers, will form the Board. There will be up to 20 trustees appointed for up to ten-year terms, who will act as an advisory board for the Class Officers regarding major decisions that affect the Class of 1971. Trustees will be called upon by the President to chair established standing committees and be expected to either chair or be a member of at least one of these standing committees. Trustees will be appointed based on their active participation in Class of 1971 activities and by virtue of their contributions to the mission of the Class of 1971 Alumni Association.

Article VI – Elections

  1. Candidates for President, Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer shall be nominated by a committee from within the Board of Trustees. Trustees in turn will not be elected but rather be appointed and will serve until their term expires unless re-appointed.  Trustees will be eligible to run for class office, but must declare their intentions and exclude themselves from participation in the nominating committee process.
  2. Elections will be held during the decennial cycle (2011, 2021, etc) and will be conducted by mail following a nomination process established by a nomination committee from within the Board of Trustees. Each active member of the class will have one vote in class officer elections.  Voting by proxy is prohibited.
  3. When more than one person is nominated for any one office, the person receiving the greatest number of votes shall be elected.
  4. Turnover files will be maintained by all class officers and be available for transition immediately following the new class election in 2011, 2021, etc.
  5. Per Article IV, paragraph 3, a special election for the unexpired term of office shall be announced by the Secretary or, if that office is vacant, by any other class officer, and held in accordance with the aforementioned guidelines of this Article.

Article VII – Amendments

  1. An amendment to these by-laws may be proposed by any member and presented at any regular meeting of the Class Officers. The amendment will be forwarded to the Board of Trustees for a vote, which must approve submitting the amendment to the membership by a two-thirds majority vote.  If submitted by the Board of Trustees, the Secretary shall cause the proposed amendment to be submitted to the membership within 90 days by such methods, which may include voting by electronic means, as are approved by the Class Officers.  The amendment shall be included in this class charter if it is approved by a majority of the class membership who submit votes.

Perry J. Martini
President

Jim Bryant
Vice-President

Dave Laws
Treasurer

Michael Longworth
Secretary