By Laws

Pérez Zeledón INTERNATIONAL WOMEN’S CLUB

BY-LAWS

ARTICLE I

Duties of Members of the Board of Directors:

The President, in addition to duties specified in the Constitution, shall:

  1. Lead the efficient conduct and development of the Association;
  2. Preside at functions of the Association;
  3. Represent the Association at public functions;
  4. Work collaboratively with the Board of Directors and Chairmen of Committees, and be ex-officio member of all committees;
  5. Report on the work of the Board of Directors at the business meetings of the General membership; and
  6. May advise the Board of Directors on the appointment of any advisor(s) needed from time to time, who shall serve without vote.

The Vice-President, in addition to the duties specified in the Constitution, shall:

  1. Assume the Presidency, should a vacancy in that position occur; and
  2. Perform such other duties as described in the Constitution or at the direction of the President or the Board of Directors.

The Secretary, in addition to those duties specified in the Constitution, shall:

  1. Keep a complete correspondence file;
  2. Report all relevant correspondence at the General meetings; and
  3. Be responsible for a post office box, payment and the key should the need arise

The Treasurer, in addition to those duties specified in the Constitution, shall:

  1. Attend to all the financial matters of the Association by keeping a complete record of all transactions;
  2. Receive all monies due the Association;
  3. Disperse on order, all funds for expenditure;
  4. Sign all checks with co-signatures of one of the following: President, Fiscal, or others authorized by the Board of Directors;
  5. Hold petty cash, not to exceed a sum determined by the Board of Directors, for the timely payment of expenses;
  6. Work with an accountant appointed by the Board of Directors to conduct an annual audit of accounts by a Certified Public Accountant. A report of the audit will be presented to the Board of Directors and to the General Membership at the Annual General Assembly.

ARTICLE II

Fiscal

The Fiscal, in addition to those duties specified in the Constitution, shall:

  1. Be the custodian of the official documents of the Association with the exception of those of the Secretary and the legal financial books;
  2. Maintain a Safety Deposit Box for safe-keeping of material if specified by the Board of Directors.

ARTICLE III

Duties of Standing Committees:

  1. Standing committees will be established to progress the Association’s main areas of business. The Chairman and members of each committee will be elected at the Annual General Assembly;
  2. The number of members on each committee will be proposed by the Board of Directors and agreed by the membership;
  3. Time-limited working groups may be established to carry out specific projects or tasks as the need arises. All working groups will be approved and recommended to the membership by the Board of Directors;
  4. With the agreement of the Board of Directors, committees may develop services or events (such as seminars) for the wider ex-patriot or English speaking community.

Three Committees will be established from 1 March 2012:

  1. The Social/Program Committee: charged with organizing the year’s calendar of social meetings, speakers, outings, and venues and catering arrangements for all General Membership meetings;
  2. The Service Committee: Charged with identifying community projects in need of aid, developing fund-raising ideas and presenting proposals to the membership. When approved, lead delivery of each project by seeking the wide participation of the membership;
  3. The Publicity Committee: charged with publicity for the Association, including press releases, external communications, website development and maintenance. They shall work to promote a positive image of the Association and its contribution to the community of Pérez Zeledón. Under the direction of the President, the Committee shall submit information about the Association to the communications media. The committee shall be responsible for publicity of Association events.

ARTICLE IV

Dues

Annual dues and methods of payment shall be determined by the Board of Directors of the Association, subject to the approval of the General membership.

ARTICLE V

Guests

Guests may be invited to meetings by the Association collectively or by members individually.

Unless a formal guest of the Association, guests will be charged an attendance fee determined by the Board of Directors.

ARTICLE VI

Amendments and Revisions to By-laws

An amendment to the By-laws may be recommended by the Board of Directors, or by any member. This must be followed by a formal petition, submitted to the Board of Directors of the Association and signed by a minimum of five active members.

Revision of these By-laws shall be recommended to the General membership by a committee of four members elected by the General membership. The Fiscal shall be the fifth member of the committee.

End of By-Laws

ADDENDUM FEBRUARY 2013

At the Annual General Assembly held on 12 February 2013, Members agreed that the following four items be included in the By-laws:

  1. Ref Article I – Officers may stand for re-election but officers will not serve in the same position for more than three consecutive years (to take effect from February 2013)
  2. Ref Article III – In the event that other committees are established, the chair of the new Committee will become a director of the Board.
  3. Members will declare if they have a business, professional or financial interest in any organization or service project under discussion.
  4. Members will not use the Association member directory or email addresses for the promotion of personal business or other matters.