UCTE+LA+Constitution

This non-profit organization shall be known as the Utah Council of Teachers of English and Language Arts.
 * Constitution of the Utah Council of Teachers of English/Language Arts **
 * ARTICLE I. NAME**

This organization shall be affiliated with the National Council of Teachers of English.
 * ARTICLE II. AFFILIATION**

The purpose of this organization shall be:
 * ARTICLE III. PURPOSE**
 * 1) To act as a medium of articulation among the elementary, secondary, and collegiate levels of English/Language Arts;
 * 2) To improve English/Language Arts instruction by providing:
 * 3) Opportunities for exchange of information and discussion of teaching English/Language Arts;
 * 4) Opportunities for the members to hear leaders in the English/Language Arts teaching profession and in all fields;
 * 5) A resource body that circulates information of value and the latest educational movements and findings;
 * 6) A vehicle to initiate and support projects that can improve the teaching of English/Language Arts;
 * 7) To work with the Utah State Office of Education regarding certification requirements and standards of instruction for teachers;
 * 8) To work with the Utah State Office of Education regarding curriculum and assessments.

Anyone residing in Utah, who is interested in the teaching of English/Language Arts is eligible for membership and becomes a member upon payment of annual dues.
 * ARTICLE IV. MEMBERSHIP**


 * ARTICLE V. OFFICERS AND EXECUTIVE BOARD**
 * 1) The officers of this organization shall be a president, president elect, a vice president, a secretary, a treasurer, an historian, college and university representatives, a high school representative, a middle school representative, an elementary school representative, a Utah State Office of Education representative, an NCTE liaison officer, an editor of the //English Envoy// newsletter, an editor of the //Utah English Journal//, a SLATE representative, a membership chair, a conference chair, and other members as appointed and approved by the Board.
 * 2) The Executive Board shall consist of the president, president elect, vice president, secretary, treasurer, and the conference chair.
 * 3) All officers shall be nominated by members of the Executive Board and approved by the general membership during the annual conference. Non-attendance at Board meetings for one year shall remove board member from board.
 * 4) The term of office shall be at least one year, beginning September first. The president, president elect and the vice president shall have been members of the Executive Board for at least one year.
 * 5) The President shall serve on the Executive Board for one year following his or her term of office.
 * 6) No person shall be eligible for any office who is not a member of both the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) and the Utah Council of Teachers of English/Language Arts (UCTE/LA).

a. To preside at monthly Executive Board meetings; b. To write an agenda for board meetings and provide copies to those present; c. To verify completion of important duties assigned to other board members; d. To represent UCTE/LA as a committee member to determine the Teacher of the Year Award [formerly Excellence in English/Language Arts Instruction award]; e. To prepare a yearly budget, to review financial transactions, and to make fiscal recommendations for the following year.
 * The duties of the President shall be:**

a. To preside at the meetings of the Executive Board in the absence of the President; b. To assist the conference committee chair in preparation for the annual Fall conference.
 * The duties of the First Vice President shall be:**

a. To preside at the meetings of the Executive Board in the absence of the President and the First Vice President; b. To assist the program committee for the annual conference.
 * The duties of the Second Vice President shall be:**

a. To record minutes of the meetings of the Executive Board, including the date and place of the meeting, the members present, the issues discussed, decisions made, and the assignments made to board members; b. To provide copies of the minutes to the members of the Executive Board at least ten days prior to the next meetings; c. To give notice of the next Executive Board meeting to the officers.
 * The duties of the Secretary shall be:**

a. To process all new membership funds; b. To reconcile the bank account monthly; c. To prepare a financial statement prior to each Executive Board meeting; d. To maintain a council ledger containing all financial transactions and year-end summaries.
 * The duties of the Treasurer shall be:**


 * The duties of the Historian shall be** to preserve in a permanent file all records, letters, and publications of value to the organization.

The duties of the** University, College, High School, Middle School, Elementary, and other Representatives** shall be: a. To provide the Executive Board with information regarding problems and concerns relating to their area of representation; b. To provide the Executive Board with information regarding successful curricular activities that will benefit the general membership; c. To submit articles for the Council publication(s) as requested by the editor(s).

The duties of the **Utah State Office of Education Representative** shall be: a. To correspond with the general membership regarding the nominations for the Teacher of the Year awards; b. To keep the Utah State Office of Education and the Council mutually informed.

The duties of the **NCTE Liaison Officer** shall be to keep the Council and the National Council of Teachers of English mutually informed.

The duties of the **Editor of the //Utah English Journal//** shall be the publication of articles pertinent to the English/Language Arts teaching profession in a journal to be dispensed to members.

The duties of the **SLATE Representative** shall be promoting and coordinating SLATE activities within the Council.

The duties of the **Membership Chair** shall be to process all new members into the Council and to maintain a current list of all members.

The duties of the **Conference Chair** shall be to direct all activities related to and in preparation for the Annual Fall Conference.


 * ARTICLE VI. MEETINGS**
 * 1) The annual meeting shall be held at the time of the Fall convention or at a time agreed upon by the President and a majority of Board members;
 * 2) The Executive Board shall meet monthly during the school year with the exception of the month the Fall conference is held;
 * 3) The Executive Board shall meet at any other time as may be deemed necessary;
 * 4) Meetings of the Executive Board shall be open to all members of UCTE/LA;
 * 5) A quorum shall consist of the members present.


 * ARTICLE VII. DUES**
 * 1) The Executive Board shall have the power to determine the annual dues, subject to majority approval of the UCTE/LA membership in attendance at the annual fall conference;
 * 2) The organization shall send dues annually to the National Council of Teachers of English for national affiliation.

The constitution may be amended by a majority approval of the Council members present at the annual Fall conference, after at least two weeks prior notice of amendments in a Council publication.
 * ARTICLE VIII. AMENDMENTS**


 * ARTICLE IX. COMMITTEES**

The Executive Board shall appoint such committees as it deems necessary for efficient functioning of the activities of the Council. Members of these committees will consist of select members of the Executive Board or other members of the organization. The Chair of such a committee, if not a member of the Executive Board, shall be invited to meet with the Board.

**Amendments to the Constitution** Section 1. The Utah Council of Teachers of English/Language Arts is organized exclusively for charitable, religious, educational, or scientific purposes, including, for such purposes, the making of distributions to organizations that qualify under section 501© (3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or the corresponding section of any future federal tax code.
 * ARTICLE X**

Section 2. No part of the net earnings of the organization shall inure to the benefit of, or be distributable to its members, trustees, officers, or other private persons, except that the organization shall be authorized and empowered to pay reasonable compensation for services rendered and to make payments and distributions in furtherance of the purposes set forth in Section 1 hereof in Article III of this constitution.

Section 3. No substantial part of the activities of the organization shall be the carrying on of propaganda, or otherwise attempting to influence legislation, and the organization shall not participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distribution of statements) any political campaign on behalf of or in opposition to any candidate for public office.

Section 4. Notwithstanding any other provisions of these articles, the organization shall not carry on any other activities nor permitted to be carried on (a) by an organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501(c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or the corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or (b) by an organization, contributions to which are deductible under section 170 (c) (2) of the Internal Revenue Code, or the corresponding section of any future tax code.

Section 5. Upon the dissolution of the organization, assets shall be distributed for one or more exempt purposes within the meaning of section 501 © (3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or the corresponding section of any future federal tax code or shall be distributed to the federal government, or to a state or local government, for a public purpose. Any such assets not so disposed of shall be disposed of by a Court of Competent Jurisdiction of the county in which the principal office of the organization is then located, exclusively for such purposes or to such organization or organizations, as said Court shall determine, which are organized and operated exclusively for such purposes.