ARTICLE I
NAME
The name of this organization shall be Nonprofit Resources, Incorporated,
hereinafter referred to as "NRI".
ARTICLE II
PURPOSE
NRI's purpose is to strengthen the capacity of Arkansas nonprofit organizations
to fulfill their missions.
ARTICLE III
MEMBERSHIP
Section 1. NRI is a membership organization. Full membership is open
to any nonprofit organization in Arkansas. Individuals and other organizations
in Arkansas may join as associate members. NRI's board of directors is empowered
to establish dues for full and associate membership status.
Section 2. A regular meeting of full members shall be held annually
within the first six months of the calendar year for the purpose of electing
directors; receiving reports of board officers, board committees, and the
executive director; and for any other business that may arise. The meeting
date shall be set by the board of directors.
Section 3. Special meetings of the membership may be called by the
board chair, or by six or more directors, and shall be called by the chair
at the written request of ten or more members of Nonprofit Resources, Inc.
The purpose of the meeting shall be stated in a written notice to all members,
and such notice shall be provided at least one week in advance of the special
meeting.
Section 4. Those members in attendance at any meeting, shall constitute
a quorum.
ARTICLE IV
BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Section 1. NRI shall be governed by a board of not fewer than sixteen
and no more than twenty-two directors. At least six directors shall be selected
from NRI membership.
Section 2. When there are vacancies on the board, a slate of candidates
for election to the board shall be approved by the board for presentation
to the membership for approval at the annual meeting. The slating process
(Article VIII, Section 4) shall provide an opportunity for the membership
to suggest candidates to be considered for slating, but nominations for
director from the floor at the membership meeting shall not be in order.
Section 3. No director shall receive compensation for service on
the board. The board may provide that directors shall be reimbursed for
expenses they incur in the course of their service on the board.
Section 4. The board shall determine policies for NRI's management
and programs.
Section 5. Any director, officer, or agent of NRI may be removed
by the board. A person so affected may appear or be represented at a meeting
of the board. Removal shall require a two-thirds majority vote by the directors
present.
Section 6. Absence by a director from three consecutive meetings
of the board shall constitute a resignation, and no further action of the
board shall be required.
Section 7. In the event of an irregular vacancy on the board, the
board, at it's discretion, may appoint someone to fill the vacancy until
the next scheduled election of directors.
ARTICLE V
MEETINGS OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Section 1. The board shall meet at least once per quarter.
Section 2. Special meetings of the board may be called by the chair
or by a majority of the executive committee, and shall be called by the
chair at the written request of six or more directors, except as provided
in Article VIII, Section 1.b.
Section 3. At any meeting of the board or one of it's committees,
a majority of the directors actually serving on the board or committee at
the time of the meeting shall constitute a quorum for the
transaction of business. Teleconferencing or other technologies that allow
a board member to participate in real time are considered acceptable alternatives
to in person attendance.
Section 4. The board shall act by a majority vote on all questions
except those which have been specifically designated in the bylaws as requiring
more than a simple majority. No vote by proxy shall be allowed.
Section 5. Notice giving the place, date, and hour of a meeting of
the board shall be given to each director. If a special meeting is called,
the purpose of the meeting shall be communicated to each director. If mailed,
the notice shall be deemed to be delivered when deposited in the United
States Mail, if properly addressed to the director.
ARTICLE VI
OFFICERS OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Section 1. The officers of the board of directors shall be a chair,
a vice chair, a treasurer, and a secretary, who shall be elected annually
by a majority of the directors present at the meeting during which the election
takes place.
Section 2
a. The chair shall preside over meetings of the board of directors
and, in cooperation with the executive director, shall set the agenda for
all meetings except meetings called by the executive committee or called
by directors for a special purpose. The chair shall provide leadership for
the board, and shall be the principal representative of the board to the
public, and in general perform all duties incident to the chair and such
duties as may be prescribed by the board from time to time.
b. The chair shall serve as chair of the executive committee and
be an ex officio member of all other standing committees and ad
hoc committees. The chair shall appoint the chair and members of standing
and ad hoc committees with the approval of the board.
c. The chair may remove chairs and members of committees.
d. The chair, with the executive director, shall sign contractual
agreements and other legal instruments if his or her signature is authorized
by the board of directors or is required by law.
Section 3.
a. The vice chair: shall assist the chair in such ways as the chair
shall direct, and in the absence of the chair shall preside at meetings
and perform the other duties of chair.
b. The vice chair shall be a member of the executive committee and
at the direction of the chair may serve as a non-voting member of any other
standing or ad hoc committee except the officer nominations committee.
Section 4. The treasurer shall be a member of the executive
committee and chair of the finance committee.
Section 5.
a. The secretary shall be a member of the executive committee.
b. The secretary shall be responsible for the accuracy of the minutes
taken at each meeting of the board and membership.
c. The secretary shall act as NRI's official correspondent when required
by law or instructed by the board.
ARTICLE VII
TERMS OF SERVICE OF DIRECTORS AND OFFICERS
Section 1.
a. Directors shall be elected for a three-year term beginning July 1. A
sitting director may be slated by the board nominations committee for election
to a second three-year term.
b. A total of six years shall be the maximum term of service on the board
of directors, except as specified in Section 2.c. below. Directors who complete
six years of service are eligible to serve again after one year.
Section 2.
a. The term of office for officers of the board is two years, beginning
July 1, except as specified in c. below.
b. No director may hold the same office for more than one term.
c. A chair elected during a year in which he or she will have finished five
or six years of service on the board may be re-elected to the board for
a seventh year or seventh and eighth years to complete a term as chair if
this extension is recommended by the officers nominations committee and
is approved by a majority of the directors present at the meeting during
which the matter is considered.
Section 3. Any director who completes less than three years of service
on June 30, 1995 will be deemed to have completed a first term on the June
30th following the end of his or her third year of service. Any director
who completes at least three but not more than four years of service on
June 30, 1995 will be deemed to have completed a first term on that date.
Any director who completes at least four but not more than six years of
service on June 30, 1995 will be deemed to have completed a second term
on the first June 30 following the end of his or her sixth year of service.
Any director who completes six or more years of service on or before June
30, 1995 will be deemed to have completed his or her second term on that
date. The chair and any director who may be affected by the provisions of
this section will confer and arrive at a mutually agreeable determination
of the affected director's status. Once the status of all affected director's
has been determined, the chair will issue a list of directors indicating
when they will complete their terms.
ARTICLE VIII
COMMITTEES OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Section 1.
a. The executive committee shall consist of the officers and the
chairs of the standing committees.
b. The executive committee shall be subject to the direction of the board
and shall report its actions to the board. The executive committee may oversee
NRI's affairs, including membership matters, between meetings of the board.
The executive committee shall have authority to act for the board between
board meetings, provided that a report of any official action taken by the
executive committee shall be sent within five days to all directors. If
fewer than three written objections are received by the chair within ten
days after the report has been mailed, the executive committee's action
shall be considered the will of the board. if three directors file written
objections with the chair with in the specified ten days, the chair will
call a meeting of the board as soon as possible, or, within the written
agreement of the directors objecting, defer the matter or matters at issue
until the next regularly scheduled meeting of the board.
Section 2. The planning committee shall be a standing committee;
it shall consist of a chair and at least four members. The planning committee
shall be responsible for program planning and resource development, and
shall make recommendations regarding these matters to the board. When there
is a board planning session or retreat, the planning committee shall oversee
the program for such a meeting.
Section 3. The finance committee shall be a standing committee;
it shall consist of the treasurer serving as chair and at least four members.The
finance committee shall review and make recommendations to the board concerning
NRI's budget, its finances, and annual audit. The finance committee shall
also make recommendations to the board regarding NRI's fiscal practices
and policies, and cooperate with the planning committee in establishing
revenue objectives.
Section 4. The board nominations committee shall be a standing
committee; it shall consist of a chair and at least four members. The board
nominations committee shall be responsible for slating nominees for the
board, for approval by the board well in advance of the annual membership
meeting. The board nominations committee is responsible for developing and
maintaining a pool of candidates for consideration during the slating process.
The board and the membership shall be invited to submit names for inclusion
in the pool of candidates. At least ten days before the meeting at which
the board will consider the committee's slate of candidates for election
to the board, the board nominations committee shall send a report to all
directors containing the names and qualifications of candidates.
Section 5.
a. The officer nominations committee shall not be considered a standing
committee. It shall consist of a chair and four members. The committee shall
choose one of its members to chair the committee. The responsibility of
the committee shall be to recommend a slate of officers to the board.
b. At the second meeting of the calendar year, the board shall vote in a
secret ballot on the officer nominees slated by the officer nominations
committee and on nominations from the floor, if any.
Section 6. The board of directors may designate any committee composed
of any number of directors for any purpose it deems necessary. A majority
vote of the board shall be required for the formation of such a committee.
The board chair shall appoint the chairs and members of such ad hoc
committees.
ARTICLE IX
EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Section 1. The board shall employ an executive director to manage
operations and supervise staff and volunteers in accordance with policies
approved by the board.
Section 2. The executive director or the executive director's designee may
attend meetings of the board and its committees.
ARTICLE X
INDEMNIFICATION
Section 1. The corporation shall indemnify every person who is or
has been a Director or officer of the corporation and such persons' heirs
and legal representatives where such person is a party or is threatened
with being a party to any threatened, pending, or completed action, suit,
or proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative,
including all appeals, by reason of the fact that such person is or was
a Director or officer of the corporation, or is or was serving at the request
of the corporation in any capacity for any other business organization,
against expenses (including attorneys' fees), judgement, decrees, fines,
penalties and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably incurred
by such person in connection with such action, suit, or proceeding, if such
person acted in good faith and in a manner he/she reasonably believed to
be in or not opposes to the best interests of the corporation, and with
respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no reasonable cause to
believe his/her conduct was unlawful. The termination of any action, suit
or proceeding by judgement, order, settlement, conviction or upon plea of
nolo contendere or its equivalent, shall not of itself create a presumption
that the person did not act in good faith or in a manner which he/she reasonably
believed to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation
or, with respect to any criminal action, suit or proceeding, that he/she
had reasonable cause to believe that his/her conduct was unlawful. The foregoing
right of indemnification shall be in addition to all rights to which any
such Director or officer may be entitled as a matter of law.
ARTICLE XI
PROCEDURAL REQUIREMENTS
Section 1. NRI shall have a policy regarding conflicts, or apparent
conflicts, of interest in affairs conducted by the board and staff. This
policy will be observed, and its observation will be duly recorded in the
minutes of meetings, where applicable.
Section 2. NRI's fiscal year shall be October 1 through September
30.
Section 3. The rules presented in the most recent edition of Robert's
Rules of Order Newly Revised shall govern the proceedings of the board
in all cases to which they are applicable and which are not otherwise covered
by actions of the board or the bylaws.
Section 4.
a. Bylaws may be amended or replaced and new bylaws may be adopted by the
board at any regular meeting of the board. An amendment, revision, or repeal
must be approved by two-thirds of the directors present.
b. Proposed changes in the bylaws shall be circulated to all directors at
least ten days in advance of the meeting where such proposed changes will
be considered and voted on by the board.
NRI Bylaws
Revised 3-8-96
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