Governing Document
By Laws
Bylaws for North Carolina Retired School Personnel
Adopted 3-25-2009
ARTICLE 2 SECTION 4
Bylaw 1: Membership Qualifications
Any current or former resident of North Carolina who meets the following qualifications
is eligible for membership in the Division:
A.Was employed for at least five (5) years in a position that met the qualifications
for NEA “Active” membership, but (a) is no longer so employed or (b) has
retired and returned to such qualifying employment as a requirement of an early
retirement agreement with a local school district. Retirees who return to
employment that qualifies for “Active” membership for reasons other than that
stated in (b) are not qualified for membership in the Division.
B. Is either (a) at least 45 years old or (b) eligible to receive a pension from an
educational employment retirement system or from Social Security.
C. Has paid the applicable life membership or annual dues to NEA-Retired (if
retired since June 30, 1985), NCAE, the Division, and the applicable District and
Local Unit.
Bylaw 2: Membership Classes
Membership in the Division shall comprise a category of dues paying members and such other categories as be provided in the Bylaws. (Article II, Section 1 of NEA Const.)
A. Each member of the Division shall also be a Retired member of NEA and NCAE and
a member of his designated Local Unit and its assigned District, with the following
exceptions:
1. Members who joined prior to July 1, 1985, and who elected at that time to not
join NEA.
2. Members who do not maintain any residence within North Carolina, and who
elect to not join any Local Unit and District.
B. A member who becomes incapacitated and is no longer able to renew his
membership may be designated an emeritus member by his Local Unit’s governing
board. An emeritus member will have no official status with the Division other than
to be eligible for listing in the memorials section of the Division’s newsletter and for
inclusion in the memorial service at the next state convention. Local Units do not
need to notify the Division office of emeritus designations except by indicating the
emeritus status on a memorials report. Local Units should not include emeritus
members in membership counts.
C. Associate membership status shall be given to those persons who wish to join the
organization without voting or office holding status. The dues structure shall be set
by the Executive Board. Other such limitations shall be set by the Executive Board
on this and any other class of membership yet to be determined.
D. Any staff member of the Division can, by paying dues, be a non-voting/non-office
holding member of the association.
Bylaw 3: Dues
A. All Division members shall pay unified dues for membership in NEA-Retired,
NCAE, the Division, and the applicable District and Local Unit, with the following
exceptions:
1. Members who joined prior to July 1, 1985, and who elected at that time to not
join NEA, do not pay NEA dues.
2. Members who do not maintain any residence within North Carolina, who elect to
not join any Local Unit and District, and who pay by cash are not required to pay
District and Local Unit dues.
B. Out-of-state payroll deduction members who do not designate a Local Unit
membership will pay Local Unit and District dues, but those dues will be retained by
the Division.
C. Division annual dues shall be recommended by the Division’s Executive Board and
approved by the Representative Assembly.
D. Each District and Local Unit shall set its own dues for cash-paying members.
Bylaw 4: Dues Payments
A. Members shall pay all applicable life membership fees and annual dues of NEA
Retired, NCAE, the Division, its Districts, and Local Units through payroll deduction
or by cash payment to the Local Unit treasurer, with the exception of out-of-state
members, who may elect to join directly through the Division rather than through a
Local Unit.
B. The Local Unit treasurer shall forward cash dues to the appropriate bodies.
C. The membership year shall run concurrently with the Division’s fiscal year from
July 1 through June 30.
ARTICLE 3 SECTION 2
Bylaw 5: Elections
A. Any current member of the Division may nominate a current member as a
candidate for an office or candidates for more than one office to the
Elections/Nominating Committee by submitting an official nomination form. The
format of the nomination form shall be determined by the Nominating/Election
Committee in consultation with the Executive Director, and shall include certification
of qualification statements for both the nominator and the nominee, along with a
consent-to-serve statement for the nominee. The nomination form must be signed by
both the nominator and the nominee.
B. Nomination forms must be received at the state office of the Division no later than
one week prior to the start of the convention or be submitted directly to the members
of the Elections/Nominating Committee prior to the official close of nominations on
the first day of the convention.
C. All nominees shall be current members of the Division and shall have paid all
applicable dues for the membership year in which the election will take place prior to
signing the nomination form. All nominees shall indicate their consent to serve
before they are nominated by signing a consent-to-serve statement on the official
nomination form.
D. If there is more than one candidate for any office, the election shall be by secret
ballot. The Elections/Nominating Committee shall distribute, collect, and count the
ballots. The candidate receiving the majority vote shall be declared elected. In the
event of a tie between two candidates, the presiding officer shall hold runoff ballots
until the tie is broken. In the event that there are three or more candidates for an office,
and no candidate receives a majority vote on the first ballot, the two candidates
receiving the most votes will participate in a second ballot.
E. If there is only one candidate for an office, the election may be by voice vote.
F. If a vacancy occurs in the office of the presidency, the Vice-President/President-Elect
shall succeed to that office and serve for the remainder of the current term and for the
following two years.
G. If a vacancy occurs in any office other than the office of the presidency, and if the
even-year election has not yet taken place, the President shall appoint, with the
approval of the majority of the Executive Board, a successor to serve until the end of
the current term. This appointed officer may stand for election to this office at the
next State Convention. If the even-year election has already taken place, the newly
elected officer for the vacated position shall be immediately installed and serve in
that office for the remainder of the current term and for the following two years.
ARTICLE 3 SECTION 3
Bylaw 6: Removal from Office
Executive officers of the Association (local, district, state) may be removed for violation of the Code of Ethics of the Education Profession, for malfeasance.
A. Removal proceedings against an executive officer shall be initiated by written
petition submitted to the Review Board by at least fifteen (15) percent of the certified
delegates to the Representative Assembly.
B. If, after a due process hearing, a two thirds (2/3) vote of the Executive Board shall
sustain the charge, the office shall become vacant.
C. Succession and Vacancies.
Vacancies occurring by reason of death, resignation, incapacity, judgment of removal,
or other disqualification shall be filled as follows:
a. A vacancy in the office of President shall be filled by the Vice-President.
b. If, during the first or second year of a term a vacancy in either the office of Vice-
President or the office of Secretary, Treasurer occurs, such vacancy shall be filled
by the Board of Directors, which shall elect a successor to serve until the next
meeting of the Representative Assembly. The Representative Assembly shall then
elect a successor for the remainder of the term.
Bylaw 7: Presidential Disability and Succession
A. In case of the removal of the President from office or of his death or resignation, the
Vice President shall become President.
B. Whenever there is a vacancy in the office of the Vice President, the President shall
nominate a Vice President who shall take the office upon confirmation by a majority
vote of the Executive Board.
C. Whenever the President transmits to the Executive Director of the NCRSP his written
declaration that he is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, and
until a written declaration to the contrary, such powers and duties shall be discharged
by the Vice President as Acting President.
D. Whenever the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the
Executive Board, transmits to the Executive Director their written declaration that the
President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of his office, the Vice
President shall immediately assume the powers and duties of the office as Acting
President.
E. Thereafter, when the President transmits to the Executive Director his written
declaration that no inability exists, he shall resume the powers and duties of his office
unless the Vice President and a majority of either the principal officers of the
Executive Board, transmits within four days to the Executive Director their written
declaration that the President is unable to discharge the powers and duties of this
office.
ARTICLE 3 SECTION 4
Bylaw 8: NEA Delegates
A. Eligible members may vote for NEA-Retired / NEA delegates as follows:
1. All ballots cast must be official ballots supplied by the Division’s state office.
2. All ballots cast must be filled in using an ink pen, not a pencil.
3. An eligible member may cast one ballot.
4. A member may not cast a ballot on behalf of another member.
B Local Units shall collect and tally the ballots from their members. The Local Unit tally
of ballots for the NEA-Retired / NEA delegate election shall be conducted as
follows:
1. The tally must be completed by two or more Local Unit members, one of whom
is the Local Unit Elections/Nominating Committee Chair (or equivalent position).
The Local Unit President may not serve as the Nominating/Elections Committee
Chair.
2. The tally must be documented on the official tally sheet provided by the
Division’s state office.
3. The format of the tally sheet shall be determined by the Elections/Nominating
Committee in consultation with the Executive Director, and shall include a
submission deadline and a certification of the election process and tally results
statement.
4. The certification statement on the official tally sheet must be signed by both the
Local Unit President (even if the President did not participate in the tally) and by
the Local Unit Elections/Nominating Committee Chair (or equivalent position).
5. Local Units shall submit all used ballots and the official tally sheet to the
Division’s state office so as to be received at the state office no later than the
deadline date published in the official Division calendar of events.
C. The Elections/Nominating Committee shall conduct a final tally of the ballots using
the tally sheets submitted by the Local Units. To ensure the validity of the ballot tally,
the Elections/Nominating Committee may:
1. Conduct a recount of the ballots submitted by any Local Unit when warranted.
2. Disqualify any ballot that doesn’t meet the qualifications of subsection (B).
Disqualified ballots must be retained with the other ballots from the Local Unit in
question and marked with the reason for their disqualification.
3. Change the tally on the Local Unit’s tally sheet to account for any disqualified
ballots. The reason(s) for such disqualifications must be noted on the Local
Unit’s tally sheet.
D. The Elections/Nominating Committee Chair shall provide the President and the
Executive Director with a written summary and certification of the results of the
statewide tally once it has been completed.
E. No portion of dues money collected at the local, district, state, or national levels shall
be used to promote the candidacy of any individual for the NEA-Retired / NEA
delegation.
F. No officer of the Division may use his office to endorse or show preference for a
candidate running for the NEA-Retired / NEA delegation.
ARTICLE 3 SECTION 6
Bylaw 9: Administrative Council Function
The functions of the Administrative Council are:
A. Hire, evaluate, and dismiss Executive Director.
B. Recommend budget to the Executive Board.
C. Recommend revenue and disbursement polices.
D. Acts in lieu of Board between meetings of the Board.
E. Has authority to undertake emergency financial decisions between Board
meetings.
Bylaw 10: Executive Director Functions
The functions of the Executive Director are:
A. Advise with the President.
B. Employ the staff, recommend compensation, and define job descriptions.
C. Make emergency decisions which may be necessary.
D. Assist with convention plans.
E. Coordinate activities with other member retiree organizations.
ARTICLE VIII
Bylaw 11: Committees
All committees and their purposes and responsibilities shall be listed in the Division policies. The President shall appoint the number of persons as seems necessary to serve on each committee. All other aspects of the committee’s responsibilities and functions shall be a part of the policies.
The NCRSP/AARP Coordinator shall coordinate between the Executive Board of the
Division and the state AARP organization on matters of mutual interest.
The NEA-Retired Liaison shall keep the Executive Board of the Division informed
of NEA actions and plans that are of interest to the Division.
Governance (sitting on Ex. Board)
Awards
Legislative
Budget and Finance
Membership
Communication/Media
NCRSP/AARP Coordinator
Community Participation
NEA-Retired Liaison
Constitution and Bylaws
Policy
Health and Retirement Issues
Program and Special
Archivist
Elections/Nominating
Memorial
New Business Item (NBI)
Rules and Credentials
Bylaw 12: Committee Selection and Term of Office
A. The chairman of each committee shall be appointed by the incoming President and
approved by the Executive Board. The term of office shall be for two years.
B. The immediate past chairman of each committee shall serve one additional term as a
member of the new committee.
C. The President shall be a non-voting member of all committees except
Elections/Nominating.
D. All committee members shall be members of the Division.
E. Other committee members shall be selected by the President in consultation with the
appointed chairman and district presidents. Members shall represent all sections of
the state when feasible.
F. Committee members shall assume their duties as of July 1 in even numbered years
and serve until their successors have been appointed and assumed office.
Bylaw 13: Special Committees
A. Special committees may be appointed by the President as needed.
B. The term of office of any special committee shall expire when the purpose for which
it was appointed has been achieved.
Bylaw 14: Nominating/Election Committee
The President shall appoint a Elections/Nominating Committee in advance of any state
convention at which voting is to be held. The Elections/Nominating Committee shall
consist of three members of the Division, with one member appointed as the
Committee Chair. No Committee member shall be a current elected officer of the Division or a candidate for a Division office. While the Committee may generally solicit nominations for Division offices, it may not recruit specific members to be nominees. The Elections/Nominating Committee shall certify the validity of all nominations in consultation with the Executive Director and shall present a slate of qualified candidates to the Representative Assembly at the state convention of the Division.
Bylaw 15: Budget and Finance Committee
A.The duties of the Budget and Finance Committee shall be:
1. Formulate an annual budget.
2. Study and make recommendations for budget adjustments to the Executive Board
as needed.
3. Make a report of all investments annually at the spring meeting of the Executive
Board and annually to the Representative Assembly.
B.The President shall appoint a member knowledgeable in the field of finance to the
Budget and Finance Committee who will advise the Executive Director concerning
investments.
C.The duties of the State Treasurer shall consist of the following:
1. Serve as chairman of Budget and Finance Committee.
2. Advise the Executive Director on matters of business affairs.
3. Receive and transmit quarterly reports and Annual Audit Report.
4. Report on the financial condition of the Division to the President and Executive
Board.
5. Ex Officio officer is the Executive Director.
