The Constitution of the Nebraska Chapter of

The American Association of Teachers of German

I.  Name

    The name of this organization shall be the Nebraska Chapter of the American Association of Teachers of German.

II. Purpose

    The purpose of this chapter shall be to advance and improve the teaching of the language, literatures and cultures of the German-speaking countries, and to promote cooperation among its members and other professional organizations.

III. Membership

    1.  Any current or former teacher or anyone interested in the teaching of German may become a regular member of the AATG, and thus a member of this chapter upon payment of the annual dues.  All chapter members belong first to the national AATG.

    2.  Full-time graduate and undergraduate students may become student members upon payment of the annual dues for student membership.  No one may remain a student member who is no longer a full-time student, and in no case may anyone be a student member longer than six years.

    3.  Any teacher who has been a member for fifteen years immediately preceding the time of retirement may become an Emeritus Member at the time of retirement upon payment of the dues for Emeritus Membership.

4. Honorary membership in the AATG may be granted only in accordance with the stipulation in the national constitution.

    5.  The payment of annual dues shall entitle a member to receive all official publications of the Association, participate in meetings of the Association, and exercise all other privileges of membership.

IV. Officers

    1.  The officers of the Chapter are President, President-Elect and Secretary-Treasurer.  No one person may hold more than one of these offices at a given time.

2.      These offices shall be elected by ballot before the annual spring meeting on the basis of nominations made by the nominating committee.  The President-Elect shall be elected each year.  The President-Elect shall proceed to the position of President after one year as President-Elect.  The President shall serve one year as President.  The Secretary-Treasurer shall be elected for two years.  In the event that the Secretary-Treasurer or President-Elect resigns before the end of his or her term, the President shall be entitled to appoint a successor for the remainder of the term.   Should the President resign, the President-Elect will assume that office. 

3.  Terms of office should be alternated between post-secondary and pre-collegiate colleagues, whenever possible.    Officers shall take office on September 1.

    4.  Duties of Office

        A.  President

           i. The President will represent the chapter at the Annual AATG Presidents' Meeting or any meeting deemed necessary by the AATG national chapter.

          ii. The President will present agendas for the meetings of the Executive Council and NATG business meetings and chair those meetings.

        iii.   The President may appoint committees and their members. 

        iv.   The President shall be responsible for the programs and shall arrange that the program announcements reach the Secretary-Treasurer in sufficient time to permit circulation to Chapter members.

v.                  The President shall apply for grant-funding from AATG or other sources.

vi.                The President shall complete all correspondence with the national office, including the annual report.

vii.              The President shall serve on the NILA board as a voting member.

B.      President-Elect

        i. The President-elect shall serve as Acting President in the event that the President is unable for any reason to fulfill his or her duties or to continue in office.

        ii. The President-Elect shall serve as membership chair, with the duties of attracting members to the chapter and maintaining/updating membership lists.

    C.  Secretary-Treasurer

        i. The Secretary-Treasurer will take minutes at the meetings, type the minutes, and present the minutes at the following meeting.

        ii. The Secretary-Treasurer will be responsible for the correspondence to the chapter membership.

        iii. The Secretary-Treasurer will be responsible for collecting, managing, and dispensing the funds of the chapter.  This officer will prepare financial statements for the membership and the national office twice a year.

V.  Administration

    The administration of the chapter shall be in the hands of the Executive Council, which is composed of the officers provided for in section IV.   The immediate Past-President of the Chapter shall be a member of the Executive Council for one year succeeding his or her term of office.  A Testing Chairperson, appointed by the President, will administer the National German Exam.  An Awards Chairperson, also appointed by the President, will oversee an ad hoc committee for Chapter awards and will facilitate the process of nominating members for national awards.  Of course, committee work and chapter assignments should be shared by a larger group of members.

VI. Meetings

    The chapter shall meet at least twice a year.  The times and places of these meetings shall be determined by the President after due consultation with the Executive Council.  The members present at any session shall constitute a quorum.

VII. Amendments

    The Constitution of the Chapter may be amended by 2/3 of a quorum at any meeting.  Such amendment(s) may be proposed by the Executive Council, or written notice to the Executive Council by at least four members of the chapter no later than one month before the meeting at which the action is to be taken.

VIII. By-laws

    1.  Nomination of Officers:

        At the fall meeting, the President of the Chapter shall appoint a committee of three to present nominations for the offices to be filled.  The members of this Nominating Committee shall come from the membership at-large and shall not include any member of the Executive Council.  These nominations should be forwarded to the Secretary-Treasurer, who in turn shall prepare a ballot.

    2.  Meetings of the Executive Council:

        The Executive Council shall consult before each meeting of the chapter.  Special meetings may be held at the request of the President or any two members of the Executive Council.

    3.  Minutes of the Meetings:

        The minutes of the previous meeting shall be read at the following meeting.

Revised, spring 2007                                                                                              

Adopted, fall 2007 (October 13, 2007)