The name of this Association shall be the Faculty and Professional Women's Association of Mississippi State University.

The objectives of this organization are to address the professional interests and concerns of women at Mississippi State University; to support and encourage Mississippi State University women students in their career aspirations; to study and facilitate means of extending the educational opportunities of Mississippi State University women in the community and state; to further the interests of the professional, academic, and administrative community of Mississippi State University; and to cooperate with other organizations on and off campus to progress toward common goals.

Section 1. Membership in the Association shall be limited to all current and retired University-related personnel in executive, administrative, managerial, faculty and professional non-faculty positions (i.e., EEO 6 Occupational Categories I, II, and III).

Section 2. The membership shall be those described in Section I who have paid their dues in the Association for the current membership year.

Section 3. The annual dues of $10.00 shall be payable to the Treasurer of the Association in advance on or before October 15 of each year. The Treasurer shall notify members when dues are in arrears. If dues of members in arrears are not paid within one month of notification, they shall be automatically dropped from membership in the Association. New members, after January 1, will be assessed ½ of the annual dues.

Section 4. Honorary memberships. Upon the signed recommendation of one member, seconded by another member, and by a three fourths vote by the ballot at the annual meeting, honorary life membership can be conferred upon an adult resident of the University community who shall have rendered notable service to the Association. An honorary member shall have none of the obligations of membership in the Association, and shall be entitled to all of the privileges except those of making motions, of voting, and of holding office.

Section 5. The Faculty and Professional Women's Association membership criteria do not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, religion, color, age, national origin, handicap/disability, or veteran status.

Section 1. The officers of the Association shall be President, President Elect/Vice President for Programs, Vice President for Membership, Secretary, Treasurer, and Immediate Past President. These officers shall be members elected by ballot of all members to serve for a term of one (1) year. The Immediate Past President serves as an Ex Officio member of the Executive Board. These officers shall perform the duties prescribed by these Bylaws and by the parliamentary authority adopted by the Association.

Section 2. President. The President shall be the chief executive officer of the Association and shall have general supervision over the business and other affairs of the Association. The President presides at meetings of the Association and performs other duties and functions appropriate to the office. The President serves as an Ex-Officio member of the President's Commission on the Status of Women.

Section 3. President-Elect/Vice President for Programs. During the absence of the President, shall assume the duties of the President, and when so acting, have all the powers of and be subject to all the restrictions upon the President. The President-Elect/Vice President for Programs shall be responsible for programs at meetings of the Association with input from the members. This report shall be announced to the Association during September.

Section 4. Vice President for Membership. The Vice President for Membership shall assume, in the absence of both the President and the President-Elect/Vice President for Programs, the duties of the office of the President. When so acting, the Vice President for Membership shall have all the powers of and be subject to all the restrictions upon the President. The Vice President for Membership shall also chair the Membership Committee and actively promote membership in the Association. The Vice President for Membership shall be responsible for the membership records of the Association.

Section 5. Secretary. The Secretary shall be responsible for all correspondence and other official records of the Association.

Section 6. Treasurer. The Treasurer shall act as the chief fiscal officer of the Association. All checks and withdrawals for amounts over $100 shall require 2 signatures, one of which shall be the Treasurer and the President or President-Elect/Vice President for Programs or Immediate Past President.

Section 7. Immediate Past President. The Immediate Past President shall be the Chair of the Nominations Committee and perform the tasks requested by the President. If the Immediate Past President is unable to serve, one of the former Past Presidents, in reverse chronological order would serve.

Section 8. The officers shall be elected by ballot to serve for one year or until their successors are elected. Candidates must receive a majority of the votes cast to be elected. Their term of office shall begin at the close of the May meeting.

Section 9. During the month of February, a Nominating Committee of three members shall be named by the President. It shall be the duty of this committee to nominate candidates for the offices to be filled at the annual April meeting. The Nominating Committee shall report to the Association at the regular meeting in March. Before the election at the annual meeting in April, additional nominations from the floor shall be permitted, provided the consent of the nominee has been obtained.

Section 10. No member shall hold more than one office at a time, and no member shall be eligible to serve more than two consecutive terms in the same office.

Section 11. Vacancies. Should the President be unable to fulfill the term of office, the President-Elect/Vice President for Programs shall automatically assume the office of President and the Vice President for Membership shall automatically assume the office of President-Elect/Vice President for Programs. The basis of this rule also applies should the office of the President-Elect/Vice President for Programs become vacant, it shall automatically be filled by the Vice President for Membership. Any vacancies occurring in any office other than the President and the President-Elect/Vice President for Programs, shall be filled in the following manner: (a) If the vacancy occurs prior to January 1, the Nominating Committee appointed for this selection of the current slate of officers shall recommend a candidate to fill the position to be elected by the membership. While the selection process is being completed, an interim officer shall be appointed by the President. (b) If the vacancy occurs after January 1, the President shall recommend to the Executive Board this selection of a replacement for their concurrence and the candidate shall automatically take office for the remainder of the term.

Section 1. Regular meetings of the Association shall be held each month from September to May inclusive unless otherwise ordered by the Association or the Executive Board.

Section 2. Members shall be notified by the Secretary at least one week prior to the meeting date of the place and time of the meeting. Such notification will include a tentative agenda for the upcoming meeting.

Section 3. The regular meeting in April shall be known as the annual meeting and shall be for the purpose of electing officers, receiving reports of the officers and committees, and for any other business that may arise.

Section 4. Special meetings can be called by the President or by the Executive Board and shall be called upon the written request of ten members of the Association. The purpose of the meeting shall be stated in the call. Except in cases of emergency, at least three days' notice shall be given.

Section 5. The members present at a meeting shall constitute a quorum.

Section 1. The Executive Board shall consist of the President, President-Elect/Vice President for Programs, Vice President for Membership, Secretary, Treasurer, Immediate Past President, and the Chairs of all Standing Committees.

Section 2. The Executive Board shall have general supervision of the affairs of the Association between its business meetings, fix the hour and place of meetings, make recommendations to the Associations, and shall perform such other duties as are specified in these Bylaws. It shall be the duty of this Board to oversee the budget for the fiscal year beginning the first day of October. The Board shall be subject to the orders of the Association, and none of its acts shall conflict with action taken by the Association.

Section 3. Regular meetings of the Executive Board shall be called by the President. At least three meetings shall be held each year.

Section 4. A quorum shall consist of a simple majority of voting members of the Executive Board.

Section 1. A Membership Committee chaired by the Vice President for Membership and composed of four other members shall be appointed by the President. It shall be the duty of this committee to undertake the annual membership drive to be completed in October and to assess members' needs and concerns each spring.

Section 2. A Scholarship Committee composed of five members of the Association shall be appointed by the President. It shall be the duty of this committee to develop and/or revise application guidelines for the scholarships, to publicize (in conjunction with the President) the availability of the FPWA scholarship(s), to solicit donations to the scholarship fund, and to select the scholarship recipient(s) from the applications received.

Section 3. An Equity for Women Committee, composed of interested members, shall study and work for greater equity for women on the MSU campus.

Section 4. Such other committees, standing or special, shall be appointed by the President as the Association or the Executive Board shall from time to time deem necessary to carry on the work of the Association. The President shall be an ex-officio member of all committees except the Nominating Committee.

Section 5. Committee chairs shall be members of the Association. Members of standing or special committees shall be chosen for their experience and work in the Association and/or their special aptitude for the work of the committee with due regard for cross-campus representation and rotation.

The rules contained in the current edition of Robert's Rules of Order Newly Revised shall govern the Association in all cases to which they are applicable and in which they are not inconsistent with the Bylaws and any special rule of order the Association may adopt.

Any proposed amendment to the Bylaws shall be submitted in writing by mail to all members of the Association. It shall be read at the next regular meeting of the membership, but shall be held over to the following regular meeting of the membership before a vote may be taken. Proxies or mail ballots will be accepted by the Secretary prior to the membership vote. The amendment shall be adopted if approved by a two-thirds vote of the members present. Members present shall include any validated proxies and mail ballots.