THE CONSTITUTION AND BYLAWS OF THE ALUMNI
OF THE MEMPHIS SCHOOL OF PREACHING
ARTICLE I
This organization shall
be known as the Memphis School of Preaching Alumni Association.
ARTICLE II
The officers of this association
shall consist of a president, a vice-president, a secretary/treasurer,
and a recording secretary. A board of directors, composed of one
member per graduated class, will represent the association's membership.
The members of the board of directors shall be elected from the graduated
classes by the members of that class present
at the annual lectureship (See Article VII). The board
of directors shall serve terms of four years and shall begin office at
the annual lectureship. 1
ARTICLE III
Officer's Duties
Section 1: President
The president of the Alumni
Association shall preside at all meetings of the association and at all
meetings of the executive committee. The order of meetings shall
be according to Robert's Rules of Order. The president shall be responsible
for guiding the establishment and completion of association goals each
year. He shall serve as liaison between the Alumni Association and
the administration of the Memphis School of Preaching in order to harmonize
objectives. The president shall also execute the bylaws of the Alumni
Association and shall preside over the board of directors. The president
shall be elected by the board of directors and shall be elected from the
members of the board. He shall serve a term of two years and shall
begin office at the annual lectureship in even numbered years.
Section 2: Vice-President
If the president shall fail
to qualify for any reason, or resign, (or temporarily by the request of
the president), the vice-president shall perform all the duties of that
office wherever and whenever necessary. He shall work with and under
the direction of the president of the alumni association according to the
Constitution and bylaws. If the vice-president should resign, or
for some other reason become unable to serve the term for which he has
been elected the board may elect a new vice-president to serve out his
term, at which time he shall be eligible to serve two terms on his own
as provided in Article VII.
Section 3: Secretary/Treasurer
The secretary/treasurer
shall be selected by the alumni president and possibly be an employee of
the Memphis School of Preaching. This officer shall have the general
oversight and direction of all matters of information and publicity of
the association; and shall cooperate with all officers of the association
to further the interest of the organization and to facilitate communication;
and shall deposit all funds of the association in the Alumni Association
account at a local bank; and shall provide assistance to all organized
activities of the association.
Section 4: Recording Secretary
The recording secretary shall keep a record of all
proceedings of the association, and shall be elected from the board of
directors, and shall take minutes at all the meetings and send them to
the school to be duplicated for distribution. The minutes must be
in the hands of the Alumni Association secretary/treasurer within one week
after meeting. (See Article III, Section 6).
Section 5: Executive Committee
The president, vice-president,
secretary/treasurer, and recording secretary shall form an executive committee
to manage the affairs of the association in accordance with the bylaws;
they shall be responsible for all projects undertaken for their Alma Mater;
and initiate and pursue programs of interest to the Alumni Association.
Section 6: Board of Directors
A board of directors consisting
of all the directors, one from each graduated class, shall form a council
to set policies, review progress, and suggest the course of the association.
These policy reviews and suggestions will take into consideration the thinking
of the Forest Hill 2 elders, and MSOP director.
The directors and the recording secretary shall publish from the latter's
records a full report of their work at the expiration of each meeting.
ARTICLE IV
Election of Officers and Directors
All officers and directors
shall be elected at the annual lectureship (See Article II, Article III,
and Article VI), with the exception of the secretary/treasurer who shall
be appointed by the alumni president. Proximity to the MSOP campus
is a prerequisite to this position.
ARTICLE V
Membership
Section 1:
Any person who has graduated
from the Memphis School of Preaching shall be eligible for membership in
the Alumni Association.
Section 2:
The association board may
elect no more than two honorary alumni per year. They shall be elected
by the alumni board by a 2/3 majority vote. Names for honorary alumni
may be submitted by any qualified alumni.
ARTICLE VI
Amendments to Constitution, Etc.
Section 1:
This constitution may be
amended by a two-thirds vote of the qualified members who are present at
any regularly called meeting of the organization, provided that the substance
of the proposed amendment has been submitted to the members together with
the notice of the meeting within one week of the meeting date.
Section 2:
This association shall convene
for at least one meeting annually which shall be held during lectureship
week, and the board of directors may call for a meeting at any time it
is necessary. The president, or secretary/treasurer, may call upon
the board to consider any vital matter that arises. If a question
arises that must be submitted to the board, and if an assembly date is
not feasible, the question or proposition may be submitted in writing together
with a write-in ballot. Each director shall, in turn, submit his
vote by return mail. A majority vote shall determine the matter.
The secretary/treasurer shall inform each member of the board of the decision.
The votes may be audited by any qualified member of the association.
Section 3:
A simple majority of the
board of directors shall constitute a quorum for a duly authorized meeting
of the association with all transactions therein being considered valid.
3
ARTICLE VII
Terms of Office
Section 1:
The president, and vice-president
shall serve for two years and may be re-elected for one additional term.
The officers shall hold office until their successors are duly installed.
The recording secretary shall have no term limits but serve at the discretion
of the board.1
Section 2:
The members of the board
of directors shall serve for a term of four years 1
being eligible for re-election. Expiration dates shall be determined
according to Article II and Article III.
If a board member cannot
attend the annual alumni meeting at the annual lectureship, the class he
represents may elect an alternate representative to act in the absence
of the regular board member.
ARTICLE VIII
Dues
Instead of annual membership
fees, the alumni are encouraged to give personally as requested for special
needs of the association, such as defraying mailing and printing costs,
as they may arise and as alumni are able personally to contribute.
ARTICLE IX
Disbursement of Funds
The secretary/treasurer
shall be authorized, with the approval of the alumni board to draw upon
funds received by the association to defray operating expenses of the association.
Should a surplus accumulate, the board of directors shall determine what
distribution shall be made.
ARTICLE X
Compensating Officers
No officer of this organization
shall be compensated for services rendered, notwithstanding the secretary/treasurer
is authorized to reimburse any officer, committee, or individual for any
expenses necessarily incurred in duly authorized work of the association
if such is properly requested in writing; e.g., furnishing an itemized
statement for sales slips.
ARTICLE XI
Records of Recognition Committee
Responsibilities
The title of this
committee shall be indicative of its dual functions:
1. To improve the association's contacts
with former students of Memphis School of Preaching; and
2. To recognize alumni members for their
outstanding services.
3. Select Alumnus of the year.
Public Relations Committee
Responsibilities
All of the programs
of this committee shall have two unchanging purposes:
1. To increase public and alumni understanding
of Memphis School of Preaching's goals; and
2. To build acceptance of these goals.
Student Recruitment Committee
Responsibilities
The function of this committee
is vital, yet may be simply stated: to locate for Memphis School of Preaching
the kind of students that the institution may best serve.
Alumni Fund
Responsibilities
1. The responsibility of the Alumni Fund (from
contributions at the annual alumni banquet) shall be to obtain financial
support from Memphis School of Preaching alumni for the Annual Fund.
The purpose of the fund shall be to help underwrite the School's
instructional efforts. The goal shall be to increase the amount
of alumni contributions. While major attention will be devoted to
the annual fund, the committee should also identify prospects and assist
in obtaining support for future capital projects through deferred gifts.
2. The chairman of the Alumni Fund shall
be responsible for the organization and solicitation of the Alumni Fund.
He shall report directly to the president of the alumni association.
The alumni Fund Chairman should attend or send a representative to all
meetings.
3. A separate alumni working fund shall
be kept in a special account by the secretary/treasurer for the purpose
of completing alumni projects, which projects shall be determined by the
alumni board. The secretary/treasurer shall be authorized to deposit
and/or withdraw from the fund. Two members of the executive committee
must verbally approve expenditures.1
Areas of Work
The committee shall work
to obtain the support of the alumni.
ARTICLE XII
Section 1:
Because the Memphis School
of Preaching is under the oversight of the elders of the Forest Hill 2
church of Christ, and because this church and school are dedicated to sound
biblical doctrine and sound moral character of students, faculty, and alumni;
if at any time it is determined that any alumni officer or board member
does not meet the above prescribed standards, said officer or board members
may be asked to resign.
Section 2:
The determination of doctrinal
and moral soundness shall be made by the school director and the elders
based on the Biblical standard required of all present student and faculty.
Biblical procedures of determining blame or innocence are presumed (cf.
Matthew 18:15-20; and/or Romans 16:17,18; II John 9-11).
Section 3:
A follow-up report to the
alumni board shall be required before any final dismissal of an officer
or board member with the alumni board cooperating with the elders and director
and a majority vote of the board (pursuant to Article VI, section 3) will
affirm the rejection of the offending officer or board member. This
may only be accomplished through the mail or at a regular meeting of the
board.
This Constitution and bylaws
of the alumni of the Memphis School of Preaching, was submitted to the
board on March 31, 1992; and approved by the alumni board as duly noted
in the minutes of the board meeting by a 2/3 or greater vote.
_______________
1 Amended MSOP Alumni Board Meeting March
30, 1999
2 Knight Arnold completed a move and changed
the name of the congregation to Forest Hill church of Christ 1997
3 Changed to keep with the intent of the
by-laws (Alumni Board Meeting March 30, 1999).