FITSA By-Laws

The name of the organization shall be "FITSA Alumni Network Association" and shall be established as an un-incorporated entity under the Laws of the State of Florida.

Article II
Purpose

The purpose of the Association shall be to develop and promote the following programs:

1. Promotion of the School of Aeronautics;

2. Facilitate communication between the School of Aeronautics and graduates in the field;

3. Recruiting of new students;

4. Assistance in the placement of graduates;

5. Assessment of industry needs to assure that graduates possess the skills and education desired in the workplace; and

6. Assistance in maintaining a "state-of-the-art" technical capability within the School of Aeronautics.

The Association shall operate without profit and no part of the income of the Association shall inure to the benefit of any individual member.

Article III
Membership

Section 1. Members shall be classified as Charter, General, Associate, Corporate, and Honorary.

1. Charter Membership shall be open to those persons who were instrumental in the establishment of the Association prior to February 14, 1992, including graduates, attendees, and faculty, and all eligible persons who have secured their membership by acceptance and payment of dues prior to July 31, 1992.

2. General Membership shall be open to all graduates of the School of Aeronautics.

3. Associate Membership shall be open to undergraduate students, prior students, individual supporters of the School of Aeronautics, and faculty who are not graduates of the School of Aeronautics.

4. Corporate Membership shall be open to all corporations interested in supporting the purpose of the Association.

5. Honorary Membership shall be open to any person deemed worthy of this distinction by the Association's Board of Directors or by a majority vote of the members present at any meeting. An honorary member shall enjoy all Association privileges, but shall not pay dues, vote, or hold office.

Section 2. A Charter, General, or Associate member shall be entitled to all the rights and privileges of the Association and shall be entitled at any Association meeting to one vote on all subjects affecting the rights and interests of the Association.

Section 3. A member is considered in good standing if their dues have been paid.

Article IV
Board of Directors/Officers

Section 1. The Board of Directors of the Association shall consist of a President, Vice-President, Secretary/Treasurer (Officers), and eight elected Directors. In accordance with Article VI of these By-Laws, the President shall serve as the Chairman of the Board of Directors, and the immediate Past President shall be an ex-officio member of the Board of Directors. The Vice-President shall assume the parliamentary duties of the President on the President's absence, and the Secretary/Treasurer shall assume these duties in the absence of the first two officers.

Section 2. The Dean of the School of Aeronautics shall also serve as an ex-officio member of the Board of Directors.

Section 3. The Board shall have the full control and management of the Association and its affairs, funds, and property. It shall be the duty of the Board to carry out the objectives and purposes of the Association.

Section 4. The principal office of this Association shall be that of the duly elected Secretary/Treasurer, or such other place as the Board of Directors may from time to time designate.

Article V
Election and Appointments

Section 1. At least thirty (30) days prior to the annual meeting, the President will appoint a nominating committee totaling three (3) Charter and/or Associate members which shall present a slate of officers and Directors to the membership at the annual meeting.

Section 2. Consent of the candidates must be obtained before the Nominations are submitted to the membership.

Section 3. New candidates for the office of President must have served as an officer or Director within the past three (3) years.

Section 4. The President, Vice-President, and Secretary/Treasurer shall be elected at the annual meeting. The terms of service for the officers shall be two (2) years from March 1 through February 28(or 29), inclusive, with no limitations on the number of successive terms.

Section 5. Directors shall also be elected at the annual meeting for a period of two years each. For the term from February 1997 to February 1998, two of the five Directors shall serve a one (1) year term. Thereafter, all Director terms shall be two (2) years. An unexpired term must be filled by appointment from the President prior to the annual meeting. A person appointed to fill an unexpired Director's term shall only serve in that position for the duration of the original term unless elected to continue in that position at the annual meeting which coincides with the beginning of the new term for that position.

Article VI
Duties of the Board

Section 1. President - The President shall be the principal executive officer of the Association and shall, in general, supervise all of its affairs and office appointments. The President shall have the right, through a vote of a majority of the non-affected Board members, to expel any Member from the FITSA Board who has missed two Board meetings during any 12-month period or for gross dereliction of their assigned responsibilities. Additionally, the President has the right to appoint a replacement to serve out the expelled Board Member’s remaining term, with the advise and consent of a majority of the Board, pursuant to Article V, Section 5 of the Bylaws (replacements).

Section 2. Vice-President - The Vice-President shall assume the parliamentary duties of the President in the absence of the President.

Section 3. Secretary/Treasurer - The Secretary/Treasurer shall:

1. In general, perform all duties incident to the office of Secretary/Treasurer and such other duties of from time to time may be assigned to the Secretary/Treasurer by the President;

2. Keep minutes of the membership and officers' meetings;

3. See that all notices of members' or officers' meetings are duly given in accordance with these By-Laws;

4. Maintain custody of the records;

5. Keep a list of all members of the Association and administer membership procedures; and

6. Have custody of and be responsible for all funds of the Association, give receipts for any and all monies due and payable to the Association, and deposit all such monies in the name of the Association in such banks, trust companies, or other depositories as shall be selected by the officers.

Section 4. Standing Committees , Panels, or Representatives - In addition to the officers and Board of Directors, there shall be such standing committees, panels, or representatives which shall be appointed by President and subject to his/her supervision. They shall perform the duties enumerated for them by the Board of Directors and such additional duties as the President may require.

Section 5. Compensation - None of the officers, directors, or ex-officio members of the Association shall be paid any compensation for their regular services to the Association.

Article VII
Meetings

Section 1. The Association shall have an annual meeting to be held in conjunction with the annual American Association of Airport Executives (AAAE) Student Chapter and School of Aeronautics Aviation Symposium. Members will be notified of the date and time when the Annual Symposium is scheduled.

Section 2. The Board of Directors shall meet at least once during the school year in addition to the annual meeting. Special meetings may be called by the President. Five (5) members of the Board shall constitute a quorum.

Section 3. The minutes of all regular and special meetings of the membership and of the Board shall be distributed to all members as soon as possible after being processed.

Article VIII
Order of Business

Section 1. The regular business of any meeting of the Association shall be as follows:

1. Approval of the minutes of the previous meeting.

2. Report of the Treasurer.

3. Report of the Board of Directors.

4. Reports of the Committees.

5. Unfinished business.

6. New business.

Section 2. Roberts' Rules of Order shall govern the parliamentary procedure of the meetings of the Association provided for in these By-Laws.

Article IX
Dues

Section 1. Initiation fees and annual dues shall be fixed by the Board of Directors and subject to a majority vote of the members present at the annual meeting.

Section 2. An initiation fee of thirty-five dollars ($35.00) shall be charged for General membership only.

Section 3. Annual dues shall be thirty-five dollars ($35.00) for Charter and General members, Fifteen Dollars ($15.00) for Associate members, and One Hundred Twenty-Five Dollars ($125.00) for Corporate members.

Section 4. Dues shall be payable for the fiscal year commencing March 1 and paid prior to May 1 of the current year. For General membership, payment of dues after said date will require will require payment of the thirty-five dollar ($35.00) initiation fee in addition to the payment of dues for the membership reinstatement; however, repayment of the initiation fee may be waived by the Board pending a review of the circumstances leading to the outstanding dues payment. The initiation fee will also be waived for graduates of the School of Aeronautics seeking General membership, provided that the graduate has applied and paid for said membership within thirty (30) days of graduation. No initiation fee shall be charged for Associate, Corporate, and Honorary memberships, or graduates who join by July 31, 1992.

Section 5. There shall be no proration of membership dues for applications received at various times during the year. Potential members must complete an application and pay annual dues and fees, as appropriate, in accordance with these By-Laws.

Article X
Suspension, Expulsion, and Readmission

Section 1. The Officers and Board of Directors shall have the power to determine the causes which justify suspension, expulsion, and/or readmission of members, and to prescribe the method or procedure in suspension, expulsion, and/or readmission.

Article XI
Amendments

Section 1. These By-Laws may be amended at the annual meeting of the Association by an affirmative vote of a two-thirds majority of the Charter, General, and Associate members present at the annual meeting, provided that written notice of the proposed amendment shall have been sent by the Secretary/Treasurer to each Charter, General, and Associate member at least ten (10) days prior to the meeting.