CONSTITUTION and BYLAWS
THE ADOPTIVE AND FOSTER PARENT ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA, INC.
(Redraft September, 1997)
CONSTITUTION
ARTICLE I
Name
The name of the corporation shall be The Adoptive and Foster Parent Association of Georgia, Inc.; (AFPAG) often referred to in this Constitution as the Association.
ARTICLE II
Purposes
The purposes for which the Association are formed are:
1. to bring together all adoptive and foster parents, agency representatives, and community people who wish to work together for the same purposes as set forth in these bylaws and articles of incorporation.
2. to encourage the formation of local adoptive and foster parent associations.
3. to promote and enhance mutual coordination, cooperation, and communication among adoptive parents, foster parents, adoptive parent associations, foster parent associations, all child caring agencies, and other interested persons.
4. to work in cooperation with public and private welfare agencies in improving foster care services and adoption processes.
5. to encourage the training and education of adoptive parents, foster parents, and others working in the field of adoption and family foster care.
6. to encourage the recruitment and retention of individuals to serve as foster parents or to work in the field of foster family care.
7. to seek viable reforms in the adoption environment and family foster care.
8. to promote, by attitude and action, constructive social action needed to bring about improvements in child welfare systems and in legislation pertaining to all children and families in general, and Children in out-of-home placements, Adoptive Families and Foster Families in particular.
9. to promote community education and awareness of adoption and foster care issues.
Page 1
ARTICLE III
Nature of the Association
SECTION 1. The association shall be incorporated, self-governing, non-profit, non-partisan, non-sectarian, and shall not discriminate against any person on the grounds of sex, race, creed, religion, or national origin. The association shall solicit and collect funds for the accomplishment and furtherance of the Constitution and Bylaws.
SECTION 2. The Association shall not engage in any activities or exercises that are contrary to law or to the primary purposes for which this Association was formed. In no event shall such activities be in contravention to the laws or provisions of the Internal Revenue Code; sections 501 (c) (3), 509 (a) and 509 (a) (2), which allows this body its tax-exempt status.
SECTION 3. In the event of the dissolution of the Association, all assets and holdings will be disposed of under the provisions of the governing Internal Revenue Code Section 501(c)(3).
ARTICLE IV
Qualification of Members
Membership shall consist of such class or classes with such qualifications, rights, and obligations as shall be set forth in the Bylaws of the Association.
ARTICLE V
Board of Directors . . . Officers
The Board of Directors will consist of the officers, immediate past president, and the chairpersons of the standing committees. The duties of the Board of Directors shall be as set forth in the Bylaws of the Association.
ARTICLE VI
Meetings
Meetings shall be held at the call of the Board of Directors or as set forth in the Bylaws of the Association.
ARTICLE VII
Amendments
Amendment of this Constitution may be made by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of those members voting. Written notice of the intention to amend, a copy of the proposed amendments, and a ballot shall be mailed to each member. Thirty (30) days following this mailing, returned ballots will be tabulated. The results of the vote shall be published in the next issue of the official publication of AFPAG.
Constitution and Bylaws of The Adoptive and Foster Parent Association of Georgia, Inc. (Redraft September, 1997)
THE ADOPTIVE AND FOSTER PARENT ASSOCIATION OF GEORGIA, INC.
(Redraft September, 1997)
BYLAWS
ARTICLE I
Name
The name of the corporation shall be The Adoptive and Foster Parent Association of Georgia, Inc.; (AFPAG) often referred to in these bylaws as the Association. The Association shall be self-governing, non-profit, non-partisan, non-sectarian, and shall not discriminate against any person on the basis of sex, race, creed, religion, or national origin. The association shall solicit and receive funds for the accomplishment and furtherance of these Bylaws. The Association shall not engage in any activities or exercise any powers that are contrary to law or to the primary purposes for which this Association was formed.
ARTICLE II
Membership
SECTION 1: Types of Memberships
A. Regular membership shall be available to all individual adoptive parents, foster parents, child welfare personnel, and other individuals interested in the field of child welfare.
B. Supporting membership shall be available to any individual or organization wishing to support the purposes and efforts of this Association. Benefits of this membership do not include individual membership or voting rights.
C. Honorary membership may be awarded from time to time by the Association. Recipients shall enjoy all privileges of regular membership.
D. Organization membership shall be available to all organizations wishing to support the purposes and efforts of this Association. The benefits of this membership include individual membership enrollment and voting rights.
SECTION 2: Dues
Dues shall be set by the Board of Directors. Regular members must pay dues annually to remain in good standing.
SECTION 3: Membership Year
The membership year shall be from January 1 to December 31 (12 months).
ARTICLE III
Officers and Duties
SECTION 1: Officers
The officers of the Association shall be President, Executive Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Immediate Past President, and the Sub-Region Vice-Presidents.
Constitution and Bylaws of The Adoptive and Foster Parent Association of Georgia, Inc. (Redraft September, 1997)
Page 3
ARTICLE III
(Continued)
SECTION 2: Regions and Sub-Regions
A: The regions shall be defined as follows:
1: North Region shall consist of North West 1, North West 2, North East 1, and North
East 2 Sub-regions.
2. Metro Region shall consist of the Metro Atlanta 1 and Metro Atlanta 2 Sub-regions.
3. Central Region shall consist of Central West 1, Central West 2, Central 1, Central 2, Central East 1, and Central East 2 sub-regions.
4. South Region shall consist of South West 1, South West 2, South East 1, and South East 2 Sub-regions.
B. The Sub-Regions shall be defined as follows:
1. North West 1 Sub-Region
Catoosa Gilmer Walker
Chattooga Gordon Whitfield
Dade Murray
Fannin
North West 2 Sub-Region
Bartow Haralson Pickens
Cherokee Paulding Polk
Floyd
2. North East 1 Sub-Region
Banks Hall Towns
Dawson Lumpkin Union
Forsyth Rabun White
Habersham Stephens
North East 2 Sub-Region
Barrow Greene Morgan
Clarke Hart Oconee
Elbert Jackson Oglethorpe
Franklin Madison Walton
3. Metro Atlanta 1 Sub-Region
Cobb Douglas Fulton
Metro Atlanta 2 Sub-Region
Clayton Gwinnett Rockdale
Dekalb
4. Central West 1 Sub-Region
Butts Heard Pike
Carroll Henry Spalding
Coweta Lamar Talbot
Fayette Meriwether Troup
Harris Newton Upson
Constitution and Bylaws of The Adoptive and Foster Parent Association of Georgia, Inc. (Redraft September, 1997)
Page 4
ARTICLE III
SECTION 2
(Continued)
Central West 2 Sub-Region
Chattahoochee Marion Stewart
Clay Muscogee Sumter
Crisp Quitman Taylor
Dooly Randolph Webster
Macon Schley
5. Central 1 Sub-Region
Baldwin Jasper Twiggs
Bibb Jones Washington
Crawford Monroe Wilkinson
Hancock Putnam
Central 2 Sub-Region
Bleckley Laurens Telfair
Dodge Montgomery Treutlen
Houston Peach Wheeler
Johnson Pulaski Wilcox
6. Central East 1 Sub-Region
Columbia Lincoln Warren
Glascock McDuffie Wilkes
Jefferson Taliaferro
Central East 2 Sub-Region
Burke Jenkins Screven
Emanuel Richmond
South West 1 Sub-Region
Baker Early Mitchell
Calhoun Grady Seminole
Decatur Lee Terrell
Dougherty Miller Thomas
South West 2 Sub-Region
Ben Hill Cook Lowndes
Berrien Echols Tift
Brooks Irwin Turner
Colquitt Lanier Worth
8. South East 1 Sub-Region
Bryan Effingham McIntosh
Bulloch Evans Tattnall
Candler Liberty Toombs
Chatham Long
Constitution and Bylaws of The Adoptive and Foster Parent Association of Georgia, Inc. (Redraft September, 1997)
Page 5
ARTICLE III
SECTION 2
(Continued)
South East 2 Sub-Region
Appling Charlton Jeff Davis
Atkinson Clinch Pierce
Bacon Coffee Ware
Brantley Glynn Wayne
Camden
SECTION 3: Duties of the Officers
Each officer shall forward the records of office to the incoming officer within thirty (30) days of the last day of his/her term. Each officer shall be a member in good standing at the time of election and for the duration of his/her term in office. Each officer shall serve as a member of the board of directors and attend all regular, special and called meetings of the board and attend the general membership annual convention.
SECTION 4: Election, Terms of Office, and Replacement
A. Election
--- The election of president, Executive Vice-President, Secretary and Treasurer shall be by ballot of the total State Membership.
--- The Sub-Region Vice-Presidents shall be elected by mailed ballot of the membership of that region only.
--- Ballots will be mailed out within one (1) week after the closing day of the annual AFPAG Conference.
--- Thirty (30) days following this mailing, returned ballots will be tabulated by the Nominating Committee.
--- The results will be published in the next issue of the official publication of AFPAG.
--- A simple majority vote of the returned ballots will elect each officer.
--- All ballots and related records of the election will be retained by the Secretary for one year.
B. Term of Office
--- All officers shall serve for a period of two (2) years.
--- Sub-Region Vice-Presidents in even-numbered regions shall be elected in even-numbered years. The Sub-Region Vice-Presidents in odd-numbered regions shall be elected in odd-numbered years.
--- Elected officers shall assume their offices June 1st and serve until May 31st. No officer shall serve more than two (2) consecutive terms in the same office. An officer who has served more than half a term shall be considered to have served one term.
C. Replacement
--- Upon vacancy of an office, during the term, the Nominating Committee shall be notified to seek a replacement. A replacement nomination from the Nominating Committee shall be submitted to the Board for election.
Constitution and Bylaws of The Adoptive and Foster Parent Association of Georgia, Inc. (Redraft September, 1997)
Page 6
ARTICLE IV
Board of Directors and Committees
SECTION 1: Structure
The executive authority of the Association shall be invested in the Board of Directors which shall be responsible for the management and property of the Association. The Board of Directors shall consist of the following members:
A. President, Executive Vice-President, Secretary, Treasurer, Immediate Past President, and the Sub-Region Vice-Presidents.
B. Chairpersons of the Standing Committees.
SECTION 2: Standing Committees shall have a chairperson appointed by the President. The only committee exempt from this shall be the Finance Committee, whose chairperson shall be the Treasurer. The chairperson of each committee shall be responsible for selecting other members of that committee.
A. Membership Committee shall recruit, approve membership for the Association, provide members with identification of their affiliation with the Association, and provide a list of members to the Board of Directors.
B. Finance Committee shall prepare and present a proposed annual budget to the Board of Directors at least sixty (60) days prior to the fiscal year. Shall oversee the approved budget and accept recommendations for additional funding as necessary. Shall consider and present additional requests for funding to the Board of Directors at the next scheduled meeting. Shall be chaired by the Treasurer.
C. Communication/Newsletter Committee shall assume responsibility for obtaining, editing, publishing and distributing an official publication of AFPAG.
D. Conference Committee shall oversee and be responsible for the planning of the Annual Conference of the Association. Shall search for a site and present their recommendations to the Board of Directors for approval. Upon approval the committee shall assume the responsibility for securing the site. The sites for the annual conferences shall be secured three (3) years in advance. Shall recommend an on-sight chairperson to the Board of Directors.
E. Legislative Committee shall actively seek to inform the Georgia State Legislature about the needs of adoption and foster care. Shall inform the AFPAG about pertinent and pending legislation.
F. Nominating Committee shall be responsible for finding qualified members of the
Association who wish to serve as members of the Board. Shall consist of one member
from each of the four (4) regions described in Article III, Section 2, Part A of the Bylaws.
Shall mail a ballot with a slate of officers for election to the appropriate membership as
required in Article III, Section 4, Part A, of the Bylaws.
Constitution and Bylaws of The Adoptive and Foster Parent Association of Georgia, Inc. (Redraft September, 1997)
Page 7
ARTICLE IV
SECTION 2
(Continued)
G. Community Education and Awareness Committee shall assume the responsibility for obtaining and distributing information concerning Adoption and Foster Parenting.
SECTION 3: Appointed Committees
Any appointed committee shall report their decision(s) to the governing board and will disband themselves after the final report is accepted by the governing board. If after a period of six (6) months no decision or action has been taken by this committee, the committee shall consider itself defunct.
SECTION 4: Meetings
The Board of Directors shall hold a regular meeting at the annual State Conference. Other meetings may be held when scheduled by agreement of the majority of the Board of Directors. The President shall forward to all board members a proposed agenda of the upcoming meeting. A proposed agenda shall suffice as a written notice and shall be mailed to each board member not less than thirty (30) days prior to the board meetings. Place and time of the next meeting of the Board of Director shall be established prior to adjournment of the current meeting.
SECTION 5: Transacting Business
The Board of Directors may transact business by mail on proposed resolutions mailed to them by the Secretary. If within thirty (30) days thereafter, a simple majority of the returned votes are in favor of such resolutions, said resolutions shall be deemed carried. Otherwise they shall fail.
SECTION 6: Audit
An independent audit of the Treasury records shall be performed at the end of each membership year. The auditor shall be selected by a simple majority vote of the board of directors. The auditor shall be instructed to direct the audit results to the President.
SECTION 7: Duties
A. To interpret and enforce the provisions of the Constitution and Bylaws of the Association;
B. To promote, by attitude and action, constructive social action needed to bring about improvements in child welfare systems and in legislation pertaining to all children and families in general, and Children in out-of-home placements, Adoptive Families, and Foster Families in particular;
C. To act as an information center and research body regarding constitutional matters, finance, legislative actions, and education, as they pertain to Adoption and Foster Care, and the dissemination of such information;
D. To provide a vehicle for communication among adoptive parents, foster parents, local adoptive parent associations, foster parent associations, child caring agencies, and other
interested persons;
Constitution and Bylaws of The Adoptive and Foster Parent Association of Georgia, Inc. (Redraft September, 1997)
Page 8
ARTICLE IV
SECTION 7
(Continued)
E. To cooperate with other organizations which have similar objectives to those of this Association;
F. To formulate rules and regulations deemed essential to the interests and objectives of this Association.
ARTICLE V
Meetings
SECTION 1: The membership of this Association shall meet annually at the AFPAG
Conference.
SECTION 2: Additional meetings may be called as needed by agreement of the majority of the Board of Directors.
SECTION 3: Notice of Board meetings and proposed agenda to include place, time and date shall be sent to the members of the Board by the President at least thirty (30) days prior to the meeting.
SECTION 4: All meetings shall be conducted according to Roberts Rules of Order, revised.
SECTION 5: A quorum shall consist of those who attend the scheduled or called meeting with a minimum of ten (10) members being present.
SECTION 6: The annual AFPAG conference shall be announced through the official publication of AFPAG.
ARTICLE VI
Bill of Recall
When at least half of the Board of Directors perceive an officer to be unable to fulfill the duties and obligations of office as prescribed by the Job Descriptions given each officer as office is
taken, a designee shall counsel the officer concerning the existing deficiencies and ask this officer to resign his/her position.
If within fourteen (14) days the officer does not tender resignation, a special meeting will be called to recommend a Bill of Recall. The Bill of Recall shall be deemed valid with a two-thirds (2/3) or more vote of the quorum. This vote shall be conducted by secret ballot. The vote of the officer in question shall be excluded from this procedure.
Constitution and Bylaws of The Adoptive and Foster Parent Association of Georgia, Inc. (Redraft September, 1997)
Page 9
ARTICLE VI
(Continued)
The results of the ballot shall become a permanent record of the Board of Director's proceedings. The officer in question will be advised of the results of the ballot as soon as possible, time not to exceed one week.
ARTICLE VII
Amendment
Amendment of these by-laws may be made by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of those members voting. Written notice of the intention to amend a copy of the proposed amendment(s), and a ballot shall be sent to each member. Thirty (30) days following this mailing, returned ballots will be tabulated. The results of the vote will be published in the next issue of the official publication of the AFPAG.
Redraft performed by the Constitution Committee, September, 1997
Return to AFPAG Home Page