Access to earlier versions of the bylaws: Approved by the General Assembly in Gainesville, FL on November 8th, 2014 Revised by the General Assembly in Sacramento, CA on November 7th, 2015 ARTICLE 1: NameSection 1: The name of the organization shall be “US JSPS Fellows Alumni Association”,and shall hereafter be referred to as “the Alumni Association”. ARTICLE 2: ObjectivesThe objective of the Alumni Association is to maintain and expand the network of JSPSfellows and to promote US-Japan scientific cooperation. In pursuit of these objectives, the Alumni Association will carry out the following activities:
ARTICLE 3: Fiscal YearThe fiscal year for the Alumni Association’s program runs from April 1 to March 31. Theprogram year for the Alumni Association will match the fiscal year as much as possible. ARTICLE 4: MembershipSection 1: There are three categories of membership: regular member, associate member,and honorary member. Section 2: All persons who have been awarded support from JSPS are eligible for regular membership. Regular members are defined as US citizen/permanent resident or individual with lawful working permit who is working or residing in the US. Section 3: Those who are interested in pursuing and achieving the Alumni Association’s objectives, but have not been awarded support from JSPS, are eligible for associate membership. The executive committee reviews and approves applications for associate membership. Section 4: Those who have a distinguished record of promoting scientific exchange between the U.S. and Japan are eligible for honorary membership. The executive committee reviews applications for honorary membership and nominates worthy applicants to the General Assembly. Section 5: Associate members and honorary members can participate in all Alumni Association activities, but do not have the rights of regular members that are specified in Article 5. In addition, associate members and honorary members are not eligible for travel subsidies from JSPS for Alumni Association activities. Section 6: The Alumni Association requires all members (except honorary members) to pay annual membership dues. Section 7: Membership will be terminated in the following cases:
ARTICLE 5: Rights of Regular MembersSection 1: Regular members are allotted one vote to cast in each decision making matterof the General Assembly, including modifications of the bylaws. Section 2: Regular members can run for election to the executive committee. The details can be found in “Election Rules”. Section 3: Regular members can vote on the election of the executive committee members. Section 4: Regular members are eligible for BRIDGE Fellowships. ARTICLE 6: OrganizationSection 1: The highest authority of the Alumni Association is the General Assembly.Section 2: The Alumni Association consists of five science groups: 1) Biology and Medical Sciences, 2) Engineering, 3) Physics and Mathematics, 4) Chemistry, and 5) Social Sciences and Humanities. ARTICLE 7: Executive CommitteeSection 1: The executive committee (hereafter “the EC”) is set up as the executive bodyof the Alumni Association. Section 2: The EC is formed by one representative of each of the five science groups and one representative at-large. Section 3: A representative of each science group of the EC, and the at-large representative, are elected by voting among all regular members of the Alumni Association. The rules of election are defined separately. Section 4: A chair, a vice-chair, a treasurer, a secretary, a chair of the BRIDGE Nominating Committee, and an editor of newsletters are elected by mutual vote among the EC members.
Section 6: Special meetings of the EC shall be held upon the request of the Chair or twothirds of the EC. The Secretary shall send out notices of special meetings to each EC member two weeks in advance. Section 7: The EC performs the following functions.
The chair or the vice-chair should be included. Section 9: The EC’s decisions may be made through the holding of meetings or by way of letter, telecommunication, fax or e-mail. Section 10: Decisions are made by a majority vote. Section 11: All EC decisions should be recorded in the minutes. Section 12: The term of office for the EC members is two years. Until a re-election of the EC is held, the members are to remain in office. If a member resigns his/her post in midterm, the EC will appoint another person from the regular membership to fill the remainder of the term. This appointment must be supported by at least four EC members. Section 13: An EC member may be re-elected. Section 14: The EC members shall serve without remuneration. Section 15：The EC shall consult with the JSPS Washington Office about their programs and activities. Section 16: Resignation from the EC must be in writing and shall be e-mailed to all the members of the EC. An EC member may be removed from office for neglect of duties or other reasons by a two-thirds vote of the remaining members. ARTICLE 8: Science GroupsSection 1: Science groups are formed according to academic disciplines to facilitate theactivities of the Alumni Association, which is mostly academic in nature. According to the change of composition of the members of the Alumni Association, the number and division of the science groups can be changed by the EC with the approval of the General Assembly. Section 2: Each member of the Alumni Association belongs to at least one science group. Members with interests across the disciplines can join more than one group. Section 3: The representative from the science group serves as the coordinator of the group. The coordinator is responsible for coordinating the activities of the group. ARTICLE 9: General AssemblySection 1: The General Assembly comprises of all of the regular members of the AlumniAssociation. Section 2: A quorum of the General Assembly is achieved by the participation of more than 20 people of the regular members including letters of proxy. Section 3: The General Assembly shall convene at least once a year on a date and at a location to be determined by the EC in consultation with the JSPS Washington Office. Special meetings of the General Assembly may be called by the EC or by proposal of more than 20 people of the regular members. Section 4: The General Assembly makes the following determinations:
Decisions of Section 4 from (4) to (6) are made by a two-thirds majority voting. Section 6: Special meeting decisions may be made through the holding of meetings or by way of letter, telecommunication, fax or email. Section 7: Minutes of the General Assembly shall be taken and all decisions made recorded in them. The minutes shall be signed by the EC chair and the secretary. ARTICLE 10: SecretariatThe secretariat of the Alumni Association shall be the JSPS Washington Office. |
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