Proposed Changes to the Bylaws of the Mormon History Association

BYLAWS OF THE MORMON HISTORY ASSOCIATION

Approved May 19, 2001. Revised January 2007, May 2011, April 2012

(Proposed changes are highlighted in Article II; Article III, Section 2; Article IV, Section 5; Article V, Section 3; Article VII; and Article VIII)

ARTICLE I

Name and Corporate Status

The name of the organization shall be: The Mormon History Association. Hereafter, “Association” or “MHA” shall refer to the Mormon History Association, a Utah nonprofit corporation. The principal office of the corporation shall be located in the state of Utah. The corporation may have such other offices either within or outside the state of incorporation as it may designate or as the business of the corporation may from time-to-time require. 

ARTICLE II

Mission and Vision Statement

The Mormon History Association, founded in 1965, is an independent organization dedicated to the study and understanding of all aspects of Mormon history. We welcome all who are interested in the study of Mormonism as a global religion, irrespective of religious affiliation, academic training, or world location. We promote our goals through scholarly research, conferences, awards, and publications. 

Through these activities MHA seeks to be the preeminent catalyst worldwide for encouraging the scholarly study and appreciation of the Mormon past. 

ARTICLE III

Members, Officers, and Board 

SECTION 1: Members

A “member” or membership in MHA refers to a current dues-paying person or institution as entered on the records of MHA. 

SECTION 2: Members—Non-Discrimination Policy

MHA does not tolerate discrimination on the basis of race, ancestry, place of origin, color, ethnicity, citizenship, immigration status, sex, gender expression or identification, sexual orientation, disability, religion, culture, political convictions, socioeconomic status, age, health conditions or marital, domestic, or parental status, or any other applicable basis proscribed by law.

SECTION 3: Officers

The officers of the Mormon History Association shall be as follows: President, President-elect, the immediate Past President, and Executive Director(s).

SECTION 4: Board of Directors

The Board of Directors shall refer to the governing body of the Association (hereafter referred to as Board) and is composed of the officers listed in Article III, Section 2, and eight elected Board members, all twelve of whom are considered voting members.  The Board shall report to the membership on its deliberations and actions through the publications of the Association and at the annual business meeting. 

SECTION 5: President

The President shall be elected for a one-year term at the annual MHA business meeting. It shall be the President’s duty to preside at all meetings of the Board and at the annual business meeting. The President, with the assistance of the Executive Director, serves as the overall chair of the annual MHA conference and coordinates the activities of the annual conference program and local arrangement committees. 

The President ensures that all MHA activities adhere to the Bylaws of the Association, initiates new business, and carries out such other duties as the Board or the annual business meeting may impose. 

SECTION 6: President-Elect

The President-Elect shall be elected for a one-year term at the annual MHA business meeting. The President-Elect’s duties shall be by assignment from the President and Board. 

If the office of President shall, through any cause, become vacant, the President-Elect shall assume the presidency of the Association. If a President-Elect thus serves for more than nine months, they shall not be eligible to serve as President the following year. In the event that the President-Elect does become President, the Board shall appoint another person to fill the unexpired term. This person shall become President by vote of the general membership at the next annual MHA business meeting. 

SECTION 7: Past President

The office of Past President shall be filled by the most recent President of the Association whose term has expired. Their duties shall be by assignment from the President and Board. 

SECTION 8: Executive Director

Subsection A 

The Executive Director shall be nominated by the President and approved by the Board. The Executive Director is responsible to the Board and shall report to the same. The term of service will be for three years which can be extended by Board action. 

Subsection B 

The duties of the Executive Director shall include but are not limited to the following:

1. Maintain all current records and correspondence of the Association.

2. Prepare and circulate Board and business meeting agendas and take minutes of Board meetings and other official meetings of the Association.

3. Keep an updated membership roster, mailing list, and other membership data.

4. Set up and maintain the Association’s bank accounts and invest surplus monies in interest-bearing accounts or such other investments as directed by the Finance/Fundraising Committee.

5. Receive and account for all funds and assets of the Association. 

6. Pay all bills and expenses of the Association.

7. Prepare budgets and give financial reports to the Board as directed.

8. Arrange for the circulation of the Journal of Mormon History, and any other appropriate and designated material to the membership, and otherwise keep the membership informed of the Association’s activities. 

9. Serve as editor of the newsletter and work with the Publicity Chair to arrange for its circulation.

10. Provide an up-to-date Officers Handbook for all new officers of the Association and the Program Chair. 

11. Provide feasibility studies to help the Board decide on the location of future Conferences and make necessary reservations and arrangements as directed by the Board.

12. Serve on the Local Arrangements Committee for MHA Conferences, assisting with the physical facilities, meal reservations, registration tables, room arrangements, publication and distribution of the program, and awards.

13. Prepare a conference budget and solicit and make arrangements for Advertisers and Exhibitors.

14. Serve on the Membership Development, Finance/Fund-raising, and Long-term and Strategic Planning Committees, and any other committees as directed by the Board. 

15. Oversee the development, operation, and maintenance of the Association’s website.

16. Perform any other assignments and duties prescribed by the President and Board. 

Subsection C

The address of the Executive Director, or a P.O. Box in the same city, shall serve as the official address of the Association. 

Subsection D

The Executive Director shall receive annual compensation as determined by the Board. 

SECTION 9: Board Members

Subsection A 

Eight board members who are not officers shall be elected to the Board for staggered three-year terms. Two or three of these Board members shall be elected each year. The eighth Board member is to be a graduate student, who is to serve a term of two years.

If, through disability, resignation, inactivity, at the request of the Board, or any other reason, a vacancy occurs on the Board, the officers and remaining members of the Board may appoint a new member to fill the unexpired term. If the said term is for more than one year, the appointment must be ratified by vote of the membership at the next annual business meeting. 

Subsection B 

The Board members shall consider the business, make proposals, and care for the general interests of the Association. Board members shall receive specific assignments from the President to work on various committees of the Association, to oversee financial and legal affairs, to advise on conference site selections, to oversee awards and prizes, to assist the newsletter and Journal of Mormon History editors, to advise on strategic planning, and to perform other assigned duties. 

Subsection C 

To transact business, a majority vote of the Board and officers as identified in Article III, Section 3, shall be sufficient to approve any proposed action. In the event that the President deems an issue to be of importance, or one that requires immediate attention, or if a majority is not present at any Board meeting, the President shall circulate the matter to the members of the Board and secure a vote by mail, email, telephone, or video conference. 

SECTION 10: Historian

Subsection A 

The Historian of the Association shall be nominated by the President and approved by the Board to serve for a term of five years. The person selected may be eligible for successive terms by Board action. 

Subsection B 

The Historian’s duties include but are not limited to the following: 

1. Develop a policy about MHA archiving and record retention. 

2. Monitor the archiving of MHA records.

3. Identify missing material in MHA’s historical records and seek it. 

4. Obtain and file with the MHA Archives at the Utah State Historical Society, official records generated by MHA officers, correspondence files, electronic records, news reports, photographs and audiovisual recordings that contain historical information important to the history of MHA. 

5. Arrange for and participate in the oral history projects with past MHA officers.

6. Direct or otherwise participate in the writing of the history of MHA.

7. Propose to the Board, from time to time, the commissioning of scholarly papers, books, or other materials dealing with the history of the Association. 

Subsection C 

The Historian shall give an annual report to the Board. 

SECTION 11: Journal of Mormon History Editor

Subsection A 

MHA publishes a scholarly journal, the Journal of Mormon History, devoted to rigorously peer-reviewed articles and book reviews about Mormon history. The Journal is published at least tri-annually.

Subsection B 

The editor of the Journal is appointed by the Board for a four-year term which may be extended for successive terms by Board action. The editor shall communicate regularly with the Board through the chair of the publications committee. 

Subsection C 

The duties of Editor include: 

1. Recruit and have approved by the Board, a Board of Editors of peers to solicit, review, and select articles and other items for publication.

2. Oversee the editing and production of each issue of the Journal with the assistance of volunteer staff.

3. To have the completed Journal delivered to the University of Illinois Press for distribution to the membership of MHA. 

4. Reports to the Board at its semi-annual meetings. The Board shall have ultimate responsibility for the publishing of the Journal. 

Subsection D 

The Journal editor shall receive annual compensation as determined by the Board. 

SECTION 12: Newsletter Editor

MHA publishes a newsletter four times a year as a means of communicating with its members about past and forthcoming activities and events of interest to MHA. The first issue of the year must be published and distributed at least four months before the annual business meeting; and the second issue must be published and distributed at least one month before the annual business meeting in order to properly inform the membership of officer and board nominations and any other pertinent information to be discussed at the annual business meeting. The Board shall have the ultimate responsibility for publishing of the newsletter. 

ARTICLE IV

Meetings & Conferences

SECTION 1: Annual Conference

The Association shall hold an annual conference for all members, for the presentation of scholarly papers, panels, awards, field trips, and other presentations and activities dealing with Mormon history. The annual conference shall be held at a time and location to be determined by the Board. 

With Board approval, the President (for that conference year) selects the Program and Local Arrangements chairs or co-chairs. The Program chair(s) and Local Arrangements chair(s) will select their own committees to help with the planning, promotion, and execution of the conference activities. These responsibilities will include; (1) for the Program Committee:  the call for papers, receiving and evaluating papers, arranging for session chairs, commentators, and monitors, and submitting preliminary and final program information to the Executive Director(s) for publication; (2) for the Local Arrangements Committee: arranging for field trips, submitting preliminary and final tour information to the Executive Director(s) for publication, and assisting the Executive Director(s) with exhibits, a printed program, and other conference-related matters. 

SECTION 2: Board Meetings

Subsection A 

There shall be at least two Board Meetings each year. One shall be held at the annual conference and the other in the fall of the year at the call of the President. The President may call such other Board meetings as are deemed necessary. 

Subsection B 

For officers and Board members living long distances from Board meeting locations, reasonable assistance with travel expenses, if requested, may be provided by the Association with Board authorization. 

SECTION 3: Annual Business Meeting.

Time shall be provided at the annual conference to conduct an annual Membership Business Meeting, hereinafter referred to as the “business meeting.” At the business meeting, by majority vote, MHA members shall elect officers and Board members and consider and deal with resolutions, reports, and proposals concerning the affairs of the Association. 

SECTION 4: Other Professional Associations

MHA’s participation in, and support of, other professional associations’ meetings and conferences, such as the John Whitmer Historical and the Western History Associations, may be promoted as deemed appropriate by the Board. 

SECTION 5: Other Historical Events, Conferences, and Commemorative Programs

MHA’s participation in, and support of, other historical events, conferences, and commemorative programs, both globally and within the U.S., may be promoted as deemed appropriate by the Board. 

ARTICLE V

Committees

Committees may be established and committee chairs selected by the President and the Board with at least one Board member or officer serving on each standing committee except for the Nominating Committee. Committee chairs shall nominate and the Board approve committee members. Members of each committee will be announced or published in the annual business meeting. Committee reports will be made to the Board when requested. 

Standing committees within the Association include, but are not limited to, the following: 

SECTION 1: Nominating Committee

The Nominating Committee shall consist of five members. The Past President automatically becomes a member of the Nominating Committee for two years upon completion of service on the Board. Former presidents serve as chair of the committee the second year of their service. Other members of the committee shall be appointed by the Board for staggered three year terms. 

The duty of the Nominating Committee is to select, from the current membership of MHA, candidates and alternates to fill officer and Board positions that will be vacated the following year. These nominations are to be submitted to the Board, for approval, prior to the Board’s annual fall meeting. Upon approval by the Board, the President shall contact the designated nominees to determine their willingness to serve. The names of those accepting nominations will be published in the first newsletter of the year, preceding the annual business meeting. 

Nominations of other MHA members may also be submitted by any member of MHA with each nomination bearing no fewer than five member signatures. This petition, together with a letter from the nominee agreeing to stand for election, must be received by the Executive Director no later than two months prior to the annual business meeting, so that identifications and statements from nominees can be included in the second issue of the newsletter, published at least thirty days prior to the annual business meeting. 

If there is more than one nominee for a given position, thus submitted, the names will be placed on a printed ballot and passed out with the annual Conference registration materials. All Association members thus attending are to fill out and return said ballots to the registration desk by 11:00 a.m. the day of the annual business meeting. 

For those members unable to attend the annual business meeting, an absentee ballot may be obtained, by written request, from the Executive Director. All absentee ballots must be returned to the MHA office address no later than seven days before the annual business meeting.

Nominees receiving the greatest number of votes at the annual business meeting will be elected. 

SECTION 2. Awards Committee

MHA presents annual book, article, and other awards of recognition. These awards may include best book awards, best article awards, and other awards deemed appropriate by MHA. Before the annual conference, the Chair of the Awards Committee shall inform the Board as to the recommended winners in each category. The committee shall be chaired by a member of the Board, appointed by the President. As needed, the Awards Chair shall appoint, with Board approval, sub-chairs for individual awards. These sub-chairs may ask other volunteers to assist them, with the approval of the Awards Chair. The Awards Chair and the sub-chairs comprise the Awards Committee. Committee members shall serve for three years. 

SECTION 3: Membership Committee

The Membership Committee shall be chaired by a member of the Board, appointed by the President. Membership of the committee shall include the Executive Director and such other members deemed appropriate by the chair or by the Board. The committee shall: develop strategies to ascertain how MHA can best serve member interests and needs in publications, conferences, tours, and other functions performed by MHA; regularly gather membership data and trends that provide the Board with information that helps monitor membership needs; recruit new members (with a special focus on underrepresented groups) and encourage lapsed members to renew affiliation with MHA; implement a regular process of “best practices” surveys to keep the organization in concert with the best of academic organizations; and work with the Executive Director to ensure that membership benefits are aligned with the financial health of the organization. Committee members shall serve for three years. 

SECTION 4: Publications Committee

The Publications Committee shall be chaired by a member of the Board, appointed by the President. Membership of the committee shall include the editors of the Journal and the newsletter and such other members as shall be deemed appropriate by the Board. Members of the committee other than the editors shall serve for three years. The chair of the publications committee shall communicate with the editor of the Journal of Mormon History regarding the content of each issue of their respective publications prior to publication and shall inform members of the Board of particularly noteworthy items.

SECTION 5: Liaison Committee

The Liaison Committee for relationships with other organizations, shall be chaired by a member of the Board, appointed by the President and consist of members and perform such functions as the Board may deem important. Members of the committee shall serve for three years. 

SECTION 6: Long-term and Strategic Planning Committee

The Long-term and Strategic Planning Committee shall be chaired by the Past President. Members of the committee shall include not only that officer but the President, President-Elect, the Executive Director, and such other members as are appointed by the Board upon the nomination of the Past President in consultation with the President. Such other members need not be members of the Association’s Board of Directors but must be members of the Mormon History Association; in order to maximize continuity and the likelihood of a long-term perspective, their terms shall be for three years.

The function of the committee shall be to consider and bring before the Board those issues, problems, and opportunities that are trans-organizational and long-term in character, especially those bearing on advancement of the Association’s strategic goals and objectives and its fundamental well-being. Such issues shall include recommendations dealing with the site for MHA’s next several annual conferences. The committee’s analyses and recommendations should be developed in close collaboration with those other committees of the Board most interested in the subject at hand. When requested by the Board, the committee will facilitate the process for developing an ongoing strategic plan to guide the affairs and activities of the Association. 

SECTION 7: Finance/Fundraising Committee

The Finance/Fundraising Committee shall be chaired by a member of the Board, appointed by the President. Members of the committee shall consist of the Executive Director and other members deemed necessary by the Board. Committee members shall serve for three years. 

The committee shall: 

1. Act as an overseer and policy committee of all financial affairs of the Association.

2. Review financial reports from the Executive Director. 

3. Review and make recommendations to the Board for approval for all investment decisions of endowment or trust funds or any surplus funds of the association. Arrange for an independent audit or review of the financial records of the Association at least every two years and/or with the appointment of a new Executive Director. 

4. Make recommendations to the Board for membership dues.

5. Conduct fundraising activities and meetings with members and other individuals, organizations, and foundations that have a possible interest in providing financial support to the Association. 

SECTION 8: Publicity Committee

The Publicity Committee will be chaired by a member of the Board, appointed by the President. Committee members will develop strategy to maintain the vitality of MHA website, newsletter, and social media platforms, solicit professional information about MHA members to share with membership, and develop plans for regular announcements of MHA activities through news releases and media relations.

SECTION 9: Student Relations Committee

The Student Relations Committee will be chaired by a graduate student who will be a member of the Board, appointed by the President, and who will serve for a period of two years. Duties involve creating relationships between MHA and undergraduate and graduate students interested in Mormon history.

ARTICLE VI

Dues and Finances

The Association’s operations and publications are funded by annual membership dues, any surplus generated by the annual conferences, and other fund-raising activities. The Board, in consultation with the Finance/Fundraising Committee, and Executive Director, shall determine what the annual dues will be. 

ARTICLE VII

Changes or Amendments

Changes or amendments in the Bylaws of the Association may be proposed by (a) a majority vote of the officers and Board, or (b) by written petition to the President or Executive Director by any five members of the Association at least two months prior to the annual business meeting. Any proposed changes or amendments must be published in the newsletter at least thirty days prior to the annual business meeting. Such proposed changes or amendments will be voted on at the annual business meeting or through electronic communication by majority vote of the membership. No absentee ballots will be issued for changes or amendments in the Bylaws. 

ARTICLE VIII

Emergency Clause

In the event that the Board determines by unanimous vote of directors that action either not permitted or contemplated by these Bylaws is required on an emergency basis, the Board, after documenting the basis of the emergency in the minutes of the meeting, can by unanimous vote of directors temporarily suspend or amend these Bylaws, but only to the extent necessary to provide for the specific emergency. Any permanent amendment to these Bylaws shall thereafter be submitted to the membership of the Association as provided above.