BY-LAWS (as of Aug 2016) ARTICLE I NAME 1. The name of this organization shall be Lumberton Little Dribblers 2. Lumberton Little Dribblers shall be a non-profit organization and at no time will its business be conducted for private or personal gain. ARTICILE II OBJECTIVES The general objective of the Lumberton Little Dribblers is to instill and promote in a young player, appreciation for the following: basic basketball skills, playing with team concept, individual growth within a team competitive sport, good work habits and ethics, goal setting and a good sportsmanship attitude. ARTICLE III PLAYERS 1. The players of this organization shall consist predominantly of the population group within the Lumberton Independent School District. If players from other school districts want to sign up, the Board will determine if capacity exists in the organization to accommodate. Any Player, who is allowed to play in LLD league play, is eligible for All-Star play, except certain age exception cases. Effective October 2011, the National Division is considered OPEN BOUNDARIES. Leagues in this division do not have to stay within the high school district boundary. Players have to participate in Lumberton Little Dribblers in order to be eligible for tournament play. 2. Players shall pay a player fee, together with such fees and assessments for the current season as required by the board of directors. 3. The amount of the fees shall be set by the board of directors and shall be paid in advance by the player. Any increase or decrease in the rate of fees must be in general and must be a necessary reason for the increase or decrease. 4. Any player terminating his/her association with the league shall automatically lose all rights and privileges, and no monies paid to the league shall be reimbursed after completion of the draft.
5. Un-sportsmanship like conduct while in the physical boundaries and/or authority of the Lumberton Little Dribblers league, or disregard for the premises and improvements in any manner, or the disregard of the rights of other players, or for any reason deemed sufficient by the board of directors shall be sufficient grounds for suspension or expulsion of the guilty player. The board shall have the exclusive rights to determine the degree of the misconduct and its effect. 6. All players must have a parent or guardian fill out and sign the registration and medical release form(s). A birth certificate is required at the time of registration and a copy must be left with the league. No player will be allowed to play without a birth certificate and medical release form on file. 7. Local exceptions to the Age Limitations as specified by Little Dribblers Inc. must be approved by the Board on a case-by-case, such as playing in an older age division, or in a younger age division. Players that have an exception granted are only eligible for All-Star play in their Age Group they participated in during the regular season. ARTICLE IV BOARD OF DIRECTORS 1. The government of the Lumberton Little Dribblers and the direction of its work, internal affairs and activities generally, shall be vested in a board of directors, herein referred to as the board. 2. The board shall consist of a minimum of eleven members and two (2) At-Large voting members, to be nominated and elected by the board. The board may also elect At-Large non-voting members, as the board deems necessary. 3. The prospective members shall be limited to the general population of the Lumberton Independent School District. 4. Each director can serve for an unlimited term, or until a successor is elected. 5. The board has the authority to suspend by ballot, for any reason the board deems necessary. 6. The board has the authority to fill any vacancy that may occur in any office or in the membership of the board of directors, or until a successor is qualified and elected.
7. The board has the authority to make, amend and alter any rule it deems advisable for the government of the board, and the proper conduct of the business of the league, guidance and conduct of all committee, officers, employees, coaches and players. The board shall be empowered to determine, in its best judgment, what actions are required to uphold the best interest of the league and to carry out the objectives of the league. The board of directors has the authority to change the by-laws once a year during the August monthly meeting, but will require the approval of the majority of the board. 8. The board shall have the power to appoint one or more advisors to the board and these Advisors shall be present at all meetings, but shall not have a vote in the decisions that come to the board. Advisors shall receive no pay from the league for their services, unless they are contracted for professional services, such as legal or accounting support, and are not existing board members. Advisors may assist in a major board transition year by providing input via their previous experiences. 9. The board shall have the power to expel or suspend, either temporarily or permanently, any Player for violation of any by-law and/or rule. No player shall be suspended or expelled without being given a hearing and an opportunity to be heard by the board. 10. The board shall have the power to appoint any and all committees and shall authorize and define the powers and duties of such committees. 11. Any member of the board of directors who shall be absent from at least three consecutive called meetings of the board, may have his/her position held vacant at discretion of the board. He/she shall be so notified by the secretary and unless any appeal is made before the next meeting of the board, the board shall appoint a member to fill the vacancy. The appointment shall be good until the August meeting when he/she shall be replaced by the newly elected board member. 12. Under any and all subjects not covered by these by-laws, the board of directors shall be empowered to act in the best interest of the league. 13. The President, VP Boys, VP - Girls, VP - All Stars, Treasurer, and Secretary shall serve the board as a committee to be known as the executive committee, which shall have all the powers herein given to the board of directors between meetings of the
board in case of emergency and/or when it is deemed impossible to convene a majority of the board members in a meeting. 14. During Closing Ceremonies, a formal solicitation for potential new board members will be communicated to the public for interest and review at the August Board meeting. Forms for capturing interested candidates will be available and collected by the Secretary. 15. The board of directors must have a quorum present to conduct the business of the Lumberton Little Dribblers. A quorum will be defined as a majority of the executive committee members plus one board member. 16. The board of directors does not have the authority to place the league into debt, unless a situation of extreme emergency exist. 17. The board of directors shall have the right to set seasons, practice times, limit player participation, and means and methods in which the games are practiced and played. 18. The board hereby agrees to abide by, but not be limited to the Little Dribblers Basketball, Inc. rules and regulations. 19. The board shall specify the minimum standards for team uniforms. 20. The board will conduct promotions and solicit sponsorships for the teams and conduct fundraiser project(s). 21. The board will be responsible for procuring coaches for the vacant teams. Coaches and assistant coaches will consist of approved volunteers over the age of 18. A head coach will choose their assistant coach from the team they were given. If this is not possible, the board will approve the head coach s selection of an assistant coach. The board has final approval over all selection of coaches. ARTICLE V OFFICERS 1. The officers shall consist of the following: President, VP-Boys, VP-Girls, VP-All Stars, Secretary, Treasurer, Officials Coordinator, Gym Duty Scheduler and Fundraising/Publicity.
2. The President shall preside over all meetings of the league and board. The President shall perform all duties pertaining to the office and shall be an ex-officio member of all committees. 3. One of the Vice Presidents will act in the absence of the President. In the absence of the President and all VP s, a board member appointed by the President will act temporarily. 4. The Secretary shall conduct official correspondence, preserve, keep and manage all Books, player roles and documents, communications and maintain generally the records of the league and keep a record of the meeting of the board. 5. The Treasurer shall make financial reports to the members of the board at each meeting, and give a yearly report at the August meeting. The Treasurer is responsible for tracking and maintaining the leagues financial budget. The Treasurer shall receive, keep and disburse the fund of the league. No disbursement shall be made unless authorized by the board. 6. All elected board members shall commence their duties after the August meeting and shall serve until their term of office expires and/or until their successor has been duly elected and qualified. 7. A team roster shall be filled with headquarters, on or before the leagues first regularly scheduled game. Leagues will certify as to the position of group accident insurance. ARTICLE VI MEETINGS 1. The board may call a meeting whenever it may be considered necessary or desirable and notice shall be given as provided by these by-laws. 2. The board shall call a special meeting of the members upon being presented with a petition signed by the majority of the board. The petition for the said meeting shall state the purpose of the subject matter that shall be considered at the meeting. All members will be contacted prior to the meeting. 3. The first 15 minutes of the monthly board meeting will be designated as open forum time, but the speaker will have to petition the president of the board at least 24 hours prior to the meeting. Anyone is eligible to speak during the forum that has concerns involving Lumberton Little Dribblers. The board has an option to extend the time as
deemed necessary but it will take a majority of the voting members to approve the extension. The regular meeting will be considered closed; only the members of the board will be present. ARTICLE VII PROGRAMS 1. The official basketball rules as adopted by the National Basketball Rules Committee of the United States, the special Little Dribblers, Inc. playing rules, and the special rules adopted by the Lumberton Little Dribblers will be used. 2. The board will provide a combination of programs for the boys and girls. Coed teams will only be allowed with the approval of the Little Dribblers Basketball Inc. 3. The programs are classified in divisions based upon population of the community holding the Little Dribblers Charter as follows: DIVISION Continental American National UIL Classifications All 1 A schools and all 2A Division 2 # of students in high school district=297 & under All 2A Division 1 and All 3A # of students in high school district=298-1005 All 4A, 5A OPEN BOUNDARIES # of students in high school district=1006+ All Club teams and Select teams 4. Each division is divided into separate leagues based upon the age of the players as follows: League Age Mini Minors 5 & 6 year olds Minors 7 & 8 year olds Juniors 9 & 10 year olds Majors 11 & 12 year olds Seniors 13 & 14 year olds
Age of the player shall be determined by the age of the player as of the year of the regular playing season. (August 1 st of the tournament year) 5. All teams must be covered by group accident insurance before the team will be permitted to compete in any Little Dribblers competition. Approved accident insurance coverage will be provided through Little Dribblers Basketball, Inc. headquarters. Leagues must have a current Certificate of Insurance on file with Little Dribblers Basketball Inc. prior to any tournament play.