Article I. Name Secondary Schools Interest Section Governing Rules The name of this Interest Section will be ESL in Secondary Schools: A Professional Interest Section of TESOL, hereinafter referred to as Secondary Schools Interest Section (SSIS). Article II. Statement of Purpose Throughout the world there are millions of children who enter intermediate, middle and high schools with a need to acquire fluency in English. As the professionals charged with the responsibility of assuring that non-english-speaking students of all linguistic backgrounds receive the necessary ESL instruction to enable them to function effectively in English both interpersonally, academically, and prepare for the world beyond school, we have come together in this Interest Section with the following objectives: A. to foster the recognition of ESL as credit-bearing academic discipline in secondary education; B. To document the manner in which children are being educated in English; C. To serve as a vehicle of communication for ESL educators in secondary education; D. To educated the public, government officials, and other educators to the need for ESL instruction at the secondary level, to the nature of such instruction, and to the need for hiring qualified people to deliver such instruction; E. To develop and establish standards of achievements and performance of students; F. To stimulate relevant research in the field; G. To stimulate development and adaptation of appropriate materials at the secondary level; H. To assure an adequate pool of qualified personnel by encouraging more programs for professional development; I. To advocate the training and certification of ESL secondary school teachers; J. To make the organization more responsive to the needs of ESL in secondary school education Article III. Membership A. Membership will be open to any member of TESOL who is interested in any area of secondary education. B. All members who designate ESL in Secondary Schools as their primary professional interest will be entitled to one vote in any meeting of SSIS or in any mail ballot it conducts.
C. Members who designate SSIS as a secondary professional interest will be associate members without vote. Article IV. Officers A. The Officers will be a Chair, an Associate Chair, and an Immediate Past Chair. B. The term of office will be from the close of one annual TESOL Convention until the close of the next annual Convention. Officers appointed to fill a vacancy will take office upon their acceptance. C. The Chair, the Associate Chair, and the Immediate Past Chair will each hold office for one year. At the end of the term, the Associate Chair will become the Chair, and the Chair will become the Past Chair. D. Officers will be elected or appointed as stipulated in Article IX. Article V. Steering Board A. There shall be a Steering Board which shall consist of the Officers, four Members at Large, the SSIS Newsletter Editor, the TESOL Matters Editor, and the TESOL Executive Board Representative, if one is currently serving who was nominated by SSIS. The Steering Board shall be the policy-making body of SSIS. B. All Officers of SSIS will be ex officio voting members of its Steering Board and will function as Officers of the Board. C. So far as practicable, the membership of the Steering Board will be evenly distributed geographically and will represent the range of professional interests addressed by SSIS, such as regular and special classroom teachers, bilingual educators, teacher trainers, supervisory personnel, etc. D. Members at Large of the Steering Board will hold office for two years, with one member elected each year to provide staggered terms and, thus, continuity on the Board. E. The term of a new member of the Board will begin at the close of the annual TESOL Convention following the election. The term of the retiring members of the Board will end at the close of the annual TESOL Convention during the year of retirement. F. Nomination, election, and filling of vacancies will be specified in Article IX. G. The Steering Board will convene at least once during the annual TESOL Convention and before the annual SSIS business meeting. Most Board business between annual business meetings will be conducted by mail and/or phone.
H. Fifty percent (50%) of the membership of the Steering Board will constitute a quorum for meetings of the Steering Board. I. Minutes of Steering Board meetings and a record of its actions will be available to the membership. The SSIS Newsletter will reserve a column devoted to reporting the work of the Steering Board. J. Within the rules of TESOL and the limits set by these Governing Rules and the Interest Section Council, the Steering Board will establish such policies as are necessary for the operation of SSIS and such projects as are necessary to achieve the goals of TESOL and SSIS. Article VI. Duties of Officers and Steering Board A. The Chair: 1. Assumes responsibility for the functioning of SSIS. 2. Plans the agenda for and presides at the business meetings of SSIS and the Steering Board. 3. Represents SSIS in making public its policy decisions, except on the TESOL Executive Board where the Executive Board representative, if there is one, will represent SSIS. 4. Prepares, in cooperation with the Steering Board, the Second Vice President of TESOL, the TESOL Local Convention Chair(s), and the local SSIS, an action plan to attract, and involve secondary school educators in the annual TESOL Convention. 5. Appoints members of all committees, task forces, or commissions, upon approval of the Steering Board. 6. Serves as an ex officio voting member of the Steering Board. 7. Serves as a/the SSIS Interest Section Council Representative to the annual business meeting of the Interest Section Council. 8. Serves in such capacities as may be determined or assigned by TESOL, the Interest Section Council, and/or the SSIS Steering Board. 9. Prior to the meeting of the Interest Section Council, provides the Council with the name(s) of the person(s) who will serve as the Interest Section Council Representative(s). Ensures that biodata for the SSIS nominees to the TESOL Executive Board and TESOL Nominating Committee are prepared and nominators are designated. 10. Assists in ranking applications for TESOL Special Grants. B. The Associate Chair: 1. In the temporary absence of the Chair, presides at business meetings of SSIS and its Steering Board. 2. Prepares, in cooperation with the Chair, and the Second Vice President of TESOL, the SSIS s academic session at the annual TESOL Convention.
3. Develops mechanisms for close liaison with other TESOL groups and other professional organizations having similar concerns, particularly the Elementary ESL teachers interest section. 4. Serves as an ex officio voting member of the Steering Board. 5. Serves as an SSIS Interest Section Council Representative to the annual meeting of the Interest Section Council, if the SSIS membership is adequate to warrant two representatives. (Serves as First Alternate in the event the Chair is unable to attend.) 6. Assists the Chair in carrying out his/her assigned responsibilities and performs other duties assigned by the Chair and/or Steering Board. C. The Immediate Past Chair 1. Assumes the duties of the Chair, if possible, should the term Chair be unable to serve the remainder of her/his term. 2. Assists and advises the Chair and Associate Chair in their duties. 3. Serves as an ex officio voting member of the Steering Board. 4. Serves as an SSIS Interest Section Council Representative to the annual meeting of the Interest Section Council, if the SSIS membership is adequate to warrant three representatives. (Serves as Second Alternate in the event the Chair and the Associate Chair are unable to attend). 5. Serves on and chairs the Nominating Committee. 6. Coordinates TESOL special grants submitted to SSIS. D. The Steering Board: 1. Sets policies for the general operation of SSIS. 2. Conducts long-range planning for SSIS, developing projects and programs as are necessary to achieve the goals of TESOL and SSIS. 3. Supports the Chair and Associate Chair in efforts to obtain close liaison with other TESOL groups and other professional organizations having similar concerns. 4. May establish committees, task forces or commissions and gives them specific directions and instructions. Approves the appointments of all members by the Chair. 5. Appoints the Editor of the SSIS Newsletter and TESOL Matters editor. 6. Sets general policy for the SSIS Newsletter and reviews the actions of the Editorial Board. Article VII. Committees A. Nominating Committee 1. The Nominating Committee will consist of three members: one of them will be the Immediate past Chair of SSIS and two will be elected in the annual election. 2. The Chair of the Nominating Committee will be the Immediate Past Chair of SSIS.
3. In the event that one or more of the members cannot serve, the Chair of SSIS will appoint on appropriate substitute(s) after consultation with the other Officers. 4. The Nominating Committee will prepare a slate of candidates for a ballot as specified in Article IX. Article VIII. Voting A. All members as designated in Article III.B. who are present at a meeting of the membership are entitled to vote. A simple majority of those present and voting will be required for action. B. In mail ballots, all members as designated in Article III.B. are entitled to vote. A simple majority of all ballots returned within the time designated, to be not less than 60 days from the date of mailing, will be required for action. Article IX. Nominations, Elections, and Vacancies A. The Nominating Committee will: 1. Nominate candidates for the office of Associate Chair. 2. Nominate candidates to replace the one retiring Steering Board Member at Large, so far as practicable preserving the distribution provided for in Article V.C. 3. Nominate a candidate for the TESOL Executive Board and a candidate for the TESOL Nominating Committee, and will prepare relevant biodata for each nominee to be distributed at the annual Interest Section Council and Legislative Assembly. 4. Nominate candidates for the two positions on the following year s Nominating Committee. 5. Secure the consent of all candidates to serve, if elected. 6. Prepare the slate of candidates, together with relevant biodata about the nominees, for distribution to the membership. B. Officers, and Nominating Committee Members will be elected by ballot. The ballot will provide space for write-in candidates and/or nominations from the floor for each office/position. C. If the office of Chair becomes vacant, the Immediate Past Chair will complete the term. If the Immediate Past Chair cannot serve, each preceding Past Chair, in turn, will be given the opportunity to complete the unexpired term. D. In the event of vacancies in the offices of Associate Chair, and/or Members at Large, the Chair, in consultation with the other Officers, will make temporary appointments effective immediately and until the next annual election, and will notify the Nominating Committee to include candidates for all vacant positions at the next annual election.
E. In the event that (a) representative(s) to the Interest Section Council is/are unable to attend the annual Council meeting, the Steering Board at its annual meeting will designate (a) substitute(s). F. If the office of Editor becomes vacant, the Chair, in consultation with the other Officers, will make a temporary appointment until a regular search can be completed and a candidate approved by the Steering Board. Article X: Publications A. SSIS will publish Secondary Schools Interest Section Newsletter, a periodical devoted to the special interests of this Section and not competing with any of the official organs of TESOL. B. General policy for SSIS Newsletter and for TESOL Matters will be developed be the SSIS Newsletter Editorial Board and approved by the Steering Board. C. The Editor(s): 1. Is/are responsible for the editorial direction and publication of the SSIS Newsletter and/or selection of articles for TESOL Matters. 2. Is/are responsible for liaison with editors of the TESOL Newsletter, TESOL Matters, affiliate newsletters and other Interest Section newsletters. 3. Will be appointed by the Steering Board. 4. Will serve a term of three years, which may be followed by one additional term of three years, upon approval of the Steering Board. D. An Editorial Board, chaired by the Editor, will consist of two additional members recommended by the Editor and approved by the Steering Board. Terms are two years on a staggered basis, if possible, with the possibility of one additional consecutive reappointment. Article XI. Amendments to the Governing Rules These Governing Rules may be amended by a majority vote of the SSIS members who participate in the voting, provided written notice of the proposed change(s) has been given to the membership SSIS at least 30 days prior to the vote, or by three-fourths of the members voting, if no such notice has been given. Article XII. Parliamentary Authority The rules contained in Robert s Rules of Order, Newly Revised, will govern the business of SSIS in all cases not covered by the TESOL Constitution and Bylaws and these Governing Rules.