Bylaws of the
Article I
Name: The
organization shall be known as the:
Address: Outagamie
Web site: www.outagamiecountymastergardeners.org
Article II
Purpose: The goal of the organization shall be to encourage,
foster, support, promote and to provide education in horticulture in Outagamie
County while maintaining affiliation with the State of Wisconsin Master
Gardener Association.
This new volunteer agreement
is meant to clarify and reinforce the purpose of the Master Gardener program,
which is to train volunteers to assist UW-Extension in home horticultural
education for the public. The training
program is NOT a class on gardening – participants are given training in
preparation for volunteer service to the community. Master Gardeners training classes are not
meant to be an educational program for the public, nor are they intended to be
a training ground for the Green Industry personnel. The purpose is to increase UW-Extension’s
ability to reach new and existing audiences by expanding the capacity of
Extension staff. Participants are
expected to be exposed to and learn about (but not memorize) all facets of
horticulture, not just the subjects they are interested in, so they can
confidently deliver unbiased, research-based information to the public.
The agreement emphasizes the
partnership between UW-Extension and Master Gardener volunteers. It explains what is expected of Master
Gardeners and what Extension will provide them.
It essentially just formalizes the implicit commitment Master Gardeners
made when they took training initially.
It condenses the critical information from the Introduction and Appendix
I of the Master Gardener General Training manual that students should be aware
of (but could easily overlook) into a bulleted list. Master Gardeners are not being asked to do
anything different than what they originally agreed to; they are only being
asked to acknowledge that they understand the expectations of the program.
Article III
Section A: Voting Members of Outagamie County Master
Gardener Association:
1. Service Requirements – The Outagamie County
Master Gardener Association volunteer hours are to be submitted annually by
October 1. Recertifying members need to
submit 24 service hours and 10 continuing education hours. For your continuing education hours, five (5)
hours can be from media previously approved by the Outagamie County Master
Gardener Association. Five (5) to ten
(10) hours can be from approved Master Gardener seminars. Specific information is on the back of the
annual hour sheets.
2. Certified Master Gardeners – Those persons
certified by UW-Extension who are in good standing. Persons in good standing must pay their dues
by October 1, for the upcoming year, as set by the local association. Good Standing is accomplished by completing
the yearly training and service requirements by UX-Extension for maintenance of
certification as a Master Gardener as determined by the member’s local
association.
3. Intern Master Gardeners – Those persons who
have completed the UW-Extension Master Gardener general training program but
have not satisfied the service requirements for certification.
Section B: Non-Voting Members of the Outagamie County
Master Gardener Association:
1. Inactive Master Gardeners – those person who
have been active Master Gardeners but who have not accomplished the yearly
training and service hours required by the UW-Extension as determined by the
member’s local association. Voting
rights are suspended until UW-Extension requirements for recertification have
been completed.
2. Student Master Gardeners – Those persons
currently taking Master Gardener training but have not completed the training
program:
a. Must
work under the direction of a certified Master Gardener on any Master Gardener
sanctioned project.
b. Must
not represent themselves as a UW-Extension Master Gardener or give advice
representing UW-Extension until they become intern Master Gardeners.
3. Associates – Those persons who join during
the period when Master Gardener training is not available but plan to comply
with the standards set for certified Master Gardeners at the next available
training opportunity:
a. Must
work under the direction of a certified Master Gardener on any Master Gardener
sanctioned project.
b.
Must not represent themselves as a UW-Extension Master Gardener or give advice
representing UW-Extension until they become Master Gardeners.
Article IV
Dues: Annual dues shall be set by the membership
with the fiscal year beginning on January 1st and ending on December
31st. Currently set at twenty
dollars annually ($20.00). Dues must be
paid in full by October 1st.
Article V:
The Executive Board shall
consist of eleven (11) voting members [seven (7) elected and four (4)
appointed] and the Advisor. They shall
perform duties as listed below.
Section A: Elected Members
President: The President shall preside at the regular
Business meetings and Association meetings of the Association and shall perform
such duties as regularly pertain to the office.
Vice President: The Vice President shall perform the duties
of the President in the President’s absence and provide the program for the
monthly Association meetings.
Executive Secretary: The Executive Secretary shall keep and report
the minutes of the Executive Board meetings and is a voting member of the
Executive Board. This position can be
split between two people with one being a member of the Executive Board and
being responsible for Executive Board minutes and one member being responsible
for Association meeting minutes, but not as a member of the Executive Board, as
needed.
Treasurer: The Treasurer shall be custodian of the funds
of the Association and shall maintain a bank account for the purpose of the
Association. The Treasurer shall pay
bills as directed by the membership. The
Treasurer shall collect the membership dues, provide receipts, keep a balanced
account of all collections and disbursements and file receipts for the
same. The Treasurer shall make a report
at each regular meeting and present a yearly written report at the January
meeting. The Treasurer shall also keep
record of membership certification and status.
State Board Representative –
The State Board Representative attends Wisconsin State Master Gardener Wisline
programs as well as their bi-annual meeting.
The State Board Representative will keep the membership informed on news
from the State level.
Members-At-Large – Two (2) Members-At-Large
shall attend Executive meetings to provide member representation and
coordination of projects, events and information on an as needed basis.
Recording Secretary: The Recording Secretary shall keep and report
the minutes of the Association member meetings.
This position is a non-voting member of the Executive Board.
Section B: Appointed Members
Education Committee
Representative - The Education Committee shall appoint a representative to the
Executive Board. This member will
provide the link between the Education committee and the Executive Board.
Fundraising Committee
Representative - The Fundraising Committee shall appoint a representative to
the Executive Board. This member will
provide the link between the Fundraising Committee and the Executive Board.
Communication Committee
Representative - The Communication Committee shall appoint a representative to
the Executive Board. This member will
provide the link between the Communication Committee and the Executive Board.
Project Coordinator – Shall
be appointed by the Executive Committee to the Executive Board. This member will provide the link between the
general membership and the Executive Board.
Section C:
Advisor: The Advisor to the organization shall be the
Outagamie County UW-Extension Crops/Soils and Horticulture Agent or Department
Chairperson.
Article VI
Elections: Elected positions shall be effective for one
(1) calendar year. Officer candidates
will be nominated in September of each year.
Elections shall be held in November and those officers elected at this
time shall begin to serve their term in the following January. Elected positions may serve for up to 3
consecutive years and may serve in the same office for consecutive terms as
duly elected by the membership. Any
Board member, who has served for one year on the Executive Board, may choose to
run for the office of President. The
departing President will continue to serve on the Executive Board for one year
in an advisory, non-voting capacity as ex-officio.
Article VII
Committees: Committees shall be entrusted to carry out
and accomplish the goals of the Association.
The standing committees shall consist of the following:
Executive Board – The
Executive Board shall consist of those positions listed above in Article
V. This committee shall be responsible
for setting and following the agenda for each Association meeting.
Education Committee – The
Education Committee shall be comprised of interested Master Gardeners who have declared
interest on the Survey of Volunteer Interest form or they may be
recruited. The Educational
Representative will then make contact with the interested people explaining the
expected duties and ascertain a one year commitment from these members from the
date they start. The Program Chair will
work with this committee to provide guest speakers for monthly meetings. The Education Committee will plan for the
general Master Gardener training instruction and advanced seminars.
Fundraising Committee – The
Fundraising Committee shall be responsible for setting up and coordinating all
fund raising events and activities.
Communication Committee –
The Communication Committee will provide a quarterly newsletter for the
Outagamie County Master Gardeners which will include a calendar of activities,
information of general interest to Master Gardeners and reports of Outagamie
County Master Gardeners activities and develop other methods of communication
for the Outagamie County Master Gardeners Associations members.
Nominating Committee – A
Nominating Committee of three active members shall be required to prepare a
slate of nominations for officers and present it at the regular October
Association meeting. These three
committee members would be selected annually at the May Association meeting.
Audit Committee – The Audit
Committee shall exist so as to verify that accounts receivable and accounts
payable at the conclusion of the year are fiscally sound. In no year may accounts payable exceed
accounts receivable. They shall also be
appointed to perform any other related tasks requiring an unbiased or third
party presence. These three committee
members would be selected annually at the May Association meeting.
Article VIII
Meetings: Monthly Association meetings shall be held on
the third (3rd) Thursday of each month, beginning promptly at 6:30
p.m., unless otherwise notified.
Executive Board meetings
shall be held on the first (1st) Thursday of each month, beginning
promptly at 6 p.m., unless otherwise notified.
Article IX
Amendments: Any section of these by-laws may be altered,
amended, or rescinded and new by-laws may be adopted by a two-thirds vote of
the membership present at any Association meeting as long as a quorum is
established. A quorum shall be defined
as 15 active members.
Article X
To maintain Master Gardener
certification your 24 service hours and 10 continuing education hours must be
in to the extension office by October 1 of each year. Please submit any partial hours also by the
October 1 date.
New Master Gardeners have
the same time commitment. However, if
you are unable to complete your 24 service hours by October 1, you can take the
extension until April 1 of the following year.
At that time, you will receive your certificate of completion; however,
your certification won’t be reflected in state records until the next update in
October.
Article XI
Parliamentary Authority: Rules
contained in the current edition of Robert’s Rules of Order, Newly Revised, shall
govern the Association in all cases to which they are applicable and in which
they are not inconsistent with the by-laws and any special rules or order the
association may adopt.
Dated this 17th day of
November, 2005.