VSS operates according to Bylaws that can be found on the society’s website. The Board of Directors periodically reviews the Bylaws and recommends revisions to the membership.
After this year’s review the Board would like to recommend several amendments. The full text of the amended Bylaws may be found here and a summary of the amended sections is provided below. Proposed amendments are shown highlighted.
Please vote on the amended Bylaws by logging into your VSS account. Voting will remain open for a period of 3 weeks, until December 7, 2022.
Voting is open to VSS Regular and Emeritus Members who have paid for 2022 membership or later. If your membership is older than 2022, you can renew your membership to vote.
At least 20% of members must vote, so please take a moment to cast a ballot.
Details of Changes to Bylaws
Section 2.4: Current voting privileges are limited to regular members. The Board proposes to expand voting privileges to include members who are currently engaged in postdoctoral training.
Rationale: Postdoctoral members constitute a large and active segment of VSS membership, many of whom will later become regular members. This group should have a voice in long-term issues such as selecting new members of the Board of Directors.
Sections 4.1 and 4.2: The officers of VSS are currently the President, President-elect, Immediate Past President, Treasurer and Clerk. The Board proposes to amend the Bylaws to add a new officer: the Vice-President. The selection and responsibilities of the Vice-President elect are described in Section 4.2.
Rationale: Establishing a new officer, Vice-President, will aid the Board in distributing a growing suite of responsibilities more broadly and providing a specific acknowledgement of the work done by the pair of Board members who are each in their third year of service.
Section 3.3: Expand the guidelines of the Nominating Committee to determine the ballot for the elections for new members of the Board of Directors to include the requirement to seek nominees who are “broadly representative of the disciplines, demographics and geographical regions of VSS members”.
Rationale: The expanded language reflects the commitment of VSS to diversity and inclusion of its governing body.
In addition, minor changes to the language of the Bylaws were made to remove use of the expression “he or she” and to specify that meetings of the Board of Directors may take place virtually.
Voting on the Bylaws Amendments
The current Bylaws specify the procedure for amendment in Section 10:
“An amendment to these Bylaws may be proposed by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the Board of Directors or by a written proposal signed by not less than ten percent (10%) of the Regular Members. Thereafter, the Bylaws may be amended by a two-thirds (2/3) vote of the votes received from Regular Members, provided that at least 20% of the Regular Members vote. Said vote may be taken by electronic messaging, email or similar means.”
The Board of Directors has unanimously approved the amendments listed above and highlighted in the copy of the amended Bylaws.
Given the importance of having at least 20% of Regular Members voting, we kindly request that you cast your ballot by December 7, 2022.