RVHEA Constitution

ARTICLE I - PRINCIPLES AND POLICIES

The Rideau Valley Home Educators Association (RVHEA) is a Christian organization. It shall base all of its policies and actions on Christian principles and shall take the Bible as its moral and spiritual guide.
The purpose of the Association is to provide support and various services for families which have undertaken to educate their children at home.
Families who do not subscribe to the Christian principles described in ARTICLE 1 Para 1. are welcome as general members of the Association, but may not hold office on the Executive Committee.

ARTICLE II - AMENDING FORMULA

The Amending Formula is the means by which provisions of the Constitution, with the exceptions of ARTICLE 1, sub-para 1, and ARTICLE 111, sub-para 2, may be amended from time to time in order to reflect changes in functional and/or administrative requirements.
Amendments shall be processed, subject to the following rules:
1. Proposed amendment(s) to the Constitution may be submitted by general members of the association and/or members of the Executive Committee, hereinafter referred to as 'the Committee'.
  1. Proposed amendments which are approved may be incorporated once during any six-month period following inauguration of the Constitution.
  2. Each proposed amendment shall be made in writing, duly signed by the proposing member and submitted to the Secretary of the Executive Committee.
  3. Upon receiving a proposed amendment, the Secretary of the Committee shall place it on a list for consideration.
  4. Proposed amendments which are approved by the Committee shall be tabled and voted on at a general meeting of the membership at which a * quorum has been established.
  5. In the event that a proposed amendment is rejected by the Committee, the member submitting the proposal shall be informed of the reason(s) for rejection.

* Quorum - A quorum constitutes the percentage of the total membership required to be present at a general meeting in order to call for a vote on item(s) of business which deal with proposed amendments and/or exceed the powers of the Executive Committee to resolve (see ARTICLE IV sub-para 3.a.i.). For the purposes of this Constitution, a quorum shall consist of a minimum of 10% of the general membership.

VOTING

Voting on any matter shall be conducted on the basis of one (1) vote per paid membership.
The Chairman of the Committee will not normally vote. However, in the event of a deadlock - that is, an equal number of 'for' and 'against' votes - the Chairman shall then cast a vote in order to break the deadlock. This rule shall apply to voting during all meetings of the general membership and all meetings of the Committee.

ARTICLE III - FORMATION OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

The purpose of the Executive Committee, hereinafter referred to as the 'Committee', is to provide guidance for the Association in all matters of policy, organization, administration, and finances.
Appointments to the Committee:
1. All members of the Committee must subscribe to the Christian principles outlined in ARTICLE 1 and shall sign the Statement of Faith found in ANNEX A (appendix to this document).
2. Candidates will be nominated by the incumbent Committee and/or by the general membership on an 'as required' basis. If approved by the Committee in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution, the name(s) of the candidate(s) shall be tabled and the final selection made by vote of the general membership.
Make-up of the Committee: The Committee shall consist of a Chairman and six (or less) members holding the following offices separately, or in combination:
1. Secretary;
2. Treasurer;
3. Political Policy;
4. Public Relations;
5. Membership; and
6. Newsletter Editor.
Volunteer positions: In addition to the members listed above, there are a number of volunteer positions seconded to the Committee to cover non-executive responsibilities including:
1. Phone-tree / E-mail-tree Co-Ordinator
2. Testing Materials Co-Ordinator;
3. Ad-hoc Committees (for Conferences, etc).
4. Area Representatives
Election and Tenure of service: Appointment to the Committee will be on an 'as required' basis and will be determined, subject to the provisions of ARTICLE 111 Para 2. Sub-paras a. & b., by nomination(s) and vote at a regular meeting of the membership, or at a special meeting convened for that purpose.
1. In order to preserve continuity, members will normally be expected to serve for a minimum of two years from the date of appointment.
2. Appointees must have actively participated within RVHEA for a minimum period of one year prior to being nominated for Committee membership.
Chairman of the Committee: The appointment of a Chairman will be a function of the Committee:
1. The Chairman will be selected by nomination and vote of the Committee members and his/her tenure of office will normally be for a minimum period of two years.
2. During tenure, the Chairman will be responsible to:
  1. call and chair all meetings of the Executive and Association general membership;
  2. appoint a vice-Chairman from the Committee to assume the duties of the Chair in the event of sickness, absence, etc., of the Chairman;
  3. appoint ad-hoc committees from the executive and Association general membership as required; and
  4. assume such other duties and responsibilities as circumstances shall, from time to time, require.
General Functions of the Committee
1. The Committee shall be granted, by virtue of appointment, the right to exercise the normal powers and authority of their office in all affairs of the Association. This authority shall include, but is not necessarily limited to:
2. Setting up of a bookkeeping system designed to control and account for all funds realized from membership fees and other sources.
  1. Extraordinary expenditures (exceeding the sum of ($1000.00) would require the consent of the general membership. Such consent shall be determined by quorum vote at a general meeting or a special meeting of the membership called for that purpose.
  2. A simple form of double-entry bookkeeping shall be maintained in the interests of responsible stewardship of funds and accountability to the membership.
    1. The accounts shall be made available for viewing by the general membership once per year. The account shall be published either in the form of a special PAPER which is to be distributed at the final general meeting of the year and/or in the NEWSLETTER.
    2. The PAPER/NEWSLETTER shall contain, as a minimum, the following accounts in summary form:
      1. Income
      2. Expenses
      3. Balance Sheet
3. Release of news items and information concerning the Association business to the Press, to School boards, to the Ministry of Education, etc.
  1. Normally, such items and information will be released by the Chairman of the Committee. However, this authority may be delegated to any member of the Committee whose responsibilities demand it.
  2. General members are permitted to release information concerning the Association, using the Association name, only when authority to do so has been expressly granted by the Chairman of the Committee.
4. Maintenance of a Membership Roll to facilitate the establishment of a quorum; and an E-mail Tree/Phone Tree communication system to quickly disseminate information and keep members informed of pending events, etc.
5. Publication of a Newsletter and other publications as required. The Newsletter is highly effective as a means of keeping the membership informed and abreast of homeschool affairs.
  1. The position of Editor is an important and influential post within the Committee. Special care should therefore be exercised in the selection of an Editor to ensure that the appointee fully understands and subscribes to all of the provisions of the Constitution.
6. Other duties and responsibilities as shall be determined by, and require the direction and guidance of, the Committee.
7. Resolving membership complaints
  1. All complaints, regardless of content or origin, shall be made to the Committee Chairman in writing, signed by the complainant.
  2. The Committee shall, at its own discretion, deal with any complaint concerning an alleged breach of the constitution, or any other matter considered to merit a response.

ARTICLE IV - MEETINGS

Meetings of the Executive Committee
1. The Committee will meet on a regular basis. Special meetings may be called as urgency demands.
2. An AGENDA format should be followed so that important items of business may be recorded and passed on to the general membership on an as-required basis.
  1. Minutes of each meeting should include the names of those present; the date and time; and the action to be taken on Agenda items.
  2. The minutes of the meeting may be incorporated, if desired, in the Agenda sheet.
Membership
1. All membership applications, written or verbal, shall be considered by the Membership representative of the Committee and are conditional upon agreement to abide by the Constitution and By-Laws.
2. Members shall be responsible to conduct themselves, and to ensure that their children conduct themselves, in a socially acceptable manner whenever participating in any activities of the Association.
  1. Any corrective action regarding a breach of ARTICLE 1V, Sub-para 2.b. will be taken at the discretion of the Executive Committee.
Meetings of the General Membership
1. General meetings of the General Membership will be held a minimum of once a year to table the proposed budget for the Association for the coming year and to table any other business as determined by the Committee. Items of business presented by the membership must be submitted in writing to the Committee 14 days prior to the general meeting.
  1. Special meetings may be called by the executive to deal with urgent Executive decisions requiring approval by the membership.
  2. Minutes shall be kept of all general meetings by the Committee Secretary (or appointed representative). This may be accomplished using the Agenda format or otherwise as circumstances prescribe.

ARTICLE V

General Functions of the Association
1. The Association is prepared to provide, to whatever extent possible:
  1. mutual support of homeschoolers and an exchange of ideas on methods, problems and workable solutions.
  2. A forum from which to present a united front to the Ministry of Education and Training and others in order to:
    1. make the homeschooling position clear;
    2. demonstrate homeschool solidarity on the approach to issues raised by educational and other authorities;
    3. provide a single, 'official voice' for all members; and;
    4. provide unity of action in general educational affairs.
  3. Contact with existing legal organizations specially set up for homeschoolers.
  4. Field trips and other functions such as:
    1. field days
    2. presentation of homeschool accomplishments such as: singing and instrumentals, plays, science exhibits homeschool curriculum displays and forums and, etc.
  5. An Official Newsletter for circulation among members and elsewhere as required.
  6. Maintenance of an E-mail Tree and a Phone Tree and services to disseminate information quickly and accurately to members.
  7. Media input and control of media presentations accomplished in the name of the Association, such as:
    1. interviews;
    2. news releases;
    3. magazine/newspaper articles; and
    4. all letters utilizing the official Name of the Association.

CERTIFICATION AND APPROVAL OF THE CONSTITUTION BY THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE, RIDEAU VALLEY HOME EDUCATORS ASSOCIATION

Latest revision: RVHEA Annual General Membership Meeting: April 21, 2007