SARMAC Bylaws

Approved 15 December 2017

ARTICLE I: NAME AND OBJECT

1. The name of the Society is "The Society for Applied Research in Memory and Cognition," (SARMAC). 

2. The object of the Society is to foster applied research in memory and cognition and promote the communication of this research within and between the applied and basic research communities.

ARTICLE II: MEMBERSHIP

1. Membership shall be on a calendar-year basis. Current and past members will be asked to renew their membership towards the end of a calendar year. 

2. The Society shall have four classes of membership: regular member, student member (graduate or undergraduate), affiliate, and emeritus. Regular members shall hold a Ph.D. or (in the determination of the Board) have equivalent experience, and be qualified to conduct scientific research on applied issues concerning memory and cognition. Graduate and undergraduate students in psychology or related disciplines may apply for student status. People without a Ph.D. or equivalent experience can join as Affiliate members. Regular members (for three or more years) may request Emeritus membership status upon retirement. 

3. Only regular members are eligible to vote in SARMAC elections or to serve on the Society's Board of Governors. Regular members also enjoy certain advantages, as specified in Article VI.

ARTICLE III: GOVERNING BOARD

1. The Governing Board shall supervise the affairs of the Society, subject to the articles herein. Members of the Board shall, at all times, act in the Society’s best interests.

2. The Governing Board shall normally consist of twelve regular members, elected by the regular members of the Society. These twelve members shall be elected for staggered terms of four years each; members shall be limited to serving three consecutive terms, but may seek re-election again after a two-year “stand down.“ One of the twelve regular positions shall be reserved for an “early career“ member who is no more than 7 years post-PhD at the time of election.

3. In recognition of the Board’s duties of care and loyalty to the Society, Board members must not hold positions in other organizations, nor at other journals that—in the opinion of the Board—present even the appearance of a conflict.

4. The Governing Board shall hold a business meeting at the biennial meeting of the Society, and will also conduct meetings, as needed, in person or via other formats. Meetings of the Governing Board will normally be convened by the President. If the President cannot attend a meeting of the Governing Board, the meeting shall be convened by a Board member designated by the President. Meetings shall adhere to Roberts Rules of Order.

5. The Executive Director of the Society shall serve with the Governing Board in an ex officio capacity, thus being a thirteenth member.  The Student Caucus President shall not be a member of the Board, but at Board meetings shall enjoy the same rights as Board members, with the exception of voting rights. At the request of any Board member, the Student Caucus President will be asked to leave the meeting when confidential or sensitive items arise.

6. The Governing Board may establish standing committees of the Society as needed, and shall solicit members of the Society to serve on these committees. At a minimum, the standing committees shall include:

            i: Publications Committee
            ii: Student Caucus

7. Any decision of the Governing Board may be overturned by a dissenting vote by a majority of the regular members of the Society. Such a vote may be initiated by petition of 10% of the regular membership.

ARTICLE IV: OFFICERS

1. The Society's officers consist of the President, Past President, Secretary-Treasurer and the Executive Director. The terms of the President and Secretary-Treasurer shall be two years. The President may serve two consecutive terms. There is no limit on the number of consecutive terms that may be served by the Secretary-Treasurer or Executive Director.

2. The members of the Governing Board shall elect the President and Secretary-Treasurer of the Society. These two officers must be current members of the Governing Board at the time of the election. The election of officers is to take place at the biennial meetings scheduled to occur closest to the termination of each officer's term, or electronically if a meeting is not scheduled within 12 months of the termination of an officer's term. 

Upon election of a new President, the former President will assume the office of Past President. If the offices of President or Secretary-Treasurer are vacated or vacant, the Governing Board will directly elect a current member of the Governing Board for the remainder of the vacated term of that office. If a President is reelected to a second term, the standing Past President likewise will continue for a second term.

3. Officers whose terms extend beyond their elected terms as Board members shall continue as regular Board members until the end of their terms as officers, and the Governing Board will therefore comprise more than twelve regular members for the duration. 

4. The President shall preside over all meetings of the Board (except as specified in Article III.4). The Past President will assume the responsibilities of the President when necessary. The Secretary-Treasurer shall keep the minutes of the meetings of the Board and circulate these minutes electronically to all Board members following each meeting. The Secretary-Treasurer shall take primary responsibility in performing financial transactions and in maintaining the financial records of the Society, and shall present to the Board, a report of the Society's financial position at the end of each calendar year, at each meeting and at the request of the Executive Director, President, or the Board. The Secretary-Treasurer and Executive Director shall work together to prepare a financial agenda for the Society to be presented to the Board for revision and/or approval.

5. The President may appoint a Parliamentarian at any meeting of the Governing Board. The role of the Parliamentarian is to enforce adherence to Roberts Rules of Order.

6. The Executive Director shall be a regular member of the Society who has been elected by the Governing Board to serve a term of four years. The Executive Director is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the Society, including but not limited to maintaining the membership roster, annually soliciting membership renewal, ensuring the distribution of any SARMAC publication as directed by the Board, and conducting elections of Governing Board members and officers on the schedule specified above. The Executive Director shall keep the financial records of the Society jointly with the Secretary-Treasurer. 

7. The Executive Director may be compensated for work on behalf of the Society. The nature of this compensation is to be decided by the Governing Board. The Executive Director is the only officer of the Society who may be thus compensated on behalf of the Society.

ARTICLE V: ELECTIONS

1. The Executive Director shall monitor the terms of the members of the Governing Board, and at least four months prior to the expiration of each term, shall solicit from all regular members of the Society, nominations of regular members who might be willing to be considered for that position. 

2. A vacancy on the Governing Board shall be filled by a person who has accepted a nomination and has received the highest number of votes from all regular members of the Society. In the case of an election to fill more than one vacancy, vacancies shall be filled by those receiving the highest number of votes, starting with the person with the highest total and proceeding through the next highest totals in order until all vacancies are filled.

3. Normally, elections to the Board will be conducted in early November, with terms for all Board members and officers beginning January 1.

ARTICLE VI: MEETINGS

1. To promote the objective of the Society, a SARMAC meeting will ordinarily be held at least once every two years. 

2. The Governing Board shall solicit suggestions for locations and hosts for forthcoming meetings, and must approve the site and dates of all meetings. The Board will work with the hosts to nominate the program committee and to establish “themes” for the program; the Board must approve the program committee.

3. At the biennial meetings of the Society, any regular member may present a scientific paper that reports applied research on memory and cognition, subject to availability of time on the program, as determined by the conference organizers. 

4. Persons who are not regular members may also present papers subject to availability of time on the program, as determined by the conference organizers. Submissions from regular members take priority.

ARTICLE VII: PUBLICATIONS

1. The Governing Board shall determine the official publications of SARMAC, and the frequency of their electronic and/or printed publication, including journals, books, newsletters, and any other type of publication. The Governing Board shall establish agreements and/or contractual arrangements with publishers, as necessary, on all official SARMAC publications.

ARTICLE VIII: DUES

1. The Governing Board shall determine the amount of annual membership dues.

ARTICLE IX: AMENDMENTS

1. Changes in the bylaws shall first be recommended by a majority vote of all Governing Board members and then approved by at least two-thirds of the voting members of the Society. These two votes may be conducted electronically.

ARTICLE X: SEAL

1. The Board shall set policy for, and approve the design and use of, the official logo of the Society, student caucus, meetings, and publications.