Council for Social Foundations of Education

CONSTITUTION

Preamble

In February of 1980 at a session during the annual convention of the American Association of Colleges for Teacher Education the previously informal Coordinating Council for Learned Societies in Education established itself as the Council of Learned Societies in Education. The Council began with seven member societies–American Educational Studies Association, Comparative and International Education Society, History of Education Society, John Dewey Society, Philosophy of Education Society, Society for Educational Reconstruction, and Society of Professors of Education. During the ensuing years, membership expanded to include additional international, national, regional, and state organizations.

The original Coordinating Council and the eventual CLSE evolved from desires among leaders of the seven founding societies to create a united voice on behalf of the social foundations of education in support of the “Standards for Academic and Professional Instruction in the Foundations of Education, Educational Studies, and Educational Policy studies” adopted by the American Educational Studies Association in 1978. In 2000, the Council changed its name to Council for Social Foundations of Education (CSFE). The Council serves as a formal federation of international, national, regional, and state organizations interested in supporting and promoting the role of social foundations of education in professional and general education at all levels in the United States. To those ends, CSFE works with the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education and the National Association of State Directors of Teacher Education and Certification, and works in liaison with many other national and state educational, governmental, and private sector entities.

Article One—Name and Purpose

Section 1.      The name of the organization shall be the Council for Social Foundations of Education.

Section 2.      The purpose of the Council shall be to provide a forum among learned societies and individual scholars in the humanistic and social foundations of education for developing, discussing, approving, and implementing policies regarding matters of mutual interest among members. Such matters may include, but are not limited to, standards related to the preparation and licensure of educators and accreditation of education programs or units.

Article Two—Membership

Section 1.      There shall be three categories of membership: (a) associate membership (b) regular membership, and (c) sustaining membership.

a.      Any regional or state learned society whose purposes include support for the humanistic and social foundations of education shall be eligible for associate membership. Each associate member society shall be entitled to one voting delegate to the Council.

b.      Any national learned society whose purposes include support for the humanistic and social foundations of education shall be eligible for regular membership. Each regular member society shall be entitled to two voting delegates to the Council.

c.      Any individual who belongs to one of the member learned societies shall be eligible for sustaining membership. Sustaining members may attend all meetings of the Council and may speak freely but shall not vote unless serving as an official delegate of a member society.

d.      The council may establish other categories of membership.

e.      Voting members of the Council shall establish membership dues for each membership category.

Article Three—Officers

The chief executive officer of the Council shall be the President, who shall succeed to that position for a three-year term from the office of the Vice President/President Elect. The President shall preside at meetings of the council and shall be the Council’s representative to NCATE.

Section 2.      The following officers shall be elected by voting delegates of the Council:

a.      The Vice President/President Elect shall be elected for a three-year term, after which he or she will become President for a three-year term. The Vice President/President Elect shall preside at meetings of the Council in the absence of the President and shall assume the office of President whenever there is a vacancy in that position. Completion of another President’s term shall not affect the Vice President/President Elect’s right to serve as President for a normal term. If succession occurs early because a President leaves office before the term ends, the voting delegates of the Council shall choose a new Vice President/President Elect at its next scheduled meeting.

b.      The Secretary/Treasurer shall be elected by the voting members of the Council for a three year term. This official shall keep the minutes and other records of the Council; shall prepare and distribute notices of meetings; shall keep the funds and financial records of the Council; shall pay the bills and prepare and distribute financial statements and budget proposals; shall send dues notices to member societies and shall perform other duties as directed by the Council.

Section 3.      Elections of officers shall take place at the scheduled fall meeting every third year. Terms of office shall begin immediately following these elections. In the event of a resignation or death, offices will be filled at the first scheduled meeting thereafter.

Article Four—Voting Delegates of the Council

Section 1.      Quorum.  At least one-third of the total voting delegates must be present. A Quorum may be composed of proxies as well as regularly elected delegates. Each member society may certify to the Secretary/ Treasurer who its delegates are or who is authorized to cast proxy votes. Decisions of the Council shall be by majority vote of those present and voting.

Section 2.      Officers shall be elected from the membership of learned societies that hold associate or regular membership in CSFE by the voting delegates or proxies of the Council.

Article Five—Committees, Commissions, and Boards

Section 1.      The following committees are established to help the Council support and coordinate the efforts of related committees of the member societies:

a.      Committee on Relations with Professional Organizations: responsible for strengthening cooperative relations of the member societies with professional education associations, e.g., AACTE, NEA, AFT.

b.      Committee on Academic Standards: responsible for coordinating the development and review of general and specialized standards and for establishing a national network of individuals to promote implementation of the standards.

c.      Committee on Accreditation: responsible for establishing effective relations with NCATE and other agencies that conduct accreditation reviews of professional education programs.

Section 2.      Voting Delegates of the Council or the CSFE President may create standing or ad hoc committees, commissions, and boards to further the purposes of the Council. Sustaining members of the Council are eligible to serve on these bodies.

Section 3.      Committee Chairs: Chairs shall be appointed by the CSFE President and are responsible for providing leadership for their respective committees, selecting individuals to serve on their committees and submitting reports at Council meetings. The terms of chairs and committee members end when the appointing president’s term ends.

Section 4.      There shall be a nominating committee appointed by the President at the meeting immediately preceding the meeting at which the election is to occur. Individuals serving on the nominating committee must be current paid members of a learned society that holds associate or regular membership in the Council. Two-thirds of the nominating committee will be members of national learned societies that hold membership in the Council and the remainder will be members of regional or state learned societies that hold membership in the Council.

Article Six—Meetings

Section 1.      The Voting Delegates or proxies of the Council shall set the time and place of the meetings of the Council.

Section 2.      There shall be at least two meetings annually, one in the spring and one in the fall, held in association with national educational meetings attended by many of the Council delegates.

Section 3.      Robert’s Rules of Order, current edition, shall be used to conduct meetings.

Article Seven—Finances

Section 1.      Revenue of the Council shall be disbursed only by direction of the voting delegates of the Council

Section 2.      Revenue accruing to the Council shall be used entirely for the work of the Council. No part of the income of the Council shall be paid to any member as wages or salary, but by prior approval of the Voting Delegates, officers and others performing duties for the Council may be reimbursed for expenses related to their duties.

Section 3.      The Council’s financial accounts shall be audited periodically according to the procedures established by the Voting Delegates.

Section 4.      Charities Purposes: The Council is organized exclusively for educational and charitable purposes, including, for such purposes the making of distributions and expertise to organizations that qualify as exempt organizations under section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code or corresponding section of any future federal tax code. No part of the net earnings of the Council shall inure to the benefit of, or be deductible to its members, trustees, officers, or other private persons, except that the Council shall be authorized and empowered to pay reasonable expenses for services rendered and to make payments and distributions in furtherance of the purposes set forward in the goals clause hereof. No substantial part of the activities of the Council shall be the carrying on of propaganda, or otherwise attempting to influence legislation, and the Council shall not participate in, or intervene in (including the publishing or distribution of statements) any political campaign on behalf of any candidate for public office. Notwithstanding any other provisions of this document, the Council shall not carry on any other activities not permitted to be carried on (a) by an organ on (a) by an organization exempt from federal income tax under section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code or corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or (b) by an organization, contributions to which are deductible under section 170 (c) (2) of the Internal Revenue Code or corresponding section of any future federal tax code.  Upon the dissolution of the Council, assets shall be distributed for one or more exempt purposes within the meaning of section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal Revenue Code or corresponding section of any future federal tax code, or shall be distributed to the federal government, or to a state or local government, for a public purpose. Any such assets not disposed of shall be disposed of by the Court of Common Pleas of the county in which the principal office of the Council is then located, exclusively for such purposes or to such organizations as said court shall determine which are organized and operated exclusively for such purposes.

Article Eight—Amendments

Section 1.      Amendments to this Constitution may be initiated by the Voting Delegates of the Council.

Section 2.      Proposed amendments shall be distributed by mail to the Chief Executive Officer of each constituent learned society, together with an explanation of the amendments. Ratification shall be by vote at the next regularly scheduled meeting of the Council. At least sixty days shall elapse between mailing the amendments and the meeting at which the vote is taken. Amendments shall be adopted by two-thirds of the Delegates voting.

Section 3.      The effective date of the amendments to this Constitution shall be immediately upon notification to the President by the Secretary/Treasurer of the result of the vote. The membership shall be notified of the adoption of the amendment within a reasonable time.      [Revised 11/5/09]