ARCHAEOLOGICAL GEOLOGY DIVISION
GEOLOGICAL SOCIETY OF AMERICA

Archaeological Geology Division Bylaws

Established by Council on May 3, 1977

ARTICLE 1

Organization, Name, and Purpose

  1. This division of the Geological Society of America, Inc., is organized in accordance with Article IX, Divisions of the Society , of the bylaws of that Society and is governed by the provisions of that article.
  2. Name . The name of the division is the Archaeological Geology Division of The Geological Society of America, Inc.
  3. Purpose . The purpose of the division is to provide a suitable forum for presentation of papers on archaeological geology and discussion of related problems, to stimulate research and teaching in archaeological geology, and to act as an organized group in promoting these objectives within the framework of the Geological Society of America.

ARTICLE II

Membership

•  Any Member, Fellow, Honorary Fellow, or Affiliate of the Geological Society of America who is in good standing may affiliate with the Archaeological Geology Division. To effect such affiliation, an applicant shall express his/her desire in writing to either the secretary of the division or to the executive director of the Society. All division members may vote and hold office in the division.

 

ARTICLE III

Finances

  1. The division shall be financially responsible for its normal expenses. All other financial obligations or commitments of the division must have prior approval of the Council.
  2. The division may collect annual dues or special assessments from affiliates when recommended by its management board and approved by a majority vote of the voting affiliates.
  3. The division may solicit and accept contributions of funds to be used and expended under the supervision of the management board and subject to Council approval.

ARTICLE IV

Officers and Management Board

  1. Officers . The officers of the division shall be a chair, a vice-chair, and a secretary-treasurer. All officers shall be elected for a term of two years. The terms of office shall begin immediately following the annual business meeting at which the results of the election are announced.
  2. Management Board . The management board shall consist of the division chair, vice-chair, secretary-treasurer, and immediate past division chair.
  3. Election of Officers . The nominating committee of the division shall propose biannually a single slate of candidates for chair, for vice-chair, and for secretary-treasurer. Normally, the vice-chair will be nominated for chair for the following term. When approved by the management board, these nominations shall become the regular ticket and shall be submitted by the secretary- treasurer of the division to the executive director of the Society, who shall have prepared and mailed to the voting affiliates a ballot which also shall have space for write-in nominees.

    The election of officers shall be in accordance with the election procedures of the Society and shall be under the supervision of the Society. All provisions governing the election of officers of the Society which are applicable to the division shall govern the election of officers of the division.

ARTICLE V Committees

  1. Program Committee . A program committee consisting of two or more voting affiliates of the division shall be appointed by the management board. Under normal circumstances, the vice-chair shall be the program chair.

    The program committee shall plan and arrange for the technical sessions of the division at the annual meeting and such other programs as may be directed by the management board.

    The program committee chair shall serve as the division's program representative on the Council's Joint Technical Program Committee.
  2. Nominating Committee . A nominating committee consisting of three voting affiliates of the division who are not members of the management board shall be appointed by the division chair. The nominating committee shall nominate candidates biannually for division chair, vice-chair, and secretary-treasurer, following the guidelines in Article IV, Section 3 , of these bylaws.

  3. Archaeological Geology Division Award Committee . The Archaeological Geology Division Award will be considered annually in accordance with the bylaws of the Society. The award will be made for outstanding contributions to the interdisciplinary field of archaeological geology.

a. Selection Committee . The selection committee shall consist of a chair and two other voting affiliates of the division. The division chair and secretary- treasurer shall act as committee members, ex officio . The members of the selection committee will serve for three years, with staggered terms, with one new member being named each year by the chair of the division immediately after the GSA annual meeting. Vacancies in the committee will be filled by appointment by the chair of the division. Past recipients of the award may serve on the committee. The chair of the committee will be selected by the chair of the division from among the second or third year members of the committee.

b. Frequency . The award generally will be made annually, but in any particular year may be withheld if no suitable candidate is selected. The award can be given only once each calendar year.

c. Requirements to Qualify .

(1) The award will be made to an individual who has contributed in an outstanding manner to the interdisciplinary field of archaeological geology.

(2) The recipient of the award need not be a member of GSA nor a citizen of the United States.

d. The Award . The award will consist of an appropriate certificate which will be recommended by the management board of the division and approved by the GSA Council. The award will be presented at the business meeting of the division during the GSA annual meeting. Normally, the recipient will be introduced by the chair of the selection committee. A person acquainted with the winner's work will present a citation reviewing the contributions of the award recipient. The citation will introduce the winner to the chair of the division who will present the award.

e. Selection Procedures. Nominations for the award will be made in accordance with the following procedures:

(1) The secretary of the division shall, at the earliest convenience, but no later than December 10 , mail to each member of the selection committee and to any other member of the division requesting such material, the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of the committee member, a copy of the selection procedures, a list of past award recipients, instructions for submitting names, and notification of the February 15 deadline for receipt of nominations by the chair of the selection committee.

In addition, the secretary shall invite nominations from members of the division and the Society by placing an announcement in the newsletter of the Archaeological Geology Division. The announcement shall include the Requirements to Qualify statement, the February 15 deadline date for the receipt of nominations, the name and address of the selection committee chair who shall receive the nominations, and a request for the following information for each candidate: a) name, office or title, and affiliation; b) date and place of birth, education, degrees, honors and awards; c) major events in his/her professional career; d) outstanding achievements and accomplishments that warrant the nomination; and e) selected bibliography.

(2) The chair of the selection committee will distribute a consolidated list of candidates, together with supporting materials, to committee members shortly after the February 15 deadline. Each member, including the chair, will select from among the list of candidates a first, second, and third choice for the award. These selections will be rated by three for first choice, two for second, and one for third, with the results of this ballot being used to reduce the number of candidates to those who have received a minimum of two points. This reduced list will then comprise the ballot for the committee's final selection of candidates on the basis of the maximum number of points in a manner as described above.

Ranked according to the results of the final ballot, the committee chair will present the names of the top three candidates, along with the required documentation, to the chair of the Archaeological Geology Division who will forward the information to all members of the management board for a final vote following three, two, one rating specified above. This procedure shall be completed by April 1 .

The division chair shall then submit the name and address of the top ranking candidate to the executive director of the Society who will place the request for ratification on the agenda for consideration by the Council at its spring meeting. The name of the nominee will be supplemented with a paragraph describing the contributions that are being recognized in the award. Following the Council meeting, the president will inform the recipient of the award. The division chair will be notified of the ratification at the same time.

(3) All letters and correspondence shall be held confidential, but all biographies, votes, and pertinent correspondence shall be preserved by the secretary of the division who will make them available to the succeeding chair upon request.

  1. Other Committees . Other committees for special functions may be established by the management board from time to time. Chairs of the special committees will be appointed by the division chair with the approval of the management board. Appointment of committee members will be the responsibility of the committee chair.
  1. Responsibility . Reports, recommendations, or other actions by appointed committees, other than the nominating committee, shall be to the approval of the management board. After such approval, the secretary-treasurer of the division shall report appropriately to the executive director of the Society if the attention or action of the Council is required. Appointed committees shall present annual reports which shall be summarized in the annual report of the management board.
  2. Tenure . Committee appointments shall expire at the close of the next annual meeting of the division, unless otherwise specified. Vacancies on committees may be filled by interim appointment at any time by the committee chair. Committee members may be reappointed a maximum of three consecutive terms.

ARTICLE VI

Management

  1. Management Board . The property and affairs of the division shall be managed by the management board. At the annual business meeting, the management board shall submit a report of the preceding year's activities of the division which shall include the reports of the division chair and secretary-treasurer and the reports of the various committees. Before February 15 of the following year, this report shall be submitted by the secretary-treasurer of the division to the executive director of the Society. The report will be presented to the affiliates of the division in the division's newsletter.
  2. Chair. The division chair shall preside at meetings of the division and the management board. The chair shall submit a report to the management board on the activities of the division during his/her term of office and on future plans.
  3. Vice-Chair . The vice-chair shall assume the powers and duties of the chair in the event of the absence or disability of the chair. The vice-chair will, under normal circumstances, be the program committee chair and serve as the division's representative on the Council's Joint Technical Program Committee. The vice-chair shall also be charged, under normal circumstances, with planning of field trips for division members.
  4. Secretary-Treasurer . The secretary-treasurer shall keep records of the proceedings of the division and shall act as secretary of the management board. He/she shall maintain liaison with GSA headquarters and shall serve, ex officio , as a member of all committees. He/she shall account to the Council of the Society for all funds advanced by the Society.

    The secretary-treasurer shall notify the officers and the member of the committees of their election or appointment and shall arrange for issuance of notices of all division and management board meetings and election results.

    The secretary-treasurer shall collect and disburse all funds of the division and shall keep records of all receipts and disbursements and other financial transactions of the division.

ARTICLE VII

Meetings

  1. Annual Business Meeting . The annual business meeting of the division shall be held during the annual meeting of the Society.
  2. Management Board Meetings . The management board shall meet immediately prior to the annual business meeting. Special meetings of the management board may be called at any time by the chair, with the consent of a majority of the management board. Decisions may also be made by mail vote.
  3. Technical Sessions . Technical sessions of the division shall be held during the annual meeting of the Society. Interim technical sessions, cooperative meeting with other societies, or other special programs may be held at any time, subject to the approval of the management board and the Council of the Geological Society of America. The participation of non-members of the Society who are engaged or interested in archaeological geology shall be encouraged at all technical sessions.

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ARTICLE VIII

Rule and Amendment of the Bylaws

  1. The management board, by majority vote, may adopt, rescind, or amend rules supplementing the bylaws.
  2. Bylaws of the division may be adopted, rescinded, or amended by majority vote of the voting affiliates of the division at the annual business meeting or by mail vote, followed by ratification by the Council.

Established by Council on May 3, 1977

Bylaws amended on November 15, 1980, October 20, 1982, November 7, 1984, April 28, 2003, October 23, 2006.