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The Draft Constitution of the e-Assessment Association
1. Name and date of commencement
The association shall be called the e-Assessment Association (hereinafter referred to as the eAA) and shall be constituted from DATE1.
2. Aims and Objectives
The eAA is a non-profit making independent professional body that aims to promote the effective use of e-assessment in support of learning: by seeking to advance understanding of the concepts and practices of e-assessment, by encouraging individuals and organisations to make good use of e-assessment, by explaining the issues to the public, and by influencing educational thinking and policy.
In pursuit of these aims, the eAA’s main objectives are to:
2.1 provide members with professional support by...
- creating and sustaining a vibrant e-community, with suitable web services including a website;
- publishing a high quality quarterly newsletter, designed to monitor trends in e-assessment and to document uptake/progress;
- organising an annual conference;
- publishing an up-to-date e-journal, which will present new ideas, case studies and current practice; and
- establishing a body of independent experts and consultants willing to provide help, support and guidance;
2.2 work collaboratively with members and national organisations to create and communicate the positive contribution that technologies can make to assessment by…
- publishing and presenting ‘think pieces’;
- opening a dialogue with policy makers on assessment thinking;
- establishing current good practice;
- monitoring emerging new approaches;
- organising a network of leading thinkers to promote discussion and publication;
- seeking appropriate funding for research; and
- publishing the outcomes of that research;
2.3 produce a statement of good practice for commercial vendors by…
- collecting and explaining the relevance of existing standards, codes and published guidance;
- bringing a significant group together to modify existing standards where needed;
- developing and keeping up-to-date a good practice guide for teachers and providers alike;
- creating a kite mark in this area; and
- publishing the eAA standards on the eAA website.
3. Membership
3.1 Subject to the payment of annual subscriptions, as determined by the Board of Management and approved at each Annual General Meeting, Ordinary membership shall be open to any individual and Organisational membership shall be open to any organisation interested in furthering the aims and objectives of the eAA.
3.2 Organisational members shall participate in the activities of the eAA through their nominated Associate members. Associate members may participate in all activities and general assemblies of the eAA.
3.3 Each Organisational member may nominate up to N Associate members, where the Organisational member’s annual subscription is greater than or equal to N times the annual subscription for Ordinary membership. An Organisational member may replace its nominated Associate members at any time. The minimum annual subscription for Organisational membership shall be 10 times that for Ordinary membership.
3.4 Any member, Ordinary or Organisational, joining the eAA before DATE2, shall be acknowledged as a Founder member by paying for their first annual subscription at double the prevailing rate.
4. Management
4.1 The Board of Management shall be elected using e-voting conducted over 10 days in the 30 days leading up to the Annual General Meeting.
4.2 No Board member may serve for more than 2 years without seeking re-election.
4.3 The Board shall comprise no more than 15 members. The Associate members shall elect no more than the lesser of 6 and the number of Organisational members, with the remaining representatives elected by the Ordinary members
The Board shall elect from its membership a Chairman, Deputy Chairman, Treasurer and Secretary. If the post of any officer or other Board member should fall vacant after such an election, the Board of Management will have the power to co-opt up to 4 members, who shall serve for the remainder of the current year up to the next Annual General Meeting.
4.5 The Board of Management shall meet as often as required but not less than 3 times between Annual General Meetings to make and execute such decisions as are necessary in implementing the aims and objectives of the eAA. The Board of Management shall report all its activities to the Annual General Meeting and shall account to the Annual General Meeting in accordance with article 6.4.
5. Rules of Procedure at Meetings
5.1 Annual General Meeting
5.1.1 General meetings of the eAA shall be held annually. Not more than fifteen months shall elapse between the date of one Annual General Meeting and the next
5.1.2 Approve the minutes of the previous year’s AGM
5.1.3 Receive reports from the Chairman and the Secretary
5.1.4 Receive a report from the Treasurer and approve the annual accounts
5.1.5 Approve the annual subscriptions proposed for the incoming year
5.1.6 Announce the results of the election for the Board of Management
5.1.7 Announce results of voting on changes to the Constitution
5.1.8 Deal with any other relevant business
5.2 Extraordinary General Meetings
An Extraordinary General Meeting shall be called by an application to the Secretary from not less than 25 members, which is subsequently supported in an e-poll conducted over 10 days by at least two-thirds of the combined Ordinary and Associate membership. The Board of Management shall also have the power to call an Extraordinary General Meeting by decision of a simple majority of its members.
5.3 Notices
At least 30 days notice shall be given to all members of any General Meeting.
5.4 Voting
5.4.1 Each Ordinary or Associate member shall have one vote, which may be given in person or by an appointed proxy.
5.4.2 With the exception of changes to the Constitution, decisions put to the vote shall be resolved by a simple majority of the Ordinary and Associate members at General Meetings.
5.4.3 The Chairman as well as his/her vote shall have a casting vote in cases of equality.
5.5 Quora
The quorum at General meetings shall be the presence, in person or by proxy, of at least one fifth of all Ordinary and Associate members of the eAA. For Board of Management meetings the quorum shall be 6, and for all other Committee meetings the quorum shall be 3.
5.6 Changes to the Constitution
5.6.1 Any change to the Constitution shall require a two-thirds majority in an e-poll conducted over 10 days of all those eligible to vote at a General Meeting.
5.6.2 Notice shall be given to all voting members of any General Meeting as specified in section 5.3 and then any proposal to change the constitution shall be submitted to the Secretary at least 20 days prior to the meeting.
5.6.3 All proposals for changes to the Constitution must be proposed by at least 2 members eligible to vote at a General Meeting.
6. Finance
6.1 Members shall pay an annual subscription to the eAA by the 15th April each year. The amounts for Ordinary and Organisational memberships shall be decided by majority vote at the Annual General Meeting.
6.2 All money raised on behalf of the eAA shall be paid into a deposit account or current account at….BANK…., or such other bank as shall from time to time be substituted by the Board of Management.
6.3 All cheques payments greater than £100 shall be signed authorised by 2 out of no more than 4 nominated members of the Board of Management and where the 2 signatories must include the Treasurer or the Chairman. Payments up to £100 may be authorised by any of the nominated signatories.
6.4 The Treasurer shall be responsible for the preparation of the annual accounts of the eAA which shall be presented by the Board of Management, after audit, at the Annual General Meeting.
6.5 The accounts shall be audited by an independent and suitably qualified person.
7. Governance
The Board of Management shall have the primary responsibility to govern the activities of the eAA, and the authority to institute any necessary or desirable subordinate structures and committees. See Annex A: The Governance of the e-Assessment Association.
8. Dissolution
A motion to dissolve the eAA shall require a two-thirds majority in an e-poll conducted over 10 days of all those eligible to vote at a General Meeting. In this event the liabilities of the eAA shall be discharged by the Board of Management. If there are residual assets the Board of Management shall identify a recognised charitable body to which these residuary assets shall be distributed within 3 months.
Signed (Chairperson) ___________________________________________
Signed (Committee Member) ___________________________________________
Annex A: The Governance of the e-Assessment Association
The e-Assessment Association (eAA) is headed by the Board of Management, which is unambiguously and collectively responsible for overseeing the eAA’s activities, determining its future direction and fostering an environment in which the eAA’s Mission is achieved. The Board of Management must ensure compliance with the statutes, ordinances and provisions regulating the eAA and its framework of governance and, subject to these, take all final decisions on matters of fundamental concern to the eAA.
Individual Board members must at all times conduct themselves in accordance with accepted standards of behaviour in public life which embrace selflessness, integrity, objectivity, accountability, openness, honesty and leadership.
The Board of Management shall meet sufficiently regularly and normally not less than four times a year, including at least one face-to-face meeting, in order to discharge its duties effectively. Members of the Board of Management shall attend regularly and participate actively.
The Constitution and this statement of the Governance of the eAA will be published widely, including on the internet and in the annual report, along with identification of key individuals (i.e. Chair, Deputy Chair, Secretary, Treasurer, and Chairs of key committees).
All members should exercise their responsibilities in the interests of the eAA as a whole rather than as a representative of any constituency. The eAA shall maintain and publicly disclose a register of interests of members of the Board of Management.
The Chair shall be responsible for the leadership of the Board of Management, and be ultimately responsible for its effectiveness. The Chair shall ensure that the eAA is well connected with its stakeholders.
The Chair shall ensure that new members receive a full induction on joining the Board of Management.
The Secretary shall be responsible for ensuring compliance with all procedures and ensuring that papers are supplied in a timely manner with information in a form and of a quality appropriate to enable the Board of Management to discharge its duties.
The proceedings of the Board of Management shall be conducted in as open a manner as possible, and information and papers restricted only when the wider interest of the eAA or the public interest demands.
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