Constitution

(Revised 8.12.01)

1. Name

The Association shall be called "The Scottish Association for the Teaching of English as a Foreign Language” and is hereinafter referred to as the Association.

2. Address

The address of the Association shall be that of its Honorary Secretary.

3. Objects

The object of the Association shall be to encourage the teaching of English to speakers of other languages. To do so, the association may arrange such activities and may cooperate with such other associations as the Executive Committee, or the Association in General Meeting, determines.

4. Membership

(a) Membership shall be open to any individual interested in the object of the Association, subject to payment of the annual subscription.
(b) Membership shall cease if:
(i) the member notifies the Honorary Secretary in writing of his wish to withdraw
from the Association.
(ii) the member fails to pay his annual subscription by 1st November.
In either case, cessation of membership shall not preclude re-application.
(c) Membership shall run from the date of payment of the annual subscription until the following 30th September.

5. Governing Body

The Governing Body of the Association shall be the Annual General Meeting, which shall be held not later than the 31st December. The Annual General Meeting shall elect, as their terms of service end or they stand down, the Office-bearers of the Association, who will consist of the Chair, the Vice-Chair, the Honorary Secretary and the Honorary Treasurer. They, together with between six and eight other elected members and the Membership Secretary (ex-officio) and the Editor of the Association's Newsletter (ex-officio), shall form the Executive Committee.

6. Executive Committee

(a) The Executive Committee shall manage the Association's affairs and carry out the decisions of the General Meetings. It shall be empowered to set up sub-committees. It shall be empowered to co-opt up to three members at its discretion, but these members will not have voting rights. It shall report to the General Meetings in case of policy problems

(b) All candidates for election to the Executive Committee must be proposed and seconded in writing so that the nomination is in the hands of the Honorary Secretary before the start of the Annual General Meeting. Elections shall be by secret ballot.

(c) Any member of the Association may stand for election to the Executive Committee.

(d) To ensure as wide a spread of interest as possible on the Executive Committee, normally no more than two persons from any one institution can be nominated for election to the Executive Committee. “Institution” shall be taken to mean School, College or University.

(e) The members of the Executive Committee shall be elected for a period of two years, except the Vice-Chair, who shall be elected for a period of 4 years, the first and fourth years as Vice-Chair and the second and third as Chair.

(f) Executive Committee members demitting office may be re-elected to membership of the succeeding Executive Committee provided the period of service does not exceed six consecutive years.

(g) No Office-bearer can serve as an Office-bearer for more than two years consecutively, except the Vice-Chair, who shall serve for a period of 4 years, of which the second and third shall be as Chair.

(h) The Executive Committee can accord an invitation to non-members or representatives of outside organisations to attend meetings of the Executive Committee as observers without voting rights.

(i) The quorum shall be five.

(j) The Chair shall have a deliberative and a casting vote.

(k) Vacancies: the Executive Committee may fill vacancies by co-option. Such co-opted members shall have voting rights and shall serve only until the following Annual General Meeting.

(l) The Membership Secretary and the Editor of the Association's Newsletter shall be ex-officio members of the Executive Committee without voting rights.

7. Duties of Office-bearers

(a) Chair
The Chair shall take the Chair at all meetings of the Association and at the Executive Committee meetings. He shall present a report to the Annual General meeting. He shall act as official spokesman for the Association and sit ex-officio on the Executive Committee of TESOL Scotland. In the Chair's absence the Vice-Chair will take his/her place.

(b) Vice-Chair
In the first year of office, the Vice-Chair shall deputise for the Chair as necessary and in the fourth year shall support the new Chair for the Chair's first year in office.

(c) Honorary Secretary
The Honorary Secretary shall have responsibility for the distribution of information to the members, general correspondence and the compilation and circulation of Minutes and Agendas.

(d) The Honorary Treasurer
The duties of the Honorary Treasurer shall be to receive all monies paid into the Association; to disburse all payments on behalf of the Association; to present accounts to the Annual General Meeting and to submit interim reports and statements of account at the Executive Committee meetings; and to advise the membership and Executive Committee on all matters of Association finance.

8. Funds and Finance

(a) The financial year shall be from 1st October to 30th September.
(b) The funds and income of the Association shall be devoted to furthering the objects of the Association.
(c) There shall be a membership subscription due on the first day of the financial year, the amount of which shall be determined by the Executive Committee.
(d) Responsibility for keeping accounts and drawing cheques shall rest with the Honorary Treasurer. Cheques shall be signed by the Honorary Treasurer or another Office-bearer.
(e) In the event of dissolution of the Association, any assets shall be transferred to a non-profitmaking body with similar objectives.

9. Amendments to the Constitution

Amendments to the Constitution may be made only by resolution to the Annual General Meeting called by the Executive Committee through the Chair. Resolutions must be sent in writing to the Association's Honorary Secretary at least six weeks prior to the Annual General Meeting for distribution to members. Extraordinary General meetings may be called at any time, provided that the request is in the hands of the Honorary Secretary at least six weeks beforehand and is signed by at least 20 paid-up members of the Association. A vote for any resolutions to amend the Constitution shall require the assent (either by show of hands or by secret ballot) of at least two-thirds of the members present.

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