Article 1: Name
1. The name of this organization shall be the Polaris Users Group.
Article 2: Purposes
2.1 The purposes of the organization shall be to:
2.1.A serve as a forum to
influence the development and improvement of Polaris Library Systems
(PLS) products for the benefit of Polaris Users Group members.
2.1.B offer input to PLS on the
development of the Polaris integrated library system, its subsequent
releases and related products.
2.1.C foster and improve
communication and relationships among members, and between members and
PLS.
2.1.D gather and share
information on the use of Polaris products among members.
2.1.E. coordinate and prioritize
member requests for development, documentation and support by PLS.
2.1.F represent the community of
Polaris users in dealings with PLS. The organization is understood to
speak for its members and not on behalf of PLS.
2.1.G serve as a resource about
Polaris to the general library community.
Article 3: Membership
3.1. Membership in the Polaris Users Group shall be limited to
institutions having:
3.1.A a signed contract with
PLS
to acquire the Polaris software or have current license agreements with
PLS or are currently under contract with PLS to run a Polaris ILS or
have an annual maintenance contract active with PLS.
3.1.B agreed in writing to the
Bylaws of the Polaris Users Group.
3.2. membership for an
institution includes all consortium members, branch libraries or units,
and users covered under a signed contract.
3.3 each member institution may
cast one vote on any issue presented to the Polaris Users Group.
3.4 member institutions shall
certify to the Chair one person to be the official representative to the
Polaris Users Group for the purposes of voting on the institution's
behalf in all issues presented to the Polaris Users Group and for
official communications. In the event the official representative is
unable to attend, a proxy may be designated.
3.5 member institutions may
register as many current staff as they wish to participate in the
Polaris Users Group activities.
3.6 guest status: other
interested parties will be invited to participate in the Polaris Users
Group meetings and/or sponsored projects, as non-voting observers, at
the discretion of the Steering Committee.
Article 4: Meetings
4.1 meetings of the Polaris Users
Group shall be held at least once every calendar year.
4.2 written notification stating
the time, date and place of an official membership meeting
shall be accomplished by at least sixty days prior to the meeting by
normal mail delivery, by fax, by electronic mail and/or other electronic
means, as appropriate.
4.3 the Steering Committee will
set the fee for the Polaris Users Group annual meeting.
4.4 informational or program
meetings may be held by any state or regional group of members, but no
official business of the Polaris Users Group can be conducted at such
meetings.
4.5 a majority vote of the
official voting representatives attending Polaris Users Group meetings
is necessary to pass motions.
Article 5: Officers
5.1. the officers of this organization shall be:
5.1.A. Chair
5.1.B Vice-Chair
5.1.C. Secretary
5.1.D. Treasurer
5.2 officers shall be employed by
an institution belonging to the Polaris Users Group.
5.3. Duties of the Officers
5.3.A. Chair
5.3.A.1. functions as the chief
executive officer of the Polaris Users Group.
5.3.A.2. presides at Users Group
meetings and at meetings of the Steering Committee.
5.3.A.3. appoints committees as
needed to carry out the purposes of the Users Group, subject to the
approval of a simple majority of the Steering Committee.
5.3.A.4. performs other duties as
are necessarily incident to the office of Chair and as may be prescribed
by the Steering Committee.
5.3.B. Vice-Chair /Chair Elect
This is a two year position, the first year is served as Vice-Chair, the
second year as Chair.
5.3.B.1 as Vice-Chair, performs the duties of the Chair in the event of
the Chair's temporary disability or absence from meetings.
5.3.B.2 as Vice-Chair, completes assignments as delegated by the Chair.
5.3.B.3 as Vice-Chair, serves as Chair of the annual meeting program
committee.
5.3.B.4 serves as Chair in the year following term as Vice Chair.
5.3.C Secretary
5.3.C.1. maintains records of
proceedings and reports on activities at the annual meeting.
5.3.C.2 maintains records of all
memberships, present and past.
5.3.C.3 implements nomination and
election procedures.
5.3.C.4 distributes
communications to the membership throughout the year as needed.
5.3.C.5 delivers to her/his
successor or to the Chair all records, proceedings, reports, and other
property at the expiration of her/his term of office.
5.3C.6. performs other duties as
are necessarily incident to the office of Secretary as may be prescribed
by the Steering Committee.
5.3.D Treasurer
5.3.D.1 collects registration
fees (if any), membership fees (if any) and other monies as required.
5.3.D.2 keeps accounts of all
monies received and expended and makes disbursements as authorized by
the Steering Committee.
5.3.D.3 delivers to her/his
successor or to the Chair all records, monies and other property at the
expiration of her/his term of office.
5.3.D.4 performs other duties as
are necessarily incident to the office of Treasurer as may be prescribed
by the Steering Committee.
5.3.E. Coordinator, Enhancements
Process
5.3.E.1 coordinates the Polaris software enhancement process and acts as
liaison to Polaris Library System to communicate enhancement related
information.
5.3.E.2 solicits membership for the subsystem champion committees.
5.3.E.3 facilitates subsystem champion committees and ensures
enhancement review maintains the published schedule.
5.3.E.4 serves as the primary contact for subsystem champions and
Polaris Library System during the enhancements process.
5.3.E.5 communicates to the membership regarding enhancements process.
5.3.E.6 tallies ballots from member voting and communicates results to
members and Polaris Library Systems.
Article 6: Steering Committee
6.1 the members of the Steering
Committee are: the officers and three members of the organization
elected at large.
6.2 the three members of the
organization elected at large shall be representatives of member
institutions or current staff designated by their institutions to
participate in the Polaris Users Group activities.
6.3 members of the Steering
Committee shall be elected for a two year term.
6.4 no institution shall have
more than two representative or current staff member designated to
participate on the Steering Committee at any one time.
6.5 the Steering Committee shall
meet once a year. Additional meetings may be scheduled as deemed
necessary by a majority of the Steering Committee. Meetings may utilize
video/ audio conferencing or other interactive technology. A quorum
shall be a simple majority of the members.
6.6 Responsibilities of the
Steering Committee:
6.6.A plans, organizes, and
solicits agenda items, reports, and other activities for the annual
meeting.
6.6.B coordinates prioritized
member requests for development, documentation, and bug fixes.
6.6.C supervises the affairs of
the Polaris Users Group in the intervals between meetings, and reports
to the membership at the next membership meeting.
6.6.D supervises the affairs of
the Polaris Users Group at official meetings of the group.
6.6.E submits a report at the
annual meeting, detailing the Polaris Users Group's financial activities
for the preceding year.
6.6.F submits an annual budget
proposal for membership approval.
6.6.G issues all official
statements of the Polaris Users Group.
6.6.H approves appointments to
committees made by the Chair.
6.6.I maintains and publishes a
current description of the duties of the officers of the Polaris Users
Group which shall be examined for accuracy and updated as needed.
6.7 Vacancies: in the event of
vacancies on the Steering Committee due to resignations, the following
procedures will apply:
6.7.A if the Chair resigns, the
Vice-Chair shall immediately become Chair for the remainder of the term
of office.
6.7.B Vacancies other than Chair
shall be filled by appointment by the Steering Committee, until the next
annual meeting, at which time a special election will be held to fill
the remainder of the unexpired term.
Article 7: Nominations and
Elections
7.1 the Secretary shall issue a
call for nominations for candidates sixty (60) days in advance of the
Polaris Users Group annual meeting. If there is less than 60 days until
the annual meeting, a special election will be held at the meeting.
7.1.A a nomination shall be made
in writing to the Secretary at least thirty (30) days before the Polaris
Users Group annual meeting.
7.1.B the nomination must be
accompanied by the candidate's written statement of consent to the
nomination.
7.1.C the nomination may include
materials such as a biographical sketch outlining the nominee's interest
in or qualifications for service in the post.
7.2 the Secretary will submit the
names of the nominees and any information that accompanied the
nomination to the membership prior to the annual meeting.
7.3 write-in nominations announced
at the annual meeting are permitted, so long as candidates are present
and consent.
7.4 elections shall take place
and results shall be ratified at each annual meeting. The election of
members of the Steering Committee shall be by ballot.
7.5 a majority vote of the
official voting representatives attending the Polaris Users Group Annual
meeting is necessary for elections.
7.6 candidates-elect shall assume
office at the close of the annual meeting at which their election was
ratified.
Article 8: Committees
8.1 special committees shall be
formed as needed and shall report to the Steering Committee.
8.2 all committees shall be
composed of official representatives of member institutions or current
staff designated by their institutions to participate in the Polaris
Users Group activities. Committee members shall be appointed and
removed by the Chair of the Steering Committee with that body's
approval.
8.3. members of each committee
shall select the chair of their committee.
8.4 no person shall concurrently
serve as chair of two (2) or more committees within the Polaris Users
Group.
8.5 committees shall maintain
records of their proceedings and shall report on their activities at the
annual meeting, and at other times as they may be so directed by the
Steering Committee.
8.6 in the event that a committee
member becomes unable to serve, the Chair of the Steering Committee
shall within sixty (60) calendar days appoint a successor to fill the
balance of the unexpired term.
8.7 no member of any committee
shall be personally liable for the organization or its members for
monetary damages or financial obligations.
Article 9: Amendments to the
Bylaws
9.1 amendments to the Bylaws
shall be proposed in writing, and may be introduced by the Steering
Committee, or by any member institution’s official representative.
9.2 notice of proposed amendments
shall be published in an officially designated place at least thirty
(30) days before presentation of the amendments to the membership for
ratification.
9.3 the Bylaws may be amended by
a two-thirds majority vote of the voting membership, present or by
proxy, in open session at any annual meeting of the Polaris Users Group.
Article 10 Publications/Web Sites
10.1 all documents of the Polaris
Users Group determined to be of public nature by the Steering Committee
shall be made available in their most current form on the Polaris Users
Group Website.
10.2 proper dissemination to the
membership of proprietary Polaris Users Group documents shall be the
responsibility of the Steering Committee; and
10.3 the Steering Committee is
responsible for the official Polaris Users Group Website and in
authorizing all statements that appear therein.
10.4 distribution of information
to the membership may be accomplished by alternate methods.
Article 11: Commitments
11.1 the Polaris Users Group
shall be neither bound nor committed to any obligation, action or
statement, by an individual member, officer, committee, or other duly
constituted group, unless such commitment is approved in advance, in
writing by the Steering Committee.
11.2 the written approval of the
Treasurer and one other officer shall be required in those cases of
obligations that involve or potentially involve expenditure of the
Polaris Users Group financial resources.
11.3 a commitment, action or
statement approved by a simple majority of members voting in open
session at any Polaris Users Group regular meeting shall not be subject
to the preceding requirement for prior approval by a Steering Committee
member.
Article 12: Dissolution
12.1 In the event of dissolution, all assets, real and personal shall
be equally divided among all member institutions.
Article 13: Parliamentary
Authority
13.1 the latest edition of
Robert’s Rules of Order shall govern the Polaris Users Group in all
cases to which it is applicable and in which it is not inconsistent with
the Bylaws.
