TEACHING ENGLISH TO SPEAKERS OF OTHER LANGUAGES ASSOCIATION (TESOL Türkiye)
INTERNAL BYLAW
Functioning of the Board of Directors
Article 1- The members of the Board of Directors shall be elected to Office for a term of three (3) years. The maximum period of service on the Board of Directors is two consecutive terms (6 years). A member may seek re-nomination following two subsequent terms out of Office.
Article 2- The founding President shall remain in Office for three (3) years. However, henceforth the term of a president in Office shall be limited to one (1) year. The founding President and the President Elect selected by the first Board of Directors from amongst the members of the first Board of Directors shall automatically have seats on the second Board of Directors. Hereafter, the President Elect of the previous year will serve as President the following year. President Elects shall be elected by the Board of Directors through secret ballot and a simple majority shall be sought. The procedure shall be repeated each year.
Article 3- The Board of Directors shall meet once a month. These meetings shall be held virtually if meeting in person is not possible.
Article 4- Decisions by the Board of Directors shall be taken with the absolute majority vote of the members present at the meeting. The Board of Directors may convene with a minimum of three (3) members present; however, in this case, decisions shall require unanimity. Should there be fewer than three (3) members present at a meeting, the meeting shall be postponed to a future date.
Article 5- The members of the Board of Directors are obligated to serve in line with the mission, vision, and aims of the Association. Therefore, they cannot hold employment which requires them to participate in activities that conflict with or contradict the mission, vision, and aims of the Association or that create a conflict of interests. Should such a situation arise following a member’s election to the Board of Directors, this member shall resign.
Article 6- If there is a vacancy due to resignation on the Board of Directors, a substitute member shall be called to duty. The call shall be made in accordance with the number of votes received during elections at the General Assembly. If the substitute who received the highest vote declines, the call shall be made to the substitute in line.
Article 7- The Board of Directors shall present the Annual Performance Report of the Association to the members each year at the annual conference. They shall present the three-year Performance Report at the General Assembly.
Professional Councils
Article 8- Professional Councils are groups that provide the Association with support relevant to their areas of professional expertise so as to help the Association achieve its mission, vision and aims. The Board of Directors shall establish as many Professional Councils as deemed necessary based on results of data collected and the Association’s Strategic Plan. The Board of Directors may increase and/or decrease the number of Professional Councils as well as the number of members assigned to these councils as deemed necessary. Each Professional Council shall be coordinated by a member of the Board of Directors. The members of the Professional Councils shall be determined annually by the Board of Directors. Each Professional Council shall have its own bylaw specifying its individual principles and criteria for selection.
Functioning of the Supervisory Board
Article 9- All three (3) principal members of the Supervisory Board shall be present during auditing.
Article 10- The Supervisory Board shall complete its inspection and submit its report to the President of the Board of Directors at least fifteen (15) days prior to the annual conference by the end of each calendar year.
Article 11- If there is a vacancy due to resignation or other reasons on the Supervisory Board, substitute members shall be called to duty according to the number of votes each received during elections. The substitute who received the highest vote shall be called first. Should s/he decline, the call shall be made to the substitute in line.
Right to Membership and Membership Procedures
Article 12- Members who have paid their membership entrance fee and at least two consecutive annual membership fee shall be called ‘esteemed members’. Esteemed members may apply for membership to all the bodies of the Association. To become nominees for the Board of Directors, members must be esteemed members for at least 3 years.
Forms of Activity to Be Pursued by the Association and Rules of Procedure
Article 13- The professional activities to be organized by TESOL Türkiye, the description of each and the procedures to be followed for each are as follows.
a) Local Events
Local Events shall be organized upon proposals made by the members and the approval of the Board of Directors. The aims of these events may be to (a) bring together members working in relatively close cities, (b) form smaller and more effective task groups to work on common problems, (c) promote TESOL Türkiye, and (d) organize a workshop or focus group meetings on a specific topic. The rules of procedure for the organization of these events are set in the relevant guidelines.
b) Roadshows
These are professional support tours on specific topics and issues as determined and announced by the Board of Directors. Institutions that require help or assistance in the specified area/s apply. The rules of procedure for these support tours are set in the relevant guidelines.
c) Certificate Programs
TESOL Türkiye shall offer certificate programs and courses designed and delivered solo or in conjunction with other local or international organizations. These shall be announced to members in a timely manner. Such certificate programs and courses shall be designed on topics that are in line with the Association’s aims & strategies and proposed by the Research Professional Council. The dates, venue, and duration of these programs and courses shall be determined by the Board of Directors. These programs may be face-to-face or online. They may require a fee or be free of charge. Should a program require a fee and be accessible to non-member participants, member participants shall benefit from a discount as determined by the Board of Directors. At the end of each certificate program, participants shall receive a certificate on which there will exist the logo of the Association as well as the name, dates and total contact hours of the program. In jointly planned and delivered programs, the logos of both organizations shall appear on the certificate. The rules of procedure for certificate programs and courses are set in the relevant guidelines.
d) Conferences
TESOL in Turkey shall organize an annual international conference hosted by a different institution each year. The rules of procedure for these events are set in the relevant guidelines.