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Constitution


MIDWEST COOPERATIVE EDUCATION AND INTERNSHIP ASSOCIATION CONSTITUTION

ARTICLE I Name

The name of the Association shall be “Midwest Cooperative Education Association” doing business as “Midwest Cooperative Education and Internship Association.”

ARTICLE II Definition of Cooperative Education and Internship

Cooperative Education and internship shall be defined as a process of education which formally integrates the student’s college studies with meaningful study‑related and/or career oriented work experiences.

ARTICLE III Purposes, Aims and Ideals

  1. The Association shall provide an organization for all colleges and universities, employers, students, and other individuals interested in cooperative education and internships within the Midwest area.
  2. The objectives of the Association shall be:
    1. To broaden interpretation and understanding of the significance and values of cooperative education and internships, especially as they pertain to the constituent organizational membership of the Midwest Cooperative Education and Internship Association.
    2. To strengthen the functioning of cooperative education and internships through active interchange of ideas and experience among employers, educators, students, and local, state, and federal leaders.
    3. To provide a source of information about cooperative education and internships to employers, educators, and students.
    4. To establish and maintain strong, working relationships with other related national, regional and state professional organizations.

ARTICLE IV Membership

Membership shall be open to all individuals interested in furthering the principles of cooperative education and internships for all colleges and universities, employers, students and other individuals interested in cooperative education and internships.

ARTICLE V Executive Committee and Board of Governors

  1. Administration of the Association
    1. The Board of Governors shall administer Association business. The Board of Governors shall consist of an Executive Committee, a Director elected from each state represented in the membership, Standing Committee Chairpersons approved by the Executive Committee, Special Committee Chairpersons appointed by the President, and ex-officio members.
    2. The Board of Governors may, designate an Executive committee which shall consist of President, President‑Elect, Immediate Past‑President, Secretary, Treasurer and Treasurer-Elect to exercise the powers of the Board of Governors when the Board is not in session. The Executive Committee shall not have the power to fill Board vacancies or to create or amend Association bylaws.
    3. The President‑Elect shall assume the office of President the following year.
    4. The Secretary shall, under the direction of the President, carry on the routine business of the Association and dispense appropriate information as needed.
    5. The Treasurer shall serve as the chief fiscal officer of the Association.
    6. The Treasurer-Elect shall support the Treasurer and will assume the office of the Treasurer the following year.
    7. Four members of the Executive Committee shall constitute a quorum.
    8. A majority of the Board of Governors shall constitute a house quorum.

ARTICLE VI Election of Officers

  1. The President‑Elect, Secretary, and Treasurer-Elect shall be elected for a term of one year by members of the Association.
  2. Members from each state represented in the MCEIA will elect their own state directors to be presented at the annual business meeting.
  3. The following states constitute the primary region from which state directors can be elected to the Board of Governors of the MCEIA: Illinois , Indiana , Iowa , Michigan , Minnesota , Missouri , Ohio and Wisconsin .
  4. A Nominating Committee consisting of three members of the Association shall be appointed by the Board of Governors, chaired by the Past-President by the second meeting of the Board following annual meeting of the Association.  In addition, each State Director shall submit to the Board of Governors one nominee from their respective state to serve on the Nominating Committee.
  5. The Nominating Committee shall present a slate of candidates to the Board of Governors no less than 60 days prior to the annual business meeting. Following Board approval of the slate, the election of officers will be conducted by mail and/or e-mail ballot no less than 30 days prior to the annual meeting. All regional members shall be entitled to vote. “Write‑in” candidates shall be permitted. Voting may be executed via electronic means.
  6. Officers of the Association shall take office immediately following the close of the annual business meeting.
  7. In the event that the President is unable to complete the elected term of office, the President‑Elect shall assume the office of the President for the balance of the term and for the succeeding year.
  8. In the event that any officer other than the President is unable to complete a term of office, the Board of Governors is empowered to appoint a successor for the balance of the term.

ARTICLE VII Meetings

  1. There shall be an annual meeting of the Association to be held during the annual conference.
  2. The annual meeting and all regular business meetings of the Association shall be conducted in accordance with accepted rules of parliamentary procedure.

ARTICLE VIII Finance

  1. The Association shall be a non‑profit unincorporated organization.
  2. Annual dues will be determined by the Board of Governors.

ARTICLE IX Committees

  1. The Board of Governors shall authorize Standing Committees to assure effective management of Association business. Special committees may be appointed at the discretion of the President. The President shall appoint chairs of all authorized committees
  2. All committees shall prepare written reports annually, to be submitted in advance of the annual meeting and filed by the Secretary as part of the permanent record of the Association.

ARTICLE X Amendments and Additions

  1. Changes to the Constitution or the Bylaws may be proposed by the Executive Committee, the Board of Governors or by any member of the MCEIA. The change(s) proposed by a member must be submitted in writing to the President who, in turn, shall submit the proposal to the Board of Governors for review. If the proposal is approved by the Board of Governors, it shall be submitted to the membership as provided in the paragraph immediately following. If the proposal is not approved by the Board of Governors the member may resubmit the proposal to the Board of Governors on a petition signed by at least five percent (5%) of the members of MCEIA. The Board of Governors will then be required to transmit it to the total membership for action without change.

Changes which are proposed as provided for in the above paragraph shall be mailed and/or e-mailed to the membership with an indication of the Board of Governor’s position within 30 days after the date of proposal or approval by the Board of Governors or the date of receipt of the petition. Ratification of the changes to the Constitution or Bylaws shall require a two‑thirds (2/3) favorable vote of the ballots returned within 30 days.  Voting may be executed via electronic means.

ARTICLE XI Bylaws

The Board of Governors shall maintain an active set of Bylaws regulating the business affairs of the Association.

ARTICLE XII Dissolution

No part of the net income of the MCEIA shall at any time inure to the benefit of any officer or member of the MCEIA or to any individual or corporation whatsoever. In the event of dissolution of the MCEIA or the discontinuance of its activities, its assets shall be donated to one or more such organizations as in the judgment of the Board of Governors or other managing body then in office will best use such assets to the promotion of the aims of MCEIA.

IV. MIDWEST COOPERATIVE EDUCATION AND INTERNSHIP ASSOCIATION BYLAWS

I. Membership

Section 1 Membership may be individual but not transferable, and shall consist of:

A.      College Members ‑ open to cooperative education and internship representatives from any regionally accredited post‑secondary educational institution who have an interest or primary responsibility in cooperative education and internships provided:

1.      The institution is located in the MCEIA regional area consisting of the states defined by the Constitution.

2.      The institution grants an associate or a baccalaureate degree.

B.     Employer Members ‑ open to representatives of employing organizations who have an involvement in cooperative education and internships, provided:

1.      Their organizations recruit and/or employ cooperative education and internship students from institutions located within the regional boundaries stipulated for college members in A.1. above.

C.  Non-Regional Members – open to employers, educators, or students with an internship or cooperative education role located outside the MCEIA region.

D.  Student Members –  open to academically enrolled representatives from any accredited post-secondary educational institution who have an interest in the field of career development provided:

1.  The institution grants an associate or a baccalaureate degree.

2.  The academically enrolled representative provides a student identification card showing student  status upon application for membership.

Section 2 The Board of Governors shall have the power to revoke the membership of any person.

Section 3 Life Member ‑ Members shall be granted Life Member status by the Board of Governors upon meeting the following criteria:

A.      The member shall have been a member for at least 15 years.

B.     The member shall be retired from active employment and request, or be nominated to Life Member status.

Life members shall not be required to pay dues and shall be permitted to register for the annual conference at a cost of 50 percent of the normal registration fee (not including dues and special event charges). The MCEIA membership chairperson shall contact Life Members annually to determine if the member wants to remain on the MCEIA mailing list.

II. Executive Committee/Board of Governors and Elections

Section 1 The business of the Association shall be conducted by an Executive Committee and a Board of Governors.

A.      The Executive Committee shall consist of six members: President, Past President, Treasurer and three members elected annually‑‑President Elect, Secretary and Treasurer-Elect.

B.     The Board of Governors shall consist of the Executive Committee and a Director from each state represented in the membership. In addition, Standing Committee chairpersons as approved by the Executive Committee, and Special Committee Chairpersons appointed by the President,  and ex-officio members shall serve on the Board of Governors.

Section 2 All members of the Board of Governors as well as members of the annual Nominating Committee must be members of MCEIA.

Section 3 There should be two nominees for each of the offices to be elected with consideration given to balance, as equally as possible, the representation from employers and from educators.

Section 4 The slate proposed by the Nominating Committee shall be presented to the Board of Governors at the summer meeting for approval.

Section 5 Newly elected members of the Board of Governors will assume office immediately following the close of the annual business meeting.

Section 6 The Board of Governors is empowered to bestow ex‑officio Status upon Midwest region representatives of the Cooperative Education and Internship Association (CEIA) subject to approval by their respective executive boards.

III. Meetings

Section 1 There shall be an annual meeting of the Association for the entire membership to be held during the annual conference.

Section 2 Only members and guests (as defined by the Executive Committee) shall attend MCEIA meetings.

Section 3 The annual meeting and all regular business meetings of the Association shall be conducted in accordance with accepted rules of parliamentary procedures.

Section 4 The Past‑President shall serve as parliamentarian at all Association meetings.

IV. Voting

Section 1 Only members in good standing shall be entitled to vote.

Section 2 The Nominating Committee shall coordinate the Association election process.

V. Finances

Section 1 The association shall be a non‑profit unincorporated organization. Annual membership dues will be determined by the Board of Governors.

Section 2 The annual budget will be prepared by the Treasurer or his/her assignee, and approved by the Board of Governors at the first board meeting of the operational year.

Section 3 The fiscal year for the Association begins on the first day of January in any given calendar year and ends on the next 31st day of December.

VI. Committees

Section 1 The President, in cooperation with the Board of Governors, will establish Special Committees in selected areas to strengthen the objectives of the Association. The number of Special Committees will be limited to ten (10).

Section 2 The chairperson of each Special Committee shall be selected by the President from the members who have accepted appointments to the Special Committee.

Section 3 The President may appoint any member of the Association, except the President, to chair any Special Committee of the Association.

Section 4 The Board of Governors shall establish Standing Committees in the following areas and attempt to maintain their on‑going vitality:

A.      Conference (Current Year)

B.     Membership Care

C.     Communication

D.     Nominating

Section 5 The Past President shall always serve as the Chairperson of the Nominating Committee during the year of his/her term as Past‑President.

Section 6 Ex‑Officio members of the Board of Governors will include:

A.      Future Conference Chair (Beyond current year)

B.     Organizational Liaisons – CEIA

VII. Star Fund

The MCEIA Star Fund supports the educational and philanthropic purposes of MCEIA through effective fundraising and stewardship of financial resources.

The purpose for which the Star Fund is formed and for which it shall exist is to operate solely and exclusively as a charitable and educational organization, not-for-profit, with the power to administer, hold, invest and reinvest such funds that may be received by it in gifts, bequests, grants, contributions or otherwise, which together with the earnings shall be used exclusively for charitable and educational purposes or in the administration thereof; and particularly for scholarships, student aid, research funds, and assistance to students in the development of educational work or and for the benefit of MCEIA.

You can download the MCEIA Constitution in a PDF format here.