Today members of our chapter should have received the following email from our Secretary-Treasurer Cole Rosengren to approve a revised version of our bylaws based off of the SPJ national bylaws:

Greetings SPJ New England Members,

Since our new officers were elected last fall the SPJNE board has been working to update and streamline the chapter bylaws for the first time in more than 20 years.

On 1/22 the board voted to recommend adoption of these new bylaws. Now we need your vote to move forward. Please take a moment and reply to this email with a Yes or No vote by 6 p.m. EST on Thursday, February 9.

Attached, you will find a proposed draft of the new bylaw document. The existing bylaws are also attached for reference. Major changes include:

-Article II: Clarification of membership requirements; opens up access to more membership categories as recognized by national SPJ.
-Article IV: Details how meetings and programs will be run; opens meetings and programs to coverage; makes financial records and board minutes public to members in good standing.
-Article V: The position of immediate past president has been added and the the positions of secretary and treasurer have been combined.
-Article VI: Board of directors will consist of officers, plus four members elected to staggered terms.
-Article VII: Allows for electronic vote-gathering and sets October election date for officers and board members.
-Articles VIII-IX: Details removing officers or board members if needed and filling unexpired terms.
-Article XI: Creates a committee structure to encourage member involvement.
-Article XIV: Simplifies bylaw amendment process.
-Article XVI: Details the administration of SPJNE scholarship fund.
If you have any questions about what these changes mean, please feel free to contact us for clarification.

Second, a reminder that we’ll be co-hosting an event with the New England First Amendment Coalition on Thursday 2/2 about the new Massachusetts public records law. Click here for full details

We look forward to working with you on more chapter initiatives that will provide journalistic resources and promote press freedom in 2017.

Best,
Cole Rosengren, cdrosengren@gmail.com
Secretary-treasurer, SPJNE
207-939-3101

FormerBylaws1994
SPJNEProposedBylaws2017